Dear Friends,
My most important job is to listen to central Arkansans about what is important to you. This week and last week, I had two public forums to hear your concerns and questions about the school year this fall and how Congress has helped.
If you missed my Telephone Town Hall on Tuesday, you can see it by clicking HERE or on the image below.
Some of the topics we discussed during these public events included:
- What options do low-income families have if they don’t have the resources like broadband at home for distance learning, but don’t feel comfortable sending their kids to school?
- My legislation, the Helping Educators with Learning Preparation, or "HELP Act” could go a long way towards addressing this issue. The HELP Act would establish a grant program for state and local scholastic entities to provide resources related to reopening in the 2020-21 school year with an emphasis on ensuring distance learning readiness and protecting health and safety.
- Whether this funding is used to provide hotspots for families without Internet access, for equipment that enables teachers to conduct live video lessons, or for sanitizing classrooms and providing masks and other protective gear, the HELP Act is designed to respond to the local needs of students, parents, and teachers with an emphasis on ensuring distance learning readiness and protecting health and safety for in-classroom instruction.
- What can schools do to keep kids from falling behind and off their pathway to graduation? And what has Congress done to mitigate the impacts on the economy?
- What Congress has done is provide the financial resources to continue payments for unemployment, to continue the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses to try and keep them open, and to fund Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program to keep businesses moving forward so that people can be employed.
- Congress has also gotten this money to our schools so that they can safely and sensibly open with a good plan.
- What are your thoughts on special needs children who need teachers more than ever, but may struggle with social distancing and PPE?
- We have the ability to do it with compassion, through education, and through hygiene standards. It'll be tough, but these students have a real need for their teachers, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and special education expertise and that need has to be an important factor.
- I know of small businesses that deal with childcare or therapies for children that have managed to stay open and continue providing services thanks to the Paycheck Protection Program so I know that we can do this safely and sensibly.
- In regards to the Paycheck Protection Program, do you believe there will be a round two for small business?
- The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) has made dent in the terrible impact that the pandemic has had on our businesses. In Arkansas over 45,000 businesses have received a PPP loan totaling almost $3.4 billion.
- At the end of June 30th, there was about $130 billion that Congress had approved that had not been spent in the PPP. Congress has extended that $130 billion for use until August 8th so people can be applying right now.
- I do believe that Congress will continue to support our small businesses past the August 8th deadline so that they can continue to get help they need. Congress is currently in the midst of ongoing negotiations to figure out the best way to provide relief. I have heard from countless businesses who have been impacted and, rest assured, I will take this information into these negotiations to ensure businesses are getting helped
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| Great American Outdoors Act |
Keeping Arkansas the Natural State |
As an avid outdoorsman, I was proud to support the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act, which passed the House on Wednesday. This legislation improves Arkansas’s 2.9 million acres of national forest and seven National Parks sites for generations to come.
Preserving our wild areas and historic sites for future generations of Arkansans and visitors is vital to protecting the Natural State we love.
Having outdoor recreation areas available to explore is especially important as we continue to practice safe social distancing to keep down the spread of COVID-19.
Read my op-ed in support of this bill, which was featured in the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Arkansas Wildlife Weekly Newsletter below.
| send a letter to an Arkansas doctor |
Encouraging Those on the Front Lines of COVID-19 |
I am so proud of Hassan Sardar, a Pulaski Academy student, who is helping to show our community's support and appreciation for our doctors. He is delivering letters to doctors facing the stress of the current health crisis.
His first big goal is to collect 500 letters for doctors at UAMS.
To send a letter, you can mail it to PO Box 13624, Maumelle AR, 72113 or message his Instagram account at @letterstodoctors_.
Sardar hopes these letters will not only show doctors how valued they are but open a discussion about the importance of a physician’s mental health.
| national defense authorization act Passed |
Funding For Our Men and Women in Uniform |
I am proud that my colleagues joined together to pass this year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which gives our troops a much-deserved raise and fully funds our military. This is the 59th year in a row that the NDAA has been passed.
This bipartisan legislation goes a long way to support our troops at home and abroad. Our airmen and airwomen at the Little Rock Air Force Base (LRAFB) will be directly affected this important funding allows for upgrading our nation’s C-130 fleet, which will ensure that LRAFB remains a center of excellence for our global airlift operations for years to come.
As lawmakers, we must ensure that we are effectively utilizing hardworking taxpayer dollars for our national defense priorities, which include honoring our commitment to the men and women in uniform who are making our country a safer place to live.
| Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program relaunched |
Support from the CARES Act |
The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) will be relaunched this summer starting on July 27th, with the help of over $8 million in CARES Funding, $7 million of which will go directly to help Arkansans with their bill.
LIHEAP is a block grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Community Services (OCS) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF). This program lowers the energy burden for low-income families, who pay a higher proportion of household income for home energy costs.
Thanks to the extra funding the maximum amount of household benefit will be tripled from $500 to $1,500.
During this difficult economic time and with the temperatures rising in Arkansas, this program is more important than ever.
For more information, or to apply, click HERE to access the Arkansas Energy Office.
It is my honor to represent you in Congress. Please contact me at (501) 324-5941 or Hill.House.Gov if I may be of service to you.
Sincerely,
Representative French Hill
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