[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 14]
[House]
[Pages 20209-20210]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  FEMA HOTEL VOUCHERS MUST BE EXTENDED

  (Mr. SOTO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)

[[Page 20210]]


  Mr. SOTO. Mr. Speaker, over 250,000 of my fellow Puerto Ricans have 
arrived in Florida since Hurricane Maria. The tax bill on top of that 
absolutely is going to decimate the manufacturing sector there, which 
is going to only hasten further of my brothers and sisters to my home 
State, the great State of Florida.
  We have done our best as a host State to ease school enrollment for 
our young people, to have instate tuition for our college students 
coming here from the island. Our hospitals are doing their best to meet 
the challenge, and many are getting jobs, although not as high paying 
as we would like.
  We also are putting bills forward to speed up Medicaid qualification 
and expand Section 8 housing. But, most critically, Florida faces a 
housing crisis of epic proportions.
  On January 15, the FEMA hotel vouchers expire. This must be extended 
for another 6 months. In addition, we are leading a bipartisan effort 
in Florida to directly seek approval of FEMA direct lease vouchers so 
that people can have a place to stay.
  I am appointing a bipartisan Federal task force on Puerto Rican 
arrivals in central Florida to help in this very good work.

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