appropriations « Advance CTE Blog

Legislative Update: Veteransâ€™ Training Bill, Appropriations, America COMPETES

Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010

Veteransâ€™ Training Bill Passed; Expands Eligibility to Area CTE Centers

Late last week the House passed the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Improvements Act of 2010 by a vote of 409-3, after it was cleared by unanimous consent in the Senate earlier in the week. The bill now goes to President Obama for his signature. This bill will allow veterans to use their benefits at educational institutions that do not award associate or higher degrees, such as area career technical schools, career schools, and apprenticeship programs. This would be a change from the current Post-9/11 GI Bill, which does not allow participants to use funds at a non-degree granting institution. The new eligibility provisions will go into effect on October 1, 2011. This is a tremendous victory for CTE and a recognition of the high quality programs that our area CTE centers offer!

Congress Passes Short-Term Continuing Resolution

The House on Tuesday passed a continuing resolution (CR) by a vote of 193 to 165 that would fund the government and all federal programs at FY10 levels through March 4.Â The Senate approved the bill earlier on Tuesday by a vote of 79-16. With the shift in power in the House, and the weakened Democratic hold over the Senate, there is sure to be a more partisan fight over spending as expiration of the CR draws near in March. Soon-to-be Speaker of the House John Boehner (Ohio) has already said that he wants to roll back federal spending to 2008 levels.

America COMPETES Act Passed by Congress

The House this week passed the America COMPETES Act by a vote of 228 to 130, after it was approved by unanimous consent in the Senate last week. The bill now heads to President Obama for his signature. The goal of the bill is to improve the competitiveness of the United States by investing in innovation through research and development. There are a variety of provisions in the bill that will impact STEM education, such as the coordination of federal STEM education efforts, grants to increase the number of STEM teachers, and other improvements in STEM education. Because Congress wanted to pass this bill before the current session of Congress ends, the House had little choice but to accept the Senate version of the bill which scales back funding from the original House bill and reauthorizes the bill for three years instead of five.

By admin in Legislation
Tags: appropriations, area CTE schools, budget, Congress, federal legislation, funding, future, global competition, Job training, postsecondary, president, Secondary, STEM, veterans

CR Clarifies Definition of Highly Qualified Teacher

Monday, December 20th, 2010

The continuing resolution (CR) introduced by the Senate (summary here), which would fund the government through March 4, 2011, includes a definition of â€œhighly qualified teacherâ€ that would make it easier for alternatively certified teachers to become â€œhighly qualified under the No Child Left Behind law. While this language has been in regulation since 2002, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit struck down the regulation in September, saying that it went too far. The U.S. Department of Education regulation allows uncertified candidates in alternative-route programs to teach for up to three years while they seek certification. If passed, the CR would supersede the Circuit Courtâ€™s decision.

By admin in Uncategorized
Tags: appropriations, Congress, federal legislation, highly qualified teachers, NCLB/ESEA, Secondary, teachers

Legislative Update: Appropriations

Friday, December 17th, 2010

Senate May Vote on CR This Weekend

As we told you last week, the House passed a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government until September 30, 2011, and we are awaiting action by the Senate. This week the Senate introduced an omnibus appropriations bill as a substitute, but last night Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced that the Senate would not vote on it because they did not have enough Republican support to pass it.Â Instead the Senate plans to propose a CR that would be shorter than the one passed in the House.

By admin in Legislation
Tags: appropriations, budget, Congress, federal legislation, funding

Legislative Update: Appropriations, Leadership Selections, Child Nutrition

Friday, December 10th, 2010

House Passes Continuing Resolution, Senate Expected to Vote on Omnibus

On Wednesday night, the House passed a year-long continuing resolution (CR) by a vote of 212-206 that would fund all government programs at last yearâ€™s levels until the end of the fiscal year (September 30, 2011). All Republican members voted â€œno,â€ along with 37 Democrats. The plan had been for the Senate to present an omnibus appropriations bill as a substitute for the House continuing resolution. If the Senate were to get the 60 votes necessary for cloture, the bill will be sent back to the House for consideration.Â The omnibus bill would contain about $19 billion more in funding than the House CR and would contain congressional earmarks. However, it appears the Senate will not vote on this until next week.

House Select Committee Leadership

The House Republicans and Democrats on Tuesday announced new chairmen and ranking members for the slate of House committees for the 112^th Congress. The chairman of the House Appropriations Committee will be Hal Rogers (R-KY), while Norm Dicks (D-WA) will serve as ranking member. As expected, John Kline (R-MN) will chair the House Education and Labor Committee and George Miller (D-CA) will be ranking member.

Child Nutrition Bill Passes Congress

Last week the House passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which passed the Senate in August, and it now heads to the President for his signature. The goal of the bill is to improve childrenâ€™s health and reduce childhood obesity nationwide by requiring school meals to meet new nutrition standards. The bill also gives the federal government the authority to apply nutritional standards to all food sold during the school day, including in vending machines, a la carte lines and other venues. There has been some concern that the new standards could impact CTE programs that sell student prepared food to raise money for their programs, but the bill does allow for an exemption for school-sponsored fundraisers that are approved by the school and are infrequent within the school.

By admin in Legislation
Tags: appropriations, budget, Congress, funding, leadership

A Look Inside: A Synopsis of CTE Trends

Thursday, December 9th, 2010

Earlier this fall, NASDCTEc hosted a webinar highlighting the recent trends seen in CTE governance, teacher shortages, funding and Career Clusters implementation, based on results collected and analyzed from the 2010 State Profile Survey. We are now happy to announce the release of A Look Inside: A Synopsis of CTE Trends, a four-part series analyzing state CTE data and initiatives:

Each section within the series provides a closer look and a better understanding of the structure and trends within CTE. While states are grappling with how to plan for the future in this uncertain economic climate, this series can help provide insights into the movement of CTE throughout the United States.

By admin in Advance CTE Resources, Publications
Tags: appropriations, ARRA, budget, Career ClustersÂ®, college and career readiness, community colleges, Congress, Data, funding, Perkins, postsecondary, Public Policy, Secondary, STEM, teachers, Webinars

Legislative Update: Appropriations, Fiscal Commission

Friday, December 3rd, 2010

Congress Passes Two Week Continuing Resolution

With the current continuing resolution (CR) set to expire today, both chambers of Congress this week passed a CR to fund the government until December 18.Â This will buy Congress more time to decide how to deal with FY11 appropriations â€“ through an omnibus appropriations bill, or through a longer term CR. Democratic Appropriation Committee leaders would prefer to pass an omnibus appropriations bill because the funding totals will be higher than a CR and because the bill would include Congressional earmarks. But regardless of the whether programs are funded though a long term CR or an omnibus appropriations bill, funding will be at a substantially lower level than what the President proposed in his budget request.

Fiscal Commission Releases Report

Earlier this week, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, which was formed to address our nation’s fiscal challenges, released its report, Moment of Truth. The report proposes deep cuts in discretionary spending that would â€œ[h]old spending in 2012 equal to or lower than spending in 2011, and return spending to pre-crisis 2008 levels in real terms in 2013. Limit future spending growth to half the projected inflation rate through 2020.â€ This would cut a total of almost $2 trillion below Obamaâ€™s proposed FY 11 budget over nine years (FY 12-20). But there was support for education in the report: â€œAt the same time, we must invest in education, infrastructure, and high-value research and development to help our economy grow, keep us globally competitive, and make it easier for businesses to create jobs.â€

However, at a vote scheduled for this morning on whether to officially adopt the report, the Commission adjourned without taking a vote because they did not have the 14 votes necessary. On Thursday it was reported that only 11 of the 18 members of Commission supported the proposals in the report.

By admin in Legislation
Tags: appropriations, budget, Congress, funding

Legislative Update: Congress Returns, Leadership Elections, Appropriations

Friday, November 19th, 2010

Congress Returns for Lame Duck, Holds Leadership Elections

Congress returned to Washington this week for the lame duck session that could take them up to Christmas. On Tuesday the Senate held their leadership elections for the upcoming 112^th Congress, but because the Democrats held onto the Senate, the leadership will remain the same as in the 111^th Congress. Sen. Harry Reid (NV) will remain Majority Leader while Sen. Richard Durbin (IL) will be Majority Whip.Â Republicans elected Sen. Mitch McConnell (KY) to be Minority Leader and Sen. Jon Kyl (AZ) as Minority Whip.

On Wednesday leadership elections were held in the House, where there will be changes in the now Republican controlled House. Republicans elected Rep. John Boehner (OH) as Speaker of the House, Rep. Eric Cantor (VA) as Majority Leader, and Rep. Kevin McCarthy (CA) as Majority Whip.Â The Democrats, meanwhile, elected Rep. Nancy Pelosi (CA) as Minority Leader, Rep. Steny Hoyer (MD) as Minority Whip, and Rep. James Clyburn (SC) as Assistant Minority Leader, which is a new position.

Appropriations Action Uncertain

During the lame duck, Congress hopes to resolve differences on the FY11 appropriations bills. There is currently a continuing resolution (CR), set to expire on December 3, which is keeping the government and federal programs running. The hope had been to pass an omnibus appropriations bill before the CR expires, however, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced yesterday that he is opposed to an omnibus bill. This would mean that Congress would have to pass a longer CR and deal with appropriations in the next session.

By admin in Legislation
Tags: appropriations, Congress, funding

Legislative Update: Congress in Recess, Continuing Resolution, For-Profit Hearing

Friday, October 1st, 2010

Congress Recesses Until November

Despite returning to Washington just two weeks ago, members of Congress returned home yesterday to campaign in their states ahead of the mid-term elections. Congress is expected to return the week of November 15, then recess again for the week of Thanksgiving and be back the week of November 29, until done. Senate Majority Whip, Dick Durbin (IL), said this week that the lame duck session will focus on three items an omnibus spending package, a middle-income tax extension and a strategic arms control treaty with Russia.

Continuing Resolution to Keep Government Running

Because Congress did not pass any appropriations bills this session, they have passed a continuing resolution that will keep the government open and federal programs running at FY2010 levels until December 3, 2010. Their goal is to pass an omnibus appropriations bill before the session ends in December.

Senate Hearing on For-Profit Schools

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held the latest in a series of hearings on for-profit schools this week. Yesterdayâ€™s hearing, â€œThe Federal Investment in For-Profit Education: Are Students Succeeding?,â€ focused on the success rates of students at these schools and the impact that attending these schools can have on personal debt. In his opening statement, Chairman Tom Harkin (IA) revealed the following statistics that his staff has compiled in a new report:

Out of 16 for-profit schools analyzed, 57% of the students who entered school between July â€˜08 and June â€˜09 have dropped out.
In total, these schools have lost 1.9 million students in the past three years.
More than 95% of students at two-year for-profit schools and 93% at four-year for-profit schools took out student loans in 2007, compared with 16.6% of students attending community colleges.

“We will be having yet another hearing in early December, and then be looking at sometime next year coming up with some kind of legislative changes,” Harkin said during the hearing.

Ranking Member Michael Enzi (WY) was quick to point out that many of these problems are not limited to proprietary schools, but exist across the higher education spectrum, including public and private 4-year colleges and universities and community colleges, and that for-profits should not be singled out.

By admin in Legislation, Public Policy
Tags: appropriations, budget, community colleges, Congress, Legislation, Post Secondary Access and Affordability, postsecondary, Public Policy

Legislative Update: Linked Learning, Green Workforce Development, Republican Pledge to America

Friday, September 24th, 2010

Linked Learning Pathways to College, Career, and Citizenship Success Act

On September 22, Rep. Judy Chu (CA) introduced H.R. 6174, the Linked Learning Pathways to College, Career, and Citizenship Success Act, along with co-sponsor Rep. Barbara Lee (CA). The bill is aimed at preparing students for college and careers through the Linked Learning, or multiple pathways, approach. More specifically, the bill would award grants to school districts in partnership with local stakeholders, including businesses, unions, parent organizations, and other community members. At the district level, grants would be used for planning and implementation of a system of pathway schools around career themes designated as high pay, high growth, and high skill industries. At the school level, students would be exposed to four components: a rigorous academic core aligned to the stateâ€™s postsecondary requirements; career technical education; work-based learning, and supplemental services.

Green Workforce Development Through Community Colleges Act

Rep. Paul Tonko (NY) introduced H.R. 6142, theÂ Green Workforce Development Through Community Colleges Act, which gives authority to the Secretaries of Labor, Energy and Education to jointly develop a workforce training and education program to prepare workers for careers in alternative energy and energy efficiency industries. The bill would award grants to community colleges to reach this goal.

Republican â€œPledge to Americaâ€

Yesterday, Congressional Republicans issued their election policy platform, â€œA Pledge to America.â€Â Education issues are not mentioned, but the document does include a plan to create jobs and make America more competitive if Republicans take control of the Congress in November.Â Their plan would include ending all tax increases, giving tax deductions to small businesses and repealing mandates that harm small businesses. The pledge also outlined a plan to cut spending by reducing discretionary spending to FY 2008 levels, rescinding unused ARRA funds, imposing hard caps on discretionary spending and sunsetting outdated and duplicative programs.

By admin in Legislation, Public Policy
Tags: appropriations, ARRA, budget, college and career readiness, community colleges, Congress, federal legislation, funding, green jobs, Job training, postsecondary, Public Policy, Secondary

Legislative Update: ESEA, Education Jobs Fund, Clean Energy Works Act

Friday, July 30th, 2010

ESEA Reauthorization Unlikely This Year

An article in Wednesdayâ€™s Washington Post sums up what we have been piecing together for some time — ESEA will probably not be reauthorized this year. While the President has made education a top priority and Congress has held hearings and is working behind the scenes to hammer out a bipartisan bill, progress has been slow and the upcoming elections make Congress wary of moving such a controversial piece of legislation. Former Secretary of Education and Republican Senator on the HELP Committee, Lamar Alexander (TN) does not think we will see a bill this year: “I’d say time is up,” Alexander said Tuesday. “I don’t see it happening.” In an interview with the National Journal the same day, Chairman George Miller (CA) of the House Ed and Labor Committee said that he and Ranking Member John Kline (MN) have agreed to work through August on a bill and want to be ready when the opportunity arises to introduce it. Only time will tell what Congress will do, but we will keep you posted on any new developments.

Education Jobs Fund Stripped from Supplemental

While the House voted earlier this month to include the $10 billion Education Jobs Fund in the emergency supplemental appropriations bill, the Senate lacked the votes to include the fund in their version of the supplemental. As a result, House Democrats have accepted the Senate’s plan to pass a stripped-down supplemental bill and are seeking another vehicle for the Education Jobs Fund.

Clean Energy Works Act

Sen. Patty Murray (WA) recently introduced S. 3631, the Clean Energy Works Act which would help prepare workers for clean energy careers. In addition to expanding the State Energy Program and making investments in national clean energy research, the bill would provide grants to clean energy companies for job training:

Regional Energy Alliance Skills Grants: Â Competitive grants to producers of low-carbon producing energy industries in states or multi-state regions to educate, train, hire, and retain the skilled workers they need to grow their ability to provide energy at scale.
Regional Industry Energy Efficiency Grants: Competitive grants to industries that are high energy consumers (such as within manufacturing) to train or retrain workers to have the skills necessary to reduce their energy use through the use of new equipment, new practices, or other means.
Customized Renewable Energy Training Grants: Competitive grants to single companies either in the low-carbon producing energy industry, or an industry that supports such an industry, to provide the training necessary to have the skilled workforce to be competitive. Â These grants need individual company needs, especially to companies that may not be in a regional cluster of similar companies in an industry.

By admin in Legislation
Tags: appropriations, Congress, federal grants, federal legislation, funding, green jobs, Job training, NCLB/ESEA

Posts Tagged ‘appropriations’