1. Federal Education Policy & Funding
April 5, 2017

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3. Capitol Hill Day: Tuesday, September 13

4. Federal Landscape
President Donald J. Trump, U.S. Secretary Betsy DeVos and 1st session of the 115th Congress
Focus on overturning laws & regulations championed by the Obama administration:
Affordable Care Act
Education regulations on teacher prep, ESSA accountability & state plan template
Title IX
ESSA implementation & budget still dominating discussions on Capitol Hill

5. Key Policy Issues Federal Education Policy Higher Education Act
Career and Technical Education
School Choice
Budget and Appropriations

6. Higher Education Act
Now that ESSA is “done,” Congress is turning to another major piece of education legislation, the Higher Education Act
Higher education, particularly the cost of college, was a major campaign issue for presidential & congressional candidates
Many proposed bills related to HEA were introduced during the 114th Congress

7. Talking Points: Higher Ed
Ask the member of Congress to cosponsor or support the Recruiting and Retaining Effective School Leaders Act (no bill #), which will be reintroduced by Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA)
Bill would provide loan forgiveness to principals and assistant principals, mirroring a similar program already in place for teachers

8. Talking Points: Higher Ed
Ask the member of Congress to cosponsor or support the Educator Preparation Reform Act (no bill #), which will be reintroduced by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI)
Bill would improve accountability for teacher & principal prep programs and expand Teacher Quality Partnership Grants to include principal residency programs

9. Talking Points: Higher Ed
Ask the member of Congress to cosponsor the Making Education Affordable and Accessible Act (S. 718/H.R. 1710), which was introduced by Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO)
Bill would allow funds under Title VII of HEA to be used for dual or concurrent enrollment programs
Funds could also be used for professional development opportunities for teachers, principals & other school leaders

10. Career and Technical Education
Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act is overdue for reauthorization
The House passed a bipartisan bill in September 2016, but a markup of the Senate bill was postponed indefinitely
We expect the House bill to be the starting point in the 115th Congress

11. NASSP on CTE Policy
In fall 2015, NASSP sent a letter to the Hill outlining our priorities in CTE reauthorization
NASSP emphasized:
Professional development for CTE teachers
Personalization
CTE in the middle grades
Accountability and data collection
Greater funding

12. Talking Points: CTE
Ask the Member of Congress to cosponsor the Middle STEP Act (no bill #), which will be reintroduced by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA)
Bill would expand career exploration and CTE-related opportunities to middle level students, including apprenticeships or other work-based learning opportunities

13. School Choice
NASSP has a longstanding position in opposition to school vouchers and tax credit programs that would transfer public funds to private schools
President Trump proposed a $20 billion school choice program as part of his campaign platform
Skinny budget for FY 2018 included school choice proposals
Voucher amendments were defeated during ESEA reauthorization process

14. Talking Points: School Choice
Urge your member of Congress to oppose the CHOICE Act (S. 235/H.R. 691), which was introduced by Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Rep. Todd Rokita (R-IN)
Bill would turn IDEA into a voucher program and shift special education funds to private institutions
Bill would also reduce Impact Aid & expand the ineffective DC voucher program

15. Talking Points: School Choice
Urge your member of Congress to also oppose the following bills:
Enhancing Educational Opportunities for All Students Act (H.R. 716)
Choices in Education Act (H.R. 610)
Educational Opportunities Act (H.R. 895/S. 148)

16. Federal Budget & Appropriations

17. Key Terms Authorization
Creates a specific program through federal law. An authorization bill acts as a prerequisite for an appropriation or other kinds of budget authority.
Appropriations
Provides the actual amount of federal dollars to a specific program. Congress needs to pass appropriations bills each year for the operations and programs run by the federal government.

18. Federal Budget & Appropriations
Sequestration:
Sequestration began in March 2013
Education funding for school year was cut by 5.23% ($3.1 billion)
FY 2014 appropriations bill partially restored sequester cuts to some programs
Sequestration will resume after FY 2016 unless Congress takes action!

19. Federal Budget & Appropriations
FY 2017 Appropriations
Congress failed to complete the FY 2017 appropriations process before the new fiscal year began on October 1, 2016
Federal government has been operating under a continuing resolution (CR), which is due to expire on April 28, 2017
President Trump has requested $3 billion in cuts to education funding in FY 2017
Government shutdown is a possibility!

20. Federal Budget & Appropriations
FY 2018 Appropriations
President Trump released a “skinny budget” on March 16
Budget includes a $54 billion increase for defense spending.
Budget provides $59 billion for the Department of Education, a $9 billion (13%) reduction below the FY 2017 funding level
Congressional committees will hold hearings on FY 2018 budget & appropriations this spring
All bills must be finalized by October 1, 2018

21. Talking Points: Appropriations
Ask for full authorized-level funding for ESSA programs:
Title I Grants to LEAs
Title II, Part A (State Grants)
School Leader Recruitment and Support Program
Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN)
School Support and Academic Enrichment Grants (Title IV, Part A)

22. Talking Points: Appropriations
Other priority programs:
IDEA State Grants
CTE State Grants

23. Contact Information
Amanda Karhuse
NASSP Director of Advocacy
Zach Scott
NASSP Advocacy Manager

24. THANK YOU!
DISCUSSION
Comments & Questions