Committee on Education and Workforce
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July 11, 2016
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 138, a resolution designating the George C. Marshall Museum and the George C. Marshall Research Library in Lexington as the National George C. Marshall Museum and Library. This concurrent resolution was introduced by my friend and colleague, Bob Goodlatte, and is cosponsored by the entire Virginia delegation.
General George C. Marshall is a national hero and a distinguished public servant. The George C. Marshall Museum and Library is located in Lexington, Virginia, on the post of the Virginia Military Institute, the alma matter of General Marshall.
July 11, 2016
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5528, the Simplifying the Application for Student Aid Act, and I encourage my fellow Members to support it as well.
Under this bill, students and parents will be able to apply for financial aid when filling out college applications and will no longer have to wait until they have filed the current year's tax returns in order to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, form. Prior to this change, some families could not fill out the FAFSA form until they had filled out their taxes in April--or even later, with an extension--and, therefore, many students could not receive financial aid in a timely manner.
July 11, 2016
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill, and I would like to say a few brief words about the package of higher education bills being considered today.
These bills will simplify the financial aid application process; they will help students make well-informed decisions when selecting a college and determining how to finance the education; and they will financially strengthen Historically Black Colleges and Universities. This bill expands access for high school students to dual and concurrent enrollment programs at Hispanic-Serving Institutions. Taken together, this package represents a step in the right direction for students and families.
June 3, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement today after the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that during the month of May, the economy added 38,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dropped to 4.7 percent:
“Today’s job report represents the 75th consecutive month of private sector job growth. This extends the longest streak of job growth on record, which was previously set in April 2000 at 51 months. However, considering the drop off from previous months, May’s numbers are concerning and more must be done to ensure that this historic economic growth reaches every community in America.
May 17, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Committee on Education and the Workforce Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-03) and Committee on the Judiciary Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (MI-13) unveiled the findings of a new report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on actions needed to reduce racial and socioeconomic segregation, and address disparities in K-12 public schools. Ranking Members Scott and Conyers, along with retired Congressman and former Ranking Member George Miller, first requested this report in May 2014.
Sixty-two years ago, the Supreme Court struck down lawful school segregation in the Brown v. Board of Education decision, stating that “it is doubtful that any child may reasonable be expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education” The decision also affirmed that education was a right that “must be made available to all on equal terms.” GAO gathered data for this report from the Department of Education and confirmed that increasing segregation along the lines of race and poverty continue to be a driver for inequities in education.
May 17, 2016
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA), ranking member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee released the following statements after the Department of Labor announced its final overtime rule. The new rule would raise the salary threshold to $47,476, expanding overtime eligibility to 4.2 million workers and boosting wages for workers by $12 billion over the next 10 years. The rule will also give overworked Americans back precious time with their families by incentivizing employers to hire additional workers or give part-timers more hours that they want and need. Employers will no longer be able to force low-paid employees to work those extra hours for free. Murray and Scott have been the leading voices in Congress encouraging the Obama Administration to update overtime protections.
May 11, 2016
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4843, the Infant Plan of Safe Care Improvement Act.
Mr. Speaker, one of our highest national priorities should be to ensure that children have early quality opportunities to remove barriers to success in future life. But children born dependent on addictive substances face severe obstacles to overcome, and we know that many of these obstacles can be removed.
April 29, 2016
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 4901, which would reauthorize the D.C. voucher program, known as the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program, through 2021.
We don't spend enough money on education, so it is hard to justify diverting scarce public resources in order to finance private school education for a handful of students at the expense of the vast majority who attend public schools. Instead, we should focus our limited public resources on initiatives that improve education for all of our children. This is the promise of a public school education in the United States, but the voucher programs undermine that promise while hiding behind the guise of school choice for students in need.
April 28, 2016
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.J. Res. 88. This Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval would undo the Department of Labor's final rule that simply ensures financial advisers act in the best interests of their clients with retirement funds.
Now, this is a Department of Labor rule that only applies to workers' retirement funds. In times past, people would retire and receive a defined benefit. They would just retire and get their promised income. But now, we have what are called defined contribution plans, where the money is invested and, over the years, if someone, even a modest-income person, invests over his 40-year career, he could easily amass a fund of hundreds of thousands of dollars, even $1 million if they start early and invest consistently.