Joe Neguse: We've accomplished much for CD 2 in 2 years but work is far from finished
During the past two years, our community has faced many challenges — a pandemic, attacks on our democracy, the unprecedented Cameron Peak Fire and more. And yet, every time our community has been tested, we’ve risen to the occasion, demonstrating the incredible resiliency, innovative spirit, and kindness that Coloradans are so well known for. As your representative in the U.S. Congress, I’ve been honored to serve our community at such a critical time and to work together — with each of you — to overcome these obstacles.
Since 2019, I’ve had the privilege of representing Larimer County in the House, where I’ve worked hard to deliver for our community. As political polarization has become more pervasive, we’ve tried a different approach — to work collaboratively, listen to those with whom we may disagree, and find common ground. Whether it is as the founder and co-chair of the Bipartisan Wildfire Caucus or through our nationally recognized “Service Town-Halls'' that we’ve hosted in Fort Collins and Estes Park, I’ve worked to bring together folks from across the political spectrum to build consensus and solve problems. It’s why our office was identified by the Center for Effective Lawmaking as one of the top 10 most effective Democrats in the House — and the most effective on public lands in the entire Congress. The 18 bills we’ve had signed into law — expanding opportunities for small businesses, supporting our public schools, addressing supply chain challenges and more — reflect my commitment to working collaboratively and listening to everyone, as we work to address the defining challenges of our time.
And we’ve made important progress on that front, from the passage of the most significant climate action legislation in our country’s history, which I helped shape as a member of House leadership, to our recovery work after the Cameron Peak Fire and leadership on securing resources for wildfire mitigation and drought resiliency for Colorado. Likewise, I’m proud of the progress we’ve made in enacting common-sense gun violence prevention measures, which I’ve championed as vice chair of the House’s Gun Violence Prevention Task Force.
Our work, however, is far from finished. We must do more to improve our infrastructure, keep our community safe, and lower costs for Coloradans. In Congress, I was proud to play a key leadership role in the passage of the bipartisan infrastructure bill and successfully secure millions of dollars for local infrastructure projects here in Larimer County (including for northern Interstate 25). I was also proud to support a comprehensive public safety package that would deliver new federal resources to build safer communities and to lead a bipartisan effort to provide schools with the resources to tackle the fentanyl epidemic. While we’ve made progress on our work to reduce prescription drug prices through the Inflation Reduction Act, we must do far more to reduce inflation, including through supply chain improvements and regulatory reforms I’ve championed at the federal level.
And finally, we must also continue our effort to tackle the threat of climate change. As chair of the House Subcommittee on Public Lands, I helped lead the effort to designate Camp Hale — Continental Divide as America’s newest national monument. As a member of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, I’ll keep working to secure more investments in renewable energy and resources for the incredible scientific research being done here locally at Colorado State University and our federal labs.
In sum, it has been such a privilege to serve Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District, and if given the opportunity, I would be honored to continue representing our community so we can keep working — together — on building a more hopeful future.
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This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Joe Neguse: Work in 2nd Congressional District is far from done
