releases: https://bera.house.gov/media-center/amis-updates/email-update-serving-you-in-2017
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| https://bera.house.gov/media-center/amis-updates/email-update-serving-you-in-2017 | Email update: Serving you in 2017 | 2017-12-29 | 2017 | 2017-12 | Democrat | House | CA | Ami Bera | B001287 | bera.house.gov | legacy | I sent an email update earlier in December to give an update on how my office has been servin you in 2017. Join my email updates now so you don't miss any others in the future! Friend As 2017 comes to a close, I wanted to send an update on how my office has been Making Government Work for Sacramento County. My office has long prioritized helping you however we can by cutting through bureaucratic red tape. We can assist with backlogged veterans benefits, Social Security and Medicare issues, stalled tax refunds, and more. Im pleased to share that as of this December,weve helped more than 9,000 Sacramento County residentswith these issues andreturned more than $4.6 million dollarsowed to local taxpayers. Ive been honored to be able to help so many local residents. Here are some of their stories. If you need help, please feel free to call us at (916) 635-0505 or visit bera.house.gov/gethelp to learn more. Meet Courtney: A Local Mother Who Needed to Attend Her Grandmothers Funeral Courtney lives in Folsom with her young family and came to my office looking for help. Courtneys grandmother had sadly passed away in Canada and she wanted to take her infant daughter along to attend the funeral. She had earlier applied for new passports, but now she needed them much more quickly to go on her trip and she was concerned they wouldnt arrive in time. Needless to say, it was an emotional time for her family. After hearing Courtneys story, my office got right to work. We followed up with the State Department and learned a mistake was made processing Courtneys request. We worked with the State Department to expedite Courtneys case and she received her passports just two days later. She and her family were able to make the trip and pay their respects to her grandmother. My staff is here to help constituents in their time of need, and I am glad we could help Courtney and her family. Meet Sal: A Vietnam War Veteran Undergoing Cancer Treatment Sal circa 1970-1971, while serving in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam. Sal is a Carmichael native and an Army veteran who served during the Vietnam War. Sal was diagnosed with prostate cancer related to his exposure to Agent Orange. He decided to use his Department of Veterans Affairs benefits to pay for his medicine and started responding positively to treatment. Unfortunately, Sal later received tests that his cancer had returned. It was a very stressful time for Sal and his finances. During this second treatment period, the VA had not yet provided Sal with his back-pay benefits, adding to his stress. As the bills mounted, Sal contacted my office to help with his VA disability claim we got right to work. It turned out that while Sal was approved for his back-pay, the VA had never actually sent his benefits. My office contacted the VA about expediting Sals benefits and the situation was resolved within a month. As a doctor who has helped care for veterans, I know how much our vets sacrifice for our country its critical we are there to support these heroes. Meet Steve: A local doctor who was owed thousands by the IRS Steve lives in Sacramento with his family and cares for people throughout our region as a doctor. This year Steve filed his taxes in March, well ahead of the filing deadline. He was owed a substantial tax refund, so he waited to hear back from the IRS. ButSteve was stonewalled by bureaucratic red tape. The IRS told him they wouldnt process his tax return until he provided a proof of identity, multiple past tax returns, and even more supporting documents on his claim. The IRS also told him that he had to come to the regional IRS building for an in-person interview. Steve is regularly called into surgery on short notice to help patients and couldnt take a day off. That was when Steve contacted my office, and my staff got to work. We followed up with the IRS and were able to help resolve the situation and send Steve his refund. As a doctor, Steve serves our community in many ways. We need to make sure that government is working for all taxpayers so that everyone can get ahead. Were here to help local families however we can. If you need help, please call us at (916) 635-0505 or visit bera.house.gov/gethelp. Be well, Ami Bera, M.D. Member of Congress | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |