Date: 1991-09-11
Speaker: DONALD PAYNE (democrat)
Chamber: H

for managing the bill on the floor. Mr. CASS BALLENGER. ranking minority. all subcommittee members and their respective staffs. Preeminent among the six education goals set out by the President last year is the one that relates to ensuring that every child is ready to learn when they start school. The bill we have considered today Is one of the major pieces of legislation that is aimed at ensuring the attainment of this goal. Hailed as ahead of its time when it was first passed in 1986. the programs objective was a simple oneto provide a way to identity. screen. diagnose. and refer for services infants and toddlers with disabilities in order to enhance the opportunities for learning prior to their arrival in the classroom. This legislation represents an effort to keep pace with Americas changing school population. A myriad of factors. ranging from poor prenatal care to profound language deficiencies. are causing more children from diverse backgrounds to show up in special education classrooms. Among these is the fact that 60 percent of urban children live in poverty. with future projections that a quarter of all children will be poor by the year 2000. Americas racial profile is also rapidly changing. By the year 2000. this Nation will have 260.000.000 people. one out of every three will be either AfricanAmerican. Hispanic. or AsianAmerican. During hearings held by the Subcommittee on Select Education. concern was expressed about the rising numbers of atrisk children and how best to serve them. It is estimated that 10 percent of all live births. or 375.000 babies a year. are exposed to drugs in the womb. In certain innercity hospitals. as many as 60 percent are born to drug abusers. The combination of poverty and poor prenatal care tends to produce more underweight babies. who are more likely to end up in special education. However. experts feel that drugexposed children can learn in regular classrooms with others their age. as long as they get early help. To assist States in addressing the needs of this population. the bill provides funding of State planning grants to establish statewide coordinated systems that would identify. track. and appropriately refer these children. H.R. 3053 includes several changes to enhance the opportunities of parents from underrepresented populations to be active participants in these programs and to ensure that these families have access to culturally competent services. The bill also addresses the urgent problems of the Nations Native American population. A 1990 GAO report on Indian children with disabilities on reservations revealed the need to address issues of coordination. data collection. and the lack of leadership by the Bureau of Indian Affairs in providing services. The bill reiterates the responsibility of the States to provide preschool and early intervention services to all eligible children. including Indian children on reservations. It is anticipated that the changes in the bill which address these problems will produce an increase in the quality and quantity of services available to Indian families and their children on reservations. The recruitment. training. and retention of personnel continues to be a problem in the provision of services to children with disabilities. With the addition of the early intervention program under IDEA in 1986. the lack of qualified personnel entering this work force continues to adversely impact service provision. An Initiative authorized in this bill provides an opportunity to train and retain workers. who currently hold entry level or paraprofessional positions in public and private agencies that serve these children and have demonstrated a commitment to remaining in the special education and related services field. Using a nontraditional approach by providing for demonstration grants and technical assistance in this area. The amendment which has been offered today has been agreed to by the minority and includes technical changes. There are two substantive modifications. The first concerns the Department of Defenses section 6 schools. Additional language is included to clarify Congress intent that the same rights and protections available to children age 6 and older under part B of IDEA also apply to children beginning at age 3. This provision does not affect any rights currently available prior to these amendments. The second modification clarifies Congress intent to have Indian infants and toddlers on reservations included in the statewide system established under part H. It is clear that an investment in early childhood education is critical to the prevention of later educational failure. Only through early interventions and preschool experiences can our youngest population of individuals with disabilities and those atrisk for developmental delays be given hope for successful educational outcomes. The bill reauthorizes these programs for 3 years. Beginning with $220 million for fiscal year 1992. an increase of approximately 50 percent over current levels.