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Friends, 

We just passed the 100th day of my colleagues and I in Congress working with the Biden Administration to bring relief and new opportunities back to Iowans. 

I wanted to take a moment to look back at how far we’ve come, and share some of what you can look for from Congress in the next 100 days.

I highlighted the 100-day milestone earlier this week. Watch here.

Of course, our biggest gains have come from the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. In January, thousands of Americans were dying from COVID-19 every single day. Now, the weekly average is less than one-third of that, and we have more than 106 million Americans who are fully vaccinated.

My colleagues and I in Congress also passed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which put $1,400 checks directly in Iowans’ bank accounts and made sure our small businesses, schools, restaurants, and farmers had access to capital so they had a better chance of staying afloat.

Now, we’re working on the biggest investment in infrastructure since World War II to provide working families with good-paying jobs to not only meet their basic needs, but also to provide them some financial security and allow them to invest in their future.

Here’s what we have to look forward to in our next 100 days:

Good-Paying Jobs for Iowans

I stopped by Hiland Bakery in the Highland Park/Oak Park neighborhood of Des Moines recently to talk to folks about how we can revitalize local business districts and grow new opportunities for Iowans.

More than 70,000 Iowans are unemployed and more than twice that report they do not have enough food to eat. 

This is unacceptable and these numbers will not improve until we give folks the tools and training they need to thrive in the modern economy.

President Biden’s American Jobs Plan, which he unveiled last month, will create 19 million good-paying jobs so folks will not only be able to meet their basic needs, but provide themselves with some financial security to invest in their retirement. 

As I visit Iowans across the 16 counties in Iowa’s Third Congressional District, I hear stories from parents whose children have moved far away because they couldn’t find good-paying jobs here. I’ve also heard from former residents who want to move back and raise their families in their hometowns but can’t find jobs that will support them.

The American Jobs Plan will ensure folks living in all corners of our state have access to jobs that will support them and their families for generations to come.

Improvements to Iowa’s Infrastructure

Last month, I held a roundtable with Iowa business, education, community and labor leaders to talk about what an infrastructure bill would mean for Iowa.

The American Jobs Plan would invest more than $2 trillion in repairing and revitalizing American infrastructure.

Renovating existing infrastructure is also a big piece of this plan. We need to make sure existing buildings can be used by businesses by providing them with high-speed broadband and access to a reliable, clean electrical grid that’s safe from cyber-attacks and storms. These commonsense fixes will attract new business to small towns and communities that have seen underinvestment in the past.

This infrastructure investment will also fix our roads and bridges, expand our public transit systems, and ensure our future generations have access to the things they need to participate in the modern economy.

Relief for Families

The wealthiest Americans have continued to get further and further ahead during the COVID-19 pandemic, while so many others have been struggling just to keep a roof over their heads. Congress has begun work on President Biden’s American Families Plan, which will extend key tax benefits for middle class Americans and their families.

These benefits, including the Child Tax Credit, the Earned Income Tax Credit, and the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit, will provide direct relief to Iowa’s families that need it most. The plan will also make sure working families spend no more than seven percent of their income on child care.

We’ve come so far during President Biden’s first 100 days in office, but we have so much more we can do. If you’ve felt like you’ve been left behind in recent years, I want you to know that I’m here for you. I’m going to fight to get good-paying jobs back here to Iowa, and to make sure everyone has the skills they need to work those jobs. 

I’m also going to continue my fight to secure quality, affordable child care right here in Iowa so everyone has a chance to earn a living. And I’m going to fight for our farmers and our rural communities to make sure they have access to the infrastructure they need to create more opportunity to grow and thrive well into the future.

As Congress continues to work to improve things like infrastructure and to provide new pathways so Iowans can learn, work, raise their families, and create a good future for themselves in communities across Iowa, reach out and let me know the best ways I can help you. We’re all in this together.

Be well, 

Cindy