Education

G.O.P.'s ‘Leaner, Meaner’ Crime Bills Would Scrap School-Based Programs

By Jessica Portner — January 18, 1995 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Washington

Flexing their new political muscle in Congress, Republicans leaders have introduced bills that will form the basis of an effort to replace last year’s crime act with something “leaner and meaner.”

The G.O.P. bills in the House and the Senate would both cut nearly all of the prevention programs authorized last year--including some school-based initiatives--while bolstering prison and law-enforcement programs.

The proposals would cut the price tag of the 1994 legislation--which authorizes $30.2 billion for punishment and prevention programs--by one-third. The House bill would authorize $20 billion in spending; the Senate bill would allow $18 billion.

The House Republicans’ proposed “taking back our streets act,” HR 3, would slash the entire $7 billion in crime-prevention spending authorized in the current law. The law includes money to help local governments run health and education programs for the poor, mentoring projects, and youth-employment programs in high-crime areas.

The bill would also add a $10 billion law-enforcement block grant, which could be used to strengthen security around schools, increase school police forces, or purchase school-security supplies. However, local police departments could also choose to use the money to increase patrols, train new officers, or buy equipment.

Sparer Senate Bill

While the House bill contains some provisions that could help school districts fight crime, the Senate bill has none.

The proposed “violent crime and law-enforcement amendments act,” S 3, would remove all the prevention programs enacted last year and substitute a law-enforcement-assistance program to help police departments expand and upgrade their crime-fighting abilities.

In addition, the Senate bill would expand the federal offenses for which juveniles could be tried as adults to include drug conspiracies, firearms transport, and gun trafficking.

“The crime clock is still ticking, and this is the tough anti-crime legislation the American people deserve,” Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, said in introducing the Senate bill this month.

Democrats are calling the Republicans’ proposed cuts in prevention funding “dangerous” and are gearing up for a long legislative battle.

“We want the prevention programs to stay as they are, and we are going to fight to do this,” said one Democratic aide.

However, the Republican majority can also attack the prevention programs by declining to pay for them in the next appropriations cycle.

A hearing on the House bill is scheduled for this week.

A version of this article appeared in the January 18, 1995 edition of Education Week as G.O.P.'s ‘Leaner, Meaner’ Crime Bills Would Scrap School-Based Programs

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: March 13, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 7, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 31, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read