I think we ought to examine the kinds of authority that HHS should have, and quite frankly, that should not be an unfunded mandate.

I believe actions speak so much louder than words.

And early childhood, I was just in a daycare center in New Haven last Friday, and they take infants, 6 weeks.

We know during the pandemic, public health infrastructure almost collapsed on us.

This subcommittee has made behavioral health, I might add, a major priority, including the doubling for SAMHSA over the last 8 years from $3,800,000,000 to roughly $7,600,000,000.

The Department is committed to combating illegal child labor because we cannot build our economy on the backs of children.

I think the Department of Education, we had mental health counselors in schools. That is first line, as well, to look at that and put resources there.

we need to shut companies down that exploit child labor, and we need to send those responsible to prison.

I encourage my colleagues to vote for it, as I will.

We increased the Childcare Development and Block Grant funding by $2,700,000,000 while I was chair.

Childcare is essential and it is in crisis.

Thank you for including, again, the Title X money, which I think is very important.

Thank you so much, Chairman Aderholt, for holding this critically important hearing this morning on the Department of Education's budget.

How does your budget address the larger childcare crisis, specifically the staffing shortages and the underpaid workforce in the childcare sector?

This is wage theft, plain and simple.

I specifically commend your Department's work to fight wage theft when employers fail to compensate workers for the wages they have earned.

We need to take a very hard look and investigate the price gouging that is being done by corporations.

Let me be clear. Much more funding is necessary to address the childcare crisis in this country.

Unfortunately, many of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle want to roll back these essential protections, but we cannot go backwards.

I am a long-time supporter of the National Child Traumatic Stress Initiative, that looks at mental health care for kids.

Last year, House Republicans proposed a destructive cut of $4.7 billion to the Department of Labor.

We are grateful to Representative DeLauro for reintroducing her bill this Congress, H.R. 660, Ethan's Law...

A comprehensive immigration policy will get us to where we need to be.

Thank you for your January 19, 2023, letter to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

I think sometimes it is often easy to say we are going to cut 22 percent.