The Honorable Duncan HunterUnited States House of Representatives223 Cannon House Office BuildingWashington, DC 20515
Dear Representative Hunter:
On behalf of the more than 362,000members of the National Taxpayers Union (NTU), I write to offer our support forH.R. 1891, your “Setting New Priorities in Education Spending Act.” Yourlegislation would repeal the authorization of several wasteful or duplicativefederal education programs to ensure taxpayer resources are being used wisely.
Federal spending on education hasincreased by more than 300 percent over the last three decades while studentachievement indicators, such as graduation rates and test scores, have remainedlargely stagnant. Despite these statistics, federal involvement in this areahas proliferated, burying schools beneath an enormous compliance burden andsubstituting the will of Washington bureaucrats for state and localpolicymakers. In total, the Department of Education runs more than 100different grant programs, many of which the Government Accountability Office orthe Office of Management and Budget have identified as redundant orunsuccessful at increasing student achievement.
The Setting New Priorities in EducationSpending Act would help to streamline the bloated federal bureaucracy and laythe foundation for increased flexibility at the local and state level. Althoughmany proposals pertaining to education reform inspire knee-jerk reactions andshrill complaints about “draconian” cuts from the school-spending establishment,a measured inspection of the bill would reveal it is the product of athoughtful, methodical process to identify inefficient and ineffectiveprograms. In fact, a great number of thegrant schemes that would be permanently repealed by H.R. 1891 have already beendefunded in the Continuing Resolution approved by both chambers of Congress,eliminated in President Obama’s Budget, or have not been funded in some time. Phasingout these programs, which have failed to show educational gains butnevertheless remain a significant drain on taxpayers, would be a welcome steptoward fiscal discipline.
For the past several decades Washingtonhas too often confused education reform with simply spending more money. Theresult has been dramatic increases in overlapping and underperforming initiatives,paperwork for schools, and liabilities for taxpayers. The Setting NewPriorities in Education Spending Act would allow lawmakers as well as teachersto focus on programs that have demonstrated success in the classroom in orderto ensure taxpayer dollars are being spent wisely. NTU endorses H.R. 1891 and any roll call votes will be significantlyweighted in our annual Rating of Congress.
Sincerely,
BrandonGreife FederalGovernment Affairs Manager