by Murrel Bland
U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., encouraged business owners to take advantage of the federal Paycheck Protection Program if they haven’t done so. She was the featured speaker Friday, July 17, at a teleconference meeting via ZOOM of the Congressional Forum. The forum is a committee of the Kansas City, Kansas, Chamber of Commerce.
Rep. Davids said the deadline for the PPP has been extended to Saturday, Aug. 8. The program provides funding for employers who keep employees on the payroll. She said that the extension will help those who were missed, particularly small businesses and minority-owned firms.
Rep. Davids, who serves on the U. S. House Transportation and Infrastructure and Small Business committees, said the House passed a $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill July 1. The hope is that there will be bipartisan support for the bill that is in the U.S. Senate. The bill calls for $319 billion for highways, $105 billion for public transit and $100 billion for affordable housing.
Rep. Davids said she favors Medicaid expansion for some 150,000 Kansans not now covered. Although Medicaid is a federal program, it would have to be approved by the Kansas Legislature. The program is in effect in 37 states.
Rep. Davids said she has spent Friday morning visiting the work that is being done on the Turkey Creek Flood Control project. The $151 million project is a combined effort of the federal Corps of Engineers and the municipal governments of Kansas City, Missouri, and Kansas City, Kansas. Underground pipes will run underneath railroad tracks to complete a pathway for storm water to travel into Turkey Creek. The project is expected to be complete next year. Construction on the project began in 2007. This should help prevent flooding along Southwest Boulevard.
Rep. Davids, a first-term Democrat officeholder, has no competition in the Aug. 4 primary election. However, four candidates are seeking the Republican Party’s nomination.
Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is executive director of Business West.