117^th Congress Accomplishments

American Rescue Plan:(signed into law 3/11/21) $1.9 trillion to fight COVID, help struggling families and save jobs

• Shots in Arms: $20 billion
• Money in Pockets: Economic Impact Payments and Expanded Child Tax Credit $3,600 per child under six, $3,000 per child ages 6-17. This cuts child poverty in half
• Children Back in School: $170 billion for education and $45 billion for childcare providers to help schools safely reopen for in-person learning. $122 billion has been allocated to school districts nationwide.
• People in Jobs: Funded the Paycheck Protection Program, the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, EIDL grants, and $350 billion in critical aid to keep frontline workers such as teachers, law enforcement, and health care workers on the job.

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act:(Signed into law 11/15/21) $1.2 trillion with $550 million in new funding. Bill provides funding for California roads ($25.3 B), bridges ($4.2 B), power infrastructure, rail, broadband ($100 M), clean drinking water ($3.5 B), water resilience projects, public transit ($9.45 B), airports ($1.5 B), wildfire suppression and mitigation, ports and waterways and electric vehicle charging stations ($384 M).

The $3.4 billion for wildfire suppression and mitigation will be used to increase federal firefighter salaries by up to $20,000/year and convert at least 1,000 seasonal firefighters to year-round positions; hazardous fuels mitigation; prescribed fires; implement their community wildfire defense plans; preplanning fire response workshops and workforce training; and improving technology like creating a Reverse-911 system; improved NOAA satellite rapid fire detection system, and real time wildfire detection and monitoring equipment.

The bill also includes $5 billion for utilities to underground power lines, install fire-resistant technologies and expand the use of microgrids, and $3.5 billion for weatherization assistance to help homeowners make energy-efficient improvements that help fireproof their home.

WHIP+ Disaster Assistance Funding: (Signed into law 9/30/21) $10 billion for agriculture disasters for 2020/2021, smoke damage explicitly covered, and higher payment limit for specialty crops / high value crops ($900k).

Low Income Housing Tax Credits: Rep. Thompson introduced legislation in 2019 that led to California receiving $98 million in low-income housing tax credits. Rep. Thompson also worked with Treasurer Ma to ensure that disaster LIHTC credits were allocated (including in 2021) based on where the most structures were destroyed.

Build Back Better Act:

• GREEN Act – Builds on current successful tax incentives that promote the deployment of green energy technologies, while providing new incentives for activities that reduce greenhouse gas emissions
• Disaster Tax – Provisions included in BBBA will incentivize private landowners and businesses to participate in state-based resiliency programs – specifically, by providing a tax credit for participation and by exempting program payments from income tax calculations.
• Capacity Building Funding for Affordable Manufactured Housing

H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act: (House passed 3/11/21)

H.R. 678, the PHONE Act: (House passed 7/21/21) Allows survivors of natural disasters who lost their homes to keep their phone numbers at no cost to them while they rebuild.

Secured Higher Income Thresholds for Stimulus Payments: (Feb. 2021) Rep. Thompson led a letter with 52 Members to successfully maintain the income thresholds for those who qualify for the next round of Economic Impact Payments.

H.R. 1951, the Increase Federal Disaster Cost Share Act: Would boost the Federal cost share from 75 to 90 percent for any federally declared disasters in 2020. This bill is included in the Homeland Security Appropriations bill and was signed into law by President Biden on March 15, 2022.

H.R. 321, the FEED Act: (Implemented through Executive Action 02/02/21) Boosts the Federal government cost share to state and local governments to 100 percent so that they can partner with restaurants and nonprofits to prepare nutritious meals for vulnerable individuals.

Government Funding Bill: Rep. Thompson helped to secure funding important to the nation and the district.

• Included an additional $2.45 billion for fire suppression efforts (and a total of $5.66 billion for wildland fire management funding).
• $5 million in smoke damage research. This will allow growers and wineries to reduce the economic impact of future fires. It will in turn allow our entire local economic to recover faster after future fires.
• $100 million for the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
• $200 million dollars for community violence intervention programs.

Local Projects in Government Funding Bill: Rep. Thompson secured $10.81 million in earmarks in the House passed bills for the following projects:

• $1.6 million for Accessing Coordinated Care and Empowering Self Sufficiency Project in Sonoma County to expand the existing ACCESS program so the team there can better help vulnerable residents after disasters and other local crises, such as Public Safety Power Shutoffs.
• $1 million for Petaluma Health Center to renovate the Rohnert Park Health Center site to boost access to care for 5,000 residents.
• $1 million for Touro University for the rehabilitation and repair of Truett Hall at Touro University to allow the school to increase class sizes for their health care programs and better meet the medical needs of the community.
• $1.8 million for Napa County’s Public Safety Radio and Communications Upgrade Project.
• $900k for Contra Costa County Collaborative Care Implementation project to better train behavioral health staff and implement a standardized treatment model across the local Federally Qualified Health Centers.
• $450k for Lake County’s Kelseyville Sidewalk Project which will help the town implement the countywide Safe Route to School Plan that helps kids get to school safely.
• $320k for Lake County’s Full Circle Effluent Pipeline Preliminary Design Report. This funding could increase the use of geothermal power and reduce our dependence on less environmentally friendly power generation, all while making our region more resilient against drought.
• $1 million for Santa Rosa’s Permanent Emergency Operations Center. This center will help our first responders and public safety officials keep people safe and coordinate operations in a crisis situation.

Secured Commitment from the VA to Transfer Mare Island Cemetery: The announcement follows negotiations and the follows specific authority under Rep. Thompson’s legislation passed last year as part of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) Conference Report.

Successfully Advocated for Administrative Action on Telehealth: In July 2021, CMS announced that it would keep numerous telehealth services available to Medicare beneficiaries through the end of 2023. These services were only made available due to Rep. Thompson’s legislation at the beginning of the pandemic, and Rep. Thompson has introduced two bills that would extend these services beyond the end of the public health emergency. Rep. Thompson’s H.R. 2903, the CONNECT Act legislation would make many of these permanent. The bipartisan, bicameral legislation to expand telehealth services after the pandemic has ended. 60 Senate cosponsors, and 109 House cosponsors.

GENERAL HOUSE ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

The House of Representatives is working to pass the most transformative agenda in decades for the American people. It has responded to the worst public health crisis in 100 years while facing historic Congressional partisan obstruction in the shadow of a failed insurrection; a partisan Judiciary threatening healthcare, gun safety and voting rights; and partisan attacks on the right to vote and fair representation in Congress.

S. 937, the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act: (signed into law 5/20/21) Addresses the dramatic increase in hate crimes targeting the AAPI community since the start of the pandemic. This law designates a point person at the Department of Justice to review hate crimes related to the COVID-19 pandemic, bolsters state and local governments to improve their reporting of hate crimes, and ensures that hate crime information is more accessible to Asian-American communities.

H.R. 1, the For The People Act: (House passed 3/3/21) Promotes government transparency, strengthen access to the ballot box and make it easier for Americans to exercise their right to vote, secure election infrastructure, and curb the influence of dark money in politics.

H.R.4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act: (House passed 8/24/21) Restores provisions of the Voting Rights Act gutted by the Shelby County v. Holder (2013) and Brnovich v. DNC (2021) decisions. Establishes a new coverage formula for jurisdictions that engage in racially discriminatory election practices and creates legal tests for evaluating vote denial and vote dilution claims. Covered jurisdictions are required to preclear election changes with the Justice Department.

H.R. 5314, the Protecting Our Democracy Act: (House passed 12/8/21; Senate passed 12/14/21; House amdt to Senate amdt passed 1/13/22) Prevent presidential abuses of executive power. Restores checks and balance by enforcing congressional subpoenas, reasserting congressional power of the purse, and protecting whistleblowers and IG independence. Protects our elections from foreign interference.

H.R.5746, the Freedom to Vote Act: John R. Lewis Act: (House passed 1/12/22) Contains similar provisions to H.R.1. One key difference is that the Freedom to Vote Act would specifically address recent voter suppression tactics by imposing stronger protections for federal election records, preventing interference with vote tabulation or intimidation of poll workers, prohibiting mishandling of ballots, and banning restrictions on distribution of food and water to voters waiting in line.

H.R. 6, the Dream and Promise Act: (House passed 3/18/21) The Dream and Promise Act would protect Dreamers, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) status holders from deportation and provide an opportunity to obtain permanent legal status.