Letter to U.S. House of Representatives: January 27, 2009

January 27, 2009

Member
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

RE: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

Dear Representative:

On behalf of the 95,000 local school board members and 49 million public school students represented by the National School Boards Association (NSBA) through our state school boards associations across the nation, I am writing to urge your strong support and vote in favor of H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

This legislation could not come at a more critical time for our school districts and our nation. School district operating budgets are at a severe disadvantage and need immediate federal assistance. Many of our public school districts are facing enormous economic uncertainty with state budget shortfalls, declines in local revenues used for education, potential teacher and personnel lay-offs, and deferrals of school repairs and maintenance, for example. Without the provisions proposed for K-12 education programs in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the nation’s 14,350 school districts will encounter even greater peril as our communities try to mitigate effects of the recession.

The legislation’s provisions for education are very timely – from Title I grants for disadvantaged students and special education to school infrastructure, education technology, assistance to students affected by the housing crisis, teacher quality, data systems and assessments, and school construction bonds. These and other investments proposed in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 are paramount to the success of our nation’s students; and, they would be mutually beneficial to our communities and states to create and sustain thousands of jobs and contracting opportunities.

NSBA greatly appreciates Congress’ efforts to address the economic crisis and its impact on our students and school districts. We urge Congress’ strong bipartisan support and swift passage of the legislation, and look forward to working with you as the bill moves forward.

Sincerely,

Michael A. Resnick
Associate Executive Director