[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 32 (Wednesday, February 25, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H1142-H1150]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STUDENT SUCCESS ACT
General Leave
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on H.R. 5.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Minnesota?
There was no objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 121 and rule
XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House
on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill, H.R. 5.
The Chair appoints the gentleman from New York (Mr. Collins) to
preside over the Committee of the Whole.
{time} 1558
In the Committee of the Whole
Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the
Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill
(H.R. 5) to support State and local accountability for public
education, protect State and local authority, inform parents of the
performance of their children's schools, and for other purposes, with
Mr. Collins of New York in the chair.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The CHAIR. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the
first time. The gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kline) and the gentleman
from Virginia (Mr. Scott) each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Minnesota.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself as much time as I may
consume.
I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5, the Student Success Act.
This week, we have an opportunity to advance bold reforms that will
strengthen K-12 education for children across America.
A great education can be the great equalizer. It can open doors to
unlimited possibilities and provide students the tools they need to
succeed in life. Every child in every school deserves an excellent
education, yet, Mr. Chairman, we are failing to provide every child
that opportunity.
Today, approximately one out of five students drops out of high
school, and many who do graduate are going to college or entering the
workforce with a subpar education. The number of students proficient in
reading and math is abysmal. The achievement gap separating minority
students from their peers is appalling. Parents have little to no
options to rescue their children from failing schools.
A broken education system has plagued families for decades. Year
after year, policymakers lament the problems and talk about solutions,
and once in a while, a law is enacted that promises to improve our
education system.
Unfortunately, past efforts have largely failed because they are
based on the idea that Washington knows what is best for children. We
have doubled down on this approach repeatedly, and it is not working.
Federal mandates dictate how to gauge student achievement, how to
define qualified teachers, how to spend money at the State and local
levels, and how to improve underperforming schools. And now, thanks to
the unprecedented overreach of the current administration, the
Department of Education is dictating policies concerning teacher
evaluations, academic standards, and more.
No one questions whether parents, teachers, and local education
leaders are committed to their students, yet there are some who
question whether they are capable of making the best decisions for
their students.
Success in school should be determined by those who teach inside our
classrooms, by administrators who understand the challenges facing
their communities, by parents who know better than anyone the needs of
their children. If every child is going to receive a quality education,
then we need to place less faith--less faith--in the Secretary of
Education and more faith in parents, teachers, and State and local
leaders. That is why I am a proud sponsor of the Student Success Act.
By reducing the Federal footprint, restoring local control, and
empowering parents and education leaders, this commonsense bill will
move our country in a better direction.
{time} 1600
The Student Success Act provides States and school districts more
flexibility to fund local priorities, not Washington's priorities. The
legislation eliminates dozens of ineffective or duplicative programs so
that each dollar makes a direct, meaningful, and lasting impact in
classrooms. The bill strengthens accountability by replacing the
current national scheme with State-led accountability systems,
returning to States the responsibility to
[[Page H1143]]
measure student performance and improve struggling schools. The Student
Success Act also ensures parents have the information they need to hold
their schools accountable. It is their tax money, but more importantly,
it is their children, and they deserve to know how their schools are
performing.
Mr. Chairman, the bill reaffirms that choice is a powerful lifeline
for families with children in failing schools by extending the magnet
school program, expanding access to high quality charter schools, and
allowing Federal funds to follow low-income students to the
traditional, public, or public charter school of the parents' choice.
Finally, the Student Success Act reins in the authority of the
Secretary of Education. We must stop the Secretary from unilaterally
imposing his will on schools, and this bill will do just that. Perhaps,
Mr. Chairman, that is why the White House and powerful special
interests are teaming up to defeat this legislation. They fear the bill
will lead to less control in Washington and more control in States and
school districts. Let me assure the American people: that is precisely
what this bill will do.
Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to help all children, regardless
of background, income, or ZIP Code, to receive an excellent education
by supporting the Student Success Act, and I reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 5, a bill to
reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, ESEA, a
landmark civil rights law enacted under President Lyndon B. Johnson. As
we approach the 50-year anniversary of its enactment, we cannot take
lightly ESEA's mission, goals, and achievements over the course of five
decades. It is by that yardstick of history that we must judge H.R. 5
today and determine if it will move our education system closer to
meeting the challenges of the 21st century and prepare our students for
the global economy.
We all know too well that quality education is even more vital today
than it was generations ago. In our rapidly changing economy, our
Nation's continued success depends on a well-educated workforce. A
competitive and educated workforce strengthens the very social fabric
of America: people with higher levels of education are less likely to
be unemployed, less likely to need public assistance, less likely to
become a teen parent, and less likely to get caught up in the criminal
justice system. Over the course of ESEA's history, we have recognized
that for many politically disconnected populations, equitable access to
an education has not been a reality. It was necessary for the Federal
Government to fill in the gaps of funding our public school systems.
Inequality was inevitable when most school systems are funded by real
estate taxes, and further by virtue of the fact that in our democratic
society, we respond to political pressure. For 50 years, Congress has
recognized that low-income students were not getting their fair share
of the pie and that supplemental resources were absolutely necessary to
ensure that all children had access to quality public education. As a
result, Congress has a longstanding policy to target our limited
Federal funding to schools and students who get left behind in an
unequal system.
Mr. Chairman, one of this bill's most troubling provisions, which
strikes at the heart of ESEA's long history of targeting resources to
our neediest students, is the so-called portability provision. Now,
present law gives greater weight to funding in areas of high
concentration of poverty. Under H.R. 5, portability, a State agency
could use all of its title I funds to districts based solely on the
percentage of poor children, regardless of the concentration of poor
people in a district.
As a result, much of the title I support intended towards those areas
of concentration of poverty would be reallocated to those wealthier
areas. In other words, the low-income areas would get less, and the
wealthy areas would get more. I ask: If that is the solution, then I
wonder what you think the problem was? Analysis from a number of
organizations, including the Department of Education, demonstrates
title I portability will take money from the poorer schools and school
districts and give more to affluent districts. This disproportionately
affects students of color, and this is just simply wrong.
Data shows that H.R. 5 would provide the largest 33 school districts
with the highest concentration of Black and Hispanic students over $3
billion less in Federal funding than the President's budget over the
next 6 years. Furthermore, the Center for American Progress found in
its review of portability that districts with high concentrations of
poverty could lose an average of $85 per student, while the more
affluent areas would gain more than $290 per student.
There is an overwhelming body of research that shows that targeting
resources to schools and districts with the highest concentrations of
poverty is an effective way to mitigate the effects of poverty. Current
law reflects this evidence and targets funding to schools where there
are greater concentrations of poverty, and this bill rolls the clock
back and reverses that.
To add insult to injury, H.R. 5 eliminates what is called maintenance
of effort, a requirement of ESEA that States maintain their effort and
that the Federal money will supplement what they are doing. As a result
of this bill, States could use their education funds to fund tax cuts
or other noneducation initiatives, thus turning ESEA into a glorified
slush fund where politics would drive funding allocations. And we know
who is going to lose when politics are at play--our children.
There are other flaws with H.R. 5. This bill sets no standards for
college or career readiness and allows students with disabilities to be
taught with lesser standards. It limits our investment in education
over the next 6 years because there are no adjustments for inflation.
It block grants important programs, diluting the purpose and the
outcome. Taken as a whole, these policies will have a disproportionate
impact on students of color, students with disabilities, and our
English language learners. It is no wonder that business groups, labor
groups, civil rights, disabilities, and education groups have all
expressed deep concerns about this legislation.
Mr. Chairman, I stand in strong opposition to H.R. 5, as it will turn
the clock back on American public education. In its current form, the
bill abandons the fundamental principles of equity and accountability
in our education system, it eviscerates education funding, it fails to
support our educators, and it leaves our children ill-prepared for
success in the classroom and beyond. Therefore, I urge my colleagues to
vote ``no'' on this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, it is now my great pleasure to yield 4
minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Rokita), the chairman of the
Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
Mr. ROKITA. Mr. Chairman, I thank the chairman for his great
leadership on this bill and in the committee generally.
I rise in strong support this afternoon because every student, Mr.
Chairman, every student deserves an effective teacher, an engaging
classroom, and a quality education that paves the path for a bright and
prosperous future. That is what we all want. Unfortunately, despite the
best of intentions, the Nation's current K-12 education law has failed
to provide students this fundamental right. In fact, the law has only
gotten in the way.
Far from taking us back to the past, this bill will take us to the
future, where we should have been for a while now in terms of
education, so that we can maintain competitiveness with the rest of the
world and win in the 21st century.
No Child Left Behind's onerous requirements and the Obama
administration's waiver scheme and pet projects have created a one-
size-fits-all system that hinders innovation and stymies local efforts
to improve student learning. As a result, too many young adults leave
high school today without basic knowledge in reading, math, and
science. They are ill-equipped to complete college and compete in the
workforce, and consequently they are deprived of one of the best
opportunities they have to earn a lifetime of success. We shouldn't
shackle any student to that kind of future.
[[Page H1144]]
Americans have settled for the status quo for far too long, and today
we have an opportunity to chart the new course. The Student Success Act
departs from the top-down approach that has inefficiently and
ineffectively governed elementary and secondary education and restores
that responsibility to its rightful stewards: parents, teachers, State
and local education leaders, and the local taxpayers.
First, the bill gets the Federal government out of the business of
running our schools. It eliminates the dizzying maze of Federal
mandates that has dictated local decisions and downsizes the bloated
bureaucracy at the Department of Education that has focused on what
Washington wants rather than what students need. The whole theme of
this bill is that we trust teachers, parents, local education
officials, and our local taxpayers much more than we would ever trust a
Federal bureaucrat.
Mr. Chairman, I find it funny that the other side, those who are
against this bill, actually cite the Department of Education in arguing
what a bad bill this is. Imagine a Federal bureaucrat actually arguing
to devolve its power back to its rightful owners. Of course they are
going to be for the status quo. They benefit from the status quo. The
students do not.
Second, the bill empowers parents and education leaders with choice,
transparency, and flexibility. It ensures parents continue to have the
information they need to hold schools accountable and helps more
families escape underperforming schools by expanding alternative
education options such as quality charter schools. It also provides
States the flexibility to develop their own systems for addressing
school performance and the autonomy to use Federal funds in the most
efficient way.
This bill respects, Mr. Chairman, that it is the people's property.
It is their tax dollars. We shouldn't be forcing any kind of
maintenance of effort requirement on States or local jurisdictions. It
is their decision to decide what to do with their money.
With the Student Success Act, we have an opportunity to overcome the
failed status quo of high stakes testing and Federal waivers. We have
an opportunity to reduce the Federal footprint in our Nation's
classrooms. We also have an opportunity to signal to moms, dads,
teachers, administrators, and State officials that we trust them to
hold schools accountable for delivering a quality education to every
child.
As my good friend, former colleague and fellow Hoosier Governor Mike
Pence, said before the House Education and the Workforce Committee
earlier this month:
There is nothing that ails education that can't be fixed by
giving parents more choices and teachers more freedom to
teach.
That is exactly what this bill does. This bill fosters an environment
to accomplish that very thing. So I urge my colleagues to join me in
replacing a broken law with much-needed, commonsense education reforms
and ask you to vote ``yes''--``yes''--on the Student Success Act.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Bonamici), a member of the Committee on
Education and the Workforce.
Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you, Mr. Ranking Member, for yielding.
Mr. Chairman, there is overwhelming bipartisan consensus that we need
to replace No Child Left Behind. And there is overwhelming bipartisan
consensus that a rewrite of No Child Left Behind should promote local
flexibility and support schools, not punish them. So I am deeply
disappointed that the House has not come together to produce a
bipartisan bill.
Despite a common goal and a long history of setting aside differences
to work together on this important legislation, this bill does not
adequately support America's students. Unfortunately, the Student
Success Act shifts resources away from communities where poverty is
most concentrated and freezes funding for America's most needy students
at a time when public school enrollment is on the rise and more than
half the students come from low-income families.
H.R. 5 does not support a well-rounded education for all students, it
does not ensure college- and career-ready standards for all students,
it does not promote quality afterschool programs, and it does not do
enough to reduce emphasis on high-stakes tests.
The original goal of ESEA was laudable--equity. ESEA deserves a full
review by the House so we can implement thoughtful solutions that
reflect the current needs in our schools. But this bill does not
protect historically underserved students.
Mr. Chairman, I oppose this act, and I ask my colleagues to do the
same. We need a law that is serious about addressing the challenges
educators and students face today.
{time} 1615
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Culberson), who has been active in this bill.
Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I want to ask, if I could, for the
chairman of the Education and the Workforce Committee to engage in a
colloquy with me concerning the importance of ensuring the Federal
Government does not interfere with States' rights over public
education.
Mr. KLINE. I, as the chairman of the full committee, would be happy
to engage in that colloquy.
Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I believe there is no constitutional
role for the Federal Government in education.
However, I understand that the funds under this act are accepted
voluntarily by each State, but I am concerned that State bureaucrats
often simply accept these funds and all the strings without any input
from our constituents or locally elected officials. I saw this in the
Texas House.
I very much appreciate that the gentleman from Indiana and Chairman
Kline worked with me to protect the 10th Amendment and to ensure that
States knowingly accept the strings attached to these programs before
they receive any funding under this bill.
I want to be clear that this provision simply ensures that locally
elected officials, parents, and other interested stakeholders have the
opportunity to stand up and voice concern or support for accepting
Federal funding at their State capital before any unelected,
unaccountable bureaucrat can accept that money and all the strings that
come with them.
I want to ask if the chairman concurs that this is the intent and the
result of the language that you have included in the Student Success
Act?
Mr. KLINE. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Let me thank my colleague from Texas for his leadership on this
important issue. I understand and appreciate your concern about this
Federal role in education policy.
That is why we were happy to include your amendment in the underlying
bill. It made the bill stronger and gave another tool to parents and
local officials to protect their rights when it comes to educating our
children.
This amendment, in combination with other strong provisions to rein
in the Secretary, including an absolute ban on his ability to force any
State to adopt the Common Core State Standards or any other particular
standards, ensures the Federal Government cannot dictate what is taught
in schools, what assessments are given, or what standards are used.
In fact, this amendment ensures States willfully accept the limited
requirements that will come with these funds and reaffirms what
decisions should be left to the States.
I thank the gentleman for offering this provision and his commitment
to a limited Federal role in education, and I yield back to the
gentleman.
Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you from the bottom of
my heart for protecting the 10th Amendment rights of the States to
control their public school system and affirming a parents' right to
control their child's education.
I appreciate you confirming the intent of this amendment. It will
mean a far greater role for States and parents in their child's
education.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Courtney), a member of the Committee on
Education and the Workforce.
Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Chairman, I hate to throw cold water on the last
colloquy, but I think it is important to note as we debate this bill,
which never had the benefit of a public hearing or a
[[Page H1145]]
single subcommittee hearing, is that the Federal mandate for annual
testing does not change as a result of this law.
What does change regarding that testing requirement is that the
dedicated funding stream, which Congress at least had the decency to
pass back in 2002, that is eliminated.
What you are doing is you are maintaining a mandate and you are
eliminating the funding to pay for that mandate for testing. What we
are ending up with, for all the talk about reducing the Federal
footprint, is that we are doubling down on the Federal requirement that
States have to have annual testing in schools, which every Member in
this Chamber has heard about in loud protest over the last 13 years.
What this shows is that when the process is broken--and it was broken
in this case, no committee-subcommittee meetings, no hearings, rushing
it to the floor on a hyperpartisan basis, not one single Democratic
amendment was accepted at the committee during markup, that is what you
end up with, is a deformed bill, which should be defeated.
I urge in the strongest terms possible a ``no'' vote. Let's go back
and do this the right way.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 1 minute.
Just to address a notion of what is done in secret and what is not
done in secret and whether or not people have had a chance to weigh in
on this legislation, as my friend knows--and I do thank him for not
mentioning basketball, by the way--as my friend knows, this bill has
had multiple hearings over several years.
It has been debated in committee. It has been debated on the floor of
the House. It has been debated in the media. It is much discussed and
much known--in contrast to the bill, the amendment, a substitute that
my friends and colleagues on the other side of the aisle brought
forward in committee, 851 pages, that nobody had seen outside the
Democrat Caucus, so I believe this bill is well known, and it is the
right direction to move us forward into the future to make sure that
all of our children receive the quality education they deserve.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 30 seconds just
to respond to the idea that our substitute was produced.
I would apologize to the gentleman for having sprung the substitute
on him.
However, 2 legislative days after his bill was introduced, he
scheduled a markup on the bill, so we produced a response to his bill
in 2 legislative days. That is all the time we were allowed.
We would have allowed hearings. We would have liked hearings on his
bill and our bill, but that just wasn't to take place because of the
rush to judgment.
I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Fudge), the
ranking member of the Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary
Education Subcommittee.
Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Chairman, I strongly oppose H.R. 5, the Student
Success Act.
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act reaffirmed the Supreme
Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education that every child has
the right to an equal educational opportunity. H.R. 5 undermines the
law's original intent, turning back the clock on equity and
accountability in American public education.
As we commemorate the 50th anniversary of ESEA, Republicans have
chosen to honor the anniversary by bringing a partisan bill to the
House floor that tears apart the historic Federal role in education.
H.R. 5 should be known as the ``Ensure Students Don't Succeed Act.''
The bill is a backward leap in our country's education system, not a
forward one.
Every student in America has a right to a quality education. It is
our job as Members of Congress to make sure that right is protected,
something that H.R. 5 does not do.
I refuse to fail our children and their families because our children
deserve so much more than this legislation provides.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I am very, very pleased to yield 4 minutes
to the distinguished gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx), the
chair of the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training.
Ms. FOXX. Mr. Chairman, I thank the chairman of the committee.
Mr. Chairman, the current K-12 education system is failing our
students, and State and local attempts to make it better have been
hampered by an enormous Federal footprint.
Parents and education leaders have lost much of their decisionmaking
authority to Washington bureaucrats, and the Secretary of Education has
bullied States into adopting the Obama administration's pet projects.
Unsurprisingly, student achievement levels remain worrisome. Just 36
percent of eighth grade students read at grade level, and only 35
percent are proficient in math.
For far too long, our schools have been governed by a top-down
approach that stymies State and local efforts to meet the unique needs
of their student populations. We can't continue to make the same
mistakes and expect better results. America's students deserve change.
Fortunately, this week, the House of Representatives has an
opportunity to chart a new course with the Student Success Act,
legislation that reduces the Federal footprint in the Nation's
classrooms and restores control to the people who know their students
best: parents, teachers, and local leaders.
The Student Success Act gets Washington out of the business of
running schools. It protects State and local autonomy by prohibiting
the Secretary of Education from coercing States into adopting Common
Core or other standards or assessments and by preventing the Secretary
from creating additional burdens on States and school districts.
The bill reduces the size of the Federal education bureaucracy.
Currently, the Department of Education oversees more than 80 programs
geared towards primary and secondary education, most of which are
duplicative and fail to deliver adequate results for students. The bill
eliminates over 65 of these programs and requires the Secretary of
Education to reduce the Department's workforce accordingly.
The Student Success Act repeals onerous, one-size-fits-all mandates
that dictate accountability, teacher quality, and local spending that
have done more to tie up States and school districts in red tape than
to support education efforts. It returns responsibility for classroom
decisions to parents, teachers, administrators, and education
officials.
The bill also provides States and school districts the funding
flexibility to efficiently and effectively invest limited taxpayer
dollars to boost student achievement by creating a local academic
flexible grant. It provides the public with greater transparency and
accountability over the development of new rules affecting K-12
schools.
Education is a deeply personal issue. After years of the Secretary of
Education running schools through executive fiat, we understand that
people are concerned about what a new K-12 education law will do.
That is why a number of key principles have guided our efforts to
replace the law since we began the process more than 4 years ago:
reducing the Federal footprint, restoring local control, and empowering
parents and education leaders.
Those principles are reflected throughout the legislation, including
specific safeguards that protect the right of States to opt out of the
law, as well as the autonomy of home schools, religious schools, and
private schools.
Organizations such as the Council for American Private Education, the
Home School Legal Defense Association, and Committee on Catholic
Education of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops have expressed support
for the Student Success Act because they know it will keep the Federal
Government out of their business and preserve their cherished rights.
A host of administration bureaucrats is attempting to defeat these
much-needed changes. They know each reform that returns flexibility and
choice to parents and school boards represent a loss of power in D.C.
It is time we put the interests of America's students above the
desires of Washington politicians.
The CHAIR. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. KLINE. I yield the gentlewoman an additional 1 minute.
[[Page H1146]]
Ms. FOXX. By reversing the top-down policies of recent decades, the
Student Success Act offers conservative solutions to repair a broken
education system.
It would finally get Washington out of the way and allow parents,
teachers, and State and local education leaders the flexibility to
provide every child in every school a high-quality education.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Davis), a member of the Committee on
Education and the Workforce.
Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I thank Ranking Member Scott.
I have to ask the majority: When did local control come to mean spend
Federal dollars but ditch the Federal oversight?
During our markup last week--and I certainly heard today Member after
Member arguing how removing Federal standards would help local leaders
make tough decisions. This is absolutely backwards.
For 9 years, I served on the second largest school board in
California, the sixth in the Nation, and I distinctly remember every
school in the district making a compelling case for extra resources.
Which is why, frankly, we should be debating how to increase the size
of the pie that goes to education, rather than only arguing on how to
cut it up.
I still remember particularly one board meeting agonizing over the
decision to move money from one needy school to another. We had to cut
our budget, and we had to make a decision. In the end, the law and the
safeguards around title I helped direct us to make sure the money went
to the students that needed it most.
Ultimately, the direction in the law helps us balance competing
needs, and I urge opposition to the bill.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentleman from California (Mr. Takano), a member of the Committee on
Education and the Workforce.
{time} 1630
Mr. TAKANO. I thank the gentleman from Virginia for yielding time.
Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 5, also known
as the Student Success Act. Having spent 24 years as a classroom
teacher, I am especially concerned about the title I funding mechanism
in this legislation. We have seen time and time again that block grants
often redirect funding away from intended populations and are a prelude
to further cuts.
I also oppose the Republican bill's portability provision, which
betrays the original intent of the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act. ESEA is meant to promote equitable opportunity and education for
all and to help raise the academic achievement of low-income children.
This legislation will do the opposite.
Finally, I object to the utter lack of Federal accountability in H.R.
5. While I oppose the current test-driven, high-stakes accountability
system, I want the right accountability system, not no accountability
system.
Mr. Chairman, this legislation goes too far. It cuts too deep and
takes too many steps backward. I oppose H.R. 5. I call on my colleagues
to do the same.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I just want to address this issue of grants and block grants and so
forth we are starting to hear a little bit about.
I have been hearing for years, as I talk to superintendents in
Minnesota and around the country, their frustration with the maze of
Federal programs, 80-some Federal programs, each with its soda straw of
funding and requirements for action and reporting. They have told me
again and again: I have got money here, and I don't need it there. I
need money here, and I can't move that money. I don't have the
flexibility to move that money. I need to be able to put the resources
where my students need it.
So, by eliminating 65 of those soda straws of individual controls and
giving that flexibility to superintendents, we allow the money to be
spent where it is needed the most. I think that is one of the great
strengths of this bill, and it is one of the reasons why the American
Association of School Superintendents does support this legislation.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Pocan), a member of the Committee on
Education and the Workforce.
Mr. POCAN. Mr. Chairman, I thank Ranking Member Scott.
Mr. Chairman, this bill breaks the promise made 50 years ago to help
all kids get a good, quality public education and to recognize the
challenges faced by kids living in poverty.
When talking about the problems with this Republican bill, one
wonders where to start. Is it the tearing apart of public education
that comes in the form of dismantling title I funding? or the fact that
the portability scheme is a slippery slope to turning our public school
system into one big taxpayer-funded voucher program with public dollars
sent to private schools? or the fact that Republicans have failed to
address the need for early education or the maintenance of efforts of
education? or that this bill diminishes the focus on professional
development for teachers or the clear protections for collective
bargaining agreements that are already part of State laws? or,
ultimately, that this bill provides insufficient funding lower than
what the title I authorization for last year authorized under the
current law?
This bill doesn't provide real student success, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. KLINE. I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Clark), a member of the committee.
Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. I thank the gentleman from Virginia for
yielding.
Mr. Chairman, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act was passed
50 years ago to embody the promise that education is a right, not a
privilege. We are supposed to be guardians of that promise, not the
architects of its demise.
This reauthorization was an opportunity for Congress to delve in and
debate the most pressing issues facing our schools. Sadly, the
Republican majority chose to introduce a partisan bill behind closed
doors without a single public hearing. Now we have a bill that reflects
that lack of inclusion, takes hundreds of millions of dollars from our
most vulnerable children, and weakens the safeguards that govern
taxpayer money.
When I served on my local school committee, a tough economy meant
some really difficult decisions. Not everyone was happy, but we
listened. We listened to teachers, administrators, parents, students,
experts, and fiscal watchdogs, and we were guided by one simple
principle: what is best for our students. It is a shame Congress
couldn't find the will to do the same.
I urge my colleagues to reject H.R. 5.
Mr. KLINE. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Adams), a former college professor
and now a member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Ms. ADAMS. Mr. Chairman, I thank Ranking Member Scott.
Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to H.R. 5.
Two weeks ago, our committee came together expecting to seriously
consider this bill, but instead Republicans said ``no'': ``no'' to
moving beyond the status quo, ``no'' to investing in the futures of our
kids, ``no'' to supporting our teachers and principals, and ``no'' to
ensuring the success of our neediest students.
Guess what. You said ``yes'' to taking money from our poorest
students like Robin Hood in reverse, ``yes'' to erasing the gains we
have made over the past 50 years, and ``yes'' to denying students
success. This bill ignores the obvious needs of our students and turns
its back on some of our most vulnerable.
I hope we are not fooled by the name of the bill. Student Success is
a failure. It clearly sets up our students to fail. H.R. 5 fails on all
accounts. It fails our neediest students. It fails to invest in our
teachers and our principals. It fails to prepare students for college
and careers. This bill deserves an F.
I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''
Mr. KLINE. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
[[Page H1147]]
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, could you advise how much time
is available to both parties?
The CHAIR. The gentleman from Virginia has 15 minutes remaining. The
gentleman from Minnesota has 13 minutes remaining.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline), a former mayor.
Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
It is our responsibility to provide America's young people with every
opportunity to obtain a world-class education in the best possible
environment so they can compete in an increasingly global economy. That
is why it is critical that we reauthorize ESEA the right way. Schools
and educators deserve certainty, continuity, and direction based on new
research and informed by our experience from the last decade, and
students deserve the best education we can provide. H.R. 5 is not the
right way to do it.
H.R. 5 would freeze funding at current levels for 6 years,
representing over $800 million in cuts compared to presequester
funding. By funding programs with block grants and introducing title I
portability, this fails to support greater achievement of low-income
students, students of color, students with disabilities, and English
language learners. This fails students in so many ways.
We should be working together to ensure that a reauthorized ESEA
improves student achievement, supports teachers and principals, and
provides high-quality education for all students. This bill does not
accomplish this.
I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''
Mr. KLINE. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), the ranking member on the
Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, Education, and Related Agencies.
Ms. DeLAURO. Upon signing the original Elementary and Secondary
Education Act, President Johnson described education as ``the only
valid passport from poverty.'' This bill threatens to tear up that
passport. It caps Federal education funding at 2015 levels, levels
which are already woefully inadequate after years of drastic cuts, and
makes no provision for inflation, let alone the growing need for
Federal education programs.
The bill allows States to direct Federal dollars away from schools in
districts with the greatest poverty. It permits States to reduce
education funding with no accountability. It allows schools in
wealthier neighborhoods to use title I funding without having to target
funds to the students with the greatest needs. It is a blatant betrayal
of the ESEA's fundamental purpose, which is to level the playing field
for low-income kids.
It weakens or eliminates many successful programs, including 21st
Century Community Learning Centers initiative, which provides quality
after school, summer school programs for disadvantaged children.
Mr. Chairman, it used to be that hard work in schools and on the job
was the surest ticket to the middle class. Today, that compact is
broken. Millions of hardworking families do not earn enough to make
ends meet, let alone move up in the world. The cuts proposed in this
bill would make matters even worse. Kids from poor neighborhoods are
already being neglected, while those from wealthy areas get an ever-
increasing slice of the pie. These disparities reverberate throughout
their lives to create an increasingly divided, unequal society.
Let me put it simply: Without broad access to quality education,
there is no future for the middle class. With this legislation, the
majority is saying to America's low-income kids: You are on your own.
Mr. Chairman, that is not who we are. I urge my colleagues to vote
against this bill.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Michigan (Mr. Bishop), a new member of the committee.
Mr. BISHOP of Michigan. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for
yielding.
Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 5, the Student Success
Act, because our system, education system, is failing. Where I come
from, we call trying to do things over and over again and expecting a
different outcome insanity. I believe our system is broken to the
extent that it is a moral imperative for Congress, at this point, to
step up and act. Our students, our parents, our teachers should not
have to settle for a failing system.
Before Congress, I worked in the private sector, and I also had an
opportunity to work in State government, including the opportunity to
serve as the majority leader of the Michigan Senate. At that time, I
saw firsthand how much more effective we can be at the State level to
use State resources and control where they are going than to have the
Federal Government come in, step in and use, and expect the State to
spend it in a certain way.
This system of top-down does not help the States; it puts us in a bad
position. As a State legislator, had I the opportunity, I would have
come here and supported the cause as well because it is the right thing
to do. I do believe it is high time that we defend the 10th Amendment
and rein back the Federal Government's role, especially in our
children's education. Local teachers and parents know our children
better than the Department of Education in Washington, D.C., ever
could; and the result is that our system is broken, and that becomes
clearer and clearer every day.
I just want to mention a couple statistics that I find alarming but
instructive. First of all, 35 percent of our fourth graders are reading
at a proficient level. Only 26 percent of our high school seniors are
proficient in math. Just a couple examples that I mention. Those
examples are unacceptable.
The CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. KLINE. I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.
Mr. BISHOP of Michigan. The Student Success Act gives authority back
to our States and expands opportunities so our children can get the
best education opportunity possible. That is what they deserve, and
that is what I was sent to Washington, D.C., to support.
This bill is also critical in ensuring the Federal Government cannot
force a failed program like Common Core on the States. When looking at
education reform, it is also important to make sure that we continue to
protect the rights of our home schoolers and our private schools. That
is exactly what this bill does.
Mr. Chairman, we must reduce the Federal Government's footprint in
our children's classrooms because it is making a mess of the education
system. We are long overdue for change, and I believe the Student
Success Act will move our Nation in the right direction.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Chairman, because this bill limits the amount of funding
available, it moves money from low-income areas to wealthy areas,
eliminates targeted funds for English learners and those with
disabilities; it fails to set meaningful standards.
A lot of organizations oppose the legislation, including business
organizations, child advocacy groups, civil rights groups, the
organizations supporting those with disabilities and health groups,
including the Congressional Tri-Caucus; the Advocacy Institute; the
Afterschool Alliance; the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee;
the American Association of People With Disabilities; the American
Association of University Women; the American Federation of Teachers;
the American Foundation for the Blind; the Association of University
Centers on Disabilities; Autism National Committee; Autistic Self
Advocacy Network; the Center for American Progress; the Center for Law
and Social Policy; the Children's Defense Fund; the Committee for
Education Funding; the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities; the
Council of the Great City Schools; the Council of Parent Attorneys and
Advocates, Inc.; Democrats for Education Reform; Disability Rights
Education & Defense Fund; Easter Seals; Education Post; Education Law
Center; First Focus Campaign for Children; Gay, Lesbian & Straight
Education Network; Human Rights Campaign; the Bazelon Center
[[Page H1148]]
for Mental Health Law; Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law;
Leading Educators; the League of United Latin American Citizens; the
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund; the NAACP; the
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund; the National Association of
School Psychologists; the National Center for Learning Disabilities;
the National Council on Independent Living; the National Council on
Teacher Quality; the National Center on Time & Learning; the National
Congress of American Indians; the National Council of La Raza; the
National Coalition for Public Education; the National Disability Rights
Network; the National Down Syndrome Congress; the National Education
Association; the National Urban League; the National Women's Law
Center; Partners for Each and Every Child; the Poverty & Race Research
Action Council; Public Advocates Inc.; Stand for Children; Southeast
Asia Resource Action Center; TASH; Teach Plus; TNTP; the Education
Trust; the United Negro College Fund; the Leadership Conference on
Civil and Human Rights; and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They are all
in opposition to this legislation.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1645
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentlewoman from Alabama (Ms. Sewell).
Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Mr. Chairman, I often don't come to the floor
to speak, but I felt compelled on this particular bill, H.R. 5, to talk
about it. Why? Because I represent a district that has 90 percent of
the public schoolchildren who live and receive reduced or free lunches
and it is important for me to just state for the record that I think
that a bill that takes away funding from public schools--targeted
funding for low-income and poverty students--would be an abomination.
This bill is here because of the work of Lyndon Johnson 50 years ago.
It was a civil rights bill, frankly. Why? It was an acknowledgment that
socially disadvantaged children needed additional help. Somewhere along
the line, Mr. Chairman, we have lost as a nation the notion of ``our
children.''
It is always ``my child,'' not ``our children.''
The CHAIR. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. I yield the gentlewoman an additional 30
seconds.
Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Until the parents of more affluent children
see that their lives are intrinsically linked to children who are poor,
we as a nation will never be the beloved community that so many civil
rights leaders fought and died for.
I want to thank the gentleman from Virginia for the opportunity to
speak on this underlying bill, and I want to urge my colleagues to vote
against H.R. 5.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Carter), a member of the committee.
Mr. CARTER of Georgia. I want to thank the gentleman from Minnesota
for his work on this bill. It is a very important bill, and it is
certainly very applicable to what is going on in our country right now.
Mr. Chairman, Federal intervention in our Nation's classrooms is at
an alltime high, and the Obama administration continues to believe that
they think they know what is best for our children. However, despite
the continued intrusion into our children's classrooms, student
achievement remains stagnant.
Out of 34 countries, students in the U.S. rank 20th and 27th in
science and math respectively, so it is clear that our education system
is not adequately serving our children, and it is not going to be fixed
by Washington bureaucrats. Our education system can only be fixed by
parents, teachers, aunts, uncles, coaches, and community leaders--the
people who actually know what is best for our Nation's children.
That is why I am supporting H.R. 5. I am supporting this bill to put
some restraints on the administration, to rein in the Department of
Education, and to put the keys to our children's educations and futures
back in local control where it belongs.
It repeals out-of-touch teacher qualification programs, and it allows
State and local officials to determine who is qualified to teach their
children. It also eliminates 65 programs and creates a grant program
with greater flexibility for school districts.
We all know that children learn differently and at their own pace,
and without this bill, the Secretary of Education can prohibit funds
from being sent to States unless they adopt certain one-size-fits-all
standards, like Common Core.
I will be the first one to say that additional reforms to our
education system are needed. No, this is not the silver bullet, but it
is a great start, and it is a great bill. I support this bill, and I
urge all of my colleagues to do the same.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
I just want to state for the record that graduation rates have been
up since No Child Left Behind was passed. Black and Latino children are
doing better, so it has been working, but we need to continue to
improve.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to read the Statement of Administration
Policy, which speaks to the administration position on H.R. 5. The
Statement of Administration Policy goes as follows:
The administration strongly opposes H.R. 5, the Student
Success Act, as approved by the House Committee on Education
and the Workforce. Congress must act in a bipartisan way to
reform the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to
help States prepare all children for college and careers by
giving them flexibility from No Child Left Behind mandates.
However, H.R. 5 represents a significant step backwards in
the efforts to help all of the Nation's children and their
families prepare for their futures.
H.R. 5 abdicates the historic Federal role in elementary
and secondary education of ensuring the educational progress
of all of America's children, including children from low-
income families, students with disabilities, English
learners, and students of color. It fails to maintain the
core expectation that States and school districts will take
serious, sustained, and targeted actions when necessary to
remedy achievement gaps and reform persistently low-
performing schools. H.R. 5 fails to identify opportunity gaps
or remedy inequities in access to the resources and supports
students need to succeed, such as challenging academic
courses, excellent teachers and principals, afterschool
enrichment or expanded learning time, and other academic and
nonacademic supports.
Rather than investing more in schools, H.R. 5 would allow
States to divert education funding away from the schools and
students who need it the most through the so-called
``portability'' provision. The bill's caps on Federal
education spending would lock in recent budget cuts for the
rest of the decade, and the bill would allow funds currently
required to be used for education to be used for other
purposes, such as spending on sports stadiums or tax cuts for
the wealthy. H.R. 5 fails to make critical investments for
the Nation's students, including high-quality preschool for
America's children, support for America's teachers and
principals, and investment in innovative solutions for the
public education system.
The administration agrees on the need for high-quality
statewide annual testing as required in H.R. 5, so parents
and teachers know how children and schools are doing from
year to year and to allow for consistent measurement of
school and student performance across the State. However,
this bill should do more to reduce redundant and unnecessary
testing, such as asking States to limit the amount of time
spent on standardized testing and requiring parental
notification when testing is consuming too much classroom
learning time.
The administration opposes H.R. 5 in its current form for
all of these reasons but particularly because it would deny
Federal funds to the classrooms that need them the most and
fails to assure parents that policymakers and educators will
take action when students are not learning.
If the President were presented with H.R. 5, his senior
advisers would recommend that he veto the bill.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I am happy to yield 3 minutes to the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Walberg), the chairman of the Subcommittee
on Workforce Protections.
Mr. WALBERG. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, since No Child Left Behind was put in place, the
Federal Government has dictated how States and school districts spend
money, gauge student learning and school performance, and hire
classroom teachers.
Frankly, Mr. Chairman, it isn't working. Washington bureaucrats, no
matter how well meaning they are, will never have the personal
understanding
[[Page H1149]]
of the diverse and special and unique needs of students than the
teachers, administrators, and parents who spend time with them.
Mr. Chairman, I stand here today because I have to speak for Erin and
Moses. Erin is my daughter-in-law and the mother of my four
grandchildren. Moses was a student who tested her teaching ability and
her passion for teaching.
Erin came to teach in a fourth and fifth grade classroom for special
needs students in Cicero, Illinois. Freshly minted out of her
educational training and master's program, she came in with a passion
for teaching.
She came in because she was sent in that classroom as a full-time,
continuing substitute because the teacher of that classroom had gotten
up one day, had walked out of the classroom, and had never come back.
Erin was given the opportunity of a lifetime of teaching these
students, and she began to invest her life into those students,
especially in one young student, a fourth grader by the name of Moses.
Moses came from a difficult situation. Moses at that time in the
fourth grade was not even fully potty-trained, but Erin invested her
time and talent and, frankly, her treasure in the life of that student,
as well as of the others. She had a wonderful outcome in working with
the parent in the home, as well as with Moses in the classroom.
The next year, Erin was given the opportunity to be a full-time
teacher, not a sub anymore. I will never forget the day when Erin came
to me, with tears in her eyes, and said: ``Dad, I'm not sure I'm cut
out for teaching.''
I said: ``Erin, why? You had an amazing impact for that 6 months of
time you spent in the same classroom last year.''
She said: ``Now, all I'm doing is filling out paperwork for Illinois,
for Chicago, and for the Federal Government.''
She ultimately had our twin grandsons and went from the classroom to
the home, but there will be a day that comes when those four kids are
at the stage when she can go back to the classroom. I want Erin to go
back and have the ability to teach, to love on those kids, to direct
them, to work with the parents, and not spend time filling out
bureaucratic forms.
Mr. Chairman, that is why I support the Student Success Act. It
replaces Federal control with State and local control.
The CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. KLINE. I yield the gentleman another 1 minute.
Mr. WALBERG. The bill allows States to establish and implement their
own standards and assessments. The bill allows States to develop their
own accountability plans for improving underperforming schools by
eliminating federally prescribed school improvement and turnaround
interventions. The bill provides State and local school districts
flexibility.
Mr. Chairman, that is what we are speaking for. It is for the Erins
and for the Moseses of the world--educational opportunities that should
lead us into the future in great ways for this country and to lead the
world.
{time} 1700
This is what we are talking about, Mr. Speaker. The Student Success
Act places control back in the hands of education's rightful stewards:
the teachers, the administrators, the States, the parents, and,
ultimately, the students.
Let's pass this bill.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, how much time is remaining?
The Acting CHAIR (Mr. Abraham). The gentleman from Minnesota (Mr.
Kline) has 4 minutes remaining, and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr.
Scott) has 4 minutes remaining.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Chairman, the Consortium for Citizens With Disabilities says:
The Student Success Act does not fully support students
with disabilities, and in fact, it creates incentives for
schools and districts to take students with disabilities,
unchecked, off the track from having equitable access to and
achieving a regular high school diploma.
Incidence data reflects that less than 1 percent of all
students have the significant cognitive disabilities, which
corresponds to about 10 percent of students with
disabilities.
Without this limitation, we fear that schools may
inappropriately assign students to the alternative
assessment. Data show assignment to these alternative
assessments may lead to reduced access to the general
curriculum and limit a student's access to earn a regular
diploma.
That is why the disability groups oppose the legislation.
Mr. Chairman, I just want to end with a reminder that this limits the
funding. It transfers money from low-income areas to high-income areas.
That is not just urban areas. There are over 2,400 low-income rural
districts that will lose about $150 million, or 15 percent, of their
total allocation, under the current law. The legislation eliminates
targeting for English learners and those with disabilities. Finally, it
fails to set meaningful standards.
For those reasons, we should join the administration in opposing H.R.
5, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. KLINE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time.
As is always the case in these debates on the floor, we hear a lot of
things. Some of them are actually factual; some of them are not. There
is, shockingly, some hyperbole that comes along with this.
We did hear some things, though, from both sides of the aisle that I
think are worth underscoring. One of the speakers on the other side of
the aisle talked about how schools and States need continuity--I think
was his word--predictability. That is exactly what we do not have now.
Right now, this country is operating under the law of the land, which
is No Child Left Behind, and under a big, convoluted scheme of
temporary conditional waivers which provide no continuity, no
predictability, and that is why we are hearing on both sides of the
aisle--from coast-to-coast and off the coast, as a matter of fact--that
we need to replace No Child Left Behind.
I believe that as we replace No Child Left Behind, we need to put
responsibility in the hands of parents and teachers and school boards
and States, and not in the hands of Washington, D.C.
I think that it is not fair to say that there is not a problem. We
heard from the ranking member that graduation rates have gone up. On
the other hand, they haven't gone up much, and we are still in a
position where a fourth, or 26 percent, of high school seniors are
proficient in math. That means 74 percent--maybe I need to have a
little math here--are not. Only 38 percent of those high school seniors
can read at grade level. We have a problem with one in five students
dropping out. We need to address that problem.
We heard a lot of talk about where title I funds go and portability
to public schools. It is a question, I understand. There is a
disagreement here, but we happen to believe it is fair that if you are
a poor kid, if you are eligible for title I funds, you ought to get
those funds. There is a disagreement. I think the children, if they are
eligible, if they are in poverty, ought to get their share of title I
funds.
One of the things we didn't talk much about today as we talked about
the problems out there, we know that in some areas of the country you
have children trapped in absolutely failing schools where less than
half of the kids graduate and those that graduate are nowhere near
ready to go to college or go to work.
So we have seen across the country and in most States public charter
schools popping up, giving parents hope, giving them a chance to get
those kids out of failing schools.
I said this the other day in the Rules Committee, because it was so
moving to me. I went to a charter school in north Minneapolis. There
were 430 kids in that school. Their parents are delighted with the
education they are getting now and thrilled to get their kids out of
failing schools.
When I asked the principal and the founder of the school if she could
take more kids, she said: No, this is the right size for this school.
She would like to replicate the school--and that is what this bill
allows--so she can have another successful charter school. And how
successful is it? There are a thousand kids, Mr. Chairman, on the
waiting list to get in that charter school because their parents want
to get out of a failing school system. This bill allows that to happen.
[[Page H1150]]
It comes down to, fundamentally: Who do you trust, Washington or
local government? We want to put the control in the hands of parents
and local school boards and States.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the
balance of my time.
Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Chair, I rise today in
opposition of H.R. 5, the ill-named Student Success Act. H.R. 5 would
undermine significant gains made by No Child Left Behind, and
eviscerate the Elementary and Secondary Education Act by dismantling
its foundation of equity and accountability.
Under this bill, school districts with the highest concentrations of
Hispanic students would lose more than $1.9 billion in federal funding.
Los Angeles Unified School District which is more than 74 percent
Hispanic faces the largest cut in Title I funds, over $80 million,
which amounts to nearly 25 percent of their budget.
School districts with a high concentration of students living in
poverty could lose $700 million in funding and high-poverty districts
could see cuts as large as 74 percent. The portability of Title I funds
would divert and dilute limited funds from schools with high needs and
high concentrations of poverty. This undermines the fundamental purpose
of Title I: to assist high needs and high poverty schools. With 35
percent of Latino children under the age of five living in poverty,
this is the time to increase, not decrease funding.
Education is our nation's great equalizer. I would not be where I am
today if it were not for the quality public education I received. For
over 50 years, ESEA has been our nation's driving force for educational
equity. Unfortunately, this Republican bill would dismantle the
foundation of equality and accountability that ESEA has built over the
last half-century. If we want our nation to remain a leader in the
world, we must improve equal access to quality education for the next
generation. Our students are the future of tomorrow, and we simply
cannot let them down.
The Acting CHAIR. All time for general debate has expired.
Pursuant to the rule, the committee rises.
Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Ms.
Ros-Lehtinen) having assumed the chair, Mr. Abraham, Acting Chair of
the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union, reported
that that Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 5)
to support State and local accountability for public education, protect
State and local authority, inform parents of the performance of their
children's schools, and for other purposes, had come to no resolution
thereon.
____________________