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Dear ,
I hope you and your family are doing well! Below, please find a few updates on my work last week for the residents of Arizona’s First Congressional District.
Veterans- We Salute You.
There is truly nothing more patriotic and honorable than putting one’s life on the line to preserve the freedoms for our brothers and sisters around the nation.
Veteran’s Day is an incredibly important reminder to express gratitude and appreciation for the most selfless community in our country: the courageous men and women who will do anything to protect the values and freedoms of which it represents.
Veterans, we thank you for your continued commitment to all that it means to be an American.
Recognizing Some Amazing Citizens of AZ-01
In September, my staff met with the Arizona chapter of the American Coalition for Ukraine to discuss important legislative priorities regarding U.S. support for Ukraine. We truly appreciated the opportunity to listen to their insights, personal stories, and explain my involvement in these critical efforts.
The first aspect we must get under control is the continued spread of misinformation and propaganda spread by foreign actors in the media. It's critical that everyone does their part in combatting the harmful circulation of disinformation amongst various platforms. Do your own research. Do not believe everything you see online. I've shared several accounts of how misinformation has contributed to the prolonging of foreign conflict that I will reshare below:
How Russian Trolls Are Trying to Go Viral on X
Foreign Tik Tok Networks Are Pushing Political Lies to Americans
A Bugatti car, a first lady and the fake stories aimed at Americans (msn.com)
With all of that being said, our country's best chance at helping our allies is to first stop the spread of misinformation and challenge everything you see online. Again, I thank our Ukrainian friends for visiting us at our Nation's Capitol to discuss how we can work together moving forward.
Christmas Tree Permit Sales Begin Online and In-person November 14!
It's that time of year again! Starting November 14, 2024, the Tonto National Forest will begin selling Christmas tree permits online at Recreation.gov and at the Supervisor’s Office, Globe and Payson Ranger Stations.
You and your family can start your Christmas tree cutting adventure on November 23. Permits are priced at $15 and are valid through Dec. 31, 2024. Additionally, permits are available for free with an Every Kid Outdoors pass. For more details about the Every Kid Outdoors program for fourth graders, visit the Every Kid Outdoors website. Please note, Christmas tree permits purchased online, including the free Every Kid Outdoors permits, are charged a small transaction fee when ordered through Recreation.gov.
In-person Tonto National Forest sales locations:
- Supervisor’s Office, 2324 East McDowell Rd., Phoenix, Arizona 85006
- Payson Ranger Station, 1009 East Highway 260, Payson, Arizona 85541
- Globe Ranger Station, 7680 S. Six Shooter Canyon Rd., Globe, Arizona 85501
Please visit the Tonto National Forest website for more information about the Christmas tree permit program and to download instructions and maps. Be safe, have a plan, know before you go and most importantly, have fun!
Let's Talk About the Technicalities of Appropriations
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Last month, my office received a call requesting a list of pay-fors for my introduced legislation. Before I lay out that list, I wanted to start off by explaining what exactly a 'pay-for' is.
In brief, federal spending generally draws from the General Fund of the Treasury, so there is no real correspondence between specific receipts and specific spending. Funds provided in appropriations acts all largely fit into this category. Congress limits appropriations by limiting the total expenditures.
Anything less than the total simply comes out of the General Fund. Any appropriated amount that would cause the preset total to be exceeded would need to be offset in order to adhere to that total, so it would only be these “additional” amounts that could be said to need a “pay for.”
Frequently, Members of Congress will identify how they would hope a new initiative would be paid for, but often there is no direct connection. Because of this, there is no way to identify specific provisions as offsets in most circumstances as Congress may choose to enact such provisions together or separately. Below is a list of my sponsored and co-sponsored legislation that currently includes a pay-for designated by either our office, the Congressional Budget Office or leadership:
H.R.8777 - CUTS Act
To rescind unobligated COVID–19 relief funds and certain infrastructure funds to offset the cost of the supplemental foreign assistance made available for fiscal year 2024, and for other purposes.
H.Amdt.805 to H.R.5894
An amendment numbered 139 printed in Part B of House Report 118-272 to increase funding by $2 million for the CDC "Emerging Zoonotic and Infectious Disease" account with the intention that these funds be used for Coccidioidomycosis otherwise known as "Valley Fever." Offsets the increase with a decrease in funding of $2 million from the General Departmental Management account under the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
H.Amdt.804 to H.R.5894 (House FY2004 Labor, HHS, Education Appropriations bill)
An amendment numbered 138 printed in Part B of House Report 118-272 to increase funding for the National Eye Institute by $5 million for the development of autonomous eye screening for diabetic retinopathy. Offsets the increase with a decrease in funding of $5 million from the General Departmental Management account under the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. [Note H.R. 5894 was never voted on by the whole House.]
H.R.2539 - New Markets Tax Credit Extension Act of 2023
This bill makes the new markets tax credit permanent. It also modifies the credit to (1) provide for an inflation adjustment to the limitation amount for the credit after 2023, and (2) allow an offset against the alternative minimum tax for the credit (determined with respect to qualified equity investments initially made after 2022).
H.R.1680 - New Markets Tax Credit Extension Act of 2019
This bill makes the new markets tax credit permanent. It also modifies the credit to (1) provide for an inflation adjustment to the limitation amount for the credit after 2018, and (2) allow an offset against the alternative minimum tax for the credit (determined with respect to qualified equity investments initially made after 2018).
H.R.850 - Agency Accountability Act of 2017
See Sec. 3 of the text of the bill here on the treatment of “offsetting collections and receipts revenue.”
H.R.3212 - To reauthorize the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program, and for other purposes.
This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to reauthorize the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP) through FY2021. SCAAP provides payments to state, local, and tribal governments to offset the costs of incarcerating certain undocumented criminal aliens…
H.R.5499 - Agency Accountability Act of 2016
…The bill amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require offsetting receipts and collections to be treated as revenue. (Offsetting receipts and collections are funds collected by agencies from other government accounts or from the public in businesslike or market-oriented transactions. Under current law, the collections are treated as negative budget authority and outlays rather than revenue and may be used to offset spending for budget enforcement purposes.)
H.R.2348 - Jumpstart GSE Reform Act
Prohibits the use of an increase in the guarantee fee required to be charged by the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), or any affiliate of such organizations (enterprises) to offset an increase in outlays or a reduction in revenues for any purposes other than those related to the enterprises' business functions under: (1) the congressional budget, (2) the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), or (3) the Statutory Pay-As-You-Act 2010…
H.R.938 - United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2014
…Title III: Offset - (Sec. 301) Amends the Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009 to reduce specified funding for Pakistan through FY2014.
H.R.647 - ABLE Act of 2014
…Title II: Offsets- (Sec. 201) Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Benefits) of the Social Security Act to change the age at which disability benefits are no longer subject to reductions from 65 to the normal retirement age range as set forth in such Act…
H.R.1909 - FFSCC Charter Act of 2011
…Subjects FFSCCs to an annual fee to offset the cost of implementing this Act…
What I'm Reading and Why It Matters
Photographs taken after the aftermath of a "rain bomb" in Spain display an array of destroyed furniture, piles of cars, and an abundance of rubble. In an article authored by The Guardian, Valencia, Spain received 490 liters of rain fall in a single day, wreaking havoc on the city. However, despite the evident damage amassed, many citizens were quick to accuse the photo of being fake or AI generated. With the influx of AI images on news sources and social media platform, many were not surprised by these accusations.
This year, the IRS has changed contribution limits for 401(k) accounts, but contributions to IRAs has remained stagnant. Barron's outlines changes for the contributions threshold for 401(k)s, noting an increase by $500, allowing people to contribute $23,500 to their 401(k)s in 2025. 403(b) and 457 plans are under the same contribution limitations. However, IRAs are locked at a $7,000 contribution limit and catch-up limits remain capped at $1,000. However, according to the provisions of the Secure 2.0 Act, catch up contributions for 401(k) contributions will increase to $11,250 in the 2025 fiscal year. |