NEA: Legislative Action Center - Letter to the Members of the House Rules Cmte on Education Funding

Home

Members & Educators

Parents & Community >

Issues in Education >

Legislative
Action Center


	›	Current Issues in Congress

	›	Recent Letters to Congress

	›	Get Involved

	›	Success Stories

	›	Congressional Report Card

Press Center

Special Events >

Letter on Education Funding Sent to Members of the House Rules Committee

March 24, 2004

On behalf of the National Education Association's (NEA) 2.7 million members, we urge you to make in order amendments to the fiscal year 2005 budget resolution that would improve the education of our nation's children and protect the health and well-being of America's families.

NEA believes the budget resolution should reflect our nation's priorities, and that providing additional resources for public education and for programs targeted to vulnerable families should be a top priority. Therefore, we urge you to make in order the following:

Obey amendment adding $5.7 billion for our most vulnerable students and families, including:

$1.2 billion to help schools provide quality services to 6.9 million students with disabilities;
$2.2 billion for Pell Grants to help more than 5 million low-income students pay for college;
$1.5 billion for Title I to support reading and math instruction for 500,000 low-income children;
$500 million to help 4,000 schools implement research-based, proven reforms; and
$300 million to help working families obtain high-quality childcare and after-school learning opportunities for their children.

Emanuel/DeLauro amendment to extend the Higher Education Tuition Deduction.

Jackson-Lee amendment to increase funding for the National Science Foundation Math and Science Partnership.

Woolsey/Moran/Ford/Kind amendment to increase No Child Left Behind funding by $3 billion, reach full funding of special education by 2012, and raise the maximum Pell Grant award.

In addition, NEA supports the Democratic Leadership (Spratt) substitute and the Congressional Black Caucus substitute, both of which provide significant boosts in education investments.

Again, we urge you to allow consideration of substitutes and amendments that make children and families a top federal priority.

Sincerely,

Diane Shust, Director of Government Relations

Randall Moody, Manager of Federal Policy and Politics