Contact: Ellin Nolan 202.289.3910
May 7, 2001- The Coalition of Higher Education Assistance Organizations (COHEAO) is disappointed with the education funding levels included in the recently released conference agreement on the FY 2002 budget resolution. The conference agreement fails to reflect the administration's claim that education is its first priority and instead shows that student aid and our nation's students are afterthoughts.
With total domestic discretionary spending in the conference agreement below the levels needed to maintain current education expenditures (according to Congressional Budget Office estimates), there is no way the administration's promised increases in education will materialize without deep cuts elsewhere in the budget. In particular, the conference agreement on the FY 2002 budget resolution fails to provide appropriated education programs with any increase above the CBO's baseline in 2002 or any other year, and drops the $320 billion in crucial education funding increases that the U.S. Senate recommended. These additional funds would have provided urgently needed funding for student aid and education programs overall.
Instead, conferees decided to set the FY02 discretionary spending level at $661.3 billion, of which $325.1 billion is slated for defense spending, and $336.2 billion for all non-defense appropriations, including education.
Although there is sufficient funding available to include a tax cut of $1.35 trillion over the next 11 years, conferees failed to find additional funding for our nation's education needs. Conferees claimed that the conference agreement increased funding for education, health, and other critical programs; however, none of those increases are reflected in the calculations of the budget resolution.
COHEAO is a partnership of over 300 educational and commercial members and promotes access to postsecondary education. COHEAO focuses on legislative and regulatory advocacy for Federal Perkins and other campus-based student loan programs.
More information on COHEAO is available by calling COHEAO at 202.289.3910 or by visiting the COHEAO website.