Press Releases

The U.S. House Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education, chaired by Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), held a hearing today to examine the negative impact intrusive federal paperwork requirements have on teachers, administrators, and students in elementary and secondary schools.

During the hearing, both Committee members and witnesses stressed the need to strike a balance between requiring accountability from schools and imposing overly-complicated, duplicative regulations that divert time and money from improving student achievement.

Chairman Hunter said, “We have a responsibility to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent effectively and efficiently, and to some extent, regulation and reporting can be helpful in achieving that goal. But we must also make certain the nation’s classrooms aren’t overwhelmed by piles of costly and redundant paperwork that ultimately harms the future success of our children.”

Orange County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Robert Grimesey affirmed the need to rein in the federal regulatory burden, stating, “The vast majority of rural school superintendents and school board members understand and respect the need for reasonable accountability and transparency as we receive and invest federal dollars. However, we believe that there is much that is not reasonable about the ever-expanding nature of many federal obligations.” He added, “Ultimately, many well-intended federal regulations are creating a ‘culture of compliance’ that leads to a local fear of failure…it becomes very difficult to maintain our focus on the achievement and welfare of our children.”

Mr. James Willcox, Chief Executive Officer of Aspire Public Schools, California’s largest public charter school management organization, said his schools often forego valuable federal grants because they cannot handle the related paperwork burden. “Simply put, our teachers, administrators and staff members do not have the time or resources necessary to apply for and manage the compliance and reporting for many federal grants programs—programs that are desperately needed by students that are served by charter management organizations just like ours,” stated Mr. Wilcox. “In this time of budget constraints, all of us know that every dollar counts.”

To read testimony and view related documents from today’s hearing, visit www.republicans-edlabor.house.gov/hearings.

 

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