The 115th Congress has been productive and I spent it working to deliver solutions to the issues facing Iowans. I’ve worked to make sure our country and her people are safe, Iowans have economic security and the ability to plan for the future, to protect our environment, and to ensure the liberties and freedoms laid out in our Constitution are protected.
As a largely agriculture state, Iowans take pride in their ability to feed and fuel the country. This Congress, I worked with my colleagues and the president to secure year-round E15 sales so we bolster our rural economy, promote cleaner air, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. In the recently passed Farm Bill, my bill, the WATER Act, was included in the final package signed into law. The WATER Act helps improve conservation practices by streamlining access to grant funding and establishing a publicly accessible database which shows how conservation practices work on different soils and topographies.
Iowans are also keeping more of their hard-earned money because of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. You know how to spend your money better than the federal government and I’ve heard from Iowans across the Third District who are using their bigger paychecks to pay for groceries, a vacation, student loans, or saving for the future. It’s your money – you should decide how it's used.
Our economy continues to grow and we see the lowest unemployment rates in decades. There are more job openings than there are people looking for jobs. I’ve heard from business owners who say they have to turn down work because they don’t have enough employees to get it all done.
We have started rebuilding our military after years of neglect. Our women and men in uniform need the resources to train, fight, win, and return home safely – and the 115th Congress started to deliver those resources.
We’ve invested in border security so we know who and what is coming into our country. A secure border will help stop criminals, drugs, illegal weapons, and human trafficking.
Another of my bills, the Rural Call Quality Act, was signed into law this Congress. This will help put an end to the dropped, looped, and poor quality calls many Iowans living in rural areas are experiencing.
In a bipartisan fashion, we passed the most comprehensive legislation to combat the opioid crisis in a generation. The opioid epidemic has impacted families from every walk of life and doesn’t discriminate. Our bipartisan work will combat the crisis by increasing treatment and prevention efforts, seeking alternative pain treatments, ensuring law enforcement can combat illegal drug flows in our communities, and stopping the flow of heroin, fentanyl, and other addictive drugs into our country.
These are just a few of the accomplishments of the 115th Congress and I was honored to carry your voices to Washington to seek solutions to the challenges Iowans are facing.