Budget Bill Seeks Immediate Education Increases

Last fall, Democratic leaders in the House and Senate decided not to fight with the Bush White House over education spending for fiscal 2009, which began last Oct. 1. Instead, they approved only temporary spending in hopes of negotiating a more favorable pact with Bush’s successor.

After winning their gamble, Democratic congressional leaders — with a friendlier President Barack Obama in the Oval Office — now are proposing significant education increases for the as-yet unfinished fiscal 2009 federal budget.

With the economic stimulus package behind them, Capitol Hill leaders now are turning their attention back to the 2009 budget. This week, they are proposing significant increases for many K-12 and higher education programs and rejecting the Bush administration’s proposed cuts for minority-serving institutions and other initiatives such as the GEAR-UP program, which helps prepare disadvantaged high school students for college.