Press Releases
Scott Applauds SCOTUS Anti-Discrimination Decision
06.01.15 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott issued the following statement today after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 8-1 that Abercrombie & Fitch Stores, Inc.'s action to deny employment to a qualified Muslim applicant who wanted to wear a headscarf at work - coupled with a motivation to avoid an accommodation of her religious practice - is a "disparate treatment action" in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act: "Today, the Supreme Court reaffirmed the position that Title … Continue Reading
Scott Commends Proposed Guidance for Fair Pay and Safe Workplace Executive Order
05.27.15 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott issued the following statement today after the U.S. Department of Labor issued proposed guidance on how the federal government should implement the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order that President Barack Obama signed on July 31, 2014: "The proposed regulations for implementing the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order are an important first step in ensuring that the federal government will only issue contracts to companies … Continue Reading
Scott Joins Edwards, Democrats to Introduce Pell Grants for Prisoners Bill
05.21.15 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) joined Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards (MD-4), along with Reps. Danny K. Davis (IL-7), Barbara Lee (CA-13), Rosa L. DeLauro (CT-3), and Cedric Richmond (LA-2), to introduce the Restoring Education and Learning (REAL) Act today, legislation that would reinstate Pell Grant eligibility for federal and state prisoners. "Studies have shown that reinstating Pell Grant eligibility for state and … Continue Reading
Scott Joins Over 70 House Democrats Urging President Obama to Adopt Fair Chance Hiring
05.21.15 WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03), Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, joined more than 70 Members of the House of Representatives - led by Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) - in issuing a letter to President Barack Obama to adopt a federal fair chance hiring policy. This effort was co-led by Reps. John Conyers (MI-13), Danny Davis (IL-07), and Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18). "The federal government should not be in the business of erecti… Continue Reading
Democrats Reject Proposal to Cut Benefits for Injured Workers
05.20.15 WASHINGTON - Today, the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections held a hearing to review the Department of Labor's (DOL) proposal that would cut workers' compensation benefits for federal workers who have been disabled due to job-related injury. Democratic committee members fervently rejected the proposal as it would leave most workers considerably worse off than if they had not incurred the injury. Ranking Member of the full Committee, Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) and Ranking Membe… Continue Reading
Reps. Hanna, Scott Introduce ‘Strong Start’ Legislation to Improve Early Education for America’s Children
05.19.15 WASHINGTON - Access to affordable high-quality early learning programs for nearly 20 million children would be dramatically improved under bipartisan legislation introduced today by U.S. Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY), co-chair of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education Caucus, and U.S. Rep. Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. The Strong Start for America's Children Act 2015 is an innovative 10-year fed… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on the 50th Anniversary of Head Start
05.18.15 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), issued the following statement on 50th Anniversary of the Head Start program, which has granted millions of children access to high quality preschool: "Fifty years ago today, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced from the White House Rose Garden that enrollment would begin for an early childhood education program called "Project Head Start" as part of his Great Society and War on Pov… Continue Reading
Statement on Department of Education’s Proposed Cash Management Regulations
05.15.15 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA) issued the following statement on the Department of Education's proposed cash management rules: "The Department of Education has released proposed regulations to protect students from excessive fees on co-branded debit and prepaid cards offered by institutions of higher education that have agreements with banks. About 40 percent of college students attend these institutions, and inve… Continue Reading
Statement on the 61st Anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education
05.15.15 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), issued the following statement on 61st Anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education - Topeka, Kansas on May 17, 1954: "As we commemorate the 61st anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision to desegregate our nation's schools, we remember the reverberating impact the civil rights case had on our children, our communities and our nation. … Continue Reading
Revising the Management of Native American Schools
05.14.15 WASHINGTON - The full committee held a hearing today to address the deteriorating state of Native youth education. The hearing entitled "Examining the Federal Government's Mismanagement of Native American Schools" is the second hearing the subcommittee has held this year to facilitate tangible and long-lasting change in the management of American Indian/ Alaska Native (AI/AN) schools. Ranking Member of the full Committee on Education and the Workforce, Representative Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (V… Continue Reading
Statement on 2015-2016 Student Loan Interest Rates
05.14.15 WASHINGTON - Committee on Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), issued the following statement on the student loan rates for the 2015-2016 academic year: "For the 2015-2016 academic year, the interest rates on federal loans based on the 10-year Treasury Note will fall from 4.66 percent to 4.29 percent. Though this is good news for next year's borrowers-who will be able to take advantage of historically low interest rates-it still leaves current … Continue Reading
Scott Statement on New Department of Education Office of Civil Rights Report
05.08.15 WASHINGTON - House Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA) released the following statement on a new report from the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Education examining the state of civil rights enforcement in schools across America, from pre-K to post-secondary education: "The Office of Civil Rights' "Protecting Civil Rights, Advancing Equity" report - based on data collected from approximately 97,000 public schools and about 49 mill… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on New Department of Education Office of Civil Rights Report
05.08.15 WASHINGTON - House Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA) released the following statement on a new report from the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Education examining the state of civil rights enforcement in schools across America, from pre-K to post-secondary education: "The Office of Civil Rights' "Protecting Civil Rights, Advancing Equity" report - based on data collected from approximately 97,000 public schools and about 49 mill… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on April Jobs Report
05.08.15 WASHINGTON- House Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA) released the following statement today after the release of the monthly jobs report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The BLS announced that during the month of April, 223,000 jobs were created and the unemployment rate dipped to 5.4 percent - the lowest since May 2008. To date, the economy has now had a record 62 consecutive months of private sector job growth. "The jobs report release… Continue Reading
Scott, Jones, Gowdy and Cárdenas Introduce Youth PROMISE Act
05.01.15 WASHINGTON - Today Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Congressman Walter Jones (R-NC), Congressman Trey Gowdy (R-SC) and Congressman Tony Cárdenas (D-CA) introduced the Youth Prison Reduction through Opportunities, Mentoring, Intervention, Support, and Education ("Youth PROMISE") Act (H.R. 2197). The Youth PROMISE Act will provide resources to communities to engage in comprehensive, evidence-based prevention… Continue Reading
MINIMUM WAGE: Scott, Murray Introduce the Raise the Wage Act
04.30.15 Legislation would increase federal minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $12 per hour by 2020 Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA) and U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) introduced the Raise the Wage Act, legislation that would increase the minimum wage to $12 by 2020. The Raise the Wage Act would also index the federal minimum wage to the median wage, and gradually eliminate the subminimum tipped wage. The legislation would raise wages for nearly 35 million … Continue Reading
Scott Statement on the Closing of Corinthian Colleges, Inc.
04.28.15 WASHINGTON - House Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA) released the following statement today on the closing of Corinthian Colleges, Inc.: "After being hit with a $30 million fine from the U.S. Department of Education, the doors of Corinthian Colleges, Inc. have been shut once and for all. The fine was based on Department of Education findings that one of Corinthian's subsidiaries - Heald College - had both misrepresented placement rates to accre… Continue Reading
Workforce Protections Subcommittee Receives Enforcement Update from the Mine Safety and Health Administration
04.23.15 WASHINGTON - Today, in a hearing entitled "Protecting America's Workers: An Enforcement Update from the Mine Safety and Health Administration" the head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), testified before the Workforce Protections Subcommittee. Joe Main, the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety, outlined the steps that have been taken to protect miners in the five years since the Upper Big Branch tragedy took the lives of 29 miners in a preventable explosion. Mr. Main a… Continue Reading
Investing in the Future of American Indian and Alaska Native Students
04.22.15 WASHINGTON - Today, the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education held a hearing to discuss the educational challenges impacting American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students and schools. The hearing entitled "Examining the Challenges Facing Native American Schools" is the first hearing exploring this topic since 2008. Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) joined the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Ear… Continue Reading
Scott Statement on New Report Confirming Parent PLUS Loan Program Impact On Historically Black Colleges and Universities
04.16.15 Washington - Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, released the following statement on a new report from the Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic detailing the impact of the Parent PLUS Loan Program on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs): "A new report validated concerns I and many other Members had over the changes to the Parent PLUS Loan Program. The changes disproportionately affected Histor… Continue Reading