support the amendment to S. 1356 PLEASE!!!!

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FY04 EDUCATION APPROPRIATION

This week the U.S. Senate is debating the FY 04 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill. This bill will set spending levels for all federal education programs for the year beginning October 1, 2004. In its current form, the Senate Appropriations Committee bill, S. 1356, would provide the smallest education increase in eight years.

In particular, the Senate bill falls $1.5 billion short of the $3 billion overall increase promised for education, $1.2 billion below the promised increase for IDEA and $9 billion under the authorized funding level for No Child Left Behind. Funding education at these levels would barely maintain current services and would not provide for the enrollment growth of needy students and the escalating costs of federal mandates.

I urge you to contact your Senators immediately and tell them to support amendments to S. 1356 such as the Byrd Title I amendment, the Dodd-Jeffords IDEA amendment, the Kennedy Pell/Higher Education amendment, and others that will put education funding on the right course. All additional funding must be new funds and not cut any other education program.

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