THE PROBLEM: The Department of Education operates approximately 80 programs tied to K-12 classrooms, each with its own set of burdensome rules and reporting requirements. According to Virginia's Loudoun County Public Schools Superintendent Edgar Hatrick, navigating this complicated system often results in "resources being diverted from the mission of teaching and learning." Additionally, federal ... Read more »
THE PROBLEM: The Elementary and Secondary Education Act, currently known as No Child Left Behind, has been due for reauthorization since 2007. Despite its best intentions, there is widespread agreement that the current law is no longer effectively serving students. Under No Child Left Behind’s accountability system, known as Adequate Yearly Progress, all schools that fail to meet target proficien... Read more »
Reform-minded governors in states like New Jersey, South Dakota, and Virginia are using this year’s “state of the state” speeches to call for much-needed K-12 education reform that supports effective state and local initiatives. House Education and the Workforce Committee Republicans have long recognized the progress state and local officials have had implementing innovative reforms that hold scho... Read more »
House Education and the Workforce Committee Republicans understand an effective K-12 education system cannot be created solely by Washington bureaucrats. It must include insight from state and local education officials and other experts who better understand the needs of students. Over the last year, committee Republicans have listened to parents, teachers, principals, superintendents, and other e... Read more »
In the first session of the 112th Congress, House Education and the Workforce Committee Republicans held 11 hearings to discuss a better way forward for the K-12 education system. Dozens of state and local education officials offered their thoughts on the challenges facing states and school districts across the country. Time and time again, these experts shared their frustration with current law’s... Read more »
Dear Commissioner Shulman: As you know the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released an advance notice of proposed regulations titled "Determination of Government Plan Status." We understand these regulations would define the term "governmental plan" and will determine what a governmental plan is under section 414(d) of the Internal Revenue Code. It has been brought to our attention that these regu... Read more »
During the State of the Union address, President Obama proposed what could be a very promising breakthrough in the effort to improve federal workforce development programs. Today, more than 47 job trainings programs are scattered across the federal government, a bureaucratic mess that fails to adequately serve workers and wastes taxpayer dollars. To fix the problem, President Obama called on Congr... Read more »
“I believe what Republican Abraham Lincoln believed: that government should do for people only what they cannot do better by themselves, and no more.” - President Barack Obama, January 24, 2012 Quoting Abraham Lincoln in last week’s State of the Union address, President Obama outlined a vision for an improved education system in which more control is granted to states and schools. He pledged to g... Read more »
House Education and the Workforce Committee Republicans recently released two pieces of draft legislation designed to reform K-12 education law, currently known as No Child Left Behind. The Student Success Act and the Encouraging Innovation and Effective Teachers Act will support rural schools, strengthen Impact Aid, and improve data reporting and transparency to help close student achievement gap... Read more »
Dear Secretary Solis: We respectfully request additional information to clarify issues raised in connection with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs' (OFCCP) December 9, 2011, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding individuals with disabilities. We also request a 90-day extension of the public comment period for the review of the additional information. Thorough review of t... Read more »
