Congresswoman Torres Opposes Extreme Republican Cuts, Promotes Judiciary Workplace Standards in Government Funding Bill
Washington, D.C. – Following today's markup of the House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee's fiscal year 2024 funding bill, Congresswoman Norma J. Torres (CA-35) – a member of the subcommittee – released the following statement:
"Extremist Republicans have repeatedly abused this year's appropriations process to push their partisan priorities, and the Financial Services and General Government funding bill is no exception," said Congresswoman Torres. "In their first week in the majority, House Republicans passed legislation to make it easier for their wealthy donors to cheat on their taxes. This funding bill, which slashes funding for tax code enforcement, consumer protection, and market fairness, is merely Republicans' latest attempt to appease the most extreme members of their party while hard-working Americans pay the price."
Through her work on the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee, Congresswoman Torres secured language that directs the federal judiciary to provide independent auditors with data on workplace misconduct, bringing transparency to our courts so that the powerful are held accountable. She also included funding for training to strengthen systems of accountability and prevent sexual harassment, assault, and other forms of workplace misconduct.
"While I remain disturbed by the Republican majority's continued hijacking of what should be a routine government funding process, I am proud to have included provisions in this bill that protect our federal judiciary employees from unacceptable behavior in the workplace, including sexual harassment and assault," said Congresswoman Torres. "Increasing transparency for cases of workplace misconduct is a crucial step toward making our judiciary a safer place to work. However, Congress still has a lot of work to do to protect vulnerable employees and root out all forms of bad behavior in the judiciary workplace. Our judicial system should be a model of fairness and accountability, and I urge all my colleagues to support initiatives to move us toward that goal. All employees deserve to work without fear of sexual misconduct, discrimination, or retaliation."
A longtime advocate for judiciary workplace standards, Congresswoman Torres included several provisions in last year's government funding bill to crack down on sexual harassment and assault in the judiciary. This included language for a workplace survey of the judiciary and enhanced transparency measures. She previously sponsored the Judiciary Accountability Act to protect federal judiciary workers from discrimination, harassment, and other forms of misconduct.