Portman introduces bill to block federal intrusion on state education
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) has joined U.S. Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kans.) in introducing a bill to preserve state education autonomy by prohibiting the federal government from coercing states to adopt education standards like Common Core.
Portman and Roberts were joined by U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.).
The Learning Opportunities Created At the Local (LOCAL) Level Act would strictly forbid the federal government from intervening in a state’s education standards, curricula, and assessments through the use of incentives, mandates, grants, waivers or any other form of manipulation.
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"Decisions about education curriculum should be made at the local or state level - not from Washington,” said Portman.
“Having a one-size-fits-all Washington approach to education is harmful to our children and to our education system. We should allow states and local communities the flexibility to innovate and make their own education decisions.
"The federal government does have a key supporting role to play in improving our workforce, and I have led efforts to streamline and improve our worker retraining programs while giving states additional flexibility.”
Designed by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers in 2007, Common Core was an effort to set math and reading standards for students across the country. States could adopt Common Core voluntarily.
In defiance of federal law, the Obama Administration began coercing states to implement Common Core. They required states to adopt Common Core standards to receive federal funding under the Obama administration's multibillion-dollar Race to the Top (RTT) program and used federal funds to develop Common Core-aligned tests.