That is precisely right. I want to go back to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Ryan) and his proposal because I assure him, he is going to have lots of support here on the floor for an amendment that moves to fully fund IDEA at the expense of lower priorities that are funded or proposed to be funded in the education budget. I think there will be other proposals like that, because we are a long, long way from being just up to the 40 percent. When we say full funding, we are only talking about 40 percent of the total cost of the program. This is expensive. I do not think any of us deny that those who suffer from various, whether it is behavioral disorder or learning disability of some other case or so on, that those individuals, those students deserve an equal opportunity and access to quality education. We think that is important. That ought to be a national priority. The Supreme Court has certainly established it as a national priority. Our point, though, is if we really believe that, if we really are sincere in our belief that all children deserve to learn, and no child should be left behind, then we cannot just come up with the rules and expect somebody else to pay.
Bob Schaffer: “That is precisely right. I want to go back to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Ryan) and his proposal because I assure…”
Editor's note · Context
Discussing the need for full funding of IDEA during a debate on education funding.
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