Kamala Harris has a legislative record in Congress which shows us some of her priorities, strategies, and goals. In 2 ½ years in the Senate, she has sponsored 102 pieces of legislation and cosponsored an additional 714. Just this year alone, in the 116th Congress, she has sponsored 32 bills and cosponsored an additional 281. By looking at these bills, we can get some sense of what a President Harris administration would look like.
No single piece of legislation can solve every problem (although some cover more ground than others). One proposal to address Problem A may not solve Problem B, but another proposal will. There are a lot of bills sitting in Mitch McConnell’s legislative graveyard. They provide models for a future government.
Any attempt to divide into categories ends up with a lot of branches intertwined. (Kamala gets it: I love the way her campaign website’s gender equality page links to her action on gun violence plan!) Nevertheless, I have tried to round up of some of the bills addressing equity, access, and diversity, in education and the workplace. (I’m sure there are better words to sum up what these bills do, but those were the three I could think of.)
(In the primers below, I’ve tried to follow this pattern: first link goes to Senator Harris’ press release; second link goes to the bill’s tracking page at Congress.gov.)
STEM Education for girls, students of color, LGBTQ students, and students with disabilities
On May 2nd, Sen. Harris introduced legislation to encourage more girls and underrepresented minorities to pursue studies in STEM fields:
U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-CA) on Thursday introduced the 21st Century STEM for Girls and Underrepresented Minorities Act, legislation to provide funding for school districts across the country to support STEM education for girls, students of color, LGBTQ students, and students with disabilities. With the United States facing a projected shortage of approximately 1 million STEM professionals by 2025, Harris is committed to increasing opportunities for women and minorities to secure these high wage, stable jobs.
The bill would authorize $40 million in grants ($10 million/year from 2020-2023) to school districts for:
- Providing tutoring and mentoring programs in STEM subjects.
- Providing afterschool and summer activities designed to encourage interest and skill-building in STEM subjects.
- Providing subsidies to minimize the costs of STEM-related educational materials, equipment, field trips, internships, and work experiences.
- Educating parents about the opportunities and advantages of STEM careers.
- Providing professional development services to teachers, principals, and other personnel aimed at reduced racial and gender bias.
S.1299 text here. “underrepresented minority” defined here:
(3) The term ‘underrepresented minority’ includes an individual who is Black, Latino, Native American, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or a child with a disability.
The House version, H.R.1591, was introduced by Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH).
Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act of 2019
The STEM pipeline leaks all along its length. Women leave the field due to a hostile workplace environment. Sen. Harris introduced a bill to address the problem April 4th:
U.S. Senators Kamala D. Harris (D-CA), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) on Thursday announced the Combating Sexual Harassment in Science Act of 2019, legislation to provide for research to better understand the causes and consequences of sexual harassment in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, examine policies to reduce harassment, and encourage interagency efforts in these matters. This bill follows a landmark report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which found that sexual harassment is pervasive in institutions of higher education and contributes to loss of talented, highly-trained individuals in the STEM workforce.
“As the daughter of a barrier breaking woman in STEM research, I know the importance of ensuring more women enter and excel in this field,” said Senator Harris. “As more women enter STEM fields, we must do more to ensure appropriate steps are taken to change the workplace climate and prevent sexual harassment. By shining a light on sexual harassment in STEM, this legislation is a step in the right direction to fostering an environment across STEM where everyone is safe and able to achieve their full potential.”
[The National Academies’ report cited above is covered in this article at ASBMB Today (American Society for Biochemistry and Microbiology), including the report’s striking Iceberg of Harassment graphic.]
The bill would authorize $17.4 million per year to:
- Create a new grant program through the National Science Foundation (NSF) to better understand the factors contributing to, and consequences of, sexual harassment, and examine interventions.
- Direct Federal statistical agencies to gather national data on the prevalence, nature, and implications of harassment in higher education.
- Direct NSF to enter into an agreement with the Academies and update professional standards of conduct in research, evidence-based practices for fostering a climate intolerant of harassment, and methods for identifying and addressing incidents.
- Establish an Interagency Working Group for the purpose of coordinating Federal science agency efforts to reduce the prevalence of sexual harassment involving grant personnel.
S.1067 text here. One salient point made in the bill:
(D) women who are members of racial or ethnic minority groups are more likely to experience sexual harassment and to feel unsafe at work than White women, White men, or men who are members of such groups
Empower Act
Women in all parts of the workplace face sexual harassment. Sen. Harris’ Ending the Monopoly of Power Over Workplace harassment through Education and Reporting Act (EMPOWER Act), re-introduced on Feb. 27th, was first introduced in the 115th Congress last year:
“Sexual harassment and misconduct must not be allowed by anyone and should not occur anywhere,” said Senator Harris. “The culture of fear and silence created by perpetrators of sexual harassment in the workplace has existed for far too long and must come to an end. It’s time to address the gaps in our laws that allow this misconduct to go unpunished and keep it in the shadows.”
The EMPOWER Act:
- Prohibits nondisclosure clauses covering harassment.
- Establishes a confidential tip-line to help EEOC identify employers with systemic workplace harassment.
- Requires public companies to make settlements and judgments public.
- Amends the tax code for litigation and settlements: Prohibits tax deductions by companies for expenses and fees, and protects plaintiffs’ awards and settlements as nontaxable income.
- Requires workplace training about what constitutes harassment, how to intervene and report, and employee rights.
- And more! (As always, Senator Harris’ press release is a model of clarity, and worth reading in full.)
Bills are S. 575 and S. 574. Workplace harassment defined in the bill covers conduct against a broad range of groups:
(14) WORKPLACE HARASSMENT.—The term “workplace harassment” means unwelcome or offensive conduct based on sex (including such conduct based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and pregnancy), race, color, national origin, disability, age, or religion, whether that conduct occurs in-person or through an electronic medium (which may include social media), in a work or work-related context, which affects any term, condition, or privilege of employment.
The House version, sponsored by Lois Frankel (D-FL-21), is H.R. 1521.
(Of course, educational opportunities and a welcoming workplace don’t close the pay gap; as a Presidential candidate, Harris offers a bold equal pay proposal.)
Ensuring Diverse Leadership Act
Representation matters. Diverse leadership benefits the individuals given those opportunities, and also the overall population, who benefit from decisions made by a broader range of perspectives. The Federal Reserve is one institution in need of more diversity at the top. On Jan 9th, Sen. Harris re-introduced Ensuring Diverse Leadership Act of 2019:
U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris re-introduced the Ensuring Diverse Leadership Act, legislation to ensure that at least one minority and one female candidate are interviewed for each vacancy for the presidency of a reserve bank at each of the twelve reserve banks in the Fed (San Francisco, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, and Dallas). Of the more than 130 individuals who have served as presidents of the twelve reserve banks, only 3 have been non-white. In 2017, Raphael Bostic became the first African American reserve bank president when he became president of the Atlanta Fed. Additionally, there have been only seven women to ever serve as a reserve bank president.
“Bringing greater diversity to the Federal Reserve will ensure that more perspectives are heard as major decisions are being made about our nation’s economic future and will produce better outcomes for the American people,” said Senator Harris. “We must do more to ensure that this country’s leadership reflects the people they serve—not just at the Federal Reserve, but across all levels of government.”
The bill also requires reporting the demographics of job candidates. It is based on the NFL’s 2003 “Rooney Rule” which doubled the number of coaches of color in the NFL.
S. 65 here. House version (sponsored by Joyce Beatty, D-OH-3), is H.R. 281.
College Equity Act (cosponsor)
What about general educational equity in higher education? Sen. Harris is an original cosponsor of S. 943, Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz’s College Equity Act of 2019, introduced on Mar. 28:
U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) on Wednesday joined Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) in introducing the College Equity Act, a bill that would give colleges and universities funding to address disparities in higher education recruitment, admissions, and support.
“The student achievement gap that persists along race and class lines at colleges and universities across the country is a direct threat to students’ ability to succeed. We must fix that,” Senator Harris said.
S. 943 here.
HBCUs and MSIs and more
Kamala Harris, a Howard U alumna, knows HBCUs (Historically Black College and Universities) have an important role shaping identity and building community, and need support. Sen. Harris introduced a bill to reauthorize the Historically Black College and Universities (HBCU) Historic Preservation Program, S. 280. It seemed certain to die in the dysfunctional Republican Senate, but she managed to get it inserted into Natural Resources bill S. 47, which passed on Feb 12. This bill was a bipartisan effort with Lindsey Graham. (Kamala Harris knows how to reach across the aisle; she just doesn’t make a masochistic religion of it.)
Sen. Harris also co-sponsored a bipartisan bill to strengthen relationships between federal agencies and HBCUs: HBCU Propelling Agency Relationships Towards a New Era of Results for Students (HBCU PARTNERS) Act, which passed the Senate Feb 13. (S.461 here.)
Harris’ teacher pay proposal also relates to both education and job equity and access. It notes the racial and gender disparities in teacher pay, which the proposal will help narrow. It dedicates half of all teacher recruitment, training, and development funds to programs at HBCUs and other Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs). It also notes that students and teachers of color disproportionately learn and work in high-needs schools, and will benefit most from her proposal.
Clean School Bus Act
On June 6th, Senator Harris introduced a plan to replace diesel school buses with new electric models: The Clean School Bus Act. This legislation would improve children’s health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions:
Every day, more than 25 million children and thousands of school bus drivers breathe polluted air on their commute to school, which can have a negative impact of student health and attendance, particularly for students with asthma and other respiratory conditions. School buses, which make up roughly 90 percent of the nation’s bus fleet and are the nation’s largest form of mass transit, traveled roughly 3.3 billion miles in 2017. A recent study indicated that reduced exposure to air pollution from school buses can result in student test gains in math and English. Electric buses not only reduce dangerous air pollution for those riding a school bus but also for the local community and cars driving behind a school bus while simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Specifically, the Clean School Bus Act will:
- Provide grants of up to $2 million to replace diesel school buses with electric school buses, invest in charging infrastructure, and support workforce development.
- Give priority to applications that serve lower-income students, replace the most polluting buses, and leverage the funding to further decrease pollution and emissions, including through partnerships with local utilities.
- Authorize $1 billion over five years at the Department of Energy to fund a Clean School Bus Grant Program to spur increased adoption of this clean technology.
This bill is yet another example of how artificial the divisions of issues into categories can be. S. 1750 here.
Representation matters. Kamala Harris has a diverse Senate staff, and continues to hire women of color for senior roles:
U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-CA) on Monday announced the hiring of three staff members, all women of color. Heather Hutt has been appointed as State Director, Deanne Millison will serve as Legislative Director, and Meaghan Lynch has been named Press Secretary.
Of course, her Presidential campaign staff is also a model of inclusion:
On stage and in front of the cameras, Sen. Kamala Harris is a rare sight, as a woman of color running for President.
And behind the scenes, many of the people she's relying on to drive her to that goal look more like her than the legions of white men historically associated with this country's top political jobs.
Chief advisor: her talented, amazing sister Maya:
“I think most people who know Maya will tell you she’s one of the smartest people they know,” Kamala said. “The fact that she has volunteered to work on this campaign at such a high level, and she’s exactly who she’s always been—she works around the clock and she’s probably the hardest, if not one of the hardest working people on the campaign—I feel very blessed.”
Kamala Harris shows us who she is with her hiring and mentoring. She is the real deal.
Twitter Roundup of Kamala News and Views
There are about 70 million reasons to support Kamala Harris for President!
Newpioneer has rounded up some highlights of her sponsored legislation here.
snowman3 has rounded up some more legislative highlights here.
Want to know more about her positions and plans? Her policy page is Our America.
Or go straight to an issue: quality, affordable health care for all, economic justice,raising teacher pay, combating the climate crisis, criminal justice reform, action on gun violence, a fair and just immigration system, LGBTQ+ equality, government for the people, debt-free college and student debt, gender equality, American leadership at home and abroad, and fighting for racial justice.
Let’s get involved!
The first debate is less that a month away, on June 26 & 27. There’s plenty of time to learn how to organize a debate watch party. Invite some neighbors and friends to settle in with you and some munchies and view all the candidates on the debate stage.
The watch party training sessions are
- Thu, Jun 6, 6:30pm–7:30pm EDT
- Tue, Jun 11, 6:30pm–7:30pm EDT
- Thu, Jun 13, 6:30pm–7:30pm EDT
- Tue, Jun 18, 6:30pm–7:30pm EDT
- Thu, Jun 20, 6:30pm–7:30pm EDT
There are multiple ways to volunteer and help Kamala’s campaign.
— Host a house party
— Send texts for the campaign
— Make phone calls
— Become a community leader
— Host an organizer
If you’d like to volunteer to host one of our Kamala 2020 diaries, please leave your comment in the ”Calling all Volunteers” thread.
Even if you can’t commit to a weekly spot due to your busy schedules, guest bloggers are always welcomed!
Next week’s schedule
Please volunteer! Come share your story about why you support Kamala!
Sun. June 9— noweasels
Monday, June 10th — WYgalinCali
Tuesday, June 11 —Diana in NoVa
Wednesday, June 12 —
Thursday, June 13 —snowman3
Friday, June 14— rfltcammt
Saturday, June 15 —
Sunday, June 16 —noweasels
Let your voices be heard!
If you are able, please support our group Kamala 2020 fundraising efforts. Congratulations to everyone who has chipped in, even if it’s only a dollar, because together we’ll see her through this historic campaign.
*Please remember this is a Kamala2020 group effort, & not a Daily Kos sponsored activity or endorsement.
Upcoming Events
June 7: Kamala will begin a two day campaign stop in Alabama. She will hold a women’s meet & greet in the Birmingham area on Friday evening, speaking out against the recent Alabama law to effectively ban abortion in the state & criminalize doctors.
June 8: Harris will be the keynote speaker at the Kennedy-Johnson-King luncheon. The convention will be held at Montgomery’s Renaissance Hotel.
June 8: Kamala Harris will be addressing the @SCNAACP at their Freedom Fund Dinner in Columbia SC. The banquet will be held at the Brookland Baptist conference center in West Columbia.
June 9th and 10th: Kamala Harris will make her fourth trip to Iowa on June 9 and 10, her campaign announced Wednesday.
The U.S. senator from California, one of more than 20 candidates vying for the 2020 Democratic nomination, plans to host a rally at the Cedar Rapids DoubleTree by Hilton hotel on June 9.
The rally is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. at the downtown hotel and is open to the public.
June 14 & June 15: On Friday, June 14, and Saturday, June 15, Senator Kamala Harris will return to Nevada to hold campaign events and meet with voters. Harris will speak at the 100 Black Men of America, Inc. 33rd Annual Conference in Las Vegas on Friday along with other events to be announced.
June 18: Kamala will hold a Reception in Midtown NYC! Check your email and RSVP. Limited tickets available starting at $100, more details closer to event.
June 26-27: The first debates will be held in Miami, Florida, and will be broadcast live on NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo.
July 16: Kamala will be in Iowa for the AARP/Des Moines Register Forums
July 30-31: The second debates will be held on July 30th and 31st in Detroit, Michigan, and will be broadcast live on CNN
Sept 12-13: The third debates will be held on September 12th and 13th, and will be broadcast by ABC and Univision.
Please remember to visit our community group page Kamala2020 and give us a follow, that way all our group efforts will appear in your stream, making it easy for everyone to keep up with our latest posts. As always, any who would like to join our group please leave us a comment and we’ll get your invitation right out to you!
While you’re here, don’t forget to visit Kamala’s Official Campaign Website and her Swag Shop for your favorite campaign gear!
If you’re on Twitter, please follow @KamalaHarris and @SenKamalaHarris
(If you’re not on Twitter, please bookmark those pages—the tweets and retweets are visible even to us non-tweeters!)
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If you have any questions or would like to volunteer to post a group diary, please kosmail the group.
Group Guidelines
The Kamala2020 community group has been created to positively support Senator Kamala Harris, and not to engage in negativity towards other community members or any other Democrats running in the 2020 primaries.
All should be made to feel welcomed here. What’s not welcomed here is petty bickering over any of our preferred candidates, or personal attacks on fellow Democrats. We’re not responsible for the actions of others who may offend, insult or attempt to sow discord and disunity — that’s on them.
What we are responsible for are our own words and actions — that’s 100% on us.
I’d like to ask all group members, as well as those dropping by who support or are interested in Kamala’s bid for the nomination, that we not respond to negativity from other campaign’s supporters with negativity. Let’s do better than our best and respond with respect, or try to hold our peace. Recipes and cat pics work, too
😃
Doing no harm costs us nothing... pie-fights will cost us everything.
Prabhu Deva + A.R. Rahman = South Indian Magic!
Starring actor and dance master Prabhu Deva
and comedian Vadivelu, from the 1994 film Kadhalan
Choreography: Prabhu Deva
Music: A.R.Rahman
Lyrics: Vairamuthu
Playback Singers: Suresh Peters,
Shahul Hameed and A. R. Rahman
A dancing ride through Chennai, including the 29C Ladies Special MTC Pallavan bus (on which
Prabhu Deva and Vadivelu harass the women—hey, this is topical to the diary) and Chennai High Court.
“Urvasi, Urvasi, take it easy Urvasi”
“To succeed in life, take it easy policy”