NSBA urging Congress to increase special education funding
0707 -- The House of Representatives is considering an education appropriations bill (H.R.3043) that would provide a modest increase in funding for Title I but a smaller increase for special education.
As this issue went to press, NSBA was engaged in a major advocacy campaign to urge support on the House floor for amendments to increase funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
But even if Congress succeeds in increasing funding for education to more acceptable levels, adequate funding for fiscal 2008 is far from guaranteed: President Bush has threatened to veto any appropriations bills that would increase funding beyond the levels proposed by the White House.
The current level for Title I, the main source of funding for implementing the No Child Left Behind Act, is $12.8 billion. The President proposed $13.9 billion for fiscal year 2008.
The bill under consideration on the House floor would increase funding for Title I by $1.6 billion for a total of $14.4 billion for 2008. That is less than NSBA’s recommendation for a $2.5 billion increase, but is still more than the $1.2 billion increase approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
During the House floor debate, lawmakers rejected an amendment by Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-Calif.) to increase Title I funding by $75 million.
NSBA recommends a $2.5 billion increase for IDEA, which is currently funded at $10.8 billion. The President proposed a cut in funding to $10.49 billion.
The House bill calls for an increase of just $511.5 million for IDEA, while the Senate committee proposed an increase of only $400 million.
As the appropriations bill was being debated on the House floor, NSBA urged representatives to support an amendment by Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) to increase IDEA funding by an additional $125 million. Unfortunately, it failed to pass by a vote of 224 to 203. The House did pass an amendment sponsored by Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) to provide an additional $2 million for IDEA.
During the House committee debate on the bill, NSBA advocacy efforts succeeded in ensuring passage of an amendment by Rep. James Walsh (R-N.Y.) to add $335 million in IDEA funding.
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