U.S. House of Representatives

U.S. House of Representatives

Washington DC 20515

March 25, 2015

Dear Representative,

On behalf of AASA, The School Superintendents Association, representing more than 10,000 school system leaders across the county, I write to relay our deep concern with—and opposition to—the House Republican Fiscal Year 2016 (FY16) Budget Proposal (HConRes 27).

AASA applauds the House’s interest in moving the budget and appropriations process in a timely manner. The reality is that the proposed budget is simply unworkable and untenable. While the FY16 budget proposal is light on specifics related to K12 funding, the underlying proposal is so cut-heavy that it is hard to imagine any scenario where the House is able to advance an LHHS appropriations bill that adequately supports the nation’s public schools and the students they serve.

This proposal balances the budget in less than ten years by relying solely on spending cuts that will total $5.5 trillion. It asks each committee, including the House Education and the Workforce Committee, to identify $1 billion in funding cuts to programs over 2016 thru 2025. It cuts non-defense discretionary programs by $759 billion over the next ten years, programs that include education, public health, job training, and public safety, among others, all programs currently funded at historically low levels.

The proposal locks in the cuts of the sequester. By 2016, the cumulative effect of sequestration will be substantial. Adjusting for general inflation, the 2016 cap on non-defense appropriations will be 17 percent ($103 billon) below the 2010 level, and the 2016 cap on defense appropriations will be 15 percent ($94 billion) below the 2010 level. The effects of the caps and sequestration are even more dramatic when measured relative to the size of the economy: Outlays for non-defense appropriated programs are projected to be 3.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2016—equal to the lowest percentage recorded at any point since 1962, which is as far back as data go on this basis.

The impact of maintaining the sequester caps all but eliminates any possibility for the critical education investment proposed in the President’s budget. AASA is deeply concerned that the House would consider such a proposal, as maintaining the sequester level funding means we would be spending less on PreK-12 education in America’s schools in terms of federal support than we did back in 2000. In this instance, then, the House budget is regressive and threatens to undermine the very job growth and economic stability it claims to support by derailing the preparation of our nation’s students to be successful in post-secondary opportunity, whether college or career.

State and local education agency budgets are still recovering from the deep cuts of the recession, a shaky fiscal reality that is only compounded when federal funding is subject to partisan proposals that continue to rely disproportionately on cuts to non-defense discretionary spending. This partisan budget proposal would devastate the federal government’s investment in education. While federal dollars represent but a small portion of overall K-12 funding, they play a critical role in supporting the efforts of our nation’s public schools in preparing student to be college and career ready. Rather than advance these investments, this budget proposal undermines progress in closing achievement gaps, increasing graduation rates and improving student learning and achievement.

For the reasons listed above, AASA urges you to vote NO to HConRes27 and vote instead to adopt a Budget Resolution that invests in education and our nation’s schools and students. We urge you work with your colleagues across the aisle to advance a budget proposal that is bipartisan, works to resolve the sequester, and provides a more sustainable path forward toward education investment and economic growth and stability.

Sincerely,

Noelle Ellerson

Associate Executive Director, Policy & Advocacy