High Country Times

Education and the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) is urging the Department of Labor to fulfill its duties during the presidential transition. In a letter addressed to Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su, Foxx emphasized the importance of continuing casework for workers and employers.

Foxx stated, "The Committee on Education and the Workforce (Committee), in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities, seeks to ensure that the Department of Labor (DOL) is continuing its duty to process and complete open and incoming casework during the Biden-Trump presidential transition." She expressed concerns about past delays: "It is the Committee’s understanding that, under the Obama administration, DOL either significantly slowed or quit processing casework in 2016-2017, leaving the incoming Trump administration with a backlog of hundreds of cases. These avoidable and unconscionable delays hampered the incoming administration and delayed redress for hundreds of Americans."

Foxx urged against repeating past issues: "The Obama administration’s backlog of 2016-2017 must never be repeated. The outgoing Trump administration made a point not to follow the Obama administration’s example, instead continuing to process and finalize these cases in 2020-2021 until the transition was completed. I call on you to do the same."

To monitor progress, she requested regular updates: "To ensure that DOL is continuing to process and finalize its pending and incoming cases, I request that you direct the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs to provide the Committee with weekly updates every Friday by 5:00 pm EST beginning on December 6, 2024, and concluding on January 17, 2025."

The full text of Foxx's letter can be accessed online.