Click here to read the newsletter in Spanish

What I heard during these visits was unsurprising: hardworking individuals and families alike are really struggling to make ends meet. Taking care of your young kids or aging parents shouldn’t be an unaffordable luxury, but for many of our neighbors, it is. And for those in the “sandwich generation”—who are caring for both parents and kids—the work and the costs can feel unsustainable and exhausting.  

I also spoke with parents and caretakers of people with disabilities, including some whose adult children will likely need to live with them for their whole lives. These families, too, often feel unseen and unserved in conversations and legislation about family care. 

But it doesn’t have to be this way. As I tell you about the concerns I hear from our community, let me also share what I’m doing in Washington to make things easier for you. 

Paid leave is personal for me. As a new mom serving in the Air Force, I had six weeks of paid maternity leave but faced a six-month waitlist at my base’s daycare center. If you’re a new parent today in a similar situation, I want you to know I’ve been there – and it was one of the factors I weighed in choosing to leave the military. No one should have to choose between taking care of their family and keeping their job.

That’s why, since coming to Congress, expanding paid leave has been one of my highest priorities, and I am so proud of everything we’ve delivered so far. In 2019, I helped broker a historic agreement to provide our country’s 2.1 million federal civilian workers with paid parental leave. In 2022, I secured 12 weeks of paid parental leave for all of our uniformed military servicemembers, and in 2023, I got legislation passed to expand access for veterans.

Now, momentum is building to expand paid leave even further. At the start of the 118th Congress, I helped launch the first ever Bipartisan Paid Leave Working Group in Congress. Together with this group, I helped develop the More Paid Leave for More Americans Act, a bipartisan bill that we could pass right now to bring paid leave to more people in more states. I’ll keep working to make sure no one has to choose between their health, their family’s well-being, and their paycheck, and I’m excited that this bill’s buzz is growing and could get us even closer to that goal.

My bipartisan bill, the Multigenerational Caregiving Data Inclusion Act, fixes that problem. By adding a question to an existing federal survey that identifies caregivers of both young and aging relatives, this bill makes sure the “sandwich generation” no longer goes unseen. 

From expanding access to Child Tax Credits to supporting seniors with assisted living stipends, there’s much more we can do to ease financial stress for caregivers and families. I was proud to lead the New Democrat Coalition’s Affordability Agenda, which breaks down five key affordability issues, including family care. In it, we lay out realistic and practical solutions to bring down costs on everything from daycare and senior care to groceries, housing, and gasoline. 

We know what needs to be done, and we know how badly people all over our country need relief. Now, it’s time for Congress to get the job done. I will certainly continue pushing my colleagues to deliver these solutions.  

Another one of the biggest financial stressors our community faces is the high cost of healthcare. As your representative in Congress, bringing your stories back to Washington is one of the most effective ways I can help craft real solutions. So, I want to hear from you: how have rising healthcare costs impacted you and your family? 

Please take a moment to share your story here, and I will bring your experiences with me to Washington.  

A few months ago, I wrote about the exceptional students I had the honor of nominating to our military service academies this year. We celebrated these nominees with a reception back in March, and now I am glad to share some more great news about their appointments.  

Of all of the nominees from our community, 17 students have received appointments (essentially invitations and full scholarships) to one of our service academies. This is an incredibly impressive outcome, and a testament to the strength, intelligence, and selflessness of young people in our community. PA-06 is sending six future servicemembers to the U.S. Military Academy (West Point), seven to the U.S. Naval Academy, three to the U.S. Air Force Academy, and one to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. The rigorous academic and physical training will prepare them as officers in our military. I am so proud of each of them for choosing to serve our country. 

As always, thank you for the honor of serving as your representative in Congress.

Sincerely,

Chrissy Houlahan

U.S. Member of Congress

Were you forwarded this email? Sign up for my newsletter here. 

Please share: if you find this newsletter valuable or interesting, please share it with friends and family and ask them to subscribe too. 

Please note that replying to this email will not direct your message to the right place. To contact the Office of Representative Houlahan, please click here.