Dear Friend,

Over the next two weeks, I will be in Washington, D.C. for a series of important votes. We are facing discussions on pressing issues such as infrastructure investment, funding for our military, and the possibility of a debt ceiling increase. As these debates occur, I will continue to keep you updated. In the meantime, please e-mail me to stay in touch.

Keep reading to learn what we accomplished last week…

Ensuring Oversight of COVID-19 Relief Funds 

Last week, during a House Financial Services markup, I offered an amendment to redirect $35 million of the Democrat’s proposed $3.5 trillion budget to the Inspector General of the U.S. Treasury and the Inspector General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development to ensure oversight of American Rescue Plan programs. 

When it comes to identifying waste, fraud, and abuse in federal spending, there is no better investment of taxpayer dollars than the Inspector Generals (IGs). Last year, IGs returned approximately $16 in savings for every dollar that we invested in their budgets.

Watch my remarks here.

The bipartisan CARES Act – one of the first COVID relief packages adopted in March 2020 – included $35 million in funding for the Treasury Inspector General to conduct oversight of programs like the Coronavirus Relief Fund which consisted of $150 billion in funding. In total, the federal government has appropriated trillions of dollars in new spending to help combat the impact of the COVID pandemic, however, Democrats failed to include any additional resources for the Inspector Generals charged with overseeing the $1.9 trillion in new spending following their partisan passage of the American Rescue Plan earlier this year.

As we’ve seen, the Coronavirus Relief Fund has been exposed to waste, fraud, and abuse. Right here in Minnesota, the Sartell-St. Stephen’s school district used COVID relief funds to procure an equity survey that alarmed students and their parents. This survey was not COVID related and was an entirely inappropriate use of funds. This is one example, but there are countless more. The need for oversight of COVID relief money is clear, and the American Rescue Plan has little to no current oversight…

My amendment would provide additional resources to the Inspector Generals at the Department of Treasury and the Department of Housing and Urban Development to ensure they are able to continue with their oversight work and keep a watchful eye on the use of taxpayer dollars. Read the amendment here.

Providing Oversight to the Emergency Rental Assistance Program

As August 1st approached, nearly ten million Americans—roughly 3% of our population-- were facing eviction. Even though Congress provided $46 billion in Emergency Rental Assistance, the Biden Administration had failed to distribute less than 2% of those funds to families in need.

Instead, Democrats relied on eviction moratoriums that bankrupted landlords and did nothing to help renters in the long run. Had Democrats prioritized getting money in the hands of vulnerable Americans and allocated those funds to the existing rental assistance program at the Department of the Treasury, we likely would not have needed eviction moratoriums. The threats of eviction once the moratoriums were ruled unconstitutional were entirely preventable.

Bottom line: Rental assistance still has not reached those who need it the most. During a Financial Services Committee markup last week, I offered amendments to help better target the disbursement of these funds.

First, I offered an amendment to allow the Inspector General of the U.S. Treasury to recover misappropriated funds from the Emergency Rental Assistance Program and ensure their proper allocation. This will protect the emergency rental assistance program against waste, fraud, and abuse.

I also offered an amendment to modify the definition of an “eligible household” under the Emergency Rental Assistance program. This funding is desperately needed, but it should go to those who have the highest need – the low-income households who had their financial livelihoods wrecked by COVID.

Unfortunately, not a single Democrat on the committee supported either one of my amendments. Nevertheless, I will continue our work to ensure the funding allocated by the federal government to help Americans recover from the pandemic is sent and used by those who need it the most.

Recognizing World Alzheimer’s Day

Today is World Alzheimer’s Day. As the sixth leading cause of death in the United States, there is still so much that is unknown about this devastating disease. Perhaps what’s most frustrating is that a cure has yet to be discovered.

Nearly six million Americans are currently living with Alzheimer’s, and statistics show that rates of diagnosis are rapidly increasing. In fact, by 2050, the number of people sixty-five years and older with Alzheimer’s is estimated to triple. We must find a cure to stop this relentless disease.

The National Institutes of Health in concert with other health agencies and outside organizations are implementing a National Alzheimer’s Plan, an effort to establish timelines and milestones for research and prevention goals, including effective treatment of Alzheimer's by 2025.

Congressman Emmer with members of the Alzheimer's Association, and University of Minnesota N. Bud Grossman Center Doctors and staff.

I have long supported funding for medical research and will continue to do so. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, a mere five-year delay in the onset of Alzheimer’s will save more than $220 billion and reduce the number of those afflicted by 5.7 million by 2050.

It is estimated that 200,000 Americans under the age of 65 are living with Alzheimer’s. Because of their age, they are not eligible for federal support. As a result, I became a cosponsor of the Younger Onset Alzheimer’s Disease Act. This important bill would provide the same resources to individuals with Alzheimer's that are younger than 60. I also became a cosponsor of the Improving Hope for Alzheimer’s Act, which would enable access to care planning services available for individuals with Alzheimer’s. These are just two small steps in a bigger race to improve the lives of the millions of Americans afflicted with Alzheimer’s. More can and will be done.

Until next week, if you are in need of assistance or would like to share your thoughts with me, please write me an e-mail here.

To keep up with what we’re doing in Washington, follow me on Twitter and Facebook for more updates!

Sincerely,