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Sununu, Shaheen Trade
Volleys on Special Education
From the Associated Press,
10/7/2002
For more articles on disabilities and special ed visit
www.bridges4kids.org
and www.educationnews.org.
Gov. Jeanne Shaheen and U.S. Rep. John E.
Sununu traded charges Monday over paying for special
education, a major part of many school district budgets.
Shaheen and Vermont Sen. James Jeffords, an independent, said
Sununu has voted repeatedly against making the government pay
its share of special education costs. They cited three votes
and said Sununu has cost the state $55 million a year in
federal education money.
Sununu's campaign said as vice chairman of the House Budget
Committee, he has helped lead the effort to nearly triple
special education funding since elected to Congress.
Shaheen and Jeffords appeared at a news conference at Lebanon
High School.
''The fact is that when John Sununu had the chance to fully
fund special education, he voted against it, not once, but
twice,'' Shaheen said. ''Both of these votes broke along party
lines-which isn't surprising, since Sununu votes with the
Republican leadership over 90 percent of the time.
''And that's the problem,'' Shaheen said. ''John Sununu votes
with his party even when it's against New Hampshire's
interests.''
Jeffords said there's a stark difference between Shaheen and
Sununu.
''Jeanne Shaheen agrees with my view that now is the time to
fully fund special education, John Sununu does not,'' he said.
When it passed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA) in the 1970s, Congress promised to provide states 40
percent of special education costs, but still is paying only
17 percent.
Sununu spokeswoman Julie Teer described the Shaheen claims as
election-year politics. She released a list of votes by Sununu
showing that he has supported measures that provide money for
special education, while Shaheen cited Sununu votes that she
says took money away from special education.
''Under John's watch, working with Congressman Charlie Bass,
there has been an increase in special education funding from
$3.1 billion in 1997, to $8.6 billion in the 2003 budget,''
Teer said.
''During each of last three years, John Sununu had language
written in the budget resolution to help bring special
education funding to its highest level ever,'' she said,
adding that he co-sponsored legislation to fully fund special
education by 2006 and led a bipartisan effort to pass
legislation which will fully fund special education in the
next 10 years.
''Jeanne Shaheen has a failed record of leadership when it
comes to New Hampshire education priorities,'' Teer said.
''New Hampshire doesn't promote that kind of failure.''
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