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4:31 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, thank you.  Thank you very much, Bette.  (Applause.)  Thank you.

I know in about 20 years, I’ll become a senior.  (Laughter.)  It’s hell turning 40, you know?  (Laughter.)

God bless you all.

Bette, thanks for that introduction and for all the work you’ve done for retired Americans.  It makes a gigantic difference.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.

And, by the way, if you excuse what they in the Senate — they used to say in the Senate, “a point of personal privilege.”  She gave me a handwritten poem from her husband who wrote to me, saying I look like I’m 20.  (Laughter.)  So, thank him very well.  I’ll give him a call.  Thank you.

And thank you to the current and former members of Congress for being here today, particularly Susan Collins.  Susan, I hope it doesn’t hurt your reputation, my complimenting you.  (Laughter and applause.)  Sherrod Brown.  (Applause.)  Get up, Sherrod.  Stand.  And Abigail Spanberger.  Where’s Abigail?  Get up, Abigail.  (Applause.)

I also want to thank Leader Schumer and Representative Garret Graves.  Schumer is not here, is he?

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  No.

THE PRESIDENT:  All right.  And — and Garret couldn’t make it today either. 

But all of you have kept this bipartisan bill on track from the beginning to end.  And — and so did our great labor leaders here today.  I want to thank them.

You know, my dad taught me — and I mean this — my friends are tired of hearing me saying this: A job is a lot more than a paycheck.  It’s about your dignity.  It’s about respect.  It’s about your place in the community.  It’s about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, “Honey, it’s going to be okay,” and know there’s a real prospect that that’s going to happen.

The bill I’m signing today is about a simple proposition.  Americans who have worked hard all their lives to earn an honest living should be able to retire with economic security and dignity.  That’s the entire purpose of the Social Security system crafted by Franklin Delano Roosevelt nearly 90 years ago.

Social Security is the bedrock of financial security for retirees and survivors and for millions of Americans with disabilities.  But we’ve all heard the stories like the one that  Bette shared today.  Public-sector employees, teachers, nurses, maintenance workers, and more — many working second jobs beyond their public service, often just because they need it to make ends meet.

The law that existed denied millions of Americans access to the full Social Security benefits they earned by thousands of dollars a year.  That denial of benefits also applied to surviving spouses of public-service employees.  Benefits cut that cost them security and a little bit of dignity as well. 

Joining us today, Eliseo, a 17-year-old from Texas.  Where is Eliseo? 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  He’s right here.

THE PRESIDENT:  Come here.  (Applause.) 

Eliseo — Eliseo is just around the corner from receiving Social Security.  (Laughter.) 

This guy walked 1,600 miles from Washington — from here to Wa- — from Texas to Washington, D.C., to support this bill.  (Applause.)  And he did it — he did it for his grandmother, a retired teacher who struggled to survive without the Social Security benefits she earned, and he thought it wasn’t right. 

But guess what?  Tomorrow is his birthday.  (Applause.)  We have a tradition in our household.  We’ve got to sing “Happy Birthday.”  Are you ready?

(The president leads the audience in singing “Happy Birthday” to Mr. Jimenez.)

All right.  (Applause.)  Eliseo, I and others here have one request.

MR. JIMENEZ:  Yes?

THE PRESIDENT:  When you’re president — (laughter) — and they say, “Joe Biden is in the outer office,” promise me you won’t say, “Joe who?”  (Laughter.)

Thank you, pal.  You did a good — your mom — grandmom would be proud.  (Applause.)

MR. JIMENEZ:  Thank you.  Thank you.  

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Go ahead.

Look, by s- — signing this bill we’re extending Social Security benefits for millions of teachers, nurses, and other public and so- — employees and their spouses and survivors.  That means an estimated average of $360 per month increase.  That’s a big deal in middle-class households like the one I grew up in and many of you did — and million- — for millions of Americans going forward. 

That’s not all.  Over two and a half million Americans are going to receive a lump-sum payment of thousands of dollars to make up for the shortfall in the benefits they should have gotten in 2024.  (Applause.)  It’s going to be a big deal. 

They’re going to begin receiving these payments this year.  And this is a big deal.  Someone once said, “This is a big deal.”  It’s a big deal.  (Laughter.) 

As — (laughter) — as the first president in more than 20 years to expand Social Security benefits, this victory is the culmination of a forty-eight — a four-year — excuse me, four [forty]-year fight to provide security for workers who dedicated their lives to their communities.  And I’m proud — I’m proud to have played a small part in this fight and get to sign it.

And thanks to Sherrod Brown and Richie Neal — Richie — (applause) — and other advocates in this room, one of the first things we did was to protect pensions for as many as 2 million union workers and retirees when we signed the Butch Lewis Act.  (Applause.)

It’s the most significant action to protect union pensions in 50 years.  And the Butch Lewis Act helped them in — helped them retire with dignity.

Look, just like the Social Security Fairness Act, when I’m si- — about to sign — what I’m signing today — when I came to office, I promised I’d always protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.  I never thought anybody would have to make that promise to protect it, but we had to make that promise.  We still do.

I said repeatedly that if anyone tried to cut these programs, I’d stop them.  And that’s the promise we’ve kept, even in the face of proposals to cut and weaken these programs that millions of Americans count on. 

I know there’s a lot more work to do, by the way, to improve and expand benefits, including those who most are in need, to protect Social Security for the long term, and finally asking the wealthiest Americans to begin to pay their fair share so it’s able to be maintained, and so much more.

Folks, we could not have done this alone.  To the people in this room and the people around the country who did the work, who kept the faith, thank you, thank you, thank you. 

Our economy today is the strongest economy in the world.  We’ve got more to do, but it’s the strongest economy in the world because we have the best workers in the world.  We have the best workers in the — (applause) — we do.

And I might add, parenthetically, when I asked the — I went to South Korea to get the communications — excuse — to get Samsung to send back the chipmakers to the United States. 

We invented the damn things.  (Laughter.)  We used to have 40 percent of the market. 

And he said, “Yes.”  And I finally said — I said, “Why?”  This is the God’s truth.  The foreign leader of a major corporation said, “Because you have the best, most qualified workers in the world — union worker” — no, I’m serious — (applause) — “and because it’s the safest place in the world to invest.”

Look, let me close with this.  Today is a victory for the dignity of work and the dignity of workers — everyday people who build the middle class, who built this country.  We must never forget it.  We can’t forget who did it.

We just have to remember who we are.  For God’s sake, we’re the United States of America.  The United States — there’s nothing beyond our capacity if we set our mind to it and we do it together.

So, God bless you all.  May God protect our troops.  And now let’s sign this bill.  (Applause.)

(The president greets participants at the signing desk.)

THE PRESIDENT:  All right.  Who — we’ve got spots up here.  Come on.

SENATOR COLLINS:  We do.  This is so exciting. 

SECRETARY BECERRA:  Well done, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, thank you.

Everybody knows that I like her so much, I’d hurt her reputation.  (Laughter.) 

Okay.  You ready?  Get set.  Go.  (Laughter.)

(The act is signed.)

All right.  (Applause.)

SECRETARY BECERRA:  Bette.  Bette.

(The president gives a pen to Ms. Marafino.) 

THE PRESIDENT:  Here you go, Bette.  (Applause.)  Thank you, thank you, thank you.

All right.  I know it’s going to be a long time for any of you to collect Social Security, like me, but it’s — let’s get going.  (Laughter.)

Thank you, thank you, thank you, everybody.  This is a good day.  (Applause.)

4:41 P.M. EST

The post Remarks by President Biden at Signing of the Social Security Fairness Act appeared first on The White House.

As Orthodox Christians around the world celebrate Christmas, Jill and I send our warmest greetings for a day of joy and reflection. We join Orthodox Christians in giving thanks for the miraculous birth of Jesus Christ and the hope and love He brought to our world.

Today, we pray for Orthodox Christians who are suffering around the world due to war, conflict, deprivation, and oppression. They, like all human beings, are created in the image of God, and deserve safety and security, dignity and respect. We will continue to advocate for these core principles, including religious freedom, and on this day, we keep these communities close to our hearts.

Scripture reminds us: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Orthodox Christians help bring hope and healing to countless communities here at home and around the world. We are deeply grateful for their contributions, and join our fellow Christians in prayers for peace and justice for all God’s children in the year ahead.

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The last time I visited Ottawa, I said that the United States chooses to link our future with Canada because we know that we’ll find no better ally, no closer partner, and no steadier friend. The same can be said of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

When I became President, he was the first foreign leader I spoke with. I spoke to him yesterday and expressed my appreciation for his partnership over the years.  Together, we’ve tackled some of the toughest issues our nations faced in decades, from the COVID-19 pandemic, to climate change, to the scourge of fentanyl. We’ve stood together with the people of Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression to defend our nations’ most sacred value: freedom. And we have made generational investments to strengthen our supply chains and rebuild our economies from the bottom up and middle out—establishing North America as the most economically competitive region in the world. 

Over the last decade, Prime Minister Trudeau has led with commitment, optimism, and strategic vision. The U.S.-Canada alliance is stronger because of him. The American and Canadian people are safer because of him. And the world is better off because of him.

I am proud to call him my friend. And I will be forever grateful for his partnership and leadership. 

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President Biden has now conserved more lands and waters than any President in history and has created the largest corridor of protected lands in the lower 48 states, the Moab to Mojave Conservation Corridor

Surrounded by canyon walls in the Eastern Coachella Valley, today President Biden will sign proclamations creating the Chuckwalla National Monument and the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument, which together will protect 848,000 acres of lands in California of scientific, cultural, ecological, and historical importance. These two new national monuments add to President Biden and Vice President Harris’s record-setting environmental legacy, including of having conserved more lands and waters, deployed more clean energy, and made more progress in cutting climate pollution and advancing environmental justice than any previous administration.

Since taking office, President Biden has swiftly advanced the most ambitious conservation agenda in U.S. history, setting and pursuing a bold goal to conserve at least 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030 through the America the Beautiful initiative. President Biden became the first sitting U.S. President to visit the Amazon Rainforest, where he signed a proclamation designating International Conservation Day and announced that the U.S. has surpassed his goal of providing $11 billion per year in international climate financing. With today’s designations and yesterday’s actions to protect the East and West coasts and the Northern Bering Sea from offshore oil and natural gas drilling, President Biden has now protected 674 million acres of U.S. lands and waters.

In addition to setting the high-water mark for most lands and waters conserved in a presidential administration, establishing the Chuckwalla National Monument in southern California is President Biden’s capstone action to create the largest corridor of protected lands in the continental United States, covering nearly 18 million acres stretching approximately 600 miles. This new Moab to Mojave Conservation Corridor protects wildlife habitat and a wide range of natural and cultural resources along the Colorado River, across the Colorado Plateau, and into the deserts of California. It is a vitally important cultural and spiritual landscape that has been inhabited and traveled by Tribal Nations and Indigenous peoples since time immemorial.

The Moab to Mojave Conservation Corridor stretches from Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southwestern Utah, to which President Biden restored protections in 2021; through Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument in Arizona and Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in Nevada, both established by President Biden in 2023; and reaches the deserts and mountains of southern California that are being protected with today’s designation of the Chuckwalla National Monument.  

Both the Chuckwalla National Monument and the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument, which is located in northern California’s mountainous interior, will protect clean water for communities, honor areas of cultural significance to Tribal Nations and Indigenous peoples, and enhance access to nature. Today’s announcements follow years of work by Tribal Nations, Indigenous peoples, community leaders, conservation organizations, renewable energy companies, utilities, local businesses, state and local officials, and members of Congress who have worked to ensure that future generations can experience, learn from, and enjoy these irreplaceable resources.

President Biden’s legacy also includes signing into law the largest climate and clean energy investments ever made by any country, including record support for climate-resilient communities and disaster mitigation. These investments, together with hundreds of executive actions taken by the Biden-Harris Administration, have put the U.S. in a strong position to cut climate pollution over 50% by 2030 and over 60% by 2035 compared to 2005 levels. Communities are feeling the benefits of these investments and actions, which have created more than 330,000 new clean energy jobs, saved 3.4 million American families $8.4 billion on home clean energy upgrades, and tackled toxic pollution in communities previously left behind.

Establishing Chuckwalla National Monument

The Chuckwalla National Monument will protect and preserve more than 624,000 acres of lands in southern California that hold extraordinarily diverse ecological, cultural, and historical value. By designating this new national monument, President Biden is enhancing outdoor access for nearby communities, preserving critical habitat for imperiled and rare species, and ensuring the ancestral homelands and sacred cultural legacies of the region’s Tribal Nations endure for generations to come – all while demonstrating that clean energy and conservation can go hand in hand. The monument will be managed by the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management.

The new monument will protect the ancestral homelands and cultural landscapes of the Cahuilla, Chemehuevi, Mojave, Quechan, and Serrano Nations, and other Indigenous peoples. The monument boundary includes five distinct areas that together encompass sacred sites, ancient trails, historic properties, cultural areas, religious sites, petroglyphs, geoglyphs, and pictographs, honoring and safeguarding the cultural and spiritual value inherent with these lands. Tribal Nations and Indigenous peoples in the region lived, used, and traveled through the areas protected by the monument, including the southern edge of a travel route that stretched north and east through what are now the Avi Kwa Ame and Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monuments.

Located just south of Joshua Tree National Park, the Chuckwalla National Monument will be at the confluence of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts, showcasing an awe-inspiring landscape of mountain ranges, meandering canyons and washes, dramatic rock formations, palm oases, and desert-wash woodlands. Its natural wonders include the Painted Canyon of Mecca Hills, where visitors can wind through towering rock walls and marvel at the landscape’s dramatic geologic history, and Alligator Rock, a ridge that has served as a milestone for travelers for millennia. The region is also home to more than 50 rare species of plants and animals, including the desert bighorn sheep, Agassiz’s desert tortoise, and the iconic Chuckwalla lizard, from which the monument gets its name. The new monument will enhance the connectivity of wildlife habitat and safeguard clean water for more than 40 million people by protecting the Colorado River region, while providing exceptional outdoor recreation opportunities for historically underserved communities in the Coachella Valley.

Today’s monument designation is the latest way that the Biden-Harris Administration is showing how conservation and clean energy can go hand in hand. The monument upholds the balance of natural and cultural resource protection and renewable energy development that a wide range of stakeholders forged for the region through the Department of the Interior’s 2016 Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP). The new national monument will allow the construction and expansion of electric transmission and distribution within the monument to transport clean energy to western cities. Additionally, the designation is consistent with the continued development of renewable energy projects sited in the DRECP’s Development Focus Areas, many of which are near or adjacent to the monument.   

Establishing Sáttítla Highlands National Monument

The Sáttítla Highlands National Monument in northern California will encompass over 224,000 acres of exceptionally varied habitat, including parts of the Modoc, Shasta-Trinity, and Klamath National Forests. The Sáttítla Highlands include the ancestral homelands of and are sacred to the Pit River Tribe and Modoc Peoples. Many other Tribes and Indigenous peoples in the region, including the Karuk, Klamath, Shasta, Siletz, Wintu, and Yana, hold deep connections to this area. This designation honors the sacred cultural value of these lands, while protecting the area’s rich ecological, scientific, and historical significance. The monument will be managed by the Department of Agriculture’s U.S. Forest Service.

At the new monument’s core sits the Medicine Lake Volcano, a massive dormant volcano covering an expanse roughly 10 times that of Mount St. Helens in Washington. The region’s dramatic volcanic history has fostered an equally dramatic landscape, dotted with cinder cones, volcanic craters, spatter cones, and hundreds of cave-like lava tubes – including Giant Crater, the longest known lava tube system in the world, which originates within Sáttítla. These unique geologic features shaped a landscape in contrast between stark unvegetated lava fields interspersed with islands of relict forest communities, and lush, verdant forests that offer exceptional outdoor recreation opportunities. The volcanic geology and other features – in particular the obsidian deposits that were shaped into blades and other tools – are central to the spiritual beliefs and cultural practices of its Indigenous peoples. 

This otherworldly and spectacular landscape is home to many rare, vulnerable, and culturally important flora and fauna, such as the northern spotted owl, the Cascades frog, the long-toed salamander, and the sugarstick, a parasitic plant associated with the roots of old-growth conifers. Much of the rain that falls on the area filters through the porous volcanic rock recharging underground aquifers that are essential for protecting and storing clean water for Northern California communities. The protection of the Sáttítla Highlands conserves a diverse array of natural and scientific resources, ensuring that the cultural, historical, and scientific values of this area, shaped by its volcano, endure for the benefit of all Americans.

Both national monuments only reserve federal lands, not State or private lands. The proclamations establishing the monuments will not affect valid existing rights and will allow a range of other activities, including hazardous fuels reduction in the forests of the Sáttítla Highlands and military training in both national monuments.

Biden-Harris Administration Conservation Accomplishments

Today’s announcements are a capstone to four years of historic conservation progress. Highlights from the Biden-Harris Administration’s conservation accomplishments include:

• Launching the America the Beautiful initiative, a call-to-action to conserve, restore, protect, and connect at least 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030 for the benefit of all people through locally led, community-designed, and partnership-driven conservation and restoration work. In addition to driving the historic conservation of 674 million acres of lands and waters, the America the Beautiful initiative has fostered a vast, long-lasting network of partners working toward this national goal. Today, the Administration issued the fourth America the Beautiful annual report, detailing the conservation accomplishments across federal agencies in 2024. To support projects that conserve, restore, protect, and connect wildlife habitats and ecosystems while improving community resilience and access to nature, the Administration also launched the America the Beautiful Challenge, a public-private grant program that has awarded more than $352 million in grants to date. Additionally, the Administration launched Conservation.gov, which is home to the American Conservation and Stewardship Atlas, an innovative tool that offers users the ability to access a wide range of scientific information on biodiversity, climate change impacts, and equity.
• Launching the America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge, which established national goals to protect, restore, and reconnect 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of rivers and streams by 2030. More than 235 States, Tribes, interstate organizations, cities, small businesses, private sector partners, nonprofits, and local communities have signed on to the Challenge by committing to advance their own policies and strategies for conserving and restoring America’s freshwater systems.

• Securing historic protections in Alaska, including 13.3 million acres in the western Arctic and 28 million acres across the state, which are vital to the subsistence economy of Alaska Native people and rural communities and contain important fish and wildlife habitat. These protections followed President Biden’s action to withdraw approximately 2.8 million acres of the Beaufort Sea, ensuring the entire U.S. Arctic Ocean is off limits to new oil and gas leasing, as well as restoring protections for the Tongass National Forest to safeguard nearly 10 million acres of roadless areas in southeastern Alaska. Further,  the Biden-Harris Administration rejected the proposed Ambler Road project, which would have traversed 211 miles of significant wildlife habitat and pristine waters that are vital for the subsistence activities of Tribal communities along the iconic Brooks Range in north central Alaska.
• Protecting 15 national monuments, including the establishment of ten new national monuments, the expansion of two existing national monuments, and the restoration of three more. President Biden’s protection of national monuments through his authorities under the Antiquities Act have safeguarded a total of nearly 9 million acres of federal lands and waters. These new national monuments conserve the special, unique lands, histories, and sacred sites that represent our nation. Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument in Arizona and Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in Nevada honor the sacred, culturally important lands for Indigenous communities who have stewarded the landscape for millennia. Camp Hale – Continental Divide National Monument in Colorado and the Castner Range National Monument in Texas expand contiguous wildlife habitat, increase outdoor access, and honor our nation’s veterans. The Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument in Illinois and Mississippi, the Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument in Illinois, the Frances Perkins National Monument in Maine, and the Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument in Pennsylvania help ensure our national park sites tell a more complete story of our nation. Expanding the San Gabriel Mountains and Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monuments in California adds unparalleled value to these already beloved places and enhances outdoor access to nearby underserved and disadvantaged communities. In 2021, President Biden also restored the Bears Ears National Monument, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, and Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument.
• Establishing three National Marine Sanctuaries and a new national estuarine research reserve. This includes the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary off the central California coast, which holds deep cultural and historical significance to the region’s Indigenous Peoples and will be managed with the active involvement of Tribes and Indigenous communities, inclusive of Indigenous Knowledge, values, and traditions. The Lake Ontario and Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuaries celebrate our nation’s maritime heritage, and the Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve protects part of Long Island Sound and the Thames and Connecticut Rivers.  

• Protecting American’s ocean and coasts from offshore oil and natural gas drilling, including more than 625 million acres across the entire U.S. Atlantic coast, the eastern Gulf of Mexico off Florida’s coast; the Pacific Ocean off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California; additional portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska; and the entire U.S. Arctic Ocean. 

• Advancing Tribal co-stewardship of federal lands through a joint secretarial order between the Departments of the Interior, Agriculture, and Commerce, resulting in a historic 400 co-stewardship and co-management agreements between Tribal Nations and federal land management agencies. These agreements strengthen the role of Tribal communities on their ancestral homelands, allowing for improved stewardship of public lands, waters, and wildlife. The Biden-Harris Administration also released a first-of-its kind guidance to federal agencies on the inclusion and recognition of Indigenous Knowledge in federal research, policy, and decision-making.
  
  
• Protecting the health and resilience of forests by issuing an Executive Order on Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, Communities, and Local Economies and completing the first-ever inventory of mature and old-growth forests, which will help foster forest conservation and enhance forest resilience to climate change.

• Restoring wild salmon, steelhead, and other native fish in the Columbia River Basin in partnership with Pacific Northwest Tribes and States. Implemented through a historic agreement, this work will also facilitate the development of Tribally sponsored clean energy production and provide stability for communities that depend on the Columbia River System. The Administration committed more than $1 billion to the effort, which will, among other things, be used to restore freshwater habitat. The Administration also restored salmon to the Klamath River Basin for the first time in over 100 years.

• Protecting the nation’s special places from damage from oil and gas drilling and hard rock mining, including Bristol Bay in Alaska; the Boundary Waters in Minnesota; Chaco Canyon and Placitas Area in New Mexico; the Pactola Reservoir in the Black Hills of South Dakota; and the Thompson Divide in Colorado. The Administration also initiated public processes to protect the Pecos Watershed in New Mexico and the Ruby Mountains in Nevada. By protecting these lands from the risks posed by drilling and mining, the Biden-Harris Administration is keeping these iconic landscapes intact for future generations to explore, learn from, and cherish.

• Creating six new national wildlife refuges, including the Everglades to Gulf Conservation Area in southwest Florida, the Wyoming Toad Conservation Area in Wyoming, the Paint Rock River National Wildlife Refuge in Tennessee, the Lost Trail Conservation Area in Montana, and the Southern Maryland Woodlands National Wildlife Refuge in Maryland. The Administration has also announced the expansion of several existing national wildlife refuges, which will allow for the voluntary conservation of up to 1.13 million acres of important wildlife habitat.   

• Advancing nature-based solutions to combat climate change, including byreleasing the Nature-Based Solutions Roadmap and accompanying Resource Guide. The Administration also began the first-ever National Nature Assessment and Natural Capital Accounting and invested over $1 billion in Urban and Community Forestry Program grants to plant and maintain trees, combat extreme heat and climate change, and improve access to nature in cities, towns, and suburbs where people live, work, and play. These efforts will allow us to better understand and recognize the full value of nature, allowing for more effective conservation efforts.

• Issuing a new Public Lands Rule to guide the balanced management of America’s public lands. In developing these critical reforms, the Department of the Interior recognized conservation as an essential component of its management of our country’s public lands, which will result in increased protection of clean water and wildlife habitat; the restoration of degraded lands and waters; and a more informed decision-making process, based on science, data, and Indigenous Knowledge. In parallel, the Biden-Harris Administration approved 45 renewable energy projects on public lands, exceeded the goal to permit 25 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2025, and issued a final Renewable Energy Rule that will incentivize developers to continue responsibly developing solar and wind projects on public lands – efforts that all simultaneously advance conservation and clean energy goals. 

• Launching the American Climate Corps, a groundbreaking workforce training and service initiative that has put thousands of young people to work in good-paying jobs in clean energy, conservation, and resilience. Across the country, American Climate Corps members are working on projects to tackle the climate crisis, including restoring coastal ecosystems, strengthening urban and rural agriculture, investing in clean energy and energy efficiency, improving disaster and wildfire preparedness, and more. The American Climate Corps is giving a diverse new generation of young people the tools to fight the impacts of climate change today and the skills to join the clean energy and climate-resilience workforce of tomorrow.

• Financing the largest debt-for-nature deal in U.S. history through a transaction supported by the U.S. International Development Financing Corporation (DFC) that will generate $460 million to conserve terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems in the Ecuadorian Amazon, while resulting in more than $800 million in debt relief for Ecuador. This is the fifth major debt-for-nature swap – an arrangement that allows sovereigns to repurchase debt at a discount in exchange for policy and investment commitments to conservation – executed during the Biden-Harris Administration. These transactions have been catalyzed by more than $3.5 billion in political risk insurance and have supported debt sustainability and nature in Belize, Ecuador (Amazon and Galápagos), Gabon, and El Salvador. President Biden helped pioneer the concept for these transactions during his time in the Senate – and since then, they have protected nearly 70 million acres of forests and sacred marine ecosystems worldwide, such as the Galápagos Marine Reserve and the Belize Barrier Reef.

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Today’s final rule will remove $49 billion in unpaid medical bills from the credit reports of 15 million Americans. In addition, the Vice President is announcing that States and Localities have already Eliminated Over $1 Billion in Medical Debt Thanks to Biden-Harris Administration Support 

Today, Vice President Harris announced a final rule by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to remove medical debt from consumer credit reports. This rule will reduce the burden of medical debt and ensure that patients are not denied access to credit for home mortgages, car loans, or small business loans due to unpaid medical bills.
 
Further, Vice President Harris announced that states and localities have leveraged American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds to support the elimination of over $1 billion in medical debt for more than 700,000 Americans. These actions build on the Vice President’s call to action for states to reduce the burden of medical debt, including by directly purchasing the debt from providers and third parties. Overall, jurisdictions are on track to eliminate roughly $15 billion in medical debt for up to nearly 6 million Americans.
 
“No one should be denied economic opportunity because they got sick or experienced a medical emergency. That is why President Biden and I cancelled over $1 billion in medical debt – part of our overall plan to forgive $7 billion by 2026 – with support from our American Rescue Plan, legislation that I advanced with my tie-breaking vote in the Senate. We also reduced the burden of medical debt by increasing pathways to forgiveness and cracking down on predatory debt collection tactics,” said Vice President Harris. “Today, we are building on this meaningful work by announcing an unprecedented final rule that will make it so medical debt is no longer included in your credit score. This will be lifechanging for millions of families, making it easier for them to be approved for a car loan, a home loan, or a small-business loan. As someone who has spent my entire career fighting to protect consumers and lower medical bills, I know that our historic rule will help more Americans save money, build wealth, and thrive.”
 
More than 100 million Americans struggle with medical debt. Medical debt is the largest source of debt in collections, making up a larger proportion of debt tradelines than credit cards, utilities, and auto loans. However, medical debt is not like other forms of debt because it is often the result of unavoidable medical complications and medical bills often contain significant errors, such as inflated or duplicative charges and fees for services never received or already paid. Reducing the burden of medical debt has been a key priority in President Biden and Vice President Harris’s effort to lower cost for American families.
 
Removing Medical Debt from Consumer Credit Reports
 
The CFPB is finalizing a rule that will remove medical debt from the credit reports of more than 15 million Americans, raising their credit scores by an estimated average of 20 points and leading to the approval of approximately 22,000 additional mortgages every year. Under the CFPB rule, there will be zero Americans with medical debt listed on their credit reports, down from 46 million in 2020. CFPB’s research indicates that medical bills are poor predictors of an individual’s ability to repay a loan and that medical bills are often confusing and erroneous. In March 2022, the CFPB released a report estimating that medical bills made up $88 billion of reported debts on credit reports. After the March 2022 report, the three largest credit reporting agencies announced that they would no longer include paid medical debts, unpaid medical debts less than a year old, and medical debt under $500 from credit reporting. Despite these voluntary changes, 15 million Americans still have $49 billion in outstanding medical bills in collections appearing in the credit reporting system. Today’s action will remove these outstanding $49 billion in unpaid medical bills from the credit reports of the remaining 15 million impacted Americans.
 
Vice President Harris’s Call to Action, Leveraging Federal Funds to Eliminate Medical Debt
 
In June 2024, Vice President Harris called on states, local governments, and health care providers to take action to reduce the burden of medical debt. States and localities have responded to this call by directly relieving debt and launching innovative programs to improve their health systems. Thanks to the President Biden and Vice President Harris’s American Rescue Plan, states, counties, and cities have already eliminated more than an estimated $1 billion in medical debt for over 750,000 Americans, including:

• Cook County, Illinois has eliminated over $382 million in medical debt for over 210,000 residents.
• New Jersey has eliminated $220 million in medical debt for over 120,00 residents.
• Cleveland, Ohio has eliminated nearly $137 million in medical debt for over 130,000 residents.
• Toledo and Lucas County, Ohio partnered to eliminate over $87 million in medical debt for over 140,000 residents.
• New Orleans, Louisiana has eliminated nearly $70 million in medical debt for 75,000 residents.
• St. Paul, Minnesota has eliminated $40 million in medical debt for over 30,000 residents.
• Washington, DC has eliminated $42 million in medical debt for over 60,000 residents.
• Connecticut has eliminated $30 million in medical debt for 23,000 residents.
• Wayne County, Michigan has eliminated $27 million in medical debt for more than 46,000 residents.
• Oakland County, Michigan has eliminated $9 million in medical debt for more than 14,000 residents.

These and other jurisdictions are on track to eliminate an estimated up to $7 billion in medical debt for nearly 3 million Americans by the end of 2026 thanks to ARP-supported efforts.

In addition to directly relieving debt, states and localities have responded to Vice President Harris’s call by launching innovative programs to improve their health systems. For instance, North Carolina recently announced that all of the state’s 99 eligible hospitals have committed to participate in medical debt relief program that will eliminate up to $4 billion in existing medical debt for nearly 2 million low-and middle-income North Carolinians.  The program also ensures that hospitals have policies in place to reduce the chance individuals will end up in debt in the first place. North Carolina’s program utilizes a novel approach, where hospital systems become eligible for enhanced Medicaid reimbursements under the State Directed Payments Healthcare Access and Stabilization Program by implementing policies that:

• Relieve all medical debt deemed uncollectible dating back to Jan. 1, 2014, for any individuals not enrolled in Medicaid with incomes at or below at least 350% of the federal poverty level (FPL) or for whom total debt exceeds 5% of annual income.  
• Relieve all unpaid medical debt dating back to Jan. 1, 2014, for individuals who are enrolled in Medicaid.  
• Sets a charity care floor in the state that provides discounts on medical bills of between 50-100% for patients with incomes at or below 300% FPL, with the amount of the discount varying based on the patient’s income.
• Automatically enroll people into financial assistance, known as charity care, by implementing a policy for presumptively determining individuals eligible for financial assistance through a streamlined screening and income validation approach. 
• Not sell any medical debt for consumers with incomes at or below 300% FPL to debt collectors. 
• Not report a patient’s debt covered by these policies to a credit reporting agency.

Preventing the Accumulation of Medical Debt Through Increased Oversight

Today’s announcements build on efforts by the Biden-Harris Administration to reduce the burden of medical debt, including:

• The Internal Revenue Service announced new steps to ensure that non-profit hospitals provide free and reduced-price care for patients that need it, as is required by law. This includes issuing new guidance in the coming months to clarify the obligations of tax-exempt hospitals  to offer and publicize financial assistance policies and committing to prioritizing enforcement actions against tax-exempt hospitals that violate these responsibilities.
• The CFPB issued an Advisory Opinion and Consumer Advisory clarifying the responsibilities of debt collectors to confirm that debts are accurate, valid, and substantiated before engaging in collection actions and explaining to consumers what actions they can take when they suspect that they have been improperly billed or if they have had improper or illegal collection actions taken against them.
• The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) implemented a streamlined process to make it easier and faster for lower-income veterans to get their VA medical debt forgiven, already providing relief to over 10,000 veterans and saved them more than $10 million in copay debt.
• The Department of Defense has proposed a rule aimed at providing financial relief for civilians receiving medical care at military medical treatment facilities (MTFs).  If finalized as proposed, this rule would implement fee reductions through a sliding scale discount program as well as catastrophic cap waivers.  Through these measures, the DoD aims to significantly reduce the financial burden on patients while maintaining high-quality care.
• The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) validated and approved the use of VantageScore 4.0, along with FICO 10T, for the underwriting of mortgages by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, marking the first time that a credit score that excludes medical debt has been approved for mortgage underwriting of Enterprise loans.
• The Small Business Administration (SBA) is taking steps to reduce the role of medical debt in the underwriting of loans for its flagship 7(a) guaranteed loan program, including revising its lender Standard Operating Procedures and Lender Match tool to discourage consideration of medical debt.
• The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued memorandum M-22-17 to direct agencies to reduce the impact of medical debt in the underwriting of Federal credit programs, helping to spur the actions by VA, FHFA, and SBA listed above.
• The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Department of the Treasury issued a joint request for information seeking comment on the prevalence, nature, and impact of medical payment products.
• CMS and CFPB issued guidance clarifying protections against inappropriate patient billing and costs for the approximately 8 million low-income Medicare beneficiaries who are enrolled in the Qualified Medicare Beneficiary program. 
• The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury have prioritized implementing surprise billing protections, preventing 1 million surprise medical bills every single month.
• As a part of the Inflation Reduction Act, President Biden capped the cost of insulin at $35 for a month’s supply of each covered insulin and capped out-of-pocket prescription drug costs at $2,000 in 2025 for seniors and others with Medicare. Thanks to the $3500 cap, nearly 1.5 million Medicare enrollees saved nearly $1 billion on prescription drugs in just the first half of 2024. Since taking these actions, President Biden has called on Congress to expand the cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs to cover all Americans.
• President Biden has called on states to close the Medicaid coverage gap and create new pathways to health coverage by expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.
• Secretary Becerra directed HHS to evaluate how providers’ billing practices impact access and affordability of care and the accrual of medical debt. HHS, CFPB, and the Treasury Department requested information and data on medical bill collection practices, lawsuits against patients, financial assistance, financial product offerings, and 3rd party contracting or debt buying practices. HHS, for the first time, considered weighing this information in their funding decisions.
• The CFPB and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a joint letter affirming that nursing homes that participate in Medicare and Medicaid are prohibited from forcing a resident’s family or friends to assume responsibility for the cost of care as a condition of admission or continued stay in the facility.
• HHS is collecting evidence and data to inform future actions by adding new questions on medical debt to Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey and Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, two of the most important sources of data on health care in the United States.
• HHS released a set of frequently asked questions clarifying that hospitals have the ability to provide relief to uninsured and underinsured patients who cannot afford their hospital bills and to Medicare beneficiaries who cannot afford their Medicare cost.
• The Biden-Harris Administration issued a final rule that protects consumers from junk health insurance and makes sure Americans aren’t scammed into low-quality coverage that leaves consumers on the hook for thousands of dollars in medical bills.
• CMS is soliciting comment on how hospital-based personnel who help consumers enroll in Marketplace coverage could connect consumers to hospital financial assistance programs designed to reduce medical debt.
• The White House convened state and local leaders to discuss initiatives to further lower health care costs and reduce the burden of medical debt, including addressing medical payment products, unfair debt collection practices, surprise billing and facility fees, and charity care.

# # #

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The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi

Good afternoon.  It’s great to be back in New Delhi.

And thank you, Eric, for that gracious introduction. President Biden has been lucky to have you here representing the United States.

I also want to thank everyone here at IIT Delhi for such a warm welcome.

***

In 1949, Prime Minister Nehru went on a now-famous tour of the United States.

His goal was to understand how new technologies and innovations could strengthen his then-young nation.

So for nearly a month, he traveled all across America. From businesses in New York and San Francisco, to family farms around Chicago and Madison, to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

And that visit at MIT helped inspire the establishment of India’s own IIT system, which not only ignited a new era of science and technology innovation for a new nation –

but also ignited a partnership in science and technology between the United States and India. 

Indeed, the United States was the first foreign partner to collaborate with India’s IITs, when nine leading U.S. universities helped build the Indo-American research program at IIT Kanpur.

Some years later, Prime Minister Nehru would observe – at an IIT convocation, in fact —something prescient for our own era.  He said, and I quote:

“the time has now come when the engineer plays an infinitely greater role than anybody else…because the major work of the country today deals with…engineering schemes of various types…and the administrator who is completely ignorant of engineering does not help much in administering.”

Something quite similar could of course be said today…about governments racing to keep pace with concurrent revolutions in artificial intelligence, biotechnology, space, quantum, and other fields.

So it is fitting in many ways that today, seven decades later and in this moment of technological transformation, India and the United States are taking our partnership to the next frontier—together.

And—if we can get it right—I believe this partnership will be the most consequential of the 21st century.

For both the United States and India, our partnership is key to our own growth — and jobs — at home …

It is critical for stability and security in the Indo-Pacific …

And, increasingly, it will bring prosperity to like-minded friends around the world, especially emerging economies.

And so, we are deeply invested in India’s success and, I believe, India in ours.

Over 1,000 American companies are operating in India.

Over $50 billion in foreign direct investment flowed into India from the United States, and Indian private sector investment in the United States recently surpassed that of China – investments that, by some estimates, are generating over 400,000 U.S. jobs.

And over 300,000 Indian students are studying in the United States. In fact, our international students come from India more than any other country in the world.

And for all our work together, in many ways, we’re just getting started.

When President Biden came into office, he made clear that America’s domestic strength and our international position were inherently linked. 

And that in an era of intense geopolitical competition, we needed to re-invest in our domestic industrial base and our innovation economy to strengthen our advantages abroad. 

But he was also clear that this approach was not one we could pursue on our own.  We would need to do it together with our allies and partners.

Because by building trusted supply chains, jointly investing in emerging technologies, and leveraging our respective advantages, we would all emerge in a stronger position.

There is nowhere we have proved the theory of that case more clearly than in the U.S.-India relationship.

Over the past four years, we’ve joined hands to halt a pandemic and bring vaccines to the world; we’ve launched initiatives on jet engines, semiconductors, and clean energy; and in a few months’ time, we will come together to put an Indian astronaut into space.  

These are remarkable achievements, and we made them by harnessing the remarkable innovation of the American and Indian people.

I had the chance to see some of that collaboration here at IIT Delhi just a few moments ago, when I met with some impressive young entrepreneurs who are designing everything from AI-enabled robotics to military-grade sensors…

…ventures that I’m proud to say are being supported by the United States through partnerships with New York University, the U.S. National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Space Force.

And that’s what I’d like to say more about today: How we’ve taken the U.S.-India partnership to a fundamentally new level over the last four years, with innovation at its core, and how that is playing out bilaterally, regionally, and globally.

***

First, we started by transforming our technology partnership.

When President Biden came into office, he knew that “Make in India” and “Made in America” are complementary, not incompatible, precepts.

That’s why, in 2022, our Administration launched the initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies with India.

The fundamental premise of iCET is that, in an era of renewed geopolitical competition, the United States and India must collaborate on the development, diffusion, and protection of critical technologies—from artificial intelligence to biotechnology, and beyond.

That is our responsibility as the world’s largest democracies. As two of the fastest-growing and largest economies. And as leading Indo-Pacific powers.

And—as we mark the second anniversary of iCET this month—we’ve proven just how impactful this deepened collaboration can be across both of our economies, and both of our innovation ecosystems.

Just look at Vikram Solar, which announced plans last year for a $1.5 billion investment in solar manufacturing here in the United States.

Or Bharat Forge, which in 2021 opened the first U.S. greenfield aluminum forging plant in over 15 years.

At the same time, U.S. companies looking for more resilience in both their markets and supply chains are shifting out of China and expanding to India.

Take, for example, Apple’s significant investment in Indian production. Within the next couple of years, over a quarter of all iPhones in the world will be made right here in India.

Or Ford’s recent expansion in Chennai—which will add thousands of jobs in Tamil Nadu.

And I want to take a moment to talk about our supply chains specifically.

The United States, India, and other partners have all been reminded—abruptly and sharply—that we cannot ignore the ways in which interdependencies can be weaponized against us.

We’ve seen countries lose access to critical minerals that support our clean energy and electronics industries.

We’ve seen companies struggling to compete against China’s predatory industrial strategies in chips, clean energy, and other emerging technologies.

And, of course, we’ve seen repeated attacks on industries tied to our critical infrastructure, which is heightening the risks not only of cyber espionage, but of destructive sabotage.

That’s why—as we launched iCET—both President Biden and Prime Minister Modi made it a priority to invest in national programs that are spurring production in sectors that had become overly reliant on China.

These include the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act, the India Semiconductor Mission, and India’s Production-Linked Incentive program in areas such as biopharmaceuticals.

The benefits of those programs are already flowing to both of our countries.

Micron was the first, not just American, but first global company to partner with India’s Semiconductor Mission, investing hundreds of millions of dollars in new semi-conductor packaging facilities that will establish India as a new hub in the global chip ecosystem.

India and the United States have joined hands with Japan, the ROK, and Europe to establish a new Biopharmaceutical Supply Chain Consortium—the “Bio-5”—that will reduce dependence on single-source suppliers supply chains.

We are poised to expand these efforts into new sectors—most notably, commercial space exploration.  In fact, as we speak, U.S. companies are providing support for a SpaDeX [Spay-Dex] satellite docking experiment that will enable new Indian missions to the moon.    

And as a result of new updates to our missile technology control export policies that President Biden signed out just last week—and which I’m glad to announce publicly for the first time today—our commercial and civil space partnership is set for lift off.

***

Second, as we’ve strengthened our technology partnership—we started delivering for the Indo-Pacific region  as well.  

Take, for example, the U.S.-India defense partnership.  The growth of our defense partnership over the past two decades has been nothing short of remarkable.

Just consider, twenty-five years ago, the United States and India had no defense trade relationship at all.

No frameworks for information sharing or logistics cooperation.

No major military exercises to train alongside each other.

Today, the United States is not just selling defense systems to India. We are making them here in India. And the United States has become the top destination for Indian defense exports.

We launched a first-of-its kind defense initiative—INDUS X—that is awarding American and Indian start-ups the funding to more rapidly bring new technologies forward to our militaries.

On top of this—in the past two years alone—the Biden administration has approved technology proposals that would enable India to become the first global producer of Stryker combat vehicles, a leading producer of advanced munitions systems, and the first foreign producer of cutting-edge maritime systems.

We announced a ground-breaking initiative to enable India to manufacture jet engines that will power India’s future indigenous fighter fleet.

And even more work is underway – in aviation, sensing, undersea — that will come to fruition soon.

So many of these initiatives have the potential to extend beyond the United States and India, to eventually help countries across the Indo-Pacific region upgrade their defensive capabilities as well.

Because that’s another goal that unites us: to ensure a more free, more secure, more prosperous, and more resilient Indo-Pacific region.

And stronger U.S. and Indian defense cooperation is already enabling security across the region.

Through the multinational Combined Maritime Forces Coalition—of which India is now a full-time member—we are combatting piracy and trafficking at sea.

Through Exercise Malabar, the United States, India, Australia, and Japan are training to more rapidly respond to natural disasters across the Indo-Pacific.

And through historic agreements that allow U.S. Navy vessels to seek repair and maintenance in Indian shipyards in Kochi, Mumbai, and soon Chennai, the United States can more readily train and operate with countries across the Indian Ocean region.

At a time when we’re seeing dangerous provocations in the air and at sea—

The proliferation of destabilizing technologies—

And countries attempting to change the status quo by force—

Our cooperation—in technology, in defense, and beyond—is a pillar of stability in the Indo-Pacific.

***

And frankly, it goes beyond the Indo-Pacific. Which brings me to the third area: delivering for the world.

Nowhere is this more evident than clean and affordable technologies.

The U.S. Development Finance Corporation is engaged in path-breaking partnerships with Indian companies to localize and scale solar manufacturing. 

This includes investing nearly $1 billion in solar panel manufacturing in Tamil Nadu, and providing support for leading Indian manufacturers, like Tata Power Renewables. 

And in the past year, we concluded a new initiative on clean energy supply chains that lays out a path for our countries to deploy clean energy across Africa and to work with African partners on high-impact solar and electric vehicle projects.

And we’re not stopping with clean energy. Our technology partnership is delivering affordable public goods in numerous ways.

That is why we launched a new U.S.-India Global Digital Development Partnership that will leverage both government and private sector resources to deploy safe and responsible digital technologies with like-minded partners around the world.

And through the Quad, we announced plans to deliver Open RAN technology, AI-driven agricultural solutions, and cutting-edge satellite data to developing economies.

And at the G20 in Delhi in September of 2023, we announced the launch of the India-Middle East Economic Corridor, an ambitious initiative linking India, the Middle East and Europe with a sea-and-rail corridor and fiber and energy connections. 

That was just a few weeks before October 7.  But we have continued to nurture the vision, and I have personally engaged the key countries and key leaders to keep making progress. 

I have also talked to the incoming administration about the enormous opportunity to deliver growth and integration – and a high-standard alternative to what Beijing is offering.

The bottom line of all of these efforts is that the potential of this partnership is boundless.

***

But I hasten to add: it is not inevitable.

Over the years, people have referred to the United States and India as “natural” partners.

And in many ways, that’s true. Our democracies our linked. Our companies are linked. Our universities are linked. And more than anything else, our people our linked.

But the U.S.-India partnership that we have built together is not one that just naturally sprang into existence.  All of our linkages have been necessary, but at the same time, insufficient.

The partnership we have built is one of intention, of choice. One of determination, of leadership. And, frankly, one of perseverance and grit.

Look at the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear Agreement concluded by President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, may he rest in peace.

Or India’s designation as a Major Defense Partner of the United States in 2016.

Or President Biden and Prime Minister Modi’s decision to manufacture advanced jet engine technology and explore space together.

None of these were “natural” occurrences.

Step-by-step we have worked to build trust. To build habits of cooperation. And to move our partnership past what Prime Minister Modi has called our “hesitations of history.”

Which brings me to another historic step forward on that journey.

Although former President Bush and former Prime Minister Singh laid out a vision of civil-nuclear cooperation twenty years ago, we have yet to fully realize it.

But as we work to build clean energy technologies, to enable growth in artificial intelligence, and to help U.S. and Indian energy companies unlock their innovation potential, the Biden administration determined it was time to take the next major step in cementing this partnership.

So today I can announce that the United States is now finalizing the necessary steps to remove longstanding regulations that have prevented civil nuclear cooperation between India’s leading nuclear entities and U.S. companies.

This is a statement of confidence in the progress we have made—and will continue to make—as strategic partners, and as countries who share a commitment to peaceful nuclear cooperation. 

And it is the result of India’s open and transparent engagement with our Administration over the course of the past four years, which has enabled this new chapter to move forward.

Of course, none of this has been easy.

We’ve both had to navigate our share of turbulence. Legacy relationships. Tensions over trade, as well as human rights and rule of law, at home and abroad.

But we have navigated these issues together, with our eye on the long game. And our ability to do so reflects the deep and enduring resilience between the United States and India—across generations, across administrations, and “across the aisle.”

***

This leads to my parting thoughts: where do we go from here?

I am deeply proud of the work the United States and India have done together under iCET to shape the technologies of the future. And I’m proud that we are passing the baton off the next Administration in an even stronger position.

But there is still much more to be done.

Looking forward, it will not be enough for the United States and India to simply collaborate in building the critical technologies of the future.

We also need to work together to shape the diffusion, protection, and rules that govern those technologies.

We have already begun this work in domains such as space, where India’s decision to join the Artemis Accords is allowing us to establish a common set of principles around civilian space exploration.

We will need to continue to drive similar efforts in other spheres, such as the employment of artificial intelligence and advanced biotechnologies—both of which will have enormous consequences in every facet of life.

As we see more and more new technologies diverted to unfriendly actors, theUnited States and India will also need to ensure that valuable dual-use technologies don’t fall into the wrong hands.

This means aligning our export control systems. Looking at trade measures to protect our industrial strategies against overcapacity. Better securing our supply chains. And reviewing outbound and inbound investments in sensitive sectors.

As we take these steps, we need to expand the work we’re doing to leverage American and Indian innovation to help the world – especially emerging economies – to enable equitable growth across the globe.

And finally, our partnership can be most effectively sustained – and can only reach its full potential – if we each live up to the values that lie at the core of our democracies.  Respect for the rule of law that creates the conditions for dynamic growth. Respect for pluralism and tolerance that powers innovation.  And the protection of basic freedoms that unleash the human spirit. 

I say this not as a skeptic, but as someone who fully believes the United States and India can realize those aspirations.  These are basic truths about how our democracies will grow and flourish.

***

So let me close with this.

This is likely the last trip overseas I will lead as National Security Advisor.

And I cannot think of a better way to end my tenure in the White House–visiting India on my final overseas visit to mark the advances we have made together over the past four years: this is a shared and historic achievement, and a cornerstone of the Biden administration’s foreign policy legacy.

We’ve had to deal with challenging moments.  We’ve had to work to resolve difficult issues.

But being here at IIT Delhi with the young technologists and entrepreneurs and policymakers who will take this generational project forward,

I have every reason to be believe that within the next decade we’ll see:

American and Indian firms working together to build the next generation of semi-conductor technologies.

American and Indian astronauts conducting cutting-edge research and space exploration together.

American and Indian researchers contributing to a new explosion in lifesaving vaccines.

American and Indian engineering students developing new innovations together right here at IIT Delhi.

And American and Indian leaders propelling our partnership – and our future – toward what the American statesman-scientist Vannevar Bush called “the endless frontier” that we haven’t yet imagined.

Thank you again for having me here.  I cannot wait to see what all of you, and so many other young people across our nations, achieve in the years ahead.

###

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U.S. Capitol
Washington, D.C.
 

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Well, today was a — obviously, a very important day, and it was about what should be the norm and what the American people should be able to take for granted, which is that one of the most important pillars of our democracy is that there will be a peaceful transfer of power. 
 
And today, I did what I have done my entire career, which is take seriously the oath that I have taken many times to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, which included, today, performing my constitutional duties to ensure that the people of America, the voters of America will have their votes counted, that those votes matter, and that they will determine, then, the outcome of an election. 
 
I do believe very strongly that America’s democracy is only as strong as our willingness to fight for it — every single person, their willingness to fight for and respect the importance of our democracy.  Otherwise, it is very fragile and it will not be able to withstand moments of crisis. 
 
And today, America’s democracy stood.
 
Thank you.
 
 END

# # #

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Aboard Air Force One
En Route Kenner, Louisiana

3:45 P.M. EST

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Sorry for the wait.  Oh, it’s chilly back here.

Q    Yeah, it’s cold.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  All right, I have a — a long — a long couple things at the — a few things at the top, so it’s a little long.  So, please bear with me.  Hopefully we’ll answer some of your questions. 

We are on our way to New Orleans, where the president and the first lady will attend an Interfaith Prayer Service for Peace and Healing hosted by the Archdiocese of New Orleans at the Cathedral-Bas- — Basilica of St. Louis King of France.  While there, they will grieve with the families and community members impacted by the tragic attack that took place in New Orleans on January 1st.  This time with families will be a private meeting prior to the vigil. 

Immediately following this horrific attack, President Biden directed his team to provide every resource possible to support the state and local law enforcement response as well as the victims and their families.  The president and his administration have been in contact with the governor of Louisiana, the mayor of New — New Orleans, and other state and local officials to ensure they have the support they need and deserve. 

The FBI, DOJ, DHS, and Department of Defense are coordinating on all aspects of the investigation.  The FBI is operating a command post in its New Orleans office with federal, state, and local personnel, including the deployment of additional special agents, analysts, and bomb technicians to assist in the investigation and coordinate with local authorities. 

The U.S. Small Business Administration, SBA, has also announced that small businesses and private nonprofit organizations in Louisiana may now apply for federal disaster loans to offset economic losses caused by this attack. 

Today, the president is committing additional federal resources to help the city of New Orleans prepare for upcoming major events, including Mardi Gras and the Super Bowl.  The Mardi Gras parades and certain related events occurring in New Orleans from February 1st [21st] to March 4th have been upgraded to a Special Event Assessment Rating of 1.  The Super Bowl event has also been upgraded to the same assessment rating.

The Biden-Harris administration has determined that these significant events require extensive federal interagency support, and we will use every tool available to fill — to fill local capability shortfalls to assure safe and secure events.  Federal assistance could include explosive detection canine teams, cyber risk assessments, venue screening and field intelligence teams, and air security and tactical operations support, in addition to the support already provided by state and local governments.

There’s no higher — higher priority to the president than the safety and security of the American people.  He will continue to ensure we do everything possible to get to the bottom of this horrific event while also ensuring that this community has the resources they need in the wake of this tragedy. 

And finally, today, President Biden took action to protect the — the entire U.S. East Coast; the eastern Gulf of Mexico; the Pacific off — off the coast of Washington, Oregon, and California; and additional portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska from oil for — from future oil and natural gas leasing. 

So, let’s be clear here.  The — the area President Biden is protecting has relatively minimal fossil fuel potential in the areas and do not justify the environmental, public health, and economic risks that would come from new leasing drilling.

As President Biden said in his statement, from California to Florida, Republican and Democratic governors, members of Congress, and coastal communities have worked and called for greater protection of our ocean and coastlines from the harms that offshore oil and natural gas drilling can bring.

From day one, President Biden has led and delivered on the most ambitious climate and conservation agenda in our country’s history.  And over the last four years, the president has conserved more than 670 million acres of America’s land, water — waters and more — more than any other president in history.

With that, Colleen.  Hi.

Q    Hi.  Okay.  A couple things real quick.  On the meeting with the families today.  Will he also meet with any first responders or law enforcement officials, or is it just for families?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, he’s — we’re hoping to also be able to say thank you to some first responders.

As you know, first responders always put their lives on the line when it comes to certainly events like this, but almost every day. 

And so, we’ll certainly have more to share.  We’ll have some pool notes for all of you as we get on the ground.  But that is — that is the hope.

Q    Okay.  And then on the offshore drilling.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.

Q    Can you talk a little bit about the timing?  Because, you know, the president is leaving office in a couple of weeks.  The incoming president has been very clear that he doesn’t want any of this type of — these restrictions.  So, you know, why now?  Why not earlier, when there was more of an opportunity to push it out longer?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, I think in — also, in the topper, I mentioned what the president has done, and over the last four years, he’s protected, I think, more than 46 million land and water.  Con- — you know, making sure we’re conserving that. 

So, this is — this has been a priority for the president over the past four years, and you see the success and what he’s been able to do.

So, the withdrawals have no expiration date and prohibit all future oil and natural gas leasing in areas withdrawn.  And, as I said, the — the area the president is protecting has relatively minimal fossil fuel potential in the areas and do not justify environmental, public health, and economic risks that would come from any loose le- — new leasing and drilling.

And so, look, the climate crisis continues.  It continues to be a threat to communities across the country.  And we are transitioning now to clean energy economy, as this has been a priority for this president. 

And so, we want to make sure that we protect these coasts for our children, for our grandchildren.  And so, that is what you’re seeing the president doing. 

So, previous administration also moved to protect off coast of Florida — off coasts of Florida, Georgia, South C- — South Carolina from drilling.  So, this is something that we’ve actually seen from the past administration, which is — obviously, was the Trump administration.

Q    One more.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah, sure.

Q    On the — on January 6th.  So, I just wondered, the president’s op-ed in the Washington Post today talked a lot about the need to remember.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah, and not — not — and to not rewrite history. 

Q    Yeah.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah. 

Q    I guess I wanted to ask: He doesn’t mention Trump by name at all in — in the op-ed.  And I wondered if that was intentional.  You know, and if we’re talking about remembering, should we also be thinking about the — the incoming president’s — you know, whatever role he may have played in January 6th?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, look, I think — you know, I read through — obviously, I saw the — the op-ed before it was published, and I got to — I read it a couple more times today.  And it’s incredibly powerful what the president was able to share.

Remember, he was speaking directly to the American people and wanted to make sure that we don’t forget this moment, we don’t forget what happened four years ago, and that history should not be rewritten. 

I think the American people know exactly what happened on that day.  I think he wanted to — as the day is today, he wanted to make sure that we — he — his voice was out there. 

He’s also very proud of what the vice president was able to do in certifying the election, which is, obviously — as she said herself in a very powerful video today that you all saw, talking about her duty and how she — this is — this is the norm and this is what we’re supposed to be doing. 

And I think — you know, I think the president wanted to stick to the message of what today means.  We can’t forget.  And the president says this in his op-ed.  This — certifying an election was the norm — was the norm.  And we can’t forget, as a country, as a people, that — that moments like today should be incredibly respected, and how powerful and how important it is, especially as we speak to our democracy and a peaceful transition of power, which is what the president has been trying to do and has said that he was going to do and has been doing that since the day of — since the — since the day of the election, or the results of the election.

And so, I think that’s what you’re seeing.  This peaceful — it’s not just about this being a norm, but also this continuing peaceful transfer of power. 

Q    Karine, does the — does the president or does the White House have a reaction to Prime Minister Trudeau’s announcement today about stepping aside?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, a couple of things here.  Prime Minister Trudeau has been a stalwart friend of the United States during his decade leading the Canadian government.  We have worked closely together on the full range of issues facing our countries and the world as close allies, neighbors, and as members of the G7.

The president is grateful for the prime minister’s partnership on all of that and for his commitment to defending North America from the geopolitical threats of the 21st century and the work we have done together to sustain North America’s status as the world’s most economically competitive region. 

As fellow democracies, we stand with the prime minister and the Canadian people as they select a new Liberal Party leader and organize a new government.

Q    Do you — on a separate issue, the steel companies — U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel — have filed lawsuits over the decision by the president to block that merger.  What’s his or what is the White House reaction to that?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, as — as we’ve done many times, as you know, Jeff, we just don’t speak to lawsuits.  Obv- — you know, that is something that the Department of Justice will — will handle.  I’m — I’m not going to give comments on it. 

And I think the president’s statement from Friday — laying out his thought process and why he moved forward to blocking — to blocking that deal.  And so, I just don’t have anything else to add behi- — be- — besides what the president laid out. 

But as we normally do, we’re not going to speak to any lawsuits. 

Q    One question —

Q    Karine, can you —

Q    Sorry, just one last question.  Sorry, sorry, sorry.  On two things that Trump has — the president-elect has said in the last day or so.  One, there’s a report out about his — his plans on tariffs.  Wondering if this White House has any response or concerns about that. 

And two, he made a tweet — or a statement today about making Canada the 51st state.  Wondering if President Biden takes that seriously. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, look, I’m not going to comment on everything that the president-elect is — is going to say. 

As we know, we have about two weeks left in this administration.  The president is going to focus on what we’re doing today — right? — what we’re going to be doing in the West Coast in California.  We’re going to continue to show up for the American people, continuing to do the work on behalf of the American people. 

I — I’m just not going to comment on everything that is said by the incoming president. 

What the president believes in is what you’ve seen him do — when it comes to the economy, making sure that we don’t leave anybody behind, that we build an economy from the bottom up to — bo- — bottom to — bottom — top — from the bottom to the top and, obviously — and the middle out.  And that is something that the president is going to is — has always believed in and — and believes that is the way we move forward with an economy. 

He doesn’t believe in — in — in what Republicans have continued to say, which is giving a tax relief to — to the — to the richest, the billionaires and corporations.  That’s not what the president believes.  He wants to make sure that we give a little bit of breathing room to everyday Americans who are sitting around their kitchen table trying to make some really difficult decisions about how they’re going to move forward in their life.

And so, that’s our focus.  I’m just not — with two weeks left, I’m not going to comment on everything that the president-elect is going to say.

Q    Karine, earlier today, President-elect Trump, on Truth Social, said that the — that “Biden is doing everything possible to make the TRANSITION as difficult as [as] possible.”  I know you touched on the transition a little bit, you know, moments ago.  But is there just anything you can say from, you know, the White House’s response to his comments? 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, again, I’m not going to respond to everything that the president-elect says.  What I can say is the president’s commitment — and I think — I think, hopefully, you all would agree with me — when the president, after the — the election, the president invited the president-elect to the White House.  They met for two hours — definitely more than an hour and a half, more than 90 minutes — in the Oval Office.  You guys — you all got to see them engage at the top for a f- — couple of minutes. 

And that — for the president, that was something that he wanted to bring back — right? — which is a peaceful transfer of power — something, I would, you know, put out there and remind everybody, that he didn’t get four years ago. 

And so, as you know, this is a president who is an institutionalist.  He believes in our democracy.  He believes on doing the right thing for this country, the right thing for the American people.  And he believed in the peaceful transfer of power.

Our mandate has been — from this president — is to make sure that we provide an efficient transfer, a tran- — a transition to the next incoming administration.  And it’s not about us; it’s not about this president.  It’s about the American people.

In order — it is important to do that so that we can — so that the American people can have a continuing democracy that works for — for all of us.

Q    And just one more, Karine. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.

Q    Maybe this came out while — while you have been in the air, but Biden met with Venezuela’s president-elect this — this morning.  Is there any — are there any details you — you can share from —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.

Q    — from that meeting and how that went?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, there’s — if it hasn’t come out, and you — I don’t even know if you all probably saw it or not — there’s going to be a readout.  If — and — and I haven’t paid close attention.  There was a readout of the meeting following the president’s meeting and the president-elect of Venezuela this morning and simply reiterated our support for Venezuelans’ democratic aspirations. 

Democracy depends that — demands, pardon me — demands that the will of the voters be respected, and the Venezuelan — Venezuelan people spoke resoundingly on July 28th making González Urrutia the president-elect.  And so, that is what you — that is what you saw.  That is basically what this meeting was all about.

And there’s a readout.  Again, I — I apologize if you all didn’t get a chance to read that, to see it, but we did put out a readout on this.

Q    Karine —

Q    Do you have any —

Q    Go ahead.  Go ahead.

Q    Do you have any reaction to Elon Musk — his repeated attacks on the British prime minister?  Just — if I could just — I mean, for example, you have him today calling Keir Starmer “despicable,” calling on King Charles to overthrow the British government. 

I mean, this is a key U.S. ally and a — you know, a political, you know, ally of President Biden.  What — I mean, what — what is your take on these?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I — I don’t have anything for you on that.  I — I just don’t.  I’m not going to comment on that.

Go ahead.

Q    Given the president’s op-ed on talking about remembering January 6th —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.

Q    — from four years ago, does he have any reaction to the president-elect’s pledge to pardon the insurrectionists from four years ago and, given the president’s recent pardons himself, how that kind of contrasts?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, look, I’m not going to get into what the next president is going to do or not do. 

I think you’ve heard us talk about the president’s process when it comes to commutations, when it comes to pardons.  He bel- — he believes in giving a second chance to — to Americans who have shown that they can go back into the community and be part of a community, be productive in the community. 

The president certainly has taken more action than any president before him, and that is something that he believes in.  So, we will certainly — he — he’s thinking about other commutations and pardons that he will potentially announce before he leaves in two weeks. 

I just don’t have anything else to share.  I don’t want to get into what the next president is going to do, going to not do.  What I can speak to is how the president has been very deliberate, very thoughtful about this process and how he’s moved forward in it in the last couple years. 

Q    Karine, my colleagues at NBC this weekend — they reported that the president plans to give two big speeches before his term is up: one on foreign policy, one more of a farewell speech.  Do you have any additional information about that — when, where?  Anything we can expect to hear from the president?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I — I’m not going to get ahead of our — our schedule here.  Don’t have anything to confirm or to lay out. 

What I will say is the president the — I — I mentioned “two weeks.”  We have 14 days, and it’s going to be a jam-packed, certainly a jam-packed final sprint to the — to the — to the two — to the two weeks. 

As you know, we’re going to go to NOLA — New Orleans.  We’re going to go to California.  We come back, and the president is going to — there’s the Carter — obviously, the — the Carter memorial, so that will be something that the president will attend. 

And then we head out to Rome, and we — we have already laid out what the president is going to be doing on that — his final OCONUS — this coming weekend or this coming — at the end of the week.  And then we’ll have a lot more to share as we — as we get closer. 

But he is definitely jam-packed — jam-packed — as you all know, especially just looking at the weekend.  I think most of us were working every day this weekend, and so I think you can expect to see that — the president just continuing to work every day.

Q    On New Orleans and this ongoing investigation into the attack.  Have — do you have any updates, any progress on that?  I know the last time the president spoke on it is — he said he would make sure that any progress they made he would share it.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah, no — I mean, you’re — you’re right.  I don’t have any updates to share.  Obviously, as I stated at the top — and the president certainly continues to believe this and wants to — to get this done, which is get to the bottom of what happened.  There’s an investigation being done by the FBI.  I don’t have any updates to share at this time. 

And what — I think what you’re going to see this president do today is show up for the community, be there for the community in hardest time — right? — when you have these types of event or any type of event, whether it’s gun violence, a loss — lives lost in a community, in a family. 

This is something that the president understands: what it’s like to lose — to lose a loved one.  And the first lady — as you know, she’s with us as well.  And so they’re going to be there with the family.  They’re going to offer up — you know, grieve with them, listen to them.  And so, I think this is also an important part — he believes, this is also an important part of — of the job that he believes he — he needs to do as president and should do.

Q    And just — just quickly on January 6th.  Just to circle back to Colleen’s question.  By not naming Trump in this op-ed, is there any concern that that contributes to the ability of this incoming president to rewrite what happened and his role in there? 

I mean, you have a president — an incoming president here, a president-elect, who is posting pictures of January 6th; who is not doing anything at this point to, you know, try to explain it; who is kind of showing, “Look, I can’t be held accountable”; you know, and going as far as saying, “We’re — I’m going to pardon, you know, these people who participated.” 

Is there any concern by the president not naming him, that that allows, you know, the president-elect to skirt accountability?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  And I hear your — your question, but I also think there are some — a couple things that we should focus on and what the president said, and I just want to read them really quickly.

“An unrelenting effort has been underway to rewrite — even erase — the history of that day.  [To] tell us we didn’t see what we… saw with our — with our own eyes.”  So, the president tries to address that, obviously, in his — in his op-ed.

“But when we sh- — but what” — and this — going back to the president’s op-ed, “but what — but we should not forget.  We must remember the wisdom of the adage that any nation that forgets its past is doomed to repeat it.  We cannot accept a repeat of what occurred four years ago.”

“Four years later, leaving office, I am determined to do everything I can to respect the peaceful transfer of power and restore the transi- — the traditions we have long respected in America.  The election will be certified peacefully.”  Obviously, that’s already happened, but this is from his op-ed this morning.

“I have invited the incoming president to the White House on the morning of January 20th, and I will be present for his inauguration that afternoon.” 

And I think what the president is trying to do is lead by example, calling out what happened four years ago, saying if we do not — if we do not pay attention and if we try to forget it, it will repeat itself.  And that — I think the president said that very clearly.

At the same time, the American people deserve a peaceful transfer of power.  They have spoken.  Right?  So, they — they deserve a peaceful transfer of power. 

Q    Is — is the implication there that if you were to get into naming Trump, that that puts that peaceful transfer of power at risk in some way?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I think that we had an election, majority of Americans spoke, and the president is respecting a free and fair election — something that wasn’t afforded to him four years ago.  He is doing it now. 

And he is saying, by leading by example, it is important to make sure that we have a peaceful transfer of power.  And I think what you’re — again, what I’m — what you’re seeing from this president and even this vice president today — our vice president, obviously, Kamala Harris, what she did today — was — was show that this is what — this is what the norm is.  This is what the norm is.

Q    I guess the question is: If — if the norms were broken, you know, four years ago, is the — is the idea of returning to a norm even possible anymore, you know?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, I think we showed it today.  I think the vice president showed it today.  Right?  And I think the president continues to show that, especially in this transition of power.  And so, lead — lead by example, and you see that from — from the both of them.

And I think that’s — I would — I — I think, and we believe, that’s what the American people want to see.  They want to see some norm.  They want to see a peaceful transfer of power.  It is important for our democracy.

All right, guys.  Thank you. 

Q    Thanks, Karine.

Q    Thank you.

Q    Thanks, Karine.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  See you on the ground.  Thank you, guys.  Appreciate it.

4:08 P.M. EST

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President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. welcomed President-elect Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia of Venezuela to the White House to discuss shared efforts to restore democracy in Venezuela.  President Biden emphasized that the world was inspired by the millions of Venezuelans who courageously voted for democratic change in Venezuela’s deeply flawed July 28 presidential election, as demonstrated through the collection of voting tally sheets that indicated that Gonzalez Urrutia received the most votes by an insurmountable margin.  Both leaders agreed there is nothing more essential to the success of democracy than respecting the will of the people, as expressed through a transparent and accountable electoral process, and that Gonzalez Urrutia’s campaign victory should be honored through a peaceful transfer back to democratic rule.  Both leaders also expressed deep concern regarding Nicolas Maduro and his representatives’ unacceptable and indiscriminate use of repression against peaceful protestors, democracy activists, and civil society.  President Biden noted he would be following the planned January 9 protests in Venezuela closely and emphasized Venezuelans should be allowed to express their political opinions peacefully without fear of reprisal from the military and police.  President Biden reiterated his support for Venezuela’s democratic aspirations and underscored the U.S. commitment to continue to hold Maduro and his representatives accountable for their anti-democratic and repressive actions, including by working closely with democratic allies in the hemisphere and around the world.

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On Monday, January 6, 2025, the President signed into law:

H.R. 4984, the “D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act,” which directs the Secretary of the Interior to transfer administrative jurisdiction over the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus to the District of Columbia to allow the District to use the Campus for stadium development, residential and commercial development, and other specified purposes.

Thank you to Representatives Comer and Norton for their leadership.

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Since the horrific attack conducted by a homegrown violent extremist inspired by ISIS took place in New Orleans on January 1, President Biden has directed his team to provide every possible resource to support the state and local response, as well as the victims and their families. The President and members of the Administration have been in contact with the Governor of Louisiana, the Mayor of New Orleans, and other state and local officials to ensure they have the resources and support they need in the wake of this attack.

Today, the President is committing additional federal resources to help the city of New Orleans prepare for upcoming major events including Mardi Gras and the Super Bowl.

• The Mardi Gras parades and certain related events occurring in New Orleans from February 21 to March 4 have been upgraded to a Special Event Assessment Rating of 1 (SEAR 1). Super Bowl LIX is also a SEAR 1 event. The Biden-Harris Administration has determined that these significant events require extensive federal interagency support, and will use every tool available to fill local capability shortfalls to assure safe and secure events.
• The federal government provides a federal coordination team and specialized assistance for all SEAR 1 events. Federal assistance could include explosive detection canine teams, cyber risk assessments, venue screening and field intelligence teams, and air security and tactical operations support in addition to the support already provided by state and local governments. More information on SEAR events is available here.

Since January 1, under the Biden-Harris Administration’s leadership, the federal government has driven actions to investigate the attack and provide resources to the victims, their families, and the New Orleans community.

• The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, and Department of Defense are coordinating on all aspects of the investigation.
• The FBI is operating a command post in its New Orleans office that includes federal personnel as well as state and local authorities.
• The FBI has deployed additional special agents, analysts, and bomb technicians to assist in the investigation and liaise with local authorities. 
• The FBI’s Victim Services Division has engaged the FBI Language Services Section (LSS) to provide interpretation services in French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Vietnamese, as needed.
• On January 3, theU.S. Small Business Administration announced that small businesses and private nonprofit organizations in Louisiana may now apply for federal disaster loans to offset economic losses caused by this attack.
• On January 5, the FBI opened a Family Assistance Center at St. Martin De Porres Catholic Church in New Orleans where Victims Services Officers are providing assistance to survivors, the family members of those deceased, and other members of the community impacted by the tragedy. This assistance includes lodging assistance, creditor/financial assistance, crisis intervention, and the provision of on-site mental health services, and other programs to support healing and recovery.

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Today, U.S. National Security Advisor (APNSA) Jake Sullivan met with Indian National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, and Prime Minister Modi in New Delhi as the United States and India continue to forge a strategic technology partnership that benefits both of our countries and our partners around the world.  APNSA Sullivan and NSA Doval launched the U.S.-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) in 2022 at the direction of President Biden and Prime Minister Modi.  In the intervening years, our two nations have taken significant steps forward together to integrate our technology and defense supply chains in recognition that, now more than ever, we need to work with our partners to build a trusted and resilient innovation base.

During their capstone meeting, APNSA Sullivan and NSA Doval underscored the vital importance of our efforts to jointly produce and develop strategic technologies that will allow us to deliver secure, reliable, and cost-competitive technology solutions for the world. As the United States and India deepen collaboration across key sectors – from space to semiconductors, biotechnology, cybersecurity, advanced telecommunications, and clean energy – we have seen the promise of our partnership deliver results.  Our partnership has also anchored multilateral work with like-minded nations from across the Indo-Pacific and Europe, including the Bio-5 Biopharmaceutical Supply Chain Consortium, the U.S.-India-ROK Technology Trilateral, and ongoing cooperation with Australia and Japan through the Quad.

Finally, APNSA Sullivan and NSA Doval reaffirmed our shared resolve to adapt and strengthen our technology protection toolkits and discussed efforts to address national security concerns associated with overcapacity in key technology sectors.  At the same time, they commended the progress we have made to address long-standing barriers to bilateral strategic trade, technology, and industrial cooperation.

The two national security leaders expressed their confidence that the bridges we have built across our governments, industry, and academia will endure and reflected on the significant achievements we have driven across every dimension of the technological enterprise – from the seabed to the stars, and beyond.  This includes:

Launching a New Era in Space Technology Cooperation

• Announcing the first-ever joint effort between American and Indian astronauts at the International Space Station with the launch of Axiom-4 scheduled to take place this spring, which will mark a significant milestone in the U.S.-India human spaceflight partnership and space exploration; 
• Reducing barriers to collaboration around commercial space technology following the U.S. government’s recent conclusion of updates to Missile Technology Control Regime export policy, which will open the door to additional technology licensing and co-development opportunities in support of the U.S.-India space partnership;
• Working toward the launch of a new bilateral space accelerator to promote commercial space cooperation, including around lunar exploration, human spaceflight, geospatial data and services, and the co-development of technology;
• Celebrating the conclusion of a Strategic Framework for Human Spaceflight Cooperation to deepen interoperability in space and working toward the imminent completion of additional agreements to commence advanced training for ISRO astronauts and ground personnel at the NASA Johnson Space Center and for joint experiments at the International Space Station;
• Preparing for the launch of the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar, a jointly developed satellite that will map the entirety of the Earth’s surface twice every 12 days as the United States and India work together to combat climate change and other global challenges, this spring;
• Deciding to hold the first bilateral experts’ exchange on space situational awareness and space traffic coordination in the first half of this year.  This exchange builds upon the two nations’ shared commitment to pursue opportunities for deeper collaboration to ensure safe and sustainable space operations;
• Exploring additional avenues for cooperation in space exploration technologies, including docking and interoperability demonstration missions, as well as India’s participation in the United States Traffic Coordination System for Space program. 
  

Deepening Defense Innovation and Industrial Cooperation

• Welcoming the advancement of discussions between Ultra Maritime and Bharat Dynamics Limited to enhance undersea domain awareness through a first-of-its-kind partnership on co-production of U.S. sonobuoys in support of the U.S. and Indian defense industrial bases;
• Welcoming India’s acquisition of the MQ-9B platforms, the possible co-production of land warfare systems, and progress on other co-production initiatives outlined in the U.S.-India Roadmap for Defense Industrial Cooperation;
• Celebrating the third edition of the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) Summit which took place at Stanford University in September 2024, and highlighting the continued progress under INDUS-X, including the Gurukul Educational Sessions and the launch of a third joint challenge on space situational awareness in low earth orbit;
• Welcoming the completion of an upgraded Memorandum of Understanding between the Defense Innovation Unit and the Defense Innovation Organization to expand cooperation on defense innovation and deepen collaboration between the U.S. and Indian startup ecosystems;
• Deepening cooperation between the U.S. Defense Innovation Unit and India’s Innovations for Defense Excellence to accelerate the joint adoption of cutting-edge commercial technologies for military solutions and capability enhancement of both countries’ defense ecosystems;
• Noting continued progress in the discussions between GE Aerospace and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for the co-production of GE F414-INS6 engines to power India’s future fighter fleet;
• Expanding defense industrial partnerships, such as the launch of an AI Multi-Doman Situational Awareness product jointly developed by General Atomics and 114ai to support joint all domain command and control.
  

Building a Clean Energy and a Critical Minerals Partnership for the 21st Century

• Advancing discussions to unlock new commercial partnerships around the deployment of small modular reactor technology in India;
• Reflecting the progress the United States and India have made—and will continue to make—as strategic partners and countries with a shared commitment to peaceful nuclear cooperation, NSA Sullivan announced US efforts to finalize necessary steps to delist Indian nuclear entities, which will promote civil nuclear cooperation and resilient clean energy supply chains;
• Commending the signing of a bilateral Critical Minerals Memorandum of Understanding between the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Ministry of Mines, and driving additional areas of cooperation in critical mineral supply chains such as for graphite, gallium, and germanium;
• Advancing collaboration between U.S. and Indian organizations and companies for carrying out research studies for beneficiation and co-development of processing technologies for critical minerals, including lithium, titanium, gallium, and vanadium;
• Building a collaborative program between the Geological Survey of India and the U.S. Geological Survey on exploration, characterization and evaluation of rare earth elements and critical mineral deposits.
  

Promoting Strategic Semiconductor Supply Chain Partnerships

• Advancing a strategic semiconductor partnership between the U.S. Space Force and 3rdiTech to establish a compound semiconductor fabrication plant in India to manufacture infrared, gallium nitride, and silicon carbide semiconductors that will be used in national security-relevant platforms; this includes favorably reviewing a technical assistance agreement and export licenses to promote technology transfers;
• Building on the U.S.-India Semiconductor Supply Chain and Innovation Partnership MOU and promoting secure, resilient, and sustainable semiconductor supply chains through continued collaboration between the U.S. Department of Commerce and the India Semiconductor Mission, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology including facilitating investments in semiconductor manufacturing and strengthening R&D collaboration around state-of-the-art semiconductor and packaging technologies.
  

Building New Collaboration around AI, Advanced Computing, and Quantum

• Developing a government-to-government framework for promoting reciprocal investments in AI technology and aligning protections around the diffusion of AI technology;
• Strengthening cooperation around the national security applications of AI, following the U.S. government’s recent issuance of a National Security Memorandum on AI last fall, and promoting safe, secure, and trustworthy development of AI;
• Noting the importance of sustained engagement for cooperation on Quantum Information Science and Technology (QIST) as agreed to in the second meeting of the U.S.-India Quantum Coordination Mechanism held last August, during which both countries committed to achieving concrete outcomes;
• Initiating new cooperation in quantum science and technology, including through a workshop on post-quantum cryptography and quantum hardware held at the University of California, Los Angeles in September 2023 and facilitating visits of Indian technical experts from academia and the private sector to visit U.S. national laboratories and quantum institutions.
  

Bridging our People, Talent, and Innovation Bases

• Celebrating progress toward opening U.S. Consulate Bengaluru in early 2025 and continuing work to establish new Indian Consulates in Boston and Los Angeles;
• Advancing a “Bio-X” initiative that would promote biotechnology cooperation by leveraging the synergies between domestic programs and enhancing the competitiveness of the biotechnology industries in both countries;
• Celebrating steps that expand of the ability of top AI scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs from India to come to the United States, including rulemaking that modernized the U.S. H-1B application process, recent clarifications of the rules for O-1 visas and other visa categories, and other efforts that have streamlined visa processing;
• Noting the recently launched U.S.-India Advanced Materials R&D Forum, which convened its inaugural meeting in November 2024, to expand collaboration between U.S. and Indian universities, national laboratories, and private sector researchers.
  

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National Security Advisor of India Shri Ajit Doval met with U.S. National Security Advisor Mr. Jake Sullivan in New Delhi on 6 January, 2025.  NSA Sullivan was accompanied by a delegation of senior U.S. government officials. 

The two NSAs have engaged regularly in a high-level dialogue through extensive discussions on a broad bilateral, regional and global agenda.  Following the launch of the India-US Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) by Prime Minister Modi and President Joseph Biden on the side lines of the Quad Summit in Tokyo on 24 May 2022, the two NSAs have driven concrete initiatives between the two countries across a range of areas including Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Computing, Semiconductors, Telecommunications, Defence and Space. 

The current visit gave them the opportunity to review ongoing progress in their high-level dialogue, including in diverse fields such as Defence, Cyber and Maritime Security.  

US NSA Jake Sullivan briefed the Indian side on the updates brought out by the Biden administration to U.S. missile export control policies under the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) that will boost US commercial space cooperation with India. Reflecting the progress the United States and India have made—and will continue to make—as strategic partners and countries with a shared commitment to peaceful nuclear cooperation, NSA Sullivan announced US efforts to finalize necessary steps to delist Indian nuclear entities, which will promote civil nuclear cooperation and resilient clean energy supply chains.

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MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR

SUBJECT:       Withdrawal of Certain Areas of the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Oil or Natural Gas Leasing

Consistent with principles of responsible public stewardship, and with due consideration of the irreplaceable marine and coastal environments, including wildlife and wildlife habitat, of the Bering Sea; and independently with due consideration of the vulnerability of these ecosystems and coastal communities, where limited or no oil and natural gas development has yet occurred, to oil spills; and independently with due consideration of the national need to curtail, mitigate, build resilience against, and adapt to the devastating and irreversible consequences of climate change for the human environment and for the marine and coastal environments, I hereby direct as follows:

Under the authority granted to me in section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. 1341(a), I hereby withdraw from disposition by oil or natural gas leasing for a time period without specific expiration the remaining areas that are part of the Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area, designated in Executive Order 13754 of December 9, 2016 (Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience), and that are not currently withdrawn from disposition by leasing.  The Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area includes waters within the United States Exclusive Economic Zone bounded to the north by the seaward boundary of the Bering Straits Native Corporation established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.); to the south by the southern boundaries of the Northern Bering Sea Research Area, the St. Matthew Habitat Conservation Area, and the Nunivak-Kuskokwim Habitat Conservation Area; and to the west by the maritime boundary delimited by the Agreement Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Maritime Boundary, signed at Washington, June 1, 1990.  This withdrawal does not affect the prior withdrawal made in the Norton Basin Planning Area by Executive Order 13754, or the withdrawal of the North Aleutian Planning Area by the Presidential Memorandum of December 16, 2014 (Withdrawal of Certain Areas of the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Leasing Disposition).

The boundaries of the withdrawn areas are more specifically delineated in the attached map.  The map forms a part of this memorandum.  The withdrawal directed by this memorandum prevents consideration of the withdrawn areas for any future oil or natural gas leasing for purposes of exploration, development, or production.

Nothing in this withdrawal affects rights under existing leases in the withdrawn areas.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR

SUBJECT:       Withdrawal of Certain Areas of the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Oil or Natural Gas Leasing

Consistent with principles of responsible public stewardship, and with due consideration of the irreplaceable marine and coastal environments, including wildlife and wildlife habitat, of the Gulf of Mexico, Atlantic, and Pacific areas of the Outer Continental Shelf; and independently with due consideration of the vulnerability of these ecosystems and coastal communities, where limited or no oil and natural gas development has yet occurred, to oil spills; and independently with due consideration of the benefits of expeditious and orderly development of the vital renewable energy resources of the Gulf of Mexico, Atlantic, and Pacific areas of the Outer Continental Shelf; and independently with due consideration of the national need to curtail, mitigate, build resilience against, and adapt to the devastating and irreversible consequences of climate change for the human environment and for the marine and coastal environments, I hereby direct as follows:

Under the authority granted to me in section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. 1341(a), I hereby withdraw from disposition by oil or natural gas leasing for a time period without specific expiration:

(a)  the areas designated by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management as the North Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Straits of Florida Planning Areas of the Outer Continental Shelf;

(b)  the areas of the Outer Continental Shelf designated by section 104(a) of the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-432); and

(c)  the areas designated by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management as the Washington/Oregon, Northern California, Central California, and Southern California Planning Areas of the Outer Continental Shelf.

The boundaries of the withdrawn areas are more specifically delineated in the attached map.  The map forms a part of this memorandum.  The withdrawal directed by this memorandum prevents consideration of withdrawn areas for any future oil or natural gas leasing for purposes of exploration, development, or production.

Nothing in this withdrawal affects rights under existing leases in the withdrawn areas.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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President Biden has now conserved over 670 million acres of America’s lands and waters, more than any other president in history

Today President Biden will take action to protect the entire U.S. East coast, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, the Pacific off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California, and additional portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska from future oil and natural gas leasing. In protecting more than 625 million acres of the U.S. ocean from offshore drilling, President Biden has determined that the environmental and economic risks and harms that would result from drilling in these areas outweigh their limited fossil fuel resource potential. With these withdrawals, President Biden is protecting coastal communities, marine ecosystems, and local economies – including fishing, recreation, and tourism – from oil spills and other impacts of offshore drilling.

Nearly forty percent of Americans live in coastal counties that rely on a healthy ocean to thrive. With today’s action, President Biden is ensuring that these regions can remain healthy and safe from the risk of oil spills resulting from development that would do little, if anything, to meet the nation’s energy needs.

Nearly 400 municipalities and over 2,300 elected local, state, Tribal, and federal officials across the Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf coasts have formally opposed the expansion of offshore drilling in these areas in view of its severe environmental, health, and economic threats. Nearly every Governor along the East and West Coasts – Republicans and Democrats alike – has expressed concerns about expanded oil and gas drilling off their coastlines. In Alaska, the new Northern Bering Sea protections are consistent with a long-standing request from more than 70 coastal Tribes based on the need to help sustain a vital and threatened ocean area, and the natural resources it contains that Indigenous communities have stewarded and relied on for subsistence since time immemorial.

Following this action, President Biden will have conserved more lands and waters than any other U.S. president in history.

Protecting the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Eastern Gulf of Mexico and Northern Bering Sea from Offshore Drilling

Using his authority under Section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, President Biden is issuing two Presidential Memoranda to protect all U.S. Outer Continental Shelf areas off the East and West coasts, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, and additional portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska from future oil and natural gas leasing. The withdrawals have no expiration date, and prohibit all future oil and natural gas leasing in the areas withdrawn. President Biden first used this authority in January of 2021 when he restored protections for part of the Northern Bering Sea, and again in March 2023 to withdraw 2.8 million acres of the Beaufort Sea from future oil and gas leasing, which completed protections for the entire U.S. Arctic Ocean.

Today’s action will safeguard three distinct ocean and coastal regions:

• The entire eastern U.S. Atlantic coast and the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. President Biden is protecting approximately 334 million acres of the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) from Canada to the southern tip of Florida, and the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. There are currently no active oil and natural gas leases in Federal waters off the eastern Atlantic coast. The southern section of this withdrawal matches a previous Congressional withdrawal enacted by the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006, and a subsequent time-limited 12(a) withdrawal issued by the previous administration that would have expired in 2032 without today’s protections. Today’s withdrawal builds on those prior withdrawals and helps safeguard the multi-billion-dollar fishing and tourism economies in these states.  
  
  
• The Pacific Coast along California, Oregon, and Washington. This withdrawal protects nearly 250 million acres of Federal waters off the West Coast of the mainland U.S. that are prime habitat for seals, sea lions, whales, fish, and countless seabirds. The State of California has had a moratorium on issuing new leases in its state waters since 1969, and the last Federal lease sale in the area being withdrawn was offshore of Southern California in 1984. The Governors of these states have called for full protection of their coasts for decades.

• The remaining portion of the Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area in Alaska. This withdrawal will protect 44 million acres of the Northern Bering Sea in far northwest Alaska that is home to fish, sea birds, and other wildlife and where there are no existing oil and gas leases. The Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area was established in 2016 and includes one of the largest marine mammal migrations in the world – beluga and bowhead whales, walruses, and seals travel the funnel of the Bering Strait each year to feed and breed in the Arctic. This is an area where oil and gas development would pose severe dangers to coastal communities, and where the health of these waters is critically important to food security and to the culture of more than 70 coastal Tribes, including the Yup’ik, Cup’ik, and Inupiaq people who have relied on these resources for millennia. The Alaskan Congressional delegation has opposed previous proposals to allow oil and gas leasing and drilling in the area.

Building on a Historic Ocean Conservation and Climate Legacy

Today’s actions build upon the Biden-Harris Administration’s ambitious climate agenda and unprecedented commitment to protect America’s natural wonders now and for future generations. The withdrawals advance two important Biden-Harris Administration priorities: honoring and protecting areas of significance to Tribal Nations and Indigenous peoples as well as States and other stakeholders; and helping to ensure our oceans and coasts are resilient to the threats of climate change and nature loss. 

The Biden-Harris Administration’s climate and conservation record includes creating three new national marine sanctuaries and a new national estuarine research reserve, including the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of Central California; advancing designations for four additional sanctuaries; safeguarding Bristol Bay salmon fisheries; approving more than 19 gigawatts of offshore wind projects, enough to power more than 6 million homes; investing $2.6 billion in coastal communities; and releasing the first-ever U. S. Ocean Climate Action Plan.

With today’s withdrawals, President Biden has now conserved more than 670 million acres of U.S. lands, waters, and ocean – more than any president in history. This includes establishing or expanding ten national monuments and restoring protections for three more; creating six new national wildlife refuges; protecting the Boundary Waters of Minnesota, the nation’s most visited wilderness area; and withdrawing Chaco Canyon in New Mexico, Pactola Reservoir in South Dakota, and Thompson Divide in Colorado from further mineral, oil, and gas leasing.  

These actions are helping advance the President’s America the Beautiful initiative, which is supporting locally led conservation efforts with a goal to protect, conserve, and restore at least 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030.

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I am taking action to protect the East and West coasts, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, and Alaska’s Northern Bering Sea from oil and natural gas drilling and the harm it can cause. My decision reflects what coastal communities, businesses, and beachgoers have known for a long time: that drilling off these coasts could cause irreversible damage to places we hold dear and is unnecessary to meet our nation’s energy needs. It is not worth the risks. As the climate crisis continues to threaten communities across the country and we are transitioning to a clean energy economy, now is the time to protect these coasts for our children and grandchildren.

From California to Florida, Republican and Democratic Governors, Members of Congress, and coastal communities alike have worked and called for greater protection of our ocean and coastlines from harms that offshore oil and natural gas drilling can bring. In Alaska, dozens of Tribes have fought to protect the Northern Bering Sea, a vital ocean ecosystem that supports their traditional ways of life. Vice President Harris and I have listened. In balancing the many uses and benefits of America’s ocean, it is clear to me that the relatively minimal fossil fuel potential in the areas I am withdrawing do not justify the environmental, public health, and economic risks that would come from new leasing and drilling.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill, a man-made catastrophe that took the lives of eleven people and spilled millions of barrels of oil into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, is a solemn reminder of the costs and risks of offshore drilling to the health and resilience of our coasts and fisheries and underscores the importance of the legal protections I am putting in place today. It is also one of the reasons why on my watch we have strengthened offshore safety standards for workers and communities on the front lines of existing operations nationwide, and rapidly accelerated the development of safer and cleaner energy sources, including the approval of eleven offshore wind projects.

From Day One, I have delivered on the most ambitious climate and conservation agenda in our country’s history. And over the last four years, I have conserved more than 670 million acres of America’s lands and waters, more than any other president in history. Our country’s remarkable conservation and restoration progress has been locally led by Tribes, farmers and ranchers, fishermen, small businesses, and outdoor recreation enthusiasts across the country. Together, our “America the Beautiful” initiative put the United States on track to meet my ambitious goal to conserve at least 30 percent of our Nation’s lands and waters by 2030. 

We do not need to choose between protecting the environment and growing our economy, or between keeping our ocean healthy, our coastlines resilient, and the food they produce secure and keeping energy prices low. Those are false choices. Protecting America’s coasts and ocean is the right thing to do, and will help communities and the economy to flourish for generations to come.

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Yesterday, I was proud to sign into law the Women’s Suffrage National Monument Location Act, authorizing the placement of a monument honoring the women’s suffrage movement on the National Mall. In addition to commemorating the ratification of the 19th Amendment, the Women’s Suffrage National Monument will recognize the generations of women who fought to ensure an equal voice for women in our democracy and honor the leaders who fought for the enfranchisement of all women long after the 19th Amendment was ratified. Vice President Harris and I are committed to defending equal rights for all Americans, to strengthening the federal government’s recognition of women’s contributions to our nation’s history, and to inspiring the next generation to create a more equal future for all.

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On Saturday, January 4, 2025, the President signed into law:

H.R. 670, the “Think Differently Database Act,” which requires HHS to establish a website to provide information on resources available to individuals with a disability and their caregivers and families;

Thank you to Representatives Molinaro and Sherrill, and Senators Schmitt and Ossoff for their leadership.

H.R. 1318, the “Women’s Suffrage National Monument Location Act,” which authorizes a commemorative work to commemorate the women’s suffrage movement and the passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution;

Thank you to Representatives Neguse and Lesko, and Senators Baldwin and Blackburn for their leadership.

H.R. 2997, the “Clifton Opportunities Now for Vibrant Economic Yields Act” or as the “CONVEY Act,” which directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey to Mesa County, Colorado all rights, title, and interest of the United States to a specified property;

Thank you to Representatives Boebert, Buck and Lamborn, and Senators Hickenlooper and Bennet for their leadership.

H.R. 3391, the “Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act 2.0,” which reauthorizes the Gabriella Miller Kids First Pediatric Research program at the National Institutes of Health;

Thank you to Representative Wexton, and Senators Kaine and Warner for their leadership.

H.R. 5103, the “Fishery Improvement to Streamline untimely regulatory Hurdles post Emergency Situation Act or the FISHES Act,” which establishes procedures for the review of spend plans submitted to the Department of Commerce by requesters seeking fishery resource disaster assistance funding;

Thank you to Representatives Donalds and Peltola, Senators Rick Scott, Sullivan, Murkowski, and Rubio, and many others for their leadership.

H.R. 5443, the “Accelerating Appraisals and Conservation Efforts Act” or the “AACE Act,” which authorizes non-Federal land appraisers to perform certain services on behalf of the Department of the Interior in any State;

Thank you to Representatives Susie Lee and Dave Joyce, and Senators Cortez Masto and Rosen for their leadership.

H.R. 5887, the “Government Service Delivery Improvement Act,” which requires the designation of OMB and agency officials responsible for improving government service delivery;

Thank you to Representatives Khanna, Timmons, Donalds and Loudermilk, and Senators Hassan and Marshall for their leadership.

H.R. 6062, which restores the ability of the people of American Samoa to approve amendments to the territorial constitution based on majority rule in a democratic act of self-determination, as authorized pursuant to an Act of Congress delegating administration of Federal territorial law in the territory to the President, and to the Secretary of the Interior under Executive Order 10264, dated June 29, 1951, under which the Constitution of American Samoa was approved and may be amended without requirement for further congressional action, subject to the authority of Congress under the Territorial Clause in article IV, section 3, clause 2 of the United States Constitution;

Thank you to Representative Radewagen for her leadership.

H.R. 6395, the “Recognizing the Importance of Critical Minerals in Healthcare Act of 2023,” which amends the Energy Act of 2020 to require the Secretary of the Interior to include the Secretary of Health and Human Services in consultations regarding designations of critical minerals, elements, substances, and materials;

Thank you to Representatives Curtis and DeGette for their leadership.

H.R. 6492, the “Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act” or the “EXPLORE Act,” which improves recreation opportunities on, and facilitates greater access to, Federal public lands;

Thank you to Representatives Westerman, Grijalva, Curtis, Neguse, Lamborn, Barragán, Moylan, Peltola, Carl, Susie Lee, Radewagen, Porter, Wittman, Sablan, Kiggans, Dingell, Collins, Leger Fernandez, Levin and Case, and Senators Manchin and Barrasso for their leadership.

H.R. 6852, the “Holcombe Rucker Park National Commemorative Site Act,” which designates Holcombe Rucker Park as a National Commemorative Site;

Thank you to Representative Espaillat for his leadership.

H.R. 7158, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 201 East Battles Road in Santa Maria, California, as the “Larry Lavagnino Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Carbajal for his leadership.

H.R. 7180, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 80 1st Street in Kingsland, Arkansas, as the “Kingsland ‘Johnny Cash’ Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Westerman for his leadership.

H.R. 7365, the “Veterans Expedited TSA Screening Safe Travel Act” or the “VETS Safe Travel Act,” which makes certain disabled veterans eligible for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) PreCheck Program at no cost if they meet the program’s background check and security requirements;

Thank you to Representative Gosar for his leadership.

H.R. 7385, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 29 Franklin Street in Petersburg, Virginia, as the “John Mercer Langston Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative McClellan and Senator Warner for their leadership.

H.R. 7417, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 135 West Spring Street in Titusville, Pennsylvania, as the “Edwin L. Drake Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Mike Kelly for his leadership.

H.R. 7507, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 203 East 6th Street in Lexington, Nebraska, as the William E. and Elsie L. Barrett Post Office Building;

Thank you to Representative Adrian Smith and Senator Ricketts for their leadership.

H.R. 7508, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1285 Emancipation Highway in Fredericksburg, Virginia, as the “Gladys P. Todd Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Spanberger for her leadership.

H.R. 7606, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1087 Route 47 South in Rio Grande, New Jersey, as the “Carlton H. Hand Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Van Drew for his leadership.

H.R. 7607, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at Block 1025, Lots 18 & 19, Northeast Corner of US Route 9 South and Main Street in the Township of Middle, County of Cape May, New Jersey, as the “George Henry White Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Van Drew for his leadership.

H.R. 7893, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 306 Pickens Street in Marion, Alabama, as the “Albert Turner, Sr. Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Sewell for her leadership.

H.R. 7938, the “Klamath Basin Water Agreement Support Act of 2024,” which amends the Klamath Basin Water Supply Enhancement Act of 2000 to provide the Secretary of the Interior with certain authorities affecting the Klamath Basin;

Thank you to Representative Bentz, and Senators Wyden and Merkley for their leadership.

H.R. 8012, the “Jackie Robinson Ballpark National Commemorative Site Act,” which designates the Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach, Florida, as a Commemorative Site and makes the Site a part of the African American Civil Rights Network;

Thank you to Representatives Waltz and Soto, and Senators Rubio and Warnock for their leadership.

H.R. 8057, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 9317 Bolsa Avenue in Westminster, California, as the “Little Saigon Vietnam War Veterans Memorial Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Steel for her leadership.

H.R. 8641, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 401 Main Street in Brawley, California, as the “Walter Francis Ulloa Memorial Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Ruiz for his leadership.

H.R. 8666, which amends title 28, United States Code, to authorize holding court for the Central Division of Utah in Moab and Monticello;

Thank you to Representatives Maloy and Curtis for their leadership.

H.R. 8667, which renames the community-based outpatient clinic of the Department of Veterans Affairs in Cadillac, Michigan, as the “Duane E. Dewey VA Clinic”;

Thank you to Representative Moolenaar for his leadership.

H.R. 8717, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 20 West Main Street in Santaquin, Utah, as the “SGT Bill Hooser Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Owens for his leadership.

H.R. 8841, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 114 Center Street East in Roseau, Minnesota, as the “Floyd B. Olson Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Fischbach and Senator Klobuchar for their leadership.

H.R. 8868, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 609 Portsmouth Avenue in Greenland, New Hampshire, as the “Chief Michael Maloney Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Pappas for his leadership.

H.R. 8909, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 82–6110 Mamalahoa Highway in Captain Cook, Hawaii, as the “Army 1st Lt. John Kuulei Kauhaihao Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Tokuda for her leadership.

H.R. 8919, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 151 Highway 74 South in Peachtree City, Georgia, as the “SFC Shawn McCloskey Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Ferguson for his leadership.

H.R. 8976, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 20 West White Street in Millstadt, Illinois, as the “Corporal Matthew A. Wyatt Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Bost for his leadership.

H.R. 9076, the “Supporting America’s Children and Families Act,” which reauthorizes and modify child welfare grant programs and child support enforcement;

Thank you to Representatives LaHood and Danny Davis for their leadership.

H.R. 9124, which names the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Auburn, California, as the “Louis A. Conter VA Clinic”;

Thank you to Representative Kiley for his leadership.

H.R. 9285, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 3913 Leland Avenue Northwest in Comstock Park, Michigan, as the “Captain Miguel Justin Nava Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Scholten for her leadership.

H.R. 9322, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 675 Wolf Ledges Parkway in Akron, Ohio, as the “Judge James R. Williams Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Sykes for her leadership.

H.R. 9421, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 108 North Main Street in Bucoda, Washington, as the “Mayor Rob Gordon Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Gluesenkamp Perez for her leadership.

H.R. 9487, the “House Office of Legislative Counsel Modernization Act,” which authorizes the Legislative Counsel of the House of Representatives to designate more than one of the attorneys of the Office of the Legislative Counsel as a Deputy Legislative Counsel;

Thank you to Representatives Steil and Morelle for their leadership.

H.R. 9544, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 340 South Loudon Avenue in Baltimore, Maryland, as the “United States Representative Elijah E. Cummings Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Mfume and Senator Cardin for their leadership.

H.R. 9549, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 125 South 1st Avenue in Hillsboro, Oregon, as the “Elizabeth Furse Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Bonamici for her leadership.

H.R. 9580, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2777 Brentwood Road in Raleigh, North Carolina, as the “Millie Dunn Veasey Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Ross for her leadership.

H.R. 9592, the “Federal Register Modernization Act of 2024,” which provides for changes to the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations;

Thank you to Representatives Clay Higgins and Connolly for their leadership.

H.R. 9600, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 119 Main Street in Plains, Georgia, as the “Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Sanford Bishop for his leadership.

H.R. 9775, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 119 North Anderson Street in Elwood, Indiana, as the “Officer Noah Jacob Shahnavaz Post Office Building”;

Thank you to Representative Spartz for her leadership.

H.R. 10065, which designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 802 North Tancahua Street in Corpus Christi, Texas, as the “Captain Robert E. ‘Bob’ Batterson Post Office”;

Thank you to Representative Cloud for his leadership.

S. 2181, the “Keeping Military Families Together Act of 2024,” which extends two current Department of Veterans Affairs burial authorities;

Thank you to Senators Peters, Sullivan, Cramer and Brown, and Representatives Pappas and Moylan for their leadership.

S. 4367, the “Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act of 2024,” which authorizes construction of Army Corps of Engineers water resources projects for flood risk management, navigation, hurricane and storm damage risk reduction, and ecosystem restoration; modifies previously authorized projects; and contains other water related provisions.

Thank you to Senators Carper, Capito, Kelly and Cramer, and Representatives Sam Graves, Rick Larsen, Napolitano and Rouzer for their leadership.

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The post Press Release: Bills Signed: H.R. 670, H.R. 1318, H.R. 2997, H.R. 3391, H.R. 5103, H.R. 5443, H.R. 5887, H.R. 6062, H.R. 6395, H.R. 6492, H.R. 6852, H.R. 7158, H.R. 7180, H.R. 7365, H.R. 7385, H.R. 7417, H.R. 7507, H.R. 7508… appeared first on The White House.

Today, President Biden named nineteen recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the Nation’s highest civilian honor, presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.

President Biden believes great leaders keep the faith, give everyone a fair shot, and put decency above all else. These nineteen individuals are great leaders who have made America and the world a better place. They are great leaders because they are good people who have made extraordinary contributions to their country and the world.

The awards will be presented at the White House on January 4, 2025. The following individuals will be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom:

José Andrés 

José Andrés is a renowned Spanish-American culinary innovator who popularized tapas in the United States. His World Central Kitchen provides large-scale relief to communities affected by natural disasters and conflict around the world.

Bono

Bono is the frontman for legendary rock band U2 and a pioneering activist against AIDS and poverty. He brought together politicians from opposing parties to create the United States PEPFAR AIDS program, and is co-founder of campaigning organizations ONE and (RED).

Ashton Baldwin Carter (posthumous)

Ash Carter served as the 25th Secretary of Defense and devoted his career to making the nation safer for all. Throughout his career, he served under 11 Secretaries of Defense in both Democratic and Republican administrations.

Hillary Rodham Clinton

Secretary Clinton made history many times over decades in public service, including as the first First Lady elected to the United States Senate. After serving as Secretary of State, she became the first woman nominated for president by a major United States political party.

Michael J. Fox

Michael J. Fox is an actor who has won five Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Grammy Award. He is a world-renowned advocate for Parkinson’s disease research and development.

Tim Gill

Tim Gill is a visionary entrepreneur whose work has advanced LGBTQI rights and equality. After transforming the publishing industry through groundbreaking software, he leveraged his success to secure key victories in the fight for marriage equality and anti-discrimination protections.

Jane Goodall

Dr. Jane Goodall is a world-renowned ethologist and conservationist whose research transformed our understanding of primates and human evolution. She is a passionate advocate for empowering individuals and communities to protect and preserve the natural world.

Fannie Lou Hamer (posthumous)

Mrs. Fannie Lou Hamer transformed the struggle for racial justice in America. As a founder of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, she challenged the exclusion of Black voices in the political system and laid the groundwork for the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Earvin “Magic” Johnson

Earvin “Magic” Johnson is a legendary retired basketball player who led the Los Angeles Lakers to five championships. Off the court, he is a successful entrepreneur and philanthropist who supports underserved communities through his Magic Johnson Foundation.

Robert Francis Kennedy (posthumous)

Robert Francis Kennedy is remembered as an Attorney General who fiercely combatted racial segregation, and as a United States Senator who sought to address poverty and inequality in the country. His legacy continues to inspire those committed to justice, equality, and public service.

Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren is a fashion designer who redefined the fashion industry with a lifestyle brand that embodies timeless elegance and American tradition. He has influenced culture, business, and philanthropy, notably in the fight against cancer and the preservation of the Star-Spangled Banner.

Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi is the most decorated player in the history of professional soccer. He supports healthcare and education programs for children around the world through the Leo Messi Foundation and serves as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

William Sanford Nye

Bill Nye has inspired and influenced generations of American students as “Bill Nye the Science Guy.” His dedication to science education continues through his work as CEO of the Planetary Society and as a vocal advocate for space exploration and environmental stewardship.

George W. Romney (posthumous)

George Romney was a businessman who served as the chairman and president of American Motors Corporation. A public servant, he later served as both the 43rd Governor of Michigan and the 3rd Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

David M. Rubenstein

David Rubenstein is co-founder and co-chairman of The Carlyle Group, where he built one of the most successful global investment firms. He is renowned for his philanthropy and generous support for the restoration of historic landmarks and the country’s cultural institutions.

George Soros

George Soros is an investor, philanthropist, and founder of the Open Society Foundations. Through his network of foundations, partners and projects in more than 120 countries, Soros has focused on global initiatives that strengthen democracy, human rights, education, and social justice.

George Stevens, Jr. 

George Stevens, Jr. is an award-winning writer, director, author, and playwright. His career has been dedicated to preserving and celebrating the best of American film and the performing arts, including by founding the American Film Institute and creating the Kennedy Center Honors.

Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington is an actor, director, and producer who has won two Academy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globes, and the 2016 Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award. He has also served as National Spokesman for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America for over 25 years.

Anna Wintour

Anna Wintour is a renowned fashion icon who has led Vogue as editor-in-chief since 1988. A champion for philanthropic causes, she is also the leading architect behind the annual Met Gala fundraiser and chief content officer of Condé Nast.

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