Committee on Education and Workforce

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to S. 140. As has been pointed out, buried in section 3 of this otherwise noncontroversial water and lands bill is the text of H.R. 986, the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act. This nongermane provision would strip thousands of employees of their rights and protections under the National Labor Relations Act at Tribal enterprises located on Tribal lands. At issue in the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act are two solemn and deeply rooted principles: First, the right that Indian Tribes possess in matters of local self-governance; Second, the rights of workers to organize unions, bargain collectively, and engage in concerted activities for mutual aid and protection. Rather than attempting to balance these two important principles, the bill chooses sovereignty for some over the human rights of others. I would note that the approximately 75 percent of workers employed at Tribal casinos are not members of the Tribes running the casino, but this bill would strip labor rights of hundreds of thousands of these workers as well as those who are actually members of the Tribes.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I also want to thank her for her leadership in organizing this Special Order and for her leadership of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Caucus. HBCUs provide a great value to America, and I am honored to represent a congressional district that is home to two HBCUs: Hampton University, which celebrates its 150th anniversary next year, and Norfolk State University. Since their inception, HBCUs have been the cornerstone of postsecondary education for the African-American community. This was true 150 years ago and remains true today. HBCUs account for no more than 3 percent of all colleges and universities, yet they enroll almost 10 percent of all African-American undergraduate students and produce about 15 percent of all bachelor's degrees earned by African Americans.