S. HRG. 115–206 NOMINATION OF BETSY DEVOS TO SERVE AS SECRETARY OF EDUCATION HEARING OF THE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON NOMINATION OF BETSY DEVOS TO SERVE AS SECRETARY OF EDUCATION JANUARY 17, 2017 Printed for the use of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/ U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 23–667 PDF WASHINGTON : 2018 VerDate Nov 24 2008 11:06 May 16, 2018 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 S:\DOCS\23667.TXT CAROL HELPN-004 with DISTILLER COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee, Chairman MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming PATTY MURRAY, Washington RICHARD BURR, North Carolina BERNARD SANDERS (I), Vermont JOHNNY ISAKSON, Georgia ROBERT P. CASEY, JR., Pennsylvania RAND PAUL, Kentucky AL FRANKEN, Minnesota SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine MICHAEL F. BENNET, Colorado BILL CASSIDY, M.D., Louisiana SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, Rhode Island TODD YOUNG, Indiana TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut PAT ROBERTS, Kansas ELIZABETH WARREN, Massachusetts LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska TIM KAINE, Virginia TIM SCOTT, South Carolina MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire DAVID P. CLEARY, Republican Staff Director LINDSEY WARD SEIDMAN, Republican Deputy Staff Director EVAN SCHATZ, Minority Staff Director JOHN RIGHTER, Minority Deputy Staff Director (II) VerDate Nov 24 2008 11:06 May 16, 2018 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 S:\DOCS\23667.TXT CAROL HELPN-004 with DISTILLER CONTENTS STATEMENTS TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2017 Page COMMITTEE MEMBERS Alexander, Hon. Lamar, Chairman, Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, opening statement ....................................................................... 1 Murray, Hon. Patty, a U.S. Senator from the State of Washington, opening statement .............................................................................................................. 4 Scott, Hon. Tim, a U.S. Senator from the State of South Carolina ..................... 8 Lieberman, Hon. Joseph L., Former U.S. Senator from the State of Con- necticut .................................................................................................................. 10 Enzi, Hon. Michael B., a U.S. Senator from the State of Wyoming .................... 16 Isakson, Hon. Johnny, a U.S. Senator from the State of Georgia ....................... 19 Sanders, Hon. Bernard, a U.S. Senator from the State of Vermont ................... 21 Hatch, Hon. Orrin G., a U.S. Senator from the State of Utah ............................ 23 Casey, Hon. Robert P., Jr., a U.S. Senator from the State of Pennsylvania ...... 24 Paul, Hon. Rand, a U.S. Senator from the State of Kentucky ............................. 26 Franken, Hon. Al, a U.S. Senator from the State of Minnesota .......................... 28 Cassidy, Hon. Bill, a U.S. Senator from the State of Louisiana .......................... 30 Bennet, Hon. Michael F., a U.S. Senator from the State of Colorado ................. 32 Young, Hon. Todd, a U.S. Senator from the State of Indiana ............................. 34 Whitehouse, Hon. Sheldon, a U.S. Senator from the State of Rhode Island ...... 35 Baldwin, Hon. Tammy, a U.S. Senator from the State of Wisconsin .................. 39 Roberts, Hon. Pat, a U.S. Senator from the State of Kansas .............................. 40 Murphy, Hon. Christopher, a U.S. Senator from the State of Connecticut ........ 42 Warren, Hon. Elizabeth, a U.S. Senator from the State of Massachusetts ........ 45 Collins, Hon. Susan M., a U.S. Senator from the State of Maine ....................... 47 Hassan, Hon. Margaret Wood, a U.S. Senator from the State of New Hamp- shire ....................................................................................................................... 48 Burr, Hon. Richard, a U.S. Senator from the State of North Carolina ............... 50 Kaine, Hon. Tim, a U.S. Senator from the State of Virginia ............................... 51 Murkowski, Hon. Lisa, a U.S. Senator from the State of Alaska ........................ 54 WITNESS DeVos, Betsy, Nominee to Serve As Secretary of Education, Grand Rapids, MI .......................................................................................................................... 12 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 14 ADDITIONAL MATERIAL Statements, articles, publications, letters, etc. Letters of Support ............................................................................................. 65 Letter from Log Cabin Republicans ................................................................ 75 Letters of Concern and Opposition ................................................................. 77 Response by Betsy DeVos to questions of: Senator Murray ......................................................................................... 97 Senator Collins .......................................................................................... 136 III VerDate Nov 24 2008 11:06 May 16, 2018 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\DOCS\23667.TXT CAROL HELPN-004 with DISTILLER Senator Young ........................................................................................... 137 Senator Roberts ......................................................................................... 138 Senator Murkowski ................................................................................... 138 Senator Sanders ........................................................................................ 140 Senator Casey ............................................................................................ 166 Senator Franken ........................................................................................ 185 Senator Bennet .......................................................................................... 205 Senator Whitehouse .................................................................................. 212 Senator Baldwin ........................................................................................ 231 Senator Murphy ........................................................................................ 238 Senator Warren ......................................................................................... 244 Senator Kaine ............................................................................................ 260 Senator Hassan ......................................................................................... 266 (IV) VerDate Nov 24 2008 11:06 May 16, 2018 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\DOCS\23667.TXT CAROL HELPN-004 with DISTILLER NOMINATION OF BETSY DEVOS TO SERVE AS SECRETARY OF EDUCATION TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2017 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 5:15 p.m., in room SD–430, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Lamar Alexander, chairman of the committee, presiding. Present: Senators Alexander, Enzi, Burr, Isakson, Paul, Collins, Cassidy, Young, Hatch, Roberts, Murkowski, Scott, Murray, Sand- ers, Casey, Franken, Bennet, Whitehouse, Baldwin, Murphy, War- ren, Kaine, and Hassan. Also present: Former Senator Joe Lieberman. OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR ALEXANDER The CHAIRMAN. The hearing of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee will come to order. This is the hearing to con- sider the nomination of Betsy DeVos to be U.S. Secretary of Edu- cation. Senator Murray and I will make an opening statement. We’ll in- troduce the nominee. We welcome Senator Scott, a member of this committee, Senator Lieberman, a distinguished former member of this body, who will make introductory remarks. Following the nominee’s comments, we’ll have a 5-minute round of questions. One note—we have Capitol officers here today who will remove anyone who attempts to disrupt the hearing. This is the first meeting of our committee in the new Congress. This is a committee, as will probably become evident as we go along, that has some considerable differences of opinion on a vari- ety of issues. We have found that we can sometimes resolve them in important ways. Last year, we passed what the Majority Leader, Senator McCon- nell, said was the most important bill of the Congress, 21st Cen- tury Cures; and the year before, a bill fixing No Child Left Behind, which President Obama called a Christmas miracle; plus 33 other bills signed by the President—33 total. I want to thank Senator Murray and the Democrats as well as the Republicans on the com- mittee for operating in that fashion. We’ve done that by showing courtesy to ourselves and to our witnesses, which I hope will be evident today. Before my opening remarks, I’d like to make a work about proc- ess. More than 25 years ago, Ms. DeVos, I was sitting where you are sitting, as the nominee for U.S. Secretary of Education, and former Senator Howard Metzenbaum of Ohio said to me, ‘‘Well, (1) VerDate Nov 24 2008 11:06 May 16, 2018 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 S:\DOCS\23667.TXT CAROL HELPN-004 with DISTILLER 2 Governor, I’ve heard some disturbing things about you, but I’m not going to bring them up here.’’ Senator Nancy Kassebaum of Kansas looked at him and said, ‘‘Well, Howard, I think you just did.’’ And with that, he put a secret hold on me and