A Message from Rep. Brandon Williams:

Our 22nd Congressional District encompasses all of Oneida, Madison, and Onondaga counties, and a sliver of Oswego County. As always, I am working to support families in CNY and the Mohawk Valley, improve our local infrastructure, grow manufacturing, and rein-in energy costs through common sense engineering and business practices. As a Navy Veteran, I stand with and for our veterans. I am protecting Social Security and Medicare for our elderly, and I always speak up for our law enforcement, firefighters, and first responders.

NASA Astronaut Jeanette Epps, a Syracuse native and Corcoran High School grad, was kind enough to speak with me during a pre-flight call on Thursday. She explained some details of her upcoming mission, which will take her crew to the International Space Station for six months.

She and her crew are an inspiration. It's an honor to work within my capacity in the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee to support the important work they do. Without these highly trained and courageous individuals, the unknown beyond our atmosphere would remain unknown.

Part of the call has been made public, you can listen here.

NASA's Day of Remembrance took place on Thursday as well. Every year, we honor the memories of those who lost their lives in the pursuit of exploration and discovery, including the crews of Apollo 1, Challenger, and Columbia.

These men and women are the giants upon whose shoulders we stand as we continue to reach for the stars. It is right that we remember their courage in the face of the unknown. May we honor their legacy by continuing to reach for ever greater heights.

Read more about NASA's Day of Remembrance, here.

During this district work period, I wanted to make it a priority to speak directly to and answer questions from constituents across our district.

Since taking the oath of office, I've held ten town halls - seven in-person and three over the phone. Hearing concerns and fielding questions directly is an important part of representative governance, which is why I've made it a point to hold as many of these events as possible.

Thousands of community members logged on to our call, and I was able to field questions and concerns from many of them. The recording is publicly available.

You can listen in on last Tuesday's call, here.

School choice efforts notched victories nationwide because American families know that one size doesn’t fit all.

Expanding access to various forms of education gives families the power to make decisions that meet their kids’ academic needs.

School Choice Week is the largest annual, nonpartisan celebration of educational opportunity. Parents deserve a voice and a choice!

If you are experiencing difficulty with a federal agency, my office can help.

Trained caseworkers can assist with agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service, Social Security, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. While we cannot guarantee a favorable outcome, we will do our best to help you receive a fair and timely response to your problem.

NY-22 residents can contact our Syracuse (315-233-4333) or Utica (315-732-0713) offices for assistance. You can also submit a request on my website, here.

Thank you for reading this week's wrap-up!