IN THE STATES: Senate Democrats Focus On Lowering Costs & Supporting Working Families During August State Work Period

With Senate Democrats in their home states during the August work period, voters are reading and watching a wave of news coverage highlighting how Sens. Kelly, Cortez Masto, Warnock, Hassan, and Bennet are focusing on working families’ most pressing priorities: lowering costs and cutting the debt by making Big Pharma and wealthy corporations pay their fair share, improving our supply chains by making more products in America, expanding health care for our veterans and rebuilding their state’s infrastructure.

See for yourself:

AZ – KYMA: Inflation Reduction Act may help Desert Southwest residents

• Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) visited Yuma last week and said the Act is critical to Arizonans and communities, “it raises money. It allows us to, also with this legislation, create green jobs, reduce greenhouse gasses by 40%. In eight years, this is all paid for, and then some.”

• Kelly shared a big factor of the Act being capping out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs at $2,000 for seniors.

• The Mayor of El Centro Tomas Oliva says this will have a huge impact on Imperial County.

AZ – KJZZ: Sen. Mark Kelly joins AARP to celebrate changes to Medicare prescription drugs

• Sen. Mark Kelly spoke at an AARP Arizona roundtable on Wednesday about what he called an “historic piece of legislation.”

• “The people that have to make hard choices that, in our country today, nobody should really have to decide whether to buy groceries, or make a decision to cut the pills in half and take half a dose, or in some cases, not take the medication at all,” he said.

AZ – KOLD: Senator Kelly Highlights Tucson Getting $25 million For Road Repair

• Reporter: Money for the project is coming from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.

• Senator Kelly: Taking into consideration other people’s priorities, listening to them, and ultimately it’s all about compromise.

AZ – KAFF: Senator Mark Kelly Met With Coconino County Leaders Tuesday To Discuss Flooding And Wildfires

• Arizona Senator Mark Kelly met with local leaders Tuesday to be briefed on the recent flooding and wildfires in Northern Arizona. Kelly met with Coconino County Board of Supervisors chairwoman Patrice Hortsman, County Flood Control District Manager Lucinda Andreani, Flagstaff Mayor Paul Deasy and others for about an hour.

• The meeting touched on response, recovery and how additional funding can provide Coconino County with additional resources to help mitigate the impacts of recent wildfires and flooding in the area.

CO –  KDVR: Senator Michael Bennet Discusses CHIPS Act Bringing Semiconductor Chip Production Back The U.S.

• Reporter: US senator for Colorado Michael Bennet says foreign made chips have left the country vulnerable. The CHIPs Act boosts semiconductor chip manufacturing domestically.

• Senator Bennet: We need to protect our national security and for that reason, it’s very important for us to make sure we have as robust a semiconductor industry as possible.

CO – Fox 21 Colorado Springs: Senator Bennet visits Colorado Springs to discuss new laws

• Senator Michael Bennet visited Colorado Springs to discuss two recent bills that President Biden signed into law to expand veterans’ access to health care and boost U.S. competition.

• Bennet met with veterans to celebrate the passage of the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act. This bipartisan legislation will expand Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care eligibility to over 3.5 million toxic-exposed veterans.

CO – KKTV: Senator Michael Bennet Visits Local Microchip Manufacturing Facility

• Reporter: Bennet also tells us that a surge in jobs should be expected in Colorado Springs because of this newly signed law.

• Reporter: The newly signed law will also bring a 25% tax credit for investments in advanced chip technology in order to increase competitiveness of America’s semiconductor industry.

CO – ABC 7 Denver: Democrats laud coming impact Inflation Reduction Act will have on Colorado

• “I think it’s really important to understand that this is going to be a phasing. It’s not all going to happen at once but it’s going to be really good for our manufacturing sector,” Sen. Bennet said.

• To pay for these programs, the bill calls for a minimum of a 15% tax on corporations making $1 billion or more. Bennet pointed out during a Tuesday press conference that school teachers pay more than a 15% tax.

GA – Atlanta Journal Constitution: Warnock highlights law to help veterans exposed to toxic burn pits

• U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock is promoting his support for a new law that expands medical benefits for veterans who were exposed to toxic open-air burning pits of trash on U.S. military bases.

• “We were there to serve our country, but in the process we were exposed to toxic chemicals and denied proper care when we got home,” said Tomblin. “But Raphael Warnock has changed things. He helped pass a law to expand healthcare for tens of thousands of Georgia veterans.”

GA – WMAZ: Senator Warnock Visits Robins Air Force Base To Discuss The Future Of Military Technology and Jobs

• Warnock: “This means jobs, jobs, jobs. Jobs in tech and the area of STEM.”

GA – WRDW: Augusta Transit gets federal funds to buy electric buses

• The funding was awarded through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Fiscal Year 2022 Low or No Emission Vehicle Program, which helps state and local governments purchase or lease zero-emission and low-emission transit buses as well as acquire and construct support facilities.

• The funding passed with legislative support from Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga.

GA – WAGT: Georgia Senators Announce $300 Million Investment Into Georgia Healthcare

• Reporter: One of our biggest local hospitals getting a big boost from Washington. Georgia Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff announcing more than $300 million in investments going to AU Health and Grady Health Systems. The senators say the money will help improve access to maternity and pediatric health.

GA – Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Climate bill could be a game changer for Georgia solar. Here’s why

• The bill contains a raft of incentives — many of which were championed by Georgia Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock — aimed at growing domestic solar and clean energy supply chains.

• Producers like Georgia’s own Qcells — which recently announced a $171 million expansion near its existing Dalton plant — say they are eyeing even more growth thanks to the legislation.

• “It really directly encourages scale and is going to turn the U.S. into a world leader in clean energy manufacturing,” Moskowitz said. “From Qcells’ perspective, we’re currently expanding in Dalton and are also looking at a variety of other growth projects that are made possible by Senator Warnock and Ossoff’s legislation.”

GA – WXIA: Senator Warnock’s Insulin Cap Proposal In The Inflation Reduction Act Highlighted

• Reporter: The Inflation Reduction Act includes a measure led by Georgia Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock… that would cap the price of insulin for many Americans at $35 a month — that is a huge deal.

NV – KOLO: Catherine Cortez Masto announces millions in funding for Nevada’s economy

• Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto announced $3.9 million in funding in a bid to help Southern Nevada’s economy.

• “I’m working to help Nevadans in my home town of Las Vegas and around the state find good-paying jobs in exciting industries like hospitality, tourism, technology, and manufacturing,” said Cortez Masto. “This grant funding will make a real difference in Southern Nevada for vital industries and workers and support our continued economic recovery.”

NV – KSNV: Sen. Cortez Masto Announces Funding for Stewart Avenue in Las Vegas

• Reporter: Senator Catherine Cortez Masto has announced new funding for repairs and upgrades for Stewart Avenue, right here in Las Vegas.

• Reporter: The nearly five mile stretch of Stewart Avenue is going to get upgraded streetlights, wider sidewalks, more shade, improved bus stops, and upgraded bicycle tracks.

NV – Nevada Appeal: Cortez Masto says wildfire funding available in Nevada

• U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., says the $1 billion in wildfire prevention funding contained in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill is available to communities in Nevada and other states.

• “I want to make sure these funds get to Nevada communities that need them and I encourage local and tribal governments to apply and help Nevada stay safe,” she said.

NV – KSNV: Senator Catherine Cortez Masto Visits Local Business Touting Pandemic Relief

• Senator Cortez Masto: And because we were able to get the money out there, you now get to see a business that is thriving and growing in our community.

NV – Nevada Appeal: Infrastructure bill funds Fernley highway project

• U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., said Wednesday the bipartisan infrastructure law will pump $25 million to the city of Fernley to support the Victory Project.

• Fernley Mayor Roy Edington, Jr., said that is the largest single grant award in Fernley history and it a critical infrastructure project for the city. He said the project will be “transformative” for the area economy. He thanked… Masto.

NH – Seacoast Current (Opinion): Senator Maggie Hassan: Inflation Reduction Act lowers drug costs, fights inflation, reduces the deficit

• The good news is that relief is on the way with passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, a bill that I am proud to have worked on and voted for in the Senate. Our bill lowers prescription drug and energy costs in a way that fights inflation and reduces the deficit.

• First and foremost, our bill will lead to Granite Staters paying less at the pharmacy counter. It finally allows Medicare to negotiate the price of prescription drugs, which is a priority that I have been pushing for years, because we know that by putting pressure on Big Pharma we can bring down the cost of prescription drugs for Medicare patients and for consumers across the board.

• Our bill also strengthens our economy overall, helping to further fuel American innovation.

• I was proud to work with my colleagues to get this critical legislation over the finish line in the Senate. I am looking forward to the President signing this bill into law so that our country takes historic actions to address the challenges that Granite Staters are facing. With this measure, we lower prescription drug and energy costs and jumpstart a brighter, stronger future for our economy.

NH – New Hampshire Union Leader (Opinion): Senator Maggie Hassan: Investing in the future of our nation and state

• For more than a year, I have worked with Republicans and Democrats on comprehensive, bipartisan legislation to invest in American research and manufacturing — especially for semiconductors — that will lower costs, help us outcompete China, bring jobs back to the U.S., and strengthen our economic and national security.

• This new bipartisan law will strengthen our economy — creating the jobs of the future, lowering costs for our families, while outcompeting China so that we can keep our country safe, secure, and free.

NH – Manchester Ink Link: Hassan kicks off small business tour on Elm Street

•  U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) kicked off her “Small Business for Maggie” tour at the Bookery on Elm Street, touting her work on supporting the Granite State’s small businesses.

• Hassan cited research and development tax credits for small business she supported through the American Innovation and Jobs Act earlier this year and well as her support of the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act and Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) and Science Act as further efforts on her part to support New Hampshire businesses.

NH – WMUR: Senator Maggie Hassan Visits New Semiconductor Faculty, Touts New CHIPS Act

• Senator Hassan: This law will be a boon for New Hampshire, since our state is already uniquely well equipped for innovation and technology businesses.

NH – Manchester Ink Link: Hassan joins local advocates in touting Inflation Reduction Act’s passage

• U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) held a press conference at Amoskeag Health with local healthcare advocates, medical professionals and area residents impacted by pharmaceutical costs to celebrate the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act last weekend by the U.S. Senate.

• “(This bill) will help bring down the cost of prescription drugs for not just Medicare patients, but consumers across the board by putting pressure on Big Pharma to lower their prices,” said Hassan.

NH – New Hampshire Union Leader: Pappas, Hassan celebrate PACT Act, talk next steps with local vets leaders

• After President Joe Biden signed the Honoring Our PACT Act, in one of the largest expansions of VA care in decades, leaders of New Hampshire veterans organizations met with U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan and U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas to discuss the implementation of the new law, and what it will mean for New Hampshire.

• The new law smooths the process to get Veterans Affairs health care and benefits.

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