Louise Slaughter: “I strongly oppose this rule because it fails to waive points of order on the section of the bill that provides funding…”

“I strongly oppose this rule because it fails to waive points of order on the section of the bill that provides funding for the National Endowment for the Arts. Waiving points of order on this section would protect the Appropriations Committee's work, and allow the issue of Federal funding for the arts to reach the House floor. Numerous Members from both sides of the aisle testified yesterday before the Rules Committee in favor of allowing a straight up or down vote on the National Endowment for the Arts [NEA] on the House floor. But instead, the Rules Committee decided to deny the Members of this body an opportunity to vote on this issue, which affects millions of people across the country. Our Federal investment in the NEA is an investment in our children's educational development and in our Nation's economic growth. The $99.5 million we invest in the NEA yields a return of $3.4 billion to the Federal Treasury. I know of no other investment we make that yields so great a return. Studies have shown that investments in arts education yields other dividends as well. For example, we now know that playing the piano helps students better learn math and science.”