Under President Biden, our southern border has collapsed into a complete national security and humanitarian crisis. December of last year had the highest number of illegal border crossings on record and it’s clear the President’s policies are not working. That’s why this week, I joined my House colleagues to vote for a bipartisan resolution denouncing President Biden’s open border policies that have allowed fentanyl and human traffickers to flow openly across our border. I’ll continue working with my colleagues to enact meaningful policy changes to secure the southern border.

This week we celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. I was honored to be able to attend the annual MLK Jr. Day Community Awards Breakfast celebration in Bakersfield to recognize local leaders who exemplify Dr. King's legacy. It was great to meet with so many of our Valley leaders who do such incredible work on behalf of our community. 

January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month - an opportunity for all of us to educate ourselves about the role we can play in preventing and ending human trafficking. California has the highest rates of human trafficking of any state in the nation, and combatting this ongoing tragedy is a top priority of mine in Congress. This week, I wrote an op-ed in the Bakersfield Californian about the actions we must take to end human trafficking.

You can read my full op-ed here.

Our question this week comes from Sean in Bakersfield. He asks:

“I have a question regarding the Affordable Internet program that saves me $30.00 on my monthly Internet bill.  I want to know if it will continue or will Biden let it expire?”

Thank you for your question, Sean. As we all become increasingly reliant on technology, we must ensure every American has access to the adequate broadband services necessary to succeed. The Affordable Connectivity Program has helped to provide reliable, high-speed internet access to more than 20 million Americans –especially Americans living in rural communities. However, funding for the ACP is set to run out in 2024 unless Congress acts.

I support the Affordable Connectivity Program and have urged for the program to be fully funded for the next fiscal year. I also recently joined my colleagues in a letter to Congressional leadership urging them to fully fund the ACP for 2024 and to explore new ways to make this critical funding permanent and exempt from the normal appropriations spending process.

During my time in Congress, I have continually supported rural broadband expansion – including voting to fund $260,000,000 for the ReConnect program to increase access to broadband connectivity in rural communities. I will keep fighting to ensure all Valley residents have access to reliable, affordable broadband internet.

Do you have a question about my position on an issue? How the Congress operates? My thoughts on the news of the day?

Send your first name, town, and question to AskDavid@mail.house.gov and I might answer yours right here in one of my weekly newsletters. Make sure to subscribe to my weekly email updates to see if your question was answered!

If you want to share your opinion with me on issues of importance, you can always contact me on my website.

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