United States Representative Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) released the following statement regarding on the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill (H.R. 3043)
Madame Speaker, I rise in support of the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill (H.R. 3043). This legislation makes important investments in education, health care and vital scientific research.
“Last November, voters around the country called for a change in direction and this bill epitomizes the differences in priorities between the old Republican-led Congress and the new Congress. In the past five years, even as the cost of attending college skyrocketed, the previous Congress raised the maximum Pell Grant by only $300. We said we could do better, and today we are increasing the Pell Grant by $390, more in one year than the Republican-led Congress did in five years. President Bush submitted a budget this year to freeze funding for child care and cut funding to Head Start by $100 million. We said we could do better, and today we are increasing both Child Care Block Grants and Head Start by $75 million each.
“Since the inception of No Child Left Behind, it has been underfunded by more than $55 billion, and this year the President’s budget proposal fell $14.7 billion short of full funding. We said we could do better, and today we are reversing that trend and increasing the appropriation for No Child Left Behind by $2 billion, including a $1.5 billion increase for Title I. As we work to reauthorize that bill this year, I hope that we will continue this positive trend and commit to mandatory funding of primary and secondary education.
“I am also pleased that today, for the first time since fiscal year 2005, we are increasing funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. In 1975, Congress passed IDEA to ensure that all students with disabilities receive a free, appropriate public education. At that time, Congress made a pledge to states – the federal government would pay 40% of the costs to educate special needs students. We have never met that commitment, and in the past several years, the Congress has actually failed to increase funding for IDEA at all. This year, the President proposed a cut in these funds. Today, we are increasing IDEA funding by $509 million. While this is an excellent start, we must continue to work towards keeping our promise to states and fully funding IDEA. With that in mind, I urge my colleagues to join me to pass the EDUCATE Act, which creates a mandatory, fiscally responsible path to fully fund IDEA by 2015. Students and states have waited more than 30 years for Congress to fulfill its pledge, and we have a responsibility to do so.
“I am also pleased that in this bill today, we are increasing funding for many important education programs, including school counseling, afterschool programs, Even Start, teacher training, education technology, and advanced placement. By strengthening these priorities, and putting the focus back on education at all levels, we are opening doors to students and increasing our ability as a nation to harness the energy, intelligence and ambition of our young people and keep our country in the forefront of discovery and innovation.
“The bill also addresses the fact that, in recent years, the nation’s health scientists have faced shrinking laboratory budgets and dwindling research grants. Important investments need to be made today to reverse those trends. The House focuses an additional $1 billion to fund the National Institutes of Health to accelerate research discoveries that can treat and cure many diseases.
“In spite of the all of the positives that this bill will accomplish, I am concerned about what some might consider superficially attractive but ultimately counterproductive cuts to administrative accounts at the Department of Education and elsewhere. Federal employees work hard to deliver valuable services to our nation everyday and simply can’t do their jobs without the minimum amount of resources necessary. This legislation includes roughly $175 million in funding cuts to federal employee salaries and resources. I’ll be working in conference to ensure that our dedicated civil servants have the resources they need to continue providing their valuable services.
“Madame Speaker, I am pleased to support this legislation which makes the critical investments needed to address the health, education and economic challenges we face.”