Agenda Item # Vc1326386795997a: Fill & Download for Free

There would only be one and I would utilize every single bit of political capital I had to get it done, even if it meant not a single person that was on “my side” got re-elected. Because if this got fixed, a LOT of things would naturally fall out from it.Education in this country is broken. It is not a little broken, it is COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY BROKEN. It’s a national embarrassment and the fact that we keep trying the same thing over and over and over and make things worse and worse should embarrass every politician and education policy maker in the country.Let’s start with literacy. The rate of high school students who are illiterate AND GRADUATING is increasing[1][1][1][1] . The literacy rate among graduating seniors in the US, depending on the state, varies between 75% and 85%. The national average is that about 20% of high school graduates can’t read[2][2][2][2] . This number has increased from 14% over the last 20 years. Worse, is this does not address high school dropouts. In Texas (my state), twenty five percent of students don’t graduate. I would assume that the illiteracy rate among these kids is a LOT higher than those who do graduate. Which means, at minimum, 25% of our young adults are entering adult life not being able to read. The number is probably closer to 33%. And that’s functionally illiterate…the numbers don’t include those who read at a low grade level and still get out.Math statistics are even worse — much worse.On the other hand, the US spends more per child than any other country in the world[3][3][3][3] . The national average per student is $11,752/year[4][4][4][4] . This number is also horribly understated as most school districts (a) have a strong incentive to keep this number reported as low so as to gin up support for more money and (b) because most school districts have numerous “off book” items. For instance, many school districts don’t count bond raises for new capital structures (e.g. building a new school) into the cost per student. Which is absurd, as capital expenditures can be in the hundreds of millions in larger school districts. In 2015 alone, the US spent $53b in capital outlay expenditures[5][5][5][5] . That’s another $1,000 or so per child. It also frequently doesn’t include pension information (variably by state), which further increases the amount spent per student.For instance, Dallas reports that it received $11,527 per student[6][6][6][6] in 2015. But this number only includes revenues received from property and sales taxes — not bond issues, federal grants, donations, and other sources. My last estimate showed that the total spending per student in the US is, in real dollars, closer to $16,000 if you account for every penny from every source.And the numbers keep going up[7][7][7][7] . In fact, in some areas of the country, spending per student has more than doubled in the last 25 years.Yet at the same time teacher salaries have been declining[8][8][8][8] . Does everyone out there not realize how incredibly insane that is? Nothing has bigger impact on the students than the teachers at schools (I’d argue parents and home environment are more important). Not the curriculum, not sports, not special activities, and certainly not administration and overhead.I cannot wrap my head around the fact that we keep spending more money and the results keep getting worse. Our current system does not work, has not worked, and needs to be completely re-worked. I don’t care what party you are in, what your position on “hot button” education issues are — if you think we don’t have a major problem and aren’t failing our children, then you likely are a product of the current education system which explains why you feel that way. (Controlling my urge to make this my first Quora post ever laced with profanity is difficult).And it angers me to no end that our politicians, and citizenry, argue over things like regulating emissions from cars, or how a reduction in corporate tax rates by X% will help or hurt, when there’s a system that literally is damaging millions of people per year.Now that I’m done ranting about how much we are failing, we need to dig in and find out how to fix things. In order to do that, we have to identify WHY we are failing. And this is where the debates start kicking in.In my opinion, based on hundreds of hours of researching this, is that there are multiple reasons why we are failing, which I’m setting out below. I will acknowledge that there likely are more or that I may have mis-weighted how much each of these factor into our national failure. I’m willing to talk to anyone about it at all in a rational manner:Our single biggest problem is our “one size fits all” system. This is unfair to everyone. If you have a recent immigrant seven year old child who has never read any book ever written in English and another seven year old child with a 150 IQ that is already reading the Wall Street Journal (not a hypothetical, one of my daughters seven year old friends reads the WSJ with fair regularity — don’t think she comprehends what it is always saying, but she can hammer right through it) then, why for the love of God, are they in the same class? Two things happen — the lower educated child does not get the full attention they deserve and the higher educated child is pulled down. We therefore are harming both children. Which is obscene. I won’t pee in the political correctness punch here either. I don’t care WHY we do this. It doesn't work. It can’t work. It has to change;The lack of discipline in schools. An educator I respect very much summed it up best — “Whenever a student figures out they don’t have to work or listen to the teachers anymore, the jig is up.” I volunteered in a fifth grade class at one point. One of the teachers showed me the math homework the students had turned in. About 1/3 of the students did the assignment. About 1/2 just didn’t turn them in at all. The remainder got more creative. One of my favorite answers to a math problem was “Go F*(* yourself.” What’s a teacher to do here? Yell (that might get you fired). Berate the student in front of the class? (might get them fired and the kid likely doesn’t care). Send the child to detention? (Again very unlikely to care). There has to be a way to introduce consequences for poor behavior into school. Which flows some into my next point:The lack of parental responsibility. I cannot imagine the living hell I would have gone through if I ever showed up at home with the teacher having called my parents and told them I told her to go F herself. I would have had my butt beat black and blue. All video games and privileges revoked. I would have been doing my dad’s favorite punishment of digging a hole I can stand in and filling it back in till dark every day for a year. (That’s worse than you think because you never have enough dirt to fill it back in, so you have to get a wheelbarrow, walk a ways to a field, and wheel it back). The number of parents who blame the TEACHER for this issue is mind numbing. Similarly when a student is not meeting expectations, instead of calling the teacher saying what do I NEED TO DO to help my child succeed and catchup, the teacher gets blamed for not teaching appropriately. In VERY rare instances it is a teacher, but those instances are far and few. And even if that is the case, then we should be teaching our kids how to deal with the adversity of butting heads with someone and achieving in spite of that. I’ve had bosses I couldn’t stand and that actively worked to sabotage me. Teach the kids to deal with that in order to succeed;The “everyone must pass” philosophy. Teachers, and schools, are measured on things such as how many students pass on to the next grade. MANY school districts now have a lowest set grade of 60 (see discipline problem, if you can’t get below a 60, why do anything at all?). I’m sorry, not everyone learns at the same rate, speed, or even necessarily has the ability to do certain work. Passing them is child abandonment. It’s the equivalent of wanting a potential NBA all star for a child and when you learn, at age 8, that they’ll never make it, dropping them off at the fire station to be an orphan and make it on their own. It’s a nauseating practice that has to stop. You are ONLY hurting the student more by doing so — and putting them FURTHER behind in material — which as shown above — hurts both them and the students in the next grade that earned their way there; which goes to my last point:NOT EVERYONE CAN DO EVERYTHING. Some people are smarter than others. Some will have the mental ability to go to college and learn high level calculus and become great engineers. Some people are not capable of this. That is not discriminatory. That is not sexist. That is a fact. Some people are not as smart as each other. And until we can admit that, and deal with it, we will continue to have problems.So what do we do to FIX these problems? I have a very high level suggestion, then something I would like to see implemented.At a high level, I would love to see the Federal Government’s role completely change. Instead of dictating what and how things should be taught, play the role of encouraging different solutions and monitoring their effectiveness. For instance, if Florida wanted to go to a 100% voucher system for a fully privatized school system, encourage it, but have a system of measurement and metrics that can be compared with other states. If Massachusetts wanted to adopt the German system of everyone going to kindergarten and then elementary school through age nine, then dividing them into one of four secondary levels, it could[9][9][9][9] . California could then eliminate school districts and run everything from the State level. Then have the Federal government observe each system, for a period of 5–15 years, and then actually look at what each method costs and how well it succeeds, then we can find out what works well. I would bet all 50 states adopt something slightly different. I would HOPE the Federal Government encouraged 50 VERY different possibilities.The amazing thing about that is how well we’d learn real quick what improves and what doesn’t. Because people move with their feet. Families who move to new communities, the schools are often the most important thing they look at. If California’s system is an utter failure, while Florida has taken off, well that’s going to be obvious pretty quickly. If the Feds encouraged a whole variety of systems, we could lick this problem in under a generation.Moving to my solution that I’d like to see at least one state implement - it’s a public/private system, and as this post is getting very long at this point, I’ll try to only hit the highlights.Any student that wants to go to a private school can. They will receive a voucher for 90% of the total amount currently spent per child. This includes ALL dollars. So if a district spends $15,000 per kid, the voucher would be worth $13,500;No private school can have more than 40% of the private schools in the area — we have to foster competition;Private schools are NOT required to accept students. If they want to have certain defined academic criteria they can. If they want to expel discipline problems they can;Every school district will have to maintain at least one public school for those who either can’t hack the private school or are discipline issues. However, to encourage teachers, at least 75% of the dollars saved by only having 90% vouchers must go to teacher salaries. In other words, public school teachers are going to be making significantly more than a lot of their private counterparts;All advancement, in public and private schools, must be merit based. If you can’t read past a 5th grade level, you don’t go to 6th grade. This means you teach students based on ABILITY and not age. For a while this may “hurt” the feelings of children, but after it is seen as the way things are, that’ll fade some;To encourage more private schools, setup a property grant system. In that a school district will GIVE a private school the building, the land around it, and the local assets already there, provided the private school then is responsible for all maintenance and upkeep and that school MAY NOT charge more than each voucher is worth or ability to pay is never a factor in admitting students. E.g. you’d have to have some sort of scholarship system in place (this could be done, yes rules and thought would have to be put into it);For discipline issue children, set up a reward system. Most of the discipline students will fall back into the public system. With the balance of that 25% from the voucher savings (plus savings from less overhead), start rewarding the child’s PARENTS if they succeed. With the above numbers, that would be about $1,000/year. Make it CLEAR that if the child stops being a discipline problem and moves on, there’s a monetary reward. Make it something like $250/year for behavioral corrections and put the other $750 into a fund every year that the child gets upon graduation AND having graduated at a high school grade level (or their respective school level). This could be several thousand dollars and should be in an account they see. Numbers can obviously be flexible;We have to move to a non-one size fits all system. That means, at some point, putting students on different tracks — from trade school or technical school, to college, to graduate level items. Cater to each students skill set and set them up to succeed. There must be an easy way to switch between tracts though and the rules for each must be clearly defined; andEither eliminate or reduce the availability of government benefits to students who drop out. (Must be allowed to re-enroll at any age). So if you are on a trade school tract when you turn 16, if you quit, you don’t qualify for government support in your life — from food stamps to unemployment to government funded health care. The multi-tract system MUST exist to do this (and of course there are exceptions for the disabled and certain circumstances). But there MUST BE CONSEQUENCES TO QUITTING.I’ve got pages of information on how to fairly implement such a system, how to prevent the private schools from abusing it, how to deal with particularly problematic children, how to most help the ESL (English as a second language) crowd, ways to save more money, etc.But a combined system that includes choice, monetary incentives, rewards, and costs stands a much better chance than what we have now.And if this was obviously failing in a 10 year period, then we try something else — or move to a system another state successfully implemented.Something has to give though, and failing to get things changed, costs the entire country. We end up with a bad workforce, increased social costs later in life, and a shrinking economy. It hurts the entirety of society across the board.And the fact that we aren’t trying SOMETHING different other than throwing more money into a failed system is beyond stupid.Footnotes[1] https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED507600.pdf [1] https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED507600.pdf [1] https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED507600.pdf [1] https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED507600.pdf [2] Can illiterate Students Graduate from High School?[2] Can illiterate Students Graduate from High School?[2] Can illiterate Students Graduate from High School?[2] Can illiterate Students Graduate from High School?[3] U.S. education spending tops global list, study shows[3] U.S. education spending tops global list, study shows[3] U.S. education spending tops global list, study shows[3] U.S. education spending tops global list, study shows[4] Education Spending Per Student by State[4] Education Spending Per Student by State[4] Education Spending Per Student by State[4] Education Spending Per Student by State[5] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[5] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[5] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[5] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[6] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[6] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[6] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[6] https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018303.pdf[7] Does Spending More on Education Improve Academic Achievement?[7] Does Spending More on Education Improve Academic Achievement?[7] Does Spending More on Education Improve Academic Achievement?[7] Does Spending More on Education Improve Academic Achievement?[8] The Data Tells All: Teacher Salaries Have Been Declining For Years - EdSurge News[8] The Data Tells All: Teacher Salaries Have Been Declining For Years - EdSurge News[8] The Data Tells All: Teacher Salaries Have Been Declining For Years - EdSurge News[8] The Data Tells All: Teacher Salaries Have Been Declining For Years - EdSurge News[9] Image on howtogermany.com[9] Image on howtogermany.com[9] Image on howtogermany.com[9] Image on howtogermany.com

June 25, 2018: The House passed bills providing $675 billiion in defense spending for FY19, and letting Pacific Northwest states kill 100 more sea lions to protect endangered salmon, in addition to a resolution insisting the DOJ turn over subpoenaed documents. A bill that'd provide legal status to Dreamers, provide $23 billion in border security funding, and address family separation at the border failed. The Senate passed its versions of the Farm Bill and the "minibus" bill providing FY19 funding for military construction & veterans affairs, energy & water programs, and Congress.June 18, 2018: The House passed numerous bills to address various aspects of the opioid epidemic, including a bill that specifically focused on substance abuse programs in Medicaid and Medicare. It also passed the Farm Bill after failing to advance a bill that'd give DACA recipients legal status, authorize border security funding, overhaul the legal immigration system to be merit-based, and eliminate the diversity visa lottery. The Senate passed the FY19 defense authorization and began debate on the "minibus" bill providing FY19 funding for military construction & veterans affairs, energy & water programs, and Congress. An attempt to force consideration of the bill to rescind nearly $15 billion in unused funding from prior fiscal years failed.June 11, 2018: The House passed more than two dozen bills addressing various aspects of the opioid epidemic, including a bill to create a new category of controlled substance for synthetic drugs. The Senate spent the week debating the FY19 defense authorization.June 4, 2018: The House passed bills to rescind about $15 billion in unused funding from past fiscal years, reauthorize water resources programs for two years, and establish a grant program for anti-gang efforts. It also passed a "minibus" bill providing FY19 funding for military construction & veterans affairs, energy & water programs, and Congress. The Senate confirmed three district court judges and an assistant secretary for education, in addition to starting debate on the FY19 defense authorization.May 20, 2018: The House passed a bill to give terminally ill patients the "right to try" experimental treatments, a bill reforming regulations for community banks, and the FY19 defense authorization. The Senate passed a bill to establish a community care program for veterans and modernize VA infrastructure, in addition to confirming several nominees to executive branch agencies including the chairperson of the FDIC.May 13, 2018: The Senate voted to stop the FCC's rollback of net neutrality and confirmed four circuit court judges. The House passed a bill to establish a community care program for veterans and modernize VA infrastructure, in addition to a bill establishing federal penalties for attacking a law enforcement officer. A vote on the Farm Bill, which would reauthorize USDA food & agriculture programs through 2023 while reforming the SNAP food stamps program, failed.May 6, 2018: The House passed bills to move the licensing process for the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Repository forward and to require state and local governments to disclose information about participants in their pretrial release programs. The Senate confirmed two circuit court judges and started debate on the nominations of two other circuit court judges.April 23, 2018: The House passed bills to reauthorize the FAA and reform disaster relief, keep the Columbia River dams operating into 2022, and modernize music copyright law. It also passed bills prohibiting U.S. assistance from rebuilding parts of Syria controlled by Assad, sanction Iran for its hostage-taking, and express support for the unified U.S., Canada, and Mexico bid to host the 2026 World Cup. The Senate confirmed Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State and Richard Grenell as Ambassador to Germany, in addition to a circuit court judge on the Fifth Circuit.April 16, 2018: The House passed bills to modernize and reform the Internal Revenue Service with the aim of providing better service to taxpayers. The Senate confirmed Jim Bridenstine as NASA Administrator and considered a bill to reform labor laws on tribal lands which failed to get the votes needed to limit debate.April 9, 2018: The House passed bills revising financial regulations related to "too big to fail" designations, stress tests, and the application of the Volcker Rule. It also considered a proposed balanced budget amendment to the Constitution failed to get the 2/3 majority required to pass. The Senate confirmed a member of the National Labor Relations Board, deputies at the Labor Department and the Environmental Protection Agency, and three district court judges.March 19, 2018: Both chambers of Congress passed legislation providing appropriations to fund the government for fiscal year 2018. The House also passed a "right to try" bill that lets terminally ill patients access experimental drugs. It also passed a bill to exempt investment firms from Dodd-Frank's stress tests. The Senate confirmed the new commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, passed a bill to make it a federal crime for websites to promote sex trafficking or prostitution, and tabled a resolution to withdraw U.S. troops from the conflict in Yemen.March 12, 2018: The House passed bills to increase grants for school safety and revise financial regulatory exams, SEC registration for startups, and tailoring rules to limit the burden on community banks. The Senate passed a bill to relieve the regulatory burden on community banks.March 5, 2018: The House passed bills to ease emissions regulations on coal waste power plants, brick manufacturers, and new home heating devices. It also passed a bill to make financial regulators review current rules more frequently to ensure they're not outdated. The Senate confirmed three district court judges, and started debate on a bill to ease regulations on community banks and expand consumer credit protections.February 26, 2018: The House passed a bill making it a federal crime for websites to promote prostitution or sex trafficking and a bill related to capital requirements for banks. It then adjourned on Tuesday to allow Rev. Billy Graham to lay in honor in the Capitol Rotunda. The Senate confirmed one circuit court judge, one district court judge, and the deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. It also started debate on the nominations of three district court judges.February 12, 2018: The Senate debated but failed to advance several immigration reform proposals. The House passed legislation reforming the process for filing lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act. It also passed bills sanctioning Hamas for its use of human shields and reversing a court ruling so that loans retain their interest rates if sold or transferred across state lines by the lender.February 5, 2018: Congress passed the Bipartisan Budget Act in the early hours of Friday morning to end a 5+ hour government shutdown. The House passed bills to change how "points and fees" are calculated for qualified mortgages, and to lift the regulatory threshold for a small bank from $1 billion to $3 billion. The Senate confirmed Andrei Iancu to be Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.January 29, 2018: The House passed bills to reform the process used by banks to create "living wills" to protect markets against their failure and fund the Dept. of Defense for the rest of fiscal year 2018. It also voted to send a bill to prevent the sexual abuse of minors at U.S. Olympic Committee-affiliated organizations to President Trump's desk. The Senate failed in a procedural vote to bring up a bill banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy under most circumstances, and confirmed David Stras to be a Circuit Judge for the Eighth Circuit. Congress adjourned after President Trump's State of the Union Address on Tuesday so that Republicans could hold their annual policy retreat.January 22, 2018: Congress reached a deal Monday to end the government shutdown. The House then adjourned for the week. The Senate confirmed Jerome Powell as Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alex Azar as Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Sam Brownback as Ambassador At Large for International Religious Freedom.January 15, 2018: The House passed a stopgap funding bill to keep the government open for four weeks and reauthorize the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for six years. It also passed legislation punishing healthcare providers who don't try to save infants born alive after an attempted abortion, fund the World Bank unless corruption continues, and modify mortgage regulations. The Senate passed a reauthorization of surveillance powers under FISA Section 702. It then considered the stopgap funding bill which was blocked on a procedural vote, prompting a government shutdown. Both chambers remained in session over the weekend but no votes on legislation were held.January 8, 2018: The House voted to condemn the Iranian regime's crackdown on legitimate protests, reform labor laws for businesses on tribal lands, and reauthorize the government's surveillance powers under FISA Section 702. The Senate confirmed four district court judges and took a procedural vote to set up debate on the House-passed surveillance bill for next week.January 3, 2018: The Senate swore in two new senators and confirmed John Rood to be Under Secretary of Defense for Policy before canceling votes for the rest of the week because of an incoming winter storm. The House was not in session.December 18, 2017: Both chambers of Congress passed the tax reform legislation produced by the conference committee and legislation funding the government through January 19, 2018. The House also approved $81 billion in disaster relief, and a bill requiring that more factors than just size be considered when designating a bank as systemically important. The Senate confirmed nominees to be the HUD general counsel, legal adviser to the State Dept., and assistant secretary of defense.December 11, 2017: The House passed bills to expressing support for America's partnerships with Mexico and Canada, as well as condemning the persecution of Christians and religious minorities around the world. It also passed bills to exempt small banks from certain mortgage regulations and all banks from annual privacy policy disclosures if they're unchanged and publicly available. Finally, it passed bills requiring reports on assets held by Iran's leaders, and also its financing of airliner purchases and connections to money laundering. The Senate confirmed three circuit court judges.December 4, 2017: The House passed legislation to let people with concealed carry permits carry their gun in other states if they follow the state's laws and improving federal crime reporting to gun background check databases. It also passed bills strengthening the penalty for female genital mutilation, cutting off foreign aid to the Palestinian Authority unless it stops paying rewards to terrorists, and condemning the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya in Burma, among other bills. The Senate confirmed Kirstjen Nielsen as Secretary of Homeland Security and an assistant secretary of the interior. Both chambers passed a continuing resolution to fund the government for two more weeks through December 22, and underwent procedures needed to form a conference committee on the GOP tax reform legislation.November 27, 2017: The House voted to require that all members and employees undergo sexual harassment training each year. It also passed bills making federal probationary periods for new hires two years, reauthorizing the EPA's Brownfields Program, reinstating mining leases in Minnesota, and revising loan regulations for manufactured homes. The Senate passed its version of GOP tax reform legislation, and confirmed one district court judge and one circuit court judge.November 13, 2017: The House passed the GOP tax reform bill, a five-year reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, and a resolution regarding the conflict in Yemen. The Senate confirmed a five nominees to posts in the Trump plus a judge to the D.C. District Court. Both chambers passed the conference report for the $700 billion defense authorization for fiscal year 2018.October 30, 2017: The House passed a bill to reauthorize the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for five years, along with other public health programs for two years. It also passed bills repealing Obamacare's IPAB which suggests Medicare cuts, allowing the active management of national forests to prevent wildfires, revoking passports belonging to members of foreign terror groups, and allowing South Carolina to be represented on the Peanut Standards Board. The Senate confirmed four judges to U.S. Circuit Courts, and one district court judge.October 23, 2017: The House passed the version of the GOP budget resolution for fiscal year 2018 approved by the Senate the week prior, clearing the way for tax reform legislation under the reconciliation process. It also approved bills sanctioning Iran for its ballistic missile program, preventing mandatory donations to outside groups as a part of corporate legal settlements with the federal government, and limiting the use of consent decrees to circumvent the normal rulemaking process. The Senate sent a $36.5 billion disaster relief bill to President Donald Trump's desk, along with legislation repealing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's ban on arbitration agreements. Additionally, it confirmed one U.S. district court judge and began debate on the nomination of another.October 16, 2017: The Senate passed an amended version of the GOP budget resolution for fiscal year 2018 that removes the requirement that tax reform legislation considered under reconciliation be deficit neutral. It also confirmed Callista Gingrich as Ambassador to the Vatican. The House was on a district work week.October 9, 2017: The House passed legislation enhancing protections for whistleblowers at the VA and other agencies, in addition to $36.5 billion in disaster relief for areas damaged by hurricanes and wildfires. The Senate was on a district work week.October 2, 2017: The House passed legislation banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, in addition to the budget resolution for fiscal year 2018 that allows reconciliation to be used for tax reform. The Senate re-confirmed Ajit Pai to the Federal Communications Commission, along with Lee Cissna as the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Randal Quarles as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and Eric Hargan as Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services.September 25, 2017: The House passed a bill providing tax relief to victims of hurricanes that also reauthorized the FAA and allowed for private flood insurance. It also approved bills cutting off Social Security benefits to fugitives wanted for felonies, calling for a strategic partnership with the Association of South East Asian Nations, and reauthorized the federal home visiting program for pregnant women and families. The Senate confirmed a member of the National Labor Relations Board, a circuit court judge, an assistant attorney general, and an assistant secretary of the treasury.September 18, 2017: The Senate passed the defense authorization bill for fiscal year 2018 and confirmed Noel Francisco as Solicitor General. The House wasn't in session, as lawmakers had a district work week.Week of September 11, 2017: The House passed an appropriations package containing eight of the annual spending bills that was then combined with the package containing the other four bills. It also passed legislation to deport gang members in the country illegally, create a voluntary cancer registry for firefighters, study the use of virtual currency by terror groups, and notify local law enforcement about the release of terrorism convicts. The Senate confirmed the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, a deputy secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and debated amendments to the defense authorization bill for fiscal year 2018.Week of September 5, 2017: The House approved bills providing disaster relief, limiting the use of civil asset forfeiture, and clarifying the role of the federal government in regulating self-driving cars. It also considered amendments to an appropriations package. The Senate passed the disaster relief bill so President Donald Trump could sign it into law, and also confirmed a U.S. District Court judge for the District of Columbia.Week of July 31, 2017: The Senate passed a reauthorization of the FDA's drug user fee programs, and confirmed Christopher Wray as FBI Director, a circuit court judge, a member of the National Labor Relations Board, a deputy secretary of energy, and numerous diplomatic nominees. The House was on recess, and the Senate began its August recess on Friday.Week of July 24, 2017: The House passed the intelligence budget for fiscal year 2018; a "minibus" appropriations package for defense, veterans, energy & water, and the legislative branch; and a bill imposing sanctions on Iran, Russia, and North Korea. The Senate also passed that sanctions bill, confirmed a nominee to be deputy secretary of the interior, and debated but failed to advance a Republican healthcare bill.Week of July 17, 2017: The House passed a pair of energy infrastructure bills, legislation giving states more time to implement the EPA's new ozone standards, and swapping land in a wildlife refuge with the state of Alaska so an emergency road can be built through the refuge. The Senate confirmed a nominee to serve as deputy secretary of state, and a U.S. circuit court judge.Week of July 10, 2017: The House passed a bill authorizing defense spending for fiscal year 2018, along with a bill that increases water deliveries to California's Central Valley while reforming the permitting process for water storage projects. The Senate confirmed an information and regulatory administrator to the Office of Management and Budget, a U.S. district court judge in Idaho, and the ambassador to Japan.Week of June 26, 2017: The House passed bills reaffirming America's commitment to NATO's collective defense and reforming medical malpractice lawsuits involving federally subsidized care. It also passed Kate's Law to enhance sentences for unauthorized immigrants that repeatedly enter the country illegally, and a bill to cut federal law enforcement grants to sanctuary cities. The Senate confirmed a nominee to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.Week of June 19, 2017: The House passed bills to make it easier for utility companies to maintain trees near power lines on federal land, make the Bureau of Reclamation the lead agency on water storage projects, and allow states to test a wage subsidy program aimed at helping people on welfare find long-term jobs. The Senate confirmed the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), along with a nominee to the Nuclear Energy Regulatory Commission, and a nominee to a post in the Treasury Dept. that looks to cut off financing for terrorism.Week of June 12, 2017: The House passed bills related to tax credits for health insurance premiums, including bills to verify the eligibility of recipients, to let veterans use the credits on non-VA insurance, and ensure that those on COBRA continuation coverage can access the tax credits. It also sent a VA accountability to the president's desk. The Senate passed a bill to expand sanctions on Iran and Russia for their destabilizing activities.Week of June 5, 2017: The House passed an overhaul of financial industry regulations that repeals and reforms parts of the Dodd-Frank Act, along with a bill to let certain law enforcement officers and veterans bypass polygraph tests for Customs and Border Protection. The Senate passed a bill to increase accountability at the Dept. of Veterans Affairs and protect whistleblowers who report misconduct.Week of May 22, 2017: The House passed a number of bills aimed at improving the services of the Dept. of Veterans Affairs and preventing the sexual abuse of children. The Senate confirmed former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad to be Ambassador to China, Anul Thapar to be a judge on the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and John Sullivan to be Deputy Secretary of State.Week of May 15, 2017: The House passed legislation aimed at preventing attacks against law enforcement by making the murder or attempted murder of first responders an aggravating factor in federal death penalty cases. It also passed new sanctions on supporters of the Assad regime in Syria. The Senate confirmed nominees to be deputy secretary of transportation and associate attorney general.Week of May 8, 2017: The Senate was the sole chamber of Congress in session, as the House was on a recess. It confirmed several nominees to positions in the executive branch, including Robert Lighthizer as U.S. trade representative, Scott Gottlieb as FDA Commissioner, and Heather Wilson as Secretary of the Air Force.Week of May 1, 2017: Congress passed a $1.1 trillion omnibus spending package to fund the federal government through the end of September. The House also passed its bill to repeal and replace Obamacare, the American Health Care Act, and a new package of sanctions on North Korea.Week of April 24, 2017: Congress returned from a two week recess to pass a seven-day continuing resolution to fund the government and avoid a shutdown. The Senate confirmed the last two members of President Trump's Cabinet, Sonny Perdue and Alexander Acost, the secretaries of agriculture and labor, respectively.Week of April 3, 2017: The Senate confirmed Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court after deploying the "nuclear option." The House passed bills to brand North Korea as a state sponsor of terror, reform bankruptcy law for big financial firms, and protect small businesses' ability to self-insure their workforce.Week of March 27, 2017: Congress sent bills repealing an internet privacy rule and blocking family planning grants from going to abortion providers to President Trump's desk. The House passed bills requiring the EPA to only use public science in its rulemaking and reforming the agency's science advisory board.Week of March 20, 2017: The House cancelled a planned vote on the American Health Care Act but passed bills to apply federal anti-trust law to the health insurance industry and let small businesses pool together to buy their employees health insurance. The Senate debated the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, and approved bills repealing regulations related to hunting predators in Alaskan wildlife refuges, workplace safety recordkeeping, and internet data privacy.Week of March 13, 2017: The Senate confirmed two Trump nominees — Seema Verma to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Dan Coats as Director of National Intelligence — and voted to let states determine whether recipients of unemployment benefits should be drug tested. The House worked a shortened week because of a snowstorm, but approved bills reforming personnel practices as the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA).Week of March 6, 2017: The House passed a defense spending package for fiscal year 2017 in addition to several lawsuit reform bills. The Senate sent bills blocking rules related to teacher preparation, state accountability plans for education, and Bureau of Land Management planning to President Trump's desk.Week of February 27, 2017: The Senate gave final approval to President Trump's nominees to lead the Depts. of Commerce, the Interior, Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Energy. The House passed bills to make more information about pending regulations public and require that high-cost regulations to be reviewed by an independent commission.Week of February 13, 2017: The House passed bills aimed at improving claims processing at the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) before passing five bills repealing various Obama-era regulations. The Senate confirmed President Trump's picks to lead the VA, the Treasury, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).Week of February 6, 2017: The House passed an email privacy bill along with legislation blocking Obama era regulations on state education accountability plans, teacher preparation, and a Bureau of Land Management planning rule. The Senate confirmed three of Trump's cabinet nominees — Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) as Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) as Attorney General.Week of January 30, 2017: The Senate confirmed Trump's pick to lead the Dept. of Transporation, Elaine Chao, and Rex Tillerson as his Secretary of State, in addition to passing a bill to block the Obama era "Stream Protection Rule." The House had passed that bill and other regulatory disapproval bills earlier in the week, including a rule that blocked people considered "mental defectives" by Social Security from buying guns.Week of January 23, 2017: The House passed legislation that would make the Hyde Amendment, which bars federal funding from being used to fund abortions except in extreme situations, into a permanent law and several communications-related bills. The Senate confirmed Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) as the Trump administration's CIA Director and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley as Ambassador to the United Nations.Week of January 17, 2017: President Donald Trump's inauguration on Friday shortened this congressional work week, as the House wasn't in session and the Senate focused on holding confirmation hearings for Trump's nominees.Week of January 9, 2017: The House and Senate both approved a budget resolution that starts the process of repealing the Affordable Care Act (commonly known as Obamacare) through the process of reconciliation. Congress also passed legislation to grant a waiver to retired Marine Corps General Jim Mattis so that he could serve as Secretary of Defense. Aside from that, the House focused on regulatory reform bills while the Senate held hearings for President-elect Donald Trump's nominees.

Here is 2Net NeutralityOver 80% of the American public want the internet to remain neutral as the previous administration had regulated. No throttled content or paid, prioritized fast lanes.Universal Background ChecksAgain, 80% of the American public wishes that there was a single, nation wide background check for the purchase of firearms.So then with this much public support, why is this not being legislated? Because powerful, well placed members of Congress that are bought and paid for by the corporate interests that benefit from not having this legislation have blocked it in certain committee's.This is why this country can not move forward, even when we agree. Congress is bought and paid for by special interests.