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House Education Appropriations Bill Heads to Full Committee
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The House Appropriations Labor, Health and Humans Services, Education subcommittee passed the spending bill last Friday. The bill will head to the full Appropriations Committee for mark-up on Friday, July 17. The bill is expected to fund the Department of Education at $64.7 billion. The bill is expected to have some changes to it when the full committee meets to mark-up the legislation, but most “big ticket” items will remain unchanged from the subcommittee mark-up. The funding includes: $12.579 billion for the Individuals with Disability Act (IDEA) which essentially level funds the program at the 2009 level and provides $16.4 billion for Title 1. The bill will not be released until Friday at which point we will have the opportunity to view the numbers for all programs. The Senate is anxious to get the legislation, but may not have a chance to act on it prior to the August recess.
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H.R. 2187 “21st Century Green High-Performing Public Schools Facility Act” Needs Your Support
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As many of you know, H.R. 2187 which authorizes $6.4 billion in school facilities green renovation in 2010 as well as additional amounts which increase incrementally through 2015. The legislation is only a small fraction of what is needed to repair our Nation’s crumbling schools’ infrastructure. The American Federation of Teachers estimated that $225 billion is needed to repair our Nation’s schools. The legislation also accounts for a very small fraction of a percentage of our Nation’s spending. We need to urge Members of the Senate, notably those Members of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee where the legislation currently sits in limbo, to pass this legislation. In addition the legislation will make our schools more conducive to learning and working. The legislation will create thousands of new jobs and help to stimulate the economy.
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No Child Left Behind
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Education Secretary Arne Duncan spoke Monday, July 13th before 2,000 members of AFT at their annual conference, and the 2002 No Child Left Behind law was one of the main topics of discussion. Secretary Duncan strongly encouraged the group to help build support for education reform as Congress is preparing to reauthorize the law. More specifically he discussed the controversial issue of merit pay, or "pay for performance", something the Obama administration and Secretary Duncan support. However, Congress has yet to decide what initiatives will be included in the NCLB reauthorization. In particular, Republicans, and in particular, the new Ranking Member of the House Education and Labor Committee, Rep. John Kline (R-MN), are dedicated to curbing the federal government's role in education and are making every effort to including new provisions in the law.
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Health Care Lobbying
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With House Leaders, Senate Leaders and the White House all working to get their own legislative priorities, health Care industry insiders are doing their best to get their legislative priorities in the legislation and keep their own special interests at the forefront of the debate. In an effort to influence this legislation, health care interests are estimated to be spending $1.4 million a day on lobbying efforts to influence health care reform.
Please forward any questions or comments to
Karen Sierpina ksierpina@fscapitol.com or Elizabeth Gray egray@fscapitol.com
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