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House Report 117-539 — Resolution of Inquiry: Executive Branch and the American Federation of Teachers

Summary

Report 117-539 of the 117th Congress, 2d Session, dated September 30, 2022, an adverse report from the Committee on Education and Labor submitted by Mr. Scott of Virginia, together with minority views, on H. Res. 1273. The resolution of inquiry would direct the President to provide the House of Representatives certain documents relating to communication between the executive branch and the American Federation of Teachers regarding reopening schools and supporting safe, in-person learning. The committee reports unfavorably with an amendment and recommends that the resolution as amended not be agreed to. The minority views close with the names of members and numbered footnotes citing web sources.

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Issuer
Congressional materials
Document type
Crpt Crpt 117Hrpt539 Crpt 117Hrpt539
Case
Crpt Crpt 117Hrpt539 Crpt 117Hrpt539

Cite this document

“House Report 117-539 — Resolution of Inquiry: Executive Branch and the American Federation of Teachers.” Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crpt-crpt-117hrpt539-crpt-117hrpt539/, SHA-256 7593b37cc03a8b31be50c9e3c9adffaff0473642049ddc447baf54ff60ac8ec9.

Full text

                                                                              117TH CONGRESS                                                                                           REPORT
                                                                                             " HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                                                         !
                                                                                 2d Session                                                                                            117–539




                                                                              RESOLUTION OF INQUIRY DIRECTING THE PRESIDENT TO PROVIDE CER-
                                                                               TAIN DOCUMENTS IN THE PRESIDENT’S POSSESSION TO THE HOUSE OF
                                                                               REPRESENTATIVES RELATING TO COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE EX-
                                                                               ECUTIVE BRANCH AND THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS RE-
                                                                               GARDING REOPENING SCHOOLS AND SUPPORTING SAFE, IN-PERSON
                                                                               LEARNING


                                                                                   SEPTEMBER 30, 2022.—Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed



                                                                                     Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, from the Committee on Education and
                                                                                                   Labor, submitted the following


                                                                                                                      ADVERSE REPORT
                                                                                                                                  together with

                                                                                                                            MINORITY VIEWS
                                                                                                                        [To accompany H. Res. 1273]

                                                                                The Committee on Education and Labor, to whom was referred
                                                                              the resolution (H. Res. 1273) of inquiry directing the President to
                                                                              provide certain documents in the President’s possession to the
                                                                              House of Representatives relating to communication between the
                                                                              executive branch and the American Federation of Teachers regard-
                                                                              ing reopening schools and supporting safe, in-person learning, hav-
                                                                              ing considered the same, reports unfavorably thereon with an
                                                                              amendment and recommends that the resolution as amended not
                                                                              be agreed to.
                                                                                                                                     CONTENTS
                                                                                                                                                                                                          Page
                                                                              Purpose and Summary ............................................................................................              2
                                                                              Committee Action ....................................................................................................         2
                                                                              Committee Views .....................................................................................................         4
                                                                              Section-by-Section Analysis ....................................................................................              9
                                                                              Explanation of Amendments ...................................................................................                 9
                                                                              Application of Law to the Legislative Branch .......................................................                          9
                                                                              Unfunded Mandate Statement ...............................................................................                   10
                                                                              Earmark Statement .................................................................................................          10
                                                                              Roll Call Votes .........................................................................................................    10
                                                                              Statement of Performance Goals and Objectives ..................................................                             12
                                                                              Duplication of Federal Programs ............................................................................                 12
                                                                              Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the Committee ......                                                  12
                                                                              New Budget Authority and CBO Cost Estimate ...................................................                               12
                                                                              Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported .....................................                                  12
                                                                              Minority Views .........................................................................................................     13




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                                                                                   The amendment is as follows:
                                                                                   Strike all after the resolving clause and insert the following:
                                                                                       That, not later than 14 days after the adoption of this
                                                                                     resolution, the President, Joseph R. Biden, is directed to
                                                                                     furnish to the House of Representatives copies of any docu-
                                                                                     ment or communication in the possession of the Director of
                                                                                     the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that refers
                                                                                     or relates to communication or coordination between the
                                                                                     executive branch and the American Federation of Teachers
                                                                                     regarding the development of the Operational Guidance for
                                                                                     K–12 Schools and Early Care and Education Programs to
                                                                                     Support Safe In-Person Learning issued by the Centers for
                                                                                     Disease Control & Prevention and most recently updated
                                                                                     on May 27, 2022.
                                                                                                                PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

                                                                                 The stated purpose of H. Res. 1273 is to direct President Biden
                                                                              to transmit to the House certain documents in his possession relat-
                                                                              ing to communications between his administration and the Amer-
                                                                              ican Federation of Teachers (AFT) regarding reopening schools and
                                                                              supporting safe, in-person learning. While H. Res. 1273 is a resolu-
                                                                              tion of inquiry designed to compel production from the Executive
                                                                              Branch in the name of congressional oversight, everything about
                                                                              the resolution’s introduction and consideration make it clear this
                                                                              was not the resolution’s true purpose. Instead, The Committee be-
                                                                              lieves H. Res. 1273 was introduced in an attempt to upend the ma-
                                                                              jority’s agenda and promote inane conspiracies designed to deni-
                                                                              grate public school teachers, the organizations these teachers elect
                                                                              to advocate for them, and Members of the majority generally. As
                                                                              such, the Committee reported H. Res. 1273 unfavorably to the
                                                                              House with the recommendation that it do not pass.
                                                                                                                  COMMITTEE ACTION

                                                                                                                       116TH CONGRESS

                                                                                 On September 11, 2019, the Early Childhood, Elementary, and
                                                                              Secondary Education (ECESE) Subcommittee held a hearing titled
                                                                              ‘‘The Importance of Trauma-Informed Practices in Education to As-
                                                                              sist Students Impacted by Gun Violence and Other Adversities’’
                                                                              which discussed the trauma students bring to and experience in
                                                                              school, and how it effects their behavioral health and school per-
                                                                              formance. The Committee heard testimony from: Dr. Nadine Burke
                                                                              Harris, Surgeon General for the State of California, San Francisco,
                                                                              CA; Dr. Ingrida Barker, Associate Superintendent, McDowell Coun-
                                                                              ty Schools, Welch, WV; Ms. Joy Hofmeister, State Superintendent
                                                                              of Public Instruction, Oklahoma State Department of Education,
                                                                              Oklahoma City, OK; and Dr. Janice K. Jackson, Chief Executive
                                                                              Officer, Chicago Public Schools, Chicago, IL.
                                                                                 On June 22, 2020, the Committee held a hearing titled ‘‘Inequi-
                                                                              ties Exposed: How COVID–19 Widened Racial Inequities in Edu-
                                                                              cation, Health, and the Workforce’’ on how existing disparities in
                                                                              health and education fields have been exacerbated by the COVID–
                                                                              19 pandemic. The Committee heard testimony from Dr. Camara P.
                                                                              Jones, Adjunct Professor, Rollins School of Public Health at Emory




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                                                                              University; Senior Fellow and Adjunct Associate Professor, More-




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                                                                              house School of Medicine; Past President, American Public Health
                                                                              Association, Atlanta, GA; Dr. Valerie Rawlston Wilson, Director,
                                                                              Program on Race, Ethnicity, and the Economy, Economic Policy In-
                                                                              stitute, Silver Spring, MD; Mr. Avid Roy, Co-Founder and Presi-
                                                                              dent, The Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity, Austin,
                                                                              TX; and Mr. John B. King, Jr., President and CEO, The Education
                                                                              Trust, Washington, D.C.
                                                                                                                       117TH CONGRESS

                                                                                 On March 25, 2021, the Early Childhood, Elementary, and Sec-
                                                                              ondary Education (ECESE) Subcommittee held a hearing titled
                                                                              ‘‘Lessons Learned: Charting the Path to Educational Equity Post-
                                                                              COVID–19’’ to examine how the COVID–19 pandemic has impacted
                                                                              communities and discuss the most effective methods of ensuring
                                                                              the nation’s public schools reopen and recover equitably. The Sub-
                                                                              committee heard testimony from Mr. Mark Morial J.D., President
                                                                              and Chief Executive Officer, National Urban League, New York,
                                                                              NY; Mrs. Jennifer Dale, Parent, Lake Oswego, OR; Selene
                                                                              Almazan, Esq., Legal Director, Council of Parent Attorneys and Ad-
                                                                              vocates, Inc., Towson, MD; and Alberto Carvalho, Superintendent
                                                                              of Schools, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Miami, FL.
                                                                                 On September 9, 2021, the ECESE Subcommittee held a hearing
                                                                              titled, ‘‘Back to School: Highlighting Best Practices for Safely Re-
                                                                              opening Schools’’ which discussed the conditions under which
                                                                              schools were beginning to reopen nationally, and the state of stu-
                                                                              dents and teachers returning to school. The Subcommittee heard
                                                                              testimony from Dr. Jesus F. Jara, Superintendent of Schools, Clark
                                                                              County School District, Las Vegas, NV; Ms. Denise Forte, Interim
                                                                              Chief Executive Officer, The Education Trust, Washington, D.C.;
                                                                              Mr. David Zweig, Journalist, The Atlantic, New York Magazine,
                                                                              Wired Magazine, Hudson, NY; and Dr. Ashish K. Jha, Dean & Pro-
                                                                              fessor of Health Services, Policy & Practice, Brown University,
                                                                              Providence, RI.
                                                                                 On November 17, 2021, the ECESE Subcommittee and the Sub-
                                                                              committee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment (HEWI
                                                                              Subcommittee) held a joint hearing titled, ‘‘Examining the Imple-
                                                                              mentation of COVID–19 Education Funds’’ which discussed how
                                                                              the federal government was overseeing how states and localities
                                                                              used the Educational Stabilization Fund created in the American
                                                                              Rescue Plan (ARP) to weather the pandemic and keep students
                                                                              learning. The Subcommittees heard testimony from The Honorable
                                                                              Cindy Marten, Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Education,
                                                                              and The Honorable James Kvaal, Undersecretary, U.S. Department
                                                                              of Education.
                                                                                 On February 16, 2022, the ECESE Subcommittee held a hearing
                                                                              titled ‘‘Serving All Students: Promoting a Healthier, More Sup-
                                                                              portive School Environment’’ to discuss practices in use in public
                                                                              schools that are harmful to the mental health of students. The Sub-
                                                                              committee heard testimony from: Ms. Kristen Harper, Vice Presi-
                                                                              dent for Public Policy and Engagement, Child Trends; Mr. Guy Ste-
                                                                              phens, Founder and Executive Director, Alliance Against Seclusion
                                                                              and Restraint; Ms. Morgan Craven, J.D., National Director of Pol-
                                                                              icy, Advocacy and Community Engagement, Intercultural Develop-
                                                                              ment Research Association; and, Mr. Max Eden, Research Fellow,




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                                                                              American Enterprise Institute.




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                                                                                 On July 26th, 2022 H. Res. 1273 was introduced by Rep. John
                                                                              Joyce (R–PA–13). The bill was referred solely to the Committee on
                                                                              Education and Labor.
                                                                                 On September 15th, 2022, the Committee considered H. Res.
                                                                              1273 in legislative session and reported it unfavorably, as amend-
                                                                              ed, to the House of Representatives by a vote of 28–21. The Com-
                                                                              mittee considered one amendment to H. Res. 1273, an amendment
                                                                              offered by Chairman Bobby Scott (D–VA–03) that made a minor
                                                                              technical edit. The amendment was adopted by voice vote.
                                                                                                                   COMMITTEE VIEWS

                                                                              Oversight and its attempted politicization
                                                                                 The power of Congressional oversight authority at the Committee
                                                                              level is vested solely with the Chair and the majority party, per
                                                                              House and Committee rules. The Congressional Research Service
                                                                              summarizes the oversight power of the Committee thusly:
                                                                                     Ranking Members and individual Members are not au-
                                                                                   thorized by house or committee rules to start official com-
                                                                                   mittee investigations or issue subpoenas. Individual Mem-
                                                                                   bers may seek the voluntary cooperation of agency officials
                                                                                   or private persons. However, no judicial precedent has di-
                                                                                   rectly recognized a right in an individual Member, other
                                                                                   than a committee chair, to exercise a committee’s oversight
                                                                                   authority without the permission of a majority of the com-
                                                                                   mittee or its chair.1
                                                                                 The Committee takes its responsibility to conduct oversight very
                                                                              seriously and views this work as a critical constitutional function
                                                                              of Congress. To that end, the Committee has held 16 oversight
                                                                              hearings during the 117th Congress 2—which included nearly 50
                                                                              hours of hearings with several Biden-Harris Administration offi-
                                                                              cials, such as the Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona 3; the
                                                                              Undersecretary of the Department of Education, James Kvaal 4;
                                                                              and the Chief Operating Officer of the Office of Federal Student
                                                                              Aid, Rich Cordray.5
                                                                                 The minority claims that the Committee’s oversight of the Biden
                                                                              administration has not been sufficient and three separate resolu-
                                                                              tions of inquiry (ROIs) have been recently introduced and referred
                                                                              to the Committee. Resolutions of Inquiry (ROIs) are a tool of the
                                                                              House to obtain information from the Executive Branch. As an ROI
                                                                              can be introduced by any member they reflect one of the few oppor-
                                                                              tunities for the Minority to exert oversight authority within the
                                                                              confines of the House rules.
                                                                                1 Todd Garvey & Walkter J. Oleszek, Cong. Rsch. Serv., IF10015, Congressional Oversight and
                                                                              Investigations (2014) (emphasis added).
                                                                                2 See H. Comm. on Educ. & Lab., Committee Activity, (last visited Sept. 27, 2022), https://
                                                                              edlabor.house.gov/hearings-and-events (outlining all hearings in the 117th Congress. Oversight
                                                                              hearings are generally styled ‘‘Examining the Policies and Priorities of [Overseen Agency or De-
                                                                              partment]).
                                                                                3 Examining the Policies and Priorities of the U.S. Department of Education Before the H.
                                                                              Comm. on Educ. & Lab., 117th Cong. (May 26, 2022); Examining the Policies and Priorities of
                                                                              the U.S. Department of Education Before the H. Comm. on Educ. & Lab., 117th Cong. (June
                                                                              24, 2021).
                                                                                4 Examining the Implementation of COVID–19 Education Funds, Before the H. Subcomm. on
                                                                              Early Childhood, Elem. & Secondary Educ. & the H. Subcomm. on Higher Educ. & Workforce
                                                                              Investment, 117th Cong. (November 17, 2021).




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                                                                                5 Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Office of Federal Student Aid, Before the H.
                                                                              Subcomm. on Higher Educ. & Workforce Investment, 117th Cong. (Oct. 27, 2021).




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                                                                                 Further, as ROIs retain privilege of consideration in the House
                                                                              if they are not reported out of Committee in a timely fashion, it has
                                                                              become established practice Committees to considered them fully to
                                                                              eliminate this privilege. Recognizing this fact, House Republicans
                                                                              made a concerted effort to hijack the Committee process by intro-
                                                                              ducing a flood of 23 resolutions of inquiry at the end of July, timing
                                                                              which would necessitate the relevant Committees of jurisdiction to
                                                                              take up and report out these ROIs before September 30, the last
                                                                              scheduled legislative day before the 2022 midterm elections. This
                                                                              all but guaranteed that multiple Committees would have to spend
                                                                              precious time on agenda items chosen by the minority.
                                                                                 When faced with an ROI from a Democratic minority in 2005,
                                                                              the Committee’s Republican leadership determined that the resolu-
                                                                              tion was similarly designed to derail the majority’s agenda,6 noting,
                                                                              ‘‘Perhaps most importantly, as a matter of procedure, H. Res. 467
                                                                              challenges the Majority’s prerogatives and its right to set the legis-
                                                                              lative agenda, and for that reason alone should be rejected.’’ 7
                                                                                 H. Res. 1273 asks the President to provide, ‘‘copies of any docu-
                                                                              ment or communication in the possession of the Director of the
                                                                              Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that refers or relates
                                                                              to communication or coordination between the executive branch
                                                                              and the American Federation of Teachers regarding the develop-
                                                                              ment of the Operational Guidance for K–12 Schools and Early Care
                                                                              and Education Programs to Support Safe In-Person Learning.’’ This
                                                                              request is overly broad and obviously designed to bog the CDC
                                                                              down in an unnecessary investigation. Further, as the Republican
                                                                              majority noted the last time it disposed of an ROI, a request for
                                                                              ‘‘communications’’ is, in itself problematic:
                                                                                      A resolution of inquiry can only produce ‘‘facts.’’ The
                                                                                   communications encompassed by the resolution are not
                                                                                   limited to ‘‘facts’’ and thus should not be subject to disclo-
                                                                                   sure in response to the inquiry. At a minimum, seeking
                                                                                   the production of these communications would chill debate
                                                                                   between the agencies and the President on issues of na-
                                                                                   tional importance.8
                                                                                 While ROIs are, in theory, an oversight tool, and the Committee
                                                                              recognizes every Member has the right to introduce an ROI, it was
                                                                              disappointing to spend time considering H. Res. 1273, a resolution
                                                                              so obviously designed to derail serious legislative work and drive
                                                                              the Committee’s debate into the realms of conspiracy theory, char-
                                                                              acter assassination, and the assignment of motives, when the facts
                                                                              in this case are surprisingly clear.
                                                                              The facts regarding CDC guidance for safely re-opening schools
                                                                                In response to the rapid onset of the COVID–19 pandemic, public
                                                                              schools worldwide began closing their doors to in-person instruction
                                                                              in March 2020. By April of 2020, school buildings in 48 of the 50
                                                                              United States, the District of Columbia, four U.S. territories, and
                                                                              Department of Defense Schools were closed to in-person instruction
                                                                                 6 While current Committee leadership takes notice of this position, it does not necessarily
                                                                              agree with the conclusion reached by the Committee in the 109th Congress, and merely notes
                                                                              it here for the record.




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                                                                                 7 H. Rpt. 109–258, 6, 109th Cong., 1st sess. (2005).
                                                                                 8 Id.




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                                                                              for the remainder of the 2019–20 school year.9 Faced with no vac-
                                                                              cine and limited scientific data about key factors in the virus con-
                                                                              tagion, the majority of US schools remained closed to in-person
                                                                              learning at the beginning of the 2020–21 school year.10
                                                                                 Beginning in the spring of 2020, thanks to resources provided in
                                                                              multiple COVID relief bills, many schools had the resources to pro-
                                                                              vide distance learning modalities for many students.11 These tech-
                                                                              nologies and programs were a poor substitute for in-person learn-
                                                                              ing for most students,12 but when faced with questions increasing
                                                                              infections and deaths among students, teachers, and their families
                                                                              most schools erred on the side of caution and public health.13 While
                                                                              the decisions whether to close or open schools and what type of
                                                                              learning modalities to provide students were made on the state and
                                                                              local levels, it is worthwhile to note, per the theories put forth by
                                                                              Members of the minority during the consideration of H. Res. 1273,
                                                                              these decisions were made during the Trump Administration.
                                                                                 On February 12, 2021, The Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
                                                                              vention (CDC) issued guidance to help school districts re-open and
                                                                              stay open in the midst of the COVID–19 pandemic.14 The guidance
                                                                              provided schools with standards of how to employ the best tools to
                                                                              fight the pandemic that were currently at the disposal of schools:
                                                                              masking, physical (social) distancing, handwashing and respiratory
                                                                              etiquette, cleaning facilities, and a robust testing and contact trac-
                                                                              ing regime.15 The guidance was iterative, and has been updated
                                                                              multiple times since its introduction.16
                                                                                 At the time the guidance was issued, both the Committee Chair
                                                                              and Ranking Member had positive things to say about the guid-
                                                                              ance. To the Chair, the guidance was helpful but it was obvious
                                                                              that many schools would need funding to implement the guidance
                                                                              with fidelity.17 To the Ranking Member, the guidance was proof
                                                                              that schools could safely re-open and now they just needed to do
                                                                              so.18
                                                                                 As multiple COVID vaccines became generally available over the
                                                                              course of 2021, and schools began to receive supplemental federal
                                                                                 9 Rita Zota & Boris Granovskiy, Cong. Rsch. Serv., R46883, Remote Learning for K–12 Schools
                                                                              During the COVID–19 Pandemic 1 (2021).
                                                                                 10 See id. at 2 (‘‘In May 2021, nearly 80% of students were still being offered a remote-only
                                                                              option for receiving instruction.’’).
                                                                                 11 Id. at 6–7.
                                                                                 12 See, e.g., Emma Dorn et al., COVID–19 and education: The lingering effects of unfinished
                                                                              learning, McKinsey, July 24, 2021, https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/education/our-insights/
                                                                              covid-19-and-education-the-lingering-effects-of-unfinished-learning.
                                                                                 13 See, e.g., Cassandra Willyard, COVID and schools: the evidence for reopening safely, Nature,
                                                                              July 7, 2021, https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01826-x.
                                                                                 14 Press Briefing Transcript, Ctrs. for Disease Control, Update on COVID–19, Feb. 12, 2021,
                                                                              https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/t0212-cdc-update-covid-19.html.
                                                                                 15 Id.
                                                                                 16 Ctrs. for Disease Control, Operational Guidance for K–12 Schools and Early Care and Edu-
                                                                              cation Programs to Support Safe In-Person Learning, Aug. 11, 2022, https://www.cdc.gov/
                                                                              coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/k-12-childcare-guidance.html.
                                                                                 17 Press Release, H. Comm. on Educ. & Lab., Chairman Scott’s Statement on CDC’s School
                                                                              Reopening Guidance (Feb 12, 2021) (‘‘There is no question that getting students back into the
                                                                              classroom is critical for their education, their access to nutrition, their mental health, and the
                                                                              ability of school professionals to recognize and address instances of child abuse and neglect.
                                                                              School reopening decisions should not be based on politics—they should be based on whether
                                                                              schools can comply with CDC’s science-based guidelines. Congress must make the necessary in-
                                                                              vestments to help schools take the steps needed to safely reopen for in-person instruction.’’) (on
                                                                              file with Committee).
                                                                                 18 Press Release, H. Comm. on Educ. & Lab. Republicans, Foxx: Put Students Needs First
                                                                              (Feb 12, 2021) (‘‘The White House claims to approach this issue ambitiously, but the lights are
                                                                              still off in schools across America and students remain at home. The science is clear. Students




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                                                                              can return to the classroom safely with proper precautions. It is time those in leadership posi-
                                                                              tions put the needs of students first and turn excuses into action.’’) (on file with Committee).




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                                                                              funding to assist in safely reopening, we saw more and more
                                                                              schools make the transition back to in-person learning.19 Many dis-
                                                                              tricts returned to hybrid or fully in-person learning before the end
                                                                              of the 2020–21 school year. By October of 2021, at a point in which
                                                                              all public schools districts in the U.S. were open, over 13,800 school
                                                                              districts were open for in-person instruction, 123 districts were
                                                                              open for some hybrid model of in-person and remote instruction,
                                                                              only 26 districts in the country remained remote.20 These numbers
                                                                              would shift based on local infection rates at given periods, and
                                                                              there were times where individual students, schools, or districts
                                                                              would have to return to remote learning for distinct quarantine pe-
                                                                              riods.21 But for all intents and purposes, nearly all public schools
                                                                              districts in America were open for in-person instruction less than
                                                                              a year after President Biden took office.
                                                                                 It is important to note that since the beginning of the Biden-Har-
                                                                              ris Administration, the CDC has never issued guidance that en-
                                                                              couraged schools to close. The CDC has remained focused on sup-
                                                                              porting safe, in-person learning. CDC spoke with parents, teachers,
                                                                              students, school staff, and entities representing these groups as
                                                                              they worked to finalize their guidance to make sure that it was op-
                                                                              erable in the real world; this was not done in secret, but in fact
                                                                              part of the announcement of the guidance.22 And while CDC guid-
                                                                              ance has a strong influence on state COVID–19 response efforts, it
                                                                              is also not inherently binding; schools may adhere to state and
                                                                              local COVID–19 screening requirements that differ from rec-
                                                                              ommendations included in CDC guidance.
                                                                              GOP allegations and conspiracies masquerading as oversight
                                                                                On March 30 of this year, Republican members of the House
                                                                              Committee on Oversight’s Select COVID Subcommittee issued an
                                                                              interim report titled, ‘‘Union Officials Wrote Key Portions of the
                                                                              Biden Administration’s School Reopening Guidance.’’ 23 This report
                                                                              purports to be some sort of ‘‘smoking gun’’ suggesting collusion dur-
                                                                              ing the development of the guidance between the CDC and the
                                                                              American Federation of Teachers (AFT) to keep schools closed.24
                                                                              The report’s findings are much less damning than the report’s title,
                                                                              or the coverage the report has received in conservative media.25
                                                                                The facts are clear that over the last three years, the American
                                                                              Federation of Teachers offered numerous proposals on the best way
                                                                                19 R46883, supra n. 9, at 5–7.
                                                                                20 U.S. Dep’t of Health and Hum. Svcs. Protect Public Data Hub, School Learning Modalities,
                                                                              Weekly Learning Modalities Metrics, 2020 (last visited Sept. 25, 2022) https://public-data-hub-
                                                                              dhhs.hub.arcgis.com/pages/school-learning-modalities.
                                                                                21 E.g., Nicole Asbury et al., As covid surges, D.C.-are schools cancel activities and go virtual
                                                                              again, Washington Post, Dec. 15, 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2021/12/15/
                                                                              dmv-school-omicron-outbreaks/.
                                                                                22 CDC Press Briefing, supra n. 14 (‘‘We have conducted an in-depth review of the available
                                                                              science and evidence base to guide our recommendations, and we have also engaged with many
                                                                              education and public-health partners, to hear firsthand from parents and teachers, directly,
                                                                              about their experiences and concerns. These sessions were so informative, and direct changes
                                                                              to the guidance were made as a result of them.’’).
                                                                                23 Select Subcomm. on the Coronavirus Crisus, Minority, H. Comm. on Oversight & Reform,
                                                                              Interim Findings: Union Officials Wrote Key Portions of the Biden Administration’s School Re-
                                                                              opening Guidance, Mar. 30, 2022, https://republicans-oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/
                                                                              2022/03/AFT-CDC-Interference-Interim-Report-3-30-2022.pdf.
                                                                                24 Id.at 7 (‘‘The AFT’s edits were intended to make it more likely that schools would close to
                                                                              in-person learning.’’).




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                                                                                25 See, e.g., Jessica Chasmar, Republicans expose ‘uncommon’ CDC, teacher’ union ties on
                                                                              COVID school reopening guidance in report, Fox News, Mar. 30, 2022.




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                                                                              to re-open and keep schools open safely.26 Moreover, the President
                                                                              of AFT even pledged $5 million dollars in May 2021 for their back-
                                                                              to-school campaign to return to five-days-a-week in-person instruc-
                                                                              tion.27 The COR report makes no suggestion that the CDC broke
                                                                              the law in consulting with the AFT and provides no evidence that
                                                                              the AFT’s recommendations to the CDC resulted in schools remain-
                                                                              ing remote instead of moving to in-person learning any longer than
                                                                              they would have without their recommendations.28 COR Repub-
                                                                              licans claimed the CDC does not usually share its guidance with
                                                                              outside entities at the point in development that they shared it
                                                                              with the AFT, but the strongest allegation and conclusion that the
                                                                              Republicans could make was that it was ‘‘uncommon.’’ This shows
                                                                              that at its heart the ROI is intended to simply disparage AFT and
                                                                              unions and assign ‘‘blame’’ for CDC’s decisions.
                                                                              Minority Posture during the Markup
                                                                                The Committee notes with displeasure multiple statements made
                                                                              by members of the minority during the markup of H. Res. 1273.
                                                                              These statements strained the comity this Committee has so long
                                                                              enjoyed and reflect less on the accused parties than the accusers.
                                                                                Multiple minority members reiterated the point that the CDC,
                                                                              AFT, and Democrats were responsible for keeping schools closed
                                                                              and as such are responsible for any learning loss or mental health
                                                                              problems that resulted from that closure.29 As this report has
                                                                              noted, the decision to close schools was one left to state and local
                                                                              authorities. In response to closures, Committee Democrats sought
                                                                              to provide schools with resources necessary to safely reopen, while
                                                                              addressing both learning loss and increased trauma and mental
                                                                              health needs exacerbated by the pandemic.30 The Committee has
                                                                              supported these efforts, because it knows they are necessary.
                                                                                Multiple minority members also suggested that COVID is not
                                                                              that serious of a disease for children, and, as such, any decision to
                                                                              close schools was not in the best interests of children.31 While the
                                                                              science is clear that young people are less susceptible to serious ill-
                                                                              ness as a result of COVID infection, that does not change the fact
                                                                              that over 1,200 children in the United States (and over 16,000
                                                                              worldwide) have died from COVID.32
                                                                                 26 See Am. Fed’n. of Teachers, AFT’s reports on safely reopening schools for in-person teaching
                                                                              and learning, (last visited Sept. 25, 2022), https://www.aft.org/our-community/reopen-schools (in-
                                                                              cluding links to four reports, the earliest from April 2020, as to how schools could safely reopen).
                                                                                 27 See Am. Fed’n. of Teachers, Back to School for All, Helping Students Recover by Creating
                                                                              Safe and Welcoming Environments, (last visited Sept. 25, 2022), https://www.aft.org/ae/
                                                                              summer2022/vachon_crawley_boyle.
                                                                                 28 The CDC often includes stakeholder input to ensure that the final version of their guidance
                                                                              doesn’t ignore certain challenges that could affect implementation, e.g., administrative feasi-
                                                                              bility, equity, limited infrastructure. This requires engagement with a wide variety of different
                                                                              stakeholders—including, but not limited to, the AFT and the National Education Association
                                                                              (NEA). The request included in this resolution is specific to CDC communications with only two
                                                                              specific organizations, which doesn’t represent all of the agency’s stakeholder engagement. The
                                                                              CDC may have also incorporated feedback from other stakeholders as well.
                                                                                 29 Markup of H. Res. 1295, H. Res. 1296, & H. Res. 1273 Before the H. Comm. on Educ. &
                                                                              Lab., 117th Cong. (2022) (statements of Reps. Burgess Owens & Marianette Miller-Meeks).
                                                                                 30 See supra section ‘‘Committee History’’ and text accompanying notes 9–20.
                                                                                 31 Markup of H. Res. 1295, H. Res. 1296, & H. Res. 1273 Before the H. Comm. on Educ. &
                                                                              Lab., 117th Cong. (2022) (statements of Reps. Bob Good & Mary Miller).
                                                                                 32 Ctrs. for Disease Control & Prevention, Weekly Updates by Select Demographic and Geo-
                                                                              graphic Characteristics. Provisional Death Counts for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19),
                                                                              (last visited Sept. 25, 2022) https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid_weekly/index.htm;




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                                                                              UNICEF, Child Mortality and COVID–19, (last visited Sept. 25, 2022), https://data.unicef.org/
                                                                              topic/child-survival/covid-19/.




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                                                                                Further, the best interests of children are not merely limited to
                                                                              their individual health. One of the major factors when making the
                                                                              decision to close schools was the fear that children would contract
                                                                              COVID in schools and spread it to their teachers and bring it home
                                                                              to their parents. Over 400 child care workers and 800 teachers died
                                                                              of COVID in 2020 alone.33 In 2020, child care workers died at rates
                                                                              over twice that of teachers, and while there has not been definitive
                                                                              proof as to why, we do know that while most schools closed in
                                                                              March 2020, many day care and child care centers remained
                                                                              open.34 Additionally, over 150,000 children have lost a parent or
                                                                              caregiver to COVID–19.35
                                                                                Finally, at least one Committee member made allegations that
                                                                              masks do not work to stop the spread of COVID, going so far as
                                                                              to reference (and arguably mock) Committee staff wearing masks
                                                                              in the Committee room, and also claiming that COVID vaccines are
                                                                              unnecessary for children.36 These statements are demonstrably
                                                                              false,37 and did nothing but further assure the Committee that H.
                                                                              Res. 1273 was politically motivated and wholly unnecessary. As
                                                                              such, the Committee voted to report it to the House unfavorably,
                                                                              recommending it do not pass.
                                                                                                            SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

                                                                                The text of H. Res. 1273 is one declarative Plain English sen-
                                                                              tence directing the President to furnish to the House of Represent-
                                                                              atives documents or communications in possession of the Director
                                                                              for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relating to or
                                                                              in communication with the American Federation of Teachers in re-
                                                                              gards to CDC guidance to safely reopen schools.
                                                                                                            EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS

                                                                                The amendment in the nature of a substitute is explained in the
                                                                              descriptive portion of this report.
                                                                                                APPLICATION OF LAW TO THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

                                                                                Pursuant to section 102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability
                                                                              Act of 1995, Pub. L. No. 104–1, H. Res. 1273 does not apply to
                                                                              terms and conditions of employment or to access to public services
                                                                              or accommodations within the legislative branch.
                                                                                 33 Matt Barnum, The pandemic’s toll: study documents fatality rates of teachers, child care
                                                                              workers in 2020, Chalkbeat, June 6, 2022, https://www.chalkbeat.org/2022/6/6/23157103/child-
                                                                              care-workers-teachers-covid-fatality-death-rates.
                                                                                 34 Id.
                                                                                 35 See, Dan Treglia, et al, Hidden Pain: Children Who Lost a Parent or Caregiver to COVID–
                                                                              19 and What the Nation Can Do to Help Them, COVID Collaborative, (Dec. 2021), https://
                                                                              www.covidcollaborative.us/assets/uploads/img/HIDDEN-PAIN-FINAL.pdf; Press Release, Ctrs.
                                                                              for Disease Control & Prevention, The Hidden U.S. COVID–19 Pandemic: Orphaned Children—
                                                                              More than 140,000 U.S. Children Lost a Primary or Secondary Caregiver Due to the COVID–
                                                                              19 Pandemic (October 2021), https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/p1007-covid-19-orphaned-
                                                                              children.html.
                                                                                 36 Markup of H. Res. 1295, H. Res. 1296, & H. Res. 1273 Before the H. Comm. on Educ. &
                                                                              Lab., 117th Cong. (2022) (statements of Rep. Bob Good).
                                                                                 37 E.g., Kristin L. Andrejko et al., Effectiveness of Face mask or Respirator Use in Indoor Pub-
                                                                              lic Settings for Prevention of SARS–CoV–2 Infection—California, February–December 2021, 71
                                                                              Mortality & Morbidity Wkly. Rpt., Feb. 11, 2022, at 4–5, https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/
                                                                              wr/pdfs/mm7106e1-H.pdf; Ctrs. for Disease Control & Prevention, Why Children and Teens




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                                                                              Should Get Vaccinated Against COVID–19, (last visited Sept. 25, 2022), https://www.cdc.gov/
                                                                              mmwr/volumes/71/wr/pdfs/mm7106e1-H.pdf.




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                                                                                                           UNFUNDED MANDATE STATEMENT

                                                                                Pursuant to Section 423 of the Congressional Budget and Im-
                                                                              poundment Control Act of 1974, Pub. L. No. 93–344 (as amended
                                                                              by Section 101(a)(2) of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995,
                                                                              Pub. L. No. 104–4), H. Res. 1273 contains no unfunded mandates.
                                                                                                                 EARMARK STATEMENT

                                                                                 In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House
                                                                              of Representatives, H. Res. 1273 does not contain any congressional
                                                                              earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as de-
                                                                              scribed in clauses 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI.
                                                                                                                       ROLL CALL VOTES

                                                                                In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
                                                                              House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the following
                                                                              roll call vote occurred during the Committee’s consideration of H.R.
                                                                              1273:




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                                                                                                                                                11

                                                                                                                                                                                               Date: 9-15-2022


                                                                                            COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR RECORD OF COMMITTEE VOTE

                                                                                                RoH Call:j                       Bill: H,Res                 An1enctment Number: Min

                                                                                   Di:mosition: Agreed to by Full Committee Roll Call Vote

                                                                                                              Levin Motion !o report H.Res 1285, H.Res,1296, and H.Res 1273, unfavorably.
                                                                                                              to the House, Agreed to by Roll Call Vote 28-21.
                                                                                                                                  \JQ
                                                                                                                                         Vmms    I                                          \Vt'            v;i;,
                                                                                               (VA) (Chairman)             X                     I       FOXX (NC) (Ranking)                            X
                                                                               'v!r, GRIJALVA(AZ)                          X                     : Mr WlLSON (SC)                                       X
                                                                                                       (CT)                X                     iMc THOMPSON (PA)                                      X
                                                                               Mr. SABLAN (MP)                             X                     !l\·k WALBERG (Ml)                                     X
                                                                                                                                                 I
                                                                               Ms, WILSON (FL)                             X                     l Mr, GROTHMAN (WI)                                    X
                                                                               Ms. BONAMfC! (OR)                           X                     I Ms. STEFANIK (NY)                                    X
                                                                               Mr,                   (CA)                  X                     i Mr. ALLEN (GA)                                       X
                                                                               Ms, ADAMS(NC)                               X                     I Mr. BANKS (IN)                                       X
                                                                               Mr. DESAULNIER (CA)                         X                         Mr. COMER (KY)                                         X
                                                                                     NORCROSS (NJ)                         X                         Mr. FULCHER (ID)                                   X
                                                                               Ms, JAYAPAL(WA)                             X                         Mr. KELLER (PA)                                    X
                                                                               lvls. WlLD(PA)                              X                         Ms, MfLLER-MEEKS (lA)                              X
                                                                               Mrs, MCBATH (GA)                            X                         Mr. OWENS (UT)                                     X
                                                                               Mrs. HA YES (CT)                            X                     f Mr, GOOD (VA)                                        X
                                                                                                                                                 I
                                                                               Mr. LEVIN (Ml)                              X                     i Mrs. MCCLAlN (Ml)                                    X
                                                                                     OM.AR (lvlN)                          X                         Mrs, HARSHBARGER (TN)                              X
                                                                               Ms. STEVENS (!vii)                          X                         Mrs, MILLER (lL)                                   X
                                                                               Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ (NM)                   X                          Mrs, SPARTZ (lN)                                       X
                                                                               Mr. JONES (NY)                             X                          Mr. FITZGERALD (WI)                                X
                                                                                     MANNING (NC)                         X                          Mr. CAWTHORN (NC)                                      X
                                                                               Mr.MRVAN (IN)                              X                          Mrs. STEEL (CA)                                    X
                                                                                     130WMAN(NY)                          X                          Mr. JAC013S (NY)                              )(
                                                                               Mrs. (~Hf,RFH .,,.,
                                                                                                              "           X                      l ML FINSTAD (MN)                                 X
                                                                                     POCAN(Wl)                            X                      I Mr. SEMPOL!NSKJ (NY)                            X
                                                                               Mr. CASTRO (TX)                            X                      I
                                                                                      SHERRILL (NJ)                       X                      :
                                                                               Mr. ESPAJLLA T (NY)                        X                      i
                                                                              Mr. KWE!Sl MFUME (MD)                       X                      I
                                                                               Vacancv                                                           I
                                                                                               TOTALS:             28                   Nos:21
                                                                                                                                             Quorum:
                                                                                                                                                D-24Rl

                                                                                   'Although not present for !he rocorded vote. Member expressed he/she would have voted AYE if present at time of vote.

                                                                                   ""Although not present for the recorded vote, Member expressed he/she would have voted NO lf present at time of vote<




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                                                                                                                                   12

                                                                                          STATEMENT OF PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

                                                                                 Pursuant to clause (3)(c) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House
                                                                              of Representatives, the goal of H. Res. 1273 is to direct the Presi-
                                                                              dent to produce records in his possession relating to communica-
                                                                              tions between his administration and the American Federation of
                                                                              Teachers (AFT) regarding reopening schools and supporting safe,
                                                                              in-person learning.
                                                                                                       DUPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS

                                                                                Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House
                                                                              of Representatives, the Committee states that no provision of H.
                                                                              Res. 1273 is known to be duplicative of another federal program,
                                                                              including any program that was included in a report to Congress
                                                                              pursuant to section 21 of Pub. L. No. 111–139 or the most recent
                                                                              Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance.
                                                                              STATEMENT OF OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE
                                                                                                       COMMITTEE

                                                                                In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause 2(b)(1)
                                                                              of rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Commit-
                                                                              tee’s oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the
                                                                              descriptive portions of this report.
                                                                                                NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY AND CBO COST ESTIMATE

                                                                                The Committee has not received a cost estimate for the bill from
                                                                              the Director of the Congressional Budget Office.
                                                                                      CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

                                                                                H. Res. 1273 does not change existing law for purposes of clause
                                                                              3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives.




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                                                                                                                  MINORITY VIEWS
                                                                                                                       INTRODUCTION

                                                                                In May 2021, press reports revealed that the Centers for Disease
                                                                              Control and Prevention (CDC) allowed the American Federation of
                                                                              Teachers (AFT) to rewrite key portions of school reopening guid-
                                                                              ance the agency released on February 12 of that year.1 Emails re-
                                                                              ceived under a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request showed
                                                                              detailed communications between AFT leadership, White House
                                                                              staff, CDC personnel, and CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky.2
                                                                              Those communications reportedly also included a phone call be-
                                                                              tween Director Walensky and AFT President Randi Weingarten
                                                                              prior to the release of the guidance.3 Those interactions paid off for
                                                                              the AFT, as emails showed that in at least two instances the AFT’s
                                                                              suggested edits to the guidance were adopted by the CDC nearly
                                                                              verbatim.4
                                                                                Had the guidance issued by the CDC been scientifically sound
                                                                              and prioritized the needs of students, this collusion could have
                                                                              been explained as the natural process of government agencies lis-
                                                                              tening to concerned stakeholders. Unfortunately, this was not the
                                                                              case. Immediately after the guidance was released, public health
                                                                              experts criticized the guidance for being too restrictive. Experts Jo-
                                                                              seph G. Allen and Helen Jenkins were quoted in the Washington
                                                                              Post saying the guidance added ‘‘new and unnecessary demands
                                                                              that will ultimately keep millions of kids out of school.’’ 5 A key
                                                                              point of contention was that the guidance tied school reopening rec-
                                                                              ommendations to metrics for COVID spread in a community. Allen
                                                                              and Jenkins were further quoted saying, ‘‘We changed our position
                                                                              on this in light of overwhelming scientific evidence that trans-
                                                                              mission within schools can be kept low regardless of community
                                                                              spread, so long as good mitigation measures are in place.’’ 6
                                                                                As a result of this evidence of collusion between the CDC and the
                                                                              AFT, which produced school reopening guidance that had the effect
                                                                              of keeping millions of students out of school, Rep. John Joyce (R–
                                                                              PA) introduced H. Res. 1273. The legislation directs the President
                                                                              of the United States to provide documents to the House of Rep-
                                                                              resentatives relating to communications between the CDC and AFT
                                                                              related to school reopening guidance. While FOIA requests and re-
                                                                              sulting press reports have provided Congress and the public with
                                                                              substantial information about the Biden administration’s collusion
                                                                              with its political allies, there has not yet been a full accounting of
                                                                                1 https://nypost.com/2021/05/01/teachers-union-collaborated-with-cdc-on-school-reopening-
                                                                              emails/.
                                                                                2 Ibid.
                                                                                3 Ibid.
                                                                                4 Ibid.
                                                                                5 https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/cdc-school-reopen-guidelines/2021/02/14/628f604e-
                                                                              6f08-11eb-b8a9-b9467510f0fe_story.html.
                                                                                6 Ibid.




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                                                                              the extent of this collusion, and nobody has been held accountable.
                                                                              H. Res. 1273 would give Republicans and Democrats the oppor-
                                                                              tunity to speak with one voice to hold the Biden administration ac-
                                                                              countable for the harm done to students.
                                                                                            THE CONGRESSIONAL DUTY TO CONDUCT OVERSIGHT

                                                                                 During committee consideration of H. Res. 1273, the Committee
                                                                              chairman stated repeatedly that the committee’s oversight author-
                                                                              ity is vested exclusively in the Committee’s chair. But the truth is,
                                                                              all of Congress has a constitutional duty to ensure that the Execu-
                                                                              tive Branch exercises its Congressionally provided authority faith-
                                                                              fully and with the public’s best interest as its motivation. So far,
                                                                              this Committee has failed to investigate this matter and it is im-
                                                                              perative that we uncover the truth behind the Biden administra-
                                                                              tion’s politicization of the CDC and the resulting harm caused to
                                                                              millions of students.
                                                                              Politicized CDC
                                                                                On February 3, 2021, nine days before the CDC’s guidance was
                                                                              released, Director Walensky stood at the podium in the White
                                                                              House briefing room and said, ‘‘But I also want to be clear that
                                                                              there is increasing data to suggest that schools can safely reopen
                                                                              and that that safe reopening does not suggest that teachers need
                                                                              to be vaccinated in order to reopen safely.’’ 7 One day later, the
                                                                              White House walked back those comments, with White House
                                                                              Press Secretary Jen Psaki implausibly arguing that Director
                                                                              Walensky was speaking from the White House podium ‘‘in her per-
                                                                              sonal capacity.’’ 8 Press Secretary Psaki further said, ‘‘Obviously,
                                                                              she’s the head of the CDC, but we’re going to wait for the final
                                                                              guidance to come out so we can use that as a guide for schools
                                                                              around the country.’’ As stated above, around the time of Director
                                                                              Walensky’s comments at the White House and Press Secretary
                                                                              Psaki’s walk back, the CDC and AFT were actively communicating.
                                                                              Among other things, records indicate a phone call occurred between
                                                                              Director Walensky and AFT President Weingarten in the days be-
                                                                              tween Director Walensky’s White House appearance and the re-
                                                                              lease of the CDC guidance.
                                                                                This is an unconscionable politicization of the CDC. Dr. Monica
                                                                              Gandhi, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San
                                                                              Francisco, characterized the communication between the AFT and
                                                                              CDC as ‘‘very, very troubling.’’ She went on to say:
                                                                                     What seems strange to me here is there would be this
                                                                                  very intimate back and forth including phone calls where
                                                                                  this political group gets to help formulate scientific guid-
                                                                                  ance for our major public health organization in the
                                                                                  United States. This is not how science-based guidelines
                                                                                  should work or be put together.9
                                                                                7 https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2021/02/03/press-briefing-white-
                                                                              house-covid-19-response-team-and-public-health-officials/.
                                                                                8 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/02/05/biden-administrations-muddled-con-
                                                                              fusing-message-reopening-schools/.
                                                                                9 https://nypost.com/2021/05/01/teachers-union-collaborated-with-cdc-on-school-reopening-




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                                                                                 Shockingly, our Democrat colleagues are completely disinterested
                                                                              in learning more about the extent to which the Biden administra-
                                                                              tion put millions of children at risk to placate political allies.
                                                                              School Closures Caused Harm
                                                                                Democrats have consistently argued that keeping schools closed
                                                                              was a reasonable decision given the risk posed to educators in re-
                                                                              opening schools. Reopening schools was not risk-free for educators,
                                                                              and those that showed up for the good of our children anyway de-
                                                                              serve our gratitude. However, there are two flaws to this argument.
                                                                              First, it significantly overstates the actual risk that school re-
                                                                              openings posed. An overwhelming body of evidence shows that
                                                                              schools have not been major points of transmission for COVID. For
                                                                              example, a study carried out in North Carolina in the fall of 2020
                                                                              examined 11 school districts with more than 90,000 students and
                                                                              staff attending school in person.10 Among those students and staff,
                                                                              there were 773 community-acquired COVID cases between August
                                                                              15 and October 23. Contact tracing determined only 32 additional
                                                                              infections were acquired within schools, and there were no in-
                                                                              stances of child-to-adult transmission in schools.
                                                                                Second, the Democrats’ argument shows a stunning unwilling-
                                                                              ness to consider the needs of children. The choice faced by teachers
                                                                              unions and education leaders was not between a risky decision to
                                                                              reopen schools and a risk-free decision to keep schools closed. As
                                                                              a report sponsored by several groups that was published in March
                                                                              2021 put it, ‘‘Any public health benefit gained from school closures
                                                                              must be weighed against the significant—and potentially lasting—
                                                                              costs imposed on individual students and society as a whole.’’ 11 We
                                                                              now know just how significant that harm to students has been.
                                                                                Sadly, though, our committee has known about the harm for
                                                                              more than a year. In May 2021, the Early Childhood, Elementary,
                                                                              and Secondary Education Subcommittee heard testimony from par-
                                                                              ents of children with disabilities harmed by their states’ and school
                                                                              districts’ refusal to provide adequate in-person instruction. One
                                                                              parent testified about his experiences in Virginia and said:
                                                                                     Our son is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder
                                                                                   and ADHD. Before school closed due to the pandemic, he
                                                                                   was a very happy boy who loved school, especially being
                                                                                   around his friends. But things changed quickly after
                                                                                   schools closed. The lack of social contact and the routine
                                                                                   of a normal school day, which are incredibly important to
                                                                                   children with Autism, caused him to create an imaginary
                                                                                   world . . . with ‘52 friends,’ as he told us . . . [H]is imagi-
                                                                                   nary world had become so real to him that he struggled to
                                                                                   differentiate real from the pretend, causing him to have
                                                                                   visual, auditory, and tactile hallucinations which became

                                                                                10 https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/147/4/e2020048090/180871/Incidence-and-Sec-

                                                                              ondary-Transmission-of-SARS-CoV-2?autologincheck=redirected?nfToken=00000000-0000-0000-
                                                                              0000-000000000000.
                                                                                11 https://crpe.org/wp-content/uploads/3-12_is_it_safe_to_reopen_schools_an_extensive_review_




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                                                                                   so bothersome that on his 9th birthday, he asked me,
                                                                                   ‘Daddy, can I die for my birthday?’ 12
                                                                                 That parent went on to talk about the additional harm done to
                                                                              his son by schools in northern Virginia not opening for in-person
                                                                              instruction through most of the 2020–2021 school year. It is clear
                                                                              that keeping schools closed was not risk-free, and suggestions that
                                                                              it was insults the children who suffered from those decisions and
                                                                              the parents forced to witness that suffering. Beyond the individual
                                                                              experiences of families like the one who testified to the Early
                                                                              Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education subcommittee,
                                                                              the data on learning loss and mental health challenges further
                                                                              clarifies the harm done.
                                                                                     Learning Loss
                                                                                 Study after study on the effects of school closures confirms the
                                                                              sad but unsurprising reality: school closures crippled K–12 stu-
                                                                              dents’ learning and emotional well-being. On September 1, the De-
                                                                              partment of Education released National Assessment of Edu-
                                                                              cational Progress (NAEP) data 13 showing that reading and math
                                                                              scores for nine-year-olds declined sharply over the course of the
                                                                              pandemic. Average scores in 2022 declined five points in reading
                                                                              and seven points in math compared to 2020. This is the largest av-
                                                                              erage decline in reading since 1990 and the first ever decline in
                                                                              math.
                                                                                 Students forced into more remote learning during the 2020–2021
                                                                              school year have suffered a disproportionate amount of learning
                                                                              loss. Harvard University’s Center for Education Policy Research
                                                                              (CEPR) released a report in May showing that, on average, stu-
                                                                              dents who were mostly in-person lost about 20 percent of a typical
                                                                              school year’s math learning compared to remote students who lost
                                                                              a staggering 50 percent of a typical school year’s math learning.14
                                                                              Teachers saw this firsthand: a May 2022 GAO survey of K–12 pub-
                                                                              lic school teachers nationwide found that 60 percent of remote
                                                                              teachers said their students had more difficulty understanding les-
                                                                              sons virtually than in a typical school year, while 85 percent of in-
                                                                              person teachers said live instruction helped students.15
                                                                                 While all students were harmed by pandemic learning, low-in-
                                                                              come and minority students were the most affected by school clo-
                                                                              sures. A June 2021 CDC study found that students of color had sig-
                                                                              nificantly less access to in-person learning than their peers.16 The
                                                                              aforementioned Harvard CEPR study determined that districts
                                                                              with remote learning saw widened reading and math achievement
                                                                              gaps between high and low-poverty schools while, in contrast, in-
                                                                              person districts had no substantive widening of income achieve-
                                                                              ment gaps in math and less widening in reading.17 These disparate
                                                                              effects have bled into a lagging recovery, as a NWEA report this
                                                                              summer revealed that Black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alas-
                                                                                   12 https://republicans-edlabor.house.gov/uploadedfiles/congressional_testimony__reade.pdf.
                                                                                13 https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/highlights/ltt/2022/.
                                                                                14 https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/05/briefing/school-closures-covid-learning-loss.html?smid=
                                                                              em-share.
                                                                                15 https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-22-104487.
                                                                                16 https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7026e2.htm.




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                                                                                17 https://cepr.harvard.edu/files/cepr/files/5-4.pdf?m=1651690491.




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                                                                              ka Native students continue to have a disproportionately slower
                                                                              learning improvement compared to their peers.18
                                                                                This learning loss has tangible generational impacts. Using data
                                                                              from a 2021 NWEA report 19 on student achievement, Harvard’s
                                                                              CEPR estimated 20 that such losses would represent a $43,800 loss
                                                                              in expected lifetime earnings for each individual student affected.
                                                                              When multiplied by the roughly 50 million students enrolled in
                                                                              public schools, that represents about $2 trillion in total earnings
                                                                              losses. A July 2021 analysis conducted by McKinsey and Company
                                                                              found that the impact of school closures on K–12 student learning
                                                                              could cause students to earn $49,000 to $61,000 less over their life-
                                                                              time as a result of the pandemic. This impact on the US economy
                                                                              could amount to $128 billion to $188 billion every year as this co-
                                                                              hort enters the workforce.21
                                                                                     Mental Health Impact on Students
                                                                                 School closures and the pandemic experience plunged students
                                                                              into feelings of isolation, depression, and anxiety.22 The CDC’s
                                                                              2021 Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey noted that 37
                                                                              percent of high school students experienced poor mental health
                                                                              during the pandemic, with 44 percent of all students reporting feel-
                                                                              ing persistently sad or hopeless.23 The medical community has rec-
                                                                              ognized the severe impacts on children’s mental health: the Amer-
                                                                              ican Academy of Pediatrics declared a national emergency in child
                                                                              and adolescent mental health last fall, 24 and U.S. Surgeon General
                                                                              Dr. Vivek Murthy issued an advisory statement a month later.25
                                                                                 Remote learning and social isolation were devastating for mental
                                                                              health. A study conducted by the American Civil Liberties Union
                                                                              asked students to grade their mental wellness before and after
                                                                              schools closed on a scale of one to 10, with 10 indicating top mental
                                                                              health.26 Before the pandemic, 65 percent of students gave them-
                                                                              selves a seven or higher. After the onset of the pandemic, that per-
                                                                              centage dropped to less than 40 percent. Moreover, the number of
                                                                              students who rated their mental health a three or lower more than
                                                                              tripled after the pandemic began, from 7.2 percent to 23 percent.27
                                                                              In January, JAMA Pediatrics did a systemic review of school clo-
                                                                              sures in 11 countries, including the United States, and described
                                                                              the negative consequences as ‘‘harbingers of long-term outcomes,
                                                                              including decreased life expectancy for U.S. schoolchildren.’’ 28
                                                                                 18 https://www.nwea.org/content/uploads/2022/07/Student-Achievement-in-2021-22-Cause-for-
                                                                              hope-and-concern.researchbrief-1.pdf.
                                                                                 19 https://www.nwea.org/content/uploads/2021/12/Learning-during-COVID19-An-update-on-stu-
                                                                              dent-achivement-and-growth-at-the-start-of-the-2021-2022-school-year-Research-Brief.pdf.
                                                                                 20 https://www.the74million.org/article/analysis-pandemic-learning-loss-could-cost-u-s-students-
                                                                              2-trillion-in-lifetime-earnings-what-states-schools-can-do-to-avert-this-crisis/.
                                                                                 21 https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-and-social-sector/our-insights/covid-19-and-edu-
                                                                              cation-the-lingering-effects-of-unfinished-learning.
                                                                                 22 https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/covid-youth-mental-health-crisis/.
                                                                                 23 https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/abes.htm,      https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/
                                                                              p0331-youth-mental-health-covid-19.html.
                                                                                 24 https://www.aap.org/en/advocacy/child-and-adolescent-healthy-mental-development/aap-
                                                                              aacap-cha-declaration-of-a-national-emergency-in-child-and-adolescent-mental-health/.
                                                                                 25 https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/surgeon-general-youth-mental-health-advisory.pdf.
                                                                                 26 Student anxiety, depression increasing during school closures, survey finds | EdSource.
                                                                                 27 Ibid.
                                                                                 28 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2788069,        https://jamanetwork




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                                                                                Students continue to wrestle through the mental health effects of
                                                                              school closures even as they return to schools. A May 2022 NCES
                                                                              survey reported that 70 percent of public schools saw an increase
                                                                              in students seeking mental health services, with 76 percent of
                                                                              schools hearing increased concerns from staff about students’ de-
                                                                              pression, anxiety, and trauma.29
                                                                                These trends are sadly reflected in hospital visits and deaths
                                                                              across the nation. The CDC reported that, between April and Octo-
                                                                              ber 2020, the proportion of emergency room visits for mental health
                                                                              reasons increased by 24 percent for children aged five to 11 and 31
                                                                              percent for children aged 12 to 17 over the same period in 2019.30
                                                                              Even more shockingly, suspected suicide attempt emergency room
                                                                              visits during February and March 2021 were 50.6 percent higher
                                                                              among girls aged 12–17 years than during the same period in
                                                                              2019.31 Aggregate suicide data across 14 states revealed an overall
                                                                              increase in the adolescent proportion of all suicides during the pan-
                                                                              demic.32
                                                                                                                         CONCLUSION

                                                                                 Sadly, Committee Democrats chose to bury their heads in the
                                                                              sand in the face of overwhelming evidence that the Biden adminis-
                                                                              tration conspired with its political allies and ignored the science
                                                                              that said schools could be safely reopened. These actions left mil-
                                                                              lions of students stuck at home far longer than they needed to be,
                                                                              and they suffered catastrophic learning loss and mental health
                                                                              challenges as a result. When an administration fails to execute its
                                                                              responsibilities faithfully, Congress has an obligation to conduct
                                                                              vigorous oversight. This imperative is made even more urgent
                                                                              when an administration’s failures result in such significant harm
                                                                              to the American people. Democrats have an opportunity to change
                                                                              course and do the right thing, which begins with joining Repub-
                                                                              licans to demand the documents Congress needs to determine the
                                                                              role the AFT played in reshaping the CDC’s guidance. The House
                                                                              of Representatives should take up and pass H. Res. 1273. It is time
                                                                              the American people learn the full extent of the CDC’s collusion
                                                                              with the AFT, and it is time for those involved to be held account-
                                                                              able.
                                                                                                                 VIRGINIA FOXX,
                                                                                                                   Ranking Member.
                                                                                                                 JOE WILSON.
                                                                                                                 GLENN ‘‘GT’’ THOMPSON.
                                                                                                                 TIM WALBERG.
                                                                                                                 GLENN GROTHMAN.
                                                                                                                 ELISE M. STEFANIK.
                                                                                                                 RICK W. ALLEN.
                                                                                                                 JAMES COMER.
                                                                                                                 RUSS FULCHER.
                                                                                                                 FRED KELLER.
                                                                                                                 MARIANNETTE MILLER MEEKS,
                                                                                                                   M.D.
                                                                                   29 https://nces.ed.gov/whatsnew/press_releases/05_31_2022_2.asp.
                                                                                   30 https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7024e1.htm.
                                                                                   31 https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7024e1.htm.




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                                                                                   32 https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2791544.




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                                                                                                                                  19

                                                                                                                                   BURGESS OWENS.
                                                                                                                                   BOB GOOD.
                                                                                                                                   LISA C. MCCLAIN.
                                                                                                                                   DIANA HARSHBARGER.
                                                                                                                                   MARY E. MILLER.
                                                                                                                                   VICTORIA SPARTZ.
                                                                                                                                   SCOTT FITZGERALD.
                                                                                                                                   CHRIS JACOBS.

                                                                                                                                  Æ




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