Political Quotes

“This bill, H. Con. Res. 399, recognizes and honors the 25th anniversary of the passage of IDEA. We strongly believe, everyone I think in this Chamber believes strongly, in the goal of IDEA that every child, every child, should have the opportunity to receive a quality education. We have worked hard to ensure greater access to education for all students with disabilities. We have also worked increasingly to improve the quality of the education that children with disabilities receive. Over the last 4 fiscal years, IDEA has seen a dramatic increase of $2.6 billion. That is 115 percent increase in the Federal contribution. Prior to that, the Federal contribution was only 7 percent. Now, in fact, the Federal Government contributes 13 percent of the average per-pupil expenditure to assist with the excess cost of educating a child with a disability. A lot of us would like to see that be increased even beyond 13 percent and get quite a bit closer to the original goal, which is 30 or 40 percent.”