Federal

Bush OKs Budget; Hikes Title I, Cuts Reading First

By Alyson Klein & David J. Hoff — December 27, 2007 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

President Bush has signed into a law a bill that will increase federal education spending by 2.9 percent in fiscal 2008 and that generally favors Democratic priorities over the administration’s.

The plan to appropriate $59.2 billion for U.S. Department of Education programs in the fiscal year that began Oct. 1 is part of a larger budget drama in which Democrats largely gave in to a hard-line White House stance that earlier measures contained too much in domestic spending increases.

In signing the bill Dec. 26, President Bush criticized Congress for including too many earmarks, or small projects requested by individual lawmakers, in the legislation, a $550 billion omnibus measure that includes fiscal 2008 spending for most other Cabinet agencies as well as the Education Department.

He said in a statement that the bill contains nearly 9,800 earmarks, totaling more than $10 billion. “These projects are not funded through a merit-based process and provide a vehicle for wasteful government spending,” the president said.

The Senate gave final approval to the bill Dec. 18 by a vote of 76-17; the House approved it the next day, 272-142.

The measure will provide $13.9 billion to the Title I program for disadvantaged students, an 8.6 percent increase over the $12.8 billion appropriated for the program in fiscal 2007. But the amount is about 2 percent less than what was proposed for the program in a bill vetoed by President Bush in November.

By contrast, the Reading First program was cut significantly under the legislation, dropping from $1 billion last year to $393 million in fiscal 2008. That is slightly more severe than the $400 million proposed for the program in the vetoed spending bill.

The president said he vetoed that bill, which covered the departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, because it exceeded the spending caps set in his proposed budget.

Reading First, aimed at grades K-3, is one of President Bush’s highest priorities under the No Child Left Behind Act, which also covers Title I and many other federal K-12 programs. But the reading program has paid a price on Capitol Hill for a series of highly critical reports over the past 15 months by the Education Department’s inspector general that found favoritism for certain textbook publishers and other management problems in the program’s early years.

Small Increases Elsewhere

Education advocates expressed disappointment over the modest increases for K-12 programs included in the omnibus legislation.

“It’s not as good as we had hoped,” said Mary Kusler, the assistant director of governmental relations for the American Association of School Administrators, based in Arlington Va. “We have not gotten to the point in Congress where they’re investing in the future.”

For K-12 education, most of the total will finance programs for the 2008-09 school year. In addition to the major increase for Title I and the cut to Reading First, the measure will appropriate:

• $10.9 billion for K-12 state grants under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a nearly 1 percent increase over the fiscal 2007 level of $10.8 billion;

• $2.93 billion to help states improve the quality of their teachers, a 1.7 percent increase; and

• $1.2 billion for career and vocational education programs, a 0.5 percent decrease.

Events

School Climate & Safety Webinar Engaging Every Student: How to Address Absenteeism and Build Belonging
Gain valuable insights and practical solutions to address absenteeism and build a more welcoming and supportive school environment.
Student Well-Being K-12 Essentials Forum Social-Emotional Learning 2025: Examining Priorities and Practices
Join this free virtual event to learn about SEL strategies, skills, and to hear from experts on the use and expansion of SEL programs.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Inside PLCs: Proven Strategies from K-12 Leaders
Join an expert panel to explore strategies for building collaborative PLCs, overcoming common challenges, and using data effectively.
Content provided by Otus

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

Federal Trump's 3rd Week: Restrictions on Trans Athletes and Moves to Gut the Ed. Dept.
In his third week, the president continued his foray into education, gearing up to shrink the U.S. Department of Education.
7 min read
The exterior of the Department of Education Building in Washington, DC on Thursday, December 14, 2017.
The exterior of the Department of Education Building in Washington, DC on Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017. President Donald Trump is reportedly weighing an executive order that would lay the groundwork to eliminate the department.
Swikar Patel/Education Week
Federal Trump Threatens Funds to Schools That Let Trans Athletes Compete on Girls' Teams
The sweeping order is a reversal from the Biden administration, and continues efforts from Trump to roll back protections for transgender youth and adults.
4 min read
President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order barring transgender female athletes from competing in women's or girls' sporting events, in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025, in Washington.
President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order barring transgender female athletes from competing in women's or girls' sporting events, in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025, in Washington.
Alex Brandon/AP
Federal Can Trump Ax the Education Department Without Congress?
Trump has been flexing his power through executive orders, and there's the potential for one targeting the Education Department.
7 min read
The U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C., is pictured on Feb. 21, 2021.
The U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C., is pictured on Feb. 21, 2021. President Donald Trump could issue an executive order to downsize the department. It would have limitations.
Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via AP
Federal Top House Lawmaker Supports Trump's Bid to 'Depower' Education Department
The House education committee chairman believes "even the best-meaning bureaucrat" can't understand what's happening in local schools.
5 min read
Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., speaks during an event at the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit on Dec. 9, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., speaks at the U.N. Climate Summit on Dec. 9, 2023, in Dubai. Walberg, the newly minted chair of the U.S. House's education and workforce committee, said at a Tuesday event that he wouldn't stand in the way of President Donald Trump's efforts to diminish or close the U.S. Department of Education.
Joshua A. Bickel/AP