November 7, 2009
Here are some important passages in the 2,000 page legislation. The health bill that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is bringing to a vote (H.R. 3962) is 1,990 pages. Here are some of the details you need to know. What the government will require you to do: • Sec. 202 (p. 91-92) of the bill requires […]
November 4, 2009
House leaders released the final version of their nearly 2,000-page health package late Tuesday, clearing the way for a vote by the full chamber as soon as this weekend. But Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (Md.) declined to say when debate would begin on the measure, issuing a statement that said Democratic leaders were still talking […]
November 4, 2009
If California schools want a piece of $4.2 million in new federal education grants, they’ll have to make some changes. Legislation by state Sen. Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles) and several coauthors would pave the way for those changes, but the bill is so awkwardly constructed at this point, with so many unnecessary and possibly harmful […]
November 2, 2009
State officials said Monday that they are on target to enroll 35,000 children in two key public health programs by the end of 2009, six months ahead of schedule. In November 2008, Gov. Steve Beshear pledged to increase the number of children in Kentucky Children’s Health Insurance Program or Medicaid programs by decreasing some of […]
November 2, 2009
Governor David A. Paterson today released a report outlining the distribution of more than $18 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) spending throughout New York State, broken down by county and New York City. The Greater Rochester region of Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Wayne and Wyoming counties is expected to receive at […]
October 31, 2009
Governor Jennifer Granholm announced on Oct. 22 that the payments to the school districts would be cut by an additional $127 per student in 30 days unless the Michigan Legislature found additional revenue to fund the payments. This comes after an earlier announcement that State Aid payments would be cut by $165 per student. "We’re […]
October 30, 2009
Creating and saving jobs while boosting investment in the future are among the top goals of the Obama administration’s $787 billion economic stimulus plan. President Obama chats with students at a Silver Spring, Maryland, elementary school this week. And according to a preliminary report on stimulus funding for schools by the Department of Education and […]
October 30, 2009
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued an interim final rule with request for comments today to strengthen its enforcement of the rules promulgated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, which was enacted as part of the American […]
October 29, 2009
When I first returned to the Washington area in 1997 after two decades working elsewhere for the Post, I assumed that readers of my education stories would be most interested in standard suburban topics, such as college admissions, test scores and gifted education. Those issues had their place, but the subject that inspired the most […]
October 29, 2009
The federal stimulus package might have saved thousands of teaching jobs, but many thousands more remain in jeopardy — as well as virtual-school programs, higher-education funding, and other school initiatives — as a result of lingering budget crises in states from coast to coast. In Missouri, a new round of budget cuts announced Oct. 28 […]