It goes without saying that we will never be able to repay the debt we owe to the men and women who put on the uniform and defend our nation. But helping to empower those who dedicate their life to service, including their families, is the least we can do.

The good news is that this week the House came together to pass some important pieces of legislation to do just that:

  • The Legal Services For Homeless Veterans Act, which I cosponsored, would lend a hand to veterans who might be struggling to keep a roof over their head after returning home from combat.
  • The Gold Star Spouses and Spouses of Injured Servicemembers Leasing Relief Act to protect military spouses from the penalties of ending a lease early as a result of the death or injury of their servicemember. I’m hopeful that this common sense legislation will give servicemembers and their families one less thing to worry about.
  • The Protecting Business Opportunities For Veterans Act to ensure that veteran-owned small businesses are put on a level playing field with larger companies. Specifically, this bill would fix a loophole that allowed large companies to take advantage of veteran-owned businesses to obtain contracts, only to then subcontract a majority of the work to other companies for a profit.

At the end of the day, we need to do more to give servicemembers and their families peace of mind knowing that we have their backs on and off the battlefield. We still have a long way to go, but I’m hopeful that the legislation we passed this week will make a difference for veterans in our community and across the country.

In case you missed it, here are a few other things that happened this week:

  • I attended another great EOD Day to check out the new technology being developed to keep our bomb technicians and our servicemembers safe on the battlefield.
  • I shared my story with Beyond The Uniform with hopes that it might help veterans everywhere see that the best is still in front of them!
  • I announced that our office is now accepting submissions for the 2020 Congressional Art Competition! The deadline to submit artwork is April 22, 2020.