For Immediate Release 

December 2, 2021

Contact: bowman.press@mail.house.gov 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Jamaal Bowman (NY-16) announced his appointment as Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Taskforce on Education, Labor, and Small Business.

“I’m incredibly honored to have been appointed as Chair of this critical CPC taskforce that will be leading the charge in creating and advancing progressive policy that uplifts our nation’s small businesses, workers, students, and families” said Congressman Jamaal Bowman (NY-16). “This appointment reflects my absolute commitment to do whatever it takes to best represent my constituents and ensure that their voices are heard and present at every single decision-making table in Congress and beyond. With a global pandemic having impacted every aspect of our lives, I’m focused on moving full steam ahead in our efforts to develop and support our small businesses, ensure a living wage for every worker, and provide our students with a holistic education. Understanding how each of these issues is interconnected is key to the prosperity of not just my community, but communities across this country. In my role as Chair of this taskforce, I will continue to lead, connect the dots, and work to move policy that uplifts all of us through every stage of life.”

Since 1991, the CPC has advocated for progressive policies that prioritize working Americans over corporate interests, fight economic and social inequality, and advance civil liberties. The caucus, which consists of 95 House members and one Senator, has been the leading voice calling for bold and sweeping solutions to the urgent crises facing this nation, including raising the minimum wage, bolstering labor protections for working families, ending America’s broken for-profit health care system, eliminating political corruption, and taking swift action to stop the warming of our planet.

“I am excited to join the CPC’s new Taskforce on Education, Labor, and Small Business at such a crucial time in our nation’s history,” said Assistant Speaker Katherine Clark (D-MA). “The challenges before us — educational inequity, workers’ rights, and recovery from the pandemic — need bold solutions and there is no better person to chair this effort than my colleague and friend, Congressman Bowman. I’m eager to get to work under his leadership!”

“I am thrilled to see my colleague and fellow New Yorker Rep. Bowman set to chair this vital task force. As the leading Democrat on the House Small Business Committee for over a decade, I know that workers and entrepreneurs need representatives willing to fight for them in Washington. As a tireless advocate for working families, I’m confident that Rep. Bowman will excel in this role,” said Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Chairwoman of the House Small Business Committee. “I look forward to working with Rep. Bowman as we pursue progressive policies that improve our education system, help workers, and support entrepreneurs.”

“I have the privilege of serving on the House Education and Labor Committee with Rep. Bowman, and I have the utmost confidence that he will be a terrific leader in his new capacity as Chair of the CPC Taskforce on Education, Labor, and Small Business,” said Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA). “This taskforce is essential to addressing the most pressing education issues facing our students and the labor issues facing our workers, and I look forward to continuing to work closely with him to advance our shared progressive values.”

The CPC is rooted in four core principles: (1) Advancing justice, dignity, and peace for all; (2) Tackling systems of oppression and dismantling structural racism and discrimination; (3) Taking on systems that privilege the wealthy and powerful to demand a government and economy that works for the people; and (4) A commitment to sweeping, transformative change. Congressman Jamaal Bowman has been a member of the CPC since the beginning of his term in January 2021.

###