Adams 🚨 Alert: Disability Pride Month

Also: Congresswoman Adams introduces legislation to protect workers in extreme heat; celebrating National Intern Day.

July is Disability Pride Month.

The month of July was chosen because on July 26, 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law by President George H. W. Bush to give people with disabilities equal opportunities that didn’t exist before. The ADA protects the civil rights of millions of people with disabilities, both physical and mental; both seen and unseen.

The legislation was led by then-Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), whose brother Frank had been deaf from an early age.

“As I've often said in the past, the biggest barriers for people with disabilities are not the physical barriers they have, but the attitudinal barriers,” Harkin told the Des Moines Register on the 30th anniversary of the legislation. “The world before was a world of isolation for people with disabilities. It was a life of hurtful, demeaning language.”

Disability Pride Month was first celebrated in 2015 to commemorate the achievement of the ADA, celebrate people with disabilities, and acknowledge the work that still must be done to increase accessibility and equity in every facet of American life.

Inclusion and equity is a priority for me, as it is for countless people with disabilities.

I’m proud to join with my colleagues in Congress to support this year’s Disability Pride Month resolution. Additionally, our Congressional office can help you with Social Security Disability Insurance questions, including obtaining benefits that are owed to you.

Happy Disability Pride Month, especially to all of the advocates who work tirelessly to guarantee the civil rights of people with disabilities.

Thanks for reading, and for being engaged in our Democracy.

Sincerely,
Alma

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Adams, Labor Leaders Introduce Heat Stress Legislation to Protect Workers

Adams, McCollum, Calvert, Thompson Introduce Bipartisan Resolution Recognizing Disability Pride Month

How you can get emergency help with renewing passports in the Charlotte area

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S. 111, the “Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act”

This bill requires the notice of a proposed rule by a federal agency to include the internet address of a summary of the rule. The summary must be 100 words or fewer, written in plain language, and posted on regulations.gov.

I believe you have a right to know what your government is doing. I voted YES.

H.Con.Res. 57, the “Expressing the sense of Congress supporting the State of Israel.”

I voted YES.

H.R. 813, the “Global Investment in American Jobs Act of 2023”

This bill requires the Department of Commerce and the Government Accountability Office to conduct an interagency review of the global competitiveness of the United States in attracting foreign direct investment from responsible private-sector entities based in trusted countries and addressing foreign trade barriers that firms in advanced technology sectors face in the global digital economy. I voted YES.

H.R. 3941, the “Schools Not Shelters Act”

This bill prohibits using the facilities of certain schools that receive federal financial assistance to provide shelter or housing for any non-U.S. national (alien under federal law) who has not been admitted for lawful entry. Specifically, this bill shall apply to the facilities of (1) public elementary or secondary schools, and (2) institutions of higher education.

However, many of these same schools educate undocumented students. The legislation is unnecessary and punitive, and treats children and families as less than human. I voted NO.

H.R. 3935, the “Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act” (FAA Reauthorization)

This bill reauthorizes the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) through FY2028, including activities and programs related to airport planning and development, facilities and equipment, and operations. The National Transportation Safety Board is also reauthorized through FY2028.

The bill also addresses a wide range of issues:

• directs the FAA to increase air traffic controller hiring targets;

• establishes a workforce development program to support the education, recruitment, and retention of aviation professionals;

• establishes an FAA Ombudsman to coordinate the response to submissions of inquiries or objections relating to issues such as aircraft certifications and registrations, pilot certificates, and operational approvals, waivers, or exemptions;

• raises the commercial airline pilot retirement age to 67 (currently 65);

• prohibits aircraft dispatchers from working remotely, with limited exceptions for emergencies;

• requires the Department of Transportation (DOT) to establish standards to ensure the aircraft boarding and deplaning process is accessible for individuals with disabilities, including for individuals who use wheelchairs;

• requires DOT to establish a policy directing certain air carriers to seat a young child next to an accompanying adult if adjacent seats are available without charging an additional fee;

• prohibits the FAA from requiring mask wearing or COVID-19 vaccines for passengers, air carrier employees, or FAA employees;

• requires the FAA to issue rules to update the requirements for testing and operating unmanned aircraft (i.e., drones), including for drones operating beyond the visual line of sight; and

• requires the FAA to issue rules for certifying pilots for powered-lift aircraft (i.e., capable of vertical takeoff and landing) and operational rules for powered-lift aircraft.

Despite the lack of flexibility for a future pandemic response, I voted YES.

Notable Amendment of HR 3935

• Perry #74 – Reduces Airport Improvement Program (AIP) funding, the FAA’s operations and maintenance budget, and the FAA’s research and development budget

The Airport Improvement Program (AIP) provides grants to public agencies as well as some private airport owners and operators for the planning and development of public-use airports and rural, “nonprimary” airports that are included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. Overall, this funding program equips many airports with critical and necessary funding for the purpose of operations. The majority attempted to pass this amendment that would decrease funding for airports like CLT. I voted NO.

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Thursday, July 27 is National Intern Day. We are thankful for our summer interns in both our Washington, D.C. and Charlotte offices, and will be spotlighting them in this and upcoming editions of Adams Alerts.

Intern Spotlight: District Office Interns

Name: Jackie Jewel
College: University of Edinburgh
Major: International Relations
Hometown: Davidson, North Carolina

Jackie Jewel is a 2020 graduate of Hough High School in Cornelius and is currently a fourth-year student at University of Edinburg in Scotland.  Formerly, Jackie won the PTSA Scholarship from Hough and was a NC Senate page for Jeff Jackson. Currently, she is studying for a career in International Relations focusing on Cultural Affairs.  Last summer Jackie interned simultaneously for the Charlotte World Affairs Council and The Jewish Museum in New York City. After graduation, Jackie will take the Foreign Service exam and hopefully work for the US State Department or UNESCO. She has many hobbies but is a skilled ballroom dancer and an avid reader with a particular interest in French author and feminist, George Sand. Jackie has enjoyed being an intern at Congresswoman Adams office and learning how the district interacts with Congress.

Name: Jenna Rae Roman
College: University of North Carolina, Charlotte
Major: Double major in Public Health and Health Systems Management
Hometown: Wake Forest, North Carolina

Jenna Roman is a college student studying Public Health and Health Systems Management with an interest in health policy. She is working to pursue a career in health policy development as well as global and international affairs and plans on attending graduate school to further her education with a master’s in public health. She is also interested in improving cultural awareness and competence to reduce disparities throughout her work in Public Health. She has a background of twelve years in professional dance, as well as course teaching and training. Currently, she works full time as a supervisor at Lidl while finishing up her undergraduate education. Jenna grew up closely with her two sisters and is very family oriented, she also has a passion for travel, reading, and listening to music. 

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As you know, I wear many hats in Congress.

One of my most important responsibilities is as the ranking member of the Workforce Protections Subcommittee of the House Committee on Education & the Workforce. On that subcommittee, as both chair and ranking member, I’ve prioritized the safety and rights of American workers.

That includes working on heat-related illnesses, including heat cramps, organ damage, heat exhaustion, stroke, and even death. Between 1992 and 2017, heat stress injuries killed 815 U.S. workers and seriously injured more than 70,000.

In 2004, after picking grapes for ten hours straight in 105-degree temperatures, Asunción Valdivia fell over, unconscious. Instead of calling an ambulance, his employer told Mr. Valdivia’s son to drive his father home. On his way home, he started foaming at the mouth and died of heat stroke. Because of the lack of preventative heat safety measures and emergency planning, a son had to witness his father die a preventable death at the age of 53.

Mr. Valdivia’s death was avoidable. Unfortunately, his story is not unique. Heat illness has also been an issue for workers in Charlotte and across North Carolina.

That’s why I’m a leader on the Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act.

The Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act will protect indoor and outdoor workers against occupational exposure to excessive heat.

If you’re thinking “why isn’t that happening already?” you’re not alone. OSHA finally started a rulemaking process for a workplace heat standard after President Biden took office, but that process is ongoing. Here in North Carolina, there are no OSHA or N.C. occupational safety and health standards for heat.

Our bill requires OSHA to establish an enforceable standard to protect workers in high-heat environments with measures like paid breaks in cool spaces, access to water, limitations on time exposed to heat, and emergency response for workers with heat-related illness.

The legislation also directs employers to provide training for their employees on the risk factors that can lead to heat illness, and guidance on the proper procedures for responding to symptoms.

Every worker deserves to go home to their family when the whistle blows. Hopefully, this bill will bring us one step closer to that world.

That’s where I’ll lay my hat for this week. Thanks for reading!

Sincerely,
Alma