ICCTA - March 25, 2002 Action Alert

ICCTA Action Alert
March 25, 2002

The following legislative update was prepared by the Association of Community College Trustees.

Washington Update
What’s New: March 25, 2002

Congress Begins Work on Fiscal Year 2003 Budget

The coming of Spring signals the beginning of yet another voyage for the federal budget. The House approved March 20 its proposal, while the Senate Budget Committee approved March 22 a starkly different proposal to guide spending for Fiscal Year 2003, which begins October 1.

Essentially, the House-approved budget largely mirrors the Administration’s proposals submitted on February 4. The House proposal calls for $2.007 trillion in tax revenues, and $2.123 trillion in total outlays for Fiscal Year 2003.

This reportedly is a balanced proposal, with the exception of $45.6 billion recently authorized by the Job Creation and Worker Assistance Act, the emergency spending package that extends unemployment benefits to soften the blow for workers displaced by the recent economic recession. As expected, the proposal significantly expands federal spending on defense, anti-terrorism initiatives, and homeland security. For education, the House proposal essentially level-funds most programs, including the Pell Grant program and others.

Funding for elementary and secondary education is increased, consistent with the new “No Child Left Behind” law signed earlier this year. For more information on the House Committee proposal, click here.

The Senate Budget Committee, however, approved a very different proposal for Fiscal Year 2003. While the proposal grants the President’s request for increased defense spending for Fiscal Years 2003-04, it creates a “defense reserve fund” for future increases in necessary. If not required, these funds would be available to provide some $500 billion in debt reduction, or $230 billion in reduction if the reserve funds are used for defense.

Of interest to community college trustees, the Senate proposal substantially boosts spending on education, to the tune of $5.4 billion over the President’s request. Programs targeted for increases include the Individuals With Disabilities Act (IDEA), $2.5 billion more for “No Child Left Behind,” and $1.8 billion more for other education programs, including the Pell Grant Program. The proposal also rejects the President’s proposed $400 million in cuts for education programs deemed unnecessary by the Administration. For more information on the Senate proposal, click here.

For additional information on federal issues, contact J. Noah Brown, ACCT's Director of Public Policy, at 202-775-4667.

Illinois Community College Trustees Association
401 E. Capitol Ave., Suite 200
Springfield, IL 62701-1711
217-528-2858 (phone)
217-528-8662 (fax)
ICCTA@communitycolleges.org (e-mail)
http://www.communitycolleges.org