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WASHINGTON, D.C. - Despite heavy support from Education Secretary Arne Duncan, legislators may be backing away from a proposal to spend an additional $23 billion in federal funds on teacher jobs, according to The Associated Press.
A plan to add the teacher bailout to a war spending bill was set aside Thursday when a House committee meeting on the bill was canceled abruptly, AP said in a report posted at mlive.com.
AP reported that legislators are concerned about deficit spending and about "lukewarm support from the White House."
The Obama administration and Duncan have said the money is needed to save between 100,000 and 300,000 teacher and other school personnel jobs once the federal education stimulus money runs out this year. But legislators pointed out that the president did not include the money in his proposed budget, and that a White House statement issued Thursday said only that "some emergency funding" was needed, without saying how much.
Educators around the country told AP that the number of layoffs that might take place would depend on the economy in their region.
SOURCE:
The Associated Press, "New $23B for teacher subsidies
falters in House," May 27, 2010
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Paying Teachers Not to
Teach," May 28, 2010
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