Education & Labor Committee Republicans

The Education and the Workforce Committee and its four subcommittees oversee education and workforce programs that affect all Americans, from early learning through secondary education and from job training through retirement.  In a changing economy increasingly driven by technology, competition, and knowledge, Committee Republicans will work during the 112th Congress to remove red tape in education; modernize outdated federal rules that stifle freedom and innovation; secure access to health care, retirement security, and training for American workers; and hold the federal government responsible to the American people through robust oversight.  The following issues are under the jurisdiction of the Education and the Workforce Committee: 

Education. The Committee on Education and the Workforce oversees federal programs and initiatives dealing with education at all levels -- from preschool through high school to higher education and continuing education. These include: 

• Elementary and secondary education initiatives, including the No Child Left Behind Act, school choice for low-income families, special education (the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), teacher quality & teacher training, scientifically-based reading instruction, and career and technical education;
• Higher education programs (the Higher Education Act), to support college access for low and middle-income students and help families pay for college;
• Early childhood & preschool education programs including Head Start;
• School lunch and child nutrition programs;
• Financial oversight of the U.S. Department of Education;
• Programs for the care and treatment of at-risk youth, child abuse prevention, and child adoption;
• Educational research and improvement;
• Adult education; and
• Anti-poverty programs, including the Community Services Block Grant Act and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). 

Workforce. The Committee on Education and the Workforce also holds jurisdiction over workforce initiatives aimed at strengthening health care, job training, and retirement security for workers. Workforce issues in the jurisdiction of the Education and the Workforce Committee include: 

• Pension and retirement security for U.S. workers;
• Access to quality health care for working families and other employee benefits;
• Job training, adult education, and workforce development initiatives, including those under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), to help local communities train and retrain workers;
• Continuing the successful welfare reforms of 1996;
• Protecting the democratic rights of individual union members;
• Worker health and safety, including occupational safety and health;
• Providing greater choices and flexibility (including "comp time" or family time options) to working women and men;
• Equal employment opportunity and civil rights in employment;
• Wages and hours of labor, including the Fair Labor Standards Act;
• Workers' compensation, and family and medical leave; and
• All matters dealing with relationships between employers and employees.