[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 24 (Tuesday, February 3, 2026)]
[House]
[Pages H1970-H1973]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STOP THE REPUBLICAN AFFORDABILITY CRISIS
(Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 3, 2025, Ms. Rivas
of California was recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the
minority leader.)
General Leave
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material into the Record on the subject of my
Special Order hour.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Jack). Is there objection to the request
of the gentlewoman from California?
There was no objection.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, just over a year ago, I was part of a
talented and diverse group of 33 freshmen Members of Congress. We were
veterans, doctors, engineers, lawyers, teachers, small business owners,
and State legislators who were sent by our constituents to make their
lives better. They sent us to Congress to protect their healthcare,
lower the costs of their groceries, and make life more affordable.
Democrats are working on bills that would meaningfully help families
deal with the affordability crisis. There are bills that have been
introduced that stop price gouging at the grocery store, make housing
more affordable, and make healthcare accessible for all, but
Republicans have yet to take up any of these proposals.
We are in midst of an affordability crisis, and Republicans are
refusing to work with us to address it. We are 13 months into our first
term in Congress, and my colleagues and I have yet to see a meaningful
piece of legislation from Republicans that makes life less expensive
for our constituents.
Over the past year, Republicans chose to rename the Gulf of Mexico,
redefine what a showerhead is, rename the Kennedy Center, look into
annexing Greenland, regulate fridges and gas stoves, and perhaps the
most egregious one is to make the largest cuts to healthcare in our
country's history in order to give billionaires more tax breaks.
The fact that Trump and Republicans are prioritizing these bills over
lowering the cost of living is insulting to our constituents. I fail to
see how renaming the Gulf of Mexico, redefining the definition of a
showerhead, or annexing Greenland will help families in our districts
afford groceries or pay their rent.
Because of Donald Trump and Republicans' policies, families across
the country paid an average of over $1,600 more due in everyday
expenses. Californians are paying over $2,300. However, do you know who
is benefiting from the Trump administration? Billionaires.
With the big, ugly bill, Trump and Republicans have implemented the
largest cuts to healthcare in the history of our country and worsen the
affordability crisis just to line the pockets of their billionaire
donors.
The big, ugly bill is also the largest cut to food assistance in
American history. The bill cuts SNAP benefits by 20 percent for all
participants, or roughly $200 billion, jeopardizing SNAP benefits for
more than 40 million people, including 16 million children and 8
million seniors who rely on this for nutritional assistance.
Republicans turn their backs on making life affordable for our most
vulnerable in order to help billionaires afford another yacht.
My House Democratic Caucus freshmen colleagues and I are focused on
making life better for the American people and driving down grocery
prices, utility bills, rent and mortgage payments, and childcare and
elder care costs so that hardworking people can breathe easier.
To help working families, especially multigenerational households,
deal with the rising costs of living, I am introducing the
Multigenerational Family Tax Credit Act. My bill gives
multigenerational families a tax credit for expenses that they incur
when they upgrade their houses to make them more accessible for their
aging parents who live with them. This includes upgrades like grab
rails in the shower, an additional bathroom or bedroom, or even
assistance to go up and down stairs. This tax credit will help
multigenerational families afford to make the upgrades necessary for
seniors to age gracefully in one place.
{time} 1440
Tonight, we will hear from some of the freshmen of the Democratic
Caucus and the work that they are doing to
[[Page H1971]]
make life more affordable for their constituents.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr.
Whitesides), my colleague and friend.
Mr. WHITESIDES. Mr. Speaker, every time I talk with constituents, I
hear the same thing: Life is getting more and more expensive.
People are worried about making rent, paying for groceries, and
dealing with gas prices that keep on climbing.
In just the past couple of weeks, we have received more proof of what
our constituents are telling us. According to a recent report,
California families saw their costs go up by more than $2,000 in 2025
due to inflation. That breaks down to $482 more going toward housing,
like rent or a mortgage, and another $581 toward transportation costs,
from buying a car to repairs and gas.
For food, families are paying even more because of the grocery
tariffs from this administration. One trip through your local Stater
Bros. or Vons is enough to feel the pinch. In 2025, families paid $76
more for ground coffee, $71 more for ground beef, and $51 more for eggs
than they did in 2024.
Simply put, our economy is not serving hardworking families and the
basic promises of the American Dream, like homeownership or putting a
child through college, are harder and harder to reach.
Government works best when it is grounded in the needs of the people
that it serves. Our constituents have been clear about what they sent
us here to do, what they sent us here to fight for. We must stay
focused on policies that make life more affordable. We are here to
improve people's lives, and that responsibility should guide everything
we do.
I will continue to fight every day to lower costs and keep the
American Dream alive and within reach.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr.
Bell), my colleague and friend.
Mr. BELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today because working people in St.
Louis and across this country are getting squeezed from every
direction. Groceries cost more. Rent costs more. Childcare costs more.
Healthcare costs more. For too many families, every month feels like a
math problem they can't solve.
For generations, the American Dream meant that if you worked hard,
you could build a stable life, you could afford a home, you could raise
a family, and you could retire with dignity. Today, that dream feels
farther away for millions of people, not because they stopped believing
in it but because it is becoming impossibly unaffordable.
Affordability is not just an economic issue. It is a trust issue.
People don't just feel broke. They feel shut out.
Under President Trump, influence isn't just whispered behind closed
doors; it is put up for sale. Money flows in and policy flows out. That
is not normal. That is not acceptable. In this administration, access
is bought instead of earned. If you are a billionaire or a special
interest, you get a seat at the table. If you are a nurse, a warehouse
worker, or a parent juggling two jobs, you are out of luck. That is how
we end up with policies like tariffs that raise costs for Missouri
families by $600 a year. It is how we end up with an economy that works
great for the people at the top and barely works for everyone else.
When President Trump talks about a great economy, it is clear he is
talking about an economy he has never had to live in, one where you
don't worry about grocery bills, prescription costs, or childcare,
because those concerns have never touched his life, and they don't
guide his decisions.
When decisions are driven by money instead of the public interest,
the result is higher costs, weaker protections, and a growing sense
that the American Dream is slipping out of reach.
It doesn't have to be this way. We can build an economy where the
American Dream is affordable again, where housing is within reach,
healthcare is accessible, and childcare doesn't bankrupt you.
We can stop giving billionaires yet another tax break and start
giving working families some breathing room. Because when government
works for working people, the American Dream stops slipping away and
starts feeling possible again.
That is what House Democrats are fighting for, not an economy built
around pay-to-play politics or shady closed-door deals but one built
around dignity, fairness, and that simple idea that the American Dream
should be within reach for everyone, not just the well-connected.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Mannion), my colleague and friend.
Mr. MANNION. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Rivas for her
leadership on affordability and giving me the opportunity to speak
today.
Across central New York and the Mohawk Valley, people are worried,
and they have every reason to be. Grocery prices are going up.
Healthcare costs are rising. Energy bills are spiking. Too many
families feel like they are being asked to absorb the hit while
Washington does nothing to make their lives better or more affordable.
On healthcare, the threat is real and urgent. Just this week, I met
with leadership and toured Oneida Health, a rural hospital in my
district that has been there for over a hundred years. They are feeling
the largest healthcare cuts in the history of the country that were
passed in the big, ugly bill, and they know firsthand that the deeply
inadequate rural healthcare fund comes nowhere near making up for the
lost revenue that happened in that bill.
You cannot cut nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid and decimate the
foundation of our healthcare system, cutting at the knees our rural
hospitals, and pretend that a one-time Band-Aid of $50 billion will
hold the system together.
Many of my Republican colleagues continue to tout their votes in
support of the largest healthcare cuts in our history while letting
critical subsidies expire.
We should be doing the opposite. There is bipartisan support to
extend the ACA premium tax credits. We should be working together to
prevent premium spikes and make sure seniors and working families
aren't forced to choose between prescription drugs, groceries, and
keeping the heat on.
Healthcare should provide peace of mind, not financial anxiety,
because when essential services are gutted, community health centers
and rural hospitals face shortfalls, and people are forced to drop
coverage. It impacts everyone through higher premiums, and all of us
will be paying more and are paying more to get less. The House has
wisely voted to extend the subsidies, and the Senate needs to do the
same.
The same affordability crisis is playing out with energy costs. I
hear it every day from families and small businesses who simply cannot
afford another rate hike. That is why I helped found the Congressional
Lowering Utility Bills Caucus, to push real, practical solutions that
put consumers first.
Upstate New York knows extreme weather--long winters, hot summers--
but weather alone doesn't explain why utility bills have become
unmanageable. Families in my district are projected to pay hundreds
more each year, even when usage stays the same. I have heard from
constituents whose bills jumped hundreds of dollars and more in just a
matter of months. That is not sustainable, and it is not acceptable.
Part of the problem is growing demand from energy-intensive data
centers. Regular Americans should not be forced to subsidize massive
corporate energy use.
Another part of the problem is this administration's decisions that
undercut long-term affordability, such as blocking transmission,
canceling low-cost energy products--some of which are green energy
projects--and slowing investments that would expand supply, stabilize
prices, and give consumers the options they need and demand.
{time} 1450
Republicans control the White House, Senate, and House, and it seems
like big energy corporations control them. We see every day that their
actions demonstrate that they are not interested in lowering the costs
for hardworking Americans.
The good news is that solutions do exist. We need smart investments
in generation and transmission, expanded energy-efficiency programs
that help families use less and pay less, and a balanced approach to
create more affordable energy options, including renewables and clean,
reliable nuclear
[[Page H1972]]
power. We also need accountability, including keeping utilities local
and making sure profits aren't shipped overseas while families here
struggle to keep the lights on.
Consumer affordability, not corporate profit, has to be the priority.
Paying for groceries and healthcare, keeping the lights on, and heating
your home are the basic expectations that should exist in the
wealthiest country in the world, Mr. Speaker. They should not be
luxuries.
This affordability crisis isn't just hitting hardworking families
across central New York and the Mohawk Valley. It is squeezing our
small businesses, our hospitals, and our schools. I will keep fighting
to make sure Washington treats this crisis with the urgency that it
demands.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from the great
State of Maryland (Ms. Elfreth).
Ms. ELFRETH. Mr. Speaker, we are taking up time on the floor today
because, from coast to coast, I guarantee that we are all hearing the
same message from our constituents: The cost of living is just too
high.
I feel it, too, as the daughter of a single mom who made everything
work because of access to affordable childcare, as a millennial with
student loan debt that I am still years away from paying off, and as a
first-time homeowner who finally was able to buy a house in the
district that I represent after renting for over two decades.
This is something I believe everyone in this Chamber, Republicans and
Democrats alike, can agree on: Congress must do more to cover the
crushing costs of electric bills, groceries, prescription drugs,
housing, and more.
While I would love to take a full hour today running through what we
can and should do on all these crises, I have only a few minutes to
focus on one.
Mr. Speaker, from my very first conversations 9 years ago, when I
first asked my neighbors to place their trust in me to represent them,
to even just this weekend at the grocery store, I have heard from
parents, grandparents, and small businesses alike that the childcare
crisis is suppressing our economy and forcing families to make
impossible decisions.
It is more expensive to send one infant to daycare than it is to send
an 18-year-old to the University of Maryland.
Like every State, Maryland saw devastating losses in childcare
providers after the pandemic. We lost 15 percent, or 1,135, home-based
childcare providers, and that further pressured the market and limited
options for families.
I come to this floor with good news. I am proud to share that, in our
State, education and nonprofit leaders are working to find innovative
solutions to help families afford childcare through scholarships and
tax credits, but also, and this is crucial, to grow the supply of
childcare providers and create critically needed seats.
The Growing Opportunities for Family Child Care program has opened
nearly 300 daycares, or 2,000 childcare slots, in just 3 years by
providing training, coaching, and resources to individuals who happen
to be almost entirely women-based businesses in opening and operating
family care childcare businesses.
Now, this is a win-win-win. We create more jobs in childcare, allow
more parents to enter the workforce, and lower the cost of care through
increased supply.
As a Congress, we need to work together to find commonsense policies
that will make it easier for our neighbors not just to get by but to
get ahead.
Mr. Speaker, I call on my colleagues to join me in tackling issues
head-on together through difficult conversations as we seek to do the
unfashionable thing here in Washington: find common ground. That is
because that is the fundamental promise of our country: to be able to
give our kids and the next generation a better life than we had. We can
only do that by offering real, comprehensive, innovative solutions to
the affordability crisis that families across this country are
experiencing.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Ms. Elfreth for her remarks.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from the great State of
Arizona (Mrs. Grijalva).
Mrs. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Rivas for
organizing today's Special Order hour.
Mr. Speaker, across Arizona, families are being squeezed from every
direction. Groceries cost more. Rent and housing costs keep climbing.
People can't afford their healthcare.
According to the Joint Economic Committee, Arizona families paid an
estimated $1,569 more in 2025 due to inflation during Trump's first
year back in office.
Yet, after running on lower prices, Trump now calls this
affordability crisis a hoax. Just last week, he said plainly: ``I don't
want to drive housing prices down. I want to drive housing prices up. .
. .''
That tells us exactly whom he is fighting for: Wall Street
speculators and billionaires, not our families living on Main Streets
and in our barrios. He is not even trying to hide it anymore.
Meanwhile, utility bills are surging; electric bills are up 13
percent; and residential gas prices are up nearly 60 percent. This
administration canceled clean energy projects that could have powered
13 million homes, destroying 165,000 jobs in the process.
Behind every statistic is a family that is now experiencing hardship
due to these reckless and painful policies. I recently toured the
Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, where I heard directly from
staff and volunteers about what these policies mean on the ground. Food
banks are now being forced to serve more people with fewer resources
because of the Republicans' so-called big, ugly bill.
Across Arizona, they are serving about 700,000 people every single
month, a 30-percent increase in demand for services while dealing with
a 50-percent cut in funding for some of our most vulnerable
populations, including seniors, veterans, differently abled, families,
and children.
That strain is only growing as this Republican law slashes SNAP, one
of the most effective anti-hunger programs we have. Under the big, ugly
law, up to 73,000 Arizonans could lose some or all of their benefits
due to red tape and funding changes.
These cuts don't eliminate hunger. They push families to food banks
that are already stretched thin. The burden falls hardest on women and
caregivers, especially women of color who are overrepresented in low-
wage and unstable jobs.
Let's be clear: This is an affordability crisis Republicans are
perpetuating. Rising costs, shrinking safety nets, and tax breaks for
billionaires are all at the expense of working families.
House Democrats are focused on driving down costs and making life
more affordable. That is because affordability isn't a slogan. It is
about whether families can live with dignity and peace of mind. That is
what we should be fighting for.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time I have remaining.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman has 37 minutes remaining.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, over the past year, Republicans have chosen
to focus on nearly everything except addressing the affordability
crisis.
One of those items includes renaming the Gulf of Mexico. As a member
of the House Committee on Natural Resources, I saw this bill make its
way through the committee thinking that it was a joke. I was correct to
think that because the origin of renaming the Gulf of Mexico was from a
joke.
In 2011, Stephen Colbert joked about renaming the gulf during the
2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, stating that: ``I don't think we can
call it the Gulf of Mexico anymore. We broke it; we bought it.''
When the big, ugly bill was being marked up in the Natural Resources
Committee, I led an amendment that would make this unserious proposal
more beneficial for working families in my district. My amendment made
it so that the gulf cannot be renamed until Secretary Burgum can assess
how the bill will actually lower grocery prices, improve the GDP, lower
unemployment, and create jobs. Of course, Republicans rejected my
amendment.
That seems to be the pattern that we are all seeing, and that is why
we are here today to share the stories on how the affordability crisis
is affecting our constituents.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Dexter).
[[Page H1973]]
{time} 1500
Ms. DEXTER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from California for
leading this important discussion today and for her leadership in
bringing this to the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about the affordability crisis and
the reality the vast majority of American families are facing.
Across Oregon, people are doing everything they are supposed to do.
They are working extremely hard and playing by the rules, and still
they are falling behind. They are living paycheck to paycheck, unable
to save for a vacation, retirement, or their children's education
because the cost of living has outpaced what most people earn.
Rent keeps climbing. Childcare can cost more than a mortgage. Health
insurance premiums, copays, and deductibles eat up paychecks before
families ever get to groceries. Too many parents are lying awake at
night running the numbers, wondering which bill they can delay paying
this month.
A report from the Joint Economic Committee found that the average
American family spent $1,625 more because of inflation than the year
prior. In Oregon, families paid $1,791 more than the year before.
It doesn't have to be this way.
I grew up working class. I left home at 17, and with the security of
a union job, I was able to be the first in my family to graduate
college and then go on to medical school.
It was because this country chose to invest in families like mine
that I had a shot at the American Dream. Well-funded public schools,
safe neighborhoods, excellent transit, union jobs, accessible and
affordable healthcare, housing and higher education are the building
blocks that every family in this Nation deserves to count on.
Today, our kids cannot count on these things. They are cynical that
the American Dream is even achievable. They don't believe government is
trustworthy, let alone effective. That is a failure of leaders right
here in this Chamber.
I came here to fight to make sure my district has the opportunities
that I had for a better life. It is time that the Federal Government
chooses working families. It is time for our government to work for
working families, to empower people with opportunity and stability, not
terrorize and undermine their dreams and hard work.
We must raise the Federal minimum wage. We must help seniors age with
dignity and independence. We must ensure healthcare and housing are
affordable and readily available. We must protect our air, water, and
open spaces for all to enjoy health and the joy of getting outside in
our beautiful State.
A better future is possible if we fight for it. I can assure you all,
I came here to do just that. It is time for the Federal Government to
stand up for working families and break up the monopolies and power
circles that are holding them down.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, in July, Republicans voted to betray our
values as a Nation and turn their backs on children, working parents,
veterans, and our most vulnerable.
Under direct orders from the President, the big, ugly bill ignored
the concerns of a majority of Americans to instead cater to
billionaires. For over a year, Republicans have done nothing to save
Medicaid, protect immigrant communities, provide food for needy
families or children, or address the skyrocketing cost of living.
Republicans voted to stand with billionaires and make life harder and
more expensive for working families.
What Republicans somehow fail to see is how the big, ugly bill would
harm their constituents. House Democrats all voted to save Medicaid and
SNAP, protect our immigrant communities, and stand with working
families across the San Fernando Valley and across the country.
As you heard from many of my freshmen colleagues who participated
today, Republicans are turning their backs on everyday Americans. We
all have constituent stories, constituents who have reached out to us
to share the impact of these policies on their daily lives.
Just recently, I heard from an elderly couple in my district from
Valley Village who are facing serious health concerns, including
chronic heart problems and cancer. He and his wife make regular visits
to the oncologist and are going through multiple rounds of
chemotherapy. They live on a fixed income from Social Security. Between
regular visits to the doctors and the monthly increase in their rent,
they are struggling to make ends meet.
No one should have to make the choice of paying for their rent or a
visit to the doctor that they need in order to survive. Unfortunately,
these are the decisions that this administration is forcing everyday
Americans to make. Republicans must work with House Democrats to bring
these costs down for families in the San Fernando Valley and across the
country.
Mr. Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman has 30 minutes remaining.
Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, the work we do in Congress should improve the
lives of our constituents, not focus on vanity projects for an
egomaniac or line the pockets of people who don't need it.
We heard from several talented and dedicated Democratic freshmen
tonight about the work that they are doing to make life more affordable
for their constituents.
The true test of how great we are as a country is how we treat and
care for our most vulnerable. Time and time again, Democrats are rising
to the occasion to pass this test and make life more affordable for
all. By doing literally everything except for addressing the
affordability crisis that they created, Republicans are failing that
test.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
____________________