January 11, 2006
To: Members of the TRIO Community
From: 
Arnold L. Mitchem, President
Council for Opportunity in Education
Re: Update on Appropriations and Reauthorization Issues
FY 2006 Appropriations (Program Year 2006-2007)
By December 30th, President Bush signed into law (Public Law 109-149) the FY 2006 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill. This is the bill that funds TRIO programs for the 2006-2007 program year. That bill had originally funded TRIO at the same level as FY 2005, $836.5 million (the current 2005-2006 program year.) However, in passing the Defense Appropriations bill, Congress included a 1% across-the-board cut in all discretionary spending (except for veterans’ funding and funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.) This action brought the TRIO appropriation for FY 2006 to $828.2 million.
Overall, when hurricane disaster relief in the bill is excluded, discretionary education funding in the bill signed by the President was $651.3 million or 1.2% below the level provided in the previous year. This is the first year since 1986 that education funding provided by the federal government has been cut. This reduction in government support flies in the face of documented public sentiment. We know Americans care deeply about education and support college access programs.
Preliminary discussions with staff in the Department of Education suggest that the $8.4 million that must be cut will not be taken from TRIO’s primary student service programs. Rather, cuts will most probably affect the TRIO Partnership/Dissemination program which had been scheduled to be competed this year, and the TRIO training authority. Every effort will be made not to reduce the number of Talent Search and Educational Opportunity Center programs funded, but this might make it impossible to provide 3% increases to successful applicants or to raise the minimum grant to $220,000.
To recap appropriations action for the year: Last February, President Bush, in his FY 2006 budget request, proposed eliminating both the Talent Search and Upward Bound programs. This would have reduced funding for TRIO to $376.5 million. In June, the House of Representatives passed HR 3010 which restored funding for Talent Search and Upward Bound and maintained TRIO funding at $836.5 million. The Senate passed its version of HR 3010 which included $841.5 million for TRIO ($5 million had been added on a voice vote in an amendment offered by Senator Mary Landrieu [D-LA].) In conferencing the House and Senate versions of the bill, the $5 million added in the Landrieu amendment was dropped and the conference report included $836.5 million for TRIO. The conference report, after originally being rejected by the House, finally passed by just two votes (215-213) on December 14. The Senate passed the bill by voice vote on December 21.
Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act
The Higher Education Act of 1965, which contains the authorizing authority for the Federal TRIO programs, was scheduled to expire December 31, 2005; however, Congress extended the authority for three months – through March 30, 2006 – before leaving in December.
Action on the Higher Education Act was divided into two pieces. Since a number of the provisions in the reauthorization generated budget savings, these provisions were included in the budget reconciliation bill. Almost all of these provisions in the reconciliation bill related either to 1) profits received by lenders and guarantors on the student loan program or 2) interest paid by students and parents on the loan programs. To achieve the reconciliation targets, significant savings were generated by changing interest rates charged to students. Both student organizations and higher educational organizations strongly oppose the bill. Initially the House passed the reconciliation bill by a 212-206 vote margin but a procedural maneuver in the Senate stripped several provisions from reconciliation. That amended version passed the Senate 51-50 (with Vice-President Cheney casting the deciding vote on December 21.) However, by December 21, the House was out of session and therefore the House will again be required to vote on the reconciliation package when it returns in late January.
The remaining provisions of the Higher Education Act that were not included in budget reconciliation could be considered as early as February. These remaining provisions include the TRIO Chapter. The Senate passed its version of the remaining provisions of the Higher Education Act (S 1614) on November 3. While the House has voted its version of reauthorization (HR 609) out of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, the bill has not yet been considered on the floor of the House of Representatives. The Council supports the Senate bill and opposes the House bill because of two provisions: the novice provision which would disrupt the delivery of services on campuses and in agencies sponsoring TRIO programs and the so-called accountability provisions introduced by Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC).
Currently 212 members of the House have signed the Cole/Payne letter indicating their opposition to the novice provision. The Council’s Government Relations office will be working with individual states over the next week. Our target is to assure at least 240 signatures on Cole/Payne before HR 609 is scheduled for floor action. (218 Members votes are required to strike the novice provision from HR 609.) Congresswoman Foxx has indicated her willingness to improve her amendment language and we remain hopeful that an acceptable alternative can be agreed upon before the bill goes to the floor.
FY 2007 Appropriations
President Bush will deliver his budget recommendations to Congress on February 6. Although I do not have definitive information, I anticipate that the Administration will again recommend the elimination of Talent Search and Upward Bound. As we did last year, the TRIO community will have to mount a consistent effort in every community to assure that this recommendation is firmly rejected – and to assure that TRIO receives a real increase in the coming year. Although our response must occur as soon as the budget is released, two important opportunities are available to garner support for TRIO: TRIO Day which is celebrated this year on February 25 – and the Policy Seminar, March 26-28.
We would not have been able to reverse the Administration’s recommendation without your commitment, energy and support last year. I know I can count on you to maintain that level of energy in reaching deep into your communities to build upon that support in the coming months.