December 2007

110th Congress; First Steps

 

Dear Friend,

As the year draws to a close, I wanted to highlight some of the major accomplishments of the 110th Session of Congress. We've taken important first steps toward ending the war, as well as actions on other matters that speak volumes about the kind of country we want to be:

Supporting our Troops - Getting out of Iraq

• I co-authored legislation requiring the Secretary of Defense to report to Congress every 90 days on the progress of plans for the withdrawal of U.S. Forces in Iraq. [H.R. 3087 passed the House 377 - 46 on 10/2/2007]
  
  
• Authored the War Profiteering Prevention Act to crack down on hundreds of millions of dollars in fraud by U.S. contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan, applying criminal penalties - for the first time - to unscrupulous companies and individuals overcharging for goods or services for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. [H.R. 400 passed the House 375 - 3 on 10/9/2007]
  
  
• As Chairman of the House Armed Services Air-Land Forces Subcommittee, I was able to cut billions of dollars in unnecessary Pentagon spending to pay for more armored vehicles for troops in Iraq and re-equip Army Reserve and National Guard units. [H.R. 1585 passed the House on 5/17/2007]
  
  
• Voted for an Iraq Supplemental funding bill that set timelines for troop withdrawal and benchmarks for progress by the Iraqi government. [H.R. 1591 vetoed by President Bush on 5/1/2007]
  

Iran

• Introduced a House Resolution stating explicitly that the 2002 Iraq Authorization does not authorize military action against Iran, and that any actions against Iran would require specific Congressional authorization. [H.J. Res. 64, introduced on 11/14/2007, referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs]
  

Making Higher Education More Affordable

• Supported legislation to provide more Pell College Grants to nearly 15,000 Hawaii students, to lower interest rates on student loans and increase the amout they can borrow from the government. The bill also provides tuition assistance and loan forgiveness for students who agree to work in the public sector. [Public Law 110 - 84, signed 9/27/2007]
  

Renewing Head Start

• Supported reauthorization of the acclaimed pre-school program, which provides early childhood education for more than 3,000 low-income students in Hawaii. [Public Law 110 - 134, signed 12/12/2007]
  

Providing Tools for Housing Affordability

• Introduced and passed legislation to reauthorize funding for home development and mortgage assistance on Hawaiian Home Lands. This means more housing opportunities for low-income families throughout the state. [H.R. 835 passed the House on 3/28/2007]
  
  
• Voted to create the National Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which will allocate up to $1 billion a year to states and local communities to help provide 1.5 million units of low and moderate income family housing over 10 years with no additional federal spending. [H.R. 2895 passed the House on 10/10/2007]
  
  
• Supported legislation to overhaul low-income housing voucher program, saving the government $20 billion over the next five years while providing more assistance to nearly 12,000 needy families in Hawaii. [H.R. 1851 passed the House on 7/12/2007]
  

Ensuring Quality Healthcare for the Most Vulnerable

• Supported legislation to renew and expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) that helps cover more than 20,000 children in Hawaii. [H.R. 976 passed House/vetoed by President - H.R. 3693 passed House on 10/25/2007/vetoed by President]
  
  
• Voted for legislation to make improvements to Medicare so seniors pay less for preventive care, and to ensure access to doctors. [H.R. 3162 passed the House on 8/1/2007]
  

Creating a More Livable Hawaii

• Obtained $10 million for the Honolulu Rapid Transit Project. [H.R. 3074 passed the House on 7/24/2007]
  

Preserving Hawaii's Heritage

• Sponsored the Akaka Bill to allow Native Hawaiians to decide on a government entity to represent their interests in relations with the federal government and to administer the Hawaiian Homelands. [H.R. 505 passed the House on 10/24/2007]
  

Protecting our Natural Resources

• Obtained funding in the 2007 and 2008 National Defense Acts to begin sonar mapping, water quality analysis, monitoring and clean-up of unexploded chemical munitions dumped in Hawaiian waters by the military following WWII. [Public Law No: 109-364, signed on 10/17/2006; H.R. 1585 passed the House on 12/12/2007]
  
  
• Approved National Defense Act funding for continued research at the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology into the effects of U.S. Navy sonar on marine mammals. [H.R. 1585 passed the House on 12/12/2007]
  

We've gotten some important things done, but there's a lot left to do and I'm already getting started on it.

 

Aloha,

Neil Abercrombie

Member of Congress