Providing for Consideration of H.R. 1732, Regulatory Integrity Protection Act of 2015; Providing for Consideration of Conference Report on S. Con. Res. 11, Concurrent Resolution on the Budget, Fiscal Year 2016; and Providing for Consideration of H.J. Res. 43, Disapproval of District of Columbia Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Amendment Act of 2014

Floor Speech

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Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Thank you to the gentleman from Worcester for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to this rule and its assault on Americans' reproductive health rights. All women should have the right to make their own healthcare decisions without fear of losing their jobs.

With reports of women being fired for undergoing in vitro fertilization and being fired for being a single mom, the City Council of Washington, D.C. passed a resolution to ban workplace discrimination based on personal reproductive healthcare decisions.

This joint resolution does not infringe on religious liberty. It ensures the freedom to practice individual religious and moral beliefs. This decision of the D.C. Council will protect women and ensure that reproductive health decisions are made by women and not their employers and not corporations.

It is 2015, and I would love for Congress to be debating women in the workplace. We should be talking about how we achieve equal pay, how we increase paid sick leave, and how to help working families make ends meet. We should not be stripping away the progress that has already been made.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote against this rule.

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