Press Releases

Washington, DC -- Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (D-MA-03) was named to the Education and Labor Committee’s Subcommittees for Higher Education and Workforce Investment, and Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions (HELP). Congresswoman Trahan was named to the full committee last week.

“Education is the key to unlocking our nation’s true economic potential. Building a system that creates new opportunities and ensures that the American Dream remains attainable to all remains a top priority for me. As someone who grew up in a working class family and was able to attend college because of a scholarship, I know the importance of making higher education more affordable as well as making community colleges, technical education, and apprenticeships more robust and readily available. These are noble callings, and we should be encouraging their development,” said Rep. Trahan. “Having the most educated workforce in the world won’t matter if we don’t take care of our workers. As the daughter of a union ironworker, it is important to me to fight for better wages, quality health care, and secure pensions. I am also ready to ensure these subcommittee assignments help elevate the voices and perspectives of women and mothers in policy debates ranging from paid family leave, affordable childcare, and equal pay.”

Background:

The Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment focuses on education and training beyond the highschool level. That includes, but not limited to, higher education generally, postsecondary student assistance and employment services, and the Higher Education Act; Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; all domestic volunteer programs; all programs related to the arts and humanities, museum and library services, and arts and artifacts indemnity;  postsecondary career and technical education, apprenticeship programs, and job training including the Workforce Investment Act, vocational rehabilitation, and training programs from immigration funding; science and technology programs; adult basic education (family literacy); all welfare reform programs including work incentive programs and welfare-to-work requirements; poverty programs including the Community Services Block Grant Act and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP); the Native American Programs Act; the Institute of Peace; and all matters dealing with programs and services for the elderly including nutrition programs and the Older Americans Act.

The Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions focuses on all matters dealing with relationships between employers and employees including, but not limited to, the National Labor Relations Act, the Labor-Management Relations Act, and the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act; the Bureau of Labor Statistics; employment-related health and retirement security including pension, health, and other employee benefits and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA); and all matters related to equal employment opportunity and civil rights in employment.

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