Press Releases
Reps. Lee, Hurd, Lead Bipartisan Letter Opposing Secretary Azar’s Proposed CMS Medicare Pt. D Rule
March 14, 2019Washington, D.C. - Today, 73 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, led by Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Congressman Will Hurd, sent a bipartisan letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Azar asking him to withdraw a proposal that would modify the Medicare Part D program protections afforded to six classes of drugs, known as the "six protected classes," and that would push access to critical medicines out of reach for many people living with HIV. The proposed change would require p… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Statement on Governor Newsom's Executive Order Halting Use of the Death Penalty in California
March 13, 2019Oakland, CA -- Today, Congresswoman Lee released the following statement in response to Gov. Newsom's decision to halt the use of the death penalty in California: "For too long, the use of the death penalty in the United States has been one of the ugliest stains on our broken criminal justice system. Not only is capital punishment discriminatory and disproportionately imposed against poor people and people of color, but frequent DNA exonerations also make the continued use of this irreversible … Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Reintroduces the EACH Woman Act to End the Harmful and Discriminatory Hyde Amendment
March 12, 2019WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, along with Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky and Congresswoman Diana DeGette, led a group of 109 Democrats in reintroducing the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance Act or the EACH Woman Act. For the first time, this visionary legislation has a companion bill in the U.S. Senate, led by Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Patty Murray (D-WA). This legislation would end the discriminatory Hyde Amendment, which disproportionately af… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Co-Sponsors Dream and Promise Act of 2019
March 12, 2019WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee joined fellow Members of Congress to co-sponsor H.R. 6, the Dream and Promise Act of 2019, to protect our nation's Dreamers and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) holders. The bill would enable them to continue contributing fully to our communities in the East Bay and around the country and also provide a pathway to citizenship. "Here in the East Bay, Dreamers and TPS and DED holders are students, entreprene… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee joins Sen. Schatz, Rep. Pocan to Reintroduce Legislation to End Student Loan Debt Crisis
March 06, 2019WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) and U.S. Representative Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) led a group of 42 members of Congress in reintroducing the Debt-Free College Act, legislation that will reverse the growing student debt crisis in the United States. The bill restores a path to affordable college by providing states incentives through matching grants to increase investments in public higher education and provide students with debt-free college. If signed into law, the Deb… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Celebrates Social Work Month, Reintroduces Measures to Support Social Workers
March 05, 2019Washington DC - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee celebrated the beginning of Professional Social Work Month by reintroducing several bills to recognize and support the contributions of social workers. "As a former psychiatric social worker, I know firsthand the invaluable contributions that social workers make to our country," said Congresswoman Lee. "Social workers play a critical role for our nation's most vulnerable communities. With empathy and compassion, social workers provide vital suppo… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Reintroduces Legislation to Address Techequity
March 04, 2019Washington, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee reintroduced legislation to address persistent racial disparities in the tech sector, including the Computer Science for All bill to support a diverse tech pipeline in pre-k to grade 12 education, and a tech diversity resolution that calls for robust diversity and inclusion plans, strengthened partnerships with institutions of higher education serving students of color, and improve data collection on diversity in STEAM education and the technol… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee, East Bay Students Embark on Civil Rights Pilgrimage to Tennessee and Alabama
March 01, 2019Montgomery, AL - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee and students from the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center will travel to Alabama and Tennessee to participate in the Faith & Politics Congressional Civil Rights Pilgrimage. "Each year, the Faith & Politics Congressional Civil Rights Pilgrimage provides a life-changing experience by reminding us of our nation's civil rights history and the lessons we must embrace if we want to truly confront the legacy of racism in America," said Congre… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Applauds the Passage of Crucial Gun Safety Reforms
February 28, 2019WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the Democratic House passed H.R. 1112 following the passage of H.R. 8 yesterday, cutting through decades of Republican inaction and obstruction to bipartisan, common sense legislation to address the crisis of gun violence in our country. Gun violence steals the lives of nearly 40,000 people every year - including 47 children and teenagers every single day. Congresswoman Lee released the following statement in response: "We must end the epidemic of gun violence in our c… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Applauds the Passage of Crucial Gun Safety Reforms
February 28, 2019WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the Democratic House passed H.R. 1112 following the passage of H.R. 8 yesterday, cutting through decades of Republican inaction and obstruction to bipartisan, common sense legislation to address the crisis of gun violence in our country. Gun violence steals the lives of nearly 40,000 people every year - including 47 children and teenagers every single day. Congresswoman Lee released the following statement in response: "We must end the epidemic of gun violence in our c… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Introduces Three Bills to Modernize Federal Cannabis Laws
February 28, 2019Washington D.C. -- Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Cannabis Caucus, introduced three bills to reform federal cannabis laws and encourage greater equity and fairness in the cannabis industry. "For far too long, our federal cannabis policies have been rooted in the past. As the public's views toward marijuana have evolved, Congress has a responsibility to ensure that our policies are fair, equitable and inclusive," said Congresswoman Barbara Lee. "Sadly,… Continue Reading
Booker, Lee, Khanna Introduce Landmark Marijuana Legalization Bill
February 28, 2019WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), a member of the Senate's Judiciary Committee, Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Co-Chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), today reintroduced their landmark bill to end the federal prohibition on marijuana. "The War on Drugs has not been a war on drugs, it's been a war on people, and disproportionately people of color and low-income individuals," Booker said. "The Marijuana Justice Act seeks to reverse decades of this unf… Continue Reading
Reps. Roybal-Allard and Lee Celebrate Release of Landmark Child Poverty Study They Led the Effort to Fund
February 28, 2019Today, Congresswomen Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40) and Barbara Lee (CA-13) celebrated the release of a landmark study on child poverty which the congresswomen fought to secure funding for as members of the House Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee.The study, titled A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty, from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, is a comprehensive, non-partisan analysis of child poverty in the United States. It can be read here. Congresswomen… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Votes to Pass Historic Public Lands Package That Protects Our Environment, Boosts Our Economy, and Conserves American History
February 27, 2019Washington, D.C. - Today Congresswoman Lee voted to pass the historic Natural Resources Management Act, a bipartisan conservation and public lands package that includes permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and designates approximately 1.3 million acres of wilderness, 693,000 acres of recreation and conservation areas, and two mineral withdrawal areas totaling 370,000 acres, protecting nearly 2.4 million acres of public lands in total from future mining operati… Continue Reading
Congressional pro-choice leaders blast White House over newly announced Title X rule
February 22, 2019WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Trump administration issued a final rule today aimed at barring health care clinics that provide abortion services from participating in a $236 million federal family-planning program, known as Title X. The newly finalized rule not only prohibits health care clinics that receive Title X funds from providing abortion services, it also prohibits them from even referring a patient to receive such services. It's the latest in a series of attacks on women's reproductive rights… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Introduces AUMF Repeal Legislation
February 14, 2019Washington, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee introduced legislation to repeal the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) and force a debate on our endless wars around the world. The legislation would sunset the 2001 AUMF after 8 months, giving Congress ample time to debate and vote on a new AUMF. "For far too long, Congress has abdicated its constitutional responsibility to debate and vote on matters of war and peace," said Congresswoman Lee. "It's time to stop kicking t… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Delivers Weekly Democratic Address
February 08, 2019Washington, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee delivered the Weekly Democratic Address. In this week's address, Congresswoman Lee marked Black History Month and highlighted Democrats' For The People agenda. Video and audio of the Weekly Democratic Address can be downloaded here. Below is a full transcript of the address: "Hi, I'm Congresswoman Barbara Lee, and I'm proud to represent the beautiful 13th District of California in Congress. "Every February, we celebrate Black History Month… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Lee Releases Statement on President Trump’s 2019 State of the Union Address
February 05, 2019Washington, DC - Congresswoman Barbara Lee released the following statement on President Trump's 2019 State of the Union: "I was disappointed but not surprised by President Trump's speech tonight. "In his first two years in office, President Trump has presided over three government shutdowns, undermined the economic security of working families, and brought an unprecedented culture of chaos and corruption to the White House. "Nothing in President Trump's speech tonight indicated that he is w… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Celebrates Black History Month
February 01, 2019Washington, DC - Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee released the following statement in honor of Black History Month: "Each year, we take time during Black History Month to celebrate the countless accomplishments of African Americans across the United States. The contributions that our great heroes and sheroes - giants like Dr. Martin Luther King, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Shirley Chisholm - made to the fight for civil rights and social justice cannot be overstated. "But as we celebrate our progress… Continue Reading
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Named to Conference Committee for Homeland Security by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
January 28, 2019Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee was named as one of six House Democratic Members serving on a conference committee for homeland security. The committee members, along with Democratic and Republican members from the House and Senate, will work over the next several weeks to negotiate government funding for homeland security. Congresswoman Lee will serve on the conference committee with the following Democratic Members: Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey of New York … Continue Reading