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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 1, 2000

News Release

"WHAT ARE THEY THINKING?!"

In Budget Wrangling, Congressional Leadership Says NO to Education

Washington, D.C. -- National Education Association (NEA) President Bob Chase denounced Congressional leaders today for rejecting a bipartisan budget compromise that would have provided an unprecedented level of education. "What are they thinking?!" exclaimed Chase. "House and Senate leaders actually appear content to go home this weekend with a sign on their backs that says 'we voted against education spending.' This is an outrage. In some twisted form of logic, leaders actually think voters won't mind if they put off their work until after Election Day. As educators, we would give a 'working' detention for the next six days."

After good faith negotiations produced a compromise appropriations bill that included a 21 percent increase in federal education programs, Republican leaders rejected the proposal. The $7.5 billion compromise would yield funding to hire and train new teachers, reduce class size, repair and renovate schools and provide afterschool programs. "For the first time in history, schools would receive targeted federal help to make much-needed school repairs," said Chase. "All of these funds are in jeopardy if the Congress does not enact this conference report prior to the election."

A school construction bill that would provide $25 billion in bonds for repairs and new construction is also at stake as negotiators squander the remaining time left in the Congressional session. The House Johnson-Rangel bill boasts 231 cosponsors from both sides of the aisle - a majority of the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill would allow those closest to the schools to make important spending decisions.

A recent NEA study documented more than $300 billion in unmet infrastructure and technology needs - nearly three times the level estimated in previous research by the General Accounting Office. States and localities alone cannot meet these urgent needs.

Such resistance to school construction funding is consistent with a pattern of spending for education since 1995. If Republican leadership had their way since 1995, education spending would have been reduced by $15 billion. This number counts the total education cuts that passed the House versus the enacted levels.

Chase praised President Clinton's decision to deny continued stopgap-spending measures that allow Congressional leaders to continually postpone action on appropriations bills. Chase urged Congress to adopt the education appropriations bill and the Johnson-Rangel bill this week. This reliance on stopgap spending measures is what eventually led to the government shutdown of 1995.

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing more than 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support personnel, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.