Today, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) helped lead the U.S. House of Representatives in passing the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The NDAA provides for a 3.1 percent pay raise for military service members and a strong and a smart national defense strategy. U.S. Rep. Castor championed several important provisions in the bill that directly help MacDill Air Force Base service members and families, including tackling the mold problem in base housing and a new Tenants’ Bill of Rights. Read more »

Today Republicans, with the unfortunate support of our own State of Florida, pressed in court to destroy affordable health care coverage for millions of Floridians and Americans. If the GOP and President Trump prevail in Texas v. U.S. in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, coverage for preexisting conditions and other consumer protections will end. Read more »

As the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team continues to score big on the global stage in the Women’s World Cup, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) once again urged the U.S. Soccer Federation to remedy the pay inequity and treatment experienced by the women’s team. Despite continuing to break attendance and viewership records, and many times generating more revenue than the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team, the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team has faced an outsized wage gap compared to their male counterparts. U.S. Rep. Castor’s letter to Carlos Cordeiro, U.S. Soccer Federation president, includes the numbers backing these unprecedented revenue and viewership records. Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) released the following statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision today in Department of Commerce v. New York regarding the Trump administration’s addition of a question about citizenship on the 2020 Census. Since last year, U.S. Rep. Castor has urged the Trump administration to reject adding this citizenship question to the… Read more »

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) announced passage of robust appropriations bills to fund America’s national defense and support military families at MacDill Air Force Base and across the country. H.R. 2740 and H.R. 3550 passed this week and include a boost in pay for our service members as well as provisions to correct substandard on-base housing and strengthen the care our veterans have earned and deserve. U.S. Rep. Castor also insisted that funds meant for investments in our troops and national security are not diverted to the President’s border wall. Read more »

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) is sounding the alarm that online privacy, especially the privacy of children, is at risk due to lack of resources at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and to the growing number of companies that mine our personal information even from children’s apps and toys. The U.S. House of Representatives adopted a Castor amendment today to an important appropriations bill that will help the FTC target bad actors. Read more »

Legislation to ban oil drilling off the coast of Florida passed out of the House Natural Resources Committee this week and is now headed to the House floor. H.R. 205, the Protecting and Securing Florida's Coastline Act sponsored by U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor (D-Tampa, Fla.) and Francis Rooney (R-Naples, Fla.), is now headed to the House floor thanks to their bipartisan leadership to unite the Florida congressional delegation – Democrats and Republicans – to protect Florida’s coasts from oil and gas development. Earlier this year, the entire bipartisan Florida congressional delegation demanded that the Department of the Interior take formal action to prohibit drilling off Florida’s coast. And, the Florida congressional delegation prevailed again last night when the House of Representatives passed a bipartisan appropriations amendment to block oil and gas pre-leasing, leasing and related activities in the outer continental shelf planning areas around Florida. Read more »

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) released the following statement after Hillsborough County Public Schools Superintendent Jeff Eakins announced that he will step down on June 30, 2020: Read more »

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) announced today two federal grants awarded to the University area, continuing her work to lift up the families, students and businesses who live and work in this growing area of innovation. These grants, awarded to University Area Community Development Corporation Inc. ($300,000) and the University of South Florida ($7.5 million), will bolster the region’s economy and continue investment in research and innovation burgeoning from the USF area. Read more »

Today’s announcement does nothing to hurt the Cuban government, rather Cuban entrepreneurs, American businesses and the American public will be the ones to suffer. Americans should be able to travel freely and remain our best ambassadors to promote democracy and human rights. Read more »