By Representatives Darin LaHood and Dan Lipinski The COVID-19 pandemic has wrought a terrible human toll and created a steep, severe economic slowdown. Our first priority must continue to be combating these dual public health and economic crises, but the price is going to be high. Congress has already approved $3.6 trillion in spending, and it is clear we will need to borrow and spend more. Unfortunately, we were not as prepared as we could have been to respond to these crises, in part because of poor management of our nation's finances by both parties. We must act now to ensure that as soon as these crises are over, we put our country on a fiscally sustainable path. That is why we joined 58 of our colleagues in a bipartisan letter calling on House leadership to include measures to address long-term debt reduction in the COVID-19 relief bill currently being negotiated. Even before this pandemic, our national debt was out of control with publicly held debt totaling over $17 trillion. The current crisis has made the outlook even worse. The national debt is set to equal the size of the entire economy by the end of this year, 10 years ahead of previous projections. Simultaneously, trust funds for programs like Social Security Disability Insurance, highways and Medicare Hospital Insurance are expected to be exhausted much earlier than was anticipated just six months ago. To confront these issues, we propose that three commonsense, bipartisan budget reform proposals be included in this next COVID-19 relief package. These proposals provide the flexibility that the current situation requires, while holding Congress accountable once the crises are over. First, Congress should require an annual report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on the nation's finances. This report will increase transparency and help put the fiscal health of our nation front and center in congressional deliberations.Second, Congress should create bipartisan, bicameral committees to give priority and urgency to those actions needed to keep our various federal trust funds solvent, so that we can better protect vital programs such as Medicare and Social Security. This could be done by including H.R. 4907, the Time to Rescue United States Trusts (TRUST) Act, in the relief package.Third, we should bring the debt burden to a sustainable level by putting in place debt-to-GDP targets that would rein in spending in exchange for ending repeated fights over the national debt limit.These proposals should be enacted now so that they are already in place when the public health crisis is over and the economy has returned to sustained growth. It is not enough to simply count on future Congresses to rein in spending and restore our fiscal health. Congress has repeatedly shown an unwillingness to address our long-term debt outlook. We need to act now to ensure fiscal responsibility later, so that post crisis we have a strong foundation for debt reduction. We recognize that Congress needs to spend more and provide additional relief before this crisis is over, but we must also get serious about long-term debt solutions. Because of inaction and a lack of political will, we entered this crisis forced to borrow massive sums on top of an already large and worrisome national debt. If Washington doesn't change its ways, America is on a dangerous path.

By Rep. Daniel Lipinski & Rep. Susan W. Brooks Public health and economic impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic are rippling across the nation as families struggle with illness, unemployment, financial hardship and disruptions to work, school, child care and everyday life. Nearly every sector of our society has been affected, including America's colleges and universities. Social distancing measures have emptied lecture halls, dorms, cafeterias, labs and sports complexes as most students have returned home, wondering if they will be able to return to campus in the fall. By mid-April, 26 percent of college students were saying they were unlikely to return to their current school or it was too soon to tell. Meanwhile, 10 percent of high school seniors who were planning to attend a four-year college in the fall before the pandemic have indicated that their plans have changed. While schools shoulder the immediate financial burden of the transition to distance learning, partial room and board refunds, decreased donations, depleted endowments and lower revenue, they are also bracing for higher operational costs, diminished state support, and fewer students being able to afford to attend in the fall. We already know what happens when the federal government does not make a strong commitment to invest in students and our higher education system during a crisis. The 2008 economic downturn inflicted financial hardships on schools resulting in large tuition increases, while at the same time decreasing students' ability to pay. Many middle- and working-class students were priced out of attending college or needed to take on substantial loans, which added to mounting student debt that has now grown to $1.6 trillion. We can't make the same mistake again if we want schools to continue to provide top-notch educations, operate as innovation hubs, train (and retrain) our future workforce and pave the way for a strong recovery. Access to higher education is critical for individuals and our nation because a college degree correlates to lower unemployment rates, higher weekly earnings and an improved quality of life. But many students are increasingly uncertain about whether they will be afforded this opportunity. Those currently enrolled in college are coping with the unexpected financial burden of leaving campus and transitioning to online learning. They, and others who hoped to join them in the fall, may also be facing the loss of part-time income and may have parents who are among the 30 million Americans suddenly unemployed. There is a lot at stake. And unless significant financial aid is available to these families, our nation risks losing a generation of future doctors, engineers and teachers, and falling behind globally in workforce competitiveness. Colleges and universities are important in training our nation's future leaders and serve as cultural pillars and economic engines in their regions; lower enrollments would create economic ripples throughout higher education communities. For example, the University of Illinois system contributes nearly $17.5 billion annually to the economy and supports more than 171,000 jobs, including ancillary ones that support university operations and students such as baristas, bookstore clerks and construction workers. Small, independent colleges are also critically important in their communities. For example, Anderson University in Anderson, Indiana, not only provides students with meaningful educational opportunities but also generates $84.3 million to the state economy. Private colleges are often the cornerstone of small communities. Many have served as additional facility sites for hospital networks during the pandemic, and some have made massive donations of personal protective equipment and other health care supplies. Universities, both large and small, provide critical intellectual capital that businesses rely on to develop new products and services. As our economy continues to adjust to COVID-19 impacts, it is critical that we provide stability to these institutions to minimize economic damage in their regions. In doing so, we must also enable colleges and universities to continue the research and development necessary to tackle our nation's most complex issues, including defeating this virus and preventing future pandemics. From the beginning of this crisis, universities from Stony Brook to Berkeley have stepped up to fight COVID-19 by developing medical equipment and conducting research into drugs and vaccines that would enable us to return to pre-pandemic normalcy. After things stabilize, we will turn to colleges and universities to help our nation's economy grow again and ensure that the U.S. remains a global leader in technological innovation. Colleges will need support to meet workforce demands in growing fields such as cybersecurity and advanced manufacturing, which are important to secure our domestic supply chains. And we must ensure that middle- and working-class Americans won't be priced out of accessing the training and retraining necessary to bolster our recovery. The CARES Act took a positive first step toward providing relief to struggling students and institutions. But this funding was only intended to cover a portion of immediate costs, not to address the needs of students and imperiled institutions going forward. Families and higher education institutions are grappling with the difficult realities created by this pandemic, and need a more substantial investment of $47 billion to meet the growing financial needs of families and schools as they prepare for the next academic year. We must invest in the future of our nation and provide resources to support a strong recovery. Providing funding directly to schools, as we did in the CARES Act, is that best way to ensure that funds go to those students who need it most and encourages them to pursue higher education. It would also directly alleviate the need to rely on government bureaucracy and allow schools to utilize their existing financial aid structures. Colleges and universities are currently assembling financial aid packages as students make decisions about the fall semester. Now is the time to act.

By Daniel Lipinski More than 69,000 Americans have died, more than 30 million Americans are unemployed, and there is no end in sight. As the COVID-19 crisis goes on, most of Congress has been left sitting on the sidelines, not having a way to work safely. More than seven weeks have passed since any House committee has considered legislation or conducted oversight. Despite this, the federal government has already spent $2.5 trillion, with talk of trillions more to follow. This is unacceptable in our democracy. All across America, businesses have figured out how to operate remotely. It is well past time that Congress steps up and does the same. The $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill was quickly rushed through Congress in late March without members having the chance to debate or amend the bill in any committee. Instead, the more than 300-page legislation was produced through a negotiation involving only the Treasury secretary (on behalf of the president) and three congressional leaders: the Senate majority and minority leaders and the speaker of the House. When the bill was completed, it was rushed to the Senate floor where one amendment was quickly voted down before the legislation was unanimously approved. It then went to the House, where no amendments were allowed, and it was passed without a recorded vote. Because the economic relief was urgently needed and health precautions made the legislative process difficult, the short-circuiting of regular processes was largely accepted. After the bill passed, though, voices inside and outside of Congress called for changes that would allow all members to participate in lawmaking during the crisis. On April 7, I joined with my colleagues in the 50-member, bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus to ask House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to consider ways to operate that would adhere to public health guidelines while allowing "all Members of Congress (to) have the ability to represent the will of our constituents, shape legislation impacting every American, and participate in the future direction of our country." Despite these pleas, members of Congress were still left on the sidelines as the same small group of leaders negotiated the half-trillion-dollar Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act. On April 21, the deal was announced, and that night the Senate passed the plan by voice vote with no amendments. Two days later, the bill was brought up on the House floor, where no amendments were permitted and was approved overwhelmingly. Almost two months into this crisis, Congress must stop operating in this secretive, largely undemocratic fashion. When I was a professor, I taught my students that the Constitution empowered the American people by empowering their representatives in Congress. That is why the powers of the legislative branch are delineated in Article I of the Constitution, before the executive and judicial branches. Taking power away from Congress takes power away from the people whom those members of Congress represent. While Congress has formally adhered to the minimal procedures necessary for making laws under the Constitution, only permitting an up-or-down vote on final passage of a bill is unacceptable. The regular legislative process in Congress is designed to promote consensus-based decision-making with wide-ranging input. Committee and subcommittee hearings and markups, floor debates and amendments, and votes on final passage allow members to refine and perfect legislation on its way to becoming law. This process ensures transparency and the representation of the diverse needs and interests of all Americans. Congressional leaders have noted that a number of technological and security issues would need to be addressed to facilitate remote participation. However, these are all issues that have been dealt with in other countries such as Canada, Great Britain and Argentina. Allowing remote participation in the entire legislative process will take more time and will not flow as smoothly as when members, staff and the public are crowded into the same room. But inconveniences are now a part of everyone's life and are small sacrifices for Congress to operate. Congress has a lot of work piling up. In addition to further responses to the COVID-19 crisis, by the end of September Congress must pass annual legislation to fund the government, a bill to authorize the operations of the Defense Department and legislation to continue funding for roads and public transportation. Two months already have been wasted during which remote participation could have been implemented and Congress could have been working on this legislation. But even when members return to Washington, remote operations will still be necessary since continuing social distancing restriction will make a return to normal impossible for some time. Absent changes, all this legislation - and much more - could once again be written by the same small group of leaders. This is a perilous time for our country, and Washington will play a critical role in the continuing response. It is time for Congress to get off the sidelines.