The Senate on Jan. 22 approved an omnibus spending package that contains the final Department of Education budget for fiscal 2004, which began last October. The House passed the measure in December, and it now goes to President Bush, who has said he will sign it. Here are spending highlights for selected programs:
| Program | Fiscal ‘03 Final | President’s Fiscal ’04 request | Fiscal ’04 Final |
| Title 1 | $11.69 billion | $12.35 billion | $12.34 billion |
| Special education state grants | 8.87 billion | 9.53 billion | 10.07 billion |
| 21st Century Community Learning Centers | 994 million | 600 million | 999 million |
| Reading First | 994 million | 1.05 billion | 1.02 billion |
| Teacher- quality state grants | 2.93 billion | 2.85 billion | 2.93 billion |
| Rural education | 168 million | 0 | 168 million |
| English- language acquisition | 684 million | 665 million | 681 million |
| Pell grants | 11.36 billion | 12.72 billion | 12.01 billion |
| Total Department of Education discretionary spending | $53.11 billion | $53.14 billion | |
$55.66 billion |
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education
