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Dear Friend,
Back home in eastern Connecticut after a busy week in Washington, and here with a quick update on some of our work—including a long-overdue honor for a WWII veteran from Columbia, an update on removing spent nuclear fuel from Waterford and Haddam, and more.
A Long-Overdue Medal to Recognize a WWII Hero
This past weekend, I had the honor to present a long-overdue Congressional Gold Medal to WWII Merchant Marine veteran and Columbia resident Russell Inzinga.
Russell was one of nearly 250,000 Merchant Mariners who served during WWII. They provided a vital service to the U.S. Military and our allies, transporting troops through dangerous, German U-boat infested and air-patrolled waters. Russell joined the Merchant Marines in 1942 and served aboard the E.B. Alexander for four years. The crew of the Alexander worked hard to get U.S. troops to Scotland in preparation for the invasion of German-controlled Northern Europe, brought Canadian troops to Sicily through German plane bombing in the Mediterranean Sea, and then returned British troops home from the Italian island. Russell and all Merchant Marines undertook one of the most dangerous missions in WWII. The Merchant Mariners suffered a casualty rate of 1 in 26 – twice as high as the U.S. Navy. Their courageous service was recognized by our allies and perhaps their strongest advocate President Franklin Roosevelt. In the words of FDR, they “delivered the goods”. Still, Merchant Marines were denied critical benefits when they returned home.
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| On Saturday, Rep. Courtney presented a Congressional Gold Medal bronze replica to WWII Merchant Marine veteran and Columbia resident Russell Inzinga. |
In 1944, Congress shockingly excluded the Merchant Marines from the G.I. Bill, and for four decades they were also denied VA benefits. In Willimantic, Russell campaigned for proper recognition of Merchant Mariners at the annual Memorial Day parade. He bought a plaque and worked with the government to have it installed in Memorial Park on Main Street, ensuring the brave service and hard work of World War II Merchant Marines would be properly remembered with other service branches. In 2020, we passed the Merchant Mariners of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act in Congress, and last weekend, 101-year-old Russell Inzinga finally received his medal from the nation he served 80 years prior.
In May, after Congress passed the WWII Merchant Marines Congressional Gold Medal Act, Rep. Courtney helped host a bipartisan ceremony to present the Congressional Gold Medal to all WWII Merchant Marines. Click here to watch Courtney's remarks.
Another Step Toward Removing Spent Nuclear Fuel from Eastern CT
We need an “all of the above” approach when it comes to expanding domestic energy production and lowering costs—that includes nuclear energy. Nuclear is going to be an important piece of the puzzle, it already benefits our state from the Dominion Millstone Power Plant in Waterford, but if we’re going to ramp-up production we need to find a new interim storage site for the spent nuclear rods currently stored in places like Haddam and Waterford. This material was never mean to be stored there for the long-term, and now, thanks to funding I helped secure in recent years, the process to remove it is finally getting started.
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| On Tuesday, Courtney and the bipartisan Spent Nuclear Fuel Caucus met with Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Chris Hanson to discuss the latest on finding new interim storage sites for spent nuclear fuel |
I'm a member of the bipartisan Spent Nuclear Fuel Caucus, and I’ve been working in Congress to kickstart this process for a few years. This week, using funding we authorized in 2021, the Department of Energy announced that it’s making $16 million in resources available to communities who are interested in hosting and managing these materials. The process will take some time, but this is an important step forward for our towns. I’m proud to be working with my colleagues on both sides on the aisle to secure funding for this process at the DOE. The wheels are moving, and we’ll keep working on the bipartisan caucus as it continues.
My office and I keep in regular touch with the decommissioned CT Yankee plant in Haddam and the Dominion Millstone plant in Waterford. I visited both this spring to provide them with updates on the Department of Energy’s work to find interim storage sites. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm joined me on my visit to Waterford and made clear that the Department of Energy is committed to locating interim storage sites and removing spent nuclear fuel from eastern Connecticut.
New Assistance to Firefighters Grants for Several Groton Fire Departments
Earlier this month, we announced that the City of Groton has been awarded a new federal Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) totaling more than $700,000 – the largest AFG award in our region since 2001. These new funds will support several local fire stations, including the City of Groton, the Center Groton Fire District, the Groton Long Point Fire Association, the Mystic Fire District, the Noank Fire District, the Old Mystic Fire Department, and the Poquonnock Bridge Fire District. With the new AFG award, fire departments in Groton will be able to upgrade their emergency communications system and sync-up with our state-of-the-art statewide system—which includes Next-Generation 9-1-1 services (NG911), the Connecticut Land Mobile Radio Network, enhanced communications frequency coordination for public safety, and more.
This AFG award will also benefit the Mystic River Ambulance Association and the Groton Ambulance Association. The new emergency comms system is going to mean better communication between emergency services in the Groton area, and will also be helpful for communication in any large-scale emergency response events—firefighters in Groton will now be able to communicate on the statewide system with other towns. This is going to help first responders do their jobs better and more effectively, and you can click here to read what Groton firefighters are saying about the new AFG grants.
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| Last week, Rep. Courtney visited the Poqquonock Bridge Fire Department to receive an update on how two recently awarded Assistance to Firefighters Grants will help them do their jobs protecting Groton. |
I visited the Poquonnock Bridge Fire Department last week to catch up on the new funding. In addition to receiving the AFG award to upgrade their emergency communications system, they earned another AFG award recently to help purchase new hydraulic rescue equipment – also known as the “jaws of life”. The station’s old equipment required large extra components to operate and takes multiple people to carry to a crash site. The new “jaws of life” will be a single piece, carried by one first responder. Big thanks to Fire Chief Timothy Driscoll, Deputy Chief Jeff Douchette, Captain Evan DeGaetano, and the entire team of firefighters at the Poquonnock Bridge Fire Department for having me out and showing me how the AFG funds will be put to use!
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| The Poquonnock Bridge Fire Department’s old “jaws of life” has two large components and needs to carried to the site of a crash by two firefighters. The new equipment they will purchase will be a single piece – operated by a one firefighter. |
These new AFG awards in Groton come on the heels of over $800,000 in AFG grants I announced earlier this month – heading to five fire departments in Chester, Preston, New London, Norwich, and Safford. Just like in Groton, these grants will allow the departments to purchase new, essential equipment to improve public safety and firefighter safety. Read more about those here.
An Important Reminder for Servicemembers & Veterans with Student Loans
This week, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen Hicks issued a reminder to active duty servicemembers and veterans with student loans: they should apply for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program before changes to the program expire at the end of October.
The limited PSLF waiver put in place by the Department of Education has rejuvenated the loan forgiveness program. Under the waiver, servicemembers’ entire duration of their deployment counts toward the eligibility requirements for loan forgiveness under PSLF even if the loans were on a deferment or forbearance rather than in active repayment. In 2021, I introduced the Recognizing Military Service in PSLF Act to make this change. Later that year, the Department of Education followed suit, officially including it in the limited waiver. For active duty servicemembers and veterans with student loans to take advantage, they need to apply for PSLF no later than October 31st.
The changes made to PSLF in 2021 by the Department of Education are estimated to bring relief to more than 550,000 American nurses, teachers, first responders, servicemembers, and other public servants with student loans. Under the limited PSLF waiver that borrowers must submit by October 31, all prior payments will count toward PSLF, regardless of loan program or payment plan. I’ve worked in bipartisan fashion and introduced legislation to make these changes permanent. For now, it’s important for the public servants who improve our communities in so many ways to take advantage of the limited waiver before it expires at the end of next month. Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks for helping spread the word about these important benefits for our servicemember.
Thanks as always for reading my update. If we can be of any assistance, don’t hesitate to give my Norwich office a call at (860) 886-0139. Have a great weekend!
Sincerely,
Joe Courtney
Member of Congress
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