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McCollum’s $4.5 Million in Requests for Local Health, Equity, Workforce Projects Advances

June 30, 2022

Fiscal Year 2023 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Bill Advances to House Floor

Congresswoman Betty McCollum (MN-04) and the House Appropriations Committee voted to approve the Fiscal Year 2023 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies bill and report today, including four Community Project Funding (CPF) requests made by Congresswoman McCollum to benefit Minnesota's Fourth Congressional District:

  • Project: Gillette Specialty Healthcare Research Investigative Lab ($1,500,000)
    The investigative lab would be used to conduct research related to assessment of motor control, movement disorders, spasticity, and pain, and would include a rehabilitation research and clinical care space needed to advance the development of biofeedback, robotics, and exoskeleton development.
  • Project: Penumbra Theatre Positive Racial Identity Development for Youth Program ($1,000,000)
    This funding will support the development, testing, and early implementation of Penumbra Theatre's PRIDE (Positive Racial Identity Development & Empowerment) curriculum, supporting children of all races as they learn about concepts and experiences of race, identity, and social justice at developmentally critical stages.
  • Project: Sanneh Foundation Youth Workforce Development ($1,000,000) The This program would combine career exploration with local employers, tangible work experience, social capital building developmental relationships, and Social and Emotional Learning into a comprehensive year-long youth workforce development program to help bridge the opportunity gap for young people in Minnesota.
  • Project: Hamline University Pipers to Professionals Program ($1,000,000)
    The funding would be used to provide underserved students with wrap-around support services while they engage in a paid internship, to effectively promote student development for professional employment.

"This is a critical step to bringing federal taxpayer dollars to Minnesota's Fourth District to make a tangible, positive impact in our community," Congresswoman McCollum said. "This funding will bolster our collective future – whether through medical developments to improve children's lives or bridging the gaps to offer more economic opportunities for historically-excluded communities – I'm proud of the progress that will be achieved through these projects."

"At Gillette Children's we lead in pediatric specialty care through innovation and care coordination," said Gillette Children's President and CEO Barbara Joers. "Our providers and researchers are passionate about improving the lives of children living with complex healthcare needs and relentlessly pursue research to discover the newest and best evidence-based clinical care. Research is a crucial driver of how we advance diagnosis and treatment interventions for pediatric musculoskeletal and neurological conditions. This project will fund critical infrastructure to expand Gillette Children's research capacity and capabilities, positively impacting the lives of many children and their families."

"This funding will support the development of a racial healing curriculum for children of all races ages 2-22," said President of Penumbra Theatre Sarah Bellamy. "Guiding young people along a journey of positive identity development, children will cultivate self-esteem, social-emotional and regulation skills, a deep sense of cultural pride, and belonging. We are eager to contribute Penumbra's unique arts-based expertise to support change work within the education sector for children and families in the State of Minnesota."

"The Sanneh Foundation is grateful to have champions like Congresswoman McCollum advocating to bring resources to our underserved communities," said Sanneh Foundation CEO Tony Sanneh. "These investments in our youth set the foundation for our future workforce."

"Funding for the Pipers to Professionals Program will support more than 200 Hamline students by providing work experiences that lead to professional careers," said Hamline University Vice President for Institutional Advancement Michael Tompos. "This federal award will fund internships, coordinated with our academic programs, for students from all backgrounds – especially those who are working multiple part-time jobs to pay for their education. As these students graduate from Hamline and join our communities, they will continue the Hamline tradition of ‘doing all the good they can' for Minnesota and the nation."

Background:

For 2023, the LHHS bill provides $242.1 billion, an increase of $28.5 billion – 13 percent – above 2022. With this historic increase, the legislation:

  • Creates and sustains good-paying American jobs through investments in job training, apprenticeship programs, and worker protection
  • Grows opportunity with major investments in education, including significant funding for high-poverty schools and students with disabilities, and strong increases for programs that expand access to post-secondary education
  • Bolsters our public health infrastructure with more resources for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and for states and local governments to strengthen infrastructure and capacity
  • Strengthens lifesaving biomedical research with increased funding for the National Institutes of Health, as well as increased funding for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health
  • Supports middle class and working families with increased funding for child care, Head Start, and preschool development grants
  • Advances equal treatment for women by increasing funding for the range of health services, including family planning, covered by Title X and repealing the discriminatory Hyde Amendment
  • Addresses our nation's most urgent health crises, including maternal health, mental health, gun violence, and substance misuse, while making strides to reduce persistent and unacceptable health disparities

The bill next heads to the floor of the U.S. House Floor for debate and approval.

A summary of the bill is here. The text of the draft bill is here. The bill report is here. In keeping with the Appropriations Committee's commitment to transparency, information on Rep. McCollum's Community Project Funding requests is available here.

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