Dear Friend, 

After a busy week in eastern Connecticut, I'm down in Washington where we just passed the Inflation Reduction Act. Here with an initial update on that, and a few more updates on our work this week.

Sending the Inflation Reduction Act to the President's Desk

On Friday, I was back in Washington to help pass the Inflation Reduction Act, and send it to the White House for signature. This a solid bill to cut drug prices for seniors on Medicare, cap the price of insulin at $35 per month, and reduce energy costs by investing in our clean energy sector – all while lowering the federal deficit by creating a tax system that is fairer for average Americans. Check out a video below to hear more about how the Inflation Reduction Act will help people in eastern Connecticut.

Click here to watch Rep. Courtney provide a comprehensive breakdown of the Inflation Reduction Act.

There's been a lot of misdirection surrounding the Inflation Reduction Act, but the bottom line is that it’s going to benefit seniors, families, farmers, and so many of our small businesses and eastern CT communities. This bill lowers drug costs for seniors by finally giving Medicare the authority to negotiate lower drug costs from drug manufacturers, a proven policy that will strengthen the solvency of the Medicare Trust Fund. It invests in new incentives for farmers, homeowners, and small businesses to cut energy costs with cleaner technology. And, importantly, it ensures these provisions are paid for while reducing the deficit—a fact that has been verified by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, the highly respected Committee for a Responsible Budget, and by multiple former Treasury Secretaries from both Republican and Democratic Administrations.

We’ll be providing a lot more updates on the Inflation Reduction Act in the weeks to come. For now, you can check out an FAQ and Resource Page on my website, and you can give my office a call with any questions you might have.

A New Class of Eastern CT Shipbuilders

Congratulations to an outstanding class of new eastern Connecticut shipbuilders! Last Thursday night, we celebrated a new graduating class of carpenters, pipefitters, metal fabricators, and others who successfully completed EB’s Apprenticeship Program over the past 2 years. They worked hard for this, and now they’re at the outset of high-skill, in-demand careers at the Groton Shipyard that support our U.S. Navy and provide a great way for life for workers and their families.

Earlier this month, Rep. Courtney attended a graduation ceremony for carpenters, pipefitters, metal fabricators, and others who successfully completed EB's Apprenticeship Program over the past 2 years

We focus a lot on our support for apprenticeship programs and workforce development through bills like the NDAA, the annual budget, and others – and this is where that support goes, to help people go after new opportunities and to grow our manufacturing workforce.

Working with a Small-Business to Secure Federal Support

I was in the Quiet Corner for several meetings on Tuesday, and I had a chance to stop by Matthew’s Catering Company in Plainfield – a chef-owned, full-service professional catering business that also operates an excellent dine-in market. Matthew’s Catering was opened over 15 years ago by Owner and Head Chef Matt Johnson, and today they’ve become a top-notch small business serving delicious food at all sorts of events, from weddings, to conferences, and more. They also started offering takeout and curbside pick-up during COVID, which really took off.

Matt Johnson is an eastern Connecticut native—he says that his career began at age 15, while he was a student at Grasso Southeastern Technical High School for Culinary Arts—and he and his business are known as outstanding community partners in Plainfield. Matthew’s Catering regularly provides food for community events like Season to Ride, a motorcycle fundraiser for U.S. veterans, and when he’s not serving food all around eastern Connecticut, Matt can be found coaching youth soccer—he’s trained up some scholarship-level players!

On Tuesday, Rep. Courtney visited Matthew's Catering Company in Plainfield, a small business that worked with his office to receive the Employee Retention Credit from the IRS that they qualified for

During our visit, we caught up on an issue that my office helped Matthew’s Catering resolve earlier this year. My team assists all sorts of people and small businesses in CT-02 with issues regarding federal agencies, and when Matthew’s Catering called us about trouble receiving an Employee Retention Credit from the IRS that they qualified for, we were ready to help. We took the issue over on their behalf, and after a few calls from our IRS Casework Manager, Gene Tewksbury, Matt Johnson and his team were notified that the issue was resolved. Matthew’s Catering is an eastern Connecticut success story, they are going to keep making a great name for themselves, and we are proud to help support their work.

The PACT Act is Signed Into Law

More great news this week. Finally, the Honoring Our PACT Act has been signed into law by the President. There has been intense interest in this bill from Veterans Service Organizations across the Second District. While it was still awaiting final passage in the Senate, my team and I stopped by the Enfield Veterans Advisory Council to provide them with an update and hear their thoughts.

Recently, Rep. Courtney met with Enfield Veterans Advisory Council to provide an update on the Honoring Our PACT Act and hear their thoughts on the VA reform bill – now signed into law

The PACT Act ensures that veterans who served in the Gulf War and in the post-9/11 era will not have to go through the same long and unfair process that denied Vietnam veterans care at the VA for illnesses contracted from toxic exposure. The bill adds 23 new presumptive conditions for burn puts and other toxic exposures. It also builds on the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act to expand the presumptions of exposure to toxic substances for veterans who served in locations beyond Vietnam – including Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Guam or America Samoa, and Johnston Atoll – effective October 1st, 2022. In Enfield, there was also interest in the PACT Act adding hypertension to the list of Agent Orange presumed conditions – effective October 1st, 2026. Vietnam veterans who are 85 years or older, homeless, or terminally ill will be eligible immediately for these changes in coverage.

Thanks as always for taking the time to read my update. If we can be of any assistance, don't hesitate to reach out to my Norwich office at (860) 886-0139. Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,

Joe Courtney
Member of Congress

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