H. Res. 221, Rule for Consideration of H.R. 1261, the Workforce Reinvestment and Adult Education Act of 2003

U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern
House Floor Statement
May 8, 2003

I rise in opposition to the rule and to the bill, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Just when we think that the Republican leadership of this House couldn't be any more out of touch with reality, they bring a new bill to the floor. Today's contribution is the Workforce Reinvestment Act.

Let's review some of the basic facts of the failed economic policies of this President and this Congress.

Those policies have led to a 6% unemployment rate - the highest in years.

There are more unemployed people in this country today than at any point since July 1993.

Of the 8.8 million people who are out of work in America, nearly 2 million have been out of work for 27 weeks or more.

The average length of unemployment is approximately 20 weeks, the highest since 1984.

Mr. Speaker, the economy is ailing, and Republican policies are failing - and every day, the people of America are the ones who are suffering.

And how does the Majority propose to help the unemployed in this country?

First, by proposing a misguided tax scheme. The President and the Republican leadership claim that their tax plan will create a million jobs. No serious economist, or no serious person, believes that.

But even taking them at their word, each new job under their plan would cost five hundred and fifty thousand dollars in lost revenue - about 17 times the salary of the average American worker. Talk about waste, fraud and abuse. On the other hand, every dollar we spend on unemployment benefits results in $1.37 in economic activity. That's what is called "growth" - not that the Republican majority knows anything about that.

The second part of their plan is to cut job training, disability and veteran employment, and adult learning programs. To hurt the very people we should be helping.

The Workforce Reinvestment and Adult Education Act we are considering here today does nothing to help create jobs or to reduce the number of unemployed people in this country.

Mr. Speaker, the American people deserve better.

Contrary to what we'll here from the Majority, this bill actually makes it harder for the unemployed to get employment and re-employment training.

The SEIU, in an open letter to every Member of this body, said that "the primary task of the workforce development system must be to connect unemployed and underemployed workers with family-sustaining jobs that provide good wages and benefits and afford economic self-sufficiency."

They're right.

But if you're a young person who needs employment training while looking for your first job, this bill won't help you.

If you're an adult who needs re-employment training and assistance as you look for a new job, this bill won't help you.

Specifically, this bill block-grants adult, dislocated worker, and employment service funding streams.

It allows states to use funds from the Disability and Veteran Employment and Adult Learning programs to fund expenses at the Workforce Investment Act's centers. The result of this provision will be more bureaucracy and less training for the disabled and veterans.

Given all of the rhetoric we hear in this place about veterans, this provision is unacceptable. We should be doing everything we can to help veterans find employment, instead of slashing the Disability and Veteran Employment and Adult Learning programs.

Additionally, the bill eliminates existing protections and safeguards against low quality and potentially fraudulent job training providers, and permits states to allow these providers to receive federal funding.

It caps the use of funds for services for low income youth - those considered most likely to drop out of school - at 30%.

Mr. Speaker, many Democrats offered several good amendments in the Rules Committee yesterday. Unfortunately, the Majority has decided to stifle the debate on these important issues by denying these Members the opportunity to offer most of these amendments here on the floor.

One of the amendments offered in Committee and denied by the Majority was an extension of unemployment benefit for workers who have lost their jobs.

Unemployment benefits expire at the end of this month. Too many unemployed workers simply cannot find work because the jobs aren't there. These people desperately need the unemployment benefits traditionally supplied by the federal government in difficult times.

It's flat wrong that the Majority refuses to allow a vote on the extension on these important benefits.

But, if that weren't bad enough, this bill also attacks the Constitution by repealing civil rights protections that are written in current law.

21 years ago, then-Senator Dan Quayle sponsored legislation that provided civil rights protections against employment discrimination based on religion in programs that receive federal funds. President Reagan signed this bill into law.

It's not every day that a Democrat like me praises the good work of Dan Quayle, but the non-discrimination provision he authored is good policy that has served us well.

And this provision received strong, bipartisan support when the Workforce Reinvestment Act was reauthorized in 1998.

But the Workforce Reinvestment and Adult Education Act before us today shreds these protections by allowing religious organizations to receive federal funding under the bill for job training activities and social services, and then to discriminate in hiring based on religion.

In other words, this bill would allow a religious organization that discriminates based on religion, like Bob Jones University, to get taxpayer money for federal job training programs.

This provision is unconstitutional, unacceptable and offensive.

An amendment to remove this provision was offered in the Rules Committee and, like other substantive amendments, was not made in order.

Mr. Speaker, this bill is just lousy. Yesterday in the Rules Committee the majority got into a lengthy finger-pointing session about who's responsibility it is to fix the unemployment issue. The Education and Workforce Committee say it's up to the Ways and Means Committee, but Ways and Means says it's up to Education and Workforce.

I would say to my colleagues on the other side - Don't you go home to your districts? Don't you listen to your constituents? Don't you know that they care more about jobs and a strong economy than about jurisdictional cat fights? This is outrageous, and you know it.

Mr. Speaker, this is an unfair rule and it's a bad bill. I urge my colleagues to think of the unemployed in their districts and ask themselves - "does this bill help my constituents?" The honest answer is no.

I urge this House to defeat the rule and vote against the bill.

And I reserve the balance of my time.