Bob Dole: “we had a vote today to increase special education funding, and I voted against it. I was not happy about that. Since…”

“we had a vote today to increase special education funding, and I voted against it. I was not happy about that. Since coming to the Senate 25 years ago, I have been a vigorous advocate on behalf of people with disabilities. Indeed, in 1975 I voted for the original Education For All Handicapped Children Act, which sought for the first time to ensure that students with a disability had equal opportunity for an education. In that legislation, Congress made a promise to help our Nation's schools with the high cost of educating children with disabilities. We said we would pick up 40 percent of the extra costs. But our followthrough has been dismal. This year we came through with a whopping 8 percent. That's right, 8 percent. The net result is that today we are shortchanging our Nation's schools by almost $8 billion a year. Madam President, I would have voted for this measure if the offsets were acceptable. I regret that no one approached me or my staff as this amendment was being developed, because together we might have arrived at some agreement. Next time I hope we can work together. Madam President, I also want to make another point. We could have fully funded our special education promise a long time ago if we would focus on our proper responsibilities. But instead of paying for what is due before starting something new, the Senate has gone on an education spending spree.”