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Friends, 

I hope that you and your families are healthy and safe, and that you enjoyed a relaxing July 4th weekend. It has been a busy few weeks in Washington and here in Iowa, so I wanted to share a brief update on some of my legislation that advanced out of the House this week and remind you of some important deadlines coming up!

One Legislative Week, Six Bills Passed!

For more information on my six bills that were passed by the House last week, click here.

Last week, I’m proud to report the U.S House of Representatives voted to advance six different pieces of legislation I wrote and sponsored over the past few months. These bills cover a wide range of solutions that will help Iowa – including reducing the costs of health care, investing in rural broadband, and protecting renters and homeowners during the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The bills are: 

• The Fair Indexing for Health Care Affordability Act, which will reduce out-of-pocket health care costs by reversing a decision that is projected to increase higher insurance premiums for at least 7.3 million Americans.
• The Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act, which is a $100 billion investment in rural broadband expansion that my colleagues from the House Rural Broadband Task Force and I introduced last month.
• The Manufactured Housing Community Preservation Act, which I introduced in January to help preserve the affordability of manufactured and mobile home communities in Iowa.
• The Protect Rural Renters Act, which provides $309 million in assistance for elderly and low-income Americans in rural areas through USDA rental housing programs.
• The Coronavirus Housing Counseling Support Act, which funds $100 in housing counseling assistance to help keep Iowa renters and homeowners in their homes.
• The National Climate Bank Act, which would leverage $20 billion of capital to support more than $500 billion of investment in clean energy and emissions reduction projects.

Last Tuesday, the House voted unanimously voted to include my legislation to keep manufactured housing communities affordable in the Moving Forward Act. Watch the moment I offered the amendment here.

With New PPP data, An Update to the Iowa COVID-19 Response Tracker

On Monday, the Small Business Administration released new data that provided details on Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans approved for Iowa’s small businesses to help them survive the COVID-19 pandemic.

This data showed that more than $1.085 billion in PPP loans were approved for businesses in Iowa’s Third Congressional District – and that the loans helped protect at least 120,000 jobs in our communities.

Transparency for taxpayer funding that is being used to fight the effects of COVID-19 is essential. I added this data to my Iowa COVID-19 Response Tracker so that all Iowans can see where taxpayer dollars are going to help during this crisis.

You can find more than $10 billion in tracked spending here.

There’s still time!: If you still want to apply for a PPP loan, our bipartisan legislation was signed into law last week that extends the deadline for a first-time applicant to August 8th. Contact your local lender today!

Honoring ‘the Mother of 4-H’ in Clarinda

Jessie Field Shambaugh’s grandson, Seth Watkins, joined me in Clarinda to help unveil my bill to rename the Post Office in her honor

One of my favorite parts of representing Iowa is the opportunity to honor truly remarkable Iowans for their service and achievements in our state and across the country.

This week, I commemorated the work of one such Iowa legend – Jessie Field Shambaugh – for her work as a longtime educator in Page County and her legacy as the ‘Mother of 4-H’ by introducing a bill to rename the Clarinda Post Office in her honor.

The values of service and community engagement that I carry with me today I owe in part to my time as a 4-H kid. ‘Miss Jessie’ pioneered the 4-H legacy and logo right here in Iowa, laying the foundation for millions of children to learn essential life skills and values.

Born in Shenandoah in 1881, Shambaugh had a distinguished career as an educator, school superintendent for Page County, author, radio contributor, and mother of two. Learn more about Jessie Field Shambaugh here.

Tax Day is Coming! – July 15th is the New Filing Deadline

Earlier this year, the IRS agreed to delay the deadline for 2019 tax filings and other tax deadlines until July 15th, 2020 – which is now less than a week away.

If you need more time to prepare and file your federal tax return, you can apply for an extension of time to file until October 15. To get an extension, taxpayers must estimate their tax liability on the extension form and pay any amount due.

For more information on extensions, click here.

If you are having issues with the IRS regarding your tax status or a missing economic impact payment, contact my office.

Wishing you and your family good health this summer,

Cindy