October 28, 2003
Washington, DC – Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) and the California Congressional Delegation today met with Governor-Elect Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is on a trip to Washington. Lee joined her colleagues requesting that Schwarzenegger deliver on the $30 billion that is owed to California under the Bush Administration budgets but not appropriated.
The $30 billion owed Californians includes money for education and children; environment and energy; health care; immigration; and transportation. In all of these areas, the Bush Administration has under-funded even its own requests. Education has been particularly hard-hit. California needs $500 million in order to fund all 166,000 California children eligible for Head Start. California has also been shortchanged approximately $700 million for elementary and secondary education, including money for No Child Left Behind programs. For child care, President Bush’s failure to increase funding means not only that 3500 families in California will lose their child care subsidies, while the state’s waiting list has climbed to almost 300,000 children.
“As we have already seen, without that money, we are losing programs that are absolutely essential to Californians,” said Lee. “Our children’s futures stand in the balance.”
After the meeting, Lee made a special plea to Schwarzenegger to include women-owned and minority-owned businesses in any economic development generated by federal funds in line with federal affirmative action requirements.
“Minority- and women-owned businesses create jobs, and what Californians need are jobs.”
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Congresswoman Barbara Lee and California Delegation Meets with Governor-Elect Schwarzenegger
Lee Calls for Schwarzenegger to Deliver $30 Billion in Federal Money Owed California;
Calls for Inclusion of Women- and Minority-owned Businesses in Federal Funds for State
Calls for Inclusion of Women- and Minority-owned Businesses in Federal Funds for State
Washington, DC – Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) and the California Congressional Delegation today met with Governor-Elect Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is on a trip to Washington. Lee joined her colleagues requesting that Schwarzenegger deliver on the $30 billion that is owed to California under the Bush Administration budgets but not appropriated.
The $30 billion owed Californians includes money for education and children; environment and energy; health care; immigration; and transportation. In all of these areas, the Bush Administration has under-funded even its own requests. Education has been particularly hard-hit. California needs $500 million in order to fund all 166,000 California children eligible for Head Start. California has also been shortchanged approximately $700 million for elementary and secondary education, including money for No Child Left Behind programs. For child care, President Bush’s failure to increase funding means not only that 3500 families in California will lose their child care subsidies, while the state’s waiting list has climbed to almost 300,000 children.
“As we have already seen, without that money, we are losing programs that are absolutely essential to Californians,” said Lee. “Our children’s futures stand in the balance.”
After the meeting, Lee made a special plea to Schwarzenegger to include women-owned and minority-owned businesses in any economic development generated by federal funds in line with federal affirmative action requirements.
“Minority- and women-owned businesses create jobs, and what Californians need are jobs.”
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