Statements and Releases

On February 13, 2024, the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (PITF), a cabinet-level entity that coordinates the federal government’s anti-trafficking efforts, met at the White House to reaffirm its commitment to combat human trafficking. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who chairs the PITF, presided over the meeting alongside other senior White House officials and principals from 20 participating federal agencies, including Attorney General Merrick Garland; Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland; Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack; Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su; Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas; Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai; and Director of the Office of Management and Budget Shalanda Young. 

The leaders of the PITF departments and agencies highlighted their efforts to address all forms of human trafficking and to implement the key priorities of the federal government’s National Action Plan. Senior White House officials, including Domestic Policy Advisor Neera Tanden, Gender Policy Council Director Jennifer Klein, and Homeland Security Advisor Dr. Liz Sherwood-Randall also addressed the task force and discussed the Federal Government’s work to prevent human trafficking, prosecute perpetrators, and protect survivors. U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking member Sameer Jain presented on the Council’s 2023 Annual Report, which offers recommendations for how the Federal Government can strengthen its policies and programs to counter human trafficking. 

Secretary Blinken also recognized two recipients of the Presidential Award for Extraordinary Efforts to Combat Trafficking in Persons for their extraordinary efforts to prevent human trafficking, prosecute traffickers, and protect and partner with survivors.

Below are some of the interagency priorities planned for 2024, organized by the pillars of the National Action Plan: prevention, protection, prosecution, and partnerships.

Prevention

Awareness is the first step to combat human trafficking, and the departments and agencies of the PITF are committed to educating our government personnel, the public, and vulnerable communities on recognizing and reporting human trafficking at our schools, in our communities and in our supply chains.  PITF departments and agencies are tailoring trainings to their authorities and to meet the needs of their personnel and stakeholders, all with the same goal: to raise awareness to stop this abhorrent crime that targets the most vulnerable communities.  

The Department of Labor is investing more resources in identifying forced labor and child labor risks in the products that are part of our everyday lives to ensure that we avoid importing those goods into the United States. This effort will include publishing national surveys on forced labor in Nigeria and Mongolia and sectoral surveys on garments in Argentina and Madagascar. The Department will also update its List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor in the fall, based on findings from over a dozen Department of Labor-funded supply chain tracing projects that looked at globally traded goods in mining, agriculture, and manufacturing.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will publish the National Human Trafficking Prevention Framework with violence prevention strategies and approaches for communities to stop human trafficking before it occurs, reduce its impact, and prevent it from recurring.The Department will spotlight prevention partnerships throughout the year and make $1 million in awards under the HHS Innovation Challenge to Prevent Human Trafficking Among Women and Girls.It will also release new public awareness materials informed by survivors and launch the National Advisory Committee on the Trafficking of Children and Youth in the United States.

The Department of State(State) will launch a training resource that focuses on how to conduct trauma-informed interviews and conversations for personnel at our embassies and consulates who may interview or converse with survivors of human trafficking.  This work follows State’s recent release of online training, “Understanding Trauma and Trauma-Informed Approaches,” which is available to the public and provides tips for engaging with potential victims and survivors of trafficking without further traumatizing them.  The training was designed in partnership with survivors and other trauma experts.

As part of its Farm Labor Stabilization and Protection Pilot Program, the Department of Agriculture will work to increase standards and worker protections for agricultural workers.  Employers engaged in the grant program must ensure ethical, safe recruitment of any workers employed through the seasonal H-2A visa program in addition to ensuring all workers have access to a know-your-rights-and-resources training, among other requirements.

In addition, several PITF departments and agencies will provide tailored trainings this year.  The Department of Education will host webinars that cover a range of issues, to include talking with youth about trafficking and child exploitation; implementing anti-trafficking strategies; supporting survivors who have experienced exploitation; and setting up trafficking/exploitation prevention programs in schools.  The Department of Defense will overhaul its specialized training for its training  staff and develop a new refresher to continue promoting its combating trafficking in persons message to its 3.4 million military and civilian personnel. The Department of Commerce will offer training that identifies and addresses possible violations of
forced labor in supply chains.

Protection

PITF agencies over the next year commit to do more to protect and assist human trafficking victims in rebuilding their lives by offering survivor-centered and trauma-informed services, such as crisis intervention, job training, education, and other services.  PITF departments and agencies anticipate that the increased use of victim-centered strategies will make it more likely that victims will safely come forward, report to law enforcement, and participate as witnesses in law enforcement investigations and prosecutions.  The PITF departments and agencies will be involved in a wide range of efforts aimed at protecting victims of human trafficking.  Some of those efforts include:  

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will select a Senior Victim-Centered Approach Official to further institutionalize victim identification and support capacity across the Department.  DHS will also launch an online application and processing system for U.S. law enforcement nationwide to expedite and expand its ability to request Continued Presence for human trafficking victims.  Continued Presence is an immigration designation that permits human trafficking victims who may help in an investigation to remain in the United States with work authorization, which can help victims and survivors more quickly restore self-sufficiency and seek justice. 

State will launch a new foreign assistance program, the Partnership to Prevent (P2P) Human Trafficking.  This new program, like the Child Protection Compact Partnerships, will fund multi-year commitments developed jointly by the United States and selected partner countries that document shared objectives to advance national and local level efforts to effectively prevent trafficking, prosecute traffickers, and provide trauma-informed care for survivors. 

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will support foreign governments and civil society efforts to combat human trafficking with survivor-centered approaches.  As one example, in Thailand, USAID is piloting communication technology to improve connectivity and safety for fishers while at sea and promoting industry adoption of ethical recruitment practices.      

HHS will continue to connect thousands of survivors of human trafficking to housing, health, and other critical services through a national network of community-based organizations.  HHS will also continue to strengthen partnerships to respond to calls from every state and U.S. territory through the National Human Trafficking Hotline, which received nearly 8,000 calls, chats, and text messages directly from survivors last year.

Prosecution

Investigating and prosecuting human traffickers present a distinct set of challenges, but the PITF departments and agencies remain committed to using their unique authorities to hold accountable individuals and entities engaged in human trafficking and to dismantle human trafficking networks.  Over the next year, we will employ a broad range of non-criminal enforcement tools, build the capacity of our law enforcement agencies, and strengthen criminal enforcement capabilities through improved coordination among enforcement partners. 

The Department of Treasury will hold traffickers accountable by working with interagency partners to develop targeted sanctions to disrupt human trafficking activities. Since December 2022, Treasury has designated 23 persons for conduct related to human trafficking, including for serious human rights abuse aboard People’s Republic of China-flagged distant water fishing vessels, and for systemic and pervasive sex trafficking activity.

The Department of the Interior will continue to work with the United States Attorneys’ Offices and state law enforcement officials to establish standard law enforcement response protocols throughout Indian Country.  This year, the Department will also be completing a cloud-based Solution Trust Accountability Tracker (STAT), which catalogues information on missing persons, murder and human trafficking cases relating to Native American and Alaska Native victims.  STAT will help inform suspect identification and facilitate the exchange of information with investigators in tribal communities and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) will continue bringing high-impact sex trafficking and labor trafficking prosecutions in partnership with federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcement partners.  The DOJ-led Interagency Forced Labor Initiative Steering Group will enhance information-sharing protocols with partners in the education, child protection, social service, and occupational health and safety sectors to more effectively identify children who are especially vulnerable to labor exploitation and forced labor.  The Steering Group is intensifying its focus on forced child labor due to the prevalence of complaints and indicators involving child labor exploitation and forced child labor. 

In addition, DOJ will launch a Human Trafficking Strategic Initiative of the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force that will mobilize additional federal, state, and local law enforcement partners in investigations involving transnational organized and gang-related human trafficking threats.  

Partnerships

Finally, the more the PITF departments and agencies share information across the government and with external partners; coordinate efforts domestically and with foreign partners; integrate survivor input; and strengthen our understanding of human trafficking, the more progress we will make to end it.  In 2024, the PITF department and agencies will work on several efforts, some of which include:

The Department of Transportation will award a $50,000 Combating Human Trafficking in Transportation Impact Award to incentivize individuals and entities to think creatively in developing innovative solutions to combat human trafficking in the transportation industry, and to share those innovations with the broader community.  Submissions for the 2024 Award are open until March 11, 2024, and full details are available in the Federal Register Notice.

State will build on its partnership with the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking and the Department’s Human Trafficking Expert Consultant Network to incorporate trauma-informed and survivor-informed approaches in its anti-trafficking efforts.  The Network, comprising individuals with lived experience of human trafficking and other subject matter experts, created the first of its kind resource for Department staff conducting international site visits and meetings at shelters for victims and survivors. 

HHS will announce and implement the Anti-Trafficking Leadership, Innovation, and Sustainability Project, which provides 10 or more awards of $20,000 and technical assistance to survivors of human trafficking to meet local needs to prevent and respond to human trafficking.  

The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) will release its Forced Labor Trade Strategy this year.The Strategy will examine the range of trade tools available to address forced labor, highlight new approaches and prioritize efforts to combat forced labor through trade policy and engagement.  USTR solicited input from all relevant stakeholders, to include labor organizations, governments, civil society, survivors, and businesses. 

The Departments of the Interior and Justice are committed to implementing recommendations from the Not Invisible Act Commission’s November 2023 report: Not One More: Findings and Recommendations of the Not Invisible Act Commission to the United States’ Congress and federal agencies. Next steps in 2024 include: adding resources needed for tribal law enforcement recruitment and retention, increased data collection, survivor and family services, cross jurisdictional coordination, among other critical issues.

This fact sheet offers only a snapshot of the Administration’s plans for 2024.  Numerous documents have guided our work this past year, including the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking, the October 2023 Report of the White House H-2B Worker Protection Taskforce, the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking Annual Report 2022, and the State Department’s 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report.

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Following the horrific October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas against Israel, and Israel’s ensuing military response, humanitarian conditions in Gaza have significantly deteriorated. In light of the ongoing conflict and humanitarian needs on the ground, President Biden signed a memorandum directing the deferral of removal of certain Palestinians who are present in the United States, giving them a temporary safe haven. Specifically, President Biden is granting deferred enforced departure for 18 months to Palestinians that are currently in the United States. This grant of deferred enforced departure would provide protections for most Palestinians in the United States, with certain exceptions. Those convicted of felonies or who are otherwise deemed to pose a public safety threat are not eligible for deferred enforced departure. Anyone who voluntarily returns to the Palestinian territories would lose any such protections.

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Following the horrific October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas against Israel, and Israel’s ensuing military response, humanitarian conditions in Gaza have significantly deteriorated.

In light of the ongoing conflict and humanitarian needs on the ground, President Biden signed a memorandum directing the deferral of removal of certain Palestinians who are present in the United States, giving them a temporary safe haven. Specifically, President Biden is granting deferred enforced departure for 18 months to Palestinians that are currently in the United States.

This grant of deferred enforced departure would provide protections for most Palestinians in the United States, with certain exceptions.  Those convicted of felonies or who are otherwise deemed to pose a public safety threat are not eligible for deferred enforced departure. Anyone who voluntarily returns to the Palestinian territories would lose any such protections.

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To date, over 50,000 infrastructure and clean energy projects have now been announced thanks to Bidenomics and President Biden’s Investing in America agenda

Tomorrow, February 15, the Biden-Harris Administration will kick off its fourth Investing in America tour to highlight how Bidenomics and the President’s Investing in America agenda are growing the economy from the middle out and bottom up—not the top down. The tour will demonstrate how the President is delivering for communities across the country, including those that have been left out or overlooked. Officials across the Administration will highlight how President Biden’s investments are lowering costs for families, creating good-paying jobs, and advancing opportunity for all Americans.

Throughout the Investing in America tour, President Biden, Vice President Harris, First Lady Jill Biden, Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff, Cabinet members, and Senior Administration Officials will visit communities across the country where the President is cutting costs for American families, growing our clean energy economy, rebuilding our infrastructure, and creating good-paying jobs along the way. To date, the Administration has now launched over 50,000 infrastructure and clean energy projects and mobilized over $640 billion in private sector clean energy and manufacturing investments.

During the Investing in America tour, Administration officials will also call out Congressional Republicans who voted against the President’s agenda yet continue to claim credit for its transformative impact—including the jobs it’s creating and the economic growth it has spurred in their communities and across the country. While the President is busy delivering for the American people, House Republicans are fighting to give more tax cuts to wealthy and big corporations, raise costs for prescription drugs and utilities, and cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.

When the tour kicks off tomorrow, the Administration will announce nearly $1 billion for airport terminal projects that will modernize airports for the 21st century—improving passenger experience, accessibility, and sustainability while creating good-paying jobs. Over the course of the tour, President Biden and Administration leaders will make major announcements made possible by the President’s Investing in America agenda, which includes the Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS and Science Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and American Rescue Plan. The tour will also underscore how under President Biden, cities and towns across the country that have historically been left behind are making an economic comeback. A recent report found that economically distressed counties are receiving a disproportionate share of the private sector investment in industries of the future targeted by the President’s agenda, including clean energy and semiconductors and electronics. This complements similar findings by the Treasury Department.

As part of the tour:

• President Biden will travel to highlight how his agenda is lowering costs, driving economic growth, and ensuring that no community gets left behind.
• Vice President Harris and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan will travel to Pennsylvania to highlight the Administration’s continued progress towards delivering clean water for every American, including those in communities that have too often been overlooked. They will also emphasize how ongoing investments in clean water are creating good-paying jobs across the country.
• First Lady Jill Biden will travel to Wisconsin to highlight the importance of career-connected learning programs that prepare high school and community college students for jobs in growing sectors.
• Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff and Deputy Secretary of Transportation Polly Trottenberg will travel to Minnesota to highlight the Biden-Harris Administration’s investments in transportation infrastructure to spur economic growth and improve American lives.
• Leading into the tour, Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen will travel to Pennsylvania and Michigan for events to discuss how President Biden’s economic agenda is lowering health care costs, spurring a small business boom, and creating economic opportunity across the country.
• Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland will travel to Virginia, Ohio, and Delaware to highlight how President Biden’s investments are addressing legacy pollution, investing in Indigenous communities, and strengthening climate resilience in habitats and communities.
• Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack will travel to California to highlight how President Biden’s investments are making communities more resilient to the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events. Secretary Vilsack and White House Director of Domestic Policy Neera Tanden will also travel to North Carolina to highlight the President’s progress toward closing the digital divide and investing in rural America. This trip will kick off a new Investing in Rural America Regional Event Series that will continue throughout this year, building on the Administration’s Investing in Rural America Event Series in late 2023.
• Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su will travel to Oregon to showcase how the President’s Investing in America agenda is expanding job opportunities in industries of the future like semiconductor manufacturing.
• Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra will travel to North Carolina, Mississippi, and New Hampshire to highlight the Administration’s efforts to address health care disparities, including how President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act lowers the cost of prescription drugs for seniors and families across America.
• Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge will travel to Ohio to underscore the Administration’s commitment to investing in infrastructure improvements and the provision of essential services for residents, as well as advancing equity in housing for communities across the country.
• Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg will travel to North Carolina and Hawaii to highlight how the President’s Investing in America agenda is making our nation’s infrastructure safer, more convenient, and more resilient.
• Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm will travel to California and Washington state to highlight the President’s progress toward growing clean energy economy, creating good-paying jobs, and mobilizing billions of dollars of investments from the private sector. 
• Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough will travel to South Carolina for engagements to highlight President Biden’s work to advance the welfare of our nation’s veterans.
• Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan will travel to Texas and North Carolina to highlight critical investments to reduce climate pollution, advance environmental justice, and deploy clean energy solutions.
• Small Business Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman will travel to Michigan to highlight how President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is fueling a historic small business boom, creating good-paying jobs, and expanding opportunity for small business owners in underserved communities.
• White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Arati Prabhakar will travel to North Carolina to highlight how the President’s investments boost American competitiveness in industries of the future like biotechnology, advanced manufacturing, and artificial intelligence.
• White House Senior Advisor and Director of the Office of Public Engagement Steve Benjamin will travel to Pennsylvania to highlight how the President’s historic investments are making our airports safer, more accessible, and more enjoyable for travelers.
• White House Senior Advisor and Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs Tom Perez will travel to Arizona to highlight how the President’s investments are growing a clean energy economy, lowering costs for families, and closing the digital divide.

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Since Day One, the Biden-Harris Administration has championed an ambitious equity and racial justice agenda to ensure the full and fair participation of all communities in American life. Despite progress being made, entrenched disparities in our laws and public policies have often denied equal opportunity to historically underserved communities, including rural communities, communities of color, Tribal communities, LGBTQI+ individuals, religious minorities, people with disabilities, women and girls, and other communities impacted by persistent poverty. Redressing these opportunity gaps can drive stronger economic growth for all Americans. For example, research finds that the gaps in labor market opportunities for women and people of color cost the U.S. $2.6 trillion in foregone GDP in 2019; closing these gaps would increase economic output by an additional $3.1 trillion in 2029 alone. A report released this week from Brookings and MIT illustrated the success of these efforts – supporting economic comebacks in communities across the country.

Through the implementation of two historic Executive Orders on equity and the President’s landmark Investing in America Agenda and other key legislation, the Biden-Harris Administration is working to advance opportunity and make real the promise of America for everyone.

Today, marking the first anniversary of the signing of President Biden’s second Executive Order on equity, federal agencies, including all Cabinet-level agencies, are releasing their 2023 Equity Action Plans, which include over 100 community-informed strategies and actions to address systemic barriers in our Nation’s policies and programs. The Biden-Harris Administration also released a new White House Progress Report on Equity, which highlights examples of the more than 650 actions agencies have undertaken since the release of their 2022 Equity Action Plans. Agencies acted to increase access to federal contracting dollars, capital, and lending programs for small disadvantaged businesses; reduce discrimination in the housing market; advance environmental justice and invest in disadvantaged communities; address health disparities, including disparities in maternal health outcomes in communities of color; build economic prosperity in rural communities; promote equity and fairness in the justice system; support victims and survivors of gender-based violence; root out bias in the design and use of new technologies, such as artificial intelligence; and bolster civil rights enforcement.

“Since day one of our Administration, President Biden and I have been fully committed to ensuring that every person in America has equitable access to opportunity and the ability to thrive – whether that be supporting small businesses, forgiving $137 billion in student loan debt, investing billions of dollars in our Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Hispanic Serving Institutions, removing lead pipes, cutting prescription drug prices, and taking on the maternal health crisis with the urgency it demands,” said Vice President Kamala Harris. “As we mark the one-year anniversary of the second equity Executive Order, we celebrate the hundreds of government-wide equity accomplishments and recommit to addressing the barriers that remain. Together, we will continue to advance equity across the federal government, not only in hiring and appointments but in the historic investments we are making in communities that had been overlooked for far too long.”

Now more than ever, it is critical to reject the narrow, cramped view of American opportunity as a zero-sum game. When we lift each other up, we are all lifted up.  Across the Federal Government, agencies will take new actions to advance equity and justice for underserved communities, including by:

Addressing Inequity in Economic Opportunity

• Improving Financial Health of Underserved Businesses and Communities. Families build wealth by starting small businesses, yet many entrepreneurs who are veterans, women, or people of color still face discrimination by U.S. banks, are charged higher interest costs, and experience difficulties when trying to obtain the fair and affordable financing options needed to grow their businesses. Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs), such as banks and credit unions, serve as frontline financial supports to low- and moderate-income communities by providing loans, grants, and financial products to businesses and consumers who otherwise are unable to access capital and services through traditional banking institutions. The Department of the Treasury invested nearly $9 billion through investment through the Emergency Capital Investment Program that scales the capacity of these low- and moderate-income community financial institutions in providing loans, grants, and forbearance for businesses and consumers, especially in low-income and underserved communities. In addition, for the first time in 40 years, the Small Business Administration issued new Small Business Lending Company licenses for nonbank lenders to expand capital access to traditionally hard to reach small businesses. These actions will enable these critical institutions to better serve their local communities and ensure that all people have equal opportunity to prosper through business ownership.
   
• Ending Gender-based Workforce Discrimination. Women have persistently lower wages and fewer workplace benefits than men, with disparities that are even more pronounced for many women of color. The Department of Labor (DOL) will implement Good Jobs Principles aimed at improving wages in female dominated sectors and administer the Fostering Access, Rights, and Equity grant program for women impacted by gender-based violence and harassment in the workplace. DOL will also work to reduce caregiving penalties for women and low-paid workers by expanding and tailoring the National Database of Childcare Prices, key analytical tools to evaluate how childcare prices are linked with gender and racial inequality in the labor force.

Addressing Inequity in Housing and Community Investment

• Ending Discrimination in Home Appraisals. Every American deserves the opportunity to be a homeowner. But many Black and Brown families still face housing discrimination, like the indignity of removing family photos from their walls just to obtain a fair valuation when they put their home up for sale. One study by Freddie Mac found that 12.5% of appraisals for home purchases in majority-Black neighborhoods and 15.4% in majority-Latino neighborhoods resulted in a value below the contract price (the amount a buyer is willing to pay for the property), compared to only 7.4% of appraisals in predominantly white neighborhoods. To combat property appraisal bias, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) launched the PAVE Initiative. As part of the Equity Action Plan, HUD will partner with the National Association of Real Estate Brokers to tackle appraisal bias and discrimination in the housing market. The new collaboration will include online training for counselors, roundtable discussions on bias and discrimination, educational material distribution, and appraisal-related training—all aimed to promote fairness in the housing market.
   
• Expanding Safe, Accessible, Affordable Transportation. The Department of Transportation (DOT) estimates that at least 1 million people and businesses were displaced by decades of harmful urban renewal projects and legacy policy decisions in the buildout of the Federal highway system. From 1955 to 1977, the federal government selected land that cut through low-income communities and communities of color to build the Nation’s highway system – destroying once vibrant and affordable neighborhoods, exacerbating racial segregation, stifling economic mobility, widening disparities in health outcomes and furthering community isolation in areas with low access to jobs and institutions such as grocery stores and banks. DOT will redress these chronic disinvestments by implementing the Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhood Grants Program, a first-of-its-kind federal program funded through the President’s Investing in America agenda. Over $4 billion is available over five years through this program, with nearly $3.4 available in the latest round. In the first round of the program DOT awarded a total of $185 million to 45 projects through the Reconnecting Communities Program, aimed at restoring community connectivity through the removal, retrofit, mitigation, or replacement of eligible transportation infrastructure facilities. As these place-based construction projects begin to reach completion in 2024, they will cumulatively help combat transit-related burdens faced by 47% of the U.S. population who spend at least 15% of their annual income on transportation and the 8% of American households without access to vehicles.
  
  Addressing Inequity in Health
• Making Childbirth and the Postpartum Period Safer. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will improve maternal health outcomes to combat the maternal health crisis which disproportionally impacts Black women, Native women, and women in rural communities by addressing gaps in insurance coverage and disparities in the birthing care infrastructure. This includes expanding postpartum coverage through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program from 60 days to 12 months of continuous care, with the potential to reach an estimated 720,000 Americans annually who would be eligible for essential care for a full year after pregnancy if all states extended postpartum coverage. Data from Medicaid and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that more than one-half of pregnancy-related mortality occurs in the 12-month postpartum period and about one-third occurs between 7 and 365 days post-delivery. Additionally, pregnancy-related deaths are three to four times more common among Black or African American and American Indian/Alaska Native women than among white women.
• Combatting Child Food Insecurity. The Department of Agriculture (USDA) will help close the summer hunger gap for children eligible for free and reduced price school meals by implementing new summer nutrition options, including to-go or home-delivered summer meals in certain rural communities and a summer grocery benefit for children known as Summer EBT. For Summer EBT’s inaugural year this summer, 36 states, D.C., all five U.S. territories, and four Tribes launched the program in January 2024, which will serve close to 21 million children with a total of nearly $2.5 billion in grocery benefits. This is around 70% of the total population of children eligible for Summer EBT. USDA expects additional states and Tribes will provide Summer EBT in 2025. Rigorous evaluations of a multi-year demonstration project showed that summer grocery benefits decreased the number of kids with very low food security by about one-third and supported healthier diets featuring more fruits, vegetables and whole grains.
  
  Addressing Inequity through Environmental and Climate Justice
• Tackling Environmental Injustice. Every person in this country deserves to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and live in a healthy environment. However, for far too long, communities across our country – including many communities of color, Tribal communities, low-income communities, and people experiencing persistent poverty – have faced environmental injustices, such as bearing the brunt of toxic pollution, enduring underinvestment in infrastructure and critical services, and suffering disproportionate impacts from climate change. President Biden is advancing the most ambitious environmental justice agenda in history to address this, including signing a historic Executive Order that calls on the Federal Government to bring clean energy and healthy environments to all and mitigate harm to those who have suffered from toxic pollution and other environmental burdens like climate change; replacing lead pipes and taking action to protect communities from PFAS pollution; accelerating Superfund cleanups; tightening air quality enforcement near polluting facilities; and more. HUD’s Green and Resilient Retrofit Program, funded by the Inflation Reduction Act, has already awarded nearly $300 million in loans and grants to improve the homes of thousands of low- and moderate-income Americans through clean energy and climate resilience projects.
   
• Delivering on the Justice40 Initiative and Reducing Pollution. President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative set a goal to deliver 40% of the overall benefits of certain climate, clean air, clean water, and other federal investments to disadvantaged communities that have historically been left behind or overlooked. Over 500 programs across 19 federal agencies are being reimagined and transformed through the Justice40 Initiative to maximize benefits to disadvantaged communities such as cleaner air, good-paying jobs, and affordable clean energy. Key categories of federal investments included in the Justice40 Initiative are: climate change, clean energy and energy efficiency, clean transit, affordable and sustainable housing, training and workforce development, pollution remediation and reduction, and water and wastewater infrastructure. The President’s Inflation Reduction Act also makes historic investments in environmental justice for all, including the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) single largest investment in environmental justice in EPA history through the new competitive Community Change Grants program. The program will deliver $2 billion in Inflation Reduction Act funding to support new community-driven projects that deploy clean energy, strengthen climate resilience, and build capacity for communities to achieve a healthier, safer, and more prosperous future for all.
   
• Reforming Disaster Assistance Program to Help Survivors Recover Faster. Studies have found that people of color and low-income communities experience significant barriers to recovery following natural disasters. To improve the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Individual Assistance program to advance equity, FEMA will be simplifying processes, removing barriers, and increasing eligibility to reach more disaster survivors. FEMA will expand home repair assistance, allow for the re-opening of the applicant registration period when the President adds new counties to the major disaster declaration, and simplify the documentation requirements for continued temporary housing assistance.
   
• Today’s announcements build on actions the Biden-Harris Administration has taken to advance equity, as outlined in the new White House Progress Report on Equity. Below are examples of recent accomplishments included in the new Equity Action Plans. Explore the 2022 and 2023 Equity Action Plans at www.performance.gov/equity.
   
• Supporting Disadvantaged Farmers. USDA has helped more than 39,000 farmers and ranchers who were in financial distress retain their farms and continue farming. President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act allocated $3.1 billion for USDA to provide relief for distressed borrowers with certain direct and guaranteed loans, and to expedite assistance for those whose agricultural operations are at financial risk due to factors outside their control, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the law was signed in August 2022, USDA’s Farm Service Agency has provided over $2.1 billion and counting in immediate assistance (as of February 12, 2024).
   
• Ensuring Contracting Opportunities for Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs). The Department of Treasury awarded $1.2 billion in FY 2023 to SDBs, representing for the first almost 12% of eligible small business dollars available for Treasury contracts. In addition, Treasury awarded a total of over $2 billion to businesses of all sizes, including to Women-Owned Businesses and Minority-Owned Businesses. These steps further President Biden’s goal of ensuring 15% of federal contracts go to SDBs by 2025.
   
• Expanding Mental Health Support Services for Students. The Department of Education funded 264 grants with $1 billion in Bipartisan Safer Communities Act funds to more than 40 states to increase the supply of school-based mental health professionals under the School-Based Mental Health Services Grant and the Mental Health Services Professional Demonstration (MHSPD) Grant Program. At least 40 states used “high poverty” in their definition of high-needs school. The Department estimates these 5-year grants will result in an increase of 14,000 mental health professionals. In FY 2023, nearly 50% of the MHSPD grants include a partnership with Minority Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), or Tribal Colleges. Additionally, the Department aims to ensure that school districts serving historically underserved student groups, including students of color, students from low-income backgrounds, students who are English learners, students experiencing homelessness, and others have the resources they need to support learning recovery. This includes the allocation of $122 billion in ARP funds to school districts based on their level of poverty under Title I and the ARP’s Maintenance of Equity requirements to protect high poverty schools from reductions in State and local education funding.
   
• Expanding Care for Women Veterans. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has expanded breast cancer screenings and mammograms for veterans with potential toxic exposures and supported access to reproductive health services for veterans and VA beneficiaries. VA has also dramatically expanded one-on-one maternity care coordination for women veterans – the fastest growing cohort of veterans at VA. Women veterans are also enrolling in VA health care at higher rates under the PACT Act, and VA recently hosted its first Women Veterans Experience Action Center, helping more than 340 women veterans apply for the care and benefits they deserve.
   
• Fostering Community Development in Rural and Tribal Communities. The Department of the Interior’s (DOI) made $725 million in FY 2023 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Abandoned Mine Land grants available to eligible states and the Navajo Nation. The funding will provide good-paying jobs to coal communities and at the same time return legacy coal sites to productive uses, fostering community and economic development.  Additionally, DOI announced new regulations to improve implementation of the Buy Indian Act to promote economic development opportunities in Indian Country. The final rule was developed in consultation with Tribes and ultimately is working to eliminate barriers that inhibit Indian Economic Enterprises (IEEs) from competing on certain construction contracts and expanded IEEs’ ability to subcontract construction work consistent with other socio-economic set-aside programs.
   
• Using Rental Payment History to Advance Home Ownership. HUD has taken additional steps through the Office of Single-Family Housing (SFH) to support wealth-generation activities for prospective and current homeowners. Specifically, SFH expanded access to credit by incorporating a borrower’s positive rental payment history into the mortgage underwriting process. Using rental payment history promotes a more inclusive credit evaluation, which in turn can expand homeownership opportunities to first-time homebuyers. This guidance is expected to continue to expand homeownership opportunities for borrowers where a positive rental payment history can make a difference when combined with other assessment factors for determining eligibility for Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgage financing. HUD estimates this policy change will enable up to 5,500 borrowers per year to qualify for an FHA-insured loan.

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History will not look kindly on House Republicans for their blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship that has targeted an honorable public servant in order to play petty political games. Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas, a Cuban immigrant who came to the United States with his family as political refugees, has spent more than two decades serving America with integrity in a decorated career in law enforcement and public service.  From his time in the Justice Department as a U.S. Attorney to his service as Deputy Secretary and now Secretary of Homeland Security, he has upheld the rule of law faithfully and has demonstrated a deep commitment to the values that make our nation great. 

This impeachment already failed once on a bipartisan vote. Instead of staging political stunts like this, Republicans with genuine concerns about the border should want Congress to deliver more border resources and stronger border security. Sadly, the same Republicans pushing this baseless impeachment are rejecting bipartisan plans Secretary Mayorkas and others in my administration have worked hard on to strengthen border security at this very moment — reversing from years of their own demands to pass stronger border bills. Giving up on real solutions right when they are needed most in order to play politics is not what the American people expect from their leaders. Congress needs to act to give me, Secretary Mayorkas, and my administration the tools and resources needed to address the situation at the border. The House also needs to pass the Senate’s national security supplemental right away. We will continue pursuing real solutions to the challenges Americans face, and House Republicans have to decide whether to join us to solve the problem or keep playing politics with the border.

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Vice President Kamala Harris met today with His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan at the White House. The Vice President and the King discussed latest developments in Gaza and the Vice President thanked the King for providing vital humanitarian assistance to Gaza, including the eleven airdrops of medical supplies to the field hospital that Jordan has established in Gaza. The leaders also discussed the situation in Rafah. The Vice President reaffirmed the Biden-Harris Administration’s position that a military operation in Rafah should not proceed without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of and support for the more than one million people sheltering there. 

The Vice President and the King also discussed the importance of maintaining stability in the West Bank. The Vice President thanked the King for his continued leadership in addressing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  She reiterated the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to a two-state solution, and noted it is the best path to durable peace and security. She emphasized the Palestinians’ right to dignity, security and self-determination.

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On Tuesday, February 13, Lael Brainard, National Economic Advisor, and Tom Perez, Senior Advisor to the President and Director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, met with county elected officials to discuss how President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is spurring historic investments in clean energy and manufacturing in communities too often left behind and positioning them for an economic comeback. The meeting was held during the National Association of Counties Legislative Conference with participation from Administration officials, private sector executives, and non-profit leaders.

The meeting opened with remarks by White House leadership about the President’s focus on delivering for areas left behind by trickle-down economics and the importance of collaborating with local government when implementing economic policy. The Brookings Institution and Massachusetts Institute of Technology presented a new report that finds that a disproportionate share of recent investments in strategic sectors is going to economically distressed counties – delivering on the President’s commitment to ensuring no community is left out or behind. This report confirms similar findings by the U.S. Department of the Treasury on clean energy investments spurred by the Inflation Reduction Act.

County officials shared their on-the-ground experiences accessing federal programs and attracting private sector investment. Administration officials then spoke about the resources available to county officials, which can ease the costs of preparing industrial sites or delivering on projects. Private sector experts in advanced manufacturing offered expertise on how firms strategically consider different localities for investment, the role of financing, and how to approach site readiness. The session concluded by identifying potential resources available from the public, private, and non-profit sector for county officials to continue driving equitable economic growth in communities across the country.

Participants:

• Lael Brainard, Assistant to the President and National Economic Advisor
• Tom Perez, Senior Advisor to the President and Director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs
• Joelle Gamble, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of the White House National Economic Council
• Alex Jacquez, Special Assistant to the President for Economic Development and Industrial Strategy, National Economic Council
• Stephanie Sykes, Special Assistant to the President for the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs
• Cassandra Robertson, Director of Labor Policy, National Economic Council
• Matthew Chase, CEO and Executive Director, National Association of Counties
• Mark Ritacco, Chief Government Affairs Officer, National Association of Counties
• Michael Matthews, Legislative Director, National Association of Counties
• Alejandra Castillo, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development, Department of Commerce
• Jigar Shah, Director of the Loan Programs Office, Department of Energy
• Brian Anderson, Executive Director, Interagency Working Group on Coal and Power Plant Communities and Economic Revitalization

• Dan Hardcastle, Special Policy Advisor, Department of Housing and Urban Development
• County Executive Sara Innamorato, Alleghany County, Pennsylvania
• County Executive Ryan McMahon III, Onondaga County, New York
• Commissioner DeMont Davis, Clayton County, Georgia
• County Executive John Olszewski, Baltimore County, Maryland
• Hon. Manuel Ruiz, Supervisor, Santa Cruz County, Arizona
• Geoff Segal, Senior Vice President, Macquarie Group
• Chuck Whipple, Vice President and Director of Business Development, ECS Southeast
• Joe Parilla, Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution
• Dr. Raj Varadarajan, Senior Partner Emeritus at Boston Consulting Group
• Ann Lichter, Director, Resource Rural
• Lisa Hansmann, Senior Advisor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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Today’s report shows that wage growth has been the strongest of any economic recovery in 50 years. At a time when growth and employment remain strong, inflation declined by two thirds from its peak but we know there’s still work to do to lower costs.

That’s why I’m fighting to lower costs for middle class families—from the cost of insulin and other prescription drugs, to eliminating hidden junk fees that companies use to rip you off, to calling on corporations to pass savings on to consumers instead of hiding price increases by shrinking package sizes. I will continue standing in the way of Congressional Republicans who want to cut taxes for the wealthy and large corporations, raise costs for middle class families, and cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.

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This bipartisan supplemental agreement is critical to advancing America’s national security interests. It will allow the United States to continue our vital work, together with our allies and partners all around the world, to stand up for Ukraine’s freedom and support its ability to defend itself against Russia’s aggression. It will provide Israel with what it needs to protect its people against Hamas terrorists. Significantly, this agreement will provide life-saving humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian people, the vast majority of whom have nothing to do with Hamas. 

I applaud the bipartisan coalition of Senators who came together to advance this agreement, and I urge the House to move on this with urgency. We cannot afford to wait any longer. The costs of inaction are rising every day, especially in Ukraine. Already, we are seeing reports of Ukrainian troops running out of ammunition on the front lines as Russian forces continue to attack and Putin continues to dream of subjugating the Ukrainian people. There are those who say American leadership and our alliances and partnerships with countries around the world do not matter. They do. If we do not stand against tyrants who seek to conquer or carve up their neighbors’ territory, the consequences for America’s national security will be significant. Our allies and adversaries alike will take note. It is time for the House to take action and send this bipartisan legislation to my desk immediately so that I can sign it into law.

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When President Biden came into office, he vowed to lower health care costs for American families. By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, the President and Congressional Democrats finally allowed Medicare to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for seniors – while every single Republican in Congress voted to keep health care costs high, even for their own constituents.
 
Yesterday’s decision in the Western District of Texas is an important step in this Administration’s defense of the law.  Despite Big Pharma’s attempts to block prescription drug negotiation, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is moving forward with their critical work to negotiate for lower drug prices for the first ten drugs selected for the negotiation program. Millions of seniors take these drugs every year for conditions ranging from diabetes to heart disease, blood cancers, Crohn’s disease, and more – and some pay nearly $6,500 per year out of their own pockets for one drug alone.
 
Americans shouldn’t be forced to pay two to three times more for their prescription drugs than other developed nations. President Biden and this Administration will continue this essential work to lower health care costs for millions of seniors and their families.

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President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. met today with His Majesty King Abdullah II of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan at the White House. Both leaders acknowledged the 75 years of diplomatic relations between the United States and Jordan and the enduring partnership and friendship between our two countries. 

The President and King Abdullah II discussed the latest developments in Gaza and affirmed their commitment to work together to produce an enduring end to the crisis. Both remain committed to achieving a durable, lasting peace to include a two-state solution for the Palestinian people with Israel’s security guaranteed. Both President Biden and King Abdullah II reiterated their shared commitment to facilitating the increased, sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza. President Biden thanked His Majesty for Jordan’s critical leadership and partnership in this effort.

The President and King Abdullah II also discussed the importance of stability in the West Bank and in the region more broadly. The President underscored the importance of upholding the status quo at the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount, recognizing Jordan’s crucial role as the custodian of Muslim holy places in Jerusalem. Both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to working together to realize a more stable and prosperous future for the Middle East and its people, and President Biden confirmed unwavering U.S. support for Jordan and the Jordanian people. 

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Last week, the White House Office of Public Engagement convened over 100 Latino leaders for Dominican Day at the White House. This event consisted of a policy briefing for local and state officials and a reception to celebrate the Dominican-American culture.
 
During the briefing, participants discussed how the Biden-Harris Administration has advanced economic opportunity for the Latino community through their economic recovery agenda, including the American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the CHIPS and Science Act. The participants highlighted President Biden’s accomplishments for the Latino community, including growing economic opportunity, tackling student debt, expanding access to higher education, and efforts to enhance access to resources and funding for communities most at need. Biden-Harris Administration officials committed to continuing to work with community leaders to deliver on the President’s efforts to advance equity for the Latino community.
 
During the reception, guests were welcomed by the Second Gentleman who reiterated the Administration’s commitment to the Latino community and highlighted the importance of celebrating the diversity that makes up the fabric of our nation.
 
Administration Participants Included:

• Douglas Emhoff, Second Gentleman of the United States
• Tom Perez, Senior Advisor to the President and Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, White House
• Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón, United States Ambassador to Spain
• Alejandra Castillo, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development, U.S. Department of Commerce
• Elizabeth de Leon Bhargava, Assistant Secretary for Administration, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
• Johanny Adames, Press Secretary, Office of Communications and Outreach, U.S. Department of Education
• Sol Ortega, Senior Advisor for Public Engagement, White House Office of Public Engagement

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A majority of Americans support programs to lower energy bills and expand clean energy into homes

Through President Biden’s historic Investing in America agenda, the Biden-Harris Administration is cutting costs for hardworking American families in every corner of the country. One of the largest costs for many Americans is heating, cooling, and powering their homes—with the lowest-income families spending upwards of 30% of their income on energy bills.

The Inflation Reduction Act has already spurred a clean energy boom, contributing to more than $360 billion in private sector clean energy announcements since President Biden took office. Clean energy deployment from both the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is projected to cut electricity rates by as much as 9 percent by 2030. In addition, the Inflation Reduction Act establishes several consumer-focused programs through tax credits and rebates to help families lower their home energy bills even further.

A majority of Americans support these programs—according to an August 2023 poll, 65 percent of Americans support tax credits to install solar panels and 54 percent support tax credits to buy heat pumps. Yet Republicans in Congress continually fight to repeal these popular provisions, which would increase costs for hardworking Americans, offshore jobs, and worsen the climate crisis.

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is convening federal partners, nonprofits, and philanthropies at the White House to expand consumer education and outreach efforts as these programs become available across the country. The Biden-Harris Administration is making new federal resources about Inflation Reduction Act home energy programs available for consumers, local officials, and advocates. In addition, nonprofit organizations are announcing commitments to expand their outreach efforts.

Lowering Home Energy Costs Through the Inflation Reduction Act

The Inflation Reduction Act’s consumer tax credits for certain home energy technologies are already available. Americans who installed the following technologies in 2023 can claim credits on their tax returns due on April 15, 2024:

• Families who install an efficient electric heat pump for heating and cooling can receive a tax credit of up to $2,000 and save an average of $500 per year on energy bills.
• Families who make other energy efficiency improvements can receive tax credits worth up to $500 for doors, $600 for windows, $150 for a home energy audit, and up to 30 percent off the cost of new insulation—a total of up to $1,200 per year in tax credits.
• Families who install rooftop solar, geothermal or battery storage at home can save up to 30 percent of the cost of the installation via a tax credit and save nearly $400 per year on their energy bills.

In addition, DOE has opened applications for states to implement $8.8 billion in home energy rebate programs, which will provide rebates for low- and middle-income families to buy and install cost-saving electric appliances and heat pumps and to make energy efficiency improvements such as insulation and air sealing to their homes, in alignment with President Biden’s ambitious environmental justice goals. States are expected to begin launching their rebate programs later this year, and you can track your state’s progress toward setting up its rebate program here.

Additionally, the Biden-Harris administration has already made several online federal resources available to educate consumers about the Inflation Reduction Act’s home energy savings programs:

• This Friday, February 16, the Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program will launch a new Incentive Finder to help consumers determine which home energy products qualify for federal benefits, including Inflation Reduction Act programs.

• The Department of Energy’s Energy Savings Hub at energy.gov/save details opportunities for both homeowners and renters to lower their energy costs and benefit from the Inflation Reduction Act and other programs.

• Last week, the Treasury Department launched a new Inflation Reduction Act Tax Resource Hub at Treasury.gov/IRA that provides tools to assist consumers and other taxpayers in accessing key tax credits, while highlighting the impact of the law for America’s economy and communities.

Expanding Consumer Education and Outreach Efforts Around the Country

Today, several nonprofits are announcing new and expanded efforts to reach consumers across the country on the Inflation Reduction Act’s consumer home energy programs:

• Two state affiliates of League of Conservation Voters are expanding a successful door-to-door communications campaign to educate consumers on how to access the benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act with the goal of reaching 300,000 homes in those states. 

• Climate Power is committing to educate 1 million American consumers about accessing the benefits of President Biden’s clean energy plan by the end of 2024. They will reach American consumers on the communications channels where they’re spending most of their time consuming news and content—across paid, earned, and organic media channels—showcasing how consumers can take advantage of the clean energy plan to lower energy costs, benefit from good-paying jobs in their communities, and help to protect communities across the country from dangerous pollution.

• Civic Nation and its We The Action initiative are working to develop a national help center to increase consumer access to the Inflation Reduction Act’s clean energy incentives. This new effort would connect consumers with volunteer experts to help them navigate information on available incentives, product eligibility, taxpayer qualifications, and more. 

• National nonprofits SaverLife and Inclusiv are announcing the launch of Community Finance for Climate Action, a new philanthropically-supported collaborative to ensure that households living on low incomes are economically protected and fully included in the transition to a green economy by tracking the financial impacts of climate change on low-income families and advancing consumer lending solutions for clean energy equipment.

• Rewiring America—a national nonprofit working to make residential electrification possible for everyone—recently launched a Personal Electrification Planner that they project more than 200,000 households will use this year to plan their home upgrades, including 50,000 low- and moderate-income households. In addition, Rewiring America will leverage partnerships with industry, utilities, local governments, and community-based organizations to install heat pumps and other electric appliances in more than 1,000 low-income and disadvantaged community households in over 150 locations by summer 2025.

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President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. spoke this morning with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel. The President reaffirmed our shared goal to see Hamas defeated and to ensure the long-term security of Israel and its people.  The President and the Prime Minister discussed ongoing efforts to secure the release of all remaining hostages held by Hamas.  The President emphasized the need to capitalize on progress made in the negotiations to secure the release of all hostages as soon as possible. He also called for urgent and specific steps to increase the throughput and consistency of humanitarian assistance to innocent Palestinian civilians.  And he reaffirmed his view that a military operation in Rafah should not proceed without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of and support for the more than one million people sheltering there.  The two leaders agreed to remain in close contact.  
 

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Today, the Vice President and the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention (OGVP) hosted Community Violence Intervention leaders from across the country to recognize their efforts in reducing and preventing violence, and ultimately, saving lives. Community Violence Intervention programs are a key piece of the President’s Safer America Plan, with some behavioral science-informed CVI programs proven to reduce violence by close to 50%.

The event at the White House included a recognition of including a recognition of the inaugural graduating cohort of the University of Chicago Crime Lab’s Community Violence Intervention Leadership Academy (CVILA), which provides Community Violence Intervention (CVI) leaders with the skills and resources they need to improve their organizations and support their mission to prevent and reduce gun violence and save lives in communities disproportionately harmed by the direct and indirect consequences of gun violence. 

In recognizing the CVILA cohort, Vice President Harris remarked, “The brilliance of this inaugural class and its leaders is the ability to see what can be, unburdened by what has been, and then to make it real in a way that will be replicated around our country. I congratulate everyone here and the graduates for all you have put into this and all you do for your communities.

The Vice President’s full remarks can be viewed here: Community Violence Awareness Week Culminating Ceremony (youtube.com)

The Community Violence Awareness Week culminating ceremony followed a week of activity by the Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which kicked off its Community Violence Awareness Week with a message from the President to gun violence prevention stakeholders nationwide. 

Other events for the week included. 

• Tuesday: a virtual convening of Black leaders from across the nation to discuss the unique impacts of gun violence on the Black community and the significance of evidence-informed and community-centered initiatives to disrupt violence
• Wednesday: a virtual briefing with state legislators, local leaders, and gun violence advocates on the various community safety programs that are available through the Departments of Labor, Education, and Justice to support community violence intervention, ensuring all interested stakeholders have an opportunity to learn about the plethora of resources available to them thanks to President Biden’s American Rescue Plan (ARP) and the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), as well as other federal programs.
•  Thursday: Youth Violence Prevention AmeriCorps Site visit with OGVP Deputy Directors in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. 
• Friday: a national call with Black leaders to discuss the actions taken by OGVP and the President to reduce gun violence in Black communities. 

Biden-Harris Administration continues to make major investments in community violence intervention and other proven solutions to end the epidemic of gun violence. The American Rescue Plan (ARP) has provided over $15 billion to prevent crime and promote public safety, including community violence intervention programs and crisis responders, while Bipartisan Safer Community Act —the most significant gun safety legislation in the last 30 years—provides $250 million in funding for community-based violence prevention initiatives, in addition to key investments for schools to expand mental health services and violence intervention programs. 

We are already seeing the positive impacts of the President’s strategy to prevent and reduce crime and gun violence nationwide. According to 2023 FBI data, there has been a significant drop in crime – including one of the largest yearly declines in homicides ever. By comparison, during the final year of the prior administration in 2020, the United States saw the largest increase in murders ever recorded. We have also seen key provisions created by the BCSA begin to deliver results in making communities safer against gun violence, including recent announcements by the Department of Justice on stopping more than 500 illegal gun purchases by people under 21 years old who presented a danger to our communities, and hundreds of charges brought by the Justice Department for illegal gun purchases and firearms trafficking.

The President knows that more can and must be done, which is why OGVP, overseen by Vice President Kamala Harris, continues to implement BSCA and identify executive orders to save lives, while announcing new initiatives to encourage action at the state and local level. This past December, the Vice President convened 100 state legislators at the White House to launch the Biden-Harris Administration’s Safer States Initiative, providing states with additional tools and the support they need to reduce gun violence—and we have already seen states begin to answer the call and implement these critical measures. Last month, the Office of Gun Violence Prevention, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Justice, also announced new executive actions to help promote safe storage of firearms that implement President Biden’s Executive Order on promoting safe gun storage, which has been shown to dramatically reduce children’s risk of self-inflicted harm and unintentional shootings. These are just a few examples of the progress that is being made under the leadership of President Biden and Vice President Harris to protect our communities, schools and children, and end the epidemic of gun violence that is leaving empty seats at dinner tables across the country. 

The President continues to call on Congress to listen to the majority of Americans—and the majority of gunowners—who want to see more commonsense gun safety measures, such as universal background checks, a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, an end to the gun industry’s immunity from liability, and the passing of a national red flag law. As the President has said, this senseless violence is not normal and it is fully within our power to stop it.

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Sunday, February 11, 2024 marks the second anniversary of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy. Over the past two years, we have made historic progress in advancing an Indo-Pacific that is free and open, connected, prosperous, secure, and resilient. Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, the United States has never been in a stronger position in the Indo-Pacific.

In the two years since we have launched the Indo-Pacific Strategy, we have reinvested and revitalized our alliances and partnerships and taken them to new heights. We have deepened and elevated alliances with Japan, the Republic of Korea (ROK), Australia, the Philippines, and Thailand. We upgraded our bilateral relationships with Vietnam and Indonesia, and our partnership with ASEAN. We have expanded our partnership with India in unprecedented ways. We have surged our efforts in the Pacific, including with two historic summits for Pacific Island leaders at the White House and the establishment of the Partners of the Blue Pacific.

In addition, President Biden hosted the historic U.S.-Japan-ROK trilateral summit at Camp David to open a new chapter in this important partnership. Under President Biden’s leadership, we have elevated the Quad with Australia, India, and Japan to a leader-level summit and have delivered concrete results for the Indo-Pacific region, from vaccines to maritime domain awareness to scholarships for students.  And three of the four Official State Visits President Biden has hosted were with leaders of Indo-Pacific countries: the Republic of Korea, India, and Australia. This year, the President will welcome Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan. We have also undertaken historic cooperation between the United States, Japan, and the Philippines. 

We have also built closer ties between Europe and the Indo-Pacific, including through the launch of AUKUS, a historic partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Today, we see a recognition both in Europe and the Indo-Pacific that the opportunities and challenges in one region directly affect the other. We’ve seen that with historic support from some of our Indo-Pacific partners for Ukraine as it defends itself against Russia’s brutal invasion. And we see that recognition from our European partners as we work to address the direct military support from the DPRK to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

After just two years, our execution of the Indo-Pacific Strategy has made our country and the Indo-Pacific region more secure and more prosperous. All of this strengthens the United States’ position in the Indo-Pacific, and advances our interests in and vision for the region amidst strategic competition with the People’s Republic of China. And even as we confront challenges elsewhere, the United States will proudly continue to prioritize our work in this critical region for our future. 

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Fact Sheets from Interagency Partners:

• Department of State: The United States’ Enduring Commitment to the Indo-Pacific: Marking Two Years Since the Release of the Administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy
• Department of Defense: FACT SHEET: Department of Defense Marks Two-Year Anniversary of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy
• Department of Commerce: Two Years of Indo-Pacific Strategic Results: Strengthening Indo-Pacific Commerce for a Prosperous Future
• U.S. Trade and Development Agency: FACT SHEET: USTDA Support for the Indo-Pacific Strategy

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President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. welcomed Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany to the White House today to continue their close coordination on shared priorities.  President Biden and Chancellor Scholz reaffirmed their resolute support for Ukraine in its struggle against Russia’s war of aggression.  The President commended Germany’s exemplary contributions to Ukraine’s self-defense, and Chancellor Scholz emphasized the significance of sustained U.S. support.  The leaders discussed efforts to prevent regional escalation in the Middle East, and reaffirmed their commitment to Israel’s right to self-defense consistent with international law.  They also underscored the imperative to protect civilians in Gaza and increase deliveries of life-saving humanitarian assistance.  The two exchanged views on setting the conditions for a durable peace for Israelis and Palestinians alike, which includes the establishment of a Palestinian state with Israel’s security guaranteed.  President Biden and Chancellor Scholz discussed the upcoming NATO Summit in Washington and pointed to the strength of the transatlantic relationship in facing current geopolitical challenges.

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Over the past few weeks, the NSC has been coordinating U.S. Government support for the people of Ecuador in the wake of increased violence.  This week, Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) Todd D. Robinson led a joint Department of State and Department of Justice delegation to Ecuador to highlight the United States’ continued commitment to supporting Ecuador in its fight against transnational criminal organizations.  Assistant Secretary Robinson announced INL funding for the construction of the Ecuadorian Coast Guard Academy, a renovated canine veterinary clinic, a renovated office for the corruption prosecution unit, and eight mobile border units to support an elite border task force.  He also helped launch a joint National Police-Coast Guard operational unit in Guayaquil, which will increase information sharing and operational coordination on Ecuador’s waterways.  Assistant Secretary Robinson’s visit to Ecuador reflects the United States’ enduring continued commitment to support Ecuador’s security and prosperity. 

In addition, we have surged our law enforcement and defense support for Ecuadorian Forces.  The Department of Homeland Security is actively providing digital forensics support to identify, map, and target criminal networks; has sent a team to train 175 Ecuador migration officers on the use of biometrics collection; and trained 35 members from the Ecuadorian Presidential and Vice-Presidential protective details.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) increased its personnel in-country following the recent rise in violence. Meanwhile, Department of Justice attorneys, as well as agents from the FBI and Drug Enforcement Agency, continue to support Ecuador’s investigations into recent political and gang violence.  The Department of Defense has also committed to delivering a C-130H military plane to the Ecuadorians by the end of March 2024.  This support builds on the facilitated delivery of more than 20,000 bullet proof vests and more than $1 million worth of critical security and emergency response equipment, announced in January.

Earlier this week, Treasury also designated one of Ecuador’s most violent gangs, Los Choneros, and its leader, José Adolfo Macías Villamar, pursuant to its counter narcotic authorities – a response to the steep rise in violence in Ecuador attributed to the actions of Los Choneros and other drug trafficking gangs in the country. 

Looking forward, the United States is investing in a $45 million program to reduce childhood malnutrition, increase access to clean drinking water, and improve sanitation; providing $13 million in equipment to protect the Ecuadorian Ministry of Defense computer networks; and $2.4 million in additional vehicles and security equipment to support the work of police in Ecuador.

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WASHINGTON – Today, President Joe Biden announced Willie L. Phillips, Jr. as Chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). FERC is an independent agency that regulates the interstate transmission of natural gas, oil, electricity, and other energy projects. As the Biden Administration works to tackle the climate crisis, advance environmental justice, and create a clean electricity grid by 2035, FERC will maintain an important role in spurring access to reliable, affordable carbon-free energy moving across the country.

Willie L. Phillips Jr., Chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Willie L. Phillips has served as a FERC Commissioner since November 17, 2021 and as Acting Chair since January 3, 2023. Willie is an experienced regulatory attorney combining over 20 years of legal expertise as a utility regulator, in private practice, and as in-house counsel. He has an extensive background in the areas of public utility regulation, bulk power system reliability, and corporate governance. As Chairman of the Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia, Willie was a thoughtful and innovative leader in modernizing the energy grid, implementing the District’s aggressive clean energy and climate goals, and in protecting the District’s customers.

Prior to the DCPSC, Willie served as Assistant General Counsel for the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), a not-for-profit international regulatory authority charged with ensuring the security and reliability of the bulk power system in Washington, D.C.; he also worked for two law firms, where he advised clients on regulatory compliance, litigation, and policy matters. Chairman Phillips is an active member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) where he served on the NARUC Board of Directors and chaired the Select Committee on Regulatory and Industry Diversity. He earned a Juris Doctor from Howard University School of Law and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Montevallo.

 
 
 

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