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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 22, 1999

News Release

NEA Gives Congress Mixed Reviews On Public Education
'Some Notable Successes, But Much Still Remains To Be Done'

Washington, D.C. -- The 106th Congress received mixed reviews from the nearly 2.5 million-member National Education Association (NEA) today, as legislators headed home following passage of the FY2000 budget.

"The budget contains some notable successes for children and public education," said NEA President Bob Chase, "but much still remains to be done."

After months of debate, Congress voted to increase federal education spending by $2.07 billion (6.1 percent), with increases in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, the federal special education law), and in after-school, teacher quality, middle-school mentoring, Safe and Drug-Free Schools, college student aid, and Title I programs to improve performance for disadvantaged students.

"This Congress also had the wisdom to maintain the E-Rate program in the face of ill-informed attacks," said Chase, referring to the $2.25 billion program that provides discounted Internet access to schools and libraries based on need.

"And, in true bipartisan spirit, Congress also rejected school vouchers in two House floor votes," Chase added, noting that more than 50 Republicans voted to oppose the measures.

"We're generally pleased with the House-passed Title I reauthorization, which increases targeted resources to schools serving our neediest students," said Chase. "Additional Title I funding will improve accountability and enhance teacher quality. That's a win-win for our students. However, Title I is still significantly underfunded," Chase noted. "It received less than a 1 percent increase in the FY2000 budget, and still needs an additional $16 billion to serve all eligible low-income children."

Additional unfinished business includes funding for school modernization, and additional resources for class size reduction, Title I, IDEA, and school safety, with continued opposition to block granting education funding, Chase said.

Chase expressed pride in an NEA-led effort that resulted in 233 bipartisan House sponsors -- 15 beyond a majority -- for school modernization bills filed by Reps. Charles B. Rangel (D-NY) and Nancy L. Johnson (R-CT). While Congress did not take up either bill in this session, it did vote to extend for two years the $800 million Quality Zone Academy Bond program, which provides zero-interest bonds for school construction in low-income districts.

"We made solid progress on school modernization, and it's only a matter of time before Congress addresses this enormous priority," said Chase. Estimates of the cost of repair, modernization, and construction for America's public schools exceed $200 billion.

Chase noted that while the critically important class size reduction proposal was maintained, and increased by $100 million, NEA would continue to work to convince Congress to reach the measure's goal of hiring 100,000 new teachers. "This legislation needs to be extended for at least five years -- with a major increase in funding -- to reach its goal of hiring 100,000 new teachers in grades K-3," Chase said.

"And, while IDEA received a $700 million increase, it still falls some $11 billion per year short of its original legislated goal of paying 40 percent of the cost of educating special needs students," Chase said.

He added that NEA is also committed to legislation to provide "sensible gun safety measures and other efforts to improve school safety," including more counselors. Those proposals were bottled up in the House-Senate Conference.

"We also must complete the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act with a firm commitment to standards-based reform," Chase said. "That includes resources for recruiting and retaining quality teachers, helping our rural schools, and continued efforts to target resources to high-poverty schools.

"NEA will also continue to fight for pension portability, to encourage teacher mobility, and for the repeal of harmful Social Security government pension offset provisions, which tend to punish women in disproportionate fashion," said Chase.

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing more than 2.4 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support personnel, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.