“President Obama is serious about transforming our economy and strengthening our middle class and his budget shows it. This budget backs up his promises to reverse years of damaging policies that undermined the health and safety of our nation’s workers. It will put the success of our children first, by investing in educational opportunities that will prepare every American to compete globally and expanding access to college. It will help get our fiscal health in order by finally fixing our broken health care system and providing all Americans with affordable, quality health care coverage. It will build a clean energy economy that opens up new job opportunities for Americans and encourages innovation.  I look forward to working with his administration and Congress to put this smart and optimistic roadmap for our future into action.”

For more information on the FY2010 Education budget, click here.

Fore more information on the FY2010 Labor budget, click here.

“This outbreak has proven that a pandemic can have a ripple effect on our communities,” said U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee.  “In many cases, our morphing public health needs simply don’t align with our education and business needs. Especially in this economy, it’s critical to ensure that when an outbreak hits, students can keep learning and businesses and workers can continue to help move our economy forward.”

While proper planning by schools and businesses and a well-coordinated response by the Obama administration have been effective in helping reduce the threat of this outbreak, additional tools are needed to better protect school and workplace environments from future, imminent pandemics. Experts are predicting that a stronger strain of the H1N1 virus or a similar strain could hit again this fall.

“While events have progressed with great speed, this will be a marathon, not a sprint,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, the Interim Deputy Director for Science and Program at the Centers for Disease Control. “Even if this outbreak yet proves to be less serious than we might have initially feared, we can anticipate that we may have a subsequent or follow-on outbreak several months down the road.”

Witnesses urged the importance of ensuring that workers on the frontlines of a pandemic, such as health care workers and first responders, must be able to stay healthy and on the job when an outbreak hits.



Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.


“Our frontline healthcare workers are the foundation upon which our health care system is built,” said Jordan Barab, the Acting Assistant Secretary, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. “If they are not able to work due to illness, or unwilling to work due to fears for their health, individual patients and the country’s entire health care structure will suffer.”

A recent survey of almost 200,000 U.S. health care workers found that 57 percent of these workers had not been provided training on pandemic flu.  More than half of these workers felt that their facility was not “ready for most things” that could arise in a flu pandemic.  And only 33 percent thought that most health care workers would report to work during an actual flu pandemic.

“Currently there is no comprehensive federal standard to require employers to protect health care workers from an airborne virus like H1N1 or tuberculosis,” said Miguel Antonio Garcia, a registered nurse in Los Angeles who has been treating patients for the current outbreak. “Protecting these workers will preserve our surge capacity to treat the infected.”

Garcia also emphasized the need for better protective equipment for health care workers, like respirators specifically designed to protect against transmissible airborne viruses.

While OSHA has issued guidance and even has some specific standards relevant to pandemic flu, the agency does not have a mandatory standard that comprehensively addresses the workplace hazards posed by airborne transmissible diseases.

Current federal sick leave policies also present significant challenges for workers, both when dealing with their own health and safety and when finding care for their children if schools close.

The Family Medical Leave Act does not require employers to provide paid sick leave benefits, and not all workers quality for FMLA leave. Fifty-seven million Americans have no paid sick leave, including as many as 86 percent of food service workers. Almost 100 million Americans have no paid sick leave to care for a child.  

Even a worker who does have coverage has no right to leave to take care of a non-infected child whose school was closed due to an outbreak.

Many closed schools have yet to re-open. As of Tuesday, approximately 726 schools had closed, affecting 468,000 students, said Bill Modzeleski, the Associate Assistant Deputy Secretary of the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools at the U.S. Department of Education. By Wednesday 140 schools had re-opened. The Department also anticipates that 278 schools will have reopened by today, returning 150,000 children to school.

While communication has been strong between school districts and federal, state and local public health and education agencies throughout this outbreak, the current lack of a central reporting system has made it harder for some officials to track school closures.

“We discovered that we did not have a system in place to track and report the individual schools that had been ordered to dismiss students due to H1N1. My office is working with the County Offices of Education to developing an easy-to-use reporting process so that the state could be kept up to date about any school impacted by an order to dismiss,” said Jack O'Connell, the Superintendent of Public Instruction for California Department of Education, where many of the nation’s first school closures occurred. He also cited a shortage of school nurses as an obstacle to fighting the outbreak on campuses.

For more information about protecting health care workers from pandemic flu, click here.

“Federal government agencies in Washington are monitoring the situation around the country very closely. This morning, President Obama advised that schools with confirmed or even suspected cases of the virus consider closing for a temporary period of time and I want to thank State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell and County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Joseph A. Ovick for their prompt response to the suspected cases at Highlands Elementary School in Pittsburg.  The community is putting its faith and trust in state and local officials like Mr. O’Connell and Mr. Ovick and their colleagues to effectively deal with this situation to help keep it from becoming an even bigger threat to our country.

“Next week, as Chair of the House Education and Labor Committee, I will hold a hearing to look into how we can ensure that schools and workplaces are prepared against this flu virus.”

Information for workers, families, schools and employers about how to protect our communities by reducing the spread of the H1N1 flu virus »

“From top to bottom, this budget does right by our schoolchildren, students, families and workers. It will get our economy back on track and help rebuild our middle class by turning our current crises in energy, health care and education into opportunities for future prosperity.

“It will allow us to finally address the injustices posed by our broken health care system and provide quality and affordable health care choices for all Americans.

“It will build on investments we’ve already made to mitigate the economy’s impact on our schools, so that the quality of our children’s education doesn’t suffer. With families increasing relying on school nutrition programs in this economy, it also will improve access to healthy, affordable meals at school.

“It will allow us to create the good, green jobs of the future and transform our economy for the 21st century by investing in clean energy.

“And it will provide much needed relief to families that have sacrificed to send their kids to college – by working hard and saving – only to have their plans changed by the economic downturn. Our budget keep this crisis from pricing Americans out of a college degree by allowing us to increase grant aid for students and make the federal student loan programs they rely on more stable, cost-effective and efficient. And we’ll do it without costing taxpayers a dime.

“This budget adopts President Obama’s principles of fiscal honesty, accountability, and transparency. It will help us get the most out of taxpayer dollars by eliminating waste and abuse and focusing on strategies that will yield substantial returns.

“This budget, made possible by President Obama’s leadership, is a roadmap for a new direction that rebuilds our middle class, regains our competitiveness, and grows our economy for years to come.”

BACKGROUND

Specifically, the budget includes reconciliation instructions that enable the House Education and Labor Committee to enact reforms that will make college more affordable and, along with other committees of jurisdiction, expand access to affordable, quality health insurance.

In the case of education, the budget includes instructions for the committee to enact reforms that will produce $1 billion in savings over five years. Miller has announced he intends to use these instructions to increase grant aid for college students at no additional cost to taxpayers by reforming the federal student loan programs.

One student loan reform option that could be explored is President Obama’s proposal to increase Pell Grant scholarships by almost $100 billion over the next ten years, which would be entirely paid for by using federal funds to originate all new federal college loans starting in 2010.

To view the CBO estimate of this proposal, click here.

For more information on President Obama’s proposal, click here.          

For more information on the FY 2010 Budget Resolution, click here.

“This is a huge boost for education in California. For teachers, students, schools and colleges across our state, today’s news means that help is on the way,” said Miller, a key champion of the funding in Congress. “Given the urgency of our state’s budgetary crisis, with the jobs of tens of thousands of teachers at stake, I am very pleased that Governor Schwarzenegger has pledged to release these funds immediately to prevent teacher layoffs, to backfill cuts to education, and to modernize schools and colleges. Along with other education funds already released under President Obama’s plan, this emergency relief will go a long way toward helping our education system and our economy rebuild.”

The U.S. Department of Education will release $3.99 billion in funds for FY 2009 this weekend – the first of two rounds of stabilization funds that states can receive under the recovery plan. Of that, $2.6 billion will be allocated for K-12 education, and $537 million for higher education. While the state receives and allocates the funds to school districts, it is up to districts to decide how to spend the funds based on their local needs: to prevent teacher layoffs, to restore state budget cuts to education, and to repair, modernize and green public schools and colleges.

The state will be eligible to apply for another $2 billion this fall.

Last month, at the request of Miller and other Democratic lawmakers from California, Governor Schwarzenegger agreed to release the state stabilization funds it receives under President Obama’s economic recovery plan to local school districts as quickly as possible. He also agreed with the lawmakers that it should be up to local school districts, not the state, to decide how to use these funds based on their local education needs, in accordance with guidelines released by the Education Department.

To view the governor’s response to lawmakers, click here. Rep. Miller, the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, released the letter today after receiving it late last week.

To view the lawmakers’ original letter, click here.

Among other things, the resolution includes instructions for Miller’s committee to enact reforms that produce $1 billion in savings for taxpayers over the next five years. Miller has said the committee intends to use these instructions to expand college access by enacting student loans reforms that will benefit American families and taxpayers.

“This budget marks a new beginning for our country and for our children by making a clean break from years of disastrous fiscal policies that failed to look toward the future. As President Obama has made clear, we can no longer afford to kick the can down the road on the key challenges we face – health care, education, and energy. The American people know this and our budget reflects this. It will turn our economy around and put our nation on a path toward fiscal health by making bold, long-term investments in our children, students, workers and families.

“Like President Obama’s blueprint, our budget is a roadmap for a strong, prosperous future by making education a top priority. It responds to what business leaders and stakeholders across the board have told us: That we must improve our American education system so we can emerge from this crisis stronger, better educated and more competitive. It builds on the historic education investments made in the economic recovery plan that will help every child, from their earliest years through college, get a good, 21st century education.

“It also gives us the opportunity to make college more affordable for millions of families struggling to pay tuition while losing jobs, income and benefits. I agree with President Obama that there is an urgent need to modernize our federal student loan programs so that they operate in the best interests of students, families and taxpayers. This budget will allow us to make federal student loans more reliable and efficient for families while reinvesting billions of dollars in savings in education.”

One student loan reform option that could be explored is President Obama’s proposal to use federal funds to originate all new federal college loans beginning in the 2010 school year. The Congressional Budget Office estimates this proposal will save taxpayers almost $100 billion over ten years.

To view the CBO estimate, click here.

For more information on President Obama’s proposal, click here.

“These investments will go a long way toward helping students, teachers and schools that are facing devastating cuts in this economy,” said U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee who championed including these funds in the law. “Fixing our schools and ensuring our students have access to a world class education is not a luxury – it is an economic and educational necessity.”

In addition to the Title I and IDEA investments, the economic recovery plan also created a $54 billion State Fiscal Stabilization Fund to help stabilize state and local budgets and restore harmful cuts to education.

The Obama administration also issued guidelines today to clarify how the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund can be used by local districts and colleges. States can apply for this funding beginning today.

Earlier this month, Chairman Miller and other members of the California Democratic Congressional Delegation sent a letter to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and state education officials to urging them to release these emergency funds to school districts as soon as the state receives it. Their letter also clarified that while the state allocates the funds, it should be up to school districts and colleges to decide how to use these funds based on their local education needs.

The guidelines released today on the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund confirms that while states allocate the funds, it should be up to local school districts and colleges and universities to decide how to use this emergency aid, not up to states. The guidelines also reaffirmed that these funds should be used for three purposes: to backfill harmful cuts to K-12 and higher education, to stave off teacher layoffs, and to modernize school facilities – which could create new jobs.

IDEA is the major federal program that provides funding for special education and related services to students with disabilities. The Title I program provides funds to low-income school districts that are in even greater need during the economic downturn.

For more information on the education spending in the recovery package, click here.

To view the guidelines issued by the Department of Education, click here.

“In America today, it’s not just schoolchildren who continue to get left behind – but teachers who are not being treated like the professionals that they are, young children who aren’t getting the tools they need to succeed before they enter kindergarten, and students and adults who don’t have access to a quality higher education. Today, President Obama showed great leadership on these issues by laying out a bold vision for improving education from ‘cradle to career.’

“The proposals he put forth today show he’s serious about taking American education to the next level. His plan includes many of the right priorities, at the right time, to help build the economy we need and the world class education system that Americans of all ages deserve. Congress should follow his lead as we begin working to significantly improve No Child Left Behind this year, and as we continue our efforts to strengthen early childhood education and make college more affordable.  I look forward to working with President Obama, Secretary Duncan, and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle to make our shared goal of providing every American with an excellent education a reality.”

The Stop Child Abuse in Residential Programs for Teens Act of 2009 would establish minimum health and safety standards for preventing child abuse and neglect at teen residential programs. It prohibits physical, mental, and sexual abuse and requires programs to provide children with adequate food, water, rest, and medical care. The bill allows for civil penalties against programs that violate the new standards.  It also requires states, within three years, to take on the role of setting and enforcing standards for both private and public youth residential programs.  

The legislation would also help ensure that parents have the information about teen residential programs that they need to make safe choices for their children.

“These horrific abuses continue to put the lives of far too many children in jeopardy,” said Miller, “Today the House took a critical step toward finally ending this culture of abuse and neglect at residential programs for teens. I hope that the Senate will now join us in approving these common-sense protections to keep our children safe no matter what setting they are in.”

“With passage of H.R. 911 today, the House took bold action to protect the welfare of children in the care of residential treatment programs,” said U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY), the chairwoman of the Healthy Families and Communities subcommittee.  “This bill will establish important protections from the deceptive and malicious practices that have impacted far too many American families.”

Among other things, H.R. 911 would create a toll-free national hotline for individuals to report cases of abuse and a website with information about substantiated cases of abuse at residential programs. And to prevent deceptive marketing practices and create transparency to help parents make safe choices for their children, it would require, among other things, that programs inform parents of their staff members’ qualifications, roles, and responsibilities.

The House passed similar legislation last June by a bipartisan vote of 318 to 103, with the support of the American Association of Children’s Residential Centers, American Bar Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Psychological Association, the Child Welfare League of America, Children’s Defense Fund, Easter Seals, Mental Health America, Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, the National Child Abuse Coalition and many other organizations.

For more information on this legislation, click here.

To read a letter of support for this legislation from families whose children have died at these programs, click here.

For more information on the committee’s past hearings on these abuses, at which GAO released its reports, click here.

“While I am glad the Senate has now joined the House in passing legislation to get our economy moving forward again, it appears the Senate bill creates about 400,000 fewer jobs than the House legislation. With more Americans losing their jobs by the day, we must make every effort to bring that figure up.

“As President Obama has said, one way we can do that is by restoring investments to modernize our nation’s schools and colleges. The $14 billion to repair, renovate and update public schools included in the House plan would create at least 315,000 more jobs than what the Senate bill generates. Modernizing our schools and colleges is a common-sense way we can quickly create jobs while helping our students get a 21st century education, and should get restored to this plan as negotiations move forward.”

The House passed version of the legislation invested $14 billion in modernizing k-12 schools and $6 billion in modernizing colleges and universities -- for a total of $20 billion. Based on EPI’s calculations, the k-12 school modernization funding alone would create 97,000 new construction jobs, 68,000 jobs in related-input industries, and an additional 150,000 jobs as workers re-spend their earnings.  

For more information on other education investments included in the House plan that will save or create jobs, click here.

Earlier this month, the National Disability Rights Network released a report detailing hundreds of cases where abusive uses of seclusion and restraint by school staff injured or traumatized schoolchildren, many with disabilities. The report revealed cases where students were abusively pinned to the floor, handcuffed, locked in closets, and subjected to other acts of violence. In some of the cases, children died.

As Miller noted in his letter to GAO today, a prior GAO investigation conducted at Miller’s request uncovered thousands of similar cases of abuse at teen residential treatment facilities across the country. GAO’s work laid the groundwork for legislation to address these abuses, the Stop Child Abuse in Residential Programs for Teens Act of 2008 (H.R. 6358), which the House passed in June.  

“Unfortunately, vulnerable children and teens are being abused all too often in other contexts,” Miller wrote. “To assist in the Committee’s ongoing efforts to help protect our children, I specifically request that FSI investigate the use of restraint, seclusion, and harmful aversive handling of children and youth in private and public schools.”

For more information on the report documenting these abuses, click here. For more information on H.R. 6358, click here.

The full text of Miller’s letter to GAO is below.

 

***

January 27, 2009

Gene L. Dodaro
Acting Comptroller General
U.S. Government Accountability Office
441 G Street, N.W.
Washington, DC   20548

Dear Mr. Dodaro:

I write to request that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Forensic Audits and Special Investigations Unit (FSI) further investigate recent reports of neglect and abuse of children in our nation’s schools.

Over the last several years, GAO ably fulfilled my requests that it review and investigate the alarming number of deaths and incidences of abuse of youth enrolled in private residential treatment programs geared toward treating troubled teens.  Among other things, the investigative work highlighted cases where staff at some programs employed unsafe restraint techniques that lead to death in some of those cases.  In part because of these revelations, the House passed the Stop Child Abuse in Residential Programs for Teens Act of 2008, H.R. 6358 (110th Congr.) on June 25, 2008.

Unfortunately, vulnerable children and teens are being abused all too often in other contexts.  Just this month, the National Disability Rights Network released a troubling report entitled School is Not Supposed to Hurt in which the authors described instances of death and abuse of children and youth in public and private schools across the United States.  The report focused on seclusion and restraint techniques and detailed dozens of occurrences of students being abusively pinned to the floor, handcuffed, locked in closets, and subjected to other traumatizing acts of violence.  In some of the cases, the abuse resulted in death.

To assist in the Committee’s ongoing efforts to help protect our children, I specifically request that FSI investigate the use of restraint, seclusion, and harmful aversive handling of children and youth in private and public schools. 


Sincerely,

 
George Miller

Chairman

 
cc:    Senior Republican Member Howard “Buck” McKeon

“I congratulate Arne Duncan on his much-deserved quick confirmation by the Senate. Secretary Duncan is not only a dynamic leader and a strong advocate for our schools and our students, he has a proven track record of success. With our economy in flux, our nation’s schools, colleges and universities have the power to prepare our next generation of leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators. This can only be accomplished by investing in our children from their earliest years on, giving all students the opportunity to get a world class education, and providing our teachers with the support and resources they need and deserve.

“As President Obama said yesterday, transforming our schools and colleges will be one of the most important things we can do to rebuild our economy and our country. This swift confirmation will allow Secretary Duncan to get started on this mission right away. I look forward to working with him and President Obama as we begin this challenging but exciting new era.”

“With our economy worsening by the day, bold and strategic investments are needed to jumpstart our economy and drive long-term growth and competitiveness,” said Miller. “This remarkable effort will get Americans back to work quickly, strengthen educational opportunities for our children, and fuel innovation. Together, with President-elect Obama, we are moving quickly to build a 21st economy and strengthen our nation’s middle class.”

At a recent forum convened by Democratic lawmakers, a bipartisan panel of economists and scientists urged Congress to enact an economic recovery package that creates jobs, helps states facing severe budget gaps maintain important programs, and spurs long-term economic development.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will meet those goals, helping create or save up to 4 million jobs – more than 90 percent of which will be private sector – over two years and strengthening the nation’s competitiveness.

Miller highlighted key provisions in the package that fall under the Education and Labor Committee’s jurisdiction, including:

•  School modernization: $20 billion to repair, renovate, modernize public schools and colleges and universities, including technology updates;

• Economic stabilization fund to provide relief to states: $79 billion to help states restore cuts to funding for early childhood, K-12, higher education and other vital programs;

• Aid for college students: $15.6 billion to increase the maximum Pell Grant scholarship by $500, for a maximum of $5350 in 2009 and $5550 in 2010;

• A strong, green workforce: $4 billion for job training to help get adult and dislocated back to work, create one million summer jobs for youth, and prepare workers for green jobs and other emerging industries;

• Extended unemployment benefits: $27 billion to continue the current extended unemployment benefits program – which provides up to 33 weeks of extended benefits - through 2009; and

• Health care for the unemployed: $30.3 billion to extend COBRA health insurance coverage to the unemployed, extending the period of COBRA coverage for older and tenured workers.

The bill will also be completely transparent and accountable to the American public, so that taxpayer dollars are spent wisely and are track-able online.

For a fact sheet with full details on the provisions under the House Education and Labor Committee’s jurisdiction, click here.

To view the full package released by the House Appropriations Committee today, click here.

For more specific information prepared by the Congressional Research Service which estimates the amount of education funding that each school district will receive from certain aspects of the American Recovery and Reinvestment bill, click here.

For more information on last week’s economic forum, click here.

“Arne Duncan is an incredibly smart choice for Education Secretary. He is the right person, in the right position, at the right time. His leadership and commitment to improving our nation’s schools, along with his experience and proven track record of success as the Chief Executive Officer of the Chicago Public Schools, make him particularly qualified for this important job.

“Arne recognizes the seismic shift happening in education – he knows first-hand that real change requires real leadership. He understands that by taking our education system in a bold new direction, he can help our economy change course. He knows that we need to provide good educational opportunities for all students from their earliest years on. And he rightly believes that the only interest group that matters in education policy are students and families.

“At this time of unprecedented economic uncertainty, it’s more important than ever to significantly improve our schools and continue our efforts to make college more affordable. Our schools and colleges, from early education through graduate programs, must prepare our next generation to take on 21st century jobs, and drive our discovery, innovation and competitiveness. Addressing the education challenges we face won’t be easy, but I am confident Arne Duncan will delve in and create the world-class education system our economy needs and our nation’s students deserve.”

“As the head of Chicago’s public schools, he has an impressive track record in turning around failing schools, increasing graduation rates, and significantly boosting student achievement. He has dramatically improved teacher quality and effectiveness, by working with the local teachers union to establish a performance pay system and by providing mentoring and career ladders for teachers. A longtime champion of early education, he understands that we won’t be able to close the student achievement gap unless we improve educational opportunities for every child from their earliest years on.

“Mr. Duncan takes the helm at a pivotal juncture for our schools and our economy. Our schools are in need of serious improvement; families continue to face a college affordability crisis; and we need to continue to strengthen our economic competitiveness. In an education landscape filled with strong – and often sharply contrasting – ideas, I believe that he will provide the leadership needed to bring diverse stakeholders together and break through the political gridlock.

“This summer, Mr. Duncan told our committee of the importance of ‘challenging the status quo, pushing the envelope and driving change.’ I look forward to working with him and President-elect Obama to provide all students with a world-class education that prepares them to compete in our global economy and pursue their dreams.”

Over the summer, Duncan testified before the Education and Labor Committee with mayors and superintendents of major U.S. cities on how to improve America’s schools and close the achievement gap. To watch his testimony, click here; to view his written testimony, click here.
 

“While it is good news that fourth graders have made significant gains in math, it’s troubling that our students are still behind their international peers in both math and science – fields that are key to our country’s economic vitality and competitiveness” said Miller, the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee. “It’s increasingly clear that building a world-class education system that provides students with a strong foundation in math and science must be part of any meaningful long-term economic recovery strategy.”

“How many red flags, how many alarms, how many reports will it take to understand that we significantly need to strengthen math and science education? Without math and science training, we cannot meet society’s needs and compete in a global marketplace. This has been urgent for a long time, but we keep behaving like it doesn’t matter” said Holt, a scientist and member of the House Education and Labor Committee, who has been a long time advocate for stronger science, technology, engineering, and math education.

According to the study, while both fourth and eighth grade students showed improvements in math, neither grade level improved in science over the past decade. The report also found that overall fourth and eighth graders in the U.S. performed above average in math and science, and that the lowest-performing fourth graders showed improvement in math between 1995 and 2007 and between 2003 and 2007.

Last summer, Congress enacted the America COMPETES Act which provides education and job training for students and workers in math, science, technology, and engineering fields. The law builds upon principles unveiled by Chairman Miller and Democratic leaders in their Innovation Agenda in November 2005. For more information about the COMPETES Act, click here.

Last year, as part of the landmark College Cost Reduction and Access Act, Congress enacted TEACH grants, which provide up-front tuition assistance of $4,000 each year – for a maximum of $16,000 – to students who commit to teaching in public schools in high-poverty communities or high-need subject areas, such as math and science. For more information about the law, click here.