Specter-Harkin-Kennedy Amendment Passes!
Amendment to Senate Budget Resolution Seeks to add
$7 billion to Health and Education Programs for 2007
On Thursday, March 16th, the Senate voted 73 to 27 to approve and amendment to the Senate Budget Resolution, paving the way for appropriators later this year to spend an additional $7 billion in Fiscal Year 2007 (FY 07) for health and education programs. The amendment was offered by Senators Arlen Specter (R-PA), Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Ted Kennedy (D-MA), and sought to address the appropriations problem that the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education (Labor/HHS) bill would face if additional spending authority was not provided in the Budget Resolution - the measure that serves as a blueprint for federal spending in various categories.
The initial version of the Senate Budget Resolution would have cut funding for education and health programs, including child services programs. The Specter-Harkin-Kennedy amendment will allow advance funding of health, education and worker training programs to free up $7 billion in FY 07 spending. There is currently no such provision in the House Budget Resolution, so it is imperative that all advocates now shift their focus on the House of Representatives if and when a similar increase in the health and education functions is considered in the House Budget Resolution. The House Budget Committee will not take action on this legislation until after Congress returns to Washington on March 27th.
Adoption of the Senate Amendment is a HUGE victory for the health and education communities. However, there is a long road ahead of this victory before actual funding increases for health and education programs can be realized for FY 07. Next, it will be necessary for the U.S. House of Representatives to include a similar provision when it considers its Budget Resolution later this month. Further, the respective House and Senate FY 07 Labor/HHS Appropriations bills will then have to reflect use of the advance funding mechanism to allow for increased spending in FY 07 specifically for health and education programs.
D2L will send out additional alerts at each critical juncture in this process, urging specific steps to take to ensure that the best possible funding levels will be provided for child protection programs in FY 07.
PLEASE THANK THOSE SENATORS THAT SUPPORTED THE SPECTER-HARKIN-KENNEDY AMENDMENT:
Please review the list below of Senators who voted for the Specter-Harkin-Kennedy amendment to the Senate Budget Resolution and thank these Senators (via letters, calls or emails!). Contact information for these Senators can be found on at http://capwiz.com/darkness/home/ , or call the Capitol Switch board at (202) 224-3121.
SENATORS WHO VOTED FOR THE SPECTER-HARKIN AMENDMENT:
Akaka (D-HI)
Alexander (R-TN)
Baucus (D-MT)
Bayh (D-IN)
Bennett (R-UT)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Burns (R-MT)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Carper (D-DE)
Chafee (R-RI)
Clinton (D-NY)
Cochran (R-MS)
Coleman (R-MN)
Collins (R-ME)
Conrad (D-ND)
Dayton (D-MN)
DeWine (R-OH)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feingold (D-WI)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Frist (R-TN)
Grassley (R-IA)
Hagel (R-NE)
Harkin (D-IA)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inouye (D-HI)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kennedy (D-MA)
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Kerry (D-MA)
Kohl (D-WI)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Lott (R-MS)
Lugar (R-IN)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Obama (D-IL)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Roberts (R-KS)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Santorum (R-PA)
Sarbanes (D-MD)
Schumer (D-NY)
Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME)
Specter (R-PA)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Stevens (R-AK)
Talent (R-MO)
Thune (R-SD)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)
Wyden (D-OR) |
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