{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://veasey.house.gov/media-center/veasey-updates/marcs-memo-congressional-update-12132013", "Marc's Memo - Congressional Update 12/13/2013", "2013-12-13", "2013", "2013-12", "Democrat", "House", "TX", "Marc Veasey", "V000131", "veasey.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Dear Friends,\nAs we adjourn until January 2014, I would like to share with you several updates from my work week in Washington D.C. and Texas\u2019 33rd congressional district. This year, my Democratic colleagues and I came to the House ready to pass bipartisan solutions to the big problems facing the American people, but were met with all too frequent partisan bickering and Congressionally-created fiscal crises. \u00a0\nLast night, Congress took a step away from the brinkmanship of recent years to pass a budget agreement. This budget bill is far from perfect, but the agreement is better than the alternative and is a step towards doing what the American people expect us to do, \u00a0putting America on a fiscally sustainable path in the New Year.\nWhile we accomplished a lot during our last week in session, Republican leadership left Washington without bringing a long to-do list of critical legislation to a vote, with no action on jobs, a farm bill with nutrition funding, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, unemployment insurance benefits, or immigration reform.\u00a0\nI am still optimistic that when we return on January 6th, my colleagues will come ready to get to work on the issues important to the American people.\nIn the meantime, I hope that you are enjoying the start of the holiday season and hope that you will stay connected with me through my official website, Facebook page, and Twitter account to stay informed of our progress.\nSincerely,\n\t\tCongressman Marc Veasey, TX-33  \n\t\u00a0\nSAVE THE DATE: Job Fair Rescheduled for January 24th due to Winter Weather\nDue to winter weather, our 33rd Congressional District Job Fair has been rescheduled for Friday, January 24, 2014 at 8:30 AM \u2013 12:00 PM at the Tarrant County Resource Connection Conference Center, 2300 Circle Drive, Fort Worth, TX 76119. \nMark your calendars for this important event as you will have the opportunity to meet dozens of potential employers. From AT&T to the Dallas Police Department, there are companies, businesses, city and government agencies that have vacancies in every field of employment. You will have the opportunity to apply for jobs on-site, network with local employers, and attend professional workshops on topics such as networking and resume writing to jumpstart your career. This event is FREE and open to the public. \nFor more information on the Job Fair, please check my official website or call the Fort Worth Office at 817-920-9086.\nCongress on Your Corner Set for January 4th \nEvery month I host a \u201cCongress On Your Corner\u201d (COYC) at local businesses in the Metroplex where I answer your questions about how I am representing you in Washington.\u00a0 \nJoin me on Saturday, January 4th at the Kroger located at 515 S. MacArthur Boulevard Irving, Texas and voice your concerns.\nIt is an honor to be a friend and advocate for the people of the 33rd District and I appreciate so many of you taking the time to come meet me this year. Looking forward to hearing from a few more folks in 2014!\nStay tuned for upcoming \u201cCongress On Your Corner\u201d events and other events in the 33rd District.\nRep. Veasey Calls for Extension of Unemployment Benefits\nEarlier this week, I joined 166 of my colleagues to call on Speaker Boehner to extend the federal unemployment benefits program that will expire on December 28, 2013. The Federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation program protects over 1.3 million unemployed Americans and provides benefits for approximately 68,900 Texans. Congress has reauthorized the program 11 times since it was first enacted in 2008 and I will continue to push for reauthorization until it is accomplished.\nFor more information on this vital program and for a state by state analysis of how the Federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation impacts Americans, connect with me on my official website. \nCongressman Veasey Urges Colleagues to Work on Issues that Affect Middle-Class Families\nOn Wednesday, December 11, 2013, I took to the House floor to urge my colleagues to work on increasing the minimum wage, reauthorizing the Federal Emergency Unemployment Benefits program, and any issue that affects middle-class families in Texas and across the nation.\n\u00a0 \n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Click here to watch the video.\nTemporary Farm Bill Extension Does Not \u201cExtend Assistance\u201d for SNAP Recipients\n\u00a0\nDuring my first year in Congress, I have fought tirelessly for the millions of Texans who depend on SNAP benefits.\nAccording to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, 3.5 million Texas residents receive SNAP benefits. A reduction to these benefits hit Metroplex households with children, seniors, and people with disabilities the hardest.\nEarlier this year we saw several attempts to cut SNAP funding by as much as 18 percent, potentially increasing hunger and undermining the health of millions of Americans.\u00a0 For this reason, I joined 88 of my colleagues in a letter calling on the Budget Conference Committee to protect SNAP at the higher level that was designated in the Senate budget agreement.\n\u00a0\nOn Thursday, December 12, 2013, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3695, the Temporary Farm Bill Extension, by a voice vote. This bill would ensure that many of the Farm Bill provisions remain intact as negotiations continue on formulating a concrete 5-year reauthorization of the Farm Bill. Download my Farm Bill/SNAP Fact Sheet to learn more about my efforts to protect food security.\nPassage of the FY 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)\nThe National Defense Authorization Act passed by the House last night is an important piece of legislation that supports our troops and all those who defend our nation. This bill also took the first steps toward addressing the crisis of sexual assault in our military. This is a serious issue that must be urgently addressed, and while I believe more could be done, this bill advances our effort. I was proud to support it and hope the Senate passes it quickly.\nCongressman Veasey Congratulates Proyecto Inmigrante\nLast week, I took to the House floor to congratulate Proyecto Inmigrante, ICS Inc. on their 8 years of service. Proyecto Inmigrante is an important non-profit organization that provides our community with free legal services for immigrants, protecting a vulnerable immigrant community from fraud and abuse. Organizations like Proyecto Inmigrante are vital to our community as we continue to work on Comprehensive Immigration Reform. I look forward to celebrating many more anniversaries with Proyecto Inmigrante.\u00a0 \n\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \n\t\t\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Click here to watch the video. \nClick here to view in your browser.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://veasey.house.gov/media-center/veasey-updates/marcs-memo-congressional-update-12132013"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5722049865871668, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}