Committee on the Budget
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Representative:
On behalf of our 3 million members and the 50 million students they serve, we urge you to VOTE NO on the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2025—the first step toward more tax cuts for billionaires, paid for by everyone else. Votes on this issue may be included in NEA’s report card for the 119th Congress.
Over the long term, it is counterproductive to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations by slashing investments in our students—America’s future leaders and workforce. Yet that is precisely what this resolution contemplates.
Support for vulnerable students would wither while a tax credit voucher scheme diverts $100 billion from public to private and religious schools. In return for donations to an intermediary, individuals and corporations would get a dollar-for-dollar reduction in federal taxes that is far more valuable than the usual deduction for “charitable” contributions. To pay for this travesty, the resolution opens the door to a menu of cuts for the public schools that educate the overwhelming majority of Americans—90 percent of all students and 95 percent of students with disabilities. Entire communities would suffer, especially in rural areas where public schools are economic centers.
In particular, we urge you to oppose proposals to reduce student aid by:
- Erecting barriers to Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), including limiting eligibility
- Limiting or denying access to affordable, income-driven repayment plans
- Capping or eliminating multiple programs that provide loans to attend graduate and professional schools
- Making it harder for victims of unscrupulous institutions to escape student loan debt
- Increasing taxes on scholarships, fellowships, and student loan debt
- Slashing and capping Pell grants
Another area of concern is funding for school meals. Any cuts—including from limiting school coverage under the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) or requiring verification of family income—would result in students going hungry and burdensome, duplicative paperwork for schools. Further, many students and education support professionals participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), our nation’s first line of defense against hunger, which could also be slashed.
Children’s healthcare appears to be on the chopping block as well. The impact could be profound: 38 million children are covered by Medicaid and CHIP, and they comprise 47.4 percent of total Medicaid and CHIP enrollment. Basic healthcare as well as school-based services are in jeopardy—along with children’s futures. One study found that increases in Medicaid eligibility at birth led to improved reading test scores in 4th and 8th grades.
Meanwhile, ramped up immigration enforcement is traumatizing students all across America. Every day, educators encounter students terrified by threats of mass deportation. They worry that their loved ones will be targeted and their families broken up. Some refuse to leave their homes—even to go to school.
Most Americans do not want to defund and destroy public schools. To the contrary, they share our view that every student deserves opportunities, resources, and support to reach their full potential—no matter where they live, the color of their skin, or how much their family earns. Public schools exist to provide those opportunities.
For all these reasons, we urge you to oppose the FY2025 budget resolution. It is the first step toward more tax giveaways to billionaires and corporations funded on the backs of America’s students, families, and workers.
Sincerely,
Marc Egan
Director of Government Relations
National Education Association
