“Voters are about to decide in the Democratic primary for Massachusetts’ first House district. In today’s Congressional Corner, Massachusetts Representative Richard Neal speaks with WAMC’s Alan Chartock. This interview was recorded August 6.”
Read More“If there was ever a time to keep Richie Neal where he is, this is it. Richie recently met with a group of grateful entrepreneurs in Holyoke, Morse’s hometown. Under the Paycheck Protection Program, there were 10,460 loans made, totaling an incredible $1,177,312,235 in the 1st District! Morse is quoted as questioning the program, calling it a Band-Aid for a potentially fatal wound. Are you kidding? Tell that to all those people who literally would not have been able to put food on the table without that help.”
Read More“Congressman Richard Neal and local business leaders came together today to celebrate the success of the Paycheck Protection Program. More than 10,000 loans were given out to small businesses across western and central Massachusetts, which comes to be more than $1 billion. The data shows that businesses of all types benefited from the program, and the congressman highlighted how important this program was for the survival of small businesses.”
Read More“The CARES Act pumped almost $1.2 billion into the economy of Western Massachusetts, U.S. Rep. Richard Neal said Saturday. Neal, as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, was one of the prime authors of the legislation that sent 10,460 loans to Western Mass. businesses. According to the federal Small Business Administration, $1,177,312,235 in loans of less than $150,000 each were made to area small businesses.”
Read More“Congressman Richard Neal told Western Mass News he hopes the Senate and the House will agree on a package in the next few days. ‘We wanted them to have money for the day-to-day needs of life,’ Neal explained. With the extra $600 weekly jobless benefits in the CARES Act ending in the next few days, Senate Republicans and House Democrats are still at odds over a new stimulus package, leaving many families to scramble. ‘I think the HEROES Act is likely to pass in some version,’ Neal noted.”
Read More“Expanding the credit has been a major cause of a group of Democrats that includes Sens. Michael F. Bennet (Colo.), Cory Booker (N.J.) and Sherrod Brown (Ohio), as well as Reps. Rosa L. DeLauro (Conn.), Suzan DelBene (Wash.), Richard E. Neal (Mass.) — and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Calif.).”
Read More“The Massachusetts State Council of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has endorsed Congressman Richie Neal for re-election, citing his leadership in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and his ongoing work on behalf of working families everywhere… “As Richie Neal was creating emergency relief legislation in the wake of COVID-19, he was also making sure that our economy was supported with stability measures like the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), grants for child care and development, and Election Assistance Grants,” said Kwesi Ablordeppey, a Springfield worker at the Holyoke Soldiers Home and member of SEIU 888.”
Read More“Neal said that the country cannot afford to get complacent about the COVID-19 pandemic or to stop finding ways to stimulate the economy. And he said that recent spikes in the novel coronavirus around the country will make it hard for his colleagues on the other side of the aisle to vote against stimulus packages when Congress returns from its July 4 recess.”
Read More“Congressman Richard Neal met with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission Executive Director to announce a $400,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration. According to a news release sent to 22News, the funding was made possible through the passage of the CARES Act and provides the EDA with $1.5 billion for economic development assistance programs across the country aimed at helping communities prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus pandemic.”
“People simply cannot return to their jobs if they're unable to find care for their children. For the economy to reopen fully, Congress must provide meaningful, robust child care relief for families and providers. That is why we introduced the Child Care for Economic Recovery Act, legislation that addresses the most pressing needs of millions of working parents and families, like those we represent in New York and Massachusetts. The legislation builds on congressional efforts to address the varied needs now being recognized in the child care space, including stabilizing the child care sector through the Child Care is Essential Act, and improving child care facilities for the health and safety of children.”
Read More“The Moving Forward Act’s investments aren’t just big, they’re smart and responsible too,’ said House Ways and Means Committee Chair Richard Neal from the floor of the House. ‘The legislation promotes investment in clean energy technologies, incentivizes the ‘greening of the fleet’ and rewards renewable energy projects engaging in responsible labor practices that prioritize workers’ rights and wellbeing.’”
Read More“The economic impacts of COVID-19 have ripped through the country, and here in Western and Central Massachusetts we have seen it first-hand. But we are resilient. While it may take time for us to recover fully, we have a unique opportunity to improve our communities, create new jobs, make critical infrastructure investments, and come out stronger than ever.”
Read More“Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives on Wednesday unveiled a sweeping health care package to strengthen the benefits of the Affordable Care Act, lowering the costs of insurance premiums, expanding eligibility for premium tax credits and allowing states to create state-based health insurance marketplaces… The Congressional Budget Office estimated that drugs subject to negotiation could see price drops of up to 55% if the bill passes, according to a news release from the office of Rep. Richard Neal, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. ‘The well-being and security of American families and the workers of our nation are at stake,’ Neal said.”
Read More“Standing on a platform Friday morning at Union Station, U.S. Rep. Richard Neal touted a $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill unveiled by House Democrats last week that includes $19 billion in federal grant funding that he said will benefit east-west rail. Calling the proposal ‘the most ambitious infrastructure plan’ since former President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Federal Aid Highway Act in 1956, Neal said the legislation would pave the way for federal funding across a variety of sectors, including improvements to roads and bridges, municipal broadband internet, affordable housing, green energy and rail.”
Read More“For years, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, has been a dogged supporter of an east-west rail line that would connect all parts of Massachusetts, bolster the economy and greatly reduce the self-defeating economic imbalance between the state’s eastern and western ends.”
Read More“Speaking over the rumbling locomotive of the 12:05 Amtrak train to Hartford, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal touted a $1.5 trillion infrastructure plan he and his fellow Democrats introduced with a Friday visit to Springfield’s Union Station. ‘This is the first substantive step the Congress has taken toward east-west rail,’ said Neal… referencing the long-held goal of improving passenger train service from Boston west through Worcester and Springfield.”
Read More“U.S. Sen. Ed Markey and U.S. Rep. Richard Neal unveiled a bill that would pump billions into passenger rail funding -- and touted how it could lay the tracks for the long-discussed East-West Rail as both men fight for re-election. The two announced what they called the "Brain Train" Act, which would authorize $5 billion in spending nationally on passenger rail a year for the next five years.”
Read More“The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority will receive $36.6 million in Federal Transit Administration funding under the CARES Act, the major package of legislation designed to offer relief during the coronavirus pandemic.”
Read More“The men and women of the U.S. Postal Service have never ceased delivering mail under trying circumstances, and for that reason U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal stopped in Springfield to deliver his support for them. Neal, speaking in front of the city’s main post office branch at Main and Liberty streets, said the U.S. Postal Service is an essential service and needs to be treated like one.”
Read More“Congressman Richard Neal, the chair of the House Ways & Means Committee, said that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has called the new relief legislation a “non-starter.” Neal explained though at a press conference on May 13 that McConnell had said similar things before other legislation designed to help citizens and businesses survive through the pandemic… In a written statement, Neal said, “The Heroes Act is another step forward on our road to recovery from the devastating effects of this virus. It is a necessary investment in the American economy and in science-based strategies to fight the pandemic.”
Read More