Guest opinion: How members of Congress should approach education policy
by Christine Cooke Fairbanks
Rep. Chris Stewart is set to leave Congress soon. Whoever takes his place will inevitably be asked how he or she can fix problems in education.
This will offer the new member of Congress the chance to pursue the path of principle and resist the easy (and polarizing) path of making promises that would mean expanding or encouraging federal power. Instead of promoting national solutions to local problems in education, the members of Utahâs congressional delegation should commit to pivoting education controversies back to the states for resolution...
The federal government generally also lacks a sustained track record of success in improving education outcomes. These are solid practical reasons why Congress should not get more involved in education.
Further, on the level of principle, education is an issue over which Congress has no explicit constitutional authority. As Thomas Jefferson once said, âThe government closest to the people serves the people best.â
Still, since about the 1960s, Congress and the federal government have increasingly intervened in education policy â with few gains for students. That is because Congress was not built to legislate bold reforms on the education minutiae that impact the one-on-one interactions between students, teachers and parents.
Utahâs congressional delegation should continue legislating in policy areas enumerated by the Constitution â which does not include education. If we want to improve outcomes for students, our federal leaders should pursue principle and recognize their practical limits, rather than failing students while expanding federal power. (Read More)
News Releases
Romney, colleagues challenge EPAâs destructive energy plan
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) joined Senators Tim Scott (R-SC) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, in urging Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan to withdraw the unlawful âClean Power Plan 2.0.â The plan effectively shuts down affordable and reliable energy, intensifying the energy shortage the United States is already facing.
âThe EPA has again grossly misinterpreted the scope of authority Congress granted under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act by proposing a rule that would require generation shifting and transform our nationâs power sector with neither a clear and explicit congressional authorization nor adequate process as required under the Administrative Procedure Act,â the Senators wrote. âthe power plants being targeted by this rule are not only having to comply with this regulation. They are also being targeted by the agencyâs overarching power plant strategy, called the Electric Generating Unit (EGU) Strategy, as a way to shutter fossil-fuel power plants and bolster President Bidenâs climate goals. If the proposed Clean Power Plan 2.0 is finalized along with the rest of the EGU Strategy, our country will face a crisis in electricity supply that will dwarf the regional outages that we have seen in California, Texas, and New England in recent years. We request the EPA expeditiously withdraw this unlawful proposal.â (Read More)
.png?width=1200&upscale=true&name=Utah_Policy_Logo_Email_Full%20(1).png){kind=logo}
