Terri Sewell: “Today I rise to express my strong opposition to H.R. 5, the so-called Student Success Act. I am deeply disappointed in…”

“Today I rise to express my strong opposition to H.R. 5, the so-called Student Success Act. I am deeply disappointed in the majority for bringing such an economically careless and socially egregious bill to the floor today. If passed, H.R. 5 would take more than $7 million from the highest need schools in my home State of Alabama. It is really an abomination that this body would do this to our constituents and do this to our students. H.R. 5 abandons the Federal Government's historic role in elementary and secondary education. Furthermore, this bill neglects our sacred responsibility to ensure that all children, irrespective of race, class, disability, or socioeconomic class, are given the opportunity to attain a high quality education. Each of us in this body has the opportunity to send our own children to the finest K-12 institutions in this country, but our privilege isn't universal, and we shouldn't legislate as if it is. In the Seventh Congressional District of Alabama, that privilege, the ability to send our children to the private schools or public schools of choice, is nearly nonexistent. {time} 1045 More than 70 percent of the public school students in my district receive free or reduced lunch, and they live in families that live below the poverty line. And of the 26 school districts that serve my constituents, only two of them have a poverty rate that is less than 56 percent.…”