February 09, 2009, 10:36 am
Last week DFER pushed forward some talking points about what the stimulus package should include to make sure that we are spending wisely on education issues. Since this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, we need to make sure that we fund the right initiatives to further our education system. Here is an update on what the House and Senate approved, and what changes DFER thinks needs to be made to these Senate and House approved packages before they approve the final package.
The table below shows numbers for education funding increases in the competing House and Senate bills (in millions)
| The table below shows numbers for education funding increases in the competing House and Senate bills (in millions) Program |
House |
Senate |
| Title I Formula Grants |
$11,000 |
$10,400 |
| School Improvement Grants |
$2,000 |
$2,000 |
| Education Technology |
$1,000 |
$1,000 |
| State Fiscal Stabilization (K-12 and Higher Ed) |
$38,784 |
$26,684 |
State Incentive Grants
(Secretary Innovation Fund) |
$15,000 |
$2,500 |
| School Construction and Modernization |
$14,000 |
$0 |
| IDEA |
$13,000 |
$13,000 |
| Charter School Facilities |
$25 |
$0 |
| Statewide Data Systems |
$250 |
$0 |
| Teacher Incentive Funds |
$200 |
$0 |
| Teacher Pre-Service |
$100 |
$50 |
| Total for All Education-Related Programs |
$152,801 |
$84,916 |
The debate in the Senate was highly partisan, with most Republicans balking at the size of the package in general and education funding in particular; largely, they wanted bigger tax cuts and little or no spending. It seemed pretty clear after a couple of days of Senate debate that they were unwilling to move toward a package that at all resembled the Obama/House plan. (Reminder: not a single Republican in the House voted for the bill.)
Some moderates, led by Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Susan Collins (R-ME) balked at the size and scope of the stimulus, but signaled a willingness to work with the White House. On Wednesday, Nelson and Collins floated a proposal that would have cut the package significantly (Title I, for example, would have been cut in half from the House numbers)
After intense negotiations with the White House, led by Rahm Emanuel, a deal was announced Friday evening that while significantly lower than the House overall, and almost $70 billion lower on education, retained funding for key education programs, reversing some of the severest education cuts in the original Nelson-Collins proposal.
The biggest dollar amounts came out of the state stabilization fund, school construction, and the Secretary’s incentive and innovation fund.
While it is reasonable to expect that the total numbers for the final package will be somewhere between the House and Senate numbers (probably closer to the Senate), the details may change significantly.
Pelosi and other key Democrats have protested loudest about the education cuts made by the Senate. School construction – which was zeroed out in the Senate deal - is a major priority for some House Democrats and the unions (not only teachers, but building trades, etc.)
Governors and other state leaders are particularly disappointed by the low Senate numbers for the state stabilization fund (state and local budget bailout). Articles appeared in major papers today about the dire budget straits in which many states find themselves. There almost certainly will be more noise generated this week on potential teacher layoffs and other possible cuts to public schools. The pressure is likely to come from coast to coast and will coincide with the Obama administration’s all-out push to pass the package quickly.
Thus, there likely will be serious attempts to move the money around between the various functions listed above and others (like Head Start, child care, and job training).
For More information about DFER go to www.dfer.org
Tips for Parents (27)
February 09, 2009, 10:36 am
Last week DFER pushed forward some talking points about what the stimulus package should include to make sure that we are spending wisely on education issues. Since this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, we need to make sure that we fund the right initiatives to further our education system. Here is an update on what the House and Senate approved, and what changes DFER thinks needs to be made to these Senate and House approved packages before they approve the final package.
The table below shows numbers for education funding increases in the competing House and Senate bills (in millions)
(Secretary Innovation Fund)
The debate in the Senate was highly partisan, with most Republicans balking at the size of the package in general and education funding in particular; largely, they wanted bigger tax cuts and little or no spending. It seemed pretty clear after a couple of days of Senate debate that they were unwilling to move toward a package that at all resembled the Obama/House plan. (Reminder: not a single Republican in the House voted for the bill.)
Some moderates, led by Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Susan Collins (R-ME) balked at the size and scope of the stimulus, but signaled a willingness to work with the White House. On Wednesday, Nelson and Collins floated a proposal that would have cut the package significantly (Title I, for example, would have been cut in half from the House numbers)
After intense negotiations with the White House, led by Rahm Emanuel, a deal was announced Friday evening that while significantly lower than the House overall, and almost $70 billion lower on education, retained funding for key education programs, reversing some of the severest education cuts in the original Nelson-Collins proposal.
The biggest dollar amounts came out of the state stabilization fund, school construction, and the Secretary’s incentive and innovation fund.
While it is reasonable to expect that the total numbers for the final package will be somewhere between the House and Senate numbers (probably closer to the Senate), the details may change significantly.
Pelosi and other key Democrats have protested loudest about the education cuts made by the Senate. School construction – which was zeroed out in the Senate deal - is a major priority for some House Democrats and the unions (not only teachers, but building trades, etc.)
Governors and other state leaders are particularly disappointed by the low Senate numbers for the state stabilization fund (state and local budget bailout). Articles appeared in major papers today about the dire budget straits in which many states find themselves. There almost certainly will be more noise generated this week on potential teacher layoffs and other possible cuts to public schools. The pressure is likely to come from coast to coast and will coincide with the Obama administration’s all-out push to pass the package quickly.
Thus, there likely will be serious attempts to move the money around between the various functions listed above and others (like Head Start, child care, and job training).
For More information about DFER go to www.dfer.org