[NLA] NIFL Policy Update - President's FY 2003 Budget Proposal

[Gail Spangenberg]

Christy,
Some of this is pretty discouraging stuff, but not unexpected.  I 
can't help hoping that there will be successful reconsideration of 
some of the proposals -- for Even Start, Prison Literacy, and 
Incarcerated Youth for instance.  Thanks for your straightforward 
diligence in getting out budget and policy info and keeping the 
field, including me, informed.  Best, Gail


>President Bush Proposes Level Funding for Literacy
>
>Yesterday, President Bush released his FY 2003 budget proposal for 
>adult education and family literacy programs, which provides level 
>funding for Adult Education State Grants at $575 million. 
>Additionally, the President proposes to level fund National 
>Leadership Activities and provide a slight increase for the National 
>Institute for Literacy.
>
>TABLE 1
>Proposed Funding for Selected Federal Programs (dollars in millions)
>
>State Grants for Adult Education        FY 03-$575              FY 02-$575
>National Leadership Activities  FY 03-$9.5              FY 02-$9.5
>National Institute for Literacy FY 03-$6.62             FY 02-$6.56
>Reading First State Grants              FY 03-$1,000    FY 02-$900
>Early Reading First Grants              FY 03-$75               FY 02-$75
>Even Start                                      FY 03-$200 
>FY 02-$250
>Incarcerated Youth Offenders Grants     FY 03-$17               FY 02-$17
>Prison Literacy Grants                  FY 03-$5                FY 02-$5
>21st Century Comm. Learning Centers     FY 03-$1,000    FY 02-$1,000
>Community Technology Centers            FY 03-$0                FY 02-$32.5
>
>In his State of the Union address last week, the President indicated 
>that his budget proposal would include domestic programs cuts to pay 
>for national security and homeland defense.  Through his FY 2003 
>budget proposal, the President plans to terminate 35 Department of 
>Education programs that he feels have not proven effective.  The 
>President further proposes funding decreases for other programs he 
>views as marginally effective.  According to the President, this 
>"budget seeks to redirect funds from lower-performing programs to 
>higher-performing or more-effective programs." 
>
>The President's FY 2003 budget proposal also launches a "multi-year 
>effort to reform job training programs across the federal 
>government, target resources to programs with documented 
>effectiveness, and eliminate funding for ineffective, duplicative, 
>and overlapping programs."  The federal government has at least 48 
>training and employment programs, including workplace basic skills 
>programs, administered by as many as ten different federal agencies 
>- including the U.S. Departments of Labor and Education.  Through 
>his FY 2003 budget proposal, the President calls for reducing the 
>number of job training programs from 48 to 28. 
>
>Congress is expected to debate the President's budget proposal 
>throughout the spring.  During this time, the U.S. House of 
>Representatives and the U.S. Senate will release their own budget 
>proposals for FY 2003.  All three proposals will be considered until 
>Congress reaches agreement on a compromise budget.  Congress will 
>likely complete the FY 2003 budget process by fall 2002.
>
>The following list describes the literacy programs included in Table 1. 
>
>         The President proposes to level fund State Grants for Adult 
>Education at $575 million.  The state grant program, administered by 
>the Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) within the U.S. 
>Department of Education, helps fund most local Adult Basic Education 
>(ABE), Adult Secondary Education (ASE), and General Education 
>Development (GED) programs across the country through grants 
>distributed by state education agencies.  Of the $575 million 
>proposed for state grants, $70 million is dedicated for English 
>Literacy and Civics Education programs.
>
>        
>         Under the President's proposal, funding for National 
>Leadership Activities would be level funded at $9.5 million.  This 
>funding supports research, demonstration, and evaluation projects 
>administered by OVAE.
>
>        
>         The National Institute for Literacy would receive a slight 
>increase of $57,000 under the President's proposed budget for FY 
>2003.   The Institute supports capacity building, communication, and 
>policy analysis activities in support of the goal that all Americans 
>will be literate and able to succeed at work, home, and in their 
>communities.
>
>        
>         The President proposes $1 billion for the new Reading First 
>State Grants program to help states and local educational agencies 
>implement comprehensive reading instruction grounded in 
>scientifically-based reading research for children in kindergarten 
>through third grade.  This proposal increases funding from $900 
>million in FY 2002 to $1 billion in FY 2003.
>
>        
>         Early Reading First State Grants would be level funded at 
>$75 million under the President's budget.  This initiative would 
>complement Reading First State Grants by supporting model programs 
>to develop the academic readiness of preschool children.  Activities 
>would support evidence-based strategies to enhance pre-reading 
>skills and school readiness for children in preschool programs.
>
>         The President's budget proposal includes $200 million for 
>Even Start, a decrease of $50 million from FY 2002.  Even Start 
>funds support local projects that blend early childhood education, 
>parenting instruction, and adult education into a unified family 
>literacy program.  While the President's budget describes the Even 
>Start program as "well-intentioned," he proposes to shift $50 
>million out of Even Start into programs he expects will have a more 
>direct impact on reading achievement.
>
>         The Incarcerated Youth Offenders state grant program would 
>not be funded under the President's proposal.  This program provides 
>grants to state correctional agencies to assist and encourage 
>incarcerated youth to acquire functional literacy, life, and job 
>skills through post-secondary education, employment counseling, and 
>related services.
>
>        
>         The budget proposal does not fund the Prison Literacy 
>program, which provides grants to state and local correctional 
>agencies to establish and operate programs that reduce recidivism 
>through the improvement of literacy and life skills.
>
>        
>         The 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant supports 
>before and after school projects that extend learning time and offer 
>enriching activities for youth.  The President's budget level funds 
>this large program at $1 billion for FY 2003.
>
>        
>         Community Technology Center (CTC) competitive grants provide 
>opportunities for low-income children, youth, and adults to learn 
>vital computer literacy skills in their communities.  The 
>President's budget eliminates funding for this program.
>
>More information on the President's FY 2003 federal budget proposal 
>is available at 
><http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2003/index.html>http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2003/index.html 
><<http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/>http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/>.
>
>
>Christy Gullion
>Associate Director for Federal Policy
>National Institute for Literacy
>1775 I Street, NW, Suite 730
>Washington, DC  20006-2417
>ph. (202) 233-2033
>fax (202) 233-2050


-- 
Gail Spangenberg
President
Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy
1221 Avenue of the Americas - 50th Floor
New York, NY 10020
212-512-2362, fax 212-512-2610
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