Pale 6 Thursday, October 4, 1984 The Capitol Times Missing congressmen spell WASHINGTON, D.C. (CPS)- College programs may be more vulnerable than ever to budget cuts in the next year because several key congressmen will be missing from House education committee, sources say. The missing congressmen all played important roles in stav ing off many of President Reagan's proposed student aid cuts in the last three years. They are leaving their corn mittees, moreover, as Congress considers the Higher Education Reauthorization Act of 1985, a crucially-important law that will set federal college policy for the rest of this decade. Missing will be Rep. Carl Perkins (D-Ky), chairman of the House Education-Labor Committee, who died this sum mer, and Rep. Paul Simon (D -II), chair of the House Subcom mittee on Postsecondary Education, who is running for Senate against Charles Percy. Two other House education committee members are retiring this year "Perkins was probably the person most responsible for holding the line against budget cuts Reagan has proposed since 1980," says Dallas Martin, head of the National Associa tion of Student Financial Aid Administrators. "It was clearly his strong leadership on that committee that refused to go along with some of the (cuts). It will take another individual a long, long The Tamhelm, Capitol Campus's literary magazine, unveiled its 1984 edition last Wednesday at a reception in the Gallery Lounge. time to live up to Carl Perkins' standards," Martin says. Simon, as subcommittee chairman, opposed making students pass a "needs test" to get loans, and helped mobilize the impressive nationwide lob bying efforts that turned the tide against the student aid cuts in 1982. The education committees are also losing representatives Ray Kogovsek (D-Co) and Frank Harrison (D-Pa). Kogovsek is retiring, and Har rison lost a primary race earlier this year. While departures are "not eoing to be positive, there will be no less commitment on the parts of the remaining members," counsels William Blakey, the subcommittee's staff director. Commitment or not, some congressional sources say the losses will make education a relatively easy target for budget cuts next January when the new Congress tries to slash the $175 billion federal deficit. "Higher education programs are going to have to reauthoriz ed in a year when programs are probably going to be cut in order to deal with the huge deficit," observes Polly Gault, staff director of the Senate Education Subcommittee, which will lose Sen. Jennings Randolph (D-Va) to retirement. "Reauthorization will be a bit more difficult than in Photo by Tory Perry 1980," the last time Congress set long-term education goals, Gault adds. It will be more difficult, too, because of the relative inex perience of the people replacing Perkins and Simon in the House. The most experienced con tender to replace Simon is Rep. William Ford (D-Mi), who once chaired the Postsecondary Education Subcommittee but who faces opposition from Rep. Ike Andrews (D-NC) in his effort to regain the post. Ford sheparded the 1980 reauthorization act through the House, but gave up his educa tion position to become head of the Post Office and Civil Ser vice Subcommittee in 1981. Ford may want the education subcommittee chairmanship back to get in line for a bigger position. "He wants to chair (the whole) Education-Labor iMMM T °TIIIM At Least By becoming a plasma donor at SERA-TEC, you can use your free and study time to the best advantage SERA-TEC BIOLOGICALS 260 Reily Street, Harrisburg Hours: 8 AM-6:30 PM Monday-Friday possible doom (committee)," says Kathy Ozer, lobbyist for the U.S. Student Association (USSA). House rules, however, pro hibit members from chairing two subcommittees at the same time. Ford is optimistic he'll be ex empted from the rule, says Tom Wolamin, Ford's staff aide. But Alan From, staff direc tor of the Democratic Caucus, notes "Ford isn't the only per son who would like to have the rules changed for his own benefit. There are probably younger members who would like to get a chance to run a subcommittee." Wolamin says Ford is willing to give up his chairmanship of another subcommittee to get postsecondary education post. "I would be very surprised if they allow him to take the sub committee over because I think it would anger some of the $BO.OO Call us for an appointment and additional information: 232-1901 younger members who don't have a chairmanship of anything," says Rose Dinapoli, a Republican legislative associate on the subcommittee. "It's a very powerful subcom mittee." In the meantime, the House last week appointed Rep. Gus Hawkins (D-Ca) to take over the full Education-Labor Committee. Hawkins, who is best known as an expert in labor legislation, has an "outstanding record" on education issues like student aid, Martin asserts. On the Senate side, the Senate Education Subcommit tee will remain under senators Claiborne Pell (D-RI) and Robert Stafford (R-Vt). Only one senator on the Senate education committee, Pell, is up for reelection, and he is expected to win an easy victory. per month
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