releases: https://woodall.house.gov/media-center/e-newsletter-archive/washington-watch-92120
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| https://woodall.house.gov/media-center/e-newsletter-archive/washington-watch-92120 | Washington Watch - 9/21/20 | 2020-09-21 | 2020 | 2020-09 | Republican | Senate | GA | Rob Woodall | W000810 | woodall.house.gov | legacy | SUPREME COURT JUSTICE GINSBURG PASSES AWAY AT AGE 87 This past Friday, I was saddened to hear the news that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away after a long-fought battle with pancreatic cancer. Small in stature, but a giant among her peers, Justice Ginsburg was undeniably a trailblazer, with a unique ability to reach our youngest generations with a fervor that matched that of our oldest. She served for nearly three decades on our nation's highest court, where herimprint won't soon be forgotten. My thoughts and prayers remain with Justice Ginsburg's family, friends, colleagues, and those across the nation mourning this profound loss of a leader who was an icon to so many. RECOGNIZING FIRST RESPONDERS IN WAKE OF HURRICANE SALLY Last week, Hurricane Sally made landfall as a Category 2 Hurricane, bringing significant and devastating flooding to large parts of Alabama, Florida, and even here in Georgia, as the slow-moving storm continued its path through the Carolinas and much of the Southeast. President Trump has approved emergency declarations for states including Florida and Alabama which were the greatest impacted, having received up to 30 inches of rain in areas along the Gulf Coast. FEMA is continuing its work to offer assistance, and as relief efforts continue, we must not forget to highlight the incredible efforts of our first responders, linemen, and volunteers who have worked to rescue individuals from areas with significant flooding, restore power to homes, and donate their time and resources to serving those affected. Thank you for all that you do. CALLING FOR BIPARTISANSHIP DURING HOUSE FLOOR DEBATE While I'm disappointed that our work in the House Chamber last week wasn't one to move forward a COVID-19 relief package, I had hoped we would come together to move forward the pieces of legislation that were brought to the floor in a bipartisan manner. And to some extent, last week the House did a better job of that than other times in recent memory. For example, one bill the House considered and debated this week H.R. 2694, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act -- which you can read more about in the constituent spotlight below -- was the product of good faith negotiations between Republicans and Democrats to work together to strengthen protections for pregnant workers. However, opportunities to move forward in a bipartisan fashion two of the other bills brought to the floor from the House Committee on Education and Labor H.R. 2574 and H.R. 2639 were simply yet another missed opportunity. For example, instead of dooming H.R. 2639 to largely partisan passage in this Chamber that will stop well short of being enacted into law, Republicans joined to support an amendment offered by Representative Allen (R-GA) that would have expanded an existing federal grant structure the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants (SSAEG) established under the Every Student Succeeds Act to allow school districts to use funds to reduce racial or socioeconomic isolation in schools. These grants are already authorized on a bipartisan basis, and the SSAEG received $1.21 billion in Fiscal Year 2020 funding. When managing the Rule for the bills being considered this week, I echoed those calls to join together to do what we were sent here to do: send bills to the President's desk. While the Allen amendment was ultimately not adopted, allowing for its merits to be discussed on the House floor was a welcome step. I hope House leadership will continue to allow for more free and open discussion amongst the whole House by allowing for amendments to be offered and debated on the floor. Rep. Rob Woodall Manages Rule Debate for H.Res. 1107 which provided for consideration of H.R. 2574, H.R. 2639, H.R. 2694, and H. Res. 908 HOUSE CONDEMNS ANTI-ASIAN BIAS AMID COVID-19 PANDEMIC As frequent readers of this newsletter willrecall, I joined my colleagues in leading aletterto U.S. Attorney General William Barr requesting that the Department of Justice stands firmly against the uptick of anti-Asian discrimination in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and provide the House with the latest data on anti-Asian attacks across the country. Our friends and neighbors of Asian-American heritage have been wrongly associated with the spread of COVID-19 and have been victims of discrimination and violent incidents as a result. In an effort to combat this trend and set the record straight, the House voted last week onH.Res. 908, to condemn all forms of anti-Asian sentiment as related to COVID-19. I was pleased to join my colleagues in voting for this resolution and standing against all discrimination against our brothers and sisters of Asian heritage. GULF STATES FORMALIZE RELATIONS WITH ISRAEL Back in August, I hadshared with youthe news that Israel and the United Arab Emirates had agreed to formalize diplomatic relations a historic move that made them only the third Arab state to do so since Israel's founding. Since then, the Abraham Accords as they are referred to have since added another nation to that list, the Kingdom of Bahrain. This agreement, facilitated by President Trump, was commemorated at a signing ceremony at the White House last week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid al-Zayani, and United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al Nahyan. The hopes I shared previously that the Abraham Accords would precipitate further formalization of relations with Arab states have already culminated with the addition of Bahrain, which makes me even more hopeful that more nations in the region will follow suit. This agreement should serve as an encouraging moment in history, setting us on a pathway for peace in the Middle East. CONSTITUENT SPOTLIGHT: STRENGTHENING PROTECTIONS FOR PREGNANT WORKERS As I mentioned earlier, the House considered H.R. 2694, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act last week, a bill aimed at ensuring pregnant women in the workplace are better protected against discrimination. Over the course of the 116th Congress, I have heard from many of you on this topic, and I want to share a few of the messages I have received below. Laura from Duluth: No one should be forced to choose between a healthy pregnancy and a paycheck. It is time for Congress to recognize the stakes for pregnant workers and their families and pass the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act without delay. Donald from Lilburn: Far too often, pregnant workers are fired and discriminated against simply for asking to have reasonable workplace accommodations like an extra bathroom break or a bottle of water. It is imperative that we close the loopholes that jeopardize pregnant workers' livelihoods and civil rights. ______________________________________________________________________________ No woman should face discrimination at work for bringing a new life into our community. While in 1978 Congress passed the Pregnancy Discrimination Act to provide protections to female employees for this exact purpose, the implementation and interpretation of this law over time has created an unclear framework and complicated burden of proof that has led to confusion amongst both employers and employees. H.R. 2694 would remedy that confusion by requiring employers with 15 or more employees, as similarly defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), to provide reasonable and temporary accommodations to pregnant employees who have expressed the need for them. And on an issue as important as this, I am grateful that my Republican and Democrat colleagues on the House Committee on Education and Labor engaged in a good faith negotiations to improve upon this bill and iron out concerns with the legislation as it was initially proposed. Evidence of those extensive negotiations can be seen throughout the Committee process. The changes, which include ensuring that employers who act in good faith to make reasonable accommodations will not be liable for damages, are example of the ways in which this bill works to better serve both the employer and employee, and are evidenced by the larger support this bill has gained among organizations throughout the business community. While there was one missed opportunity to make this bill a truly bipartisan effort - the adoption of the Republican Motion to Recommit which I supported that would have added an amendment certifying protections for religious entities it is important to remember the bill does not eliminate longstanding religious protections already in place under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (CRA) for religious entities. As evidenced by the over 100 Republican Members who joined me to support this measure, H.R. 2694 is an example of what the legislative process should look like. Its larger, bipartisan passage would not have been possible without Republicans and Democrats working hand in hand to make the final product the best it could be, and I was glad to support it. I hope we will see more examples of this approach to legislating in the days and weeks to come. HIGHLIGHTING FOOD ASSISTANCE EFFORTS IN OUR COMMUNITY Our community has always been home to countless service-minded individuals and organizations who never fail to recognize when their neighbors are in need of a helping hand. As I mentioned in last week'snewsletter, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently extended flexibilities for certain child nutrition programs through the end of 2020. That flexibility has allowed Gwinnett County Schools to offer food assistance to anyone ages 18 or younger who is in need. Additionally, there are a number of nonprofit and charitable organizations in our community committed to the noble cause of addressing hunger in our communities. FoodFinder - one such nonprofit with roots in our community whose efforts I recently highlighted in a previous newsletter - has now caught the attention of Lay's thanks to its efforts to direct people to resources for food assistance closest to the them. As part of the Smile with Lay's campaign, benefitting the international charity Operation Smile, FoodFinder's CEO Jack Griffin has beenrecognized as one of 30 " 'ordinary' people doing extraordinary things in their communities" who will be featuredon the bags of several Lay's chips in grocery stores across the country. In these most challenging times, it has been a great honor to witness the selfless work that the people of the Seventh District offer to our community. Thank you to all of you who have made life easier for those struggling through this pandemic, including the excellent efforts of Gwinnett County Public Schools and the FoodFinder team. FORSYTH COUNTY MOTHER AND DAUGHTER RECOGNIZED FOR DEDICATION TO GEORGIA SPECIAL OLYMPICS If there's one thing we certainly don't lack here in the Seventh District, it's dedicated individuals who aren't afraid to put in some hard work to produce incredible results. That's why I am honored to congratulate Maranda Way and Tina Hillmer for winning Georgia Special Olympics Female Athlete of the Year and Volunteer of the Year awards, respectively. Typically, these awards are given at the opening ceremony for the Georgia Special Olympics, but these games were cancelled due to concerns about COVID-19. Instead, to reward both remarkable women for their achievements, Special Olympics Forsyth County Coordinator Linda Fitzpatrick organized a drive-by parade and awards ceremony to honor the mother-daughter duo for going above and beyond to demonstrate their commitment to the program over the last few years. Ms. Way has been a Special Olympics athlete for eight years, participating in powerlifting, aquatics and equestrian events with guidance and coaching from Special Olympics volunteers, including her mother, Ms. Hillmer. Although Ms. Hillmer works full-time both as a parent and a real estate agent, she has dedicated her free time to coaching and supporting Special Olympic athletes and has become a go-to volunteer for Special Olympics events. I know my colleagues in Congress recognize the value of this program in strengthening our community, and I was glad to join a bipartisan letter to House appropriators earlier this year calling on further federal support for Special Olympics programming in Fiscal Year 2021. I am confident that our final FY21 funding bill will heed that call for continued support. Congratulationsonce again to this outstanding mother-daughter pair. Your dedication to the Special Olympics program has brought great pride not only to your family and your home district, but also to the state of Georgia. Truly, a job well done! THE WEEK AHEAD This week the House is expected to consider a massive, $135 billion energy package,H.R. 4447,that rings in at almost 900 pages! It covers almost every corner of the energy sector from requirements for energy efficient buildings to wind, solar, transportation, and nuclear energy, but unfortunately, it's a grab-bag of proposals with no discernable sense of direction. And what's more, it ignores the need to update permitting and licensing requirements for financing, building, expanding, and modernizing energy infrastructure. Supporting new types of energy production is short-sighted if we aren't updating our infrastructure to move that energy to where it's needed. We need bipartisan energy legislation, but I'm afraid H.R. 4447 isn't the right answer. Finally, the House is going to consider two bills related to supporting the Uyghur minority that is persecuted by the Chinese government. Since 2017, 1.8 million Uyghurs, Kazaks, Kyrgyz, and other members of Muslim minority groups have been arbitrarily detained in internment camps and subject to forced labor and political indoctrination by the Chinese government. As a freedom-loving people who hold our right to practice our religion as we each see fit, it is critical that we support those who are being denied that right. As such,the first billwould ban the importation of items produced or manufactured in China using forced labor, in particular, items from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China where the Uyghur minority is routinely oppressed. It also requires the President to impose sanctions on individuals engaging in or contributing to the forced labor of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in China.The second billrequires public companies to file disclosures with the SEC regarding activities relating to Xinjiang and whether any manufactured goods originated in forced labor camps, along with the nature and extent of the commercial activity related to each such good or material, the gross revenue and net profits attributable, and whether the issuer intends to continue with such importation. I have some concerns about using the SEC's required disclosures for this purpose, but I hope that Republicans and Democrats can work together to figure out the best disclosure method and hold the Chinese accountable for their treatment of Muslim minorities. Sincerely, Rob Woodall Member of Congress | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |