Universal Pre-K and free college part of massive spending bill By: Ariana Figueroa

The U.S. House Education & Labor Committee on Friday finished a marathon markup of legislation that would provide universal pre-K education, expand federal Pell Grants for college students and institute two years of free community college.

The $761 billion measure, approved on a party-line 28-22 vote, will be combined with other pieces of Democrats’ giant $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation measure, regarded as the biggest change in U.S. social policy in decades.

“The high cost of child care is failing families’ budgets and pushing millions of Americans out of the workforce—the majority of those are women,” Committee Chairman Bobby Scott, D-Virginia, said in his opening statement.