Media

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) led 7 of her colleagues from the New York delegation in a letter to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) urging the agency to reassign jurisdiction of its San Juan Field Office from Region IV in Atlanta to Region II in New York.

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) led a letter to the Department of Justice (DOJ) calling on the agency to act to safeguard the rights of Puerto Rican voters in the face of ongoing disenfranchisement in the Puerto Rican electoral system.
 

Brooklyn, NY – Today, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) announced her intention to introduce a federal version of New York’s Mel’s Law. Velázquez’s bill would require colleges and universities receiving federal funding to establish a policy to award posthumous degrees to students who pass away before completing their required coursework.
 

Washington, D.C. –Today, on the seventh anniversary of Hurricane María’s landfall in Puerto Rico, Representative Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) introduced the Data Improvement for Puerto Rico Recovery Act. This legislation would require federal agencies providing recovery grants for Puerto Rico to report on the critical data gaps they face while administering these grants and indicate the federal statistical products to which Puerto Rico should be integrated into.
 

Washington D.C.– Today, Representatives Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) and Young Kim (R-CA) and U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) announced the reintroduction of the Inventor Diversity for Economic Advancement (IDEA) Act of 2024, bicameral, bipartisan legislation to permit the collection of data that will provide a better understanding of the disparate rates at which women, veterans, and other groups apply for patents in the United States.

Brooklyn, New York - Today, Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) released the following statement regarding the passing of Dianne Jackson: 
 
“I was incredibly saddened to learn of the passing of Dianne Jackson, a friend, and tireless activist on behalf of New York City’s public housing residents. As a lifetime public housing resident, she became a leader and activist dedicated to improving living conditions and advocating for tenant rights.
 

Washington D.C.—Yesterday, Reps. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Shontel Brown (D-OH) sent a letter to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requesting an update on delays in implementation of a rule to ban formaldehyde and other formaldehyde-releasing chemicals in hair products. The FDA’s proposed ban, which follows a March 2023 letter from Reps. Pressley and Brown calling for an investigation into the health risks posed by chemical hair straighteners, has been delayed twice since April 2024.

Washington, D.C.— Today, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez issued the following statement ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s joint address to Congress:
 
           “On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address a joint session of Congress for a record fourth time. I will not be attending.