Federal Funding for Education
NSBA primarily advocates for increases to two federal programs that are the largest sources of federal funding to school districts and also operate as mandates:
- Title I grants: the main source of federal funding for the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act
- IDEA grants: special education funding under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Federal funding for elementary and secondary education programs has remained nearly flat from FY 2005 to FY 2007 because of a shift in budget priorities and a perpetual gridlock of recent Congressional appropriations processes.
What to Tell Congress: NSBA's Position
NSBA urges Congress to increase the federal investment public education programs, including:
- Increase Title I grants for disadvantaged students by $2.5 billion.
- Increase IDEA grants for special education by $2.5 billion.
- Reject the proposed cuts/eliminations to other programs, including vocational education and education technology.
- Reject any private school voucher proposals.
Visit our Legislative Action Center to find out what's happening in Congress now.
Resources
- Economic Stimulus Resource Center
Resource center for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
- Issue Brief: Federal Funding for Education
[PDF 161,349kb] - FY 2010 Funding Chart [PDF 136,878kb]
This chart highlights proposed funding levels for select education programs.
- NSBA’s Actions to Support an Economic Stimulus Package for Schools
[HTML 2,149kb]
View a summary of NSBA's efforts to include education funding in the economic stimulus law.
- NSBA's Statement on the Passage of the Economic Stimulus Bill
Statement by Executive Director Anne Bryant on the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
- NSBA's Funding Chart [PDF 152,532kb]
Final funding levels for education programs in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
- NSBA Statement on the Proposed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
Statement by Executive Director Anne L. Bryant
- Summary of School Construction Survey Results [HTML 2,568kb]
School board members identify $17 billion worth of construction projects subject to credit barriers, funding shortfalls.
- Recommendations for Immediate Fiscal Assistance to School Districts [PDF 141,960kb]
NSBA's recommendations for urgent assistance to local school districts as part of an economic stimulus package.
- FY 2009 House & Senate Appropriations Committee Recommendations [PDF 54,822kb]
Proposed FY 2009 funding levels for key education programs. The House and Senate passed a continuing resolution for the FY 2008 funding levels through March 2009.
- FY 2009 Education Funding Budget Update: March 28, 2008 [PDF 111,032kb]
A summary and comparison of the House and Senate FY 2009 budget resolutions.
- NSBA Analysis of the President's FY 2009 Budget Request [PDF 111,219kb]
President Bush released his Fiscal Year 2009 budget request on February 4, 2008. Learn more about the proposed funding levels.
- Comparison of Title I Funding by State for FY 2008 [PDF 93,305kb]
State-by-state allocations for Title I grants and IDEA (Part B) grants for FY 2008.
- FY 2008 Appropriations Chart [PDF 22,143kb]
The numbers are out - check out the funding levels for education for Fiscal Year 2008.
- Communications with Congress
View NSBA's letters to the 110th Congress on federal funding for key education programs.
- NSBA Editorial: The promised veto of the funding bill should be rejected [HTML 4,999kb]
- Committee for Education Funding
NSBA is a member of the Committee for Education Funding, a coalition of 100 member organizations working toward the common goal of achieving adequate federal support for our nation's education system.