Strength in Diversity Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Foxx for yielding. I appreciate the opportunity to address this issue today.

I rise in opposition to H.R. 2639, and I oppose it because I believe every child should have access to a good education. I have long advocated for the need to expand choice to each student so that they have the opportunity to live out the American Dream regardless of their ZIP Code or family resources. In fact, we talked about this very thing on the steps of the Capitol this morning.

H.R. 2639 is a partisan proposal that would impose a top-down, Big Government solution--that is the problem--allowing the Federal Government to decide how best to address the issues of racial and socioeconomic isolation in America's schools.

Unfortunately, this debate is not about equality for all children. If it were, we would have ensured no State had the ability to trap students in low-performing schools.

Rather than bring a bill to the House floor that would expand the availability of charter schools or offer families educational freedom, Democrats have decided the teachers unions are more important to them than real families who are desperate for access to a better education for their children.

Additionally, this partisan proposal would create another Federal program while ignoring existing priorities.

During committee markup, I offered a substitute amendment to the bill that would have expanded the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants, or SSAEG, in the Every Student Succeeds Act to allow school districts to use funds to reduce or eliminate racial or socioeconomic isolation in schools.

The SSAEG were authorized on a bipartisan basis to give school districts flexible funding to address local needs and receive $1.21 billion in fiscal year 2020 appropriated funds.

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Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, committee Democrats rejected my amendment and chose to push forward a partisan bill that would only result in another broken promise from the Federal Government.

Instead of working in a bipartisan, bicameral fashion to implement a commonsense solution, Democrats are once again choosing partisan political messaging over sound policy.

It has been a tough year, especially on families who have had to adapt to learning in the age of coronavirus. So, let's have a real conversation on how we can best serve our students and families by working to expand choice.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this partisan bill before it is too late.
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Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Speaker, I have got to be frank for a minute. I find it a shame that this amendment is even necessary.

When we replaced the No Child Left Behind Act with the Every Student Succeeds Act, we created the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants program on a bipartisan, bicameral basis. We did this to provide school districts the flexibility they need to use Federal funds as they see fit to meet local needs.

It is disappointing that my Democratic colleagues didn't invite Republicans to the table to negotiate in good faith to build on that consensus. Instead, Democrats once again ignored commonsense approaches and impose a top-down, Big Government solution that will have the Federal Government decide how best to address the issues of racial and socioeconomic isolation in American schools.

You know, we have heard story after story of the history of our schools and how we got to this point. The question is, will we continue with this top-down government approach or allow the schools the flexibility to fix this problem.

My amendment, on the other hand, offers a commonsense solution that could easily garner an overwhelming majority of votes in this body if every Member chose to focus on the importance of actually addressing racial and socioeconomic isolation in schools and not on scoring political points.

This amendment would explicitly allow school districts to use funds they receive from the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants program under the Every Student Succeeds Act to develop or implement comprehensive strategies to improve diversity and reduce or eliminate racial or socioeconomic isolation in public early childhood programs and public schools.

This is a real solution. The SSAEG block grant is currently receiving just over $1 billion. The proposal before us today would have to fight for funding with the multitude of other Federal programs that currently exist.

This amendment also ensures that school districts are engaging with their communities to design programs that comply with Federal law and have the support of parents and other constituents. It also alters requirements to distribute funds across multiple spending categories so that districts will have sufficient funding to design effective integration programs.

The amendment uses the same language as the Magnet Schools Assistance Program under the Every School Succeeds Act to ensure that school districts choosing to use funds for improving diversity can fund transportation activities, if they see fit.

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Mr. ALLEN. Foxx).

Ms. FOXX of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the gentleman's amendment and urge my colleagues to support it.

I applaud the gentleman from Georgia for offering such an alternative. As has been said, it builds on bipartisan, bicameral agreements to ensure nearly every school district in the country has Federal funds to pursue the goals of the underlying bill rather than affording this opportunity to a select few school districts.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the amendment.

Mr. Speaker, it is a shame that we even have to offer this amendment. We have got a problem, but I can tell you, my community solved this problem, which is the reason I ran for Congress.

The faith-based community created a school for kids who are branded as losers in the public education system, and these moms don't have but one choice, and that is to send these children to this school. And it is amazing how kids who are branded as losers have become the most outstanding students in Richmond County.

We keep talking about fixing these things and, like I said earlier, we continue to offer solutions, but we continue with the same problem. There is a way to fix this. This is a start. Rather than create a new program we know will be underfunded that will benefit, at best, a small handful of school districts, my amendment would ensure that nearly every school district in this country would have Federal funds available to improve diversity and reduce or eliminate racial or socioeconomic isolation in schools.

I urge the majority to put the students and families and educators my amendment would benefit before their political interest and take ``yes'' for an answer.

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Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

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