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| Hare Introduces School Flood Relief Bill |
The flooding in the area in June wreaked havoc on homes, businesses, farmland and many area school systems, and a local congressman wants the federal government to help those schools get back on their feet.
U. S. Representative Phil Hare recently unveiled the Midwest Schools Disaster Recovery Act at West Central High School. Hare is a member of the House Education and Labor Committee and introduced the bill to his peers on July 31st.
Hare says the Illinois and Iowa delegation got together and agreed to do something to help the schools that have been adversely affected by the flooding. "(The bill will) authorize funding for transportation assistance, to replace damaged textbooks and computers, help to rent temporary classroom sites, hire additional staff or counseling services, clean up school buildings, and for other services and activities," Hare said. "It supports schools' enrollments for students who have been displaced by authorizing funding for schools to accommodate the increased student body population for those students who are going to another school."
Hare says the measure would also prohibit the loss of displaced students from counting against schools when federal funding is calculated for Fiscal Year 2009. Hare says the damage in the Midwest is expected to reach $100 million. He's also advocating rebuilding the levy system, which he estimates would cost $6 billion dollars.
The Rock Island Democrat says he has bi-partisan support, and he hopes to push the legislation through the House as soon as possible.
West Central Superintendent Ralph Grimm helped get the ball rolling by writing a letter to Hare expressing his concerns as a result of the flooding that caused devastation in Henderson County. |
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| 09 06 08 by Newsroom |
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