Press Releases
Scott Statement on Trump’s Administration Continued Sabotage of Americans' Health Care
10.13.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after President Trump issued a statement the administration will unilaterally cut off the Cost-Sharing Reduction payments required under the Affordable Care Act. "Yesterday, the administration took unprecedented action to undermine the health and well-being of the American people. The president issued an executive order to unravel health coverage by allowing the sale of bare bones plans with no guarantee of comprehe… Continue Reading
Murray and Scott on DeVos Decision to Make Privatization a Priority When Awarding Federal Grants
10.12.17 WASHINGTON - Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA), ranking member of the Education and the Workforce Committee, released the following statements on Secretary DeVos proposing a list of priorities when distributing competitive grants from the Department of Education. Among others, the list includes privatization-a top priority for Secretary DeVos, whose only experience before becomi… Continue Reading
Pelosi Names Conferees to National Defense Authorization Act Conference
10.12.17 WASHINGTON - Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi today named House Democrats to serve on a conference committee of the House and Senate versions of the FY 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). "Democrats stand for a strong and smart national defense," said Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. "Unfortunately, Republicans are sending a defense authorization bill to conference that fails to honor our obligations to our men and women in uniform. Once again, Republicans are using their tired old b… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Administration's Irresponsible Actions to Sabotage Health Care
10.12.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after President Trump signed yet another executive order (EO) undermining the progress of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). "Despite the inability of Congress to pass legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act, the administration continues to take actions to sabotage the law. The newly released executive order calls on the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury to roll back health coverage pro… Continue Reading
Shea-Porter to Trump: Hands Off Women’s Birth Control
10.10.17 WASHINGTON - Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01) released the following statement after the Trump administration issued a rule to roll back the requirement that employer-sponsored insurance plans cover birth control as preventive care, with no out-of-pocket cost: "I am outraged by the Trump Administration's most sweeping attack yet on women's access to health care. The vast majority of American women get their health insurance through an employer, and this rule will endanger their access to… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Trump Administration Actions Legalizing Discrimination
10.06.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued government-wide legal guidance that outlined broad exemptions for "religious freedom." "Today, the Trump Administration released a regulation that would limit access to contraceptive health services and a memorandum that misapplies federal law to facilitate employment-based discrimination. "First, the Trump Administration issued regulations, effective immediately, that wou… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on September Jobs Report
10.06.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the economy lost 33,000 jobs in September, with the unemployment rate at 4.2 percent. "The devastation from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria have put millions of Americans out of work. As a result, the job loss reported from the Bureau of Labor Statistics during September reflects the tremendous impact of these hurricanes on Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.… Continue Reading
Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi Denounces Trump Administration Decision To Roll Back Access To Birth Control
10.06.17 SCHAUMBURG, IL - Today, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi released the following statement in response to the Trump administration's decision to roll back the federal mandate for copay-free birth control coverage: "By eliminating the guarantee that women will have coverage for birth control through their insurance, regardless of who they work for, the Trump administration is doing nothing less than turning back the clock on women's health care. No woman should need her boss's permission to receiv… Continue Reading
Blunt Rochester Issues Statement Regarding The Trump Administration’s Decision To Cut Access To Birth Control
10.06.17 WILMINGTON, DE - Today, Congresswoman Blunt Rochester (DE-AL) released the following statement following the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) decision to roll-back Obama-era protections for access to birth control. The new regulation issued by HHS allows a broader group of employers and insurers to exempt themselves from protections in the Affordable Care Act that cover contraceptives, such as birth control, on religious or moral ground. "Access to a full range of reproductive, pre… Continue Reading
Bonamici to Trump: “Keep Your Hands Off Our Birth Control”
10.06.17 BEAVERTON, OR [10/06/17] - Today Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) released the following statement and video criticizing the Trump Administration for announcing two Interim Final Rules (IFRs) that could effectively allow employers and institutions of higher education to drop contraceptive coverage for millions of female employees and students. You can watch part of Bonamici's response here. "Women need unfettered access to contraception to control their health and economic futures. With t… Continue Reading
Adams Statement on Trump Administration’s Newest Attack on Women’s Healthcare
10.06.17 Charlotte, N.C.-Congresswoman Alma Adams (NC-12) released the following statement after the Trump administration announced an Interim Final Rule that rolls back a portion of the preventative care mandate in the Affordable Care Act requiring employers to offer health insurance the covers birth control. "Since President Trump took office he and the Republican-controlled Congress have relentlessly attacked women's rights. Today's rule is no different," said Congresswoman Adams. "Currently, 62 mil… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge Statement on President Trump’s Attack on Women’s Health
10.06.17 WASHINGTON - Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) released the following statement regarding the Trump Administration's decision to roll back contraceptive coverage provided to more than 62 million American women under the Affordable Care Act: "Today's actions by the Trump Administration are another thinly veiled attack on the right of women to make their own health care decisions. The Affordable Care Act gave millions of women control of their reproductive health and provided preventive servi… Continue Reading
Scott and Takano Joint Statement on Rollback of Transgender Worker Rights
10.05.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) and Representative Mark Takano (CA-41), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, issued the following statement after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the Department of Justice is reversing a policy that protects transgender workers from discrimination. "Attorney General Sessions' decision to dismiss the Obama administration's memo to protect transgender Americans under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act is yet another … Continue Reading
Republicans Pass Bill Dismantling Worker Protections
10.04.17 WASHINGTON - TODAY, the Committee on Education and the Workforce held a markup on H.R. 3441, the so-called "Save Local Business Act." The bill creates a new, narrow definition of a joint employer under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), limiting whom workers may hold responsible for wage theft or unfair labor practices when there are multiple employers who control terms and conditions of employment. Attacks on worker rights under the NLRA have been t… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on SCOTUS Decision to Hear Challenge to Public Sector Unions
09.28.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Supreme Court issued its decision to grant certiorari in Janus v. AFSCME Council 31. This case considers whether to overturn 40 years of precedent established in Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, which upheld the requirement that state and local government employees who object to paying for union representation may be required to pay fees to cover the cost of representation: "Since 1977, following the Ab… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Collapse of Latest Senate Trumpcare Bill
09.26.17 "Republicans promised for years to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act with a better plan that lowers costs and improves coverage. The fact of the matter is that Republicans never had a plan that could achieve these goals. Just like the other failed versions of Trumpcare before it, this latest proposal would leave families paying more for worse coverage, strip guaranteed protections from individuals with pre-existing conditions, and impose a crushing age tax. This is not a step forward. … Continue Reading
Pocan and Stefanik Call for Vote to Extend Perkins Loans as More Than 220 Members Join as Cosponsors
09.26.17 Currently 222 members of the House, both Democrats and Republicans, are cosponsors of H.R. 2482, the Perkins Loans Extension Act, which comes as the program is set to expire on Saturday WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Representatives Mark Pocan (WI-02) and Elise Stefanik (NY-21) today called for a vote on H.R. 2482, the Perkins Loans Extension Act after more than half of the members of the U.S. House of Representatives signed on as cosponsors. With the Perkins Loan program scheduled to expire on Septembe… Continue Reading
Scott, Murray Lead Democratic Opposition to Weakening Overtime Protections for Working Families
09.26.17 WASHINGTON -Yesterday, Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA), ranking member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee and 77 other Democrats sent a letter to Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta, urging the Department of Labor to support strong overtime protections. Instead of promoting policies to help more working families join the middle class, The Trump Administration h… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on CBO Score of Latest Senate Trumpcare Bill
09.26.17 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released an initial analysis of the latest version of the Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson bill. "The Senate Republicans' rushed, last-ditch efforts to pass the Graham-Cassidy-Heller-Johnson bill without regular order has left CBO without time to provide a full assessment of the bill's impact on coverage and cost. However, CBO did proje… Continue Reading
Scott: Rescission of Guidance on Campus Sexual Assault Sends Disturbing Message
09.22.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced the rescission of the Obama Administration Title IX guidance which provides protections to survivors of campus sexual assault. "Today's announcement is alarming. Instead of improving protections for survivors of campus sexual assault, the Department - without input from advocates, victims, and institutions - has added more confusion and chaos to the process. By… Continue Reading