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January 11, 1996 |
After the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history (21 days) and the third worst blizzard this century, U.S. Department of Education employees returned to work today under a CR (continuing resolution) that runs until January 26. The current CR sets forth exactly the same conditions as the previous one (which ended December 15). In addition to providing funds for operating the Department until January 26, the CR allows spending on education programs to continue at the level of the House-passed appropriations bill *or* last year's appropriation (fiscal year 1995), whichever is lower. If this produces an amount less than 75 percent of the fiscal year 1995 level for a particular program, that program would instead be funded at 75 percent of last year's appropriation.Since the Department's annual appropriations bill for fiscal year 1996 (HR 2127) is still stalled in the Senate, it is not clear when -- or if -- that bill will be finalized. Funding for the Education Department could end up in an extended (perhaps for the rest of the year) Continuing Resolution negotiated at new levels.
Over the past weekend, the President responded to the Republicans' proposal to balance the budget with his own balanced-budget plan. His plan would continue to protect Medicare, Medicaid, education, and the environment. On Monday, Republicans presented their revised proposal in response to the President's. While the two sides have made progress in negotiations, they are still a considerable distance apart, not only on budget figures but in terms of policy approaches. Negotiations are expected to resume some time next week. Highlights of SAVINGS that would result from each proposal (to balance the budget in 7 years) are shown in the chart below.
--------------------------------------------------------------------- SAVINGS (in billions) | Clinton | GOP (Jan.6 proposal) | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| | | | Total 7-Year Savings: | $602 billion | (not available) | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Medicare: | $102 billion | $168 billion | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Medicaid: | $52 billion | $85 billion | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Student Loans: | $0 | (not available) | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Annually Approved General| | | Gov't Spending, Including| | | Defense: | $295 billion | $349 billion | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Welfare, Including Earned| | | Income Tax Credit for the| | | Working Poor: | $38 billion | $60 billion | -------------------------|------------------|---------------------- | Closing Corporate Tax | | | Breaks: | $60 billion | (not available) | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Farm Programs: | $0 | (not available) | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Savings from Lower | | | Interest Payments as | | | Federal Deficits Go Down:| $57 billion | (not available) | -------------------------|------------------|-----------------------| Tax Cuts (cost to | | | fed. gov't): | $17 billion | $177 billion | --------------------------------------------------------------------|
The District of Columbia received second-year funding in December. Thirty-three states have received second-year Goals 2000 funding, and 14 states' comprehensive education improvement plans have been peer- reviewed and approved.MASSACHUSETTS awarded first-year Goals 2000 grants to 22 public school districts for developing their own district-wide improvement plans and for improving pre-service programs and professional development opportunities (for teachers and administrators). One professional development (PD) grant will help Fitchburg Public Schools -- in collaboration with Leominster and Lunenberg Public Schools, and Fitchburg State College -- expand interdisciplinary learning in mathematics and science. Teachers and administrators are getting hands-on training at the Mathematics and Science Learning Lab (housed at the Fitchburg Planetarium) and at Fitchburg State College's Professional Development Center. With a second PD grant, Tantasqu schools -- and the towns of Brimfield, Holland, Sturbridge and Wales -- are supporting a Professional Development Committee that serves more then 300 teachers. Teachers are forming study groups and are leading in-service sessions that support the Massachusetts Common Core of Learning and advance curriculum frameworks and existing effective practices in these districts.
CEOs of half a dozen corporations joined Secretary Riley last month at Marriott International Headquarters (Bethesda, MD) for the kickoff signing of the "Employer Promise for Learning." By signing the promise, these business leaders committed their companies to the pursuit of family- friendly practices and partnerships in support of children's learning. The promise was developed by a committee of employers as a way to formalize their commitment to family-friendly policies. They will use it, along with recruitment materials, to encourage other employers to incorporate family- friendly policies for learning into their corporate culture. Participants included CEOs of Marriott International, GTE Corporation, Pizza Hut Corp., Hemmings Motor News, School Specialty, Paragon Furniture, and the Secretary of the Army. Also there were senior management representatives from John Hancock Financial Services, Hewlett-Packard, American College Testing, and United Airlines. Southern California Edison, Motorola, Walt Disney World Co., and Turner Educational Services also support the employer promise.
The Department released a draft of its revised guidance on waivers at the Improving America's Schools Mega-Conference last month. Prepared after a year of experience with the Department's new waiver authority, the revised guidance is more user-friendly than its predecessor and emphasizes how waivers can be a tool for improving schools and student achievement. Examples of waivers the Department has approved so far -- and a detailed, step-by-step section on how to prepare waiver requests -- are included. Comments are welcome on the revised guidance, which is expected to be available in the ED Online Library later this month. For Web users, the address is http://www.ed.gov/flexibility/ -- and for gopher users, follow the path --> gopher.ed.gov --> Department-wide Initiatives (Goals 2000...) --> Flexibility and Waivers.
Gerald Tirozzi has been nominated by the President to be Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education. Pending his confirmation by the Senate, Tirozzi is serving as Acting Assistant Secretary. He has been the Commissioner of Education for Connecticut, superintendent of schools in New Haven (CT), a principal, a science teacher, and president of Wheelock College.
Dorothy Berry has been appointed acting assistant secretary for management. Berry will oversee the Department's administrative functions, including human resources, information systems, labor-management relations and government reinvention activities. Before coming to the Department in 1993, Berry worked in executive and management positions at the Federal Aviation Administration for 10 years. She was also a Presidential Exchange Executive at Texaco Inc.
Tom Bloom has been confirmed by the Senate as the Department's new Inspector General. Bloom has most recently served as Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary for Administration at the U.S. Department of Commerce. Previously, he was a partner at Kenneth Leventhal and Company (the eighth largest accounting firm in the nation), Director of Audit and Review for the Resolution Trust Corporation Oversight Board, and a Senior Manager at Ernst and Whinney.
The week after Thanksgiving, Secretary Riley published in the Federal Register 3 new sets of final regulations for the Direct Loan program. They're designed to 1) revise the program's income contingent repayment option to discourage overborrowing and encourage repayment, 2) improve the program's fiscal and administrative oversight, and 3) establish safeguards against excessive defaults at participating schools. Among other changes in the income contingent repayment option, the Department simplified the existing repayment calculation provisions, made the repayment plan more sensitive to family size and total amount of debt, and eliminated the discrepancy between married and single household heads when determining monthly payment amounts. The new regulations will take effect July 1, 1996.The Direct Loan program was the focus of a November 30th White House press conference to reiterate the Administration's commitment to direct lending in the federal budget reconciliation negotiations. Deputy Secretary Kunin represented the Department at the event, which also featured remarks by the presidents of American University, the American Council on Education (ACE), the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU), the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), and the United States Student Association (USSA).
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