Dear Friend,

I hope you are continuing to stay well. I wanted to share a few updates, including a new announcement from the Arizona Department of Health Services on additional vaccine appointments becoming available tomorrow, March 2 at 12pm Arizona time. 

Over 50,000 additional COVID-19 vaccine appointments are opening tomorrow, March 2nd, at 12pm for individuals ages 55+ on the AZDHS website. These appointments will be at State Farm Stadium in Glendale and Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

I wanted to also share an update on the fraudulent activity associated with unemployment benefits as you begin filing your taxes. If you find yourself victim of fraud, please report it as soon as possible to the Arizona Department of Economic Security. Read more on this update here. 

$1.9 Trillion Spending Bill

Last week, my Democratic colleagues passed their $1.9 trillion spending package. This legislation was being advertised as a "COVID-19 relief bill," however only 9% of funding would be focused on public health measures, including support for our national vaccination program and more testing. I wanted to share a short list of the different policies included in this bill unrelated to the pandemic:

• $140 Billion for a Subway tunnel in San Francisco 
• $1,400 weekly checks for Federal Government Employees on Paid Leave for 15 weeks
• $350 billion bailout for blue states who have mismanaged their budgets
• $15 minimum wage increase resulting in a loss of 1.4 million jobs
• $1,400 stimulus checks costing more than $422 billion, which will include households that have experienced little or no financial loss during the pandemic

Our interest rates are rising as a result of this increased federal spending in the last year, and we still have $1 trillion dollars leftover from previous relief packages to utilize. Any government spending must be focused on providing targeted relief to help keep Americans safe, reopen our schools and the economy. Unfortunately, my Democratic colleagues' bill is far from targeted, and will not help us return to normal.

Education Survey Results

I was pleased to see an overwhelming majority of you support the reopening of schools for in-person learning on last week's survey. As we approach the one-year anniversary of schools closing across the nation, we must continue to fight for in-person learning to return.

I wanted to share some interesting statistics from economists and education researchers at Stanford University on the long-term economic effects that will take place, specifically falling behind in future jobs and income levels, if our schools remain closed: 

• Children have lost 116 days of reading time during the early stages of the pandemic and 215 days of math work
• Over the next century, the time lost from developing important skills in the classroom will produce $25 trillion to $30 trillion of lost economic output.
• Lifetime household incomes of students impacted by school closures could be 6% to 9% lower. 

Vietnam Veteran Recognition

National Vietnam War Veterans Day is this month! I'm asking for your help to recognize each of our Arizona Vietnam Veterans who sacrificed so much to protect us while serving in Vietnam.

If you or a loved one knows a Vietnam Veteran in AZ06, our office would like to formally recognize them with a Congressional Recognition. To recognize a veteran, click here to be directed to my website and fill out a recognition form. I cannot thank our Veterans enough for all they have done, and I look forward to having the honor of recognizing them for their service. 

#SchweikertScenerySundays

I am so lucky to represent such a beautiful district here in Arizona. My previous Facebook cover photo contest received such a great response, which is why I want to show off more of my talented constituents' photographs of AZ06. If you have any pictures of our community that you are willing to share, please email them to us using this link.

Each week, we will highlight our constituents' photographs on Facebook. Follow along with us using the hashtag #SchweikertScenerySundays.

I appreciate you taking time to read my weekly e-newsletter. If there are any additional services our office can provide you, please feel welcome to contact us.

Sincerely,
David Schweikert