[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 30 (Thursday, March 9, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1971-S1972]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE RESOLUTION 395--ESTABLISHING THE AMERICAN COMPETITIVENESS 
                   THROUGH EDUCATION (ACE) RESOLUTION

  Mr. HARKIN (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Reid, Mrs. Boxer, Mrs. 
Murray, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. Menendez) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 
Labor, and Pensions:

                              S. Res. 395

       Whereas the economy and future of the United States depend 
     on maintaining a highly skilled and educated workforce with 
     the ability to compete in an increasingly high-tech global 
     economy;
       Whereas millions of hard-working middle-class families now 
     struggle to afford the rising cost of higher education, which 
     averages $12,127 per year at a public 4-year college and 
     $29,026 per year at a private 4-year college for the 2005-
     2006 school year;
       Whereas between 2000 and 2005, the cost of tuition and fees 
     increased 57 percent at public 4-year colleges and 32 percent 
     at private 4-year colleges;

[[Page S1972]]

       Whereas during the 1985-1986 school year, the maximum 
     Federal Pell Grant covered 55 percent of the cost of tuition, 
     fees, room and board at a public 4-year college, but during 
     the 2005-2006 school year the maximum Federal Pell Grant 
     covers only 33 percent of such cost, leaving today's students 
     burdened with more debt or unable to afford a college 
     education at all;
       Whereas at the same time that college costs are rising 
     substantially, President Bush recently signed into law the 
     largest cut in student loan programs in the history of the 
     Nation and now proposes a budget for fiscal year 2007 that 
     would eliminate new funding for Federal Perkins Loans and 
     freeze the maximum Federal Pell Grant award at $4,050, where 
     the maximum Federal Pell Grant has been since 2003, reducing 
     the real value of the maximum Federal Pell Grant to the 
     families who depend upon it;
       Whereas the President's budget also breaks promises to our 
     children, their parents, and their schools;
       Whereas school districts must meet tough new standards 
     under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-
     110; 115 Stat. 1425), but the President's budget underfunds 
     this effort by $15,400,000,000;
       Whereas all children deserve an education that will prepare 
     them for the 21st century global economy, but the President 
     is proposing to leave 3,700,000 children behind by failing to 
     fully fund title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
     Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) at the level promised in 
     the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001;
       Whereas in 1975 Congress committed to fully funding the 
     Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 
     et seq.), in order to provide an appropriate education to 
     students with special needs, yet for the second year in a row 
     the President's budget retreats on that commitment by 
     reducing the Federal Government's share of the cost for 
     educating students with special needs, placing a greater 
     financial burden on States and local school districts;
       Whereas research shows that every dollar invested in high-
     quality early childhood education yields $13 in benefits to 
     the public, but the President's budget would eliminate Head 
     Start services for 19,000 children;
       Whereas despite the importance of education, the President 
     now is proposing a $2,100,000,000 cut to Federal education 
     funding, which would be the largest cut in the 26-year 
     history of the Department of Education;
       Whereas the President's budget proposes to eliminate or 
     substantially reduce funding for 42 existing education 
     programs, including Safe and Drug-Free Schools and 
     Communities State Grants, Educational Technology State 
     Grants, Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Programs, 
     Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate 
     Programs (GEAR-UP), and Federal TRIO Programs;
       Whereas every child deserves a safe, healthy, supervised 
     place to go after school, but the President's budget denies 
     these opportunities to 2,000,000 disadvantaged students by 
     funding 21st Century Community Learning Centers at less than 
     half the level promised in the No Child Left Behind Act of 
     2001; and
       Whereas the education cuts in the President's budget would 
     eliminate the ability of many working families to ensure a 
     quality education for their children, deny many young people 
     the opportunities that flow from a college education, reduce 
     the competitiveness of the United States workforce, and harm 
     the Nation's economy: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved,

     SECTION 1. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

       It is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) Congress should act to make college more affordable 
     by--
       (A) increasing tax benefits to offset college costs, such 
     as expanding the Hope Scholarship Credit and the 
     deductibility of college tuition;
       (B) substantially increasing the size of Federal Pell 
     Grants to better reflect the increase in the cost of higher 
     education; and
       (C) making student loans more affordable by reducing 
     interest rates and fees for students and families;
       (2) Congress should keep its promises to the children of 
     the United States, particularly by fully funding the No Child 
     Left Behind Act of 2001, the Individuals with Disabilities 
     Education Act, and the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et 
     seq.); and
       (3) Congress should reject the cuts in the President's 
     education budget for fiscal year 2007.

     SEC. 2. SHORT TITLE.

       This resolution may be cited as the ``American 
     Competitiveness through Education Resolution'' or the ``ACE 
     Resolution''.

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