House Committee on Education and Labor
U.S. House of Representatives

Education Issues

K-12 Education

Enacted in 2002, the No Child Left Behind Act reformed programs authorized by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, the principal federal law impacting K-12 education.  The most comprehensive education reform overhaul ever enacted, NCLB represents the first real, bipartisan effort to bring true accountability and flexibility to federal education programs.  It reflects four essential pillars of education reform: accountability, flexibility and local control, funding for what works, and expanded parental options. 

Reforms to the federal elementary and secondary education law are overdue, and congressional Republicans will work hard to pursue meaningful changes in the 111th Congress.  They will press Congress and the Administration to continue making fiscally responsible reforms to improve student achievement and close the achievement gaps that have persisted for decades between disadvantaged students and their peers.  Republicans will work to ensure that when it comes to a child’s education, decisions are left to those who know best how to make them: parents, local school districts, and states.

Press Releases

McKeon Highlights Charter School Success Stories, Calls for Key Reforms to Expand and Replicate Innovative Education Models (June 4, 2009)

Republicans Challenge Education Secretary on Obama Administration’s Agenda for Schools (May 20, 2009)

Democrats Continue Spending Spree by Federalizing School Construction (May 14, 2009)

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Member Views

McKeon op-ed in The Hill: Jeopardized D.C. program shows promise of school-choice (March 17, 2009)

McKeon op-ed in The Hill: A Textbook Case for Energy Reform (September 17, 2008)

McKeon op-ed in The Hill: Where the need for reform never rests (June 4, 2008)

Fact Sheets

The 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act (H.R. 2187) (May 12, 2009)

Summary: Stop Child Abuse in Residential
Programs for Teens Act (February 11, 2009)

The No Child Left Inside Act (H.R. 3036) (September 8, 2008)

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Dear Colleagues

Oppose Democrats’ Effort to Nationalize School Construction (May 14, 2009)

Don’t Undermine Efforts at the State and Local Level to Fund School Construction (May 13, 2009)

We Can Do Better With a Scalpel to the Budget (May 12, 2009)

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Left Turns

Democrats Ignore the Burden of Gas Prices on America’s Schools (June 4, 2008)

A Quarter of a Century After Education Reform ‘Call to Arms,’ Democrats Stubbornly Refuse to Pass Legislation to Improve our Schools (April 25, 2008)

Floor Statements

McKeon Statement: Consideration of H.R. 2187, the 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act (May 13, 2009)

McKeon Statement on H.R. 3195, the ADA Amendments Act (June 25, 2008)

McKeon Statement on H.R. 3021, the 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act (June 4, 2008)

Committee Statements

Statements by Rep. Platts and Rep. Castle During the Joint Subcommittee Hearing on "Strengthening School Safety Through Prevention of Bullying" (July 8, 2009)

Castle Statement: Hearing on “The Future of Learning: How Technology Is Transforming Public Schools” (June 16, 2009)

McKeon Statement: Hearing on “The Obama Administration’s Education Agenda” (May 20, 2009)

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