Chairwoman Johnson’s Opening Statement for Markup of H.R. 2528, H.R. 36, H.R. 3196, and H.R. 3153
(Washington, DC) – Today, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology is marking up H.R. 2528, the “STEM Opportunities Act of 2019”, H.R. 36, the “Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act of 2019”, H.R. 3196, the “Vera Rubin Survey Telescope Designation Act”, and H.R. 3153, the “Expanding Findings for Federal Opioid Research and Treatment Act.”
Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson’s (D-TX) opening statement for the record is below.
I want to welcome everyone to today’s markup. Today we meet to markup four good bipartisan bills.
First, we will consider the “STEM Opportunities Act,” which has been a priority of mine for many years. This bill will help us address the disparity in the number of women and minorities in the STEM fields.
Without including all of our Nation’s brain power in the fight for 21st century competitiveness, it is unlikely that our country will remain the world leader in science and innovation. It is therefore my hope that this bill will play a major role in ensuring our country’s competitiveness in the coming years.
It is not enough to simply attract women to the STEM fields. We must also ensure they stay in those fields, and the second bill in our markup addresses one of the reasons women leave the sciences in such high rates: sexual harassment.
The problem of sexual harassment in the STEM fields has not been addressed in a comprehensive fashion. I hope that the “Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act of 2019” can play an important role in focusing federal efforts to stamp out sexual harassment in the sciences.
I want to take a moment to recognize my friend and colleague, Ranking Member Lucas, who is an original cosponsor of both of these bills. Both he and his staff have provided very constructive input into these bills and the hearings we have held on these topics. I think the bills before us today are better off because of these efforts, and I want to sincerely thank him and his staff for their work.
The third bill before us today is the “Vera Rubin Survey Telescope Designation Act.” I’ll speak more about this bill in a minute, but I think it is appropriate that on the same day our Committee tries to address the issues facing women in the STEM fields, we also take a moment to recognize a woman who overcame the hurdles she faced to provide significant contributions to the field of astronomy.
Finally, we will consider the “Expanding Findings for Federal Opioid Research and Treatment Act,” which is offered by Ms. Wexton. The scourge of opioid addiction is one of the most serious problems facing our nation right now.
It only makes sense to bring all of our resources to bear on this issue, and I think the National Science Foundation can bring unique capabilities to the fight to better understand and deal with this critical issue.
I look forward to a productive markup and moving these bills very quickly to the House floor.
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