Nydia Velázquez

I was proud to join with our friend, Representative Andy Barr, in writing a letter to the Treasury and the SBA advocating a streamline forgiveness process for borrowers under a $350,000 threshold.

I hope everybody remembers Andy Barr and his two lovely little girls in their prayers. Andy lost his wife last night, and the little girls lost their mama.

These measures have significantly reduced the resiliency and capacity of agencies to respond adequately to major disasters.

And I am sorry for the people of Puerto Rico that in an issue that is so important and that is not only the public debt restructuring but everything that is happening regarding the rebuilding of Puerto Rico, the earthquakes, the…

the problem is the money that was taken away and the lack of infrastructure that they needed to have in place

I supported Rep. Velazquez's H.R. 683--Puerto Rico Recovery Accuracy in Disclosures Act of 2019.

We all know how the people of Puerto Rico are suffering. Particularly, 65 percent of the children in Puerto Rico live in poverty.

this will not count against my 5 minutes, right?

How is that going to reduce the cost of energy in Puerto Rico?

And, by the way, PROMESA was written by the Republican Majority. And thank God that some of the Democratic members were there.

I have also been vocal in my criticism of the Administration for its failure to provide transparency and information regarding the recipients of PPP loans.

I remain committed to pushing the Administration to create opportunities for MDIs as well.

Witnesses who came before this Committee, and Major Adam DeMarco, they are all testifying that those were peaceful protesters.

Why, knowing that this country is dealing with a pandemic, and one of the areas known to be impacted by COVID-19 is the respiratory system--knowing that, why did you use such chemical agents against peaceful protesters?

I urge the Committee for more funds to community financial institutions and then direct the U.S. Department of the Treasury to reveal who is getting the loans and who is not getting the loans.

the implementation of the PPP has been flawed, and small businesses are waiting far too long to get the relief they urgently need.

We cannot leave them behind.

We need to make sure that Main Street is bailed out. Just like Wall Street got bailed out, Main Street must be bailed out right now.

It is essential that the PPP and EIDL loans make it into the hands of minority, women, and veteran owned businesses.

I look forward to continuing to work with this Committee and the body to protect and defend this Nation and our small businesses.

It is our responsibility to hold the administration accountable for making proper use of the emergency funding Congress has provided.

I am grateful that we have replenished many of our small business programs, but I deeply worry that it will be drained within days and weeks again.

I can't help but question the fact that you reviewed those plans that were materially deficient, but you concluded that they were acceptable.

I am sorry that it took this long to bring fairness and access to all the programs that exist under the Small Business Administration.

I want to thank Mr. Kim and Mr. Burchett for their leadership on this issue, and I encourage all my colleagues to vote yes.