From our seasonal tourism industry to supporting our workforce, immigration plays a critical role in New Hampshire's economy.

There’s no question that our immigration system is broken. It’s been broken for decades, and the situation at our borders is unacceptable. For too long, politicians in Washington have thrown up their hands and politicized the issue instead of rolling up their sleeves and doing the hard work of finding long-term, bipartisan solutions. 

Real solutions are within reach. We can increase funding and recruitment of Border Patrol agents to restore order. We can improve technology at our ports of entry to strengthen drug interdiction. We can expand the number of immigration judges to address the growing backlog of refugees and give fast, fair, and final answers to asylum seekers. These commonsense steps will have a meaningful impact.

My framework outlines 10 core principles to fix our broken immigration system in a bipartisan manner.

Any immigration reform must recognize that this isn’t just an issue on the southern border. Immigration impacts all of us — including right here in New Hampshire. Here are just a few of the ways legal immigration benefits New Hampshire:

• Immigration reform is essential to the future of New Hampshire’s economy and workforce. Small businesses, which comprise 99% of all state businesses, rely on temporary and foreign workers to operate. Yet, there are now only 28 available workers for every 100 open jobs.

• As more Granite Staters age out of the workforce and fewer enter it, businesses are left without the people they need to operate. By creating a new temporary non-immigrant visa category for year-round work in industries experiencing shortages, as outlined in our immigration framework, we can provide much-needed stability for our communities.

• Immigration reform has far-reaching benefits for our tourism industries. When businesses only operating for 12 or 16 weeks a year can’t find the workers they need, they make cuts to stay afloat. By enacting commonsense, bipartisan changes to our immigration system, we can help small businesses find the workforce they need without disruptions.

• Family-owned farms are vital to our regional economy and food supply chains and have relied on seasonal migrant workers to do everything from planting to picking apples for generations. Commonsense reforms to systems like the H-2A visa program can ensure New Hampshire farms have the labor they need to thrive.

You may have seen news coverage of a major cyberattack in February that crippled Change Healthcare, the largest health care payment system in the country. This attack against Change Healthcare has had a severe and wide-reaching effect across the nation.

I sent a letter alongside Congressman Chris Pappas calling on the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to put forth a plan to help health care systems navigate this crisis and prevent future attacks.

My office will continue to monitor the situation closely, and I will update you as more information becomes available.

You can read the full letter Congressman Pappas and I sent here.

Our veterans sacrifice so much for our country — we must give them the support they need to thrive when they return to civilian life.

Our veterans and service members represent the best our country has to offer. It’s essential they can access good-paying, in-demand jobs when they transition back to civilian life.

I was proud to introduce legislation to expand opportunities for veterans to get long-term, rewarding manufacturing jobs by boosting veteran-focused training opportunities for those transitioning from military to civilian life. 

This legislation makes critical investments in skills-based training and apprenticeship programs to help grow our American-made manufacturing sectors and ensure our nation’s veterans are set up for success with rewarding careers at the end of their service. A win-win for our economy and our service members!

You can read more about this legislation here.

File Your Taxes Directly with the IRS: Exciting news for New Hampshire! Eligible Granite Staters can save time and money by filing their taxes directly with the IRS for free!

You can learn more about direct filing and whether you qualify here.

New PACT Act Benefits: American service members who served in combat zones after 9/11 or were exposed to toxins while training in the U.S. are eligible for NEW VA health care beginning March 5. I was proud to help pass the PACT Act to expand benefits for our veterans, and will always fight to ensure they get the high-quality health care they deserve.

Learn more about these benefits and if you are eligible here.

To stay updated on my work in Congress and around the Granite State and for important information and resources, like my page on Facebook and follow me on Twitter.

I hope you have a safe and wonderful weekend!

Be bold, be brave, be kind.

Sincerely,

Annie