Rural Water Appropriations Requests

Congress recently made their funding requests for Fiscal Year 2025. I took advantage of every opportunity to have our rural water systems properly funded. I wrote several letters to leadership on Committee on Appropriations requesting the following:

• $700 million in rural budget authority for the USDA Rural Water and Disposal Program Account
• $22.47 million for the USDA Circuit Rider program
• $7.5 million for the Farm Service Agency (FSA) Grassroots Water Protection program
• $26 million in funding for the Grassroots Rural and Small Community Water Systems Assistance Act
• $25.5 million to maintain funding for the on-site technical assistance initiatives that are authorized in the America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018
• $285 million for the Department of Labor's Apprenticeship Grant Program, including directing $20 million for national water and wastewater operator industry workforce training and $20 million in grant funding to establish, implement, expand, and administer registered apprenticeship programs

In all, that is a request of over $1 billion to maintain, expand, and upgrade America's rural water systems, something we all know is vital to the success of our rural communities.

You may be aware that certain authorities, including those relating to emergency response, are not granted under the Circuit Rider Program. For example, a small city or town can utilize the program to bring in experts and equipment in a scenario where they have a loss of water. But, as soon as the water service is turned back on, the community cannot use the program to effectively ensure they are able to address the issue going forward. This puts a band aid on a problem rather than solving it entirely.

I cosponsored the Rural Water System Disaster Preparedness and Assistance Act to establish an assistance program within USDA to solve the problem.

REENTRY Act: Easing Healthcare Costs for Counties

I have spoken with several county and local officials, and I have heard their concerns about healthcare-related constraints on their budgets. One small but meaningful way we can address this is by relieving the financial burden on counties regarding medical care for incarcerated persons.

Currently, when a person on Medicaid is incarcerated, they stop being eligible for Medicaid until the Inmate Exclusion Policy kicks in upon conviction. This causes a lapse in care during their incarceration, forcing counties to foot the bill. Obviously, this system can cause issues for counties that are navigating other healthcare-related budget issues.

I am a cosponsor of the REENTRY Act, bipartisan legislation that would allow inmates to use Medicaid for things like addiction treatment or psychiatric medication during the 30-day period before an individual’s release when they are transitioned to community care. Not only does this take some of the burden off counties, but it also allows incarcerated individuals to have a smoother transition back to society help break the cycle of individuals returning to jail.

Protecting the Representation of U.S. Citizens

Illegal immigration is a top issue impacting American citizens today. In addition to the horrific reports of drugs, human trafficking, and increased crime happening across this country as a result of this crisis, it also means an increase in illegal immigrants voting in federal elections and manipulating the Electoral College apportionment.

In states like Minnesota, illegal aliens are eligible for driver's licenses and other forms of identification. These individuals can then use that identification to illegally vote in our federal elections. The SAVE Act, which I cosponsored, aims to address this issue by amending the National Voter Registration Act to require states obtain documentary proof of citizenship to register an individual in an election for federal office and establish a program to remove non-citizens from their existing voter rolls. It also empowers citizens to bring civil suits against election officials who fail to uphold proof of citizenship requirements for federal elections. 

The last administration approved including a citizenship question in the census, as it has in the past. However, then California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (now Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services) and 13 other states sued over the requirement. The Census is used for a number of things, including drawing legislative districts. The rise in illegal immigration is happening country-wide, but especially in larger cities. When these noncitizens are recorded improperly, it alters representation in the House Electoral College Votes, meaning those big cities would benefit due to lack of complete information. I cosponsored the Equal Representation Act, to require that the next census include a citizenship question and prohibit noncitizens from counting towards congressional district and Electoral College apportionment. 

Simplifying the Grants Process

I hear from small communities across the 7th District that the application process for federal grants is unnecessarily complicated and that it favors larger cities that have the funding for resources like full-time grant writers. To alleviate the headache of this process and expand opportunities for small communities to receive these grants, I cosponsored the Simplifying Grants Act, which would require all federal agencies to create a less complex grant application process for rural communities.

Investing in Rural America

Rural communities across the country are struggling just to retain their population, much less attract future generations. One way Congress can support them is by eliminating unnecessary regulatory barriers to capital investment, particularly on critical community facilities like hospitals, childcare centers, and senior care centers. This Congress, I introduced the Investing in Rural America Act, which: 

• Restores and codifies farm credit institutions' eligibility to finance essential rural facilities in partnership with local lenders and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Community Facilities Loan and Grant Program,
• Places explicit guardrails around FCI's authorities in financing essential community facilities, including a requirement to offer participation with at least one non-FCI lending institution on any potential project, and
• Requires a report to Congress on the projects undertaken by FCIs, including the partnerships established between lending institutions for such projects.

The legislation attracts private sector investment in these kinds of facilities, strengthening our rural communities and encouraging future generations to see them as home.

Thank you for reading!

fischbach.house.gov

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