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By Donald McEachin

Guest columnist

June was very busy in Washington as my House colleagues and I passed legislation that can truly improve lives.  

Last month, I helped pass the Lower Food and Fuel Costs Act to reinforce the food and agriculture supply chain, assure fair competition in the meat and poultry industries, and lower food and fuel costs by providing support to farmers. The legislation will support our farmers by lowering costs for essentials such as fertilizer and providing new tools for nutrient management.

Supply chain disruptions and stubborn inflationary pressures have created serious challenges for farmers and consumers, leading to higher costs in the field and the grocery store. The bipartisan Lower Food and Fuel Costs Act seeks to help address these issues by strengthening our supply chain, bolstering competition, and providing viable, cheaper biofuel alternatives for consumers.

I also voted for the bipartisan Recovering America’s Wildlife Act last month to provide funding for the conservation, restoration and protection of wildlife and their habitats. I am excited to share that this includes over $22 million for Virginia to achieve those goals.

Most wildlife management and conservation is carried out by state governments but the federal funding to support these programs has been inadequate and unreliable. This legislation will address those deficits. With the impacts of climate change, more species are going extinct and we are experiencing a biodiversity crisis.

The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act will provide much needed funding to our commonwealth to protect wildlife and increase tourism, while addressing the adverse impacts of climate change. This bill will make a difference for our economy, for the earth and for future generations.

Finally, I am excited to share more on the 15 Community Project Funding requests I submitted in June.

Last year, we were fortunate enough to have every project we submitted receive funding and I am working to achieve that again this year. These projects range from enhancing community emergency communication systems, to training more health care workers and even supplementing broadband on a local HBCU campus.

These projects were all submitted by the locality or the institution, so I am confident they are truly meeting local needs. I encourage you to read more on the 15 projects I submitted at https://mceachin.house.gov/appropriations/community-project-funding/fy-2023.

 

U.S. Rep. Donald McEachin, D-Va., represents Suffolk in the U.S. House of Representatives. He can be reached via Lena.Jacobson@mail.house.gov.