04.30.09
The bill, the 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act, (H.R. 2187), reintroduced by U.S. Reps. Ben Chandler (D-KY), George Miller (D-CA), Dale E. Kildee (D-MI) and David Loebsack (D-IA) would provide billions of dollars in funding to schools for much-needed modernization, repair, and renovation projects. It would also provide additional support for Gulf Coast schools still recovering from damage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The House passed similar legislation last June.
“Especially in this economy, with state budgets dwindling, schools have fewer resources to make classrooms top-notch learning environments for students,” said Miller, chair of the House Education and Labor Committee. “No student should have to learn in a classroom or school that is literally falling apart. Creating world-class school facilities helps boost student achievement, enhances teachers’ effectiveness, generates savings for schools and creates good jobs for Americans desperately looking for work. This is smart public policy that will help us revive our economy, improve our schools, and protect our planet all at once.”
“Many of our nation’s schools are in disrepair, creating an unsafe and unhealthy classroom environment that makes it more difficult to learn. This legislation will modernize and improve our educational facilities, providing a healthier learning and working climate for our students and teachers. Not only will this benefit our local schools, but it will create good jobs in our communities while helping to clean up the environment,” said Kildee
“Our country will rise and fall based on how we educate our children,” Chandler said, “and safe, healthy, and functional learning environments are the very basics of a good education. Numerous government studies have shown that our nation’s schools are in an alarming state of disrepair. Since introducing this bill in 2007, Chairman Miller, Chairman Kildee, Congressman Loebsack and I have been working to make this issue a national priority, and reintroducing the 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act today is another big step in the right direction. ”
“The environment in which our students learn and educators teach can have an immense impact on the quality of education our children receive,” said Loebsack. “According to the Government Accountability Office, 79% of Iowa schools need to repair or upgrade their buildings and facilities. Our students deserve more from us. By making investments to repair and modernize our schools we will not only be providing improved learning environments for our students, but we will also be able to create new jobs, spur local investment, and create long term cost savings for schools.”
Recent estimates underscore the extreme funding shortfalls facing schools in need of improvement. It would cost approximately $254.6 billion to address the school infrastructure need across the fifty states, according to a report from December of 2008 by the American Federation of Teachers.
The construction industry is also facing urgent needs. According to U.S. Department of Labor estimates, the construction industry lost 126,000 jobs in March. Overall, the construction field has shed 1.3 million jobs since January 2007 – almost half of which were lost in the last five months.
President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included a $53.6 billion State Fiscal Stabilization Fund primarily to backfill budget cuts and help stave off teacher layoffs. School districts can also use this fund to improve school facilities, among other uses. H.R. 2187 will build on this effort, so that all school districts can access funds to make much-needed facility improvements.
H.R. 2187 would authorize $6.4 billion for school renovation and modernization projects for fiscal year 2010, and would ensure that school districts quickly receive funds for projects that improve schools’ teaching and learning climates, health and safety, and energy efficiency. To further encourage energy-efficiency in schools, the bill would require that the majority of funds for school improvement projects meet widely recognized green building standards and would encourage states to help schools track their energy use and carbon footprints, among other things. In the final year of funding, the bill would require 100 percent to be used for these types of projects.
In the Gulf Coast, where public schools still face hundreds of millions of dollars in damages caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the legislation would authorize separate funds – $600 million dollars over six years – for schools still trying to recover.
In addition, the legislation would ensure fair wages and benefits for construction workers by applying Davis-Bacon protections to all grants awarded for school improvement projects.
Lawmakers Reintroduce Legislation to Modernize and Green America’s Public Schools and Create Jobs
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Democratic lawmakers today reintroduced legislation that will help make America’s public school facilities more safe, healthy, energy-efficient and technologically advanced, while creating thousands of new jobs in construction and green industries. The House Education and Labor committee will consider and vote on the bill next Wednesday, May 6.The bill, the 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act, (H.R. 2187), reintroduced by U.S. Reps. Ben Chandler (D-KY), George Miller (D-CA), Dale E. Kildee (D-MI) and David Loebsack (D-IA) would provide billions of dollars in funding to schools for much-needed modernization, repair, and renovation projects. It would also provide additional support for Gulf Coast schools still recovering from damage caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The House passed similar legislation last June.
“Especially in this economy, with state budgets dwindling, schools have fewer resources to make classrooms top-notch learning environments for students,” said Miller, chair of the House Education and Labor Committee. “No student should have to learn in a classroom or school that is literally falling apart. Creating world-class school facilities helps boost student achievement, enhances teachers’ effectiveness, generates savings for schools and creates good jobs for Americans desperately looking for work. This is smart public policy that will help us revive our economy, improve our schools, and protect our planet all at once.”
“Many of our nation’s schools are in disrepair, creating an unsafe and unhealthy classroom environment that makes it more difficult to learn. This legislation will modernize and improve our educational facilities, providing a healthier learning and working climate for our students and teachers. Not only will this benefit our local schools, but it will create good jobs in our communities while helping to clean up the environment,” said Kildee
“Our country will rise and fall based on how we educate our children,” Chandler said, “and safe, healthy, and functional learning environments are the very basics of a good education. Numerous government studies have shown that our nation’s schools are in an alarming state of disrepair. Since introducing this bill in 2007, Chairman Miller, Chairman Kildee, Congressman Loebsack and I have been working to make this issue a national priority, and reintroducing the 21st Century Green High-Performing Public School Facilities Act today is another big step in the right direction. ”
“The environment in which our students learn and educators teach can have an immense impact on the quality of education our children receive,” said Loebsack. “According to the Government Accountability Office, 79% of Iowa schools need to repair or upgrade their buildings and facilities. Our students deserve more from us. By making investments to repair and modernize our schools we will not only be providing improved learning environments for our students, but we will also be able to create new jobs, spur local investment, and create long term cost savings for schools.”
Recent estimates underscore the extreme funding shortfalls facing schools in need of improvement. It would cost approximately $254.6 billion to address the school infrastructure need across the fifty states, according to a report from December of 2008 by the American Federation of Teachers.
The construction industry is also facing urgent needs. According to U.S. Department of Labor estimates, the construction industry lost 126,000 jobs in March. Overall, the construction field has shed 1.3 million jobs since January 2007 – almost half of which were lost in the last five months.
President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included a $53.6 billion State Fiscal Stabilization Fund primarily to backfill budget cuts and help stave off teacher layoffs. School districts can also use this fund to improve school facilities, among other uses. H.R. 2187 will build on this effort, so that all school districts can access funds to make much-needed facility improvements.
H.R. 2187 would authorize $6.4 billion for school renovation and modernization projects for fiscal year 2010, and would ensure that school districts quickly receive funds for projects that improve schools’ teaching and learning climates, health and safety, and energy efficiency. To further encourage energy-efficiency in schools, the bill would require that the majority of funds for school improvement projects meet widely recognized green building standards and would encourage states to help schools track their energy use and carbon footprints, among other things. In the final year of funding, the bill would require 100 percent to be used for these types of projects.
In the Gulf Coast, where public schools still face hundreds of millions of dollars in damages caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the legislation would authorize separate funds – $600 million dollars over six years – for schools still trying to recover.
In addition, the legislation would ensure fair wages and benefits for construction workers by applying Davis-Bacon protections to all grants awarded for school improvement projects.
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