For the first time tonight, in what appears to be a settled field of Republican candidates for the nomination to run as the party’s standard bearer for President, many issues were debated. One of them was education.
A question was posed to Texas Governor Rick Perry about his record on education and recent budget cuts. Perry acquitted himself well, pointing to the fact that companies continue to come to his state to relocate their businesses because there is a strong, well-educated work force.
That is all well and good, but what struck me was the question itself. The implication was – from the pointed bias – that cutting money for education equates to diminished returns on education. Some may believe that America’s education ills are a matter of money. I suggest that it is not.
For decades, throwing money at education has been the cure-du-jour for a decline in education. In 1979, the Democrat controlled Congress passed the Department of Education Organization Act establishing a Cabinet-level department for education in the federal government. President Jimmy Carter, America’s greatest one-term President, signed the legislation into law and the U.S. Department of Education (ED) began operating the following year, in 1980.
For its first year in operation, Congress appropriated $14 billion to the new bureaucratic entity. Nearly 30 years later, the budget ballooned to $68.6 billion (2008 appropriations), a 390% increase in federal spending. Overall, appropriators have spent over $1 trillion of taxpayer money through ED alone. This figure does not include local and state spending, just the federal portion.
Ironically, even though Congress was dominated by Democrats in the 1980’s and early 1990’s, the largest increases in spending were overseen by Republican Presidents. Under President Reagan’s tenure, federal spending increased 42.6%, from $14.7 billion to over $20 billion. Reagan’s successor, President George H. W. Bush, fared only slightly better, increasing federal spending 40.9%, from $22 billion to over $32.1 billion.
Surprisingly, President Bill Clinton only increased federal spending by 18.4%, from more than $32 billion to $38.4 billion. Of course, Clinton’s record on federal spending had much to do with the 1994 Republican Revolution that swept liberal tax and spend Democrats from Congress and replaced them with fiscal conservatives who set out to balance the budget, eliminate runaway deficit spending and cut ever-growing taxes.
Then a funny thing happened; the Republican Party lost its moral compass on the issue of federal spending and infringement on States rights with increased meddling in education. Under President George W. Bush, and a Congress controlled by Republicans for much of Bush’s tenure, federal spending at ED increased by 63%, from slightly more than $42 billion to over $68.5 billion.
What about education funding as a whole? According to “10 Facts About K-12 Education Funding” furnished by the U.S. Department of Education, our country is spending more than a half-trillion each year. In the 2004-2005 school year alone, taxpayers spent an estimated $536 billion. That’s nearly $1.1 trillion every two years (not including post-secondary education); which is roughly the same amount we’ve spent on the entire War on Terror ($1.121 trillion).
“With the July 27, 2010 enactment of the FY2010 Supplemental Appropriations Act (H.R. 4899/P.L. 111-201) Congress has approved a total of $1.121 trillion for military operations, base security, reconstruction, foreign aid, embassy costs, and veterans’ health care for the three operations initiated since the 9/11 attacks: Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) Afghanistan and other counter terror operations; Operation Noble Eagle (ONE), providing enhanced security at military bases; and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF).” (Amy Belasco, “The Cost Of Iraq, Afghanistan, And Other Global War On Terror Operations Since 9/11,” Congressional Research Service, 9/2/10)
“Of this $1.121 trillion total, CRS estimates that Iraq will receive about $751 billion (67%), OEF $336 billion (30%) and enhanced base security about $29 billion (3%), with about $5 billion that CRS cannot allocate (1/2%). About 94% of the funds are for DOD, 5% for foreign aid programs and embassy operations, and 1% for medical care for veterans.” (Amy Belasco, “The Cost Of Iraq, Afghanistan, And Other Global War On Terror Operations Since 9/11,” Congressional Research Service, 9/2/10)
According to a report by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the U.S. spends 41% more on elementary and secondary education per student than other major countries included in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Further, U.S. expenditures “at the postsecondary level . . . per student were $25,109, which was more than twice as high as the OECD average of $12,336.”
“Among the OECD countries reporting data in 2006, the countries that spent the highest percentage of their GDP on total education expenditures were Iceland (8.0 percent), the United States (7.4 percent) Denmark (7.3 percent), and Korea (7.3 percent).” (National Center for Education Statistics, “The Condition Of Education 2010: Indicator 38 – Education Expenditures By Country,” U.S. Department of Education, 2010)
A couple more facts and figures to mull:
“By the end of the 2004-05 school year, national K-12 education spending will have increased an estimated 105 percent since 1991-92.” (Secretary Margaret Spellings, “10 Facts About K-12 Education Funding,” U.S. Department of Education, 6/05)
“On a per-pupil basis and adjusted for inflation, public school funding increased: 24 percent from 1991-92 through 2001-02 (the last year for which such data are available).” (Secretary Margaret Spellings, “10 Facts About K-12 Education Funding,” U.S. Department of Education, 6/05)
Despite the more than $1 trillion in federal spending the past three decades alone; despite spending a combined $1 trillion every two years; despite spending much more per student from elementary through post-secondary phases than the rest of the world; and despite spending the second most as a percentage of GDP, the U.S. continues to lose ground to the rest of the world in education.
Think money is the issue? Its time to start thinking outside the box on education and stop thinking that education can be solved by the federal government with more mandates, more control and more spending. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the problem with the question tonight posed by the MSNBC/Politico team to Republican candidates for President of the United States.
