The House Education Subcommittee will begin preliminary mark-up of the Appropriations Bill this week. Recent headlines about dramatic increases in Medicaid and uncertainty about federal funding for welfare programs accurately reflect appropriations concerns brought to the attention of legislative leadership last week.
Current projections obliterate any surplus.
This situation, however, is constantly changing and subject to much speculation. Other standing committees have now begun to meet. On Tuesday, Feb. 6, House Higher Education held their first hearing. The Senate Education Committee met jointly with the Commission on 21 st Century Colleges and Universities. Dr. John Opperman , Director of the Governor's Office of Budget and Planning, testified that the Commissions recommendations include an excellence proposal that does not explicitly include a Tier One initiative but contemplates and encompasses this endeavor.