Introduction and Note from John Holmes, ACSI Director for Government Affairs
Welcome to February 2010. Here’s a precious insight from a longtime friend from Ohio, Harriet Lanning Mouer:
Being a “blesser”: I don’t recall my dad verbally saying, “God bless you”; however, he was a blesser. I remember visiting my parents in Florida during their retirement years and finding four children’s bicycles in their garage. My dad regularly bought bikes at garage sales for $5–$10 each and would resell them to children he knew from their church or to those who lived in their neighborhood. That’s right. He resold the bikes for no more than 25¢ each or for a plate of peanut butter cookies, bringing a sense of dignity to the little purchasers. What is it that can keep you and me new all year long by being a creative blesser?
The Word of God teaches us to bless others … something you already do.
We should be “creative blessers”… something you already are.
Some are even called to be “blesserers,” people who creatively bless blessers—is that you?
Here’s a way to be a blesser right now: Let others know that both the House and the Senate have passed bipartisan legislation HR 4462, which allows us to “accelerate the income tax benefits for charitable cash contributions for the relief of victims of the earthquake in Haiti.” If we give to help the earthquake victims after January 11 and before March 1, 2010, we can list the donation(s) as part of our 2009 income-tax deductions on our 2009 tax returns.
Thank you for being a blesser!
From Capitol Hill
Sen. Mary Landrieu’s (D-LA) staff has asked ACSI and other private school organizations to consider sending letters of support for her S 2898, which provides for “child safety, care, and education continuity in the event of a presidentially declared disaster.” This bill, which is cosponsored by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), a former secretary of education, is similar to the law that helped public- and private-school students whose lives were disrupted by the Katrina disaster. See the Library of Congress THOMAS website for more details on the bill.
STEM Education Coordination Act of 2009. ACSI continues to monitor science, technology, engineering, and math pieces of legislation (HR 1709 and S 1210) as the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation considers them. These bills would establish a committee under the National Science and Technology Council that would coordinate the science-, technology-, engineering-, and mathematics-education activities and programs of all federal agencies.
Major marriage penalty in the House and Senate health care bills. “For an unmarried couple with income of $25,000 each, combined [insurance] premiums would be capped at $3,076 per year, under the House bill. If the couple gets married, with a combined income of $50,000, their annual premium cap jumps to $5,160—a ‘penalty’ of $2,084.” —Martin Vaughan, “Married Couples Pay More Than Unmarried Under Health Bill,” WSJ.com, January 6, 2010
Senate seat change. The following is an excerpt from a Committee for Justice blog:
While most of the buzz about the impact of Scott Brown’s election to the Senate has centered on President Obama’s legislative agenda—particularly health care and cap and trade—the impact on his judicial and executive branch nominees, whose fates are completely dependent on the Senate, will be at least as great.…
…Obama’s more radical nominees are obvious targets for every moderate Democratic senator trying to portray themselves [sic] as not just another Washington liberal. In the end, all it takes to put an Obama nominee permanently on the back burner is the opposition of a couple of those moderate Democrats.
…[This] blow to Obama’s prestige means that Democratic senators will feel less obliged to defer to the President.
All of these factors will be magnified in the likely case that President Obama is faced with nominating one or more Supreme Court Justices later this year….
Until [Brown’s election], the conventional wisdom was that virtually all of Obama’s controversial nominees would squeak through the Senate. But Scott Brown’s victory has transformed the political calculus on which that wisdom was based. At a time when Americans—even Massachusetts residents—are signaling their anxiety about government swinging too far to the left, look for Democratic senators to stand up against Obama nominees hostile to gun rights, patriotism, law enforcement, and mainstream social values. (emphasis added)
—Curt Levey, “Brown Win Bad News for Obama Nominees: CFJ Executive Director Curt Levey on the Impact of Scott Brown’s Win,” January 20, 2010
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). This act has increased the federal government’s contribution to public-education revenue from an average of less than 10 percent to close to 15 percent of the national total. This includes Race to the Top grants. As recent news reports have detailed, over half of the jobs created or saved by the federal stimulus package have been in public education (325,000 out of 640,000 jobs). “Persistent claims that school districts are in fiscal jeopardy, often reported by the media, are misleading, [say the researchers,] driven by the fact that school-district budget cycles aren`t synchronized with state and federal legislative appropriations processes. Because it is increasingly rare for legislative bodies to enact spending bills before the beginning of the [public school] fiscal year on July 1, school districts, worrying about their financial vulnerability and needing to comply with personnel notification deadlines (usually in April or May), issue layoff notices and hold mandatory public hearings, even if the probability of actual personnel layoffs is slender. Such public threats trigger a media frenzy, alarm employees and parent advocates, and fuel the public perception that schools are in financial risk.”
—James Guthrie, “Think Education Spending Will Decline? Think Again,” Education Next blog, November 5, 2009
News You Can Use
Race to the Top grants. Many states are burning the midnight oil to participate in the USDE’s Race to the Top grants. But our friend Andy Smarick—who helped organize the White House meeting on the problems faced by urban religious schools and the resulting report in 2008—warns that the Obama administration “must take steps to ensure that [the $4.35 billion] Race to the Top funds are spent in ways that promote reform.” Learn more when you read Smarick’s “Toothless Reform?” article, or watch a video interview with Smarick titled “Will Education Stimulus Spending Promote School Reform?”
—“Race to the Top Offers Last Chance to Salvage Stimulus Spending,” Education Next news alert, January 19, 2010
Religious people more likely to donate. Gallup polling has found that if you attend religious services, you’re more likely to donate money to a charity, volunteer time for an organization, and help a stranger. And we’re not just talking about Christians here. The unprecedented survey, based on telephone and face-to-face interviews with about 240,000 adults in 140 countries, confirmed these findings to be true among all major world religions. To read the full report, visit The Gallup Poll.
ACSI’s opposition to administration revenue-raiser. In 2009, ACSI worked with the Alliance for Charitable Reform (ACR) to oppose an “Administration revenue raiser” that would help fund President Obama’s health care bill by “limiting individuals’ itemized deductions”—especially charitable deductions. Thankfully, “neither the Senate nor the House included the Administration’s revenue raiser to pay for healthcare reform bills.”
—ACR e-mail to subscribers, January 19, 2010
American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC’s) model legislation. In 2008, ALEC, another friend of ACSI, approved a set of principles that support philanthropic freedom. ALEC is a membership organization for state legislators that provides its members with model legislation that members can consider for their own states. The principles adopted in 2008 protect foundations’ missions and the principle of donor intent. In addition to this effort, ALEC adopted model legislation in December 2009 for state legislatures to consider, legislation providing statutory language to protect philanthropic freedom. ACR is working with several key state legislatures as they consider advancing this legislation.
—ACR e-mail to subscribers, January 19, 2010
Two new governors honored. ACSI honors the country’s two newest governors, Bob McDonnell of Virginia and Chris Christie of New Jersey, “who have tapped strong school choice advocates to head their state education departments.” Mr. McDonnell, a graduate of Regent University, chose Gerald Robinson to become the next secretary of education in Virginia. Currently, Mr. Robinson leads the Black Alliance for Educational Options. Mr. Christie has chosen former Jersey City mayor Bret Schundler to be New Jersey’s next education commissioner. “Mr. Schundler is an unabashed supporter of using education vouchers and charter schools to improve the plight of urban school districts.”
—*Choice Education Chiefs: Two New Governors Pick Reformers,” WSJ.com, January 20, 2010
Light not hidden under a bushel. The youngest Heisman Trophy winner, Tim Tebow, was born in the Philippines to missionary parents. While his mother, Pam, was pregnant with him, she experienced complications that led her doctors to recommend an abortion. Her doctors insisted that the treatment she needed would result in “grave and irreversible damage” to her unborn baby. But Pam refused the advice of her doctors and later gave birth to a healthy son.
Focus on the Family will be airing a 30-second ad featuring the Tebows’ story during this year’s Super Bowl. Even though Tim is already receiving criticism about the upcoming commercial, he refuses to hide his beliefs. When someone stands up for what is right on an international stage, it’s certainly worth mentioning!
—Steve Rosenbush, “Super Bowl Ad Sparks Abortion Battle,” Pressed blog, Portfolio.com, January 26, 2010
National Notes February 2010