Scholarships For Opportunity and Results Act

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 471. Today's vote comes just weeks after House Republicans brought a Continuing Resolution to the floor to slash billions from public education programs--legislation that would cut Head Start slots, reduce critical support to thousands of schools, and decrease afterschool services at high-poverty and low-performing schools. My colleagues across the aisle argued that we simply cannot afford these investments in our nation's children.

But today, the Majority brings to the floor a bill to provide private school vouchers in the District of Columbia. This bill adds $300 million to the deficit, a violation of their own new ``Cut-Go'' rule that requires offsets for all new spending.

Mr. Speaker, I support investments in education. We all want our children to have the opportunity to succeed. But we should be using public funds to improve our public schools first. And it is totally hypocritical to have a vote one month to cut public school funding under the guise of deficit reduction and vote the next month to increase the deficit to support some schools over all others. I urge my colleagues oppose this bill.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source