America Competes Act

Floor Speech

AMERICA COMPETES ACT -- (Senate - April 25, 2007)

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Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, with this bill, we are taking a major step forward to help America's workers compete and win in the global economy.

I have been working on education, workforce and competitiveness issues for many years, and I will never forget a roundtable I held in Washington State a few years ago. Sitting around the table, we had business owners, higher education officials and public school educators.

The big question was this--who is responsible for making sure our students get the skills they need? Businesses didn't want to hire somebody and then have to train them in the basics. Higher education leaders wanted to be able
to focus on college-level material, not remediation. And high school leaders were working as hard as they could just to deal with the demands on their plate.

So whose responsibility is it to make sure our students get the skills they need?

It is all of our responsibility, and that is what this bill finally recognizes. It ensures that our Federal agencies--from Commerce to Education to Energy to the National Science Foundation--take aggressive steps to keep American workers ahead of the curve.

I am very proud that our country is home to some of the most innovative workers, schools, and companies in the world. But I have been frustrated that for too long our government has not used all the tools available to strengthen the hand of American workers in the world marketplace. This bill finally gets us on the right track, and that's going to pay dividends for generations.

I worked to strengthen this bill through my amendment to improve math education in high school. Just yesterday, we had a hearing in the Senate HELP Committee, where education experts from across the country told us that math instructional support does not extend as far as it needs to in high school. That's why I offered an amendment to help address this shortcoming. The Murray Math Skills Program offers competitive grants to help high schools hire math coaches to provide targeted support for students and math teachers. It will ensure high school students have the rigorous math materials, instruction, and support they need to pursue college and careers in engineering, science, math and technology. I am excited that my amendment was included in this bill to make sure high school students get the math support they need.

I am pleased that this bill doubles funding for the National Science Foundation and the Energy Department's Office of Science over the next 10 years. It also encourages high-risk research and supports research at NASA.

As I work on issues like this, I bring the perspective of not just a Senator, but a former educator and someone who represents one of the most innovative regions of our country--the Pacific Northwest. I have seen firsthand the connection between what we do in our schools and what our businesses and economy are able to do. I am proud to represent a state that is home to some of the most innovative workers and companies in the world in diverse fields like computers, software, biotechnology, aerospace, and many more. So as I work on these issues, I know how important a skilled workforce is to our quality of life.

I also know that so much is at stake. Businesses spend about $60 billion just to remediate new employees, and that doesn't include what colleges have to spend to help incoming students catch up.

The statistics are troubling. According to a report called ``Tough Choices or Tough Times'' from the National Center on Education and the Economy, the number of engineering degrees in the United States is down 20 percent from its peak year in 1985. This is just one indicator of the trouble ahead if we don't turn this ship around.

I have heard time and again from experts, including the ``Rising Above the Gathering Storm'' report, that our economic future depends on our ability to innovate, think creatively, and create technological breakthroughs.

Our students and workers need strong skills in math, science, engineering, technology, and problem solving to make these kinds of technological and scientific breakthroughs that help ensure our Nation's place in the world. This bill moves us in the right direction by putting in place several key pieces of the puzzle.

Let me turn to the substance of the bill. The America COMPETES Act helps increase our country's investment in research, including the type of higher risk research that can lead to major breakthroughs. It also helps students get the skills and experiences they need from elementary school through graduate school in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. I applaud the bill for also making great steps towards attracting women and minorities into these studies and careers; groups that have been historically underrepresented in math and science. Finally, the bill helps bring an array of representatives to the table to develop a foundation for innovation and creativity, which is so important to our country's competitiveness.

When the HELP Committee first began to consider these issues in the 110th Congress, we heard from Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft in my home State, at a hearing titled ``Strengthening American Competitiveness for the 21st Century.'' We all heard his urgent call for our country to invest in education, healthcare, and basic science research. As Bill Gates put it:

The U.S. cannot maintain its economic leadership unless our work force consists of people who have the knowledge and skills needed to drive innovation.

This bill recognizes that truth and moves our country in the right direction. It is not the final word. We still have a lot of work to do in areas like workforce investment--but it is a critical step forward, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for the America COMPETES Act.

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