|
Dear Friend,
It's Joe Courtney. After a busy week in Congress and eastern Connecticut, I’m here with an update on the latest news. As always, thanks for starting your weekend here with me.
New Housing Funding in Coventry
Good news for Coventry. Last Friday, I visited Orchard Hill Estates to see firsthand how a new $2.5 million federal Community Development Block Grant awarded to the Town of Coventry will be used to improve the 80-apartment unit housing community for seniors and families.
 |
| Pictured: Laurie Bradley, Executive Director, Coventry Housing Authority; Sharon Boisvert, Resident Service Coordinator, Coventry Housing Authority; Marilyn Barrette, Secretary/Treasurer, Coventry Housing Authority |
The Community Development Block Grant program is appropriated annually by Congress and distributed through the Department of Housing and Urban Development. After the Trump Administration attempted to zero-out funding for the program, we successfully maintained funding in the 2026 budget through bipartisan negotiations.
The long-needed improvements, which include adding more parking, replacing heat pumps, addressing drainage issues, and more, will benefit Orchard Hill Estates residents for years to come. This is an example of why maintaining federal support for local housing projects is so critical.
On the same day that I visited Orchard Hill Estates, the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act officially became law despite President Trump’s pointless refusal to sign it.
Eastern Connecticut needs more quality and affordable housing supply to meet demand and lower costs. This bill, which has huge support in the homebuilding industry and from housing advocates, is a rare bipartisan breakthrough to clear pathways to new housing construction nationwide.
In fact, the 21st Century Road to Housing Act recognizes the huge benefit of Community Development Block Grants, like the $2.5M million that will go toward improvements at Orchard Hill Estates, and the bill expands allowed uses for the grants in future years.
Strengthening the U.S.-Australia Alliance
On Monday, I had the honor of welcoming an Australian Parliament delegation to the United State into my Washington office. The group included Australian Speaker of the House Milton Dick, Members of the Australian Parliament. With Australian Ambassador to the U.S. Greg Moriarty, we discussed the work ahead to advance AUKUS, particularly strengthening our submarine industrial base in both nations.
 |
| Pictured: Hon Zaneta Mascarenhas MP, Senator James Paterson, Senator Susan McDonald, Senator Jonathon Duniam, Congressman Joe Courtney, Hon Milton Dick MP, Hon Alison Penfold MP, Senator Raff Ciccone, Ambassador Greg Moriarty |
Then, on Wednesday, as Co-Chair of the Congressional Friends of Australia Caucus, I was honored to speak at the Australian Embassy during a reception commemorating the United States’ 250th anniversary.
Our alliance is built on shared democratic values and a longstanding commitment to peace and security in the Indo-Pacific. Today, the U.S.-Australia alliance is more important than ever.
While Americans Endure High Costs, the President Delivers an Address on a Six Year Old Election
This week, President Trump unilaterally escalated his war of choice with Iran. We are over four months into his war, still without a clear endgame. The American public have paid over $69 billion in added energy costs due to the war, according a tracker by Brown University. This week’s escalation is only going to make the economic situation worse for Americans.
Last night, while Americans are enduring higher costs due to his war and high tariffs, President Trump delivered a nationally televised address to obsess about an election that happened six years ago.
The results of the 2020 election were investigated by President Trump's own intelligence officials and were litigated repeatedly by state and federal courts and Congressional committees with no verified evidence of tampering that would have changed the outcome. Despite all the hype that preceded the address, no specific examples from the declassified material, of direct voting interference was actually included.
The people of eastern Connecticut would rather have their President focus on the cost of living struggles they are enduring right now because of his war with Iran and his high tariffs as opposed to focusing on a conspiracy theory that has no basis in reality.
It’s time to move on from the 2020 election, Mr. President – the vast majority of Americans you are supposed to serve did a long time ago.
During his address, President Trump continued his demands for the SAVE Act, a bill which has been discredited over and over again as a federal takeover of our nation’s elections that the Constitution in Article I Section 4 explicitly prohibits.
The President’s SAVE Act demands are one of the reasons why the House and Senate are not getting basic work done, preventing passage of a defense bill and annual appropriations bills. For an explainer on why I strongly oppose the SAVE Act, watch this video.
Fighting Against Harmful Student Loan Policies
Student loan defaults have hit record highs in 2026. Of the 42 million student loan borrowers in the United States, 1 in 10 are in default and 1 in 4 are behind in payments.
This is a crisis that will have long-term effects on the entire U.S. economy. It’s being driving by Secretary Linda McMahon’s dismantling of the Department of Education, and unfortunately, the Big Ugly Bill's (H.R. 1’s) impacts on student loan limit and student loan repayment plans will aggravate the trend of defaults.
On Wednesday, in a House Education and Workforce Committee hearing, I spoke out against these harmful policies. The student loan crisis is worsening the economic distress that a large swath of Americans, particularly younger generations, are experiencing.
10,000 New Shipbuilders: the 21st Century Arsenal of Democracy
The historic announcement this month that 10,000 people have graduated from southern New England’s shipbuilding training programs in the last eight years is a milestone of national importance.
This week, I wrote an op-ed on the celebration of the milestone that I joined this month, hosted by the Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance with U.S. Navy Leadership, Electric Boat, and local officials to cheer on the these new hires, and the work that the next generation of shipbuilders is undertaking to rebuild our nation’s undersea fleet.
Read here in CT Mirror.
Supporting Patients Denied Health Care Coverage
One of the most disturbing trends in health care is the rising number of claim denials that patients seeking urgently needed, medically necessary treatment are left with.
On Thursday, I introduced the CLINIC Assistance Act, a bill to establish a grant program to help law schools set up consumer advocate programs where patients can receive no-cost legal assistance with their insurance claim appeals.
By establishing this program, we can provide American patients, at no expense, with the expertise – and people – on their side when they’re wrongfully denied coverage.
Protecting America’s Workers
Thanks to the United Steelworkers whose members - including some from CT - were on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to advocate for my legislation, the Protecting America’s Workers Act, which would make overdue updates to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to strengthen our nation’s workplace safety laws.
 |
| Pictured: Roxanne D. Brown, International President, The United Steelworkers |
It has been more than 50 years since Congress passed the original OSH Act Signed into law by Richard Nixon. It’s time to update our laws to make sure workers can safely return home after a day on the job.
Joining Willimantic’s 3rd Thursday Street Fest
Yesterday, I joined Willimantic’s 3rd Thursday Street Fest, where I got to catch up with local nonprofits, small businesses, and community members.
I enjoyed hearing from the Last Green Valley, Access Health CT, and the new Willimantic Book Joint, and more organizations about the important work they are doing to strengthen our communities, and meeting with local first responders and law enforcement officers.
It was great to hear directly from the people of Willimantic about the issues that matter most to them.
Apply for a Fall Internship
Applications for the Fall 2026 Internship Program in both my DC and Norwich Offices are now open! Students can apply on my website courtney.house.gov/internships.
Thank you for taking some time to read my update. If my office can be of any assistance, do not hesitate to call us at (860) 886-0139.
Sincerely,
Joe Courtney
Member of Congress
|
