U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert (R.-Ill.) is circulating a letter to members of Congress, asking to increase funding for educating homeless children from its current $28 million to $50 million. In October, the House passed a $36 million reauthorization to the bill. President Clinton has requested $31.7 million.
But Biggert is hoping for more.
Biggert was instrumental in passing the Homeless Education Assistance Improvement Act, incorporating several unique guarantees of an Illinois law into federal statutes, guaranteeing education for homeless children.
She is hoping for the backing of other members of Congress, then plans to add those names to her request and forward it to U.S. Rep. John Porter (R-Ill.), chairman of a House Appropriations subcommittee dealing with labor, education, and health and human services.
“Since the Housed passed its act, my office has had a lot of interest and positive response from colleagues in Congress so we thought we might as well ask for the $50 million,” said Biggert, who lives in Hinsdale. “The funding level has remained the same–$28 million–since (a previous law was in effect in) 1995 and we were only able to help 37 percent of the school age homeless children during the 1997-1998 school year.”