Accomplishments
IN CONGRESS
As an experienced legislator, I have delivered for Central Florida.
Bills I've gotten passed during my time in Congress include:
Designating the National Pulse Memorial
Billfish and Sunfish Protection Act
Puerto Rico Medicaid Equality Bill (includes all US territories)
Venezuela TPS bill (passed House twice/President Biden Executive Order)
Hurricane Hunter aircraft bill
Foreign oil spill prevention bill
Kissimmee River Wild and Scenic River Act
Restoring Resilient Reefs Act
Seminole Tribal Lands Bill
Borinqueneers Kissimmee Post Office (Puerto Rican veterans)
Althea Margaret Daily Mills Post Office (Black civil rights leader)
I have made sure the Ninth District gets its fair share of federal funds by securing these resources for our community:
Over $1 billion in COVID-19 pandemic relief (stimulus checks, PPP small business loans, as well as housing, food, and unemployment assistance)
$233 million for Orlando International Airport upgrades (Infrastructure Law)
Hundreds of millions in Hurricane Irma relief
$2.5 million for St. Cloud clean water project
$1 million for Kissimmee Berlinsky House restoration
$1 million for new Lake Nona community center
$1 million for Hope Partnership 192 transition house
$1 million new Haines City fire station
$850,000 for Polk County Behavioral Outreach Mobile Crisis Team
$800,000 for Lake Wales Central Avenue streetscape upgrade
$500,000 for Winter Haven intermodal center dark fiber upgrade
$500,000 for Poinciana Valencia solar project
$461,000 for Osceola Schools/NeoCity high-tech internships
$4 million for the Polk Fire Department
$3 million for the University of Central Florida RESTORES Clinical Research Center for PTSD
$600,000 for the Haines City Fire Department
$63,000 for the St. Cloud Fire Department
$4 million for the National Early Child Care Collaborative Program at Nemours Children’s Health System
$2.2 million for the Kissimmee Airport
$1 million for specialty crop research to fight citrus greening
$557,000 for the Bartow Airport
$82,581 for the Winter Haven Airport
$82,581 for the Lake Wales Airport
$468,000 increase for the National Estuary Program
$500,000 increase in the National Wildlife Refuge System program to combat invasive species
Funding for police cars (Lake Hamilton)
Funding to prevent tax fraud for seniors
Funding for seniors affordable housing
Funding for tax help for the poor
I led or co-led Congressional letters and efforts driving progress on these issues:
Over $2 billion for the Beyond I-4 Ultimate Project
$1.3 billion in American Rescue Plan mortgage/rental assistance for Florida
Over $1 billion for SunRail/Brightline expansions – Connections to the airport, theme parks, and Tampa + Polk extension and weekend service
High U.S. Census response rate for FL-9
Central Florida Hurricane Irma disaster relief
Extending CF hotel vouchers
Stopping FEMA from ending food and water benefits for Puerto Rico
Pushing for disaster relief for citrus growers and cattle ranchers
Fighting for PTSD benefits for first responders
I accomplished the following major committee work on Energy and Commerce and Natural Resources:
American Rescue Plan
Infrastructure Law
CARES Act
Lower Drug Costs Now Act
ACA Enhancement Act (Obamacare)
CHIPS Act
Northern Everglades/Kissimmee Chain of Lakes Restoration
Great Florida Reef restoration
Manatee protection
Opposed offshore oil drilling
Supported Everglades restoration
Led the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) opposition to the discriminatory proposed citizenship question on the census, gerrymandering, and voting rights
Supported agriculture sensors research
Opposed food stamp cuts
Protected endangered species
Opposed President Trump’s border wall with the CHC
Advocated for DREAMers with the CHC
Opposed the Muslim ban
IN THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE
In more than nine years in the Florida Legislature, I helped bring high-paying, high tech jobs to Central Florida in the biotech, simulation, space, software, and solar industries. And did much more...
In the Florida House, I got landmark legislation and initiatives passed to:
Protect families of fallen firefighters
Prevent dangerous street racing
Create SunRail and expand Osceola Parkway
Eliminate debt and provide principal reductions to families in foreclosure
In the Senate, I got landmark legislation and initiatives passed to:
Protect victims of sexual violence
Provide IDs for deaf Floridians
Seal records of minors with minor criminal infractions
Allow DREAMers to be admitted to the Florida Bar
Increase the high stakes testing exemption for foreign language students from one to two years.
Provide notice to tenants in foreclosure
I successfully delivered critical funding that has made a difference in the lives of many people in our community:
Billions to build I-4 Ultimate, SunRail, and Poinciana Parkway
Over $20 million to create a Poinciana Valencia Campus
$20 million to continue Kissimmee River/Northern Everglades Restoration
$1 million to restore Lake Toho
I also fought to give our students the education they deserve by pushing for smaller class sizes and a minimum teacher salary of $50,000 in order to recruit and retain the best educators.
I also fought to expand Medicaid to provide health coverage to over 800,000 more Floridians and to establish Florida’s health care exchange under the Affordable Care Act.
I have championed environmental protection and fought to preserve Florida’s greatest treasures – our springs, beaches, and precious wild places. I fought to ban fracking in Florida and protect our fragile supply of drinking water.