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Pewstates
Obama Budget Calls for More
Competitive Grants
By
Jake Grovum, Staff Writer
President
Barack Obama’s budget, released Wednesday, envisions a
revamped relationship between the federal government and the states,
calling
for principles from the competitive Race to the Top education program
to be
applied to more federal grant programs.
Throughout
the White House budget, there are hopeful references to
trimming wasteful and inefficient spending, and one path touted toward
those
ends is a proposal to expand the ideas inherent in Race to the Top to
other
programs.
The
original Race to the Top, referred to as RTT, is a $4 billion
federal effort designed to entice states to enact reforms and overhaul
their
education systems in return for competitive grants from Washington.
According
to the White House, 19 states have received funding, a group that
comprises 22
million students — nearly half of all students in the country — and 1.5
million
teachers in 42,000 schools.
“By
setting out clear standards that needed to be met to receive
funds, RTT instigated change in States all across the Nation, including
even
those that ultimately did not receive RTT funds,” the budget says. “By
doing
so, RTT has driven taxpayer dollars to be used more effectively. The
RTT
approach is being expanded to transform and improve lifelong learning
from
early childhood education through college and beyond; to allocate
grants for
transportation; to bring innovation to workforce training; and to
accelerate
advanced vehicle deployment.”
Common
Ground
The
White House budget, all together, is expected to land with a
thud on Capitol Hill, where Republicans have attacked its tax hikes and
some
liberals have chafed at cuts to Medicare and Social Security. But the
competitive
grant proposal could offer some common ground, and builds on models
that the
federal government has used for health care, disability and other
programs in
recent years.
What’s
more, congressional and state Republicans have often called
for more flexibility when it comes to federal grants for states, ideas
that
could be incorporated into the latest White House proposal. At the same
time,
those Republicans have also been skeptical of how the administration
would
enforce standards and enact that flexibility, as was the case when the
White
House proposed waiving welfare-to-work requirements for states under
certain
circumstances.
One
specific proposal would create so-called “Performance
Partnership pilots” that would allow states and local government to
propose new
ways to use the myriad federal community, housing and other safety net
grants
that flow from Washington in new ways. The Office of Management and
Budget
would vet the proposals before they would go into place.
Similarly,
the budget calls for a Race to the Top-type program for
energy, offering states incentives to promote cleaner natural gas
production,
electrical grid modernization and reduced waste. A $1 billion
competitive grant
program for higher education would also be established, with an eye
toward
driving states to enact higher education reforms, cut tuition and
contain
ever-increasing costs.
The
energy program could be the most significant and get the most
administrative backing, as President Obama mentioned it in his State of
the Union
address earlier this year and specifically in his budget message
releasing his
plan. The proposal comes as concerns have been mounting around the
country
about dwindling federal support for renewable energy and efficiency
efforts, as
Stateline has reported.
Also
Relevant to States
The
White House budget includes a number of other provisions
relevant to states.
Read
the rest of the article at Pewstates
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