The sum of outlays for schools and libraries is capped at 2.25 billion in any single year. Individual components may not be reduced to bring that total into line. Consequently, totals may not add. If the federal government wants to pay for things like the wiring of classrooms, there is plenty of lower priority spending in the federal education budget from which to draw. Surely the time has come for Congress to systematically evaluate the results of these myriad programs and eliminate those that are ineffective.
Education is the ultimate local issue.
If states want to spend money on Internet hook-ups, let them use their own tax dollars. 8 Beyond Glassman's point about the number of schools with Internet access, we note that many telecommunications and computer firms have spent literally hundreds of millions of dollars connecting schools and libraries to the Internet. And of course, if these spending decisions were localized, many public officials, teachers, and parents might decide that these dollars were better spent elsewhere - on books, new desks, or any of a number of items. The 300,000-member National Taxpayers Union is deeply troubled by the FCC's Universal Service Tax. We oppose any and all new taxes on the American public.