It’s May 19, 2021 – Here’s a roundup of recent updates from New Hampshire’s Congressional Delegation.
Shaheen talks about the rights of Afghan women
U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the only woman and a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered remarks on the Senate floor last week about the urgent need for the United States to prioritize the rights and freedoms of Afghan women and girls amid U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan. Shaheen has been a fierce advocate for Afghan women and girls, particularly in light of the President’s announcement last month to remove U.S. forces by September 11, 2021.
Shaheen said, “The lack of emphasis on the safety and security of Afghan women and girls in the peace process is what brought us to this point. We are leaving by September and there is no plan to ensure that the rights we achieved for women and girls are actually protected…”
Referencing her legislation that was signed into law in 2017 that stipulates the United States has a responsibility to ensure that women are at the negotiating table in areas of conflict, like Afghanistan, Shaheen urged the need for women’s inclusion in building a future for Afghanistan.
Shaheen underscored the urgent need for the U.S. to develop a strategy to preserve the gains made on women’s rights and to protect women and girls in Afghanistan, as well as other vulnerable groups, from the Taliban. Senator Shaheen’s remarks come on the heels of a devastating bombing in Kabul last week outside of a girls’ high school that killed 85. It also closely follows the release of a new report, which Shaheen worked to declassify, that portends poorly for the fate of Afghan women following the withdrawal of U.S. troops.
Shaheen continued, “This is the future that we risk if we don’t have a plan for how we’re going to continue to support the women and girls of Afghanistan.”
Hassan asks questions about keeping retirement savings safe from cyberattacks
Last week, U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan discussed the need to keep Americans’ retirement savings safe from cyber threats during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing last week.
Senator Hassan highlighted efforts that she led with her colleagues, including Chair of the HELP Committee, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), to request that the Government Accountability Office look into the risk cybersecurity threats pose to retirement plans.
“The report confirmed that cyber threats put private defined contribution retirement plans like 401(k)s, which are held by more than 100 million Americans, at risk and recommends that the Department of Labor take action to address this issue,” Senator Hassan said.
Dave Gray, Head of Workplace Retirement Offerings and Platforms at Fidelity Investments, discussed the steps that Fidelity is taking to protect its customers from cyber threats, including active measure like two-factor authentication and working directly with its customers to strengthen their cyber standards.
Kuster Re-introduces Renewable Energy Bill
Last week, U.S. Representatives Annie Kuster (D-NH), Mike Kelly (R-PA), Peter Welch (D-VT), and Chellie Pingree (D-ME) reintroduced bipartisan legislation that would incentivize the use of energy efficient biomass heaters in businesses instead of relying on fossil fuel energy. The Biomass Thermal Utilization (BTU) Act would amend the federal tax code to incentivize the use of energy-efficient boilers, stoves, and heaters that use forest and agricultural residues through tax credits for capital costs incurred in commercial installations. Tax incentives already exist for many other forms of renewable or efficient energy, and this bill seeks to achieve parity between those systems and thermal biomass systems. The legislation would encourage people and businesses to reduce the use of non-renewable fossil heating fuels by offering these incentives.
“Modern wood boilers and heating systems are essential to transitioning away from fossil fuels,” said Kuster. “Incentivizing this option not only levels the playing field but also helps support a strong wood products economy in New Hampshire and across the country. I’m pleased that tax incentives for families looking to install these systems in their private residences became law last year, and now it is time to extend that same opportunity to commercial business places. I’m proud to reintroduce this bipartisan legislation, and I will continue working in Congress to advance smart energy solutions for generations to come.”