NCLB Reauthorization: Here We Go Again
by Frederick M. Hess • Jun 3, 2013 at 9:18 am
Cross-posted from Education Week
Word has it that the Democrats on the Senate HELP Committee will be bringing forth their proposal for NCLB/ESEA reauthorization this week. Thus we'll return to a favorite Beltway edu-pastime: discussing whether reauthorization will pass, whether there will be a bipartisan bill, and what might change.
The bottom line: There will be no reauthorization in 2013 or 2014. There will be no bipartisan Senate bill. Expect the majority Democratic bill to look a lot like the 2011 Harkin-Enzi bill that made it out of committee, and Republicans to sketch a far more modest federal role.
The longer version: There are four key things to keep in mind as the reauthorization discussion plays out. First, the context has been reset by the ESEA waivers that the Department of Education has issued. That provides the new status quo, and it's a stable one for now. Sec. Duncan and the President have no incentive to do anything that's less palatable to them, and most states have addressed their most pressing concerns. Absent actual demand for change, assembling a coalition to get a bill done becomes really tough.
Second, there's no money. You can't adjust formulas or meaningfully alter funding streams in the U.S. Senate unless you can hold states harmless (i.e. make sure they get as much money as they would've under the old