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AEP Online |
Blaschke on Federal FundingBush Wants Radical Surgery On E-RateJuly 2001 - Buried in the appendix of the proposed Department of Commerce FY 2002 budget is a bid to change the E-Rate program to such an extent, it would likely be put to death. Going far beyond simplifying the application process and making staff development an eligible item ? goals White House staff described during a recent National Coalition for Technology in Education and Training meeting ? the Bush administration would give the Federal Communications Commission rule-making authority to:
The proposal is written in the form of a legislative amendment, which would have to be passed by the House and the Senate. Because staff development and software are included as eligible items, the telecommunication carriers - who solely provide the fees to the Universal Service Fund - will be opposed, just as they were, at first, to including internal connections. (Firms that provide internal connections, software, and staff development would benefit from the E-Rate discount program without having to pay into the fund.) This legislative proposal, if introduced in Congress, will reopen many of the wounds created during the political battles of 1997 and summer 1998. The Bush administration could seek to increase ESEA Title VI/Innovative Program Strategies by the amount of the E-Rate cap, approximately $2.25 million, and allocate that amount to states as part of the consolidated block grant. This would make E-Rate funding uncertain, because it would have to go through the annual appropriation process at the Federal level, and in about half the states, at the state level. And it could be a way of providing funds to nonpublic schools, as is now the case with the E-Rate (E-Rate funding does not come from Federal taxes but rather from fees paid into the USF). It is unclear how the Supreme Court- which has approved the use of Title VI funds (i.e., about $12 million) for public schools to purchase computers that are then provided to non-public schools ? would rule in this instance, which would involve several billion dollars. The amendment also could be attached as a rider to the FY 2002 appropriations bill, and thus would not receive much formal debate; it would not be effective until FY 2003 at the earliest. We'll less likely be brought before this authorizing committee with the shift in Senate leadership (Sen. Ernest Hollings, D-S.C., replacing Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as chairman of the commerce committee). Look for further information in this column as we continue to monitor developments.
Questions, ideas, or in need of more information? Please contact Stacey Pusey at 302-295-8349. |
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