Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Newhouse, my friend, for gathering us together here to honor law enforcement and to mourn several recently fallen police officers.

Whenever a police officers is killed in the line of duty it is a tragedy, for the officer, for the family, and for the entire community. Even one such death is too many. And in the last several weeks in Washington State, there have been several, and we have mourned together.

As I speak, the funeral is underway for Officer Dan Rocha, killed in the line of duty in Everett on March 25. Just 2 weeks ago, I attended the funeral for Pierce County Sheriff's Deputy Dom Calata, who leaves behind his wife, Erin, his darling preschooler, Dylan, family, and friends.

Dom's friend and partner in duty, Officer Rich Scaniffe, spoke at the funeral. And he was critically injured at the same time but, thankfully, survived and will make a full recovery.

Back in 2019, when I was first sworn into office, Kittitas County Deputy Sheriff Ryan Thompson was also killed while serving his community.

Every day, police officers put themselves in danger to keep our communities safe, and every day, they and their families face the risk that they might not make it home to their loved ones. This is why it has been such a priority of mine to meet with police officers and police chiefs to thank them for their work and to learn how I can help support them and keep them and their communities safe.

I have heard from many of my constituents about rising crime rates in our district, including these hostilities toward police officers. Everyone, everyone deserves to feel safe in their communities. That is why I voted to increase funding for local law enforcement a few weeks ago, and why I will continue to push for funding to make

sure law enforcement have the tools they need to protect themselves and our communities.

I am deeply grateful to police officers for their service. I understand the worries that their families face daily, and mourn together with families and communities for those who have been killed in the line of duty.

May their memories be a blessing.

Madam Speaker, I am delighted that today we will be voting to pass the Affordable Insulin Now Act. This is personal for me. I have type 1 diabetes and insulin keeps me alive. This tiny 2 teaspoon bottle that used to cost $40 now retails for over $300. Most of us need more than one bottle a month to survive.

No one should have to ration their insulin--taking just enough to stay alive but not enough to stay healthy. That is a dangerous and sometimes deadly tightrope to walk, which is why this bill to cap insulin at $35 a month is so critical for my patients, as a pediatrician, and for people like me.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

I am so proud to represent Washington's Eighth Congressional District, which stretches from the suburbs of Seattle in the west across the Cascade Mountains into the rich farmland of central Washington. It is home to some of the Nation's largest agricultural producers and exporters whose hay, apples, pears, and cherries are in high demand all around the world.

For more than a year, these exporters have shared with me how pandemic conditions and the behavior of foreign-owned shipping carriers are hurting their industries, threatening export markets and relationships that they have developed over decades.

They often don't know when a ship will be in port, making it difficult to get their products to the carrier in time. They are forced to pay additional fees when their products--often perishable ones--have to wait at the port to be loaded on to a ship.

And shipping carriers are opting to return as many empty containers to China as possible for fast turnaround and their own bottom line, rather than accepting U.S. exports. It is better for them financially to return to China with empty containers to bring back TVs, iPads, and just about everything else we buy from Amazon versus bringing back Eighth District hay or agricultural goods. This rejection threatens to upend our Nation's agricultural industry and relationships built over decades for years to come.

I was proud to cosponsor the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021 together with Congressmen Garamendi and Johnson. I thank them for their support. This is a great bipartisan bill

that will make a real difference for exporters in my district, and I encourage my colleagues to vote ``yes.''

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. I thank Mr. LaMalfa for his kind words and for cosponsoring this bill with me.

My bill, the National Forest Restoration and Remediation Act will help the Forest Service fund the cleanup of damaged public lands.

This bipartisan legislation, which passed unanimously out of the Committee on Agriculture would allow the Forest Service to collect and keep interest earned on settlement funds, much like other Federal agencies do, in order to supplement their already strained restoration efforts.

The Forest Service is responsible for overseeing the remediation and restoration of lands damaged by mining activities and human-caused wildfires. And when the negligent actions of companies or individuals result in damages to Forest Service property, officials enter a settlement agreement with the responsible parties to hold them accountable. The Forest Service then uses the settlement funds to restore the affected lands.

At the moment, the Forest Service does not have the authority to retain interest on those settlement funds like other Federal agencies, like the Department of the Interior and the EPA do. The National Forest Restoration and Remediation Act would simply allow the Forest Service to retain interest on settlement funds and apply those additional resources to restoration work that is abundantly needed. Without this additional funding, the value of settlement funds diminishes over time, and the Forest Service can face long-term budget shortfalls for environmental cleanup. If this bill had been in effect between fiscal years 2015 and 2019, the Forest Service would have received more than $7.5 million to supplement their environmental restoration work.

So as we confront another potentially devastating wildfire season, it is so important to ensure that the Forest Service can use accrued interest to protect and remediate our forests.

The Forest Service provides many important environmental services in Washington State, including mitigating wildfires and improving forest health. This is especially critical in places like Chelan County in my district where 82 percent of the land is owned by the Forest Service.

According to the National Interagency Fire Center, there were over 50,000 human-caused wildfires last year burning nearly six million acres nationwide. And over half of the wildfires on Forest Service lands are started by humans.

My bill will ensure that when we hold bad actors accountable for negligent behavior, the Forest Service can fully use the fines and the interest to rehabilitate the land.

I was so proud to introduce this bill with my colleagues Representatives LaMalfa, Rosendale, and Neguse. I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense bill to protect our Federal public lands.

Madam Speaker, Texas' law to pay vigilantes to sue anyone who enables an abortion after 6 weeks is just the latest gross overreach to make it virtually impossible for women to get abortion care.

These laws take away a woman's right to determine if and when to have a child. And I can tell you as a doctor that these laws also undermine a doctor's oath to help her patients and the trust between doctor and patient, not to mention the women's own health.

It is long past time to stop States from putting up absurd roadblocks with no medical justification, like hallway size, arbitrary waiting periods, unnecessary vaginal ultrasounds, government scripted propaganda, and hospital admitting privileges for procedures that don't require a hospital.

This bill blocks States from putting up these barriers to care.

As the only pro-choice woman doctor in Congress, I urge my colleagues to join me in protecting a woman's right to a legal, safe abortion no matter where she lives by supporting the Women's Health Protection Act.

Mr. Speaker, wildfires in Washington State have been increasing in intensity and scale every year for the past few years, and our State and local fire departments are being called to respond like never before.

Last year, Kittitas County, a county in my district, worked together with a neighboring district, closely together, to put out the Evans Creek fire. And both counties joined forces, they prevented tremendous damage, stopped the fire.

However, only one county received Federal reimbursement money to help them pay the expenses; the other one is now left almost destitute having blown out their budget. So the money followed the county lines, not the fire lines.

So my amendment ensures that small municipalities can get Federal reimbursement funds after fighting wildfires, regardless of where those county lines are. It will direct the Wildland Fire Leadership Council to provide recommendations on addressing interjurisdictional fire reimbursement challenges like this one and provide some clarity.

As we face increasingly catastrophic wildfire seasons each year, stepping up to help a neighboring county should be encouraged. And a fairer distribution of Federal reimbursement distribution dollars would do just that.

This is a commonsense amendment, and I urge my colleagues to support its adoption.

For months, exporters in my district have struggled to get their crops overseas because foreign-owned carriers are taking empty containers back to China rather than waiting for our growers to load their crops. This is threatening decades-long trade relationships across the Pacific.

These large multination corporations control all overseas transportation, and exporters really have no power. My amendment directs the Federal Maritime Commission to enhance assistance to U.S. exporters and importers both informally and affordably and without the need to hire lawyers.

Getting U.S. goods to market in a timely fashion can affect the success of an entire growing season for farmers and for producers. This issue affects not just Washington State, it affects farmers across the country and the lack of shipping container availability is an issue at all U.S. ports.

It is time to give exporters more support to ensure their goods can get to market in time.

Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Lamb for yielding.

I am incredibly excited to have three local projects included in the INVEST in America Act. I worked with mayors, county commissioners, and community members across my district to identify priorities and advocate for Federal investment. These projects will improve the safety and resiliency of infrastructure in our communities, create jobs, and boost local economies.

Now, I would like to ask my colleagues to support my amendment to codify the Forest Service's Legacy Roads and Trails Program. This program leverages public and private funding to address our national backlog of deteriorating infrastructure, and does so while protecting American rivers and streams, endangered fish, and community water systems with targeted projects, like restoring fish passage and access to upstream habitat for salmon and steelhead, maintaining and storm- proofing forest roads, and improving trails so people can safely recreate in our public lands.

Chronic underfunding has left a long backlog of projects, and I am proud to present this solution. As we face the increasing threat of climate change and the need to improve our Nation's crumbling infrastructure, we must ensure pragmatic programs like legacy roads are also protected.

I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I have an amendment at the desk made in order by the rule.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, my amendment to this bill is very simple. It would ensure that this important legislation does not place undue burden on small businesses.

In so many areas throughout my district, our Main Street businesses are just now finally getting back on their feet. They have faced unprecedented challenges during this past pandemic year. In fact, one small business owner in Auburn almost didn't apply for any Federal financial assistance because she was so overwhelmed by the potential paperwork.

Even before the pandemic, small businesses were bogged down with paperwork and administrative burdens, things that can be easily handled by a large corporation but that really are too much of a burden and can put a Main Street shop out of business.

When we implement this legislation, we should also understand what effect it will have on small businesses and make it as easy as possible for them to disclose this important information.

That is why my amendment requires the Sustainable Finance Advisory Commission to study issues small businesses may face when complying with requirements of this bill and order recommendations to ease regulatory burdens for these businesses.

As we move forward in creating transparency for large corporations, it is important that we do so without creating burdens that could really hamper the recovery of small businesses.

This is a commonsense amendment, and I urge my colleagues to support its adoption.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his commendation on the amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters), the chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment that is a commonsense amendment to support our local small businesses.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Demings for yielding.

Today, I am honored to pay tribute to law enforcement officers and their families. Every day, law enforcement officers put their lives at risk in order to keep us and our communities safe. Most of the time, they return safely home to their families. But that is not always the case, and we should never lose sight of that.

In that spirit, I want to express profound gratitude to Deputy Ryan Thompson from Kittitas County, Washington, who tragically lost his life in the line of duty in 2019.

Ryan has since been recognized for this sacrifice on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial here in Washington, D.C. Thank you to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund for honoring and remembering Deputy Thompson's service.

I also express my appreciation for the families of law enforcement officers who live with an undercurrent of worry every day while their loved one is on duty.

And a very special thank-you to our very own Capitol Police, who stood up to a violent mob in order to protect us from danger. Several Capitol Police officers have lost their lives. Please know that we mourn with their families.

Madam Speaker, I am so proud of the wins in the American Rescue Plan, and in particular with what this means for America's children. As a pediatrician, my life's work has been the health and the wellbeing of children.

This pandemic has been particularly hard for children and families. The most important thing we can do to bring relief to our communities is to end the pandemic. This means getting shots into as many arms as possible as quickly as we can. It also means taking steps now to ensure that when children return to the classroom, our schools and our small businesses can stay safe and stay open.

Testing is key to keeping our schools and workplaces safe. And, frankly, we have not used testing in a way that significantly curbs the spread of this disease. Rapid home testing, in particular, is a critical public health tool that we have yet to really deploy. And there is funding in the American rescue package to support more strategic widespread testing.

Rapid tests can give results in about 15 minutes, and they can be done at home. Imagine testing in the morning before brushing your teeth. By the time you are done with breakfast you would have a result. If positive, you would stay home and avoid spreading coronavirus to others. This is how we break the chain of transmission and starve the virus. What we need now is to get these tests evaluated, approved, scaled up and priced such that everyone can use them two to three times a week. Frequent testing means you will catch infections early while people are

still asymptomatic and would otherwise unknowingly be spreading them to others.

The technology is inexpensive and is similar to that used in pregnancy tests. In fact, these tests can be produced in bulk for a dollar or two per test. But we need investment from the Federal Government in doing head-to-head comparisons to determine which tests are the best, and then production and procurement of those best tests on a massive scale.

This is a new virus. Variants have already emerged that make it more contagious. More are sure to come. It will be close to a year before all of our children are vaccinated. Now, frequent rapid testing is a way to identify infected children and staff before they get symptoms and keep them at home so they can't infect others. It can give staff and families confidence that our schools are safe. It can also give an early warning of outbreaks. Now, imagine what this sort of testing could mean for workplaces, for restaurants, and for theaters.

The American Rescue Plan does more than strengthen our vaccines and testing though. It provides critical relief that families need right now.

We are in one of the worst economic downturns this country has ever seen, and the American Rescue Plan provides help where it is most needed, prioritizing children and families.

This plan shores up the child tax credit and provides it up front as a monthly check for up to $300 per child. This is a very big deal. More than 93 percent of children and families will benefit, including the poorest 10 percent, who currently get no benefits because their parents' income is too low to qualify. These are the families who need the help the most. This provision alone will cut the number of children living in poverty in half.

It also shores up SNAP benefits and incorporates my bill to expand WIC, so that children can get good nutrition and enough of it to power their brains and their bodies. It provides cash benefits and enhanced unemployment benefits that will help the hardest-hit families the most, and it gets even more help to families with children.

It expands Medicaid in States that haven't already and makes it easier for people to afford and sign up for health insurance.

And finally, it provides resources to schools so that educators, staff, children, and their families feel confident that they are returning to classrooms safely. And it expands broadband access at home to narrow the digital divide.

The American Rescue Plan is a win for the country. It meets the moment, and it focuses relief on the people and businesses hardest hit by the economic and social fallout from this pandemic. Important to this pediatrician, it helps families and children with bold policy changes we have always needed but that have become even more urgent during this crisis.

Speaker, I rise today in support of Section 1001 of the American Recovery Plan Act of 2021. This section provides necessary resources to strengthen food and agriculture supply chains that have been ravaged by COVID-19 and provides $300 million to allow the U.S. Department of Agriculture to conduct surveillance of animals that are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

As a physician, making sure we approach this and future pandemics from a One Health perspective is key for both human and animal health, and as a Member of the Agriculture Committee, I am personally invested in making sure USDA has adequate resources to do their part. We have already seen documented evidence of a strain of COVID-19 impacting people in Europe that matches a strain that has been documented in captive mink. We cannot ignore the One Health implications of this pandemic.

The resources provided in this section will help ensure USDA can follow science-based international surveillance recommendations. I look forward to working with the Department of Agriculture to fully implement these provisions, because this is how we can stay one step ahead as this virus evolves, and also how we can detect the next virus that jumps from animal to human before it becomes a pandemic.

Mr. Chairman, I thank Representative Horn for allowing me to speak on these issues.

Mr. Chairman, my amendment supports small businesses by directing the Secretary of the Navy to adhere to competitive procedures whenever possible. This will not only make it easier for smaller contractors to compete on an even playing field with billion-dollar corporations, but it is also good governance.

Approximately 2,000 businesses provide support to the military and defense sectors in Washington State. In the last 3 years, businesses were awarded nearly $15 billion in related contracts.

Our small businesses, many of which are owned by veterans, are a driving force in our economy, especially in Washington State. By ensuring contracts are awarded on a competitive basis, we can save the Federal Government millions of dollars in acquisition and sustainment costs.

Also, for NDAA, I partnered with my friend and colleague, Representative Rick Larsen, to ensure communities facing the greatest risk of fire have equitable access to firefighting and emergency equipment.

Two Federal programs, the Firefighter Property Program and the Federal Excess Personal Property Program, transfer excess Department of Defense property to the U.S. Forest Service, which then provides it to States for use in firefighting. This property includes trucks, tools, hoses, vehicles, and aircraft parts, as well as protective clothing.

However, these programs do not currently distribute equipment based on need or risk, but rather on a first-come, first-served basis. This bill will allow for need to be taken into consideration when this equipment is available so that we can improve firefighting and emergency service capabilities where they are needed most.

Lastly, I thank my colleague, Representative Stivers, for partnering with me to ensure that the Secretary of Defense is conducting research on the reproductive health of female servicemembers and making that research public. With our military forces diversifying, it is important that we address issues identified for improvement in that research.

Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chair, I rise today to speak on my amendment prohibiting funds from being used to undermine the EPA's Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, or MATS.

These regulations have been implemented by the power sector and have protected children and communities from mercury, lead, arsenic, and other air toxics from power plants for the past 7 years.

Furthermore, the administration's proposal to jeopardize mercury standards isn't even supported by the power industry. They have already spent billions to comply, and major power sectors and labor groups have asked that the standards be left in place and that the EPA does not move forward with its proposal to undermine them.

Finalized in 2012, the EPA recognized the significant public health benefits of MATS. Then, the EPA estimated that MATS would yield up to $90 billion in public health benefits each year. Now, MATS is fully implemented and has shown to be lifesaving, preventing more than 11,000 premature deaths every year and 130,000 asthma attacks each year.

As a pediatrician, I have seen firsthand the impact of air pollution on our children. Pregnant women and children are particularly vulnerable when they are exposed to heavy metals, which impact the central nervous system with potentially devastating effects on neural development.

What we are talking about here is a known public health risk to millions of people. We cannot abandon a policy that has already been proven to work and save lives. MATS has already been shown to prevent premature deaths, adverse effects on pregnant women and children, and health problems like asthma.

It is critical that we protect our children and families from the well-documented health risks posed by mercury and heavy metals and prohibit taxpayer dollars from being used to roll back these safeguards.

I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum).

Mr. Chairman, in closing, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I would simply request that my opposition, my colleague, double check his facts. This is well-documented. This is effective. It is cost saving, and the costs have already been paid by the energy sector. This is something that they do not even want to see rolled back.

Mr. Chairman, it protects public health. I urge a ``yes'' vote on this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Chair, my amendment would ensure that early childhood developmental screenings are considered a medical service and, therefore, can be provided to children at the border who are in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. These screenings would be performed by volunteer medical professionals at no cost to the taxpayer or to the child.

There are already, thankfully, provisions for pediatric-focused medical care. That is critical given that six children have died while in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement.

This amendment goes further, though, and makes sure that the developmental, social, and emotional health of the children is also evaluated. Developmental screening is a standard part of pediatric care and will diagnose things like hearing loss, autism, language delays, and even developmental regression that is associated with toxic stress.

Given the conditions under which these children are living right now, often without their parents and without age-appropriate activities to bolster their cognitive development, this type of screening with appropriate follow-up and care is critical.

Early intervention is paramount. Allowing medical professionals to volunteer their time and expertise to screen babies and young children for physical problems and developmental delays is a way to make sure that children do not fall behind during these critical formative years and that they are set up for success in their school years and beyond.

This amendment simply clarifies that if Americans are willing to donate medical services to children at the border, those may include developmental and behavioral assessments.

Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro).

Madam Chair, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Connecticut.

Madam Chair, I am prepared to close, if my colleague has no further comments.

Madam Chair, for somebody who agrees with my amendment, that was a lot of commentary about our situation at the border.

I am not here to discuss our situation at the border or how we treat refugees. I am not here to discuss the fact that families can be with sponsors in the United States and not in detention centers.

I am merely here to discuss my amendment, which is that I would like children to have appropriate medical care and developmental screenings.

Madam Chair, I am so glad to have the agreement from my colleague. I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2480) to reauthorize the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to

revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the measure under consideration.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I am excited that the House of Representatives is considering this bill, Stronger CAPTA, today, a bipartisan bill I urge my colleagues to support.

Stronger CAPTA is a reauthorization of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, CAPTA, that will revamp already existing Federal supports for preventing child abuse and neglect.

It has been 9 years since Congress comprehensively reauthorized CAPTA. This Congress, I partnered with several of my Democratic and Republican colleagues to introduce the bipartisan Stronger CAPTA, which would help States and communities address the recent rise in cases of child neglect, abuse, and death, many of which can be linked to an increasing number of parents affected by substance abuse and the opioid crisis.

Stronger CAPTA will overhaul a prevention system that has always been overworked and underresourced. In Washington State, only 11 of about 125 programs that apply receive funding. The support my State gets from the Federal Government is about 50 cents per child per year.

Stronger CAPTA will increase funding so that more programs can ensure families in need receive their services.

It will also create a local system in which families who are seeking services but have not yet been identified as needing those services can receive the help they need.

Currently, a family who knows they need help can't get it unless something bad happens to the child. Parents are the most informed regarding the needs of their children, and we should not punish families who are proactively seeking assistance. Stronger CAPTA will help these families before harm occurs.

I am hopeful that, because of this legislation, Washington State will build on their efforts to support new mothers with parenting, help families teach social-emotional and early literacy skills, expand programs for Tribal families, counsel families and children exposed to violence and homelessness, and expand the countless other programs in place to help families seeking support.

I am also excited that the bill I introduced with my Republican colleague Steve Stivers, the Early Detection to Stop Infant Abuse and Prevent Fatalities Act, is included in this legislation. With passage of Stronger CAPTA, States will be able to help medical professionals, early childhood educators, and others better identify early signs of infant abuse and neglect that might look harmless to the untrained eye.

As a pediatrician, I take care of the children and families we are talking about today. I want every parent to have the support they need to parent well. My bill will go a long way to making sure every family gets the support they need.

I thank my colleagues, Representatives Trahan, Johnson, Stefanik, Bonamici, and Comer; Chairman Scott, and Ranking Member Foxx, for coleading this legislation with me.

The well-being of children and their opportunity to grow up in stable, loving environments will be improved with the passage of Stronger CAPTA.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Bonamici).

Madam Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from Oregon an additional 15 seconds.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Jayapal).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Mrs. McBath).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Underwood).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Trone).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Nevada (Mrs. Lee).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Wild).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott), my colleague and the chair of our committee.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record the following: first, a letter from the National Child Abuse Coalition supporting H.R. 2480, which praises the legislation's improvements to interstate data sharing and increases to authorization levels; second, a letter from the American Academy of Pediatrics endorsing H.R. 2480, which praises the legislation's public health focus; and third, a letter from the American Psychological Association supporting H.R. 2480, which praises this legislation's improvement to research on helping families experiencing substance use disorders.

National Child Abuse Coalition,

May 7, 2019.

Chairman Bobby Scott,

House Committee on Education and Labor,

Washington, DC.

Representative Kim Schrier,

Washington, DC.

Ranking Member Virginia Foxx,

House Committee on Education and Labor,

Washington, DC.

Representative James Comer,

Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Scott, Ranking Member Foxx, Representative

Schrier, and Representative Comer: On behalf of the National

Child Abuse Coalition, thank you for your outstanding

leadership on the Stronger Child Abuse Prevention and

Treatment Act. The reforms and funding levels you have

proposed in this legislation are extremely important, and we

strongly encourage all members of the House Committee on

Education and Labor to support its passage. If appropriately

funded, this legislation will reduce child abuse and neglect,

strengthen families through community-driven solutions,

improve local responses to child trauma, increase states'

child safety tools, and bring much improved data and

transparency around abuse and neglect fatalities so that

states can make tailored reforms to prevent future

fatalities. Though some changes to the bill are still needed,

we look forward to continuing to work with you as the

legislation moves forward.

In particular, we strongly support the following elements

of the proposal:

Authorization levels. Meaningful increases to CAPTA funding

are essential to ensure this bill's important reforms will

make children safer and families stronger. For too long,

Congress has sought key improvements to this law but has

failed to appropriate the funds that would allow states to

successfully implement them. The Coalition believes at least

$500 million for each title is critical, but we recognize the

authorization levels in this legislation reflect your strong

commitment to keeping children from being harmed. We were

very disappointed to learn that the House Labor-H bill

released today does not reflect the important investments you

have included in the Stronger Child Abuse Prevention and

Treatment Act. We look forward to working with you to ensure

the funding levels included in this legislation are executed

in the appropriations process. The reforms this Committee

envisions for CAPTA will not be realized without robust

increases to funding.

Emphasis on family strengthening. We also applaud the

bill's focus on family strengthening, a clear reflection of

what we know to be true: that healthy and strong families are

key to ensuring children are healthy and can achieve their

full potential. The Stronger Child Abuse Prevention and

Treatment Act reflects the entire continuum of supports to

families, starting with primary prevention at the heart of

Title II and extending into the identification and treatment

of abuse and neglect in Title I. All are essential to

creating systems of support that both prevent child abuse and

neglect and keep families together whenever possible, and

also ensure timely and appropriate action when child abuse or

neglect does occur.

Improvements to child protection systems to reduce child

fatalities and near fatalities from abuse and neglect.

Experts estimate nearly 3,000 children die every year from

child abuse and neglect. Without proper data and disclosure,

efforts to reduce these fatalities will not succeed. The

legislation's reforms in Section 103 to develop uniform

standards for tracking and reporting of child fatalities

resulting from maltreatment are absolutely essential to

making sure federal, state, and local governments have the

information they need to keep more vulnerable children alive.

The bill's reforms to clarify and strengthen disclosure about

fatalities and near fatalities in Section 106 are also very

important to these efforts. Both of these reforms were

proposed by the Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and

Neglect Fatalities, a bipartisan Commission devised by

Congress to put an end to these tragic child deaths. We also

commend you for taking steps to improve interstate data

exchange.

Thoughtful attention to children and families impacted by

substance use disorders. As the national rise in substance

use disorders continues to drive more children and families

into the child welfare system, we appreciate the thoughtful

attention paid by the Committee to these issues. In

particular, the bill incorporates new language reflecting the

intersection between child abuse and neglect and substance

use disorders, the needs of children and families with

substance use disorders, and how critical collaboration

across multiple public and community partners is to

effectively connect families to needed treatment services.

Improved transparency, accountability, and focus on key

priorities. We greatly appreciate the legislation's much-

needed streamlining and updating of CAPTA in ways that will

prioritize key needs from the experts working in states and

communities, and that will improve transparency and

accountability to ensure better implementation of the law.

The revisions to Sections 104 and 105 reflect a more focused

approach to key priorities in child welfare. The use of funds

in Section 106 presents a much more cohesive and coordinated

vision to help states in their efforts to prevent, treat, and

intervene in child abuse and neglect. The bill's revisions

specifying the state mandates in Section 106 will bring much-

needed improvements to CAPTA's transparency and

accountability.

Finally, as the bill advances, we look forward to working

with you so that the following provisions in Title II strike

the right balance to ensure effective use of taxpayer

dollars, reduce bureaucratic requirements for states, and

reflect the importance of a universal, or public health,

approach to primary prevention:

Administrative cap. Thank you for working with the

Coalition and its members on this provision in between

introduction and mark-up. We appreciate your willingness to

respond to deep concerns from the states that the initial

proposed cap would hinder states' ability to carry out the

provisions of the legislation. CBCAP lead agencies are

committed to running their programs efficiently, and most of

them operate as part of larger agencies and do not always

control what shared expenses are charged to them. We heard

from numerous CBCAP lead agencies that a four percent cap

would greatly limit their ability to provide adequate

oversight and support in implementing the bold vision that is

proposed in the underlying legislation. As the legislation

advances, we hope to work with you to ensure that the

administrative cap is consistent with guidance from Office of

Management and Budget related to federally negotiated

indirect cost rates for federal funding, in a manner that

does not undermine state flexibility to effectively implement

the law.

70/30 funding formula. The Coalition urges Congress to

simplify the Title II formula to be entirely population

based. Currently, thirty percent of the funding formula is

determined by a very complicated set of rules that burdens

states with onerous bureaucracy, reduces state flexibility,

produces accounting incentives that do not necessarily

reflect state investments, and creates a situation where

states that might benefit the most are the least able to

leverage funds. As a result, just three states receive nearly

one-third of the funding from this portion of the formula. We

hope that you will continue to work with us to create a more

appropriate formula for this Title.

Public health approach. As the Committee repeatedly heard

from the witnesses at its March 26th hearing, a universal

approach to primary prevention services is essential to the

success of Title II. Primary prevention of child abuse is

most effective when it takes a universal approach to building

protective factors and reducing risks in families and

communities. It is important that CAPTA strike the right

balance between emphasizing building a universal--or public

health--approach and targeting higher risk communities. We

look forward to working with you to make sure the final law

addresses this in the best manner possible.

Thank you for your commitment to the prevention and

treatment of child abuse and neglect, and to improving the

lives of children and families in the United States. The

National Child Abuse Coalition and its twenty-five

organizational members stand ready to continue to help

support your efforts as the critical bill moves through

Congress.

Sincerely,

Ruth J. Friedman, Ph.D.,

Executive Director, National Child

Abuse Coalition.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2480. I am so pleased that we worked together in a bipartisan fashion.

Parenting is the hardest job we have, and yet we have no training for it. This bill ensures that parents will have the support they need. It will save lives and prevent child mistreatment, maltreatment, abuse, and neglect.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.