The U.S. Senate has approved an amendment to the 2006 fiscal year budget resolution that will raise Pell Grant funding and maintain other federal student aid programs. Proposed by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), it narrowly passed 51-49 on March 17 when six Republican senators--Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, Norman Coleman of Minnesota, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Olympia Snowe of Maine, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and Susan Collins of Maine--crossed party lines to support the resolution.

Sen. Kennedy noted in introducing the amendment that it reinstates proposals made by the Student Aid Alliance, of which the AFT is a member. Adoption of the amendment was a welcome development given how the original budget resolution shortchanged the needs of students. It marks a tremendous victory for student aid supporters, although the battle to secure the allocation in the final budget resolution is just beginning.  "We really appreciate Sen. Kennedy's leadership on this issue and the bipartisan support of his colleagues," said AFT lobbyist Jodie Fingland.  "This energizes us as we look to ensure support for higher education in the final spending bill."

The amendment is a three-part strategy to improve America's competitiveness. The first calls for $1.4 billion to raise the maximum Pell Grant by $450 to $4,500 in fiscal year 2006.  It also seeks to provide $2 billion to stop the Bush administration's plan to eliminate important programs for disadvantaged students, such as the Perkins Loan Program, Upward Bound and Talent Search.

The second part allows new math, science and special education teachers in high-need schools a guarantee of student loan forgiveness in exchange for teaching for four years. The third restores Bush's budget cuts to job training, adult literacy and vocational education. The amendment's cost of $5.4 billion is paid for by eliminating tax loopholes. With its passage, the grand total of discretionary spending reached $848.8 billion.

The amendment's passage was in doubt late in the day, but strong advocacy by the Student Aid Alliance helped to secure the votes needed for adoption.  The AFT will continue to work with the Alliance in the coming months to ensure that this win is preserved in the final budget. [Julie Berry, Barbara McKenna]

March 18, 2005