Committee on Education and Workforce

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Bureau of Labor Statisticsannounced that the economy added 245,000 jobs in November with the unemployment rate at 6.7 percent. “Today’s report signals that economic recovery is continuing to slow as our nation faces one of the worst economic and public health crises in history. As COVID-19 cases and deaths skyrocket in nearly every state across the country, we continue to confront the disastrous impacts of the Trump Administration’s failed response to the pandemic. Let’s be clear: Record-high jobless claims are not a reflection of a successful economy. Just last week, more than 700,000 Americans filed new unemployment insurance claims—continuing to exceed the record-high number of claims under previous administrations (695,000 claims in October 1982). Initial unemployment claims under President Trump for each of the last 37 consecutive weeks have exceeded unemployment claims under any other president in the history of the program.

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after he was elected the next Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor by the House Democratic Caucus. “I am grateful to my colleagues for providing me the opportunity to continue my role as Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor. It has been an honor to lead this Committee during a critical time in our nation’s history, and to work alongside a diverse coalition of Members representing the interests of students and workers across the country. Our nation is enduring unprecedented challenges, with widening educational achievement gaps, a deep economic recession, and a devastating public health crisis.

WASHINGTON, DC – Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) and Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) issued the following statement after Education Department Secretary Betsy DeVos sent letters to the Members announcing the Department’s decision to postpone the 2021 administration of the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP). “As a result of nationwide school closures, existing achievement gaps are widening for our most vulnerable students, including students from families with low incomes, students with disabilities, English learners, and students of color. In order for our nation to recover and rebuild from the pandemic, we must first understand the magnitude of learning loss that has impacted students across the country.

WASHINGTON, DC – Committee on Education and Labor Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the U.S. Department of Agriculture re-proposed a rule to weaken standards in child nutrition programs: “As more than a quarter of our nation’s households with children head into the Thanksgiving holiday struggling to put food on the table, the Department of Agriculture’s rule to undermine nutrition standards for child nutrition programs will only make it harder for children to access healthy food.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) sent a letter to the General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Emily Murphy urging the GSA to grant the Biden-Harris Transition Team access to critical information, services, and resources. “Our country is facing an unprecedented global pandemic that is killing 2,000 Americans per day, and any further delay in an effective government response will have devastating consequences,” wrote Chairman Scott.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03), the Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, and Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (NY-12), the Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, issued the following statement after the Department of Education suspended a new web tool designed to simplify the Borrower Defense application process for individuals who were ripped off by their schools.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, top Democrats in both the House and the Senate introduced the Keeping All Students Safe Act to protect students from dangerous seclusion and restraint discipline practices in school. The bill is sponsored by Congressman Don Beyer (VA-08), Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT), Committee on Education and Labor Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03), Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA), and Congressman Donald McEachin (VA-04).

NEWPORT NEWS, VA – On Friday, November 13, 2020, Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), the Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, was the honoree at the Virginia State Conference of the NAACP’s 85th Annual State Convention’s Freedom Fund Gala. Congressman Scott was given the Freedom Fighter Award for his life-long work to advance equity in education and fighting for economic and racial justice.