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ISTE Washington Notes
News of U.S. educational technology policy and legislation, posted as a service of ISTE, the International Society for Technology in Education. Copyright © 2006 ISTE
Guide to acronyms used in Washington Notes
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April 2006 Contents
Fiscal Year 2007 Budget Status
All eyes have been focused on the House of Representatives since March, when
the Senate passed its FY07 Budget Resolution containing $7 billion more in funding
for domestic programs. The Senate version might allow restoration of funding
for the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program to FY05 levels
of $496 million. But there's no certainly the House Budget Resolution, when
it finally passes, will look anything like the Senate's version.
A combination of pressures prevented House leaders from bringing the House
Budget Resolution to the floor before a two–week Easter/Passover Recess. Conservative
Republicans wanted to restrain spending and make changes to the budget and appropriations
processes, while moderate Republicans wanted to increase social spending. The
House returned into session on April 24 and leaders state their intention to
make another run at passing the budget in the coming weeks.
However, Congress will have to overcome significant obstacles to reach agreement
on a Final Budget resolution. Opposition from conservative and moderate House
Republicans is likely to continue. House and Senate versions of this legislation
are likely to be quite far apart. And the amount of available floor time is
dwindling rapidly.
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Budget Details, House Champions
Early in April, the House Budget Committee took up the Administration's proposed
FY07 budget, which calls for the elimination of EETT. During mark–up, Committee
member Rosa DeLauro's (D–CT) amendment to raise discretionary dollars for education
programs to FY05 levels, which was identical to language approved by the Senate,
failed in a vote of 14–22. The Budget Committee went on to approve the budget
on a 2217 vote.
After its late April recess, the House Committee on Rules will set the terms
for floor debate of the Budget Resolution, including which, if any, amendments
will be in order. Representative Mike Castle (R–DE) has stated that he will
seek to offer an amendment on the House floor that would increase spending on
education, health and other social service programs by $7 billion. If the House
Committee on Rules bars that amendment, Rep. Castle and several other moderate
Republicans have said that they would simply vote "no" on the overall
budget.
The House and Senate have until May 15th to complete their consideration of
the FY07 Budget Resolution, after which the Appropriations Committees can move
forward with marking up spending bills.
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Twenty–Eight Senators and Fifty–Two House Members
Signal Support for EETT
While the budget process was under way in the House, Senators Snowe (R–ME)
and Lieberman (D–CT) authored a letter, signed by 26 of their colleagues, urging
Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Arlen Specter (R–PA) and Ranking
Member Tom Harkin (D–IA) to fund EETT at the FY05 level of $496 million. The
letter was similar to a House letter spearheaded by Representatives Judy Biggert
(R–IL) and Ron Kind (D–WI), which attracted 52 signatories, including 13 Republicans.
The complete list of Senate signatories is as follows:
| Republicans |
Democrats |
| Collins (R–ME) |
Baucus (D–MT) |
| DeWine (R–OH) |
Bingaman (D–NM) |
| Ensign (R–NV) |
Cantwell (D–WA) |
| Snowe (R–ME) |
Clinton (D–NY) |
| |
Conrad (D–ND) |
| |
Dodd (D–CT) |
| |
Dorgan (D–ND) |
| |
Durbin (D–IL) |
| |
Feinstein (D–CA) |
| |
Jeffords (I–VT) |
| |
Johnson (D–SD) |
| |
Kennedy (D–MA) |
| |
Kohl (D–WI) |
| |
Landrieu (D–LA) |
| |
Lautenberg (D–NJ) |
| |
Lincoln (D–AR) |
| |
Lieberman (D–CT) |
| |
Menendez (D–NJ) |
| |
Mikulski (D–MD) |
| |
Murray (D–WA) |
| |
Obama (D–IL) |
| |
Rockefeller (D–WV) |
| |
Schumer (D–NY) |
| |
Stabenow (D–MI) |
In an effort to capture additional support from Republicans, Senator Orin Hatch
(R–UT) has begun circulating a similar letter that asks for increased funding
for EETT in general.
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Education Community Launches EETT Petition
While Congress was away on recess, the education technology community launched
a major grassroots effort to gather signatures from education leaders nationwide.
The petition calls for Congress to restore EETT program funding to a minimum
of it FY 05 level of $496 million to meet the nation's educational needs and
help ensure America's competitiveness.
Nearly 1000 signatures have been gathered in a short span of time. We urge
educators to view and sign the petition at http://www.missioncriticalcampaign.org/.
Please share the link with your colleagues at all levels of the education community,
including teachers, school technology directors, principals, superintendents
and other important stakeholders.
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E–Rate Update
It still seems unlikely that telecommunications reform legislation will be
enacted this year, given the lack of legislative days left in the session and
how far apart the House and Senate are or will be on major issues such as universal
service. However, there is some activity in the House and Senate Commerce Committees.
On the House side, the Telecommunications and Internet Subcommittee passed
telecommunications reform legislation that deals with video franchising and
net neutrality. Since Chairman Barton does not believe in the concept of universal
service and wants to put himself in the best negotiating position with the Senate,
he has decided to include no universal service language in the House bill. Reportedly,
Representatives Terry (R–NE) and Boucher (D–VA), who have introduced draft universal
service reform legislation, are seeking to have language from their bill included
in any Committee legislation. The Terry–Boucher bill contains very little E–Rate
language (only a permanent E–Rate and universal service exemption to the Anti
Deficiency Act provisions that caused funding delays in 2004) and is mainly
concerned with expanding the base of contributors to the universal service fund,
which supports the E–Rate.
The full House Commerce Committee is expected to take up the legislation passed
by the Subcommittee soon. However, with House Judiciary Committee Chairman James
Sensenbrenner (R–WI) seeking concurrent jurisdiction over this bill and his
likely opposition to language in the bill approved by the House Commerce Subcommittee,
movement on that bill may slow down.
On the Senate side, Chairman Stevens is assembling his own version of telecommunications
reform legislation, which he will seek to introduce and mark–up within the next
several weeks. While some language on E–Rate is expected to be included in the
bill, possibly including a permanent exemption to the ADA, there is no word
yet on what other E–Rate language will be contained within it.
At the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), the E–Rate program's
administrator, waves of funding commitment letters for Program Year 2005, which
ends on June 30, continue to roll–out. Recently, USAC announced that E–Rate
applicants with discount rates of 88% and above would receive internal connections
support but that there was insufficient funding to provide support to applicants
with discounts of 76% and below. USAC has still not determined whether there
will be enough funding to support internal connections requests from applicants
with discounts ranging between 77% and 87%.
USAC also released its demand estimate for Program Year 2006 in late March.
During this year's application period, USAC received 39,416 applications requesting
a total of $3.55 billion. This represents a 2.7 percent decrease over last year
in overall funding requested. 47.5% of overall funds requested ($1.685 billion)
were for telecommunications and Internet access services, while 52.5% of funds
requested ($1.864 billion) were for internal connections. USAC indicated, in
a letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, that these figures may rise because the
special Hurricane Katrina application window, which allows schools and libraries
impacted by the storm, remains open until September 30, 2006.
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Join the Ed Tech Action Network!
If educational technology issues are important to you, then please join the Ed
Tech Action Network at http://www.edtechactionnetwork.org/.
This online advocacy tool allows you to easily send important messages to your
Representative and Senators, learn more about timely education technology issues,
and receive tips for communicating with elected officials. Your voice is critical
for impacting the decisions of policy–makers!
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From the Washington, D.C.
Office of Bernstein Strategy Group
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The following message is posted as a service of ISTE,
the International Society for Technology in Education.
This message may not be reposted without this header.
Copyright © 2006 ISTE
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