Dear friend,
Happy Pride Month!
Thank you to St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch, leaders and friends for including me in raising the Pride Flag at City Hall. The Tampa Bay area is an inclusive and welcoming community that finds strength in our diversity and commitment to equal rights for all.
I am a proud co-sponsor of the Equality Act in Congress, which will prohibit discrimination in housing, employment and health care based upon sexual orientation. Although the GOP has blocked the bill this Congress, you can count on me to stand up for equal rights for all, including the right to love who you love. |
Access to the internet is a necessity for families and businesses – for work, school, health care, finances and much more.
When President Biden and Democrats passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to rebuild our roads and bridges, we also included investments in the infrastructure that helps power our lives: access to low-cost internet services through the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The ACP has allowed 102,000 of our neighbors across the Tampa Bay area to save money through internet discounts. |
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Last week, Pinellas School Board Chair Laura Hine and CEO of the St. Pete Free Clinic Jennifer Yeagley joined me in urging House Republicans to renew the ACP as affordable wifi access is critical to staying connected to school and services. |
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HAS THE AFFORDABLE CONNECTIVITY PROGRAM HELPED YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW?
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Submit survey to sign up for updates on my work in Congress.*
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Local business leaders joined me and Florida State Representative Susan Valdés to discuss one fix to America’s broken immigration laws through work permits for long-term undocumented immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens.
For example, Alejandra, an immigrant, mother and wife of a U.S. service member and Iraq Veteran, faced deportation after exhausting any options for a pathway to work or citizenship despite her clean record. Unfortunately, Alejandra’s story is all too familiar to many mixed-status families—households with a mix of citizenship or immigration statuses—across the country. For too long, our broken immigration system has separated families and caused considerable pain and uncertainty. Without meaningful reforms, we are also missing out on the significant benefits of increased participation in the economy and a stronger workforce. |
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The Tampa Bay area was built by immigrants and continues to benefit culturally and economically from the diversity of our community.
Following the roundtable discussion, I immediately got to work, urging the Biden Administration to help keep Alejandra and her family together while she continues to pursue a permanent status. Less than 24 hours before she was to leave the United States, President Biden halted Alejandra’s deportation and granted her a one-year extension of parole. President Biden, also frustrated by inaction in Congress, also announced limits on asylum at the border. If America is going to deter border crossings, Congress must update our outdated laws and create pathways to work and citizenship. |
This week marks the 59th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Griswold v. Connecticut which was foundational to establishing the constitutional right to contraception. Access to contraception is under attack by MAGA extremists across the country. Last night, Senate Republicans blocked a bill that would have protected access to birth control. I trust women to make their personal decisions on whether and when to have children, and I will continue to stand up to protect reproductive rights and freedoms. |
Each year, I submit community funding projects with local partners to lower costs, create safer and healthier communities and invest in affordable housing. Check out some of the new projects I submitted for federal funding for Fiscal Year 2025. Read about all the projects here. |
H.R. 8282: This bill would have a chilling effect on the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) ability to hold bad actors accountable, like Vladimir Putin for his heinous war crimes against Ukraine. It would also prohibit American companies from providing cloud and other technology services to the ICC, which could force the ICC to use Chinese-based companies and put troves of sensitive data in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party. I voted “no”. H.R. 8580 – Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2025: I opposed this harsh, partisan bill that fails veterans, hurts military readiness, and worsens the quality of life for service members and their families. This bill slashes critical military construction projects, disarms our military in the face of climate change, further limits women’s access to abortion, reneges on a bipartisan agreement and undermines Federal laws that keep guns out of the hands of those who could harm themselves or others. |
House Republicans doubled down on COVID-19 conspiracies at a time when Congress should be preparing for future pandemics. I participated in a 14-hour interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci in January and a 4-hour hearing this week. There is no shred of evidence that Dr. Fauci helped originate the COVID-19 virus. Most evidence points to a natural spillover of the virus from a Chinese animal market, and experts will continue to examine evidence to find the exact origin. Lawmakers should be working with public health experts, health care professionals and scientists to determine how we can better prepare and respond to the next pandemic and not waste time and money on their wild conspiracy theories. In the Energy and Commerce Energy Subcommittee hearing on “Powering AI: Examining America’s Energy and Technology Future,” I highlighted President Biden and Democrat’s work through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act and CHIPS and Science Act, that has led to an American Manufacturing Renaissance and a strong economy. Despite House Republicans and Big Oil’s attempts to put up barriers, we are on track for a clean energy boom that will lower electric bills for families and small businesses. Watch my questioning here. |
In my Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee hearing on the Oversight of the 340B Drug Discount Program, I relayed how 340B drug discounts provide real savings for Tampa Bay neighbors at our community health centers, Tampa General Hospital and Baycare hospitals. 340B discounts require drug companies to provide savings without using taxpayer funds. The largest users of the 340B discounts are non-profit hospitals that serve a disproportionate number of low-income patients. |
As always, you can call my office at (813) 871-2817 or (727) 369-0201.
I hope to see you soon! Sincerely,
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Kathy Castor Member of Congress |
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