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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release May 27, 1999

STATEMENT BY VICE PRESIDENT GORE

I applaud today's decision by the Federal Communication's Commission to fully fund the E-rate program and put America on track of meeting our goal of connecting every classroom and library to the Internet.

Put simply, this decision will mean our children will begin the next millennium equipped not with the chalk and blackboards of the 20th Century, but with the digital tools and resources of the 21st Century.

This decision will allow us to connect over 500,000 additional classrooms -- not administrative offices in schools, but classrooms where our children study and learn everyday -- to the Information Superhighway.

As a result, our children will receive a better education, develop the skills needed to compete and prosper, and begin the next millennium plugged-in, not left out.

Again, I thank Chairman Kennard and his colleagues on the FCC for their efforts, as well as the original Congressional sponsors of this bold program.

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