Press Releases
With Help from Elmo, Grover, and Daniel Tiger, Reps. Castro, Hinson, Bonamici and Fitzpatrick Launch the Bipartisan Pre-K and Child Care Caucus for the 118th Congress
WASHINGTON - Last night, at a reception hosted on Capitol Hill, Bipartisan Pre-K and Child Care Caucus co-founder Joaquin Castro (TX-20) and new co-chairs Ashley Hinson (IA-02), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01) and Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) hosted a reception with the First Five Years Fund, Sesame Workshop, and PBS Kids to officially launch the work of the Caucus for the 118th Congress. The Caucus, founded in 2016, works to foster bipartisan efforts to improve access to high-quality, affordable early … Continue Reading
May 23, 2023
Congressman Castro Calls for Hate Crimes Charges in the Murder of Aaron Martinez
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) released the following statement calling for hate crimes charges against Trevor McEuen in the murder of Aaron Martinez. Prior to the murder, McEuen repeatedly harassed the Martinez family and told them Hispanics were not welcome in Kaufman County, a growing community outside of Dallas. "Three weeks ago, Aaron Martinez was murdered in cold blood by a man who wanted to drive Hispanics out of Kaufman County. Last fall, two brothers in West … Continue Reading
May 23, 2023
VIDEO: Congressman Castro Honors Uvalde Victims and Families in House Floor Speech
WASHINGTON – Today, ahead of the one-year commemoration of the May 24, 2022, mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) delivered a speech on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives to honor the victims of the shooting and call for stronger gun safety laws to save lives. Congressman Castro speaks on the floor of the House of Representatives. To download this video, click here for the floor camera recording or here for the … Continue Reading
May 20, 2023
Congressman Castro Announces Winners of Congressional Art Competition for the 20th District of Texas
SAN ANTONIO – Today, during an awards ceremony at the Westside Education and Training Center, Congressman Joaquin Castro announced Hogai Qasmi, a senior at Louis D. Brandeis High School, Natalie Garcia-Ramos, a junior at the International School of the Americas, and Amberly Wintheiser, a junior at Louis D. Brandeis High School as the first, second, and third-place winners, respectively, of the 2023 Congressional Art Competition for the 20th District of Texas. Prizes for the winners were … Continue Reading
May 16, 2023
House Committee Passes Bipartisan Castro Amendment to Tackle Youth Drug Abuse and Prevent Fentanyl Deaths
WASHINGTON – Today, the House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously approved legislation authored by Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Ranking Member Joaquin Castro (TX-20) that would increase collaboration between United States and Mexican law enforcement and public health agencies to support programs and public awareness campaigns that address youth drug use. The legislation, introduced as Amendment 42 to H.R. 3205, would support cross-border efforts to share information and best … Continue Reading
May 09, 2023
Rep. Castro: “Cruel, restrictive policies like Title 42 and Remain in Mexico do not stop desperate people from fleeing persecution, oppression, and violence.”
In Testimony Before the House Rules Committee, Congressman Castro Slams Counterproductive and Dangerous Proposals in H.R. 2, the So-Called "Secure the Border Act" WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, testified in opposition to Title III of H.R. 2, Republican legislation that would end nearly all access to humanitarian protections for asylum-seekers fleeing from violence and persecution. … Continue Reading
May 05, 2023
Ahead of the End of Title 42, Castro and Casar Announce $38 Million in Expedited FEMA Funding for Migrant Response
SAN ANTONIO - Ahead of the expected end of Title 42 on May 11, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) and Congressman Greg Casar (TX-35) announced today that their offices have expedited more than $38 million in funding to meet the humanitarian needs of migrant families in San Antonio, including providing shelter and food. The funding, which comes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Emergency Food and Shelter Program, includes $31,955,232 for Catholic Charities of San Antonio, … Continue Reading
May 03, 2023
Castro, Lieu Renew Push for Pathway to Citizenship for Essential Workers
WASHINGTON - This week, Reps. Joaquin Castro (TX-20) and Ted Lieu (CA-36) reintroduced the Citizenship for Essential Workers Act, legislation that would create a pathway to citizenship for the essential workers and families who worked to keep Americans healthy, safe, and fed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Senators Alex Padilla (Calif.) and Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) have introduced companion legislation in the Senate. "During the worst days of the pandemic, millions of undocumented immigrants … Continue Reading
May 02, 2023
Castro, Kim Introduce Millennium Challenge Corporation Candidate Reform Act
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere and Congresswoman Young Kim (CA-40), chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific, introduced the Millennium Challenge Corporation Candidate Reform Act, bipartisan legislation that would modernize the statutory criteria for Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) country partnerships to expand the impact of U.S. development … Continue Reading
April 28, 2023
Castro, Espaillat, Padilla Introduce Landmark Legislation to Remove Unjust Barriers to Citizenship and Prevent Unfair Deportations
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), and Senator Alex Padilla (CA) introduced the Fair Adjudications for Immigrants Act, which would remove unjust barriers to naturalization and prevent the unfair removal of immigrants based on a previously dismissed or pardoned criminal conviction. In particular, the bill would ensure that past criminal convictions that have been expunged, vacated, or pardoned by the sentencing court would no longer … Continue Reading
April 28, 2023
Congressional Dads Caucus Calls on House Administration to Increase Diaper Changing Tables for Visitors, Staff, and Members
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Congressman Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), and the Congressional Dads Caucus sent a letter urging the Committee on House Administration to expand access to diaper changing tables in restrooms across House office buildings. Castro and Gomez were inspired to write the letter after caring for their children in ill-equipped Capitol facilities during the extended 2023 vote to elect a House speaker. In 2016, Congress passed legislation to … Continue Reading
April 25, 2023
Castro, Kim Introduce New Legislation to Spur Innovative Approaches to Foreign Aid Delivery at USAID
The bipartisan Fostering Innovation in Global Development Act would direct USAID to prioritize evidence-driven foreign aid models that leverage the power of the private sector WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) and Congresswoman Young Kim (CA-40) are introducing the Fostering Innovation in Global Development Act (FIGDA), bipartisan legislation that would improve the U.S. approach to foreign aid by authorizing $45 million annually for USAID to identify and scale effective … Continue Reading
April 21, 2023
Castro, Kaine, Lead 116 House and Senate Dems Calling For Temporary Protected Status Redesignation For El Salvador & Honduras
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, and Senator Tim Kaine (VA), Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, led 116 additional members of the House and Senate in calling on the Biden Administration to continue to protect displaced Salvadorans and Hondurans by redesignating El Salvador and Honduras for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Established by the U.S. … Continue Reading
April 18, 2023
Congressman Castro Submits $60 Million in Federal Funding Requests for San Antonio Community Projects
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) announced that his office has submitted more than $60 million in community project funding requests for the Fiscal Year 2024 federal appropriations cycle. If the requests are included in appropriations bills, passed in the House of Representatives and the Senate and signed into law, the funding will invest in affordable housing expansion, workforce development initiatives, renovations at the South San Civic Center, the construction of … Continue Reading
April 16, 2023
Ahead of Monday Return to Washington, Congressman Castro Opens Up to San Antonio Express-News About Cancer Surgery, Recovery
SAN ANTONIO - Earlier this week, ahead of his planned return to Washington on Monday, April 17, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) sat down with Elaine Ayala, a columnist at the San Antonio Express-News for his first extended interview since undergoing cancer surgery in late February. During the interview, which was recorded for Ayala's Nosotros podcast, Castro spoke at length about his diagnosis and recovery to raise awareness about the importance of cancer screening and treatment. The … Continue Reading
April 13, 2023
After Urging from Congressman Castro, HHS Moves to Grant ACA and Medicaid Access to DACA Recipients
SAN ANTONIO - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) released the following statement after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, following his request, moved to grant access to Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicaid coverage and financial assistance to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients: "For more than ten years, hundreds of thousands of young Americans have been unfairly excluded from the affordable health insurance they need. Today's announcement will … Continue Reading
April 12, 2023
After Push by Congressman Castro and CHC, Library of Congress Adds New Latino Musicians to National Recording Registry
CHC-nominated "Flashdance…What A Feeling" (1983) and "Gasolina" (2004) recognized as recordings with cultural, historic, or aesthetic significance in the United States alongside Mariachi recordings and Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You" (1994). SAN ANTONIO - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) released the following statement after the Library of Congress announced that Irene Cara's "Flashdance…What A Feeling" and Daddy Yankee's "Gasolina" have been selected … Continue Reading
April 07, 2023
Statement from Congressman Castro on Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA
SAN ANTONIO - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) released the following statement after U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk issued a preliminary ruling to suspend the FDA's approval of mifepristone, a drug used for medication abortion: "Over the last two decades, mifepristone has been used safely and effectively by millions of Americans. Today's ruling is an outrageous act of judicial overreach that ignores years of scientific research in favor of bad-faith arguments by … Continue Reading
April 07, 2023
Castro, Warren, Cicilline, Jayapal Urge Department of Justice to Investigate Potentially Anticompetitive Practices at Warner Bros. Discovery
Ahead of One-Year Anniversary of the WarnerMedia/Discovery Merger Consummation, Lawmakers Call for a Post-Merger Review by the Department of Justice WASHINGTON - Today, ahead of the April 8 anniversary of the WarnerMedia/Discovery merger consummation, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Senator Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Congressman David Cicilline (RI-01), ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust, and Congresswoman … Continue Reading
April 06, 2023
Congressman Castro Introduces Legislation to Expand Federal Transit Contracting Opportunities for Women and Minority-Owned Businesses
WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) led six members of Congress in introducing the Expanding Opportunities for Diverse Entrepreneurs Act, legislation that would expand the reach of the Department of Transportation's Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program, which works to provide small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (including women and minorities) a fair opportunity to compete for federally funded transportation … Continue Reading