Senator Bennet’s Weekly Update

A message from Senator Michael Bennet Friend, Our office has had a busy week — from introducing an ambitious, bipartisan proposal to help our hardest-hit businesses and non-profits, to pushing back against President Trump’s constant misinformation about voting. There’s never a moment when we aren’t working to respond to the public health and economic crisis we’re experiencing.  I want to give a special shout out and say thank you to the countless small business owners across Colorado who worked with our office to provide feedback and support for our new legislation, the RESTART Act. You can read more about them in the updates below. I’ll be in Colorado for the next week during the Senate recess, and I’m looking forward to engaging with many of you in the coming days.  Until our next update,  Michael SUPPORTING SMALL BUSINESSES & NON-PROFITS We introduced the first and only bipartisan legislation in Congress that provides relief to small businesses and non-profits through the end of the year. The bill focuses on businesses hit hardest by COVID-19, including restaurants, bars, hotels, and minority- and veteran-owned companies. I spoke with countless business owners across Colorado to seek their input.  Here’s how it works: The RESTART Act fixes issues with the Paycheck Protection Program, doubling the covered period to at least 16 weeks, and creates a flexible loan program to help small- and mid-sized businesses get up and running again through the end of the year.   Check out the interview Sen. Todd Young and I did with MSNBC’s Morning Joe to learn more.  FEATURED COLORADANS: RICH & JESSICA FIERRO  ADVOCATING FOR A NATIONAL HEALTH FORCE We’re continuing to fight to establish a national Health Force—one that is federally-supported and locally-managed and creates hundreds of thousands of jobs for young people seeking work.  Every day our economy is shut down, we lose $20 billion. We can’t afford not to build a workforce that fills key roles as contract tracers and community health workers. That’s exactly what I told MSNBC’s Chuck Todd and Katy Tur this week. Click below to watch.     You can also read my Health Force op-ed in the Denver Post, which I co-authored with U.S. Representatives Jason Crow and Diana DeGette.    PRIORITIZING BROADBAND FOR STUDENTS 54,000 school-age children don’t have access to the internet in Colorado, and nearly 60% have a parent working in an essential industry. It’s unacceptable when a student without broadband might as well be a student without textbooks.  That’s why I introduced a bill to provide $4 billion for schools and libraries to buy mobile hotspots and Wi-Fi enabled devices—so students can stay connected and keep learning. PROTECTING OUR UPCOMING ELECTIONS You might have seen President Trump’s continued attacks this week on mail-in ballots. In Colorado, we know that when more people have access to the ballot box, our democracy is stronger—not weaker.  We’re urging the administration to provide updated and comprehensive guidance on safety measures for both mail and in-person voting to keep voters, poll workers, and election workers safe during upcoming elections.  I also just introduced bipartisan legislation that makes it easier for states to access election grants from the CARES Act, so they can keep working to ensure every American votes safely this year.  Click here to respond to this email.   Unsubscribe 261 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Phone: (202) 224-5852 1244 Speer Blvd. Denver, CO 80204 Phone: (303) 455-7600