Marty on the Issues

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 Improving K-12 Education

Congressman Meehan Believes that every child should have access to the best education possible.  To ensure that America's children continue to have a first-rate education, Marty will continue to work to improve primary education.

President Bush has underfunded the "No Child Left Behind Act" by a total of $39 billion, leaving a shortfall of hundreds of millions for Massachusetts schools.  Marty supports fully funding the No Child Left Behind Act to help schools reduce class sizes, hire and train well-qualified teachers, and raise the achievement levels of all students.  

•  Reducing Class Size and Retaining Teachers.  Marty supports establishing a National Education Trust Fund to ensure that the federal government meets its commitments to K-12 education.  The Trust Fund would fully fund education and allow schools across America to recruit and retain 500,000 additional teachers to reduce class sizes.  

• School Modernization.  According to the American School Board Journal, the average school building is 42 years old, and about three-fourths of the nation's schools are in need of repairs.  Marty co-sponsored the America's Better Classroom Act of 2003, a bill that would provide $25 billion in interest-free funds over two years for public school construction and modernization projects.

• Funding Special Education.  Marty supports fully funding the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA).  According to the National Education Association, Massachusetts schools are facing a $283 million shortfall in funding for IDEA.

• Reasonable Standards.  Marty understands that funding is not the only problem.  Schools also need flexibility and standards that are reasonable.  Marty supports efforts to revisit the No Child Left Behind Act to force the Department of Education to provide guidelines to schools and make sure that schools aren’t being judged by arbitrary standards, especially schools with high percentages of limited English or disabled children.  Marty has cosponsored HR 4605 – the House version of Senator Kennedy’s No Child Left Behind Fairness Act.  It provides schools with the opportunity to appeal the determination that they had not made “adequate yearly progress” if the schools’ limited English and disabled children were not taken into account.

Expanding Early Education

Congressman Meehan is a vocal supporter of increased preschool opportunities.  He supports expanding Head Start to more children and drawing more talented people into early childhood education.  He co-sponsored a bill (HR 2291) to forgive the student loans of Head Start teachers. 

Affordable Higher Education:

Congressman Meehan believes that a key component to a successful economy is a strong higher education system.  But, rising costs have meant that more and more talented students can not afford to go to college.  Marty is working to make post-secondary education available for everyone.

• Marty co-sponsored legislation to doubling the maximum Pell Grant.  The “College Opportunity for All Act,” would double the maximum Pell Grant award to $11,600 by 2011, as well as simplify other student aid programs, making it easier for students and families to pursue federal student aid.

• Marty co-sponsored the Make College Affordable Act of 2001, which allowed families to deduct $10,000 in higher education expenses from their taxes.  A $4,000 tax deduction for college tuition became law in 2001.

• Marty believes that community colleges are vital to Massachusetts' success and has worked to secure funding for those programs.  He secured $600,000 in the 2002 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill for Northern Essex Community College’s Haverhill campus.  He also secured $400,000 for NECC’s Lawrence Campus ($200,000 in Fiscal Year 2004 and Fiscal Year 2005).

• Marty supports the effort to establish HOPE scholarships and Lifelong Learning Tax Credits to give more students the opportunity to attend college.