Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard applauded today’s House passage of the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill, which makes critical health, education, and workforce investments.  Included in the legislation is $2.25 million in federal funding for important local initiatives to benefit the citizens of the 34th District and the greater Los Angeles community. 

“This spending bill makes great strides in redirecting resources back to the kind of investments needed to protect the well-being of Americans and to prepare our nation for the future,” said Congresswoman Roybal-Allard who sits on the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee.  “The measure reaffirms the Democratic commitment to increasing access to health services, investing in educational opportunity for all America’s children and reinvesting in the American workforce by restoring funding for education and training programs that have been neglected in recent years.”

“I am particularly gratified that the measure includes $2.25 million in federal funding for critical local initiatives benefiting families in the 34th District,” the congresswoman said.  “I am pleased to be able to secure funding for these important community health care projects, a workforce training program, and an innovative educational program that helps middle and high school students prepare for college.”

At the request of Congresswoman Roybal-Allard, the following local projects received funding in the House-passed Labor, Health and Human Services FY08 Appropriations bill:

• $400,000 to White Memorial Medical Center in Boyle Heights for major capital improvements and seismic upgrades, which will result in new acute care facilities and a safer health environment.
• $400,000 to California Hospital Medical Center in Downtown, Los Angeles for construction of a women’s health pavilion that will serve as a comprehensive, one stop shop for women’s health needs, focusing primarily on the health needs of the Hispanic and African American community.
• $275,000 to AltaMed to build a state of the art health care facility at the Boyle Heights Clinic that will include a primary care clinic, dental clinic and an adult day health care center.
• $150,000 to JWCH Institute, Inc., a non-profit health agency, to make renovations to a 1958 health clinic facility in Bell Gardens, including replacement of the heating and cooling system, renovation of patient waiting areas, and construction of a counseling/eligibility reception and check-in area to protect patient privacy. 
• $125,000 to Eisner Pediatric and Family Medical Center in Downtown to continue implementation of the Parent-Child Home Program focused on preparing two- and three-year-old children from low-income families to enter school ready to learn.
• $275,000 to Orthopaedic Hospital located near Downtown to upgrade building systems in the Lowman Center, which has not had a major infrastructure renewal since it was built in 1958.  This Center houses the COPE Program, the Indigent Multi-Specialty Clinic, and the Urgent Care Center.
• $300,000 to the East Los Angeles Community Union (TELACU) for a Weatherization Workforce Training and Expansion Project to increase workforce training opportunities and expand the number of skilled workers available for the Weatherization/Inter-City Energy program.
• $100,000 to the Salesian Boys and Girls Clubs of Los Angeles for the Boyle Heights Academic Center for Excellence Program to increase the number of Boyle Heights middle and high school students who go on to apply, attend and succeed in college. 
• $125,000 to Bienestar Human Services to expand their mobile HIV “rapid testing” program.  Bienestar offers no-cost tests and linkage to affordable health care services to high-risk populations that now suffer limited access to rapid tests throughout a broad area that includes all of Los Angeles County.
• $100,000 for the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute headquartered at the University of Southern California for the analysis of data pertaining to the Los Angeles Unified School District.  The institute will also develop a report on student academic achievement, drop-out rates, English-language acquisition, and other factors influencing LAUSD high school students. 

The $607 billion FY 2008 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill passed the U.S. House of Representations today (July 19) by a vote of 276 to 140.  The measure provides mandatory funding for programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income. The $151.7 billion in discretionary spending in the FY 2008 bill funds a wide-variety of important programs relating to health care, K-12 education, and workforce training. After adjusting for inflation and population, discretionary spending represents a modest 3 percent increase over 2007 spending. 
 

-- ### --