WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Lois Capps attended the Santa Barbara County Schools Superintendents’ regular monthly meeting today to discuss proposed education funding cuts included in the President Bush’s budget.
Congresswoman Capps joined the superintendents and Santa Barbara County Superintendent of Schools Bill Cirone for an hour-long discussion of devastating impact of proposed federal education funding cuts. The budget calls for the complete elimination of 48 education programs and significantly cuts another 16.
Santa Barbara County schools would suffer from drastic budget cuts in special education, vocational education, technology, and safe and drug-free schools programs if this budget becomes law. For example, the percentage of special education funding provided by the federal government would decrease, despite years of efforts to bring it up to the 40 percent promised since the early 1970s. Since that time, the rate of preschoolers with autism has increased by more than 130 percent, forcing schools to create preschool programs for children with greater needs.
“Many of these programs are critically important to Santa Barbara County students, including the Safe and Drug Free School Program, family literacy, vocational education, and funding for veterans,” Capps said. “The President's budget also severely under funds IDEA and No Child Left Behind. As a member of the Budget Committee, I will work very hard to see that these cuts are restored.
“I welcomed this opportunity to sit down with Bill Cirone and other education leaders to learn more about how the President’s budget will affect our community,” Capps added.
The House Budget Committee, of which Congresswoman Capps is a member, will take up the FY06 Budget starting on Wednesday. It will be considered on the House floor next week.
“People need to understand the connection between their expectations for their child's classroom and decisions made in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.,” Capps explained to the group. “This is a sad day in our country. We probably need these programs more now that ever before because they are so effective -- programs like Upward Bound, Perkins loans, family literacy, and veterans’ education benefits.
“Parents getting their children up in the morning and sending them to school have no idea what terrible choices are being made that should not have to be made,” Capps said.
Below are comments from Santa Barbara County school superintendents who attended the meeting with Congresswoman Capps earlier today:
Bill Cirone, Santa Barbara County Superintendent of Schools:
“Public schools in our county have been hit by a double-whammy: While having to fight huge cuts from the state and fend off an attack on Proposition 98's basic guarantees. We are also hit by huge cuts at the federal level. Our governor had promised to be a "Collectinator" and get money from Washington, D.C. However, the president's budget proposes $10 billion less for California in the next five years, and that doesn't even include cuts to programs like Medicaid and food stamps. According to the proposed Bush budget, in the next five years California will lose $1.2 billion in federal education money, including $815 million for special education, and nearly $700 million for adult and vocational education.”
Brian Sarvis, Interim Superintendent of Santa Barbara School Districts:
“On the back of special education needs that have been chronically under-funded and No Child Left Behind, which grossly underfunds what it promises to children, these unfunded mandates create real crises for our districts. This assault on public education is much stronger than it's been in many, many years.”
Hugo Lara, Superintendent of Guadalupe School district:
“The switch for Title I funding from the number of students in free and reduced lunch programs to numbers from the 1990 census in President Bush’s proposed budget grossly under-represents the number of students most in need of services. This started with No Child Left Behind.”
Jeff Hearn, Superintendent of Santa Maria High School district:
“Many of the proposed cuts go to the secondary schools, based supposedly on the premise that the programs are ineffective. What is the basis for saying the programs are ineffective? Our programs are highly effective and make a huge difference for the students served."
Sandra Smyser, Superintendent of Carpinteria School District
“No Child Left Behind seems designed specially to undermine the public education system as it stands. That's what's so discouraging. It's designed to ensure that schools are labeled as failures.”
