[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5659]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      MR. SCOTT'S VISIT TO OREGON

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Oregon (Ms. Bonamici) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, when I travel around northwest Oregon, I 
often hear from parents who struggle to afford child care, which in 
Oregon can cost as much as a year of college tuition. I hear from 
people who can't find work because their skills don't match up with the 
jobs that are available in their areas, and I hear from students who 
are overwhelmed by the cost of their college educations.
  These are not problems without solutions. As policymakers, we should 
be addressing the challenges our families face. It is possible to give 
every child the opportunity to succeed, to close the achievement gap, 
to make college accessible and affordable, to expand family-friendly 
workplace policies, and to make sure we have a 21st century workforce. 
In fact, we can't afford to let these problems continue to hold us 
back.
  This week, I welcomed to Oregon Mr. Scott of Virginia, the ranking 
member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce. Together we saw 
and discussed some of the struggles our working families face. We had a 
whirlwind day that included substantive discussions about how to give 
children, young people, and working families the support they need to 
succeed. We talked about how to open the doors of opportunity that are 
closed for too many.
  I invited Mr. Scott to Oregon because he has a remarkable record of 
standing up for working families. On the Education and the Workforce 
Committee, we worked together on the Every Student Succeeds Act to 
strengthen our public schools, and on the Older Americans Act to 
support our growing population of older adults.
  He has also been a leader for working families by his standing up to 
attacks on the National Labor Relations Board and by his protecting 
retirees through his support for the Department of Labor's rule to ban 
conflicts of interest in retirement advice. During his visit this week, 
I showed Mr. Scott the innovative and collaborative nature that sets 
Oregon apart.
  Oregon is a leader in addressing barriers that are faced by working 
families. Last year our State legislature raised the State's minimum 
wage and passed legislation to provide workers with paid sick days to 
care for themselves or their families.
  At our forum on early childhood development, we discussed how this 
country's workplace policies have not kept up with our changing 
workforce. Andrea Paluso from Family Forward Oregon told us that even 
the iconic image of the Cleaver family does not accurately reflect the 
diversity of American families.
  In fact, Barbara Billingsley, the actress who played June Cleaver on 
``Leave It to Beaver,'' was in real life a single, working mom.
  We heard from others about how food insecurity and hunger interfere 
with the ability of too many children to focus in school and about how 
early childhood education correlates to positive health outcomes and 
academic achievement later in life.
  I am proud of Oregon for taking so many positive steps to protect 
working families, but these changes shouldn't be happening just for 
some. We should be having these conversations and discussions in 
Congress as well. Our economy will be stronger and our families will be 
healthier when we acknowledge that families need policies that work for 
them, not against them. We need equal pay for women, good wages, paid 
leave, and affordable child care to support families in Oregon and 
across the country.
  Looking toward our future, I want students today to have the same 
opportunities I had. I worked my way through community college, 
college, and law school, and I graduated with a very manageable amount 
of student debt. Unfortunately, that opportunity is out of reach for 
too many of today's families.
  Again, Oregon is a national leader. Oregon Promise, our State's free 
community college plan, will help put education within reach for 
thousands of students. Oregon's leaders have recognized that the future 
of our economy relies on an educated and innovative workforce to create 
and fill the jobs of the 21st century.
  During our visit, I introduced Mr. Scott to Fernando, who 
participates in the Portland Community College's very successful Future 
Connect Program. This program connects low-income, first-generation 
college students with financial aid resources, personalized academic 
advising, internships and job training, and an intensive summer 
orientation, all of which help them to succeed in college. This program 
is critical to Fernando, who is a DACA student, and to other first-
generation college students. Fernando told us that Future Connect made 
a difference, it made him feel at home in college. Oregon knows it is 
not enough just to get students to college, but that it is important 
that they stay there and finish their degrees. Now Fernando is off to a 
4-year university and is pursuing his plans to become a dentist.
  I am incredibly proud of the State I represent. Congress can learn a 
lot from the Oregon spirit of innovation and collaboration. I was glad 
to show Mr. Scott the progress we have made in Oregon, and I look 
forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
remove the many obstacles that are holding back working families and 
that are keeping young people from achieving their full potential, 
because when we open the doors of opportunity to everyone, we all 
succeed.

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