tomgraves.house.gov

Graves, Tom
Contact: Garrett Hawkins 202.225.5211


Rep. Graves Votes to Return Control of Education to States, Local Communities and Parents
Bill Ends No Child Left Behind, Stops Common Core

Washington, Dec 2 -

Today, Rep. Tom Graves (R-GA-14) voted for and the House passed the Conference Report to Accompany S. 1177 – Every Student Succeeds Act, bipartisan legislation that fixed differences between education bills that passed the House and Senate earlier this year. The bill replaces No Child Left Behind (NCLB) while prohibiting any federal involvement in Common Core.

“As the husband of a teacher and the father of three middle and high school students, I know that a one-size-fits-all education doesn’t work,” said Rep. Graves. “And after hearing from 14^th District educators and administrators for years, I know we have far too much federal involvement in education, from high-stakes testing to Common Core.”

Rep. Graves continued: “It’s time to return power to our local communities, which is exactly what this legislation does. It prohibits the federal government from coercing states into adopting Common Core, and allows states to develop testing curricula that best fits their needs with no strings attached. Importantly, the bill protects religious freedoms, and ensures private schools and those who are homeschooled are free from federal control. It also completely eliminates dozens of ineffective or duplicative federal programs.

“This bill takes power away from the Obama administration and gives it back to Georgia and 14^th District parents and teachers who really know what is best for their kids,” Rep. Graves concluded.

Media outlets around the country are taking note of the bill’s aim of restoring state and local control of education, and strictly limiting federal involvement.***  

• “The bill marks a roll back of federal power” (National Journal)
  
• “Will free students and schools from the grip of crude directives” (American Enterprise Institute)
  
• “The largest devolution of federal control to the states in a quarter-century” (The Wall Street Journal)
  
• “Removes the one size fits all federal system” (KEYC-TV)
  
• “Cuts down on the number of education programs” (POLITICO)
  
• “Education secretary could no longer push for academic standards like the Common Core” (NPR)
  
• “A dismantling of the federal accountability system” (The Washington Post)
  
• “States will now get to design their own systems to measure how schools perform” (BuzzFeed)
  
• “End waivers the Obama administration has granted to more than 40 states” (Associated Press)
  
• “Will go to great lengths to tie the hands of the secretary of the Department of Education” (Deseret News)
• “At its core is designed to rein in federal control and again provide states with more freedom” (Asbury Park Press)

***List prepared by Speaker Ryan’s office.

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