Friends,

After a hectic and frustrating week in Washington, Congress was able to come together on Saturday afternoon to pass a bill that prevents a shutdown by fully funding our government until November 17, 2023.

$4 of every $10 dollars in the Hampton Roads economy is federal; a shutdown would have disastrous effects on Southeast Virginia and our nation as a whole. However, it's important to note that Saturday's bill was the second time I voted to keep the government open - I also voted for a temporary funding bill on Friday that would've prevented the shutdown while also implementing spending cuts to all non-defense and veterans funding. While I did not agree 100% with either of these bills, I knew that Southeast Virginia could not afford for me to let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

As someone who worked tirelessly to find a pragmatic solution to keep the government open, I am committed to moving Congress away from its reliance on stopgap funding bills and ensuring we put in the hard work required to properly pass all 12 bills that appropriate the federal budget. I'm pleased to report that our House majority has formally outlined a plan to vote on the rest of the bills required to fund the government for the rest of the fiscal year over the next several weeks.

To date, the House has passed 4/12 funding bills, while the Senate has yet to pass 1. I’m confident that over the next 42 days, we'll be able to pass our 8 remaining funding bills, make commonsense spending cuts, preserve our national defense, secure our border, and put our economy back on the right track. I strongly urge my colleagues in the Senate to follow suit.

Click on the video below to hear more from me about Saturday's vote:

I'm glad Congress was able to fund the government, albeit temporarily, and did not need to pass my Pay Our Troops Act. This legislation would have ensured that our servicemembers - as well as certain DoD contractors and civilians - wouldn't miss a paycheck in the event of a shutdown.

I am incredibly thankful for the wide range of support my bipartisan legislation received. In total, it earned over 100 cosponsors from both sides of the aisle, as well as the endorsement of of the National Defense Committee, Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Association of the United States Army, United States Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officers Association, Blue Star Families, Military Officers Association of America, Fleet Reserve Association, and National Military Family Association. On Thursday, I spoke on the House Floor about the importance of serving those who serve us. You can watch my remarks by clicking on the video below:

Protecting our Commonwealth's Coasts

Last week, I announced the introduction of my Bolstering Ecosystems Against Coastal Harm (BEACH) Act, which will protect coastal Virginia by approving new, expanded maps under the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (CBRA). On Thursday, I had the opportunity to hear testimony about the benefits of my bill from a number of witnesses, including Dr. Christopher Hein from our Commonwealth's own Virginia Institute of Marine Science in Gloucester Point!

You can watch their testimony below:

Signed into law by President Ronald Reagan in 1982, CBRA uses a free-market approach to coastal conservation: banning most federal tax dollars for development and rebuilding on storm prone, ecologically sensitive coastal areas, which helps conserve them as wildlife habitat and essential buffers against storms and flooding for coastal communities. Importantly, CBRA does not prohibit or regulate development by state and local governments, but simply removes the federal taxpayer from funding coastal development in the CBRA system.

By expanding the CBRA maps in our Commonwealth, we'll be able to preserve more of our shores, boost our economy, and protect the coast and coastal waterways we call home!

It's Service Academy Night!

If you have a student interested in attending one of our nation's amazing service academies, please join my office TONIGHT for a service academy information night at Virginia Wesleyan University! This event is open to all high school students and their families.

My Office has the honor of nominating qualified VA-02 high school students for appointment to four of the five U.S. service academies: U.S. Military Academy (USMA), West Point, NY; the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA), Annapolis, MD; the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA), Colorado Springs, CO; and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), Kings Point, NY. The fifth service academy, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, does not require a Congressional nomination. The review, interview, and selection process is conducted by an independent committee comprised of representatives from all branches of the military.

The honor of attending a service academy comes with the obligation and commitment to serve in the military for a minimum of five years upon graduation.

The information session will include an overview of academy life, instructions on how to work with my office throughout the nomination process, as well as an opportunity for students to meet with academy representatives and discuss requirements for admission. I hope to see you there!

Addressing the Migrant Crisis

Since President Biden took office, more than 6 million illegal immigrants have crossed our southern border. Though our Commonwealth is not on - or near - the southern border, there isn't a single part of our country that hasn't been affected by this crisis. New York City has received more than 100,000 immigrants since March of 2022; now, Mayor Eric Adams and Governor Kathy Hochul are publicly stating the city is at a breaking point.

Recently, the city began using Floyd Bennett Field - a federal land formally known as the National Park Service (NPS) Gateway National Recreation Area - to house the influx of migrants. This area - which normally provides kayaking, fishing, and outdoor recreation to NYC residents - has been transformed into a sea of temporary housing. Several weeks ago, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman and several of my other colleagues tried to tour the facility several weeks ago, they were denied entry. This is unacceptable.

On Wednesday, our Committee held a hearing with local officials from both New York City and Washington, DC to discuss the consequences of the worsening border crisis. Unfortunately, the witnesses we invited from the Biden Administration failed to show up. We cannot solve the crisis at our southern border if public officials still refuse to acknowledge there is one. You can watch my reaction and line of questioning by clicking on the video below:

Seeking Accountability & Improving Quality of Life

Recently, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released an extremely troubling report detailing the abhorrent conditions at several military barracks around the country. On Wednesday, our House Armed Services Committee Recruitment, Retention, and Quality of Life Task Force hosted a panel of several GAO witnesses to elaborate on their findings and make recommendations on how we can improve our servicemembers living conditions.

You can watch my testimony and questioning by clicking on the video below:

While the locations of the barracks detailed in the reports have been kept anonymous, I've unfortunately seen many of the same issues on bases in Southeast Virginia. As a Navy veteran, spouse, and mother, it breaks my heart to think of our young servicemembers - including my children - living in this type of envirionment. It's clear we have a lot of work to do to provide our men and women in uniform with the resources they deserve and allow them to complete their mission.

Quality of life is also a big driver of recruitment and retention, and part of the reason those rates are at all such dismal lows is the lack of care we've shown these areas for decades. I will always be a loud advocate for improving our military's quality of life, whether that be housing, mental health, spousal employment, or any other area that matters to our troops.

Following our hearing, I joined WTKR to discuss what I heard, as well as some of my own expereinces. You can watch that interview by clicking here.

Medal of Honor Recipient of the Week

This week, I want to honor Medal of Honor recipient Captain Albert Harold Rooks (Medal of Honor action date: February 4-27th,1942). 

Rooks entered the Naval Academy as a midshipman on July 13th, 1910, and would graduate June 6th, 1914. Over the next several years and into the first World War, he served on several ships, including the USS West Virginia and the USS St. Louis, along with commanding four different submarines.

Rooks served on multiple ships after World War I. In 1941, he took command of the heavy cruiser USS Houston, the flagship of the Asiatic Fleet. He would captain the USS Houston through difficult months in the fight against the Japanese onslaught in Southeast Asia.

From February 4^th through 27^th of 1942, the Houston would face attacks from the Japanese enemy aerial and surface forces. Rooks and the crew would be heavily attacked by bombers, evading four attacks, but hit during a fifth. 60 sailors were killed in the battle, but Rooks was able to make his ship seaworthy again to continue escorting a convoy to the East Indies. While on escort, the Houston suffered another air attack but were able to overcome the Japanese onslaught. 

Later in the Battle of Sunda Strait, while engaging with an overwhelming force of Japanese surface ships, the Houston and the H.M.S. Exeter came under heavy attack. Although heavily damaged, Capt. Rooks succeeded in disengaging his ship when the flag officer commanding broke off from the fight and got her safely away from the vicinity. During this battle nearly one-half of the cruisers were lost. Both the Houston and her commanding officer were lost on March 1st, 1942. 

Captain Albert Rooks was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on June 24th, 1943. The award was presented to his widow and son at the White House Oval Office. In 1944, the destroyer USS Rooks was named in honor of Captain Rooks. Rooks was born on December 29th, 1891 in Colton, Washington and died on March 1st, 1942. He is buried at sea, and is noted at the Wall of the Missing in Manila, Philippine Islands.

Five Fast Facts About Virginia!

1. The Civil War came to a close with the surrender of General Robert E. Lee in Appomattox County, Virginia. 
2. The state of Virginia has 132 miles of coastline on the Atlantic Ocean, which is small compared to the 10,120 miles of shoreline within the state. 
3. The highest peak in the state of Virginia is Mount Rogers, at 5,729 feet.
4. George Washington’s Mount Vernon was actually acquired through a land grant from King Charles II, originally given to Washington’s great-grandfather. 
5. Virginia is the birthplace of more presidents than any other state in the Union. 

I am back in DC this week as we had to cancel a two week district work period in order to schedule votes on our remaining government funding bills. As always, please don't hesitate to contact my DC Office at (202) 225-4215 or my Virginia Beach District Office at (757) 364-7650 with questions, concerns, or if you require assistance with a federal agency. And don't forget - if you’d like to stay up to date with what I’m working on, check out my website and follow my Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages (linked below) to stay up to date!

Take care,

Jen A. Kiggans

Congresswoman, Virginia's Second District