Dear friend,

Over the last three weeks, we have witnessed an attack on federal institutions, an erosion of the rule of law, and our civil liberties threatened. The President has implemented a series of executive orders and policies that are detrimental to communities in the Fifth District and across the country - from a pause on federal funding to the dismantling of federal agencies and seizure of private data. 

Through Article I of the Constitution, Congress has the authority to provide a check and balance between the other branches of government. It appears, Speaker Mike Johnson has ceded our Article I powers of Congress to the President, effectively preventing congressional oversight of Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency.

Like Congress, the Judicial Branch also has a fundamental role in interpreting the law and ensuring our Constitution is adhered to. Following a series of lawsuits from states, including Connecticut, several attempts by the Administration to circumvent the rule of law have been halted. 

Each day, I will continue to use every legislative tool available to ensure our communities are protected.  I will continue to share information as it becomes available.

For my full update, please read below. 

Executive Overreach

The President does not have the power to unilaterally dissolve or reorganize a federal agency. Agencies created by an act of Congress, can only be dissolved by an act of Congress. Congress has the sole authority to appropriate funds. Through Article I of the Constitution, Congress has the ability to provide a check on executive overreach and abuse. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has ceded Article I powers of Congress to the President, effectively preventing congressional oversight of Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency. Additionally, Republicans on the House Oversight Committee have blocked efforts to subpoena Musk, making it clear: House Republicans do not want you to know what Elon Musk is doing with your personal information.

My Democratic colleagues and I are fighting back. 

• On Tuesday, I joined a letter to U.S. Department of State Secretary Marco Rubio, raising concerns with actions at USAID, including cutting thousands of staff and halting emergency humanitarian programing.
  • Update: Following lawsuits brought by the American Foreign Service Association and the American Federation of Government Employees, on Friday, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order to block the Trump Administration from putting an additional 2,000 USAID employees on leave. The order also reinstated 500 USAID employees and paused a directive recalling overseas employees back to the United States.  
• On Wednesday, I joined several of my colleagues in sending a letter to U.S. Department of Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent demanding details on the extent of access Musk has to the federal payments system, and the legal justification for that access. This letter also demands details on how much Musk can access protected tax information.  
  • Update: On Saturday, following a lawsuit filed by 19 states, including Connecticut, a federal judge temporarily blocked DOGE from accessing U.S. Treasury Department records containing sensitive personal data such as Social Security and bank account numbers.

The State of American Education

The work continued in the House Committee on Education and Workforce, where Members convened for a full committee hearing entitled The State of American Education.

I focused my remarks on the critical role of the U.S. Department of Education. Since its establishment in 1979, the Department has been committed to ensuring high-quality education for children across the country. 

The Department is responsible for protecting the civil rights of students, developing and preparing educators, administering federal loan programs, and collecting statistics on enrollment, staffing, and crime in school. Additionally, through the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA), the Department makes available special education services, and through the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) the Department funds Title I schools to support low-income students. Shutting down the Department of Education would have a profound impact on the 49.6 million students participating in public school education, particularly students with disabilities, students from low-income backgrounds, and students who cannot access charter or private school programs. 

I was later joined by congressional colleagues outside the Department of Education. We were barred from entering an all-access public entrance to the Department. This Administration is taking steps to both physically and figuratively deny the American people and duly elected Members of Congress access to federal agencies. Instead, it is handing them over to billionaire loyalists. 

We are fighting back. 

Recently, I introduced the Department of Education Protection Act. This legislation would shield the U.S. Department of Education from efforts to dismantle the agency and prohibit the use of appropriated funds to decentralize, reduce staffing level of, or alter the responsibilities, structure, authority, or functionality of the Department of Education. This bill also emphasizes the importance of maintaining the current organization of the Department of Education and reiterates the fundamental role of Congress in shaping and reshaping the agency. 

Additional information on the Department of Education Protection Act is available here.

Caring for All Families Act

On the 32nd anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), I introduced the Caring for All Families Act. This legislation would update the definition of ‘family’ to increase the types of caregiving relationships protected by FMLA and guarantee caregivers leave for necessary medical appointments and other functions.

Every day, more than 50 million Americans juggle work and caregiving for family, a partner, or a friend. Under FMLA, almost half of American workers do not qualify for caregiver leave, and many are forced to sacrifice earnings to meet their responsibilities as caregivers. 

The Caring for All Families Act builds upon FMLA to allow more Americans leave to care for a loved one. 

Learn more about the Caring for All Families Act here. 

Nourish Our Future

Last week, I joined Bread for the World for the launch of their Nourish Our Future advocacy campaign.

Nourish Our Future is a two-year campaign which prioritizes expanding the Child Tax Credit, addressing college hunger, fully funding and strengthening the Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and robustly funding global nutrition programs.

Unfortunately, recent steps taken by the Administration to pause federal funding for domestic and international aid programs has presented great uncertainty for efforts like Nourish; in particular, the restructuring of USAID. USAID has been integral to carrying out international food programs like McGovern Dole and Food for Peace. In Fiscal Year 2023, the Food for Peace program reached more than 45 million people in 35 countries. Putting these programs on hold thrusts local and global communities into chaos.

As the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Nutrition and Foreign Agriculture, I will continue to work to ensure these programs remain funded. 

The HALT Fentanyl Act

Last week, the House considered the HALT Fentanyl Act. 

The HALT Fentanyl Act would permanently schedule fentanyl-related substances (FRS) on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) based on a flawed class definition. The legislation also imposes a mandatory minimum prison sentence for anyone knowingly or unknowingly possessing fentanyl, preventing judges from using any discretion in individual cases. The bill does nothing to provide prevention, treatment, recovery, harm reduction, or even money to law enforcement tasked with addressing the fentanyl crisis. Instead, this dangerous legislation puts our country on a pathway to adopting the ill-informed drug practices of the past.  

Bad actors trafficking and distributing fentanyl should be prosecuted, and those who are poisoning our communities and our children should be jailed. 

Addiction is a medical issue, and we must treat it as such. Unfortunately, this legislation includes no provisions to this end. We cannot incarcerate our way out of a public health crisis. For this reason, I voted no on the final passage of the bill. 

My full remarks on the HALT Fentanyl Act are available here. 

Lastly, in case you missed it, I hosted a CT-05 Town Hall in Cheshire on Saturday. Stay tuned for that recap. 

Thank you for taking the time to read this update. Please be assured I will continue to advocate for your priorities.

That’s a wrap. 

Jahana Hayes

Member of Congress