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October 20, 2015 Re: Request for Guidance Reminding Schools of Obligations Under Title IX and Title VI to Address Sex- and Race-Based Harassment Occurring on Yik Yak and Other Anonymous Social Media Applications Dear Secretary Duncan and Assistant Secretary Lhamon: As organizations working to advance women’s equality and civil rights, we are writing to request that the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) promptly issue guidance to universities and colleges reminding them of their legal obligations under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect students from harassment and threats based on sex, race, color, or national origin carried out via Yik Yak and other anonymous social media applications.
Secretary Arne Duncan U.S. Department of Education Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Bldg 400 Maryland Avenue, SW Washington, DC 20202-1100
Assistant Secretary Catherine Lhamon U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Bldg 400 Maryland Avenue, SW Washington, DC 20202-1100
October 19, 2015 Senator Mazie Hirono 330 Hart Senate Office Building Washington D.C. 20510 Dear Senator Hirono: We, the undersigned, are writing to express our organizational support for the Health, Equity and Access under the Law (HEAL) for Immigrant Women and Families Act of 2015: (Read More)
November 19, 2015 75 Organizations Oppose the Workplace Advancement Act (S. 2200) Dear Senator: On behalf of the undersigned organizations, we write to express our opposition to the Workplace Advancement Act (S. 2200). This inadequate bill suggests that there is just one solution to address the gender pay gap: a very weak non-retaliation provision that is so narrowly drawn it would do more harm than good. In addition, the bill includes a sense of the Congress that recommits to the legal principles previously passed in the Equal Pay Act of 1963, a law that no longer has the teeth necessary to make meaningful strides in closing the gender pay gap. (Read More)
November 19, 2015 Dear Chairman Cochran, Vice Chairwoman Mikulski, Chairman Rogers, and Ranking Member Lowey: As you complete fiscal year (FY) 2016 appropriations, the undersigned organizations write to strongly oppose funding cuts for programs that family planning providers rely on to provide quality care to millions of women, men, and young people, as well as to oppose ideological policy riders that are harmful to women’s health. We are encouraged by the recent passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA) and the critical sequestration relief that legislation provides to nondefense discretionary (NDD) programs. Funding for NDD programs including public health remains far too low: even with the passage of BBA, NDD funding for 2016 will be 12% below the 2010 level when adjusted for inflation. But as Congress continues its attacks on publicly funded family planning providers that deliver critical, high- quality health care services to millions people each year, we are concerned the essential public health programs that support providers’ work, such as the Title X Family Planning Program, will remain targets for politically motivated cuts in FY 2016 appropriations legislation. (Read More)
The Honorable Thad Cochran Chairman U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations S-128, The Capitol Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Barbara Mikulski Vice Chairwoman U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations S-146A, The Capitol Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Harold Rogers Chairman U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations H305, The Capitol Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Nita Lowey Ranking Member U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations 1016 Longworth House Office Building Washington, DC 20510
November 19, 2015 Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20530 Dear Attorney General Lynch, We, the undersigned, urge the Department of Justice to investigate the recent attacks on reproductive- health clinics
using all appropriate federal statutes, including domestic terrorism. Since the release of the first deceptively edited video
from the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) intended to vilify Planned Parenthood, and, by proxy, all abortion
providers, anti-choice extremists have launched an unprecedented and multi-pronged assault against women's
reproductive rights.
As you know, beginning in July when the first video was released and continuing through recent weeks, there have been
multiple arson attacks and an outrageous number of threats against abortion providers. It's clear that anti-choice
extremists are using these videos as an excuse to commit violent attacks against trusted women's health clinics. When
hate rhetoric and threats incite violence, those responsible for committing violence need to be investigated for their
acts of domestic terrorism.
(Read More)
January 15, 2016 Celebrate Religious Freedom Day 2016 Dear Member of Congress, This weekend, the United States will celebrate Religious Freedom Day 2016, which marks the 230th anniversary of the Virginia General Assembly’s adoption of the landmark Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. This Statute, drafted by Thomas Jefferson and adopted in part thanks to advocacy by James Madison, provided the basis for the First Amendment to the US Constitution, which protects several foundational rights including freedom of religion. We write as a diverse coalition of national religious, secularist and other organizations that advance religious freedom, to urge you to support the core principles emphasized within this Statute, and reflected in the First Amendment. These principles include two in particular that we deeply value. • Civil rights for all, regardless of individual religious beliefs: “Our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions, any more than our opinions in physics or geometry.” • Robust freedom of religion, belief and expression: “All men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of Religion.” Jefferson and Madison believed—as did others involved in drafting and adopting the Statute and First Amendment—that religious freedom is a fundamental and expansive right. It is a fundamental right because each human being is endowed with a conscience, to which they alone have access and control. Government cannot coerce its people to change, abandon or adopt religious beliefs. It must respect that America is a nation comprised of individuals of varied and different religious and philosophical backgrounds; each person has the right to hold their own theological and moral views. (Read More)
January 21, 2016 Cosponsor the Workplace Action for a Growing Economy Act (WAGE Act) Dear Senator: (This same letter was sent to the House of Representatives) On behalf of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and the 39 undersigned organizations, we urge you to co-sponsor the Workplace Action for a Growing Economy (WAGE) Act (S. 2042/H.R. 3514). Introduced by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA), this important legislation would amend the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by strengthening protections for working people who organize and promote change through collective action. The WAGE Act would increase protections for all working people and will help open up pathways to equal pay, increased safety in the workplace, and higher wages. The very best way to raise wages and turn the tide back in favor of working people is to protect and strengthen their right to speak out together. We applaud Senator Murray and Representative Scott for their work on this legislation, and urge you to co-sponsor it. The Leadership Conference believes that our current labor laws protect American working people on paper, but that they lack tangible deterrents or penalties for employers that break the law and violate workers’ rights. This deficiency has a particularly pernicious effect on people of color and women. The WAGE Act would put teeth into the 80-year-old NLRA by establishing penalties for employers that illegally fire a worker or violate a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) order. The WAGE Act is a long overdue and much needed update to the NLRA that will protect working people’s fundamental right to discuss such topics as their wages, fair scheduling, sick leave, and equal pay. Currently, the NLRA protects the right of working people to join together in mutual aid and protection to make positive change at their workplaces – whether they are seeking to form a union -- but the penalties are too weak to meaningfully deter employers from breaking the law. (Read More)
November 3, 2015
RE: NCPE Opposes Reauthorization of the D.C. School Voucher Program Dear Chairman Johnson and Ranking Member Carper: The 55 undersigned organizations write to voice opposition to the reauthorization of the District of Columbia private school voucher program. We oppose this and all private school voucher programs because public funds should be spent on public schools, not private schools. But the D.C. program, in particular, has proven ineffective and unaccountable to taxpayers. Not only have multiple Department of Education (USED) studies1 concluded that the program has failed to improve educational outcomes for participating students, but two U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports have also identified its repeated management and accountability failures. (Read More)
October 28, 2015 Dear Member of Congress, On behalf of the undersigned organizations and the tens of millions of working families we represent, we urge you to become a co-sponsor of the Family And Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act (S. 786/H.R. 1439). The FAMILY Act would create a national family and medical leave insurance program that would strengthen the workforce, families, businesses and our economy. The FAMILY Act is modeled on successful and effective state paid leave laws and would help working women and men meet their caregiving demands while reducing economic inequality and improving economic opportunities for all. (Read More)
November 19, 2015 Dear Chairman Cochran, Vice Chairwoman Mikulski, Chairman Rogers, and Ranking Member Lowey: As you head into the final negotiations on FY 2016 appropriations, we encourage you to fund international family planning and reproductive health at no less than $612.6 million, including $35 million for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the amounts requested by President Obama and approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee. We believe this is an important step toward meeting the United States’ fair share of global need—calculated at just over $1 billion—for these critical programs which are cost-effective, save lives, and support our broader global health, development, and foreign policy priorities. (Read More)
The Honorable Barbara Mikulski Ranking Member Committee o Appropriations United States Senate Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Nita Lowey Ranking Member Committee o Appropriations United States House of Representatives Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Thad Cochran Chairman Committee o Appropriations United States Senate Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Harold Rogers Chairman Committee o Appropriations United States House of Representatives Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Bobby Scott Ranking Member Education and the Workforce Committee U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20515
February 2, 2016 The Honorable John Kline Chairman Education and the Workforce Committee U.S. House of Representatives Washington, D.C. 20515 Re: NCPE Opposes Private School Vouchers Dear Chairman Kline and Ranking Member Scott: The 56 undersigned organizations submit this letter for the hearing "Expanding Educational Opportunity through School Choice” to express our strong opposition to private school vouchers. Vouchers divert desperately-needed resources away from the public school system to fund the education of a few, select students, with limited, if any, real impact on student academic achievement. Instead of providing equal access to high quality education or setting high standards for accountability, voucher programs have proven ineffective, lack accountability to taxpayers, and deprive students of rights provided to public school students. Congress would better serve all children by using funds to make public schools stronger and safer than by creating a new voucher program. (Read More)
Dear Chairmen Cochran and Rogers and Ranking Members Mikulski and Lowey: On behalf of the 80 undersigned organizations, dedicated to the health and welfare of our nation’s youth, we respectfully request your support for the requests below during the fiscal year (FY) 2017 funding deliberations. As organizations committed to supporting adolescent sexual health programs—the Office of Adolescent Health’s (OAH) Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPPP) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Adolescent School Health (DASH)—we know firsthand the vital role these federal programs play in supporting the health of young people and communities. The current federal investment in adolescent sexual health promotion programs is an important step in the right direction, but much remains to be done to strengthen, enhance, and expand these efforts. The availability and quality of sexual health information and sexuality education varies drastically across the country. Less than half of all high schools and only 20% of middle schools in the U.S. provide all 16 of the CDC-identified topics critical to ensuring sexual health. In addition, many young people face systemic barriers to accessing health information and services, resulting in persistent inequity and disparities.1 While the measure of sexual health and well-being is about more than just the absence of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), unintended pregnancy, or sexual violence, the data on these points alone remain largely unchanged in recent years, continuing to highlight the need for additional resources to serve young people most in need of sexual health education. (Read More)
The Honorable Barbara Mikulski Ranking Member Committee on Appropriations United States Senate Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Thad Cochran Chairman Committee on Appropriations United States Senate Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Nita Lowey Ranking Member Committee on Appropriations United States Representative Washington, DC 20515
March 14, 2016
The Honorable Harold Rogers Chairman Committee on Appropriations United States Representative Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable Rosa DeLauro Ranking Member Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies House Appropriations Committee 2413 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515
March 16, 2016
The Honorable Roy Blunt Chairman Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education 260 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Tom Cole Chairman Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies House Appropriations Committee 2467 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable Patty Murray Ranking Member Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education 154 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairman Blunt, Ranking Member Murray, Chairman Cole, and Ranking Member DeLauro: As you develop Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and related agencies, the 61 undersigned members and associated organizations of the Family Planning Coalition respectfully request that you provide $327 million in funding for the Title X family planning program. Title X is the sole source of dedicated federal funding for family planning services for underserved populations. Strong support for the program is incredibly important given that four out of ten women who receive care at a Title X-funded health center consider it their only source of health care and six in ten women consider it their main source of care.i Moreover, more than 4.1 million women and men access life-saving health care such as birth control, cancer screenings, and testing for sexually transmitted infections through Title X health centers.ii The organizations listed below collectively represent millions of administrators, providers, patients, researchers, and advocates who share the common mission of supporting and protecting federal funds for critical, cost-saving programs that provide family planning services to millions of women, men and families. By restoring resources for the Title X family planning program you will help protect access to the public health safety net for millions of poor and low-income women and men in need of high-quality health services. (Read More)
March 23, 2016
INTERNATIONAL FAMILY PLANNING & REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE FY 2017 STATE-FOREIGN OPERATIONS BILL Organization: 61 organizations supportive of international family planning and reproductive health programs (see list of endorsers below) Contact: Craig Lasher clasher@pai.org (202) 557-3442 Jonathan Rucks jrucks@pai.org (202) 557-3422 Funding Request: a total of at least $1 billion for family planning and reproductive health programs, both bilateral and multilateral, with funding provided from the Global Health Programs account and the Economic Support Fund and from the International Organizations and Programs account in order to provide a $65 million voluntary contribution to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Rationale/Background: U.S. investments in family planning and reproductive health (FP/RH) programs are cost-effective and deliver real results. FY 2015 funding of $610 million for international FP/RH programs (of which $35 million is a contribution to the United Nations Population Fund)—the last fiscal year for which programmatic impact data is currently available—made it possible to achieve the following: h 28 million women and couples receive contraceptive services and supplies; h 6 million unintended pregnancies, including 3 million unplanned births, are averted; h 2.4 million induced abortions are averted (1.9 million of them unsafe); and h 12,000 maternal deaths are averted.1
The Honorable Jon Tester Vice Chairman Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Washington, D.C. 20510
April 5, 2016 The Honorable John Barrasso Chairman Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Washington, D.C. 20510 Re: NCPE Opposes S. 2711, the Native American Education Opportunity Act Dear Chairman Barrasso and Vice Chairman Tester: The 45 undersigned organizations submit this letter for the hearing on S. 2711, the “Native American Education Opportunity Act,” to express our strong opposition to private school vouchers in the form of Education Savings Accounts (ESAs). ESAs are effectively no different than vouchers; they place funding that would ordinarily support students attending public schools into an account for students to use on other education expenses, including private school tuition. Like vouchers, ESAs divert desperately-needed federal resources away from the primary school system students attend to fund the education of a few, select students in alternative settings. Furthermore, voucher and ESA programs lack accountability, do not improve educational outcomes of students, strip students of rights, and do real harm to the public school systems that educate the majority of students in a state or district.1 At a time when schools serving American Indian students are desperately in need of funding,2 Congress would better serve all American Indian students by using federal funds to make schools serving American Indian students stronger and safer than by allowing funds to flow to a separate voucher program. (Read More)
October 19, 2015 RE: NCPE Opposes H.R. 10, the Reauthorization of the D.C. School Voucher Program Dear Representative: The 56 undersigned organizations write to voice opposition to H.R. 10, the reauthorization of the District of Columbia private school voucher program. We oppose this and all private school voucher programs because public funds should be spent on public schools, not private schools. But the D.C. program, in particular, has proven ineffective and unaccountable to taxpayers. Not only have multiple Department of Education (USED) studies 1 concluded that the program has failed to improve educational outcomes for participating students, but two U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports have also identified its repeated management and accountability failures
