Date: 2015-04-15
Speaker: WATSON COLEMAN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I want to follow up on something that my colleague had alluded to. and that is the impact of low wages and the governments need to subsidize. I think that he sort of spoke to it in a generalized way. but I would like to just share with you what I think happens with an individual and a family that has a $15.000 income. Since it is not enough to keep food on the table. those Americans have to turn to food stamps. Since the jobs dont come with health care. we have got to rely on Medicaid. Because $15.000 a year doesnt pay for the rent in most cities. those Americans rely on lowincome housing or subsidized housing through Section 8 vouchers. or they are homeless and living in shelters. These workers children are enrolled in childrens health insurance programs. and these families are getting support through Temporary Assistance to Needy Families. the TANF program. Fiftytwo percent of fastfood workers rely on public assistance programs. 46 percent of childcare workers rely on public assistance. 48 percent of home care workers rely on public assistance. and. Mr. Speaker. 25 percent of parttime college facultyhighly educated adjunct professorsrely on public assistance. According to a Berkeley report. the Federal Government spent $127.8 billion on working families in these programs. California spent almost $3.7 billion because of lowwage workers. New York. $3.3 billion. Texas. $2.1 billion. and Illinois and Florida both spent a little more than a billion. This isnt funding for Americans that are uncharacteristically down on their luck or temporarily out of work or in some other moment of crisis. This money is spent on fulltime. hardworking Americans who simply are working for corporations who maximize the CEOs benefits at the expense of the workers salaries. Mr. Speaker. if my Republican colleagues are so adamant about reducing government spending. shouldnt we be worried about why these folks are trying to work fulltime but still need food stamps to make ends meet? We have also spent a lot of time in this Congress debating tax breaks for the wealthy and for corporations. In fact. earlier this afternoon. we argued about whether or not the 5.000 or so wealthiest families in this country. the only people who have enough money in their estates to qualify for the estate tax. should get a $2.5 million tax break. Every year. we let corporations deduct unlimited amounts of bonus pay for executives. regardless of whether or not the companies workers get pay raises or not. unlike that one special CEO who sees life differently and believes that to whom much is given much is required. Corporations have written off $66 billion between 2007 and 2010 while letting the lowwage workers who make up the rank and file of their companies struggle. My colleague. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN. has a solution for this. requiring companies to raise wages for their workers if they want to keep qualifying for that tax break. It is a simple solution that wouldnt mean companies suddenly have to raise pay for their workers. they just need to stop expecting the government to cover the exorbitant salaries of their executives if they cant pay the rest of their employees a liveable wage. Mr. Speaker. my colleagues and I stand with the millions of workers fighting for 15. Lifting pay for lowwage workers will boost their purchasing power. pumping more money into our economy and giving businesses the revenue to create more jobs. Lifting pay for lowwage workers will reduce government spending. Lifting pay for lowwage workers will open the doors to the American Dream for the millions who have already demonstrated that they are ready and willing to work and to work hard for it. By standing together and fighting for the $15. these workers have already made their voices heard in the living rooms. the boardrooms. and the statehouses all across this country. It is time for D.C. to lend an ear as well. It is my privilege and my honor to stand with those who are simply seeking a fair wage for the work that they do. Mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.