Washington, DC – Today, Representative Lois Frankel (FL-21), a member of the House Appropriations Committee, released the following statement after helping pass the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies funding bill for Fiscal Year 2022 out of the Appropriations Committee. 

Below, in part, are Rep. Frankel’s opening remarks from committee debate:

“Thank you, Chair DeLauro and Ranking Members Granger and Cole, for your work on this tremendous bill. It is an honor to serve with you on the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittee.

It has been said that spending bills represent our values, and this excellent package does just that. Most Americans, when asked what is most important to them, will tell you their family, and this bill reflects the love and commitment we have for our families, from the very young to the very old.

This bill gets our children off to a good start with historic funding for pre-K and quality childcare. We increase funding for Title I grants to low-income schools and funding for students with disabilities so all children have access to a high-quality public education regardless of their zip code. And we want to make sure our children have the chance to live out their dreams, so we make unprecedented investments in Pell Grants for college students, including DACA recipients, and workforce development.

Our grandparents have given us so much, and now it’s our turn to make sure they age with dignity and comfort. This bill increases funding for home- and community-based services, home delivered meals, and research on Alzheimer’s and cancer and other conditions that especially impact older Americans.

And of course, we want our families to be safe and healthy. The bill doubles funding for research on gun violence and adds substantial resources for mental health treatment and reinforces and advances our public health system.

And this is a country that honors our veterans. In this regard, I am proud to champion Centers of Excellence for Student Veteran Success programs on college campuses that help veterans transition from active duty to civilian student life.  We double those efforts in this bill.

And of course, before I close, I celebrate a truly historic bill that eliminates the cruel barriers to reproductive health for working women struggling to make ends meet…We have eliminated for the first time in decades a racist, discriminatory policy of blocking Medicaid beneficiaries from accessing abortion, while making historic investments in the Title X Family Planning Program, which provides birth control, STD screenings, HIV treatment, breast and cervical cancer screenings, and more to millions of low-income patients in our most underserved communities each year. We recognize that the decision to become a parent is a personal one to be made by each woman and not by politicians.

This is a bill filled with love for our families and hope and justice that lifts them up. I’m proud to support it, and I yield back.”

The Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies appropriations bill is the largest non-defense funding bill. This year it includes $253.8 billion in overall funding, an increase of $55 billion above last year’s level. Importantly, this year’s bill also includes many local projects Rep. Frankel submitted for Community Project Funding, that will help non-profits in Palm Beach County tackle homelessness, get medical care to those most in need, boost education opportunities in minority and low-income communities, and address the mental health needs of those in the Palm Beach County community.

As a member of this Appropriations subcommittee, Rep. Frankel advocated for an array of programs, including:

Health:

• Provides $10.5 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including:
• $688 million for the HIV Initiative,
• $25 million for firearm injury and mortality prevention research,
• $10.5 million for Domestic Violence Prevention,
• $101 million for Rape Prevention and Education Grants,
• $119 million for maternal and infant health programs.
• Provides $49.4 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand life-saving research. This includes:
• $3.39 billion for Alzheimer’s disease research,
• $4.26 billion for the National Institute on Aging,
• $3.3 billion for HIV/AIDS research,
• $194 million for the Cancer Moonshot project,
• $25 million for firearm injury and mortality prevention research,
• Directives to include pregnant and lactating women in clinical trials and expand access for people of color and other underrepresented groups,
• Provides $61.48 million for the Office of Research on Women’s Health.
• Provides $9.16 billion for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA):
• Directs SAMHSA to pay special attention to the mental health needs of older adults, many of whom are still suffering the isolating effects of the pandemic.

 

Education:

• Provides $15 million for Student Veteran Service Centers, which offer resources and give a boost to student veterans transitioning from military to civilian life.
• Rep. Frankel recently introduced bipartisan legislation to create these centers across the nation.
• Provides $36 billion for Title I grants to ensure access to high-quality education regardless of zip code.
• Provides $15 billion for Individuals with Disabilities Education Act grants to states.
• Provides $1.36 billion for Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers, to provide afterschool programs for students in underserved communities.
• Provides $33 million for Arts in Education, funding for school art programs.

• Fully defunds abstinence-only education.

 

Children and Families:

• Provides $7.38 billion for the Child Care and Development Block Grant, to help low-income families afford quality childcare.
• Provides $12.18 billion for Head Start, to provide comprehensive early childhood education for low-income families.
• Provides $400 million for the Title X Family Planning Program, which provides life-saving quality health care to low-income patients.
• Provides $703 million for Home-Delivered Nutrition Services (Meals on Wheels) for senior citizens.
• Provides $550 million for Home- and Community-Based Services for older Americans and individuals with disabilities.

• Provides $67.5 million for the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program.
• Provides $26 million for the Domestic Violence Hotline.
• Provides $10 million for the Violence Against Women health initiatives.
• Provides $10 million for Holocaust Survivors, to aid survivors with health care, aging assistance, and emergency costs.

 

Labor:

• Provides $25 million for the Women’s Bureau of the Department of Labor, including a directive to study and address high levels of women’s unemployment as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Provides $3.1 billion for operation of the Unemployment Insurance program.
• Provides $155 million to help states address spikes in unemployment claims caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 

For a full summary of the bill, click here.

Now that the legislation has passed out of committee, it will be brought to the House floor for a vote in the coming weeks. If the Senate passes its own bill, appropriators will reconcile the differences to then send the result to the President’s desk for a signature.

 

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