U.S. Representative Adriano Espaillat proudly represents New York’s Thirteenth Congressional District.
Representative Espaillat is the first Dominican American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and his congressional district includes Harlem, East Harlem, West Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood, Marble Hill, and the north-west Bronx.
First elected to Congress in 2016, Representative Espaillat was sworn into office on January 3, 2017, during the 115th Congress and is serving his third term in Congress.
Congressmember Adriano Espaillat is a tireless advocate of civil rights, and has been a champion for the LGBTQ community. As one of his first acts in Congress, he joined the LGBT Equality Caucus.
Congressmember Espaillat was also an original cosponsor of the Equality Act of 2017.
Congressmember Adriano Espaillat is thrilled and honored to serve on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. In addition to sitting on the full committee, Congressmember Espaillat is a member of the Subcommittees on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), as well as Higher Education and Workforce Development.
A well-educated population is essential to our country's continued prosperity. Understanding the important role that education plays, Congressmember Espaillat is committed to ensuring that our students have the tools and resources necessary to excel in the classroom. Our students are entitled to a high-quality education and the federal government has an obligation to guarantee they are receiving the best education available. Not only does this mean ensuring that states properly implement the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) for the benefit of our children, but it also means increased investment in our public schools systems locally and across the country.
Congressmember Espaillat is a strong advocate for increased commitment to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) programs. He understands the critical role these programs play in better preparing students for an ever-evolving job market. Further, Congressmember Espaillat recognizes the importance of continuing to support Career Technical Education programs as a means for increasing quality technical education across our country. In his role on the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Congressmember Espaillat will work hard to ensure that these important programs are implemented to ensure equity in our educational system for all students.
As more and more jobs require advanced degrees, federal investment in higher education could not be more important. The benefits that our country receives from investments in higher education span far beyond the individuals attending college. The knowledge, skill-sets, and abilities that are developed across the academic spectrum, whether in medical research or linguistics, law or chemistry, education or architecture, play a crucial role in the advancement of our nation. As a result, Congressmember Espaillat is committed to decreasing the overwhelming financial burden that higher education can place on the backs of students. He will work to ensure that financial aid and assistance programs are protected and reinforced, so that students from all walks of life have the opportunity to attend college.
Representing one of the densest districts in the country, and hailing from New York City, Congressmember Espaillat understands and appreciates the challenges of ensuring and adequate, affordable, and clean energy supply to the American people. He is strongly supportive of implementing policies and increasing research and investment funding focused on developing and promoting energy efficiency, alternative and renewable energy sources, and reducing the emission of greenhouse gasses.
Congressmember Espaillat recognizes the great importance of ensuring that the American people have access to clean air and clean water, and will oppose any attempts to roll back provisions in the Clean Air and Water Acts, as well as through other legislative vehicles. He will focus on implementing policies that promote and protect a healthy environment, which is important to the public health of all Americans, while also preserving our nation's diverse set of unique and cherished ecosystems.
National Parks and Public Lands
Protecting our national parks and public lands is important to Congressmember Espaillat. These natural and cultural treasures, also known as "America's best idea," should be protected for current and future generations to enjoy. They should not be exploited for the short-term profit of the few. Many of these parks are home to delicate ecosystems that should be protected, not destroyed. Congressmember Espaillat will oppose any and all efforts to privatize, drill on, or damage any of these magnificent places.
Congressmember Espaillat was proud to introduce H.R. 739, the This Is Our Land Act. If enacted, this legislation would prohibit the Secretary of Homeland Security from constructing any new border barriers, including walls or fences, on Federal land under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior. This is a common sense bill that will continue to protect our cherished public lands along the southern most parts of the United States.
Climate Change
Congressmember Espaillat listens to the experts when it comes to climate change. The overwhelming majority of scientists and climate experts across the country and globe agree that climate change is real and that humans contribute to it. The threat of rising sea levels and the increase in severe storm activity presents a unique challenge for district that is housed in New York City. Recognizing both the immediate and long-term impacts of climate change, Congressmember Espaillat will be a strong supporter of policies and funding that seek to decrease human contribution to climate change in order to ensure that place like New York City remain safe for future generations.
As the first Dominican American to serve in Congress, Congressmember Adriano Espaillat is honored to serve on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee.
Since the initial wave of Dominican migration in the 1960s to the most recent arrivals of today, Dominicans and Dominican-Americans have worked hard to contribute to the national identity of the United States, educating people on their customs and enriching the quality of our shared futures. Contributions from Dominican-Americans can be found in every facet of United States life, including Fashion Designer Oscar de la Renta, Pulitzer Prize winner Junot Diaz, Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez, Baseball Giant "Big Papi," Novelist Julia Alvarez, and Actress Zoe Saldana. That is why Congressmember Adriano Espaillat introduced a resolution supporting the establishment of a national month of recognition for Dominican-Americans to honor Dominican people and their contributions. He also introduced a resolution supporting the establishment of a national day of recognition for Juan Pablo Duarte to honor the founding father or the Dominican Republic.
In Congress, Congressmember Adriano Espaillat has been pushing for:
Congressmember Adriano Espaillat is also concerned with funding the State Department, and believes in the importance of diplomacy. He is also concerned with national security. That is why he introduced the Make Our Government Safe Act, which would amend the National Security Act of 1947 to prevent anyone from serving on the National Security Council who has made the statements that Steve Bannon did about taking down the system. His bill would prevent someone who has threatened to destroy the government from participating in or attending National Security Council meetings.
Congressmember Espaillat firmly believes that healthcare is a right. Not only do individuals need access to health insurance, but they need affordable access to health insurance.
In his first floor speech as a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Congressmember Espaillat spoke out in support of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare. He said that the Affordable Care Act "is a promise to the American people that we must keep. It guarantees access to affordable, high-quality healthcare as a right for all Americans. Backing out of this commitment is irresponsible, inexcusable, and reprehensible." The ACA has benefited millions of Americans, and Congressmember Espaillat will stand in opposition to any attempts to repeal the law and the benefits it has bestowed.
Congressmember Espaillat has joined several Democratic colleagues as a cosponsor of H.R. 676, the Medicare for All Act, which would establish a single-payer health care system in the United States. This legislation would remove the incentive and ability for insurance companies to profit from an individual's health insurance coverage or access health care. As attempts to repeal the ACA remain at the forefront of the Republican agenda, Congressmember Espaillat stands firm in improving and advancing an agenda that will make the ACA and our health care system stronger for all Americans, not weaker for most of them.
As a member of the Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions, Congressmember Espaillat will work tirelessly to ensure that employer-sponsored health insurance coverage continues to provide real benefits for hardworking Americans across the country.
Housing is at the core of the American Dream, and unfortunately the aspiration to own your own home is at risk of slipping further away from the hands of working class and middle class families. As a former tenant organizer, Congressmember Adriano Espaillat brings the heart, knowledge, and fight for housing rights to the halls of Congress.
One of his first priorities is to mitigate the impact that gentrification has on low-income renters. The 13th Congressional district has the most units in the city (and therefore the nation); and has the second most residents in terms of population. He understands the need to protect low-income renters from being displaced from their homes.
That is why Rep. Adriano Espaillat plans to introduce the "Stop Gentrification in Low-Income Neighborhoods Act," which would, if enacted, offer the right of first refusal to low-income tenants, require landlords to produce a community impact study on development effects to low-income renters and nearby small businesses, and would offer relocation assistance.
As the Chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus' Transportation, Housing, and Infrastructure Task Force, Congressmember Adriano Espaillat plans to bring affordable housing funding to the forefront of legislative issues that need to be tackled.
Congressmember Espaillat is pushing for protect renter's rights and support appropriate levels of capital funding for public housing, ensure the public health and environmental sustainability of homes and public housing, continuing to upgrade and maintain American infrastructure.
Congressman Espaillat is leading the way on comprehensive immigration reform from NY​'s 13th to the halls of Congress. He recognizes our nation's reliance on the ingenuity and resourcefulness of its immigrant communities, and works relentlessly to ensure a simpler, safer route for immigrants to take advantage of the opportunity America promises.
​During the 115th Congress and his first session as a U.S. Congressman, Representative Espaillat accomplished:
During the 116th Congress, Congressman Adriano Espaillat introduced a critical legislative package to protect immigrant rights:
Protecting Sensitive Locations Act, will prohibit immigration enforcement in certain "sensitive locations" such as courthouses, schools, community centers and houses of worship, a tactic for targeting vulnerable immigrant communities that has become common under the Trump Administration.
Another measure, the Reunite Every Unaccompanied Newborn Infant Toddler and Other Children Expeditiously (REUNITE) Act, would require the immediate reunification of children who were separated from their parent or legal guardian as a result of the administration's "zero tolerance" policy.
The ICE and CBP Body Camera Accountability Act would require Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol officers to wear body cameras and would make footage available for any legal proceedings.
Finally, the This Land Is Our Land Act to prohibit the U.S. Department of Homeland Security or U.S. Department of Defense from constructing any new border barriers, including walls or fences, on federal land under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior.
Reunification of Separated Immigrant Families: To date, Congressman Adriano Espaillat has been the only elected official actively engaged with immigrant mothers and the Cayuga Center to help reunite families separated by the Trump administration's 'zero tolerance' policy. To date, Congressman Esapillat has reunited four immigrant mothers with their children: Yeni González, Rosayra Pablo Cruz, Rosa Amelia Peralta, and Evelyn Aguilar.
Our nation's workforce is the lifeblood of our economy. Congressmember Espaillat firmly believes that the best path to economic stability and success on an individual, family, and national level is a good paying job. This begins with ensuring that our workers are making enough money to support themselves and their families. No one should have to work multiple jobs simply to make ends meet, which is why Congressmember Espaillat is a strong proponent of increasing the federal minimum wage to a living wage. Not only do we need to make sure that our employees are making a livable wage for their hard work, but we also need to ensure that all employees are receiving equal pay for equal work. Congressmember Espaillat is a cosponsor of the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, and will continue to advocate for living and equal wages.
In addition to ensuring that our country's employees make enough money to make ends meet, Congressmember Espaillat also believes that worker and workplace protections are critical to ensuring a healthy, safe, and efficient workforce. This means protecting the Fair Labors Standards Act from attacks aiming to dismantle it; ensuring that Occupational and Safety Hazards Act continues to work for the benefit of hardworking Americans; and supporting the right of workers to unionize in order to bargain for the benefits and pay they so duly deserve.
Congressmember Espaillat understands that we must not only take care of our employees during their working years, but we need to provide the tools and resources necessary to allow those individuals to properly and effectively save for their retirements. In New York City alone, there are 1.1 million private sector employees who do not have access to a retirement plan through their employer. In an attempt to allow states and very large cities to creatively develop a solution to this problem, the Department of Labor under President Obama published two rules that allowed states and very large cities, like New York, to develop an opt-in retirement plan for those employees. However, Congressional Republicans and the Trump Administration recklessly nullified those rules, chilling any potential solutions to this problem in the near future. Congressmember Espaillat understands the importance of saving for the future, and will continue to advocate for policies that look out for America's workers.
Our roads, public transportation, and pedestrian walkways are in dire need of funding. As the Chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus' Transportation, Housing, and Infrastructure Task Force, Congressmember Adriano Espaillat plans to bring transportation funding to the forefront of legislative issues that need to be tackled.
Congressmember Espaillat is pushing for transportation and infrastructure policies that ensure safe and accessible means of transportation for work commuters and students, upgrade and maintain American infrastructure, protect and expand digital infrastructure, and include public housing in the definition of infrastructure. He has also made it a priority to push for adequate funding of TIGER grants, which would help fund New York City projects, like the expansion of the Second Avenue Subway.
Rep. Adriano Espaillat has been pushing for Phase 2 of the Second Avenue Subway expansion in New York City. This would bring service up to East Harlem, connecting this community with Midtown and neighborhoods down to lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. The project would help ease congestion on one of the most crowded lines in the city and continue progress on the largest expansion of the subway system in generations. East Harlem is an under-resourced community with the highest concentration of low-income housing in the city. Harlemites depend on public transportation to get to work, doctor's appointments, school, child care, and other every day obligations.