Press Releases
Scott Statement on Proposed Delay of Critical Retirement Savings Protection
03.01.17 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Department of Labor proposed a 60-day delay of the important "conflict of interest" rule, which would simply protect workers' hard-earned retirement savings and ensure that financial advisors act in the best interests of their retirement clients. "The Trump Administration's proposed delay of this important rule would continue an unacceptable status-quo that is erodin… Continue Reading
Committee Learns Republican Healthcare Proposals Would Harm Working Families
03.01.17 WASHINGTON - Today, the Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on H.R. 1101, the Small Business Health Fairness Act, and discussion drafts for the Self-Insurance Protection Act and the Preserving Employee Wellness Programs Act. These three proposals would weaken insurance protections for consumers and shift costs onto workers. The hearing also served as a distraction from the fact that Congressional Republicans still have no plan to replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA). "While… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Executive Order on HBCUs
02.28.17 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the President signed an executive order on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). "Every President since Jimmy Carter has issued an executive order to strengthen HBCUs, and it is encouraging that the White House is honoring this tradition. For more than 150 years, HBCUs have been the cornerstone of postsecondary education for African-American communities a… Continue Reading
Polis: CTE Programs Must Emphasize Equity, Provide Opportunity for All Students
02.28.17 WASHINGTON - Today, Rep. Jared Polis (CO-02), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education, delivered the following statement during a hearing on career and technical education. Rep. Polis emphasized the need for a full bipartisan reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education (CTE) Act. Key Excerpts from Rep. Polis' Remarks: "Unfortunately, after harmful sequestration cuts, public funding for CTE is at historic lows. It is c… Continue Reading
Members of Congress Stand Up For Labor Rights Leaders in Bangladesh
02.23.17 Today, members of Congress led by Reps. Jan Schakowsky, Sander Levin, Bill Pascrell, and Bobby Scott called on the Government of Bangladesh to release jailed labor activists and restore workers' rights. The letter, also signed by Reps. James P. McGovern, Mark Pocan, William Keating, Jackie Speier, Joseph Crowley and Steve Cohen, was sent to Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and raises deep concerns about the criminalization of legal labor activity in the country. The letter comes after a… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Trump Administration Rollback of LGBTQ Protections
02.22.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the White House announced that it will repeal the Obama Administration's Title IX guidance protecting the rights of transgender students. "The impact of the Trump Administration's repeal of the Title IX guidance leaves LGBTQ students in at least 31 states vulnerable to bullying and discrimination. A student's right to equal education should not be impeded by an unsafe learning environment. "Last May, the Obama… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Alexander Acosta
02.16.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement on the nomination of Alexander Acosta for Secretary of Labor, following Andrew Puzder's withdrawal from consideration. "The Secretary of Labor must be an individual that will fight for increased wages, safer working conditions, and retirement security for America's workers. If confirmed, Mr. Acosta will be joining an Administration that has supported legislation and executive actions that have jeopardized civil righ… Continue Reading
Democrats Highlight Priorities for Updating Wage and Hour Policies
02.16.17 WASHINGTON - Today the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections held a hearing on "Federal Wage and Hour Policies in the 21st Century." Committee Democrats believe updating wage and hour policies for the 21st century means raising wages, making more workers eligible for overtime pay, ensuring that workers' schedules are fair and that they can take a day off when they get sick without losing pay, finally securing equal pay for equal work, and stopping wage theft. "It is my hope that the work we to … Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Andrew Puzder
02.15.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement today after Andrew Puzder withdrew his nomination to serve as U.S. Secretary of Labor: "The Department of Labor has a responsibility to ensure our nation's working people earn a living wage, come home safe at the end of the day, and retire with dignity. Committee Democrats had serious concerns with Mr. Puzder's nomination from the beginning, which we raised in a letter to Senators Alexander and Murray. I hope that … Continue Reading
Democratic Health Leaders Blast Proposed CMS Marketplace Rule
02.15.17 WASHINGTON - Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D-VA), Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Richard Neal (D-MA), and Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) today released the following joint statement after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule affecting the Health Insurance Marketplace. "The Trump Administration's proposed rule continues Republican efforts to rip away health security from … Continue Reading
Sablan: We Can Address the Needs of Working Americans by Updating Labor Protections
02.14.17 WASHINGTON - Today, Rep. Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (MP), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions, delivered the following statement during a hearing on the National Labor Relations Board. Rep. Sablan emphasized new legislative ideas to improve the National Labor Relations Act - outlined in the WAGE Act - and hoped the Committee would refocus its attention on issues where there is bipartisan consensus, rather than attacks on workers' right to organize on … Continue Reading
House Democrats Introduce Bill to Strengthen Worker Health and Safety Law
02.08.17 WASHINGTON- This week, Democrats on the House Education and the Workforce Committee reintroduced the Protecting America's Workers Act, legislation that strengthens and modernizes the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. The bill would give the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) tools to ensure that employers promptly correct hazardous working conditions, protect workers from retaliation when they blow the whistle on unsafe working conditions, and hold employers accountab… Continue Reading
Democrats Highlight Impact of Reckless ACA Repeal on Our Nation’s Children
02.08.17 WASHINGTON - Today, Ranking Member Bobby Scott was joined by Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr., Ranking Member Richard Neal, Ranking Member John Yarmuth, Children’s Defense Fund President Marian Wright Edelman, President of the National Association of School Nurses Beth Mattey, parents and advocates for a press conference to highlight how Republican plans to dismantle the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will harm children. Medicaid is vital… Continue Reading
Committee Democrats Outline Higher Education Priorities at Hearing
02.07.17 WASHINGTON - Today, the Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing to discuss our nation's higher education systems, and the need to reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA). Democrats remain committed to a bipartisan reauthorization of the HEA, and they believe quality higher education must be accessible and affordable to empower America's working families to succeed in our economy. "Democrats remain committed to a higher education system that has multiple pathways to attaining… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on DeVos Senate Confirmation
02.07.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Senate voted 51-50, to confirm Betsy DeVos as the United States Secretary of Education. "Our nation's next Secretary of Education is tasked with advancing a mission of equity, access, and accountability. That mission requires support for all students. Unfortunately, Betsy DeVos has failed to make a credible case that she will advocate for the 90 percent of students who attend our nation's public schools. No… Continue Reading
Shea-Porter, 113 Colleagues Reintroduce Paid Family Leave Bill
02.07.17 WASHINGTON, DC - Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01) and 113 colleagues today reintroduced the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act, a bill to create a national paid family and medical leave insurance program and ensure that American workers no longer have to choose between a paycheck and caring for a family member. "The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world that still doesn't guarantee working parents paid time off to care for their newborns," said Shea-Po… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Administration Efforts to Endanger Retiree Savings
02.03.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Trump Administration effectively halted the implementation of the final "conflicts of interest" rule that would protect workers' retirement savings and ensure they receive investment advice that's in their best interest. Currently, retirement investors and their families lose $17 billion annually as a result of receiving conflicted advice. "With today's announcement, President Trump is enabling some financi… Continue Reading
Scott, Committee Democrats Seek Commitment from President Trump to Support the Bureau of Labor Statistics Data
02.03.17 WASHINGTON - Yesterday, Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03), and every Democrat on the Committee on the Education and the Workforce, sent a letter to President Trump to inquire whether he and his Administration will continue the longstanding and bipartisan tradition of standing behind the Bureau of Labor Statistics'(BLS) monthly employment situation report. This morning the BLS announced that the economy added 227,000 jobs in the month of January, continuing the record streak started under Presi… Continue Reading
Bonamici Condemns Attempt that Will Disrupt Implementation of Federal Education Law
02.02.17 WASHINGTON, DC [02/02/17] - Today Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), the Vice Ranking Member of the Education and the Workforce Committee, issued the following statement after House Republicans announced legislation to nullify regulations supporting the efforts by states to implement provisions of the Every Student Succeeds Act: "A year ago, Congress passed a significant law that replaced No Child Left Behind and gave states and school districts greater control over the education of their s… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on Republican Efforts to Dismantle Critical Worker Protections
02.02.17 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) spoke on the House Floor against H.J. Res. 37 - a measure that would dismantle President Obama's Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order which ensures that taxpayer funds are not awarded to government contractors who willfully and repeatedly engage in labor law violations, such as wage theft or maintaining unsafe workplaces. H.J. Res. 37 passed by a vote of 236-187. Below are Ranking Member Scott's remarks. "Mr. Speaker: Before I address the … Continue Reading