| September 18, 2007 In this newsletter, we share information about:
I hope you find this information useful and will not hesitate to contact our office if there is anything we can do to be helpful to you and your neighbors. Sincerely, Christopher Shays
Implementing the Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission After six years of bipartisan work by Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and myself, Congress passed, and the President signed into law H.R. 1, Implementing the Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007. This bill is similar to legislation we introduced during the previous Congress. This law will take many important--and overdue--steps toward protecting our homeland by:
Congresswoman Maloney and I appreciate the help of the 9/11 families
for their work on this legislation. They have worked to establish
the commission, ensured it had the tools it needed to do its job,
and pushed for enactment of these recommendations into law.
In an effort to provide tax relief to millions of Americans, my colleague Harry Mitchell (D-AZ) and I introduced H.R. 3170, the Mitchell-Shays Capital Gains and Estate Tax Relief Act of 2007. Reducing the Capital Gains tax is increasingly important. More
middle-income Americans own stock than ever before, and increasingly
invest in stocks for retirement.
We need to focus on becoming energy independent, both for our environment and our national security. The less oil we consume, the less dependent we are on unstable foreign regimes. With less than three percent of the world's oil but 25 percent of its use, America can never drill its way to energy security. I believe our policies should reduce demand for oil by emphasizing conservation. We have made progress this year. I supported passage of three energy bills, designed to move America in the direction of renewable energy exploration and cleaner fuel sources.
Video: Click here to watch Shays' Floor speech on his amendment to H.R. 3221. These are important first steps, but there is more work to do to get our country on the path toward energy independence. Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) and I have reintroduced the Energy for Our Future Act (H.R. 1945), a comprehensive bipartisan energy reform bill that seeks to decrease U.S. dependence on foreign oil, protect the environment, build a market for renewable energy, and promote greater energy conservation.
Last month I voted for H.R. 3162, the Children’s Healthcare and Medicare Protection (CHAMP) Act, which passed the House by a vote of 225 to 204. I believe we need to expand health care coverage by raising the age of those covered under the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and lowering the age of eligibility for Medicare. This is one way to reduce the number of uninsured. The cost of the bill -- $244 billion over 10 years -- was fully
offset by a tax increase on tobacco products and reductions in other
entitlement programs. I was disappointed, however, that the cuts
to Medicare Advantage were particularly severe, and will work with
other House and Senate members to modify these provisions in conference
July 22 marked the 20th Anniversary of The Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, now known as the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Passed in response to the rapid and dramatic growth of homelessness in the United States during the 1980s, the McKinney-Vento Act was the first major, coordinated federal response to the issue of homelessness, and emphasized emergency measures, transitional measures, and long-term solutions to combat the homeless crisis. To commemorate the work of my predecessor, Stewart B. McKinney, Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Representative Betty McCollum (D-MN) and I introduced H. Res. 561, recognizing the 20th Anniversary of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. The resolution, which passed the House by voice vote, expresses Congress’ continued commitment to eliminating homelessness in the United States. Video: Click here
to watch Shays' Floor speech commemorating the work of Stewart B.
McKinney.
Secretary Jackson and I held a roundtable luncheon with area mayors and community developers to discuss ways to improve federal, state, and local affordable housing efforts. The Secretary also toured the Main Avenue Housing Development in Norwalk and Post House in Stamford. As a member of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity, I appreciated the opportunity to share some of my ideas to improve federal housing and to show the Secretary our community.
Last month I made my most recent trip to Iraq. Each trip has provided me the opportunity to receive on-the-ground assessments of our progress, without the filter of media reports. Following my trip, I wrote to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, others in the Bush Administration, Congressional, military and Iraqi leaders, outlining my observations and recommendations on the current political and military situation in Iraq. In the letter, I recommend:
The solution in Iraq must be a bipartisan one. We went into Iraq on a bipartisan basis, and now Republicans and Democrats need to work together to bring most of our troops home.
When Americans invest their dollars, they want to know those dollars are not propping up the government of Iran -- a sponsor of terrorism and an avowed enemy of American interests -- or supporting the government of Sudan, which continues to commit abhorrent crimes against the Darfurian people. H.R. 2347, the Iran Sanctions Enabling Act, and H.R. 180, the Darfur Accountability and Divestment Act of 2007, both of which I cosponsored, will enable Americans to voice their opposition to the internationally condemned practices of the Sudanese and Iranian governments by establishing a federal list of companies that have direct investments in Iran’s energy sector, or do business in certain sectors of the Sudanese economy. It would also remove specific legal barriers to enable mutual and corporate pension fund managers to cut ties with these listed companies if they choose to do so. The bills passed the House in July by a vote of 408 to 6 and 417 to 1, respectively. Video: Click here to watch Shays' Floor speech on the Darfur Accountability and Divestment Act.
On July 31, I voted for S. 1, the conference report on the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 which created stronger ethics and lobbying guidelines for members of Congress. This legislation would make several critical changes to lobbying disclosure laws and House and Senate rules to reduce the influence of lobbyists in the Congressional process. This bill passed the House by a vote of 411 to 8. While I feel this legislation could have gone further by including a provision to establish an Office of Public Integrity to investigate alleged violations of congressional ethics rules, I believe it is a step in the right direction. Transparency in government is central to maintaining a functioning democracy and ensuring public confidence in government officials.
Recently, the Fourth District has received federal funding for a number of important community services. Many of theses are competitive grants, requiring strong applications on the part of each organization, and the assistance of our office to guide these groups through the federal grant process. Some of the grants received by organizations in the Fourth District include:
For a complete listing of grants to the Fourth District for 2007,
please click here.
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