Providing for Consideration of Senate Amendment to H.R. American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
Floor Speech
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Mrs. HAYES. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the American Rescue Plan.
I was sitting in my office listening to debate, and I was thrilled to hear my colleagues on the other side of the aisle speak up about reopening schools. These are words I have been waiting a year to hear. I immediately looked up H.R. 682 to read it, and I was so disappointed that this bill offers no support, no assistance, and no funding for school reopenings.
The American Rescue Plan, on the other hand, invests in helping K-12 schools reopen safely and addresses learning loss in the classroom.
The bill provides nearly $130 billion to help schools take the steps recommended by the CDC to ensure students and educators can return to the classroom safely.
This includes repairing ventilation systems, reducing class sizes, implementing social distancing guidelines, purchasing PPE, and hiring support staff to address students' well-being.
Madam Speaker, as someone who has spent over a decade in the classroom, I can tell you that this is what every teacher in America is looking for, this is what every parent is looking for, and this is what is necessary to reopen schools safely--not just in communities that are largely Democrat but also in Republican communities. All of our children will benefit from the provisions of this bill.
The bill also sets aside 20 percent for long-term learning loss to get our kids from behind screens and back into the classroom by providing comprehensive after-school programs, summer learning programs, extended schooldays, reengaging students who have been absent from remote learning, and hiring counselors and nurses to care for students' emotional and physical well-being.
I am thrilled to see part of my own legislation included in this bill, the Save Education Jobs Act, which will not only make sure that we are not laying off support staff and personnel to meet our students, but to make sure that there are not budget cuts in light of the catastrophic shortfalls that are expected as a result of this pandemic.
I am so proud to be a part of a body that came up with this legislation that gives America's schools exactly what they need, gives America's children the support that is necessary, and reopens our economy by investing $130 billion.
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