House Protects Investments in Job Training Programs – Action Still Needed

On Wednesday, July 18, the U.S. House of Representatives appropriations subcommittee that has jurisdiction over funding for programs administered by the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education voted 8-6 to approve its spending bill for FY 2013.

Goodwill has been urging Congress to protect investments that support our efforts to help people who face employment challenges find jobs and advance in careers despite a tight labor market. Such investments include:

• –                The Workforce Investment Acts adult, youth, and dislocated funding streams, which would receive level funding under the House bill 
• –                The Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), which would receive level funding and remain under the Department of Labor

Last week, we encouraged you to urge your members of Congress to protect funding for these programs. Goodwill is grateful for your engagement.

Action Needed

There is still time to take action. According to the committee, the bill would provide an approximately $150 billion in discretionary funding, which is $6.3 billion less than FY 2012 appropriations levels and $8.8 billion less than the amount requested by President Obama. The full committee markup has not yet been scheduled, but will likely take place next week, a committee aide said.

On the Senate side, the appropriations committee advanced its version (S 3295) of the bill last month, calling for a discretionary spending level of $158.8 billion, which would match Obama’s request. The $8 billion difference between the House and Senate bills will make it more difficult later in the year when the House and Senate must reconcile their differences in order to pass the bill.

If you are a public supporter of Goodwill, click here to take action.

If you are a Goodwill CEO, click here to take action.

If you are a Goodwill staff member, click here to take action.