Message from David Eisner, CEO Corporation for National and Community Service
Dear National Service Colleagues:
Minutes ago the full House of Representatives passed the Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill, which contains $914 million for the Corporation and its programs for fiscal year 2006.
During consideration of the bill, an amendment was offered by Rep. Tom Price of Georgia to cut $70 million from AmeriCorps and apply it to the Department of Education’s Teacher Incentive Fund. The amendment was defeated by a vote of 298-102, demonstrating strong bipartisan support for AmeriCorps in the House.
The recommended funding level is the same as approved by the Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee and full Appropriations Committee earlier this month and is approximately $7 million below the amount requested by President Bush. In a Statement of Administration Policy issued yesterday, the Office of Management and Budget noted that: “The Administration appreciates the Committee’s support for national service programs but is disappointed that the Committee did not fully fund the request for AmeriCorps grants and Teach for America. These programs would support 75,000 AmeriCorps members and volunteer teachers in low-income, underserved communities.”
The next step in the process is the Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations markup, which is scheduled for July 12, followed by the full Senate Appropriations Committee mark-up July 14. Click here for a breakdown of the recommended funding levels in the House-passed bill. To view the legislation and corresponding committee report, visit http://thomas.loc.gov/ and search for H.R. 3010. We will continue to share information as it becomes available.
Sincerely,
David Eisner Chief Executive Officer Corporation for National and Community Service
|