mr. speaker , i rise in opposition to the conference report on h.r. 3010 .  the fiscal year 2006 labor-hhs-education appropriations report before the house today shortchanges america 's children , its families , its workers and its most vulnerable citizens .  the labor-hhs-education bill embodies our priorities and values as americans .  in it , congress provides the yearly resources needed to keep our families healthy , our children educated , our workers employed , and our most vulnerable citizens a productive part of our society .  this bill is arguably one of the most important pieces of legislation congress addresses each year .  chairman regula understands this responsibility .  he understands that this is `` the people 's bill '' , and he has worked hard to distribute the limited resources he was given in a fair and conscientious way .  so my `` no '' vote today should in no way be seen as a lack of respect or appreciation for the efforts of ralph regula , the chairman of the labor hhs appropriations subcommittee .  chairman regula and the staff of the subcommittee have worked within this tight budget allocation to address the needs and priorities of our states and communities as best they could under the circumstances .  for example , the conference report includes increases in two critical areas to help infants and their families .  the first is the centers for disease control and prevention 's folic acid national education program .  this program has been instrumental in the prevention of birth defects by encouraging women of child-bearing age to take the recommended amount of folic acid daily , thereby decreasing the rate of neural tube defects .  the second increase is for the health resources and services administration 's newborn screening program for early identification of infants affected by certain genetic , metabolic , hormonal and or functional conditions for which there are effective treatment or intervention .  in addition , for the first time , this bill also includes programmatic funding for the national media campaign to fight underage drinking , which is being conducted by the ad council .  i thank the committee for helping our country make progress in these critical public health areas .  the presence of these and a small number of other positive programmatic funding levels , however , is simply not enough to warrant approving this conference report .  mr. speaker , the constraints placed on this bill by the budget priorities and decisions of the republican leadership are not worthy of this house and the values of the american people .  i voted against the house bill when it came to the floor in june precisely because it fell so short of meeting the needs of america 's children , families and the most vulnerable among us .  i had hoped that the bill would be improved in the conference .  it is unfortunate , however , that in this conference agreement , the way they chose to improve overall programmatic funding from the original house bill levels was to take resources away from other priorities and community needs .  this report and its funding decisions do not stand in isolation .  they reflect the misguided priorities of a republican leadership that has continually put the interests of the wealthy and the privileged before the needs and priorities of working and middle-class americans .  this labor-hhs-education conference report is a direct result of an economic agenda of tax cuts for the wealthiest americans , and it weakens america 's future by under-funding key education , health and human services programs .  if approved , this bill will impose cuts to essential programs important to americans in at least three major areas .  first , this conference agreement significantly shortchanges our nation 's workers .  the bill cuts labor programs $ 430 million below the fy 2005 levels .  training and employment services for the 7.4 million americans who are unemployed are funded well below the fy05 levels .  this includes a $ 31 million cut to adult training grants , a $ 36 million cut to youth training grants ; and a $ 141 million cut to unemployment insurance offices .  the u.s. employment service office , which matches job seekers with job openings , is slashed by 10.5 percent , and the report freezes funding for dislocated and older workers .  in addition , the bill slices international labor affairs , the program that helps eradicate abusive child labor practices and protect worker rights .  by 21 percent .  secondly , this report is simply a reaffirmation of the administration 's hollow commitment to education , slashing the no child left behind funds by $ 784 million below the fy 2005 level .  it cuts the education technology block grant program that provides access to technology in schools by a shocking 45 percent from last year 's level .  it reduces the even start program supporting services for low literate and low-income families by 56 percent .  and as a final point , it shortchanges our children with disabilities by funding idea at $ 4 billion below the republican promise to put special education on a fast track to full funding .  finally , the report is particularly devastating to the health of americans .  some of its most significant cuts are directed towards the critical programs that provide a health care safety net for the uninsured .  the conference agreement provides $ 34 million less than the house passed bill and $ 89 million less than the senate bill for grants to health centers for services to the uninsured .  the maternal and child health block grant is cut by 3 percent , reducing its true per capita purchasing power by almost 20 percent below the fy 2002 level .  the conference agreement terminates the healthy communities access program that makes grants to local hospitals , health centers and providers so that they can provide better integrated systems of care for the mr. speaker , these drastic reductions to critical programs are not necessary .  ranking member david obey has consistently laid out a common-sense approach to this problem .  by simply reducing the tax break for those with incomes greater than $ 1 million , we could add funding for no child left behind programs , maintain college affordability by increasing the money for pell grants , shore up our health safety net programs , and rebuild our public health system to respond to pandemics and possible terrorist attacks .  but these fiscally responsible efforts by mr. obey  and the democrats have been defeated by the republican majority at every turn .  the result is this grossly underfunded bill which we are considering today .  in the end , this congress will be judged by how well we have served the needs of all our citizens and communities .  as a result , this labor-hhs-education bill will not reflect kindly on us .  we can and must do better for the future of our families , our children , our workers and our most vulnerable citizens .  