Law & Courts

Full Senate, House Panel OK Perkins Reauthorization

By Sean Cavanagh — March 15, 2005 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The full Senate and the House education committee approved separate bills last week to reauthorize the federal career and technical education program, showing no apparent appetite for President Bush’s proposal to eliminate its funding.

The Senate and House education committees unanimously approved legislation to renew the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act on March 9. A day later, the Senate approved its bill, 99-0. The measure has not yet reached the floor of the House.

Just weeks earlier, the Bush administration proposed eliminating the entire $1.3 billion program from the federal budget in fiscal 2006, and redirecting the money to the president’s $1.5 billion High School Initiative.

The proposal to scrap funding for the Perkins program has drawn broad opposition from vocational education advocates and a bipartisan cross-section of Congress.

Before voting to approve the reauthorization bill, which does not set the amount that will actually be appropriated for the program, several Democrats on the House Education and the Workforce Committee jabbed the president’s proposed cuts.

After listening to several Democratic rebukes of the administration’s proposal, Rep. John A. Boehner, R-Ohio, the chairman of the committee, retorted that such criticism amounted to needless partisanship considering the bipartisan support for the reauthorization bill.

“This underlying bill is a very clear signal for the intentions of Congress,” he said.

Department is Opposed

After the two committees’ actions, the Department of Education released letters sent by Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings to Rep. Boehner and Sen. Michael B. Enzi, R-Wyo., the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, expressing her “strong opposition” to both pieces of legislation.

The legislation to reauthorize the Perkins program “does little to address the current challenge that has been highlighted by President Bush and the nation’s governors to reform our nation’s high schools,” wrote Ms. Spellings. She added: “The Perkins Act requires fundamental changes to its mission and focus.”

A version of this article appeared in the March 16, 2005 edition of Education Week as Full Senate, House Panel OK Perkins Reauthorization

Events

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.
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
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

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

Law & Courts In 1974, the Supreme Court Recognized English Learners' Rights. The Story Behind That Case
The Lau v. Nichols ruling said students have a right to a "meaningful opportunity" to participate in school, but its legacy is complex.
12 min read
Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court William O. Douglas is shown in an undated photo.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, shown in an undated photo, wrote the opinion in <i>Lau</i> v. <i>Nichols</i>, the 1974 decision holding that the San Francisco school system had denied Chinese-speaking schoolchildren a meaningful opportunity to participate in their education.
AP
Law & Courts Supreme Court Declines to Hear School District's Transgender Restroom Case
The case asked whether federal law protects transgender students on the use of school facilities that correspond to their gender identity.
4 min read
People stand on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 11, 2022, in Washington, D.C.
People stand on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 11, 2022, in Washington, D.C.
Mariam Zuhaib/AP
Law & Courts What a Proposed Ban on AI-Assisted ‘Deep Fakes’ Would Mean for Cyberbullying
Students who create AI-generated, intimate images of their classmates would be breaking federal law, if a new bill is enacted.
2 min read
AI Education concept in blue: A robot hand holding a pencil.
iStock/Getty
Law & Courts Supreme Court Declines Case on Corporal Punishment for Student With Autism
The justices refused to hear the appeal of an 11-year-old Louisiana student who alleges that two educators slapped her on her wrists.
3 min read
The Supreme Court building is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 10, 2023.
The Supreme Court building is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 10, 2023.
Patrick Semansky/AP