Cori Bush Statement on America COMPETES Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01), issued the below statement following the passage of H.R. 4521, America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength (COMPETES) Act of 2022 in the U.S. House of Representatives:
“America’s global leadership is not measured in military might or the power of our financial institutions, but in our work to save and improve the lives of regular, everyday people in our country. This bill is flawed, but it is also filled with progressive priorities that will ensure equity, save lives, and make critical investments in our planet and communities. I am proud that six of my amendments were included in the America COMPETES Act to address environmental justice, vaccine diplomacy, study the public health and environmental impact of sanctions in Afghanistan, investing in education and STEM opportunities at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, expanding renewable energy development, and studying pollution in the Mississippi River. We also partnered with our colleagues in the House to successfully secure much needed guardrails on investments made to private businesses through the CHIPS program to make sure federal spending doesn’t favor corporations over the needs of regular, everyday people.
“We have worked hard to make the America COMPETES Act a more just and equitable bill, recognizing that it will impact not just the lives of Americans, but billions of people across the world. As Congress continues to work on this legislation, we must remain focused on our responsibility to condemn anti-Asian racism and discrimination — and that includes keeping in amendments that support that goal.
“As negotiations on this bill continue, St. Louis, our people, and regular, everyday people globally must win. Over the course of this week, I have been in touch directly with the Department of Commerce about the lifesaving resources needed in St. Louis and communities like it — including support for our HBCUs, minority-owned businesses, and workforce investments for formerly incarcerated individuals. I urge the conference committee to preserve the important House-sponsored amendments in the final bill as it makes its way through the conference committee.”
A summary of the Congresswoman’s individual amendments can be found here. The America COMPETES Act will now move into a conference committee to be reconciled with the Senate’s bipartisan U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA).
A fact sheet & outline of the America COMPETES Act can be found here.
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Congresswoman Cori Bush sits on the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees, serves as the Progressive Caucus Deputy Whip, and proudly represents St. Louis as a politivist in the halls of the United States Congress.