Jim McGovern

Mr. McGOVERN

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues in the U.S. House of Representatives to join me in recognizing the incredible accomplishments of Worcester Technical High School under the leadership of Principal Sheila Harrity. Worcester Technical High School, located in my hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts, is on the cutting edge of career and technical education. Recognizing the importance of coupling academic rigor with hands-on experience, Worcester Tech has developed a curriculum to ensure students graduate college-and-career ready. With a focus on robust STEM education, faculty members at Worcester Tech are preparing students for careers in highly technological industries. In recognition of this academic excellence and improved student achievement, Worcester Tech was recently named a 2013 National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education. Worcester Tech is a well-respected institution in our city, and students of the school have demonstrated their commitment to giving back to Worcester by completing various community service projects that range from land maintenance and water testing to constructing a low- income LEED certified house. The school has also partnered with institutions of higher learning to advance their knowledge. For example, Worcester Tech recently partnered with Worcester Polytechnic Institute to construct a modular, zero-energy home and compete in a Solar Decathlon in Datong, China. Additionally, Worcester Technical High School is leader in robotics education. The school is home to the nationally recognized Robotics and Automation Technology Team known as the Tech-Know Commandos, winners of the 2013 VEX Robotics World Championship trophy. All of this would not be possible without the talented faculty and staff of Worcester Technical High School, including Principal Sheila Harrity. Ms. Harrity has demonstrated a deep passion for and commitment to advancing educational outcomes for the students of Worcester Tech, and has transformed the school into an innovative learning center. Her incredible efforts have earned her the 2014 National High School Principal of the Year award by MetLife and the National Association of Secondary School Principals. I'm so proud to represent the faculty, students, and staff of Worcester Tech, a leader in career and technical education, and look forward to their future successes. I ask you to join me in congratulating Worcester Technical High School for being selected as a 2013 National Blue Ribbon School, and in honoring Principal Sheila Harrity for her lifelong commitment to education.

Mr. McGOVERN

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I come to the floor today to again talk about the need to end hunger now. Last week, this House passed a bill that cut $39 billion from the Nation's preeminent anti-hunger safety net program, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Formerly known as food stamps, SNAP is a program that provides food to low-income individuals and their families. It also has among the lowest error rates of any Federal program. Additionally, the bill contained new work requirements for people receiving SNAP benefits. Mr. Speaker, the notion of new and stricter work requirements sounds terrific. I'm sure it polls very well. But the reality is that the majority of people receiving SNAP who can work, actually do work. In fact, working people are the fastest-growing priority of the SNAP program. And let me note that SNAP already has work requirements for able- bodied adults without dependents. Under current law, they are eligible for SNAP benefits for only 3 out of every 36 months unless they work 20 hours a week or are in a State-run unemployment or training program. The law specifically states they must take a job if it is offered to them, and cannot quit. States can apply for waivers for areas of high unemployment. During this very difficult economic time, 48 States and jurisdictions currently do so. In other words, Republican and Democratic Governors alike understand that forcing people to find a job before they can get their food benefits doesn't make any sense if there are no jobs to find. The Republican bill would eliminate those State waivers and impose harsh financial penalties on States that refuse to implement the new work requirements. So much for States' rights. But more broadly, Mr. Speaker, it's important to note that what we do in Congress is not done in a vacuum. Every action we take is linked together. Every piece of Federal policy that we pass has a reaction on other Federal policies. For the past 3 years, we have seen this Tea Party-controlled House of Representatives attempt to weaken our educational system, prevent people from obtaining health care, cut childcare programs, cut transportation funding and affordable housing, cut job training programs, try to take health care away from people who have insurance, and prevent bills that create jobs from coming to the floor. In other words, at the same time my Republican friends are telling poor people that they need to work in order to get food benefits, they are doing everything possible to make it harder for people to find a job that pays a living wage. Now, think about a young single mother who is trying to make a better life. Republicans want to cut Pell Grants, cut funding to community colleges, and cut job training programs, which means it's harder for her to get the skills she needs. This sequester has meant cuts to Head Start programs, which makes it harder to find affordable childcare so that she can go to work. Cuts in transportation funding make it more difficult and expensive for her to get to a job if she can find one. They reject health insurance for everyone, which gives her a perverse incentive to stay on Medicaid. They oppose raising the minimum wage, which means that even if she can find a job, it likely won't pay enough to provide for her family. Mr. Speaker, slashing government just for its own sake means cutting education, stifling innovation and job creation, and preventing people from making ends meet. I have come to this floor week after week to talk about how we can end hunger now. Week after week, I have called for a White House conference on food and nutrition, urging the President to bring policy and political experts to the White House to come up with a comprehensive plan to End Hunger Now--a plan that could dramatically reduce the number of people who rely on SNAP and reduce the amount of money we spend on the program. This is an issue that can and must be solved. Last week, this House took a huge step backwards, a step that will make more people hungry in America. It was an awful thing to do. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that 3.8 million people will lose their benefits; 170,000 veterans will lose their food benefits. Ending hunger used to be a bipartisan issue. Surely, it can be again.

Mr. McGOVERN

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Ellison) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, let me just say to my friend from Texas, we know exactly what you are all doing here. What you are doing is throwing 3.8 million people off of this program who, quite frankly, rely on it to put food on the table. And I just want to point out for the record, the average length of someone on SNAP is about 9 months. There are people who work, who work full time who are on SNAP because they don't earn enough. People do want to work. People don't want to be on public assistance. But the bottom line is that we have had a Congress here that has blocked every major piece of legislation that might produce jobs. So let's get our facts straight here. At this point, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlelady from California (Ms. Lee) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlelady from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlelady from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlelady from California (Mrs. Capps) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlelady from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. O'Rourke) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, Republican talking points aside, according to CBO, this bill, if passed, will result in 3.8 million people losing their benefits, including 170,000 veterans. That is shameful. I appreciate the gentleman's concern about the waivers, but I remind him that his Governor of Texas, Rick Perry, has requested waivers on a number of occasions because people haven't been able to find jobs in his State of Texas. So if you've got a problem with the waivers, you ought to talk to your own Governor. At this point, I yield to the gentlelady from Ohio (Ms. Fudge) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Peterson), the ranking member of the Committee on Agriculture.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions), my friend, the chairman of the committee, for yielding me the customary 30 minutes. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this is a sad day in the people's House. Today, the Republican leadership is bringing to the floor one of the most heartless pieces of legislation I have ever seen, a bill to take food away from some of our most vulnerable neighbors. After a $20 billion cut was voted down by the House in June, the Republican leadership has decided to double down on the cruelty with a $40 billion cut. It is terrible policy wrapped in a terrible process. This is a 109-page bill that would cut the SNAP program, cut billions of dollars and make major changes to the way SNAP works; and there hasn't been a single hearing, not a single markup. It didn't even go through the Agriculture Committee. And today it's being brought to the floor under a closed rule. It was just cooked up in the majority leader's office as some sort of Heritage Foundation fever dream. CBO says that the bill would cut 3.8 million low-income people from SNAP in 2014 and millions more in the following years. These are some of America's poorest adults, as well as many low-income children, seniors, and families that work for low wages. Let me say that again, Mr. Speaker, so there's no confusion. People who work but who don't make enough to feed their families will be cut from this program. The biggest cut affects millions of unemployed, childless adults who live in areas of high unemployment. These are poor people. Many don't have the skills or education they need to find a job. It is a group whose average income is about $2,500 a year. And for most, SNAP is the only government assistance that they receive. Now, if that weren't bad enough, 210,000 children in these families would also lose their free school meals; and 170,000 unemployed veterans will lose their SNAP benefits as well. Let me repeat: 170,000 veterans will lose their benefits. These are the people who have served our country. How can you do that? Mr. Speaker, we are 45 years and a million miles away from the War on Poverty. The Republican leadership has instead launched a war on poor people. This bill is not about reform. It is not about making SNAP a better, stronger program. Mr. Speaker, it is not easy to be poor in America. It is not a glamorous life. It is a struggle just to make it through the day. The average SNAP benefit is $1.50 per meal. Housing costs, transportation costs, childcare costs, they all add up. You know, fighting hunger used to be a bipartisan issue. Think of people like Bob Dole and Bill Emerson. And I know that a lot of Republicans--moderates and conservatives--are very nervous about this bill. So I would say to them: don't do this. Please don't do this. Don't go along with cutting food benefits to millions of struggling families. Don't make hundreds of thousands of children and seniors and veterans go hungry. Don't put the food banks and church pantries in your districts into an even deeper hole. The people who rely on SNAP to feed their families struggle every single day. Please don't make their lives even harder. It is not too late. We do not need to pass this bill in order to go to conference on the farm bill. I would urge my colleagues to search their consciences and to vote against this bill. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez).

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I will just remind the gentleman that compassionate conservatism also gave us the Great Recession. At this point, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Himes).

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, at this point, it's my privilege to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller). (Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. McGOVERN. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I need to qualify something here. I want to respond to what the gentleman just said. The fact of the matter is, when children's parents get cut from SNAP, then children are no longer eligible for free breakfast and lunch in school. That's where we get the number of 270,000 kids who will lose their free breakfast and lunch programs. That's the connection. So it is connected. So I would point that out because it is important. I don't want anyone to be fooled by the fact that somehow this doesn't affect school meals. It does, very directly. At this point, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen).

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett).

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Welch).

Mr. McGOVERN. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Welch) for a unanimous consent request.

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, it's my privilege to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Connolly).

Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee). (Ms. JACKSON LEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)