Congresswoman Katie Porter represents the 45th Congressional District in Orange County, California.
In Washington, Congresswoman Porter has remained committed to putting Orange County families first. As a member of the House Oversight and Reform Committee and Vice Chair of the Subcommittee on Government Operations, she’s asked tough questions of bank CEOs and administration officials to hold them accountable to the American people. She’s also a proud member of the House Natural Resources Committee, where she works tirelessly to protect our beaches and public lands, elevate science-based solutions to the climate crisis, and keep Orange County families safe from wildfires. She chairs the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, where she leads efforts to hold polluters accountable.
|
Congresswoman Porter believes that border security and well-defined immigration policies are essential for our country. She will maintain the security of our nation’s borders and hold the government accountable to treat detainees with dignity and fairness consistent with our values. During her first year in office, Congresswoman Porter visited the U.S.–Mexico border to see the operations and conditions firsthand. As a part of this trip, she visited Otay Mesa Detention Center, the Chula Vista Border Patrol Station, and the non-profit San Diego Rapid Response Network migrant family shelter. In August 2021, Congresswoman Porter visited the border for a second time, during which she traveled into Tijuana to visit a migrant shelter and toured the San Ysidro Port of Entry. During her visits, she spoke to border patrol agents, social workers, medical professionals, immigration advocates, and migrants—including children. Through these interactions, Congresswoman Porter learned about the conditions and practices at these facilities and the experiences migrants face when trying to seek asylum in the U.S. The agents told Congresswoman Porter they need more training and medical personnel to do their jobs effectively. After her visit, Rep. Porter joined the House of Representatives in passing the Homeland Security Improvement Act, which would establish a new top-level federal position to oversee policy compliance for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). She also joined letters to the Biden Administration to address the work authorization backlog at USCIS and the possibility of a caseload transfer between USCIS service centers, which would help balance workloads and promote timely processing. To address humanitarian concerns at the border, Congresswoman Porter also joined the House of Representatives in passing legislation to support fair treatment of detainees and improving the medical care we provide them. The Humanitarian Standards for Individuals in Customs and Border Protection Custody Act would better equip CBP’s border facilities to meet basic humanitarian standards of care, like providing sufficient drinking water and basic personal hygiene products. The U.S. Border Patrol Medical Screening Standards Act would improve the medical screening process at the border and establish an electronic health record system to track the medical information of all individuals in custody. Congresswoman Porter believes improving technology at our borders can help improve security. She has affirmed the need to hold companies operating for-profit detention centers accountable to ensure that the decisions that they make are in the best interest of the public and not in service of corporate greed. She joined an effort to stop the expansion of ICE detention contracts, conduct a thorough review of ICE’s existing detention policies, and phase out the use of private, for-profit immigration facilities. Congresswoman Porter also believes that we need to fix our broken immigration system. She was a co-sponsor of the National Origin-Based Antidiscrimination for Nonimmigrants Act, which requires Congress to act when the President uses emergency immigration powers. She also voted for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which provides additional workplace protections and a path to citizenship for the farm workers that are vital to California’s economy, and the Dream and Promise Act, which creates a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. Congresswoman Porter believes that our immigration system—like all of government—needs to be humane and functional. She supports policies that would eliminate overcrowding at detention facilities, provide for speedy consideration of asylum applications, and eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in the immigration system. |
As a commercial law professor and consumer protection attorney, Congresswoman Porter is committed to building a competitive capitalist economy that creates opportunity for all Americans.
Congresswoman Porter knows that a strong capitalist economy requires competition. When our economy lacks competition, we see prices go up, wages drop, and innovation stall. She is leading efforts to curb market consolidation, strengthen antitrust enforcement, and create a level playing field for all Americans.
Anticompetitive behavior creates real harm for middle class families. Congresswoman Porter released a report detailing how Big Pharma buys out its competitors so that it can continue to unjustifiably jack up prescription drug prices. Because of Big Pharma’s corporate abuse, too many Americans can’t afford the prescriptions they need to survive. To protect patients and our capitalist markets, Congresswoman Porter introduced legislation that prevents drug manufacturers from profiting off unreasonable price hikes.
The consequences of anticompetitive behavior are also apparent in Big Tech, where the dominance of a few large online platforms has reduced consumer choice, stifled entrepreneurship, and harmed small businesses. Congresswoman Porter is working with her colleagues to support bipartisan legislation that will hold technology monopolies accountable by restoring competition to the online marketplace and enhancing antitrust enforcement.
For too long, weak antitrust enforcement has atrophied the bones of our economy. Congresswoman Porter has called on federal agencies to scrutinize proposed mergers that would make our economy less competitive. Whether it is major poultry companies or budget airlines trying to consolidate market power, these mega mergers often lead to higher prices for consumers, job layoffs, and cuts to workers’ pay. The Department of Justice Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Competition play crucial roles in keeping our economy competitive, which is why Congresswoman Porter has voted to equip these agencies with the tools they need to hold monopolists accountable.
Congresswoman Porter was also proud to vote for the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which is going to give our economy the edge it needs to remain globally competitive. New investments into roads, bridges, and renewable energy will create good-paying jobs, boost our national gross domestic product (GDP), and help keep our economy moving. Congresswoman Porter also voted for the America COMPETES Act so that American businesses and workers can continue to lead the global economy in excellence and product.
Every American benefits from a globally competitive economy. Building an economy that can compete with other nations will only be possible if every American who is willing to work hard can participate fully in our workforce. Sky-high child care costs are keeping parents out of the workforce and putting tremendous pressure on families. In December 2020, Congresswoman Porter released a report revealing how COVID-19 drove almost one in four women from the workforce—many being forced to leave their jobs to take care of their kids. She also introduced the Family Savings for Kids and Seniors Act to help families pay for child care. When we support working parents, we support our entire economy.
As a longtime UC Irvine law professor, Congresswoman Porter has seen up close and personal how students shape the future of Orange County.
In both Washington and Orange County, Congresswoman Porter has been a consistent advocate for students. In her first month in office, she met with students from Western State College of Law who were being defrauded by the school’s parent company, Dream Center. She’s held multiple town hall events at UC Irvine and Concordia University Irvine to hear directly from students. Congresswoman Porter also meets regularly with her Youth Advisory Board, a group of high school and college students from across her district, to discuss a wide variety of policy issues.
As the mother of three children in Orange County public schools, Congresswoman Porter understands that students are facing unique challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In February 2021, she teamed up with Senator Michael Bennet and urged the Department of Education to propose a realistic, proactive plan to make up the losses caused by virtual learning. To help students stay afloat financially, Congresswoman Porter introduced the bipartisan COVID-19 Perkins Loan Relief Act to extend student loan forbearance for Perkins loans holders.
Congresswoman Porter has also been a strong advocate for safer learning environments. At the beginning of the pandemic, she joined then-Senator Kamala Harris in urging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue guidance to schools on the necessary steps to safely return to in-person education. She is also a proud cosponsor of the Reopen and Rebuild America’s Schools Act of 2021, which would create a $130 billion grant and bond program for school repairs and send emergency funds to schools for necessary COVID-19 safety upgrades.
Congresswoman Porter believes that every child has the right to an education that meets their unique needs and abilities. That’s why she has supported legislation such as the Keep Our PACT Act and the Funding Early Childhood is the Right Idea Act. These bills would provide resources to help students with disabilities receive education that meets their needs, and would direct federal resources to schools that serve a high concentration of low-income families.
With an ongoing mental health crisis facing young people, Congresswoman Porter believes schools must promote the mental health of students. She delivered remarks on the House floor to highlight how Orange County schools have partnered with mental health care providers to promote students’ mental well-being. To protect students struggling with mental health challenges, Congresswoman Porter introduced the Student Mental Health Rights Act. Under federal law, colleges and universities cannot enact policies that discriminate against students because of their mental health needs. Congresswoman Porter’s legislation will help colleges and universities comply with federal guidelines on mental health policies, resulting in better campus practices to support students.
To help tackle long-term problems families face in higher education, Congresswoman Porter co-founded the College Affordability Caucus. The caucus focuses on identifying policies to tackle the student debt crisis and bring down the sticker price of higher education. To address the student debt crisis, Congresswoman Porter introduced the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Student Loan Integrity & Transparency Act. This bill would require the Department of Education and loan servicers to share information and cooperate with the CFPB’s Student Loan Ombudsman, the number one federal official tasked with advocating for students who are struggling to repay their loans.
Drawing from conversations with students, Congresswoman Porter introduced the Student Protection Act to crack down on predatory for-profit universities. She also led a letter urging the Department of Education to partner with states to crack down on predatory, for-profit universities. Congresswoman Porter introduced the Accountability in Student Loan Data Act, which would hold universities accountable for accurately reporting the number of graduates who are unable to repay student loans. In December 2020, Congresswoman Porter called on the Federal Trade Commission to improve its oversight of education referral websites that deceive families by only matching students to for-profit colleges that pay to advertise on their site.
|
Congresswoman Porter knows that climate action will protect our community and strengthen our local economy. Californians know that environmental protection cannot wait. We’re already experiencing record-breaking wildfires that have destroyed homes, taken lives, and devastated families. Congresswoman Porter has heard directly from our community about the urgent need to tackle the climate crisis. She hosted a town hall to talk about the work that still needs to be done to protect our environment. As Chair of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Congresswoman Porter is making polluters answer to Orange County families. After an oil leak off the coast of Huntington Beach threatened our waters, she demanded accountability. Congresswoman Porter held a Congressional hearing in Irvine, giving Orange County families an opportunity to speak directly with lawmakers and get information about the oil leak. She also introduced legislation, the Ending Taxpayer Welfare for Oil and Gas Companies Act, to recover billions in taxpayer dollars from fossil fuel companies by updating outdated rental and royalty rates. The bill would crack down on pollution by closing loopholes that the fossil fuel industry exploits to profit off our public lands. It is critical that we act to preserve our public lands and waters. That’s why Congresswoman Porter has backed bipartisan legislation that would ban new drilling on the California coastline. Reckless oil drilling contaminates our pristine beaches and jeopardizes our local economy. Congresswoman Porter has fought to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for cleaning up after they drill, in addition to advocating for a future powered by clean energy. Congresswoman Porter believes that our national parks and public lands should be accessible to all. That’s why she has led the fight to increase funding for the Every Kid Outdoors program. This program offers 4th graders and their families the unique opportunity to enjoy our national parks for free, and she is proud that the House passed her proposal to continue supporting this important initiative. She also held a hearing to ensure equitable access to outdoor recreation opportunities for people with disabilities and veterans. |
Congresswoman Porter fights for policies that keep Americans safe by treating climate change as a national security threat and conducting rigorous oversight of the Pentagon and defense contractors. She believes the United States must champion democracy and international human rights.
Throughout her time in Congress, Congresswoman Porter has fought to refocus U.S. national security on the threats posed by climate change, both at home and abroad. In 2021, she led a successful bipartisan effort to require the Department of Defense to study the threat that wildfires pose to military installations and training. In 2022, she became the co-chair of the National Security Task Force of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition. She has led several successful amendments to the America COMPETES Act requiring the Pentagon to incorporate climate security into strategies and security assistance programs with allies in the Pacific.
Congresswoman Porter believes that corporate interests have too much influence in our national security and foreign policy and that the U.S. must do more to fight international corruption. At the beginning of her second term, she spearheaded reforms to the Truth-in-Testimony rules for Congressional witnesses to give Americans transparency into witnesses who have conflicts of interest. At a hearing in 2022, she called out a witness with international oil and gas clients for failing to disclose his business ties, showing the way corporate interests corrupt U.S. foreign policy. Congresswoman Porter is also a founding member of the Caucus Against Foreign Corruption and Kleptocracy, where she was an original co-sponsor of multiple bills to prevent authoritarian regimes from wielding political and financial power in the U.S. and around the world.
Lax Pentagon oversight enables waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars and undermines our national security as well as our foreign policy priorities. As a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, Congresswoman Porter has faced down defense executives for refusing to refund taxpayers for broken parts and price gouging our armed forces. She prevented an effort to get rid of reports that check that military equipment is battle ready and will keep service members safe and called out the Pentagon when they tried to classify embarrassing information. She has also fought to close loopholes that give contractors a pass on human rights, pressing the Pentagon to complete long-overdue rules requiring contractors to report possible war crimes and working across the aisle to combat trafficking in persons by military contractors.
From defense contracting to foreign policy, Congresswoman Porter believes that our engagement with the world should prioritize human rights and a commitment to oversight. As chair of the House Natural Resources Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, she has led an investigation into the legacy of Cold War U.S. nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands. Congresswoman Porter found that U.S. refusal to address its nuclear legacy is jeopardizing key international agreements that allow the U.S. to counter Chinese economic and military influence in the Pacific. Her investigation has garnered international attention and is ongoing.
The founders understood that military force should be a last resort and placed responsibility with Congress—the elected representatives of the people—because they correctly understood that war can hurt all Americans. Congresswoman Porter has upheld these values, from supporting diplomacy with North Korea, to voting to pull the U.S. out of unauthorized wars, and fighting for transparency about where U.S. troops are in harm's way.
|
Our democracy and government should reflect the people of America and serve their needs, not special interests or corporate donors. In Congress, Congresswoman Porter is leading the fight to end political corruption, increase government transparency, and hold leaders of both parties accountable. She’s committed to protecting American taxpayers and eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse. Congresswoman Porter’s vote is not for sale and never will be. She founded and chairs End Corruption, an initiative to get Washington answering to working families—not large corporations and special interests. She partnered with Senator Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY) to introduce the STOCK Act 2.0, which would prohibit members of Congress, the President and Vice President, Supreme Court justices, Federal Reserve Board Governors, and Federal Reserve Bank presidents from trading individual stocks. The STOCK Act 2.0 also requires top officials to disclose whether they, their families, or their businesses receive loans, agreements, contracts, grants, and payments, including agricultural subsidies from the federal government. Congresswoman believes that taxpayers need to be served by qualified government officials with strong oversight through their Congressional representation. She introduced the Accountability for Acting Officials Act, limiting who can serve as an “acting” official and for how long without Senate confirmation. Congresswoman Porter’s bill was included in the Protecting Our Democracy Act, which passed the House in December 2021. She also helped introduce and pass the For the People Act, a sweeping reform to reduce the influence of dark money in politics, which included Congresswoman Porter’s provision to ban foreign money in local ballot initiative campaigns. As Vice Chair of the House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on Government Operations, Congresswoman Porter has continued her advocacy for Orange County families by getting accountability from big corporations and the IRS. In 2021, she led a letter urging Congressional leadership to properly equip the IRS with the resources it needs to go after big businesses and ultra-wealthy individuals who cheat taxpayers and refuse to pay their fair shares. She is also conducting oversight of the backlogged tax returns at the IRS, so that Orange County families can get the money they’re owed. Congresswoman Porter believes that the government needs to hold corporations, and itself, accountable to the American people. When she heard from many Orange County families who are worried about high prescription drug and health care costs, she questioned Big Pharma CEOs about their salaries and introduced legislation to lower the cost of prescription drugs. Congresswoman Porter secured a commitment from a Trump official that coronavirus testing be free for all Americans, using a law that was already on the books. She spearheaded reforms to the Truth-in-Testimony rules for Congressional witnesses to give Americans transparency into witnesses who have conflicts of interest. At a hearing in 2022, she called out a witness with international oil and gas clients for failing to disclose his business ties, showing the way that experts with hidden agendas shape government decisions. When the Environmental Protection Agency tried to change the rules to make it easier for corporations to pollute in secret, Congresswoman Porter called the agency out and demanded greater transparency. Congresswoman Porter has stood up to leaders of both parties to do the right thing for Orange County families. She called out House leadership for backwards ethics rules that forbid Congressmembers from promoting bone marrow drives that can save lives but allow politicians to spend hours a week soliciting corporate PAC money. When leaders of both parties wanted to stop taxpayers from filing their taxes for free through the IRS, she raised the alarm and led a bipartisan group to kill a corporate giveaway that would have cost taxpayers millions of dollars. By hosting over 48 town hall-style events since coming to Congress and making public a list of meetings she takes, Congresswoman Porter has matched her commitment to transparency and community engagement with personal accountability. |
|
Congresswoman Porter is committed to advancing common sense reforms to keep our families safe from gun violence. Congresswoman Porter is committed to standing up to the gun lobby to protect Orange County families from the threat of gun violence. In one of her first speeches on the House floor, Congresswoman Porter focused on the importance of taking action to prevent gun violence. She highlighted the inspirational advocacy of Mary Leigh and Charlie Blek, local leaders who have fought to reduce gun violence in our district and in California. She has also been an advocate for safe gun storage and hosted a town hall on the topic to share potentially life-saving information with Orange County families. As a member of the Congressional Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, Congresswoman Porter helped the House pass its most significant gun violence prevention legislation in decades. She voted for the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021, which would require background checks on every gun sale in the country. She also backed the Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2021 to close the so-called “Charleston loophole” that allows a gun sale if a federal background check is not completed within three days—even if the buyer has a criminal record. This legislation included an amendment introduced by Congresswoman Porter that would require Congress to issue a report on the effect of firearm possession in domestic violence situations. Both bills passed the House with bipartisan support. Congresswoman Porter supports common sense gun reforms that will keep families safe. She joined over 200 colleagues in cosponsoring Ethan’s Law, which sets standards for safe firearm storage and will provide resources to help educate gun owners on how to keep guns out of the hands of children. She also supports legislation to keep homemade firearms out of the hands of people who are barred from owning guns. Congresswoman Porter also joined the House of Representatives in passing an extension of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) that included a provision restricting convicted domestic abusers and stalkers from accessing guns. As a cosponsor of the Gun Violence Prevention Research Act of 2019, she advocated to fund research on gun violence as a public health issue. For the first time in more than 20 years, Congress allocated $25 million for this critical research in 2020—and has continued to provide resources for this research each year since. |
Congresswoman Porter has made standing up for Orange County patients a top priority—because every family should have quality, affordable health care.
Congresswoman Porter is dedicated to reducing the skyrocketing health care costs that Orange County families face. She believes that no family should ever be forced to go without care or medicine due to high costs. Her Freedom from Price Gouging Act—which passed the House in 2020 as part of the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act—would prevent drug manufacturers from profiting off unreasonable price hikes. She also introduced the Lowest Price for Patients Act, which would require that pharmacists disclose whether a prescription is less expensive without insurance. Her bill to lower the income threshold for tax-deductible medical expenses was signed into law, protecting 4.4 million Americans with high medical costs from more expensive tax bills. Congresswoman Porter hosted a roundtable in Orange County with leading medical experts, local advocates, and children and families living with Type 1 Diabetes to discuss how we drive down the costs of insulin.
Congresswoman Porter isn’t afraid to take on Big Pharma. Her office issued a report detailing how pharmaceutical mergers curb innovation and contribute to the skyrocketing costs of prescription drugs. She’s also confronted Big Pharma CEOs directly about price gouging and stock buy-backs. When members of the Sackler family testified before Congress in 2020, she called them out for their role in the opioid crisis and for fraudulently transferring billions of dollars that would have otherwise helped families who lost loved ones.
Unaffordable medical bills are crushing Orange County families, and Congresswoman Porter is working to protect them. She introduced the bipartisan No Surprise Bills for New Moms Act, which would simplify the process for enrolling newborns in health coverage. To protect patients from long-term financial harm from unaffordable medical bills, Congresswoman Porter introduced the Medical Debt Relief Act to remove settled medical debts from patients’ credit records.
Hearing from older Americans at town halls and in the community, Congresswoman Porter understands the need to protect and strengthen Medicare. She introduced the Medicare Economic Security Solutions Act to guard against unfair Medicare penalties for delaying enrollment. Congresswoman Porter is fighting to keep private equity firms and corporate special interests out of Medicare. She raised concerns about the Medicare direct contracting program, which allows for-profit companies to manage health care for Medicare beneficiaries, and later joined more than 50 of her colleagues demanding an end to the program.
In the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, Congresswoman Porter secured a commitment from the Trump Administration that tests would be free for every American. When Orange County families received unexpected bills for tests, she called on the Biden Administration to crack down on test providers that improperly billed patients.She was proud to introduce the Patients Before Profits Act to protect patients from reductions in their insurance during public health emergencies.
Congresswoman Porter has fought to protect the more than 5 million Californians with pre-existing conditions. She stood up against the Trump Administration’s legal campaign to eliminate protections provided by the Affordable Care Act. She later introduced the Justice for Patients Act to remove mandatory arbitration clauses from insurance agreements and empower patients to join class action lawsuits. She joined her colleagues in passing the Protecting Americans with Preexisting Conditions Act of 2019, which would protect Americans with pre-existing conditions by preventing insurance companies from selling “junk” healthcare plans. The bill included her amendment to prohibit the administration from taking any action that would reduce the number of individuals enrolled in comprehensive coverage.
Understanding that mental health care is health care, Congresswoman Porter is working to make it easier for Orange County families to get mental health treatment. Her bill to hold insurance companies accountable for treating mental health care the same as physical health care was signed into law in 2020. After learning that plans covering public servants fell short in covering mental health care, Congresswoman Porter introduced a bill to close a legal loophole and improve their coverage. She’s also introduced legislation to better protect students struggling with mental health challenges and to reduce violence against individuals with mental illness and disabilities.
Congresswoman Porter knows that Orange County’s communities of color often face challenges in getting the culturally appropriate care they need. She helped introduce the Medical Education for a Diverse America Act, which would include culturally competent and language training in medical schools. Congresswoman Porter secured an amendment in House-passed legislation that would require federal agencies to provide accurate monthly data on specific communities enrolling in health care coverage. This proposal would increase understanding of the communities that are uninsured and help improve outreach and enrollment services. She has also continuously called for enhanced oversight of the government contractors that procure organs for transplants, supporting efforts to promote equity and crack down on fraud.
|
As a single working mom, Congresswoman Porter understands the challenges of balancing work and family—and recognizes that enabling parents to fully participate in the workforce creates a globally competitive economy that benefits all of us. Congresswoman Porter consistently affirms that strong family policy is strong economic policy. Knowing that child care is essential for parents to be able to go to work, she has fought to bring down the cost of care for families. One of the first bills that Congresswoman Porter introduced, the Family Savings for Kids and Seniors Act, would more than double the amount of money families can set aside pre-tax to pay for preschool, summer day camp, before or after school programs, and child or adult care. Congresswoman Porter led more than 100 colleagues in a letter calling upon House leadership to take up legislation to invest in child care to boost our economy. She backs the Child Care is Infrastructure Act, which would provide communities with the resources they need to expand child care facilities and hire more workers. Congresswoman Porter knows that family leave is key for retaining parents in our workforce, instead of forcing them to drop out to care for their families. To help new parents and caregivers stay in the economy, she has been a champion of legislation to create a universal paid parental and medical leave program. She also introduced the bipartisan FAIR Leave Act, which closes a loophole in federal family leave policy limiting how much leave married couples can take. Her legislation would enable eligible spouses working for the same employer to each take up to 12 work weeks (24 total) of unpaid leave in a 12 month period for the birth of a newborn, the adoption of a child, or caring for the care of a parent with a serious health condition—just as spouses working for different employers can take. Having started at several jobs while pregnant, Congresswoman Porter understands the unique challenges facing pregnant workers. She proudly voted for the bipartisan Pregnant Workers Fairness Act to help pregnant workers get the accommodations they need in the workplace. While the law currently states that pregnancy accommodations should be treated equally to those for disabilities, this bill clears up outstanding legal questions to help employers comply with the law and protect pregnant workers. Having experienced the challenges of being a new mom, Congresswoman Porter secured federal support for a maternal mental health hotline to help struggling mothers in crisis. She also introduced bipartisan legislation to protect new parents from surprise medical bills by simplifying the process for enrolling newborns in health coverage. Alarmed by reports that the pandemic is forcing women—and especially women of color—out of the workforce, Congresswoman Porter’s office produced a comprehensive report on the economic burden of the coronavirus pandemic on women. She pushed to remove a single parent penalty from the COVID relief bill, so that single parents are treated the same as married parents. Four out of 5 single parents are women. |
|
Everyone in Orange County deserves safety and equality, and Congresswoman Porter is fighting to protect the freedom of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities. Congresswoman Porter continues to stand up to protect the LGBTQI+ community from discrimination. Amidst a national blood shortage, Congresswoman Porter demanded that the Food and Drug Administration end its stigmatizing policy banning gay and bisexual men from donating blood, which is based on an outdated misunderstanding of blood donation risks. During an Oversight Committee hearing on anti-LGBTQI+ discrimination in the federal government, she highlighted the story of an Orange County couple as she called for an end to discriminatory adoption rules that prevent LGBTQI+ couples from starting a family. In a majority of states, it is still legal to discriminate based on sexual orientation and gender identity in housing, employment, and public accommodations. To establish national anti-discrimination protections, Congresswoman Porter has been a champion for the Equality Act and was proud to join colleagues from both parties in voting to pass the legislation in the House. To help policymakers pass laws that address issues faced by the LGBTQI+ community, she supports legislation to improve questions on official surveys related to sexual orientation and gender identity. |
|
Congresswoman Porter has led the fight to secure the protections and support Americans with disabilities deserve. Congresswoman Porter has been working to improve health care and expand services for Americans living with disabilities. She is a voice for improving and modernizing Social Security assistance, which has been a lifeline for families. She supports the Social Security Fairness Act of 2021, which would eliminate provisions that reduce benefits for people who depend on them. She also cosponsored the Stop the Wait Act, which would eliminate the mandatory waiting periods that delay eligible individuals from receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). To make sure that the Social Security Administration has the resources needed to reduce service delays for families requiring assistance, Congresswoman Porter also supported increasing the agency's funding in the appropriations process. When Congresswoman Porter saw people unexpectedly losing their Social Security benefits, she led a letter to the Social Security Administration asking them to simplify the appeal process. She also led a letter demanding the Social Security Administration reverse a new policy that would allow employees without relevant experience to conduct disability hearings. Congresswoman Porter believes that no one should be denied life saving care because of a disability. She introduced bipartisan legislation to protect patients with disabilities from discrimination when seeking an organ transplant. She was also proud to champion bipartisan legislation to lower the threshold at which families can deduct medical expenses from federal taxes which become law in 2020. Without Congresswoman Porter’s efforts, 4.4 million families with high health care costs, who deduct medical expenses from their taxes, would have seen their taxes increase for 2020. The law forbids discrimination against patients with disabilities, but insurers often exploit loopholes to deny coverage when it’s beneficial to their bottom line. Congresswoman Porter led her House and Senate colleagues in calling upon the Biden Administration to strengthen protections against disability-based discrimination. She also led an effort to protect individuals with disabilities from discriminatory pricing stemming from health metrics that are biased against individuals with disabilities. Congresswoman Porter believes that all people should have equal access to our public resources. In her first hearing as Chairwoman of the Natural Resources Oversight Subcommittee, she provided a voice for those with disabilities who cannot experience our public lands because they lack accessible infrastructure. To help individuals with disabilities get the protection they need, Congresswoman Porter wrote a letter urging the Biden Administration to ship masks directly to the millions of Americans with disabilities who cannot safely or easily travel to public pick-up locations. Congresswoman Porter has introduced the Mental Health Justice Act to reduce violence against individuals with mental illnesses and disabilities. The legislation would provide communities with the resources they need to create mental health provider first responder units. |
|
Congresswoman Porter believes that every American should have the freedom to control their own body—which is necessary for economic security. Reproductive health care decisions are personal and should be made by patients, in consultation with their doctors, loved ones, and faith leaders, and without interference from politicians. Congresswoman Porter is working to protect and expand access to reproductive health care. This year, she helped introduce the Access to Birth Control Act to protect patients seeking birth control at the pharmacy. She was proud to help pass the Women's Health Protection Act in the House, which would codify Roe v. Wade and protect Americans who decide to seek abortions. Congresswoman Porter joined her colleagues to urge the Biden Administration to reverse the Trump Administration's harmful changes to the Title X family planning program. These rules withheld federal resources from health care clinics providing abortion referrals and services, and they were reversed by the Biden Administration following Congresswoman Porter’s advocacy. Congresswoman Porter is also a proud cosponsor of multiple bills that would promote reproductive health care, including:
Congresswoman Porter has consistently stood up for survivors of domestic violence. She has been a leading voice advocating for the renewal of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), and was proud to vote for its passage. Her proposal to recognize economic abuse as a form of domestic violence in VAWA received bipartisan support. Congresswoman Porter fought for an amendment to gun violence prevention legislation that would require a report on the effect of firearm possession in domestic violence incidents. She also secured bipartisan support for a program to assist victims of domestic violence to safely shelter their pets when they leave their abusers. Additionally, Congresswoman Porter held a roundtable to hear from advocates, law enforcement officials, and health care providers in Orange County about the resources, opportunities, and challenges facing those caring for survivors of domestic violence. Understanding the devastation that domestic violence can have on children, Congresswoman Porter also supported additional resources for Court Appointed Special Advocates. This important program recruits and trains volunteers to advocate on behalf of child survivors of abuse, neglect, and abandonment in courtrooms and other settings. At the start of President Biden’s term, Congresswoman Porter joined a letter urging him to create a position of Special Advisor on Sexual Violence to strengthen the federal government’s response to sexual violence and reaffirm support for survivors.
|
|
After over 200 years, the Constitution's guarantee of equality and justice for all has still not been realized. Congresswoman Porter is committed to advancing policies that will create a more inclusive and safe society for every American, regardless of race or ethnicity. Condemning racism is necessary, but it is not enough. Congresswoman Porter believes that we all have a responsibility to strive for equality by identifying the ways in which racism pervades our society and its institutions—and fighting back. Recognizing that police brutality has led to far too many deaths and far too little justice, particularly for people of color, Congresswoman Porter cosponsored and voted for the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in 2020, and again when it was reintroduced in 2021. This legislation would hold officers accountable if they violate our laws, end racial profiling, and build trust between law enforcement and communities by increasing federal oversight of potential constitutional violations, such as excessive use of force. She also backed the Bend Toward Justice Act, which would make it easier for victims to get justice in criminal cases involving civil rights violations. Congresswoman Porter supports the Ending Qualified Immunity Act, which would close gaps in our justice system that allow law enforcement officers who violate constitutional rights to evade accountability. She also voted for the Cooling Off Period Elimination Act, which would reduce delays for investigations in cases where officers shoot or kill on the job. Congresswoman Porter’s Mental Health Justice Act would help communities create mental health first responder units to respond to certain emergencies, reducing violence against individuals with disabilities and mental illnesses. Congresswoman Porter understands that we need to address the racism that exists in institutions beyond the justice system. In her first year in office, Congresswoman Porter helped introduce the Medical Education for a Diverse America Act, which would allow language and cultural training to count towards enrollment requirements for medical students, preparing future doctors to provide better care for patients of color in Orange County and across the country. Congresswoman Porter also wrote an amendment adopted by the House to require the collection of data on the number of uninsured Americans by race and gender. She also cosponsored H.Con.Res.19, which supports a U.S. Commission on Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation to understand the long-term harms of slavery and racism that we still see today. As a member of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congresswoman Porter is committed to supporting the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. She’s spoken out about the disturbing spike in anti-Asian racism tied to the COVID-19 pandemic. In light of rising hate crimes against the Asian American community, she worked on legislation that would investigate hate crimes and introduced a bipartisan resolution with Republican Congresswoman Michelle Steel condemning these acts of bigotry. Congresswoman Porter hosted a town hall with community leaders to discuss how we can support our AAPI neighbors amid increasing acts of hate. Congresswoman Porter knows we need to have difficult and reflective conversations with ourselves and our communities about the biases and disparities that underpin racial injustice. She joined members of the Christ Our Redeemer African Methodist Episcopal Church for frank conversations about the challenges facing communities of color in Orange County. Congresswoman Porter held a virtual town hall with Song Richardson, a nationally recognized expert on racial justice and legal scholar, to discuss how we can make our community more inclusive and safe for people of color. |
Congresswoman Porter is committed to protecting the resources that help older adults age with dignity in Orange County.
Congresswoman Porter is a champion for Medicare and the health coverage that older Americans rely on. She introduced legislation to cap late Medicare enrollment penalties levied on seniors who defer enrollment in Medicare Part B. This bipartisan legislation would protect older Americans from unfair fees that follow them for years. Congresswoman Porter has also fought for lower drug costs for Medicare patients. She introduced the Freedom from Price Gouging Act, which would protect older Americans from price hikes by pharmaceutical companies trying to line their pockets. Her legislation passed the House of Representatives as part of the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act.
Congresswoman Porter has fought to make the tax code more fair for older Americans with high medical expenses. She was proud to lead bipartisan legislation to lower the threshold for deducting medical expenses from federal taxes, which become law in 2020. Without Congresswoman Porter’s efforts, 4.4 million families with high health care costs, who deduct medical expenses from their taxes, would have seen their taxes increase for 2020.
Congresswoman Porter believes that Orange County seniors should be able to age with dignity in our communities. She is a cosponsor of the Social Security 2100 Act, which would increase Social Security benefits, improve adjustments for inflation, and make more Americans eligible for critical support. She also introduced the bipartisan Homecare for Seniors Act, which would allow older Americans with health savings accounts to use these funds for homecare expenses. Under Congresswoman Porter’s proposal, seniors who have paid into health savings accounts for years would be able to use these funds for care they need, like help with taking medications and bathing.
Congresswoman Porter also led a roundtable on the difficulties older Americans and people with disabilities face in housing. Knowing that helping older Americans stay in affordable housing is critical to their financial security, she joined colleagues to urge President Biden to guarantee Housing Choice Vouchers for all eligible Americans and to direct resources toward improving and expanding the housing supply.
Bad actors continue to target older Americans for fraud, and Congresswoman Porter is committed to protecting them. In observance of National Senior Fraud Awareness Day, Congresswoman Porter led a telephone town hall to help seniors protect themselves against callers trying to scam them. With broad bipartisan support, she secured additional resources for the Senior Medicare Patrol program, which helps Medicare recipients identify and stop companies trying to defraud them.
She has worked on bipartisan legislation to crack down on “scam PACs” that pose as political parties or candidates. These scam PACs disproportionately target and cheat older Americans and veterans out of millions of dollars. Her legislation would empower the Federal Election Commission to shut these operations down.
Congresswoman Porter voted for the Protecting Seniors from Emergency Scams Act, which passed the House of Representatives. This bill adds a section to the Federal Trade Commission website that allows consumers to search for scams targeting seniors. It also directs media outlets, law enforcement, and the federal government to work together to provide information on scams and make recommendations to Congress about how to prevent them in the future.
Congresswoman Porter believes that the United States Postal Service (USPS) remains one of our country’s greatest civic treasures.
Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 of our Constitution empowers Congress “to establish Post Offices and Post Roads.” Our communities depend on the Postal Service to run small businesses, vote, and stay connected to their loved ones. Many Americans, especially our veterans and individuals with disabilities, rely on the Postal Service to deliver them life-saving medications and Social Security checks. Congresswoman Porter is committed to preserving a nonpartisan, fully operational Postal Service and fighting for our postal workers.
Congresswoman Porter was proud to cosponsor the Postal Service Reform Act, which Congress passed into law on March 8, 2022. The Postal Service Reform Act will save the Postal Service nearly $50 billion over the next decade by eliminating the requirement that USPS annually prepay future retirement health benefits and getting Postal Service retirees to enroll in Medicare. This law will also require the Postal Service to continue its six-day delivery service. These essential reforms will restore financial stability to the Postal Service, prevent it from going bankrupt in the next decade, and make it function better for all Americans.
She also cosponsored H.Res.33, which reaffirms that the Postal Service should remain an independent nonpartisan institution. She supports H.R. 8109, the Nonpartisan Postmaster General Act, which would prohibit members of the Postal Service Board of Governors, the Postmaster General, and the Deputy Postmaster General from holding any political position while in office and would restrict nominees for Postmaster General and Deputy Postmaster General to those who have not engaged in political activities in the four years prior to their appointment.
Additionally, she threw her support behind the Green Federal Fleet Act to prevent USPS from carrying out a plan to purchase new, predominantly gas-powered vehicles over 10 years. She backed the Postal Vehicle Modernization Act, which would require USPS to ensure that at least 75% of its next generation delivery vehicles are electric or zero-emission. Transitioning our postal fleet to greener vehicles will reduce carbon emissions, curb our reliance on fossil fuels, and save taxpayer dollars in the long run.
As an active member on the Committee on Oversight and Reform, Congresswoman Porter understands the importance of holding government officials accountable. Congresswoman Porter asked Postmaster General Louis DeJoy questions that revealed both his lack of understanding about the basic services of the Post Office and also his lack of interest in taking responsibility for changes made to the Postal Service under his watch.
Following the hearing, she sent a follow-up letter to DeJoy expressing serious concern over his holdings in XPO and his involvement as Postmaster General in the operational changes in USPS, as XPO is a USPS supply chain logistics contractor. The letter asked for clarity about his role in implementing any operational changes and his commitment to comply with any investigations into his conflict of interests.
Congresswoman Porter held a Facebook Live event with local veterans and their families to understand how the Trump Administration’s cuts to the Postal Service were disastrous. She has also toured a USPS facility and listened to Postal Service employees on how we can improve USPS for generations to come.
|
Congresswoman Porter understands that workers power our economy and that we must protect workers against corporate abuse. Protecting people in the workplace is good for families and good for our economy. Congresswoman Porter introduced the FAIR Leave Act, bipartisan legislation that would close an unfair loophole that prevents married couples from taking the same amount of leave as couples working for different employers. She also joined her colleagues in the House and Senate to introduce the Part-Time Worker Bill of Rights Act, which makes long-overdue updates to employment, leave, and pension protections for part-time workers. Congresswoman Porter supports job creation and believes that people working full time should be able to make ends meet. During a Congressional hearing, she did the math to expose how an entry-level employee working for J.P. Morgan Chase cannot afford to live in Orange County. Congresswoman Porter also voted for the bipartisan Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act, which will create good-paying union jobs for millions of Americans. Unions help guard workers against abuse. Congresswoman Porter voted for the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, which expands collective bargaining rights, strengthens workers’ access to fair union elections, and closes loopholes that corporations use to exploit workers. When U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh visited Orange County, Congresswoman Porter made sure he spoke directly with local union leaders during his trip to understand their needs and discuss worker protections. Congresswoman Porter has stood up for the frontline workers who kept our communities safe during the pandemic. She demanded oversight of relief funds given to businesses, to check if they were used as intended to prevent layoffs instead of lining executives’ pockets. She led her colleagues in calling out CVS for failing to protect its workers and customers by not providing personal protective equipment to employees. She has also introduced legislation to ensure health insurance plans cover mental health and substance use disorders treatment for firefighters, police, public school teachers, and city and state workers. Supporting workers includes giving them the means to go to work. As a single mother, Congresswoman Porter recognizes that an investment in child care is an investment in our workforce, because it enables parents to participate fully in our economy. She was proud to highlight the contributions of child care workers by inviting Nazy Shahbazian, an Orange County provider, to President Biden’s 2022 State of the Union address. She has also advocated for higher wages for child care workers and released a report showing the alarming economic burden the pandemic has placed on women in the workforce. |
|
Our men and women in uniform risk their lives to keep us safe. Congresswoman Porter honors that sacrifice by fighting to make sure that our veterans and their families are taken care of while they serve and when they return. Congresswoman Porter believes we have to take care of our veterans, especially those who were injured during their time in service. She co-sponsored the Honoring our PACT Act of 2021 which would help as many as 3.5 million veterans get the treatments they need for respiratory illnesses and cancers related to burn pits. The Honoring Our PACT Act passed the House with an amendment from Congresswoman Porter to create a centralized, public website for all federally funded research on war-related illness and injury. The work doesn’t stop there for Congresswoman Porter, who is leading Congressional oversight efforts of toxic exposures for veterans formerly stationed at Fort Ord, California. Congresswoman Porter has been a champion for mental health care for servicemembers and their families. She helped lead the VA Governors Challenge Expansion Act, which would reduce military and veteran suicides by helping states get servicemembers, veterans, and military families the mental health care they need. This followed her successful effort to increase funding for these programs, which President Biden now aims to expand to new states, including California. As a consumer protection attorney, Congresswoman Porter is passionate about protecting veterans from financial exploitation. Her office has released a report on the VA Home Loan program to spotlight the predatory practices scammers use to target veterans. To improve oversight and protect veterans from financial predators, she is leading the VA Home Loan Transparency and Consumer Protection Act of 2022. This legislation has the support of the Military Officers Association of America and the American Legion, and will make it easier for Congress, Veterans Service Organizations, and military families to get the information they need to stop fraudsters. Previously, Congresswoman Porter led calls for a study of predatory marketing targeting veterans online, which became law as part of the annual defense policy bill in 2021. Congresswoman Porter makes it a priority to work with and support the local military and veterans community. In 2019, Congresswoman Porter was the first freshman Congressmember to tour the Long Beach VA, which serves Orange County veterans. She toured Camp Pendleton with Rep. Mike Levin, and discussed the needs of active servicemembers when it comes to child care and housing. She also toured Orange County’s VetNet, which connects veterans to the resources they need to succeed in civilian life. She played an instrumental role in saving the Flying Leathernecks Aviation Museum, dedicated to Southern California’s Marine Corps Aviation heritage, which will be reopening at the Irvine Great Park in 2022. Congresswoman Porter believes that veterans should be able to access the benefits that they have earned. Last Congress she introduced the Veteran Service Equity Act with Rep. Mike Levin, which would expand the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to include employees of nonpartisan Veteran Service Organizations. An updated version of the legislation will be introduced in the 117th Congress.
|
|
With the skyrocketing cost of housing, prescription drugs, gasoline, and child care, families in Orange County need tax fairness. Congresswoman Porter is working hard to save Orange County families money. As one of the only single parents of young children in Congress, she understands firsthand the increasing costs of raising a family in today’s economy. Throughout her time in Congress, she has worked to reverse the unfair state and local taxes (SALT) deduction cap, eliminate unfair tax burdens on single parents, and get the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) functioning for American taxpayers. The Trump tax law enacted in 2018 capped the SALT deduction at $10,000 a year, meaning many families have had to pay taxes twice on the income they earn. Before the Trump tax law, Orange County families were able to fully deduct property taxes and other state taxes from their income—meaning it was untaxed at the federal level. That changed with the Trump tax overhaul. Nearly half of taxpayers in the 45th District use the SALT deduction, with an average deduction of more than $22,000 per household. The SALT deduction cap meant that many middle class families had higher tax bills in 2018 and have continued to see their taxes go up. What’s worse, the Trump tax bill imposes a marriage penalty. While unmarried individuals can each file for $10,000 worth of SALT deductions—totaling $20,000 worth of deductions—a married couple can only claim $10,000. Congresswoman Porter introduced the Supporting Americans with Lower Taxes (SALT) Act to restore the state and local tax deduction for Americans making less than $400,000 a year. Restoring the SALT deduction will provide immediate relief for middle class families residing in places with high costs of living, such as Orange County. To prevent abuse by the ultra-wealthy, Americans making between $400,000 and $1 million can deduct some state and local taxes per year, while those making above $1 million cannot deduct any. This bill provides tax certainty and generates revenue for the federal government, as the existing SALT cap expires in 2028 for all Americans regardless of income. Congresswoman Porter is committed to conducting rigorous oversight to see that the IRS is serving taxpayers. Through her role as the Vice Chair of the House’s Oversight and Reform Government Operations Subcommittee, she is leading the charge to make the IRS address its massive backlog of unprocessed tax returns, because she knows many families and small businesses cannot wait additional months to receive the money they are owed. American taxpayers deserve an effective government that they can trust is working for them. As a staunch advocate for fixing what is broken with government, Congresswoman Porter has led the effort to equip the IRS with the resources it needs to go after tax cheats—big corporations and ultra-wealthy individuals that scam taxpayers out of up to $1 trillion a year. She’s also standing up to Wall Street and special interests to hold the ultra-wealthy accountable for paying their fair share of taxes. For too long, Wall Street bankers have exploited a gap in our tax code called the “carried interest loophole” that allows them to be taxed at a lower rate than all other wage earners. That’s why Congresswoman Porter helped introduce legislation to end this abuse. She also sponsored the Ending Taxpayer Welfare for Oil and Gas Companies Act to stop Big Oil from ripping off taxpayers and sticking them with the cost of cleaning up the pollution they create. Big corporations should not be able to game the tax system at the expense of middle class families who follow the rules. |
Recognizing that our outdated transportation system is unsustainable, Congresswoman Porter is eager to make innovative investments that would fight the climate crisis while strengthening our economy.
Here in Orange County, we rely on our roads and freeways to get where we need to be. That’s why Congresswoman Porter helped deliver for Orange County by voting for the bipartisan Infrastructure & Investment Jobs Act. This legislation makes necessary investments in modernizing our transportation system through road and bridge repairs, expanded public transit, new rail connections, airport renovations, and improved highway safety. It will also renew our aging electric grid and work toward replacing all lead pipes so that everyone has access to clean, reliable electricity and water.
Congresswoman Porter has heard from Orange County families about how important road safety is to our community. She backed the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act and the Moving Forward Act, both of which would improve highway safety and efficiency. Congresswoman Porter successfully amended the Moving Forward Act to develop stronger vehicle seating standards to protect women and strengthen booster seat testing. In addition to making our roads safer, this bill would also reduce our carbon footprint and increase the sustainability of our transportation system.
Keeping Orange County families safe also requires curbing toxic air pollution by cutting our greenhouse gas emissions. Congresswoman Porter introduced the Hydrogen for Ports Act and the Hydrogen for Trucking Act, which would help cut down on fossil fuel use in energy-intensive sectors. These bipartisan bills provide federal support for a key emissions-free emerging technology. When U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh came to Orange County, Congresswoman Porter took him on a tour of UC Irvine’s transformative electric vehicle charging infrastructure and discussed how critical electric vehicles and charging stations are to combatting the climate crisis.
Congresswoman Porter believes that having comprehensive, science-based research is crucial for lawmakers to make informed decisions about disaster preparedness. That’s why she introduced the bipartisan National Disaster Safety Board Act to make it easier for policymakers at every level to get this data.
Knowing that Orange County is prone to wildfires and earthquakes, Congresswoman Porter held a town hall with seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones to discuss how Orange County families can stay safe during disasters. She successfully amended the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 to require a report to Congress on the risks that wildland fires pose to our infrastructure and national readiness. She also secured $1.3 million in federal funding for the OC Fire Authority to help meet emergency response needs as Orange County dealt with another intense year of wildfires.
As a single working mom, Congresswoman Porter understands firsthand that Orange County families need representatives who will fight to make their lives easier.
An experienced commercial law professor and consumer protection attorney, Congresswoman Porter has been on the front lines of the fight for consumers and investors.
Congresswoman Porter has used her position on the House Financial Services Committee to hold legislators, executive officials, and large corporations accountable to consumers. She stood up to leaders of both parties to speak up against a bill that would prevent the IRS from creating its own program to allow Americans to file their taxes for free, called out the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for rolling back protections that prevent debt collectors from harassing American families, and exposed Equifax CEO Mark Begor for arguing in federal court that his company’s data breach did not harm consumers. Her questions shedding light on corporate hypocrisy—arguing one thing in court and saying another thing to the American public—have put Washington lobbyists on notice.
To protect students against predatory lending practices, Congresswoman Porter introduced the Relief for Defrauded Students Act of 2019. This bill would make permanent a student loan forgiveness program for borrowers to reclaim loan payments from predatory institutions. She also introduced legislation to strengthen the oversight abilities of the top federal official responsible for defending student borrowers and insulate the office from executive meddling.
To protect investors, Congresswoman Porter introduced the Stronger Enforcement of Civil Penalties Act. Her bill would increase the consequences for companies that cheat investors, by escalating the maximum penalties that violators can be fined and creating a new, harsher category of penalties for repeated and egregious rule-breaking.