Committee on Education and Workforce

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), and Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), chairman of the Education and Labor Committee, led House and Senate Democrats in introducing a proposal to invest more than $100 billion in America’s public schools. The Rebuild America’s Schools Act would fund $70 billion in grants and $30 billion in bonds to help address critical physical and digital infrastructure needs in schools across the country. According to economic projections, the bill would also create more than 1.9 million good-paying jobs. The bill comes as students, teachers, and parents across the country are demanding more support for public education. In a recent poll, 84 percent of Democrats and 65 percent of Republicans said increasing K-12 funding is an “extremely important priority” for the 116th Congress.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Bobby Scott (VA-03), chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, joined House and Senate leadership to introduce the Raise the Wage Act of 2019. The bill would gradually raise the minimum wage to $15 in 2024, index future minimum wage increases to median wage growth, and ensure all workers are paid at least the full federal minimum wage by phasing out the subminimum wages for tipped workers, youth workers, and workers with disabilities. The Raise the Wage Act was introduced with 181 House cosponsors.

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after a federal court in Pennsylvania granted an injunction to freeze Trump administration rules that would allow employers and institutions of higher education to deny women coverage of contraception based on “religious or moral” objections. “By issuing a nationwide injunction, the court has taken the necessary and immediate step of shielding workers and students from a harmful and discriminatory policy that would restrict coverage for preventive services under the guise of religious freedom. Freedom of religion is a sacred and fundamental right, but it is not a tool to deny women access to health care.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Chairman Bobby Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after Chairman Richard Neal (MA-01) reintroduced the Rehabilitation for Multiemployer Pensions Act (Butch Lewis Act). "Americans who worked hard their entire lives and planned for secure retirements should not have the rug pulled out from under them. The Butch Lewis Act of 2019 is a bipartisan proposal that ensures retirees receive the pension benefits they have earned. This legislation, in addition to the work of the Joint Select Committee on the Solvency of Multiemployer Pension Plans, is an important step to help address this crisis. As chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, I am committed to the workers, families, businesses, and retirees from all over the country who are counting on us — and the longer Congress waits to act, the more difficult and more expensive the problem will be to solve.”

WASHINGTON, DC – House and Senate Democratic health leaders sent a letter to the Trump administration today renewing their requests for information on the Administration’s Final Rule expanding the availability of junk Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance (STLDI) plans, which jeopardize Americans’ ability to get quality, affordable health care. The letter was signed by Education and Labor Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA), Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA), Senate Finance Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Senate HELP Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA).

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Bobby Scott (D- Va.), Committee on Education and Labor and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) led a letter to the Department of Labor (DOL) Office of Inspector General (IG) Scott Dahl requesting an audit of DOL to determine whether the agency deviated from agency regulatory and data quality requirements when it developed a proposed rule relaxing child labor standards in health care occupations. Joining Chairman Scott and Senator Warren in sending the letter are Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), Mark Takano (D-Calif.), and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Calif.).