ENGEL STATEMENT ON PASSAGE OF H.R. 1 IN THE HOUSE

03/08/19

Engel Statement on Passage of H.R. 1 in the House

Includes Provisions from Engel Constitutional Amendment

Washington D.C.— Congressman Eliot Engel today issued the following statement on House passage of H.R.1:

“Following our victory last November, Democrats knew one of the first things we had to do in the House was restore the public faith. Under the GOP, our Constitutional duties were abdicated, outside interests ran roughshod, voting rights were under constant attack, and policy was seemingly passed to better corporations, not people. In order to preserve and strengthen our democracy, this culture of corruption had to quickly be rooted out. Thus we introduced H.R. 1, the For the People Act, an historic reform package aimed at restoring power to the people. I was proud to be an original cosponsor of this bill, and its passage today will hopefully serve as a watershed moment for our country.

“Clearly, our political system is not meeting the needs of the American people. Too many view themselves as shutout of the process, or have been discouraged by the millions of dollars of corporate interest money flooding our system. Far too many people still face barriers to participation, especially in the wake of the Shelby v. Holder Supreme Court case.

“H.R. 1 will help usher our democracy into a new, more transparent era. Several years ago, I introduced a Constitutional Amendment to reform our electoral system, get big money out of politics, and expand voting rights for every American. Many of the concepts in my Amendment were included in H.R. 1. This legislation heightens disclosure requirements for big money contributors and special interest, combats institutional barriers to voting, creates nationwide automatic voter registration, prohibits voter roll purges, and ends partisan gerrymandering. It also strengthens our ethics laws, ends taxpayer-settled harassment lawsuits in Congress, and requires sitting Presidents and Vice Presidents, as well as candidates for President and Vice President, to make their tax returns public.

“House Democrats are committed to working for the people and advancing H.R. 1 is a strong demonstration of that commitment. I’m grateful for the opportunity to help protect our democracy today by voting to pass this legislation.”

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