To our neighbors in NY-14,

The shooting at Uvalde Elementary is a tragedy of a scale that is hard to grasp, especially just ten days after the Buffalo shooting and 10 years after the Sandy Hook massacre. That the U.S. is the only country in the world where this routinely happens, and yet has done little to stop mass shootings and prevent gun violence, is a scathing indictment of our governance.

In response to these shootings, the House passed the Protecting Our Kids Act, which would raise the legal age of purchase for certain semi-automatic rifles, crack down on gun trafficking, establish safety requirements for residential storage of dangerous firearms, and ban bump stocks and high-capacity magazines as well as ghost guns. Negotiations have been ongoing, and over the weekend, a bipartisan group of 20 Senators (10 Democrats and 10 Republicans) announced an agreement on gun violence prevention legislation. The framework includes enhanced background checks for buyers under the age of 21, the first ever federal law against gun trafficking, and more.

I will be very honest. I don’t know if these negotiations in the Senate will be successful. Gun companies spend twice the entire salary of Congress in lobbying. As with so many things, they’ve got money, but we’ve got you. That’s why we’re going to focus on what’s in our control and focus on doing our job in the House — as best we can — while we wait for the Senate to take action.

I spoke more to recent events during our town hall last month. You can watch it in English with ASL interpretation or in Spanish. 

As always, please don’t hesitate to contact our office if you need assistance on another matter or to share your opinion on legislation. We can be reached online or by phone at 718-662-5970.

In service,

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Addressing the Baby Formula Shortage

President Biden has invoked the National Defense Production Act to boost formula production, a crucial step in resolving the nationwide shortage. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez also joined over 100 colleagues in sending a letter to President Biden urging him to resolve the crisis and ensure families can feed their babies. To ensure a crisis of this scale never happens again, the House passed legislation which allocates $28 million to address the shortage and allows the WIC program to address supply chain disruptions and recalls. 

Addressing Rising Gas Prices

We’ve also seen a dramatic rise in gas prices across the country as a result of the war in Ukraine. Russia is one of the world’s largest oil producers and exporters, and is driving crude oil prices at home and abroad up, subsequently increasing our gas prices. However, Big Oil companies and CEOs are also taking advantage of this and are making record profits while thousands of families struggle financially. When the price of a barrel of oil fell by 20% in late April, oil and gas companies continued to see record profits, all while customers continued to pay the higher price of gas at the tank. Rising gas prices have demonstrated why we must end reliance on fossil fuel companies that profiteer during times of crisis. To ensure we hold these companies accountable, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez voted for the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, which would prevent companies from price gouging by imposing fines, deterring further price gouging. This bill passed both the House and is currently awaiting passage in the Senate. 

Introducing the Puerto Rico Status Act and Visiting the Island

Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez recently visited Puerto Rico with a bipartisan group of Congress Members to get feedback on the Puerto Rico Status Act. This bill would allow Boricuas to vote for one of the following options: Statehood, Independence, or Sovereignty in Free Association. Unlike past votes, this vote would be binding — and Congress would have to follow through on the election results. Read more about the Puerto Rico Status Act and its significance here.