Economic Recovery & Jobs
For too long, middle class Americans have watched their incomes stagnate, even as worker productivity has skyrocketed. In other words, Americans have been working harder, working smarter and still struggle. We must make our economy work for all of us. To that end, I am working with my colleagues in the Senate to make investments that will create jobs today and build a stronger, fairer economy for years to come.
Economic Recovery
I know that times are tough and I’m working to help middle class and working class families weather the economic downturn so that we can get back on track to responsible growth. We need to create and save jobs while investing in the long-term growth of our economy.
In 2009, Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which will create 22,000 jobs in New Mexico. Nearly $2.5 billion have been announced for our state, allowing us to rebuild 82 schools, protect New Mexico families from losing health insurance, and provide roughly 95 percent of New Mexico households with a tax cut.
I’m working to help local governments, non-profits, and small and medium-sized businesses obtain federal recovery dollars. I’m also working to restart both consumer credit and commercial credit, like loans for small and medium businesses.
You can see a map of Recovery projects in your area here.
Creating Clean Energy Jobs
New Mexico has enormous potential to be a leader in the clean energy economy. 16.7 jobs are created for every $1 million invested in clean energy as opposed to only 5.3 jobs for a $1 million investment in fossil fuels. And with year-round sunshine and a bounty of wind, we have an opportunity to create thousands of new jobs in New Mexico while harnessing power from our renewable resources which make our nation safer. I’m fighting for legislation that provides investments in clean energy and incentives for our entrepreneurs to develop the energy-capturing technology of tomorrow.
Fighting for Equality in the Workplace
The first bill that President Obama signed was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, a bill I have long supported to restore civil rights protections for workers who face pay discrimination based on age, race, gender, national origin, religion or disability. The law gives workers the right to fight against discrimination without imposing an unfair, arbitrary timeline regulating the time in which they must file a lawsuit.
I am also an original cosponsor of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2009 (ENDA). The legislation extends federal employment discrimination protections currently provided based on race, religion, gender, national origin, age, and disability to sexual orientation and gender identity. The Act prohibits public and private employers, employment agencies, and labor unions from using an individual's sexual orientation or gender identity as the basis for employment decisions, such as hiring, firing, promotion or compensation.