Press Releases
Chairman Scott Statement on Proposed Rollback of School Nutrition Standards
01.17.20 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a proposed rule to reverse nutrition standards for school meals. "The U.S. Department of Agriculture's proposed rule threatens the progress we've made toward improving nutrition in schools. The nutrition standards developed under the 2010 Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act were specifically designed to align with evidence-based dietary guidelines. By reversing those standard… Continue Reading
Lawmakers Question Education Department and Accreditor About Fake Universities Used to Entrap Foreign-National Students
01.16.20 Text of the Letter to Education Department (PDF) | Text of the Letter to Accreditor (PDF) Washington, DC - House Education and Labor Committee Vice Chair Andy Levin (D-Mich.), House Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment Chair Susan Davis (D-Calif.); and United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee; sent letters to the Department of Education and the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools an… Continue Reading
Bonamici Votes to Block DeVos Rule that Hurts Defrauded Students
01.16.20 WASHINGTON, DC - Today Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Chair of the Education and Labor Committee's Civil Rights and Human Services Subcommittee, supported a House vote to block a Trump administration rule that would hurt students who have been defrauded by unscrupulous for-profit institutions. Hundreds of thousands of students, including thousands in Oregon, were left with burdensome loans and useless degrees after the collapse of Corinthian Colleges and other for-profit institutions t… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Stands Up for Students, and Votes to Reverse Devos’ Harmful Borrower Defense Rule
01.16.20 WASHINGTON - Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement as the House voted to pass H.J.Res.76. This resolution, House Democrats' first use of the Congressional Review Act, reverses the Department of Education's harmful Borrower Defense rule, which would deny debt relief to students defrauded by predatory colleges. "The students we are trying to protect are victims of widespread, proven fraud from predatory schools about graduation rates, job placement rates, and t… Continue Reading
House Democrats to NLRB: Protect Graduate Students’ Right to Organize
01.16.20 WASHINGTON - Today, led by Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03), 35 House Democrats sent a letter to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) condemning the agency's proposed rule to strip students at private universities of their protections under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) when they work for their school. The NLRB has denied the affected workers an opportunity to comment on this rule in a public hearing. In their letter to the NLRB, Members raised concerns that the proposed … Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Praises Passage of Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Older Workers Against Age Discrimination
01.15.20 WASHINGTON - Today, Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement as the House voted to pass H.R. 1230, the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act. The bipartisan legislation would restore protections for older workers by ensuring they have the same legal protections against age discrimination as those that exist for discrimination based on race, sex, nationality, and religion. "It has now been more than a decade since the Supreme Court heightened the bu… Continue Reading
Committee Advances Bipartisan Proposal to Strengthen Federal Support for Homeless Youth
01.14.20 WASHINGTON - Today, the Committee on Education and Labor advanced the Runaway and Homeless Youth and Trafficking Prevention Act of 2019 (H.R. 5191)-a bipartisan proposal to reauthorize the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act of 1974 and empower states to strengthen and expand services for young people suffering from homelessness. The bipartisan legislation is led by three Democrats - House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth (KY-03), Rep. Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), and Rep. Jahana Hayes (CT-05) - … Continue Reading
Committee Advances Bipartisan Proposal to Secure Clear, Strong Protections for Pregnant Workers
01.14.20 WASHINGTON - Today, the Committee on Education and Labor advanced the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (H.R. 2694), a bipartisan proposal to secure clear and strong protections for pregnant workers. The legislation guarantees pregnant workers' right to reasonable accommodations - such as extra bathroom breaks, relief from heavy lifting, and other minor job modifications that ensure they can continue working without jeopardizing their health or the health of their pregnancy. The bill is being led b… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Honors Courtney Everts Mykytyn
01.14.20 Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) submitted the following statement into the Congressional Record to honor Courtney Everts Mykytyn, the founder of Integrated Schools, who died tragically late last year. "In 1954, the United States Supreme Court unanimously struck down lawful school segregation in the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. In a unanimous decision, the Court stated, 'where the state has undertaken to provide it, [education] is a right which must be made available to… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott: DOL’s Joint Employer Rule Leaves Workers Vulnerable to Wage Theft
01.13.20 WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, issued the following statement after the Department of Labor issued a final rule to narrow its interpretation of the Fair Labor Standards Act's joint employment standard. "The Fair Labor Standards Act's broad joint employment standard has long ensured that workers can hold multiple employers accountable for violating workplace rights and protections where the employee establishes that they are… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Statement on December Jobs Report
01.10.20 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the economy added 145,000 jobs in December with the unemployment rate at 3.5 percent. "Today's jobs report shows that despite 111 straight months of private sector job growth, many workers are still not seeing the benefits of the growing economy. As we mark the two-year anniversary of Republicans' almost $2 trillion tax scheme - in which 80 percent of the benefits went t… Continue Reading
Committee Chairs to Secretary Azar: Abandon Proposal to Undermine Civil Rights Protections Under Federal Programs
12.20.19 WASHINGTON - Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06), Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (MA-01), and Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn B. Maloney (NY-12) sent a letter to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar asking the Department to abandon its proposal to weaken civil rights protections for Americans served by a wide array of feder… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Statement on Fifth Circuit Court’s Ruling in Texas Case
12.18.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement released the following statement regarding the Fifth Circuit Court's decision in Texas v. United States. "Today, Republican attorneys general and the Trump administration took another step toward stripping access to affordable health care from millions of Americans. The latest challenge to the Affordable Care Act is legally frivolous. The argument that the absence of a monetary penalty for failing to purchase coverage inva… Continue Reading
Education and Labor Committee 2019 Accomplishments
12.17.19 By the Numbers 60 Hearings and markups 16 Bills passed out of Committee 9 Bills passed by the House Bills Passed out of the House Paycheck Fairness Act Addresses pay inequity by holding companies accountable for gender-based wage disparities, strengthening the Equal Pay Act of 1963, and protecting the rights of workers to challenge systemic pay discrimination. Raise the Wage Act Gradually increases the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 by 2025, giving up to 33 million workers a ra… Continue Reading
Scott Statement: Changes to DeVos’ Flawed Partial Relief Formula Focused on Optics, Not Students
12.17.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Department of Education revised its plan to provide only partial relief to student borrowers defrauded by predatory institutions. "At Thursday's hearing, Secretary DeVos refused to acknowledge serious flaws in her plan to provide only partial relief to some defrauded borrowers while outright denying relief for others. A day later, the Department quietly took the plan off of its website and issued a revised versio… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on NLRB’s Proposed Rule to Stall Union Elections
12.13.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a final rule rescinding key portions of the 2014 Election Rule, which prohibits employers from delaying or obstructing union elections. "In 2014, the Obama administration delivered a major victory for American workers by protecting their right to hold fair and timely union elections. Five years later, the Trump administration is erasing that victory by restoring employ… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott: McDonald’s Decision Reflects Serious Issues at Trump NLRB
12.12.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) approved a settlement with McDonald's and franchisees involving numerous unfair labor practices committed by its McDonald's and its franchisees. The settlement was previously rejected by an administrative law judge, who found that the remedies were not reasonable compared to the scope of the violations alleged. "The NLRB's decision to force a settlement with McDonald's - des… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Praises Passage of Landmark Bill to Lower Prescription Drug Costs
12.12.19 "By passing H.R. 3, the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act, House Democrats are delivering on our promise to provide the American people long-awaited relief from skyrocketing prescription drug costs. This legislation will cut the cost of prescription drugs for seniors, families, taxpayers, and businesses across the country. This bill not only saves $500 billion by preventing drug companies from overcharging American consumers, it reinvests that money into expanding Medicare benefits, st… Continue Reading
House Democrats to Labor Secretary Scalia: Uphold Protections for Tipped Workers
12.11.19 WASHINGTON - Today, led by Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03), Rep. Alma Adams (NC-12), Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), and Rep. Mark Takano (CA-41), House Democrats sent a letter to Department of Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia condemning the Department's proposed changes to tip regulations that the Economic Policy Institute estimates could cost workers more than $700 million annually. For nearly three decades, the Department of Labor enforced guidance, commonly referred to as the "80-20 r… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Department of Education’s New Formula for Denying Defrauded Borrowers Full Debt Relief
12.10.19 WASHINGTON - Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Department of Education released a revised formula for providing partial loan relief to defrauded borrowers under the Borrower Defense rule. "Under the Borrower Defense rule, the Department of Education has the clear authority to provide full debt relief to students defrauded by their college. Rather than simply exercising that authority and providing life-changing relief to defrauded borrowers, the Department… Continue Reading