Courtney Statement on Republican Education Plan

WASHINGTON—Today, Representative Joe Courtney (CT-2) voted against the Student Success Act (H.R. 5), the Republican plan to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Among other things, the bill would lock in sequestration cuts to federal education programs for at least six years. Courtney spoke yesterday on the House floor to detail the impacts of making those cuts permanent.

"Today, the House approved a Republican bill to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act," Courtney said. "Instead of taking this reauthorization as an opportunity to fix No Child Left Behind, Republicans are using this chance to gut federal support for educating American children. As sequestration tightens its grip on critical programs and funding across the board, Republicans are doubling down on these draconian tactics, hurting middle class families—and their children—in Connecticut and around the country.

"I supported the defense authorization bill—along with the chairman of my committee—a few weeks ago, which actually used pre-sequestration funding levels for our national defense. Yet here today we voted on a bill which tells America's children: sorry, you're stuck with sequestration. You have to allow this chainsaw which is going through Federal programs to continue for the next six years at exactly the time when we should, as a national priority, be investing more in education. Instead of working towards a rational, responsible budget, Republicans are embracing sequestration—and the pain for middle class Connecticut families it brings—in the name of deficit reduction. Education used to be a bipartisan issue in this country, not a political football. I am going to continue to push for an end to sequestration, and an ESEA reauthorization that puts students—not budget cuts—first."