Dear Neighbor,

Last week was a truly special week in DC – as I was grateful to be joined by some special visitors–my sons James & Wesley! As the summer months approach, it's a great time to bring your family to our nation’s Capital as well! I’d love to see you and your family for a tour of the Capitol soon. Reach out to my office at any time for more information on tours.

HONORING THOSE WHO’VE SERVED AHEAD OF MEMORIAL DAY
On Memorial Day, our community comes together to solemnly honor the men and women who gave their last full measure of devotion in service to our nation. I am forever grateful for the brave individuals who lost their lives defending our nation and its values at home and abroad. On behalf of MI-03, I was humbled to be invited to visit Arlington National Cemetery with my family for Memorial Day and lay a wreath at the grave of General John J. Pershing. It is important for my sons to understand the sacrificial service of generations of Americans that provides us the freedoms we have today, and will hopefully enjoy for generations. It was a day that we’ll never forget – thank you to all who have served, from my grateful family to yours

WELCOMING MICHAEL HYACINTHE TO WASHINGTON

What a fantastic honor it was to have Grand Rapids’ Michael Hyacinthe in Washington so that he could testify at my Small Business Committee hearing entitled “Saluting Service: Supporting Veteran Owned Small Businesses.” Michael, founder of Wimage LLC, is a successful business owner and veteran who is showing other service members what’s possible when they return home. I am so impressed by him and was grateful to have him in Washington after visiting his West Michigan headquarters a couple weeks ago.

DIGNITY ACT

As an attorney who has worked on immigration issues, both at the nation’s top law enforcement agency and at a community legal aid organization, helping migrants in West Michigan. I know this system. I’ve seen firsthand what patchwork and reactionary immigration policies do to families and communities. 

Our broken immigration system is a national security threat, an economic and workforce emergency and a humanitarian crisis. This is Congress’ issue to solve, and we’re here to solve it. This historic bipartisan legislation would address border security and infrastructure challenges, tackle critical workforce development issues, create legal status for undocumented immigrants already living in the United States with the possibility of earning citizenship, establish new pathways for asylum seekers, and create new legal pathways for economic migrants and unaccompanied minors.

LOOMING DEBT CRISIS
While there was so much to be proud of this week in Washington, I went home with much frustration as Republican leadership adjourned our work without a resolution on our debt ceiling crisis. In my family–we stay on task until the job is done. This is not a game, a default on our debt would have catastrophic consequences that we have not seen in our lifetime.  It’s fiscally

responsible to pay our bills on time. I’m working hard on a solution to make sure I can protect my constituents in West Michigan from disastrous consequences.

Defaulting would kill nearly 8,000 jobs in my district alone. It would jeopardize Social Security payments for 88,000 families. It would mean financial chaos on an unprecedented scale, hurting working families across the country. We can and must act now – it’s Congress’ job to get this done. It’s time to show the world that America pays its bills on time – and I’ll be working towards ensuring that we do.

FUNDING FRIDAY
The 2023 Thriving Communities Program (TCP) opportunity for Capacity Builders is opening this summer, but now is the time to get prepared for this incredible opportunity

TCP funds are technical assistance and planning funds to help build capacity in marginalized communities to give them the ability to deliver top rate, and much-needed infrastructure projects. To learn more about the project and how you can best prepare a competitive application, check out the link here, or reach out to my office!

Sincerely,

Hillary J. Scholten
Member of Congress