Dear Neighbors,

I held a press conference in Red Bank this week with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel to call for urgent congressional action to extend funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program. The program provides eligible households with a discount on their monthly internet bills. Currently, 338,000 New Jersey families are benefiting from the program, including nearly 24,000 households in my Congressional district. To date, New Jersey families have received more than $151 million from the program, saving $8.3 million each month.

These days, high-speed internet is not a luxury – it’s a necessity. Americans depend on the internet to apply for jobs, run their small businesses, study for school, and connect with family and friends. The Affordable Connectivity Program has been a gamechanger for those struggling with rising costs and a tremendous step forward in our ongoing fight to connect every American to the internet.

If Congress does not act, this widely successful program is expected to run out of funding this spring, which could raise internet costs and may cause some families to lose reliable internet service entirely. I support the bipartisan Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act that would provide $7 billion to extend the program beyond this spring. The digital divide will only grow larger if Congress fails to extend funding for the program in the coming months. We simply cannot allow this to happen. Read more here

New Federal Funding to Support New Jersey’s Water Infrastructure

New Jersey will receive $157 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to support upgrades to the state’s water infrastructure, including over $54 million for New Jersey’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and over $102 million for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. The state can use the funding to replace lead service lines, address PFAS contamination, maintain adequate stormwater infrastructure to manage flood impacts from climate change, and upgrade water treatment plants.

As Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee last Congress, I fought to include this funding in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law so that families don’t have to worry about safe drinking water. I'm glad to see that law is continuing to deliver on the promise to improve our state's infrastructure, and I'll keep fighting to ensure that all our communities have access to safe water. Read more here

More Relief for Student Loan Borrowers

This week, President Biden announced the approval of $1.2 billion in student debt cancellation for almost 153,000 borrowers currently enrolled in the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) repayment plan. The Biden-Harris Administration has now approved nearly $138 billion in student debt cancellation for almost 3.9 million borrowers. Higher education should be a pathway to a better life – not a lifetime financial burden. To learn more about the SAVE plan, visit studentaid.gov/save.

Click here to visit my website or call my offices directly if you have questions or need help with a federal agency:

Middlesex County: 732-249-8892

Monmouth County: 732-571-1140

Sincerely,