The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“SENIOR COMMUNITY SERVICE EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM AND CONSTITUENT GERALDINE” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Labor was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H4922 on June 20, 2019.
The Department provides billions in unemployment insurance, which peaked around 2011 though spending had declined before the pandemic. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, claimed the Department funds "ineffective and duplicative services" and overregulates the workplace.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
SENIOR COMMUNITY SERVICE EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM AND CONSTITUENT GERALDINE
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Kendra S. Horn of Oklahoma). The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New Jersey (Mrs. Watson Coleman) for 5 minutes.
Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to share with my colleagues the story of one of my constituents, Geraldine, as a reminder that the work that we do here on the floor impacts people's lives.
Geraldine received assistance from the Senior Community Service Employment Program, which is also known as SCSEP.
We provided $464 million to SCSEP in the minibus package that we passed yesterday, H.R. 2740. The bill included fiscal year 2020 funding for critical programs at the Department of Labor that help Americans like Geraldine find jobs and gain new skills in their journey to become reemployed, programs like Job Corps, Registered Apprenticeship, YouthBuild, and, of course, SCSEP.
Geraldine is a perfect example of why this funding is so important. She is a mother and a grandmother and the main provider for her granddaughter and two grandchildren.
When the financial crisis of 2008 hit, she lost her job, a devastating moment for her family's only source of income. She quietly retired, but like far too many Americans, she did not have enough savings to stop working.
Her family needed her, and she needed to find work, a task made difficult with her age, existing skill set, and, now, gap in employment. Fortunately, Geraldine was able to take advantage of SCSEP through Easterseals in New Jersey.
Created by the Older Americans Act of 1965, the Senior Community Service Employment Program has helped low income, unemployed seniors learn new, in-demand skills and reenter the workforce for more than 50 years. Participants enrolled in SCSEP receive a subsidized minimum wage for work at a nonprofit agency while learning skills to help them reenter the workforce.
But SCSEP does more than just skills training. Its greatest success is helping seniors regain their sense of confidence and self-
fulfillment. Some programs have services that help seniors get glasses or even pay rent and utility bills.
Geraldine shared this with me, that SCSEP was instrumental in helping her regain her sense of purpose. She was so successful in her program, that she was offered a position at Easterseals to support new participants in the program through their own journeys to reemployment, people who were previously in the same position as she.
Increasingly, seniors like Geraldine have become the primary caretakers for their grandchildren. This is especially true for places that have been ravaged by the opioid crisis.
That is why it is so important that we support more programs at SCSEP at the Department of Labor. There are countless seniors out there with nowhere to turn. SCSEP is one of the answers that gets them back to work.
Madam Speaker, before I close, I want to share with you one last anecdote from Geraldine.
She shared with me her story about a boy in her community who didn't want to throw away broken crayons. In defiance of his dad, this little boy said even broken crayons still color just as brightly as ever. Geraldine says that she sees herself in broken crayons and knows that her colors shine just as brightly as any others.
We must ensure that critical programs like SCSEP are fully funded as grandparents across America are increasingly becoming the primary breadwinners in their families.
I am proud that my colleagues and I voted to pass H.R. 2740 yesterday, and as a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, I am committed to advocating for more programs that support our seniors.
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