H. Res. 303
In the House of Representatives, U.S.,
October 12, 1999.
Whereas effective teaching begins by helping children master
basic academics, holding children to high standards,
using effective, scientifically based methods of instruction
in the classroom, engaging and involving parents, cre-
ating safe and orderly classrooms, and getting dollars to
the classroom;
Whereas our Nation’s children deserve an educational system
that provides opportunities to excel;
Whereas States and localities must spend a significant
amount of education tax dollars applying for and admin-
istering Federal education dollars;
Whereas the administrative costs of the United States are
twice the average of other countries in the Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD);
Whereas it is unknown exactly what percentage of Federal
education dollars reaches the classroom, but according to
the Department of Education, in 1998, 84 percent of the
Department’s elementary and secondary education dollars
were allocated to local educational agencies and used for
instruction and instructional support;
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Whereas the remainder of the Department’s dollars was allo-
cated to States, universities, national programs, and
other service providers;
Whereas the total spent by the Department for elementary
and secondary education does not take into account what
States must spend to receive Federal dollars and comply
with requirements, it also does not reflect what portion
of the Federal dollars allocated to school districts is spent
on students in the classroom;
Whereas American students are not performing up to their
full academic potential, despite significant Federal edu-
cation initiatives, which span multiple Federal agencies;
Whereas according to the Digest of Education Statistics, dur-
ing the 1995–96 school year only 54 percent of
$278,965,657,000 spent on elementary and secondary
education was spent on ‘‘instruction’’;
Whereas according to the National Center for Education Sta-
tistics, in 1996, only 52 percent of staff employed in pub-
lic elementary and secondary school systems were teach-
ers;
Whereas according to the latest data available from the Gen-
eral Accounting Office, in fiscal year 1993, Federal edu-
cation dollars funded 13,397 full-time equivalent posi-
tions in State educational agencies;
Whereas in fiscal year 1998, the Department of Education’s
paperwork and data reporting requirements totaled
40,000,000 ‘‘burden hours,’’ which is the equivalent of
19,300 people working 40 hours a week for one full year;
Whereas too much of our Federal education funding is spent
on bureaucracy, special interests, and ineffective pro-
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grams, and too little is effectively spent on our Nation’s
youth;
Whereas getting 95 percent of all Federal elementary and
secondary education funds to the classroom could provide
substantial additional funding per classroom across the
United States;
Whereas more education funding should be put in the hands
of someone in a child’s classroom who knows the child’s
name;
Whereas burdensome regulations, requirements, and man-
dates should be removed so that school districts can de-
vote more resources to children in classrooms; and
Whereas President Clinton has stated: ‘‘We cannot ask the
American people to spend more on education until we do
a better job with the money we’ve got now.’’: Now, there-
fore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives urges
the Department of Education, States, and local edu-
cational agencies to work together to ensure that not less
than 95 percent of all funds appropriated for the purpose
of carrying out elementary and secondary education pro-
grams administered by the Department of Education is
spent to improve the academic achievement of our children
in their classrooms.
Attest:
Clerk.