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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secratary

For Immediate Release September 6, 1999

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|                                                                      | 
|          PRESIDENT CLINTON'S LABOR DAY COMMITMENT TO INVEST          | 
|              IN SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AND MODERNIZATION                | 
|                       September 6, 1999                              | 
|                                                                      |

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"Today too many of our schools are so old they're falling apart, or so over-crowded students are learning in trailers. Last fall, Congress missed the opportunity to change that. This year, with 53 million children in our schools, Congress must not miss that opportunity again."

President Clinton, State of the Union Address, 1999

TODAY, PRESIDENT CLINTON STRESSES THE IMPORTANCE OF INVESTING IN SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION AND MODERNIZATION. Today, at Coleman Place Elementary School in Norfolk, Virginia, President Clinton renews his commitment to addressing the urgent need to invest in school construction and modernization. The President tours the school and does some volunteer work to help repair the school. The President also applauds the union workers around the country who have committed to volunteering their time to help address the urgent need to build and repair our schools. The President will highlight his School Modernization Bond proposal, which provides $24.8 billion in tax credit bonds over two years to modernize up to 6,000 schools. President Clinton's proposal has an estimated cost of $3.7 billion over five years, and is fully paid for in his budget.

REPUBLICAN PLAN WOULD SUPPORT THE MODERNIZATION OF ONLY ABOUT ONE-TENTH AS MANY SCHOOLS AS THE PRESIDENT'S PLAN. The President's targeted tax cut would cover the interest on state and local efforts to build and modernize 6,000 public schools across the nation. The Republican alternative, part of their tax bill, is inadequate to address the urgent needs for school construction and modernization. The Republican plan provides marginal help to address the needs of only 644 schools. In fact, it could cause delays in construction and encourage risky investment of taxpayer funds. While the Republican tax bill provides little for school construction that would potentially benefit millions of children, it uses 25 times as much money to eliminate the estate tax - which is estimated to benefit 72,000 wealthy families by an average of $600,000 each in 2009.

REPUBLICAN TAX AND BUDGET PROPOSALS THREATEN EDUCATION PRIORITIES. President Clinton will stress that the Republican tax cut would spend the entire non-Social Security surplus and would lead to cuts of nearly 50 percent in domestic spending by the end of the decade (assuming defense was funded at the level requested by the President). These could lead to nearly 50 percent cuts in key initiatives to keep schools safe and drug-free, help children learn to read, reduce class size in the early grades, support after-school programs, and expand access to college. The President will urge Congress to work with him to enact a responsible budget that puts first things first, paying down the debt, strengthening and modernizing Medicare and Social Security, and investing in key priorities like education.

NATIONALLY, THERE IS AN URGENT NEED FOR SCHOOL MODERNIZATION

One-Third of All Schools Need Extensive Repairs. One third of all public schools - about 25,000 schools - need extensive repair or replacement.
Average School is 42 Years Old. The average public school in America is 42 years old, and school buildings begin rapid deterioration after 40 years.
$112 Billion Needed Just for Repairs. $112 billion is needed just to repair the existing schools across the nation.
School Enrollment Higher than Ever. On August 19th, the President released the Baby Boom Echo report on rising school enrollment. A record 53.2 million children are enrolled in elementary and secondary school today, and this number will climb to 54.3 million by 2008.

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