Connect to Congress: Nevada's Horsford talks inflation, interest rate hike, Lake Mead

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — U.S. Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nevada, sat down with Connect to Congress to talk about some of the issues facing residents of the Silver State.

ON EMPLOYMENT NUMBERS/INFLATION

"I recognize the need to support my constituents who are faced with the cost of living, one of the biggest costs is rent...that's increased nearly 30% over the last year, that's why I introduced the 'Home Act' to housing oversight to go after these out-of-state corporate investors that are buying up one out of three homes in parts of my district, pricing out seniors and veterans, hard-working Nevadans, so that we can hold them accountable. They are not interested in our communities, they are not trying to build us up. In fact, they're gouging my constituents."

INFLATION NUMBERS AREN'T GOING DOWN FOR ANOTHER YEAR-- WHAT IS CONGRESS DOING?

"Specifically around affordable housing, what we've already done in the American Rescue Plan, we provided historic relief. In Nevada, it was over $300 million for rental assistance for mortgage mitigation and help people avoid being evicted. Now we're working to hold those accountable who have been doing the price gouging, and in this case in my state, it's these out-of-state corporate investors."

"I've introduced the Home Act, legislation that would deploy the secretary of housing and urban development to go after these investors to find them where we prove manipulation and price gouging and take those fines and fees and put them into a national housing trust fund to provide more affordable housing."

ON THE FED'S LATEST INTEREST HIKE

"The Fed is an independent body with no direct oversight to Congress. After more than a decade of historically low interest rates, they are now making corrections and this is part of what's happening in our economy. This isn't just something happening in the U.S. It's a global issues around inflation. That's why we're working every single day here in Congress to lower the cost on everything, from housing to childcare to prescription drug prices to gas. That is what ultimately my constituents need as we address all these other challenges they are facing."

ON LAKE MEAD & THE ONGOING DROUGHT

"I'm a lifelong resident of Nevada. I've visited Lake Mead as a child growing up and taken my family there to fish just recently in the last few summers and welcomed the VP [Kamala Harris] to Lake Mead to show her the effects of the drought. We have a national, federal designation of drought emergency. It's real. Later this week, we will vote this week in Congress to provide more funding and resources to Nevada and other states in the west that are experiencing drought. It's going to provide resources to help with reservoirs and water basins ultimately to help restore Lake Mead and other water resources throughout the region."

ON PASSING BILLS TO CODIFY THE RIGHT TO MARRIAGE AND CONTRACEPTION

"Let's talk about fundamentally what this is about. It's about a right to love who you love and to be protected under the law. Overwhelmingly the people in Nevada support that legislation. Unfortunately we have an ideologically driven Supreme Court and conservatives in Congress who want to take those rights away. They're already striking down women's freedom to make their own healthcare decisions with Roe v. Wade, now they're coming after marriage equality, what will be next? So we did vote, to protect marriage equality under federal law. I'm proud to have been a sponsor of that legislation and we'll work to make sure that we do pass it in Congress so that there's no doubt that love is love and is protected under the law."