Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 2127 - Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, FY 1996

(Senate Floor)
(Sponsors: Hatfield (R), Oregon; Specter (R), Pennsylvania)

This Statement of Administration Policy provides the Administration's views on H.R. 2127, the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, FY 1996, as reported by the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The Administration is committed to balancing the Federal budget by FY 2005. The President's budget proposes to reduce discretionary spending for FY 1996 by $5 billion in outlays below the FY 1995 enacted level. At the same time, the President's budget increases funding for investment programs, a number of which are included in this bill, that are essential to economic growth and a higher standard of living for all Americans. The Administration does not support the level of funding assumed by the House or Senate Committee 602(b) allocations and urges the Congress to direct more funds to programs in this bill. The Administration supports reducing spending but does not share the priorities reflected in the Committee bill, which is over $10 billion below the President's request.

Many of the programs funded in this bill are aimed at protecting and aiding the most vulnerable in our society. While the Committee has restored some funding for these programs relative to the House, reductions proposed by the Committee would have a particularly harmful effect on our Nation's children, our youth, and the disadvantaged by cutting funding for numerous education programs, including Goals 2000, and for training programs, including summer jobs for low-income youth.

For these reasons, discussed more fully below, the President would veto the bill if it were presented to him as reported by the Committee.

Cutting Programs for Pre-School Children

The Administration strongly opposes the Committee's reduction in the Head Start program. This program plays a vital role in preparing disadvantaged young children for school; its expansion should be continued, not reversed. The President would add $400 million and 32,000 new slots to the Head Start program in FY 1996. The Committee, in contrast, would reduce funding by $133 million below the FY 1995 level ($533 million below the President's request). If program quality were to be maintained at such a reduced level, the Committee action would cut between 45,000 and 50,000 children from the program. The Administration strongly urges the Senate to provide FY 1996 funding at the level requested by the President.

Cutting Education Programs

The Administration is pleased that the Committee has supported an increased overall funding level for the Department of Education beyond the levels included in the House bill. Continued support for key programs in the Department of Education is essential for the future growth of our country. However, even with the Committee's increases, the bill would reduce spending for Education programs by $3.5 billion below the President's request. Many key programs would be cut below the FY 1995 levels and still further below the levels that the Nation's needs call for.

The Administration strongly opposes the Committee's decision to reduce funding for Education programs, including Goals 2000, Title I (Education for the Disadvantaged, and Safe and Drug-free Schools and Communities, by $1.5 billion below the FY 1995 level. At the Committee levels, thousands of schools would not get Federal aid to help them develop educational reforms to improve academic achievement for all students. More than 650,000 children from some of our poorest communities would be denied the assistance they need to benefit from educational reforms and challenging academic standards. And, millions of children would be deprived of the opportunity to learn in safe, drug-free schools.

Cutting Programs for Training

The Administration strongly opposes the Committee's elimination of separate funding for the Summer Youth Employment and Training Program. The Committee's action would eliminate the opportunity for as many as 600,000 disadvantaged youth per year to acquire valuable job experience and learn essential job skills. As the President noted when he signed H.R. 1944, the Administration strongly supports this program and will work with the Congress to ensure that the program for the summer of 1996 is funded adequately in the FY 1996 appropriations process.

The Administration is pleased that the Committee has provided modest restorations of the House's drastic reductions to the President's request for the Department of Labor's youth job training programs and the bipartisan school-to-work initiative. Nevertheless, the Committee action would reduce youth training funding (including the Department of Education share of School- to-Work) by 42 percent, or $1.2 billion. Especially when it is more evident than ever that America's youth are not receiving enough opportunities to acquire the job skills necessary to succeed in today's economy, these reductions are unacceptable.

At a time of increased workforce anxiety and major labor market dislocations, the Committee bill would impose unacceptably large reductions in resources to retrain dislocated workers and low-income adults and help them find jobs through One-Stop Career Centers. The bill would reduce funding for dislocated workers and disadvantaged adults financed under the Job Training Partnership Act and for One-Stops by $604 million, or 26 percent, below the FY 1995 comparable level. The bill would cut $1.6 billion, or 48 percent, from the President's request and would deny training and reemployment services to 486,000 dislocated workers and 107,000 low-income adults. While corporate and military downsizing continues to displace hard-working Americans, shrinking these critical services is unconscionable.

Cutting Programs That Help Our Communities

The Administration strongly opposes the Committee's $62 million reduction below the request for the Corporation for National and Community Service programs funded in this bill. The Committee would cut the Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) program by 27 percent, reducing the number of VISTA volunteers working to alleviate poverty in low-income communities nationwide. The Committee level also would deny nearly 125,000 older Americans the opportunity to help the homebound elderly- disabled children, and others in their communities. The Administration urges the Senate to provide funding at the requested level.

Cutting Programs That Protect Our Nation's Health

The Administration is concerned that the Committee's mark for programs funded under the Ryan White CARE Act is $67 million less than the $723 million request. The funding level proposed by the President for the Ryan White program represents the minimum amount necessary to maintain funding for current and expected grantees while keeping up with increasing AIDS caseloads in States, cities, and local clinics currently receiving Ryan White grants. The Administration is pleased that the Committee has restored $8 million of the $16 million requested in FY 1996 for the AIDS Education and Training Centers (ETCs). The Administration urges the Senate to provide funding at the requested level.

The Administration is concerned that the Committee has not provided adequate funding for research supported by the National Institutes of Health (NTH) and urges the Senate to fund NIH at the President's request. The Administration appreciates the Committee's action to preserve the specific appropriation for NIH's Office of AIDS Research as requested by the Director of NIH in the President's budget.

The Administration objects to the Committee's proposed rescission of $53 million for childhood immunization programs, as well as to the $14 million reduction from the President's requested level for FY 1996. States have documented their need for these funds to purchase vaccines. Providing less than the level appropriated in FY 1995 or the amount requested in FY 1996 could impede accomplishment of our shared goal of immunizing a greater percentage of America's children.

The Administration is very concerned about the Committee's $374 million (17-percent) reduction to the President's request for funding of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Although the Committee has increased funding for mental health and substance abuse demonstration programs by $212 million above the House level, the money for that restoration has come out of the substance abuse and mental health block grants, as well as from a transfer of $200 million from the Department of Education's Safe and Drug Free Schools program. The Administration is pleased that the committee mark restores funding for much of the drug treatment and mental health services program for the homeless. However, the overall 17- percent reduction in SAMHSA funding would seriously undermine substance abuse and mental health services and the National Drug Control Strategy.

Programs for Individuals with Disabilities

The Administration supports the Committee's action that would restore funds available for research, demonstration, training, and technical assistance programs focusing on individuals with disabilities. These programs provide essential support for the State direct service programs and help the Administration and the Congress understand and respond to disability issues.

Abortion

The Administration is pleased that the Committee has deleted objectionable language of the House bill that would change existing law by allowing states to deny Medicaid funding for abortions for victims of rape and incest. The Administration strongly opposes any effort to curtail the ability of poor women to choose abortion in cases of rape or incest. Likewise, the Administration is pleased that the Committee has deleted objectionable House language concerning private accreditation standards for medical residency programs.

Striker Replacement

The Administration strongly opposes a provision of the Committee bill that would prohibit the Executive Branch from using FY 1996 funds to implement, administer, or enforce any Executive Order or other rule or order that prohibits Federal contracts with companies that hire permanent replacements for striking employees. This provision would impinge upon the Executive Branch's ability to ensure a stable supply of quality goods and services for the government's programs.

Other Language Provisions

The Administration supports the Committee's decision to delete many of the objectionable language provisions included in the House bill, including the political advocacy provision. Many of these riders would seriously impinge upon the Executive Branch's flexibility to manage programs and should not be included in an appropriations bill.

The Administration is pleased that the Committee has removed a provision contained in the House bill that would prohibit funding of the Surgeon General position. The Administration supports the Committee in its recognition of the value of the leadership on personal and societal health issues that the Surgeon General provides our Nation.

Additional Administration concerns are contained in the attachment.

Attachment

Attachment (Senate Floor)

ADDITIONAL CONCERNS

H.R. 2127 — DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, EDUCATION. AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BILL. FY 1996

(AS REPORTED BY THE SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE)

The Administration looks forward to working with the Congress to address the following concerns.

Department of Education

• Goals 2000. The Administration strongly opposes the level of funding provided by the Committee for Goals 2000. The President has requested $750 million in FY 1996 for Goals 2000, which would essentially double the size of the program. At this funding level, Goals 2000 would help 48 states raise academic standards and help directly fund as many as 17,000 schools. In FY 1995, requests in local applications for Goals 2000 funds exceeded available money by 200 to 600 percent, depending on the State. The Senate funding level would further reduce the program and severely hamper school reform efforts nationwide. Raising academic standards provides a necessary framework for improving all aspects of education.
  
  
• Title I — Education for the Disadvantaged. The Administration opposes the Committee mark, which would reduce funding for the Title I Grants to Local Educational Agencies Program by $679 million, cutting as many as 650,000 children from the program. The President has requested $7 billion for this program, an increase over the FY 1995 enacted level of $302 million. This funding level would assist States in raising the academic achievement of 6.4 million disadvantaged children.
  
  
• Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities. The Administration opposes the Committee mark, which would reduce this program by 60 percent. This action would deprive over 23 million students of drug and violence prevention services in our nation's schools in FY 1996 alone. While the Committee provides $400 million under this program, the Committee has directed that $200 million be transferred to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration within the Department of Health and Human Services, leaving only $200 million to serve over 14,000 school districts. The Administration does not believe that this is the most effective use of these funds. The President has requested $500 million in FY 1996 for this program to combat violence and drug use in 97 percent of school districts (over 14,000) serving 39 million students. The Administration also opposes the Committee's decision to strike funding for a key crime prevention program, the Family and Community Endeavor Schools program.
  
  
• School-to-Work (Departments of Labor and Education). The Administration opposes the Committee mark, which would straightline funding for School-to-Work at the FY 1995 post-rescission level. The President has requested $400 million (split evenly between Labor and Education), a 60-percent increase over the FY 1995 comparable level, to finance a third wave of temporary, seed capital grants. This initiative supports States building school-to-work systems with planning and five-year implementation grants. Once these systems are in place, the program will sunset. The Committee mark would seriously hamper the efforts of up to 27 States to complete their reforms that were started in FYs 1994 and 1995. Remaining States could be denied the chance to implement their reform plans to raise student skills.
  
  
• Vocational and Adult Education. The President has requested $1.6 billion for the vocational education, adult education, and family literacy programs. The Administration opposes the Committee mark, which would reduce funding for these programs to $1.3 billion. This reduction of $109 million from the FY 1995 enacted level would adversely affect over one million students nationally and would eliminate adult education services to over 42,000 adults who need to improve their basic and literacy skills in order to succeed in their roles as workers, citizens, and parents.
  
  
• Federal Direct Student Loan Program. The Student Loan Reform Act (SLRA) of 1993 provided $550 million in mandatory funds ln FY 1996 for the administration of the direct student loan program and the transition from the guaranteed student loan program to direct loans. The Administration understands that the Committee mark of $378 million represents CBO's estimate of the baseline for this activity only if the congressional budget resolution's directive to CBO to bias direct student loan scoring were enacted into law.
  
  In the absence of such legislation, this $378 million would not be adequate. An acceptable amount in the absence of a change in law would be $462 million. The Committee compounds the problem by including language in the bill that would prevent the Secretary from exercising his authority to draw down administrative funds from future years. The Senate is urged to delete this legislative provision, which the Congress provided to ensure adequate administrative funding.
  
  
• Student Financial Assistance Programs. The President has proposed to increase the Pell grant maximum award to $2,620, which is $280 over the FY 1995 level of $2,340. The Administration is concerned that the Committee has increased the maximum by only $100, to $2,440. The Senate approach would serve 114,000 fewer students in FY 1996 than the President's proposal.
  
  
• Educational Technology. The President has requested $122 million in FY 1996 for four educational technology programs. The Administration opposes the Committee's action that would provide $57 million for these programs. This funding level would seriously reduce learning opportunities for all children, and especially for educationally and economically disadvantaged students. In particular, the Administration is deeply concerned with the Committee's action that would reduce funding to $15 million for the K-12 technology learning challenge program. This funding level would significantly limit efforts to create new private- public partnerships to raise student achievement through advanced technology.
  
  
• Eisenhower Professional Development and Technical Assistance Centers. The President has requested $735 million in FY 1996 to help States train teachers to help students achieve high academic standards in 90 percent of all school districts. The Administration opposes the Committee's action that would provide only $275 million for this program, a 65-percent reduction from the President's request. In addition, the Administration opposes the reduction of funds for the comprehensive technical assistance centers for improving elementary and secondary education programs to $22 million. The President has requested $55 million in FY 1996 for 15 consolidated centers that will provide training and assistance to States, school districts, and schools in upgrading all aspects of education.
  
  
• Education for Children with Disabilities. The President has requested $254 million, the FY 1995 enacted level, to support several research, demonstration, training, and technical assistance activities that assist State efforts to serve children with disabilities in the least restrictive educational environments. The Administration supports the Committee's action that would restore $153 million in funding for these programs, which were proposed for reduction by the House, for a total of $245 million. The House mark of $92 million, in contrast, would eliminate such programs as grants for early childhood education, innovation and development grants, and training personnel for the education of children with disabilities.
  
  
• Bilingual and Immigrant Education. The President has requested $200 million for Bilingual Education and $100 million for Immigrant Education. The Administration opposes the Committee mark, which would reduce funding for Bilingual Education by almost 40 percent, to $123 million, and reduce the amount available for Immigrant Education by 50 percent, to $50 million. The combined Committee funding of $173 million is a 16-percent reduction from the FY 1995 post-rescission enacted level. This would severely reduce instructional services for over 700,000 limited-English-speaking children and adults. School districts that are heavily impacted by recently arrived immigrant students would be adversely affected.
  
  
• Howard University. The Administration opposes the Committee mark of $182 million, which is $26 million, or seven percent, below the Administration's request. Such a large decrease in one year would cause immediate and major layoffs of faculty and administrative staff. Since the university has already taken decisive action during FYs 1994 and 1995 to balance its budget by eliminating nearly 400 staff positions, further reductions in staff levels would be difficult to achieve without harming the overall quality of undergraduate and graduate education.
  
  
• Advisory Councils. The Administration is pleased that the Committee has deleted provisions of the House bill that would prohibit the funding of certain advisory boards, including the President's Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans, the National Board of the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, and the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Capital Financing Board.
  
  
• Gender Discrimination. The Administration is pleased that the Committee has deleted the provision of the House bill that would halt the Department of Education's enforcement of Title IX's prohibition on gender discrimination in intercollegiate athletics until the Department's Office for Civil Rights issues certain guidance in that area.

• Job Corps. The Committee's mark for Job Corps is $134 million below the President's request. The Administration urges full funding of Job Corps. Without this funding, the long-term expansion plans would be severely undercut, and several existing centers likely would have to be closed. The Committee mark would mean that thousands fewer disadvantaged youth would have the opportunity to learn necessary basic education and job skills than would be the case under the President's request.
  
  
• Unemployment Insurance Administration. The Administration is concerned that the Committee freezes the program at the FY 1995 level, cutting $156 million from the President's request. This level of funding could result in delays in benefit payments as well as increased errors in benefit payments and tax collections, adversely affecting trust fund balances. States might also lay off staff or close local offices in an effort to cut costs.
  
  
• Bureau of Labor Statistics. While the Administration is pleased that the Committee has provided the requested level for the revision of the Consumer Price Index, the Administration opposes the Committee's mark, which is a $46 million, or 12-percent, reduction to the President's request. The reduction would undercut the Bureau's ongoing efforts to improve its existing data series and would require program reductions or eliminations in several data series, such as Import- Export prices or Occupational Employment Statistics. Given the bipartisan support for improved statistical measures of the Nation's economy, the Senate is urged to fund the Bureau's activities fully.
  
  
• Community Service Employment for Older Americans. The Administration opposes the Committee's reduction to Title V of the Older Americans' Act, the Senior Community Service Employment program. The reduction of $46 million (11.6 percent) below the FY 1995 level would provide almost 7,600 fewer opportunities for the low-income elderly to be employed in community service organizations within their communities. The Administration urges the Senate to fund this program fully. In addition, financing the State grant portion of this program out of the Training and Employment Services (TES) Adult Training program would weaken training for older Americans as well as all adults. This action would effectively reduce adult job training funds under the Job Training Partnership Act by $77 million.
  
  
• Department of Labor Regulations. The Administration appreciates the Committee's deletion of provisions contained in the House-passed bill that would prevent the Department's regulatory agencies from developing, issuing, or enforcing certain regulations. The riders dropped by the Senate Committee include limitations regarding an ergonomics protection standard, certain regulations protecting working minors, and language restricting the Department's ability to provide information on economically targeted investments. The Administration continues to object to congressional micromanagement of workplace safety and enforcement standards.
  
  
• Davis-Bacon Helpers. The Committee has not included language requested by the Administration that would prohibit the Department of Labor from implementing the Davis-Bacon helper regulation. The Administration urges the Senate to restore this provision to allow the Department time to rework the helper regulation to insure the continuation of viable apprenticeship programs on Federal construction projects.

Department of Health and Human Services

• Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA). We are concerned with the Committee's reduction in the Health Care Financing Administration's Program Management account. This account funds activities to ensure the integrity of the Medicare Trust Funds and Federal payments for Medicaid. Reductions in this account of the magnitude recommended by the Committee could jeopardize these activities.
  
  
• Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR). The Administration is concerned that the Senate Committee bill cuts the request for AHCPR by $80 million in budget authority. This 56-percent reduction from the level requested by the President would severely impede AHCPR's ability to accomplish its mission of collecting health care data and supporting health services research.
  
  
• Crime Prevention. The Committee-reported bill would eliminate approximately three-quarters of the proposed Administration for Families and Children's violent crime reduction funding. Programs that would not be funded include $10 million in community economic partnership investment funds to stimulate business opportunities in low-income areas, $72.5 million in grants for the Community Schools program.
  
  
• Administration on Aging (AOA). The Committee would eliminate three of 12 AOA programs and reduce the funding for all but four. Total funding would be reduced by $61 million (or seven percent) below the President's request of $897 million. In addition, funding for programs that provide supportive services for the elderly, many of Whom are at risk of being institutionalized, would be reduced by over $15 million.
  
  
• Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). The Committee has not funded the President's request for a $114 million increase above the FY 1995 level in the Child Care and Development Block Grant. The CCDBG provides child care assistance to low-income families who need child care to remain in the workforce and off welfare.
  
  The Committee would fund the program at the FY 1995 level and eliminate two programs, totaling $14 million, that are proposed for consolidation under CCDBG in the President's budget.
  
  
• Community Services Programs. The Committee would eliminate the $20 million in grants to States for homeless services while maintaining $42 million in direct Federal grants. The President has proposed to terminate the $12 million National Youth Sports program, but the Committee would continue this program at the expense of other, much more vulnerable populations.
  
  
• Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Task Force. The Administration objects to the elimination of funding- provided under the Administration for Children and Families, to help fund the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Task Force. The Task Force brings a government-wide perspective to the effort to ensure that Federal and State benefits are delivered, both to individuals who receive cash benefits and do not have bank accounts and those who receive food benefits, in the most efficient and cost-effective manner possible for both the Federal government and the States. The Senate is urged to restore funding for this program.
  
  
• Other ACF Children and Families Services Programs. The Committee proposes significant reductions below the President's request in ACF services programs. The Committee would eliminate the Community-Based Resource Centers Program, which supports vital child abuse and neglect prevention activities in local communities, the Runaway and Homeless Youth preventive drug activities ($14 million), and Youth Gang Substance Abuse ($11 million). The Committee would reduce Abandoned Infants Assistance, Adoption Opportunities, and Temporary Child Care and Crisis Nurseries ($6 million) and Native American Programs ($3 million). The Committee would also reduce Developmental Disabilities programs by $10 million.
  
  
• Social Services Block Grant (SSBG). The Administration is concerned about the proposal contained in the Senate bill that would cut SSBG by 10 percent. The Administration understands that the proposal is similar to one that is already assumed by the budget resolution as part of the Senate Finance Committee's reconciliation savings target. Shifting these savings to the discretionary side of the budget would put pressure on the authorizing committee to replace the lost mandatory savings by making further cuts in programs assisting needy individuals.

Other Independent Agencies:

• Social Security Administration (SSA). The Committee provides SSA with $5.8 billion, $0.4 billion less than the President's request of $6.2 billion. The Committee bill would reduce the President's request for the Automation Investment Fund by $190 million, from $357 million to $167 million. At the Committee's funding level, nearly half of SSA's field offices would be forced to operate with aging terminals and an antiquated I970s-style system. This would sharply reduce the quality of service to the Nation's elderly. The Committee reduces the President's request for the Disability Investment Fund by $127 million. This represents a reduction of 24 percent, from $534 million to $407 million. Such a reduction would slow SSA's efforts to reduce the backlogs in initial disability claims and in hearings on disability appeals. These cuts would make it more difficult to ensure that persons with severe disabilities begin to receive Supplemental Security Income and Social Security Disability Insurance payments in a timely manner, and, that persons who are no longer severely disabled but are still on the rolls are reevaluated.
  
  The Committee strikes the language in the President's request that would require that not less than $215 million shall be available to conduct continuing disability reviews (CDRs). The Administration believes that this language is critical to ensuring that a sufficient number of CDRs are conducted to enhance the integrity of both the Supplemental Security Income and Disability Insurance programs.
  
  
• Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). Public broadcasting television and radio stations, led by CPB, are in the process of creating a more efficient, cost-effective, and healthy future public broadcasting system. The Administration supports funding for the CPB at a level consistent with the President's request. This level would provide the restructuring funds needed to achieve system-wide savings in the future.
  
  
• National Education Coals Panel (NEGP). The Administration opposes the Committee mark of $1.0 million, Which would provide less than half of the $2.8 million requested for the National Education Goals Panel, which plays an integral role in improving schools by charting our Nation's progress toward achieving the National Education Goals. The bipartisan Panel, with the membership of Governors, Senators, Congressmen, State legislators, and others, represents true education partnership designed to mobilize the Nation toward increasing student achievement.

Other Provisions:

• General Provision - Section 510. The Administration is concerned that the intent of section 510 of the Committee-reported bill is not clear. For example, some might read it as precluding any transfers permanently authorized by prior appropriation bills. Others might interpret it as ending efficient bill collecting procedures enacted in the FY 1993 general provisions. This section's intent needs to be made clear to preclude unintended effects and so it can be judged on its merits. Alternatively, the section could be deleted.