Fiscal Year 2026 Public Witness Day Hearing

House Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies

2025-04-09

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Summary

This meeting of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education served as an opportunity for public witnesses to present their priorities and concerns regarding the Fiscal Year 2026 budget [ 00:09:10 ] [ 00:14:18 ]

. Members of the committee and witnesses discussed a range of critical programs and funding needs across health and education sectors [ 00:09:20 ] . Ranking Member DeLauro particularly highlighted potential threats to these programs from proposed budget cuts and workforce reductions .

Themes

Funding and Support for Public Health Infrastructure

Witnesses advocated for increased and sustained funding for various public health initiatives [ 00:20:29 ]

. Dr. Jessica Pescatore requested a $2 million increase for Poison Control Centers, emphasizing their lifesaving expertise, role in public health responses, and cost-saving benefits [ 00:20:29 ] . She also warned about risks to the National Poison Data System due to federal reorganization . Theresa Sokol requested $340 million for Public Health Data Modernization and $120 million for the Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) program, stressing the critical reliance of state epidemiology budgets on federal dollars . Dr. Scott Harris, representing state health officials, asked for $1 billion for the CDC in FY26, noting the abrupt $11 billion loss of federal funds and expressing concern over a lack of transparency in HHS restructuring that jeopardizes essential programs and leads to layoffs . Ranking Member DeLauro echoed these concerns, highlighting significant staffing cuts at CDC and the termination of supplemental funding for state and local health departments .

Investment in Education and Child Development

Several speakers underscored the importance of federal investment in education and early childhood programs . Jennifer Carroll called for a $14.9 billion investment in Head Start for FY26, including a 3.2% cost of living adjustment for staff, citing its proven success in improving educational and economic outcomes for vulnerable children and families . Rey Saldaña advocated for protecting and strengthening federal investments in integrated student supports and community schools, such as Title I and Title IV-A, showcasing how these programs connect students to vital resources and improve graduation rates . Sara Schapiro requested $900 million for the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and $284 million for the Education Innovation and Research program to address the national education crisis and support evidence-based practices . Ranking Member DeLauro vocally opposed proposals to eliminate Head Start, cut community school funding, or dismantle the Department of Education, emphasizing the value of these programs and the threat posed by recent staff firings and cancellation of research contracts .

Medical Research and Preparedness

The discussion also focused on the need for continued support for medical research and national preparedness against health threats [ 00:37:18 ]

. Michelle Whitten requested ongoing support for the NIH's INCLUDE Project, which has significantly increased research into Down syndrome and led to breakthroughs in clinical trials [ 00:37:18 ] . Christopher Frech, representing the Alliance for Biosecurity, called for increased funding for medical countermeasure programs like BARDA and the Strategic National Stockpile, stressing the importance of sustainable public-private partnerships for national biodefense . Dr. Christopher Kramer advocated for fully funding the HEARTS Act to implement cardiac emergency response plans in schools and support NIH cardiomyopathy research, highlighting the act's bipartisan support and potential to save lives . Dr. Colleen Kelly urged sustained funding for the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative, CDC, Ryan White Program, and NIH research, warning that recent cuts to HIV research and public health infrastructure could reverse decades of progress .

Tone of the Meeting

The meeting had a formal and appreciative tone from the Chair, acknowledging the valuable contributions of the public witnesses [ 00:08:49 ] . However, a strong undercurrent of concern and urgency was evident, particularly from Ranking Member DeLauro, regarding threats to critical federal programs, budget freezes, and significant workforce reductions at agencies like HHS, CDC, and the Department of Education . This concern was echoed by many witnesses who cited unexpected funding cancellations and proposed restructuring negatively impacting their vital work . The overall sentiment conveyed a serious plea for continued robust federal investment and strong advocacy to protect public health and education initiatives that are seen as essential for American well-being and national security .

Participants

Transcript

Robert B. Aderholt

OK, the committee come to order and I want to say good morning to everyone. It's my pleasure to welcome everyone to the subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education. And for what is our hearing to hear from outside experts and the public. This is our public witness day. It's an opportunity for members of the public to come before this panel and to draw our attention to issues of importance to them. I look forward to hearing from our witnesses this morning as we learn more regarding the challenges facing our constituents and also communities across the country. And at the end of the day, what this subcommittee can do to try to be of help. For our witnesses, a five-minute clock will be the countdown on the microphone box that will be in front of you as you take the chair. And you'll have one minute remaining when the light turns yellow. That'll, of course, just be an indication, a signal that you to begin to wrap up your testimony. Remember, of course, all of your testimony, your written statement will be submitted to the committee and will appear in the hearing record. So, know if you don't get to all of your comments, they will be submitted for the record. But before we begin, I'd like to turn to the ranking member of the full committee and the subcommittee here. Rosa DeLauro for any remarks that she would like to make.

Rosa L. DeLauro

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. It's a pleasure to join with you this morning, and thank you for holding this hearing with our wonderful public witnesses to discuss the 2026 budget. To our witnesses, we just offer a welcome to you to the Labor, Health, Human Services, and Education Subcommittee of Appropriations. I want to express my sincere gratitude to all of you. and appreciation for the work that you do and on whose behalf you do it. You're such wonderful, wonderful advocates, and we thank you for the written testimonies, for the record. Your advocacy and your testimony is invaluable to us and to the subcommittee's bill. I have said so many times in the past, today's hearing is really one of the most important parts of this subcommittee's process. The programs in labor HHS, in this bill, They level the playing field for low-income children looking to get a good education. They equip our nation to deal with public health emergencies. They fund lifesaving biomedical research. And they help Americans get the skills that they need to be able to find a job. And the list goes on and on and on, because the programs directly impact the lives of every American across our country, especially children, workers, middle-class families, seniors. We are challenged these days with the future of some of these programs, as there have been, as you know, illegal freeze payments. which take funds from programs that I believe American families and businesses rely on, and especially in the area that we're looking at that are under the jurisdiction of this subcommittee in both education, which we know there is a move to

Rosa L. DeLauro

to eliminate the Department of Education. And really, for me, that's about eliminating public education, which is so critical to our children. And the Department of Health and Human Services is undergoing this rapid transformation with the loss of potentially up to 20,000 people. So, we know that Thousands of federal workers have been fired, billions of dollars canceled in funding for education. With regard to education, we would look to, if you eliminate Title I of education, we would lose 72,000 teachers across the country, and then there will be more to come. I'm very troubled by what is happening at HHS because of what is happening the threat, the threat to destroy the agencies that protect America's health. That includes the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration. 20,000 workers, as I've said, have been fired at HHS. That's one fourth of their workforce. $12 billion in funds provided by the Congress for public health and substance abuse treatment. I believe what we will see next is the Department of Labor. Already terminated funding for the Bureau of International Labor Affairs, or ILAB, an agency whose mission is to ensure American workers are not put at a disadvantage by countries who violate their labor commitments under our trade agreements. We expect the acts to fall on the Department of Labor's worker protection agencies, the Wage and Hour Division and OSHA, that are responsible for protecting worker safety and hard-earned wages.

Rosa L. DeLauro

The American people are calling our offices every day asking about this spending freeze and what has happened to already appropriated funding. American people are concerned, and there is a lot of fear out there. We have to address that.

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