Timothy Roemer: “I believe, while well-intentioned, this amendment might jeopardize the $30 million increase that we have worked so hard…”

“I believe, while well-intentioned, this amendment might jeopardize the $30 million increase that we have worked so hard for a program that... we both agree should be supported at a higher level of funding, and that is charter schools. They are accountable. They are innovative and creative. They allow us to do new things at the community level with parental involvement. We need more funding. And we hear from the business community and the high-tech community that starting a new charter school, the upstart costs are one of the most difficult barriers to get them going, so we have a $30 million increase; the Senate has this at $210 million. Let us keep that in the bill; let us not threaten that with taking money away from that charter school program.”