To the Editor:
President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats have passed recent legislation that voters should keep in mind as Election Day nears.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will, among other things, expand access to clean drinking water and provide grants for water infrastructure improvement. The bill also provides for the removal of lead pipes from the drinking water system.

As an engineer, Congressman Paul Tonko speaks in great detail and with clarity about the need to update and upgrade our local water infrastructure. The recent water situation in Jackson, Mississippi alone should serve as a warning to all of us.

Just to recap in the simplest terms, flooding in the state capital disrupted operations at a water treatment plant, leaving thousands without clean water. The impact of climate change on the Jackson situation of course cannot be emphasized enough.

However, we must also examine whether our water infrastructure can meet our needs in any type of emergency situation and whether or not our water infrastructure is subject to the same types of failures as, say, the electrical grid in Texas.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, on which virtually all Republicans voted “Nay,” will help to update our vital water infrastructure system and ensure access to clean drinking water. Again, virtually all Republicans (including Congresswoman Elise Stefanik) voted against funding to upgrade our water infrastructure.

One of the most impactful aspects of the Inflation Reduction Act is that it will allow the United States government to negotiate the prices of some medicines on behalf of seniors on Medicare beginning in 2026. The bill also caps these seniors’ annual out-of-pocket prescription expenses at $2,000 a year beginning in 2025 and limits insulin co-payments to $35 starting in 2023 for Medicare patients.

Not a single House Republican voted for this bill, and Congressman Steve Scalise said that Republicans will introduce legislation to reverse the Inflation Reduction Act. This merits emphasis: Republicans will seek to rescind legislation that caps seniors’ out-of-pocket prescription expenses and that limits co-payments on insulin.

President Biden signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022 in June. This bill, which relates to firearms and mental-health treatment, expands background checks for people younger than 21; increases funding for mental-health services; closes the “boyfriend loophole” for firearm purchases by those who have been convicted of domestic violence; and offers funding for states to implement firearms confiscation laws for those determined by a court to be a significant danger to themselves or others.

Fifteen Senate Republicans voted in favor of this bill. One-hundred,and-ninety-three House Republicans voted against these safety measures that strive to prevent more mass shootings.

It is interesting that Congressman (and gubernatorial candidate) Lee Zeldin recently said, “We must strengthen access to mental health services.” However, he did not vote on the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

Among other significant legislation that President Biden has signed are the American Rescue Plan, the PACT [The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics] Act, and the Chips and Science Act.

It is clear that congressional Democrats, including Congressman Tonko, have the interests of the American people in mind and are acting decisively to improve people’s lives, whereas congressional Republicans merely obstruct.

Given the opposition of most congressional Republicans to these bills, I can only assume that Congressman Tonko’s opponent, Liz Joy, would also have voted against each of them. That is speculation on my part.

The only thing that I can say about her with certainty is that she attended the rally in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021 in support of Donald Trump’s big lie.

Public servants take an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution. Attending a rally in support of overturning the results of a free and fair election is antithetical to protecting and defending the Constitution.

If she takes her cues from Republican House leaders and fellow election deniers like Congressman Kevin McCarthy and Congresswoman Stefanik, who did not support the legislation that I mentioned, then I suspect that Ms. Joy would also have voted against these bills that benefit the American people.

Congressman Tonko always protects the interests of his constituents and the American people. I urge others to consider congressional Republicans’ votes on the legislation that I discussed and vote for Congressman Tonko.

Jill Loew

Guilderland