Labor, HHS, Education

"House Democrats are committed to an orderly appropriations process that gets the people’s business done on time. Beginning with today’s subcommittee markup of the Labor, Health and Human and Services and Education bill for fiscal year 2020, we are turning the page on the shutdowns and showdowns that have defined the last two years. This bill is an excellent example of our commitment to investing for the people and making life better for the middle class and people struggling to make it into the middle class. Not only does this bill resoundingly reject the proposed cuts in President Trump’s budget that would have hurt working families, it provides a robust increase for important national priorities that create jobs and grow the economy, improve health security, and build a stronger future for all Americans."

"But, and my colleagues have heard me say this, I believe this budget is cruel and reckless. This is an agency that has been historically underfunded. And now we are looking at a 10% cut. And, you say we can do more with less. But, it would appear that we are doing less with less. A lot less with less."

"I am going to work as hard as I can, as chair of the full committee, to give you as much money as we can, because you have the brilliance, you have the commitment, and you have the determination. All you need is more money."

"The President’s budget proposes to reduce funding for NIH by $5.2 billion, or 13%, below the fiscal year 2019 level. At this funding level, NIH would be forced to make nearly 3,800 fewer new research grants compared to 2019. That is a reduction of 32%—to the lowest level since 1998."

"Only by conducting scientific research on gun injury prevention can we better understand the causes of this crisis and develop and implement a public health response to reduce injuries and death. Yet, without dedicated funding from Congress, the CDC, which should lead these efforts, cannot move forward with this vital work."

"It is time we support public research of gun violence too. We did until the Dickey Amendment in the 1990s. It did not ban the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention from researching. However, it had a chilling result, severely discouraging it."

"It will surprise no one to say that there is a student debt crisis: 44.7 million people owe $1.5 trillion in federal student loans, more than credit card debt or car loans. But less well known is this. We are facing a student loan servicing crisis."