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[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 395 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 395

   Establishing the American Competitiveness through Education (ACE) 
                              resolution.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 9, 2006

   Mr. Harkin (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Reid, Mrs. Boxer, Mrs. 
    Murray, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. Menendez) submitted the following 
 resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 
                          Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
   Establishing the American Competitiveness through Education (ACE) 
                              resolution.

Whereas one of the top priorities for our families and our country is ensuring 
        that young people get the education they need, from early childhood to 
        higher education, to succeed at work and in life;
Whereas the economy and future of the United States depend on maintaining a 
        highly skilled and educated workforce with the ability to compete in an 
        increasingly high-tech global economy;
Whereas millions of hard-working middle-class families now struggle to afford 
        the rising cost of higher education, which averages $12,127 per year at 
        a public 4-year college and $29,026 per year at a private 4-year college 
        for the 2005-2006 school year;
Whereas between 2000 and 2005, the cost of tuition and fees increased 57 percent 
        at public 4-year colleges and 32 percent at private 4-year colleges;
Whereas during the 1985-1986 school year, the maximum Federal Pell Grant covered 
        55 percent of the cost of tuition, fees, room and board at a public 4-
        year college, but during the 2005-2006 school year the maximum Federal 
        Pell Grant covers only 33 percent of such cost, leaving today's students 
        burdened with more debt or unable to afford a college education at all;
Whereas at the same time that college costs are rising substantially, President 
        Bush recently signed into law the largest cut in student loan programs 
        in the history of the Nation and now proposes a budget for fiscal year 
        2007 that would eliminate new funding for Federal Perkins Loans and 
        freeze the maximum Federal Pell Grant award at $4,050, where the maximum 
        Federal Pell Grant has been since 2003, reducing the real value of the 
        maximum Federal Pell Grant to the families who depend upon it;
Whereas the President's budget also breaks promises to our children, their 
        parents, and their schools;
Whereas school districts must meet tough new standards under the No Child Left 
        Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110; 115 Stat. 1425), but the 
        President's budget underfunds this effort by $15,400,000,000;
Whereas all children deserve an education that will prepare them for the 21st 
        century global economy, but the President is proposing to leave 
        3,700,000 children behind by failing to fully fund title I of the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) 
        at the level promised in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001;
Whereas in 1975 Congress committed to fully funding the Individuals with 
        Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), in order to provide 
        an appropriate education to students with special needs, yet for the 
        second year in a row the President's budget retreats on that commitment 
        by reducing the Federal Government's share of the cost for educating 
        students with special needs, placing a greater financial burden on 
        States and local school districts;
Whereas research shows that every dollar invested in high-quality early 
        childhood education yields $13 in benefits to the public, but the 
        President's budget would eliminate Head Start services for 19,000 
        children;
Whereas despite the importance of education, the President now is proposing a 
        $2,100,000,000 cut to Federal education funding, which would be the 
        largest cut in the 26-year history of the Department of Education;
Whereas the President's budget proposes to eliminate or substantially reduce 
        funding for 42 existing education programs, including Safe and Drug-Free 
        Schools and Communities State Grants, Educational Technology State 
        Grants, Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Programs, Gaining 
        Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR-UP), and 
        Federal TRIO Programs;
Whereas every child deserves a safe, healthy, supervised place to go after 
        school, but the President's budget denies these opportunities to 
        2,000,000 disadvantaged students by funding 21st Century Community 
        Learning Centers at less than half the level promised in the No Child 
        Left Behind Act of 2001; and
Whereas the education cuts in the President's budget would eliminate the ability 
        of many working families to ensure a quality education for their 
        children, deny many young people the opportunities that flow from a 
        college education, reduce the competitiveness of the United States 
        workforce, and harm the Nation's economy: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved,

SECTION 1. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

    It is the sense of the Senate that--
            (1) Congress should act to make college more affordable 
        by--
                    (A) increasing tax benefits to offset college 
                costs, such as expanding the Hope Scholarship Credit 
                and the deductibility of college tuition;
                    (B) substantially increasing the size of Federal 
                Pell Grants to better reflect the increase in the cost 
                of higher education; and
                    (C) making student loans more affordable by 
                reducing interest rates and fees for students and 
                families;
            (2) Congress should keep its promises to the children of 
        the United States, particularly by fully funding the No Child 
        Left Behind Act of 2001, the Individuals with Disabilities 
        Education Act, and the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.); 
        and
            (3) Congress should reject the cuts in the President's 
        education budget for fiscal year 2007.

SEC. 2. SHORT TITLE.

    This resolution may be cited as the ``American Competitiveness 
through Education Resolution'' or the ``ACE Resolution''.
                                 <all>
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