February 9, 2009

Senate to Vote on Scaled Down Stimulus Package

If the United States Senate passes their version of a stimulus package, then the Conference Committee can start to work on a compromise between the House version (which is more friendly to education) and the Senate version (which is not as friendly) to be passed and sent to the President by February 16th.

Below is the list of reported reductions from the Senate package. All emergency repair funds are eliminated, 50% of the stabilization funds (meaning California funds reserved for discretionary education (reduced from about $4.8 billion to $2.4 billion) a slight difference in Title 1 funding (about $600 million nationally so the new Title 1 funds appear to be about $12.4 billion rather than $13 billion) and no apparent change to the $13 billion for IDEA.

We will have more information after the United States Senate actually acts, the Conference Committee acts, and the President signs the stimulus package.

While the Senate version is not a good as the House version, they are both good for California schools.

List of reported spending cuts in Senate Stimulus Package:

$40 billion State Fiscal Stabilization
$16 billion School Construction
$1.25 billion project based rental
$2.25 Neighborhood Stabilization (Eliminate)
$1.2 billion in Retrofiting Project 8 Housing
$7.5 billion of State Incentive Grants
$3.5 billion Higher Ed Construction (Eliminated)
$ 100 million FSA modernization
$50 million CSERES Research
$65 million Watershed Rehab
$30 million SD Salaries
$100 million Distance Learning
$98 million School Nutrition
$50 million Aquaculture
$2 billion Broadband
$1 billion Head Start/Early Start
$5.8 billion Health Prevention Activity.
$2 billion HIT Grants
$1 billion Energy Loan Guarantees
$4.5 billion GSA
$3.5 billion Federal Bldgs Greening

$100 million NIST
$100 million NOAA
$100 million Law Enforcement Wireless
$50 million Detention Trustee
$25 million Marshalls Construction
$100 million FBI Construction
$300 million Federal Prisons
$300 million BYRNE Formula
$140 million BYRNE Competitive
$10 million State and Local Law Enforcement
$50 million NASA
$50 million Aeronautics
$50 million Exploration
$50 million Cross Agency Support
$200 million NSF
$100 million Science
$89 million GSA Operations
$300 million Fed Hybrid Vehicles
$50 million from DHS
$200 million TSA
$122 million for Coast Guard Cutters, modifies use
$25 million Fish and Wildlife
$55 million Historic Preservation
$20 million Working Capital Fund
$200 million Superfund
$165 million Forest Svc Capital Improvement
$90 million State & Private Wildlife Fire Management
$75 million Smithsonian
$600 million Title I (NCLB)

~Dave Walrath

dwalrath@m-w-h.com