(Washington, DC) – U.S. Representative Ed Case (HI-01) reported that his House Appropriations Committee HAS approved its Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 Labor, Health and Human Services (Labor-HHS) Appropriations bill.
The FY 2027 Labor-HHS funding measure is the 10th of the twelve bills taken up by House Appropriations to collectively fund the federal government for FY 2027 (commencing October 1, 2026). The bill proposes a total of $201.8 billion for the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education along with several other related agencies. This is a cut of over $19 billion (9%) from the FY 2026 enacted levels.
“I could not accept the overall result that slashes longtime key federal health, education and workforce programs that address top priorities for our country and Hawai‘i,” said Case.
He warned that, among other flaws, the bill:
- Cuts $3.3 billion from the Employment and Training Administration, which is tasked with administering crucial workforce training programs for adults and youth.
- Cancels $2 billion in funding needed to operate Affordable Care Act health insurance plans, which threatens health care coverage for millions of Americans and tens of thousands of Hawai‘i residents.
- Cuts $2 billion from grants to local education agencies for supporting Title I Schools.
- Eliminates funding for the Senior Community Service Employment for Older Americans Program.
- Reduces funding for Domestic HIV/AIDS Prevention and Research by $800 million.
- Cuts $14 million from the Office on Women’s Health.
- Eliminates funding for Title X Family Planning.
- Reduces the Job Corps Program by $880 million.
- Cuts $1.8 billion from Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) State Grants and would eliminate the WIOA Adult and Youth Job Training programs.
- Reduces the National Labor Relations Board’s funding by $94 million.
- Cuts $721 million from Career, Technical and Adult Education.
- Eliminates the International Education and Foreign Language Account.
“However, I did succeed in incorporating many of my requests directed at Hawai‘i-specific needs, starting with Native Hawaiians and other programs that assist our nation’s indigenous peoples,” said Case. The bill specifically includes:
- $45.9 million for the Native Hawaiian Education Program, including language allowing for funds to be used for the renovation and construction of schools that serve predominantly Native Hawaiian students.
- $27 million for the Native Hawaiian Health Care Program, including $10 million for Papa Ola Lōkahi.
- $7.5 million for the Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Health Research Office at the National Institutes of Health.
- $6 million for the Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity
- $5.8 million for the Native American/Native Hawaiian Library Services Program.
- $3.8 million for the Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services Program.
- $65 million for Native American Programs under the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.
- $24.9 million for the Strengthening Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions Program.
- $45 million for the Native American Nutrition and Support Services Program.
- $14 million for the Native American Caregivers Program.
- $7 million for Native American Language Immersion Programs.
- $4 million Native American Language Resource Centers.
- $3.8 million for the Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services Program.
- $2 million for the Native Hawaiian Resource Center on Domestic Violence.
Through his assignment on the Committee, Case also secured $3.5 million in Member-designated Community Project Funding projects that specifically focus on local needs in Hawai‘i. The bill includes:
- $1.9 million for Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health’s (WCCHC) Waipahu Clinic Expansion Project.
This project will allow WCCHC to increase access to health care and social services and open a new Health and Wellness Learning Center in Waipahu to support the WCCHC’s nurse practitioner and dental residency programs to meet crucial health workforce needs.
- $1 million for Kalihi Palama Health Center’s (KPHC) Emergency Resilience and Internal Renovation Project. This project would repair KPHC’s air conditioning system, purchase an emergency generator to power its elevator and medication refrigerators in the case of power outages, and acquire a digital panoramic X-Ray machine.
- $395,000 for Waikīkī Health’s Clinical Upgrade and Service Enhancement Project. The funds provided for this project will support the upgrade and build-out of a new clinical space and several physician exam rooms that need renovation, along with the purchase of new pharmacy vaccine refrigerators.
- $250,000 for Kōkua Kalihi Valley’s Accessibility and Resilience Project. This project will modernize key facility components through the installation of a solar photovoltaic system, an entry ramp and a new elevator.
The House’s Community Project Funding rules require that each project must have demonstrated community support, be fully disclosed by the requesting Member and subject to audit by the independent Government Accountability Office. Case’s disclosures are here: https://case.house.gov/services/funding-disclosures.htm.
The Appropriations Committee also included Case’s requests for funding for federal programs and services especially important for the State of Hawai‘i, including those supporting local families through workforce development, education and community health care. Some of the programs requested and secured by Case include:
- $12.4 billion for the Head Start program which provides nearly 2,800 keiki in our Hawai‘i with access to high quality early learning opportunities.
Case was also able to secure language urging the Administration for Children and Families to provide technical assistance to any potential Native Hawaiian Head Start providers.
- $8.8 billion for the Child Care and Development Block Grant that helps subsidize the high cost of childcare for our local families.
- $290 million for the Registered Apprenticeship Program.
- $108 million for the YouthBuild program to provide at-risk youth with basic education and job skills training in the construction field.
- $66 million for the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program.
- $48.8 billion for the National Institutes of Health, to support a wide range of biomedical and behavioral research.
- $1.5 billion for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health within the Department of Health and Human Services, to accelerate the pace of scientific breakthroughs for diseases such as ALS, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and cancer.
- $1.9 billion for Community Health Centers, to provide high quality cost-effective health care to predominantly low-income and medically underserved communities.
- $825 million for Health Workforce Development programs including loan repayment assistance for nurses and physicians.
- $1.2 billion for the Federal TRIO Program, to provide academic support to low-income individuals, first-generation college students, veterans and individuals with disabilities.
- $500 million for the Charter School Grants Program which provides funds to help establish new charter schools, replicate current successful charter schools and disseminate best practices for charter schools.
- $394 million for the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, which helps to increase the number of low-income students who are prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education.
- $129 million for McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program, which provides homeless youth with the health services and academic support they need to succeed in and out of the classroom.
- $75 million to continue and expand Strengthening Community College Training Grants, which offer training to workers in in-demand industries at community colleges and four-year institutions to help meet local labor market needs.
- $24.2 billion for federal student aid programs to provide $7,445 for the maximum Pell Grant award.
The Labor-HHS Appropriations bill was approved by the Committee and now moves on to the full House of Representatives for its consideration. A summary of the measure is available here .
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