House Resolution 11 - Introduced

PAG LIN





  1  1                HOUSE RESOLUTION NO.    
  1  2                       BY  MASCHER
  1  3 A Resolution requesting Iowa's congressional
  1  4    delegation to work to secure adequate funding for
  1  5    mandates required under the federal No Child Left
  1  6    Behind Act of 2001.
  1  7    WHEREAS, President George W. Bush signed into law
  1  8 the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) on January
  1  9 8, 2002; and
  1 10    WHEREAS, the goals of the NCLB legislation are
  1 11 laudable and Iowans embrace the conviction that all
  1 12 children should have an equal opportunity to obtain a
  1 13 high=quality education; and
  1 14    WHEREAS, Iowa's commitment to providing all of its
  1 15 children with a high=quality education is evidenced by
  1 16 the fact that nearly 90 percent of Iowa's schools
  1 17 score above the national median on nationally
  1 18 standardized tests; and
  1 19    WHEREAS, this commitment begins at the local level
  1 20 with school districts and schools setting challenging
  1 21 local academic standards and continues with the
  1 22 state's dedication to assisting local schools through
  1 23 the Iowa Early Intervention Program enacted in 1999
  1 24 and the Student Achievement and Teacher Quality
  1 25 Program enacted in 2001; and
  1 26    WHEREAS, federal funding for the NCLB represents
  1 27 approximately 4.1 percent of Iowa's total school
  1 28 district funding for education utilized in a school
  1 29 year; and
  1 30    WHEREAS, state revenues are rebounding, but budget
  2  1 pressures threaten to overwhelm them, according to an
  2  2 article published in February 2005 by the National
  2  3 Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL); and
  2  4    WHEREAS, the federal government has neglected to
  2  5 provide funding for the NCLB's mandated requirements
  2  6 related to supplementary services, transportation
  2  7 costs associated with moving students from buildings
  2  8 in need of assistance to buildings making annual
  2  9 progress, additional data collection, and professional
  2 10 development for teachers in schools determined to be
  2 11 in need of assistance; and
  2 12    WHEREAS, the NCLB requirements create not only
  2 13 another level of mandates lacking the resources to
  2 14 bring about the level of success required, but could
  2 15 actually result in a shift of vital instructional
  2 16 dollars for NCLB purposes that are unlikely to enhance
  2 17 student achievement or teacher quality; NOW THEREFORE,
  2 18    BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
  2 19 That the Iowa House of Representatives requests Iowa's
  2 20 elected representatives in the United States Congress,
  2 21 in particular Senator Chuck Grassley, Chair of the
  2 22 Committee on Finance, and Representative Jim Nussle,
  2 23 Chair of the House Budget Committee, to support, work
  2 24 to pass, and vote for adequate funding for mandates
  2 25 required under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
  2 26    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this
  2 27 Resolution be sent to the members of Iowa's
  2 28 congressional delegation.
  2 29 LSB 2301HH 81
  2 30 kh:rj/sh/8