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• Become a COABE Contact for your state or region today

• Get involved on the COABE regional discussion lists

• Share the legislative alerts with your colleagues

• Take part in the COABE call to action

Contact advocacy@coabe.org or call 888-44-COABE for more details or download the COABE Contact Network (PDF).

Legislative Updates

In Case You Missed It: The Education Week In Review—Weekly Recap on Education Policy and Advocacy

January 28, 2012
By Ellen Fern and Jackie Taylor

State of the Union Address, Presidential Elections, Budget and Appropriations, House Adult Literacy Caucus Briefing, Unemployment Insurance (UI) Extension, ESEA Reauthorization, and Raising the Debt Ceiling

State of the Union Address
Both chambers of the Congress were in Washington this week following an extended recess. President Obama greeted them with a lengthy State of the Union (SOTU) address that was—not surprisingly—praised by Democrats and panned by Republicans. Now that both parties have heard the President’s wish list for the year and held their respective annual retreats to plan their legislative agendas, activity can begin. Hopefully. See this fullsummary of education recommendations from the State of the Union Address and adult education’s advocacy activity during SOTU.

Presidential Elections
Presidential, not congressional, politics are stealing most of the public’s attention at the moment. Republican primary debate number eighteen was held in Jacksonville, Florida this week, and the 4th primary vote will take place in that state on Tuesday. So far, there is no clear challenger to President Obama who is seeking his second term in November.

FY 2013 Budget and Appropriations
The release of the Administration’s FY 2013 budget has been postponed until February 13th, providing more time to study the recommendations from the SOTU and anticipate this year’s funding priorities for education. In his speech, President Obama made a strong case for making college more affordable, reforming teacher education programs, reducing classroom time spent on testing and encouraging and supporting talented teachers. He referenced the impact of the Race to the Top Program as a catalyst for education reform and the important role community colleges can play in retraining workers, reiterating his view that education is the path to economic recovery.

House Adult Literacy Caucus Briefing
The National Coalition for Literacy is gearing up for the second briefing of the House Adult Literacy Caucus. Be sure to call the education staffs of your U.S. Representative and Senators and extend a personal invitation to them to attend.

Update on Important Information Regarding Adult Education

December 20, 2011
By Ellen Fern and Jackie Taylor

Dear COABE Members,

Please see the public policy advocacy updates below, and learn what you can do to advance adult education and literacy issues with Congress.

 In this month's public policy advocacy update, learn more about the status of the budget and appropriations process for FY2012 and what this means for adult education; find updates and breaking news on extending Unemployment Insurance (UI) employment benefits and how it may impact undereducated workers, learn about new jobs legislation that includes adult education, and see more progress made on WIA reauthorization in the House.

• Budget and Appropriations
• UI Alerts
• WIA Reauthorization
• Pathways Back to Work Act
• Adult Literacy Advocacy—What this means for you

Legislative Archives—2012

Legislative Archives—2011

Click here to view the 2011 Legislative Archives