[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 34 (Wednesday, March 13, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H2128]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      WHEN WILL WASHINGTON LEARN?

  (Mr. BALLENGER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Speaker, President Clinton, in his recent State of 
the Union Address proposed another Federal education program to provide 
merit based scholarships to the top 5 percent of high school graduates. 
This despite the fact that there are already 47 scholarship and 
fellowship programs operated by the Federal Government. In fact, 
President Bush's Presidential Access Scholarship Program--a merit based 
program--is still on the books.
  This highlights an important point. The Education Committee has 
discovered over 760 Federal education programs spanning 39 separate 
agencies, departments, and commissions. Many of these programs were 
designed to meet the exact same goals--yet each has its own application 
process and regulations.
  So why does President Clinton propose one more education program--
program 761? Is it to improve the education of our children or merely 
to make us feel like we are educating our children by spending money 
and creating programs? This is a critical question we must answer--the 
education of our children is at stake.

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