[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 146 (Wednesday, October 14, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H10836]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             EDUCATION FUNDING FROM REPUBLICAN PERSPECTIVE

  (Mr. GIBBONS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GIBBONS. Mr. Speaker, every year Republicans have been in charge 
we have increased spending on public schools. The gentleman knows this. 
But yet he says something differently.
  The strength of America's future depends upon the education of our 
children, not the Washington bureaucracy. Republicans have offered an 
education plan that would send $1.1 billion to our local school 
districts. This Republican education plan would empower our local 
communities to hire new teachers if they see fit, to reduce class 
sizes, to train special education teachers, to test teacher competency, 
purchase more books and supplies and allow for school repairs.
  Mr. Speaker, every Member of this body on both sides of the aisle 
should agree with the intent of this plan. The main difference boils 
down to this: How should we deliver the money. The beauty of the 
Republican plan is local control. This means 100 percent of this money 
will go directly to the classrooms, I repeat, directly to the 
classrooms, not to the fat-cat Federal bureaucrats or hollow Federal 
programs.
  Republicans believe education is best accomplished on a local level 
and decisions should be made on the local level.

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