This week NCL sent a letter to members of Congress asking them to ensure that the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies appropriations bill, now being negotiated following the passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act (BBA) earlier this month, includes support for adult education under Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) at least at the FY 2016 authorized level of $622 million.

Earlier this year, under the old caps imposed by sequestration, the Senate proposed funding WIOA Title II adult education programs $35 million below the fiscal year 2015 enacted level, cutting Adult Basic and Literacy Education State Grants by $29 million, and Adult Education National Leadership Activities by $6 million. As we noted then, after the overwhelming bipartisan support for the passage of WIOA last year, it was disappointing to see adult education funded at levels below those authorized by that legislation. With the passage of the BBA, Congress now has the funds needed to fully support WIOA programs.

NCL is not alone in requesting that adult education under WIOA be fully funded:

• In a letter sent to Congress on November 12th, the Campaign to Invest in America’s Workforce called on appropriators to “fund adult education and literacy programs under Title II of WIOA at least at authorized levels to ensure that the 36 million Americans with low basic skills are able to strengthen their educational levels in order to take advantage of emerging economic opportunities.”
• The National Council of State Directors of Adult Education has also asked Congress to fully fund WIOA Tittle II at the authorized level, reminding appropriators that WIOA “established adult education as one of the four key programs in the workforce system because it recognized the crucial role adult education plays in educating our population, teaching English and civics, and preparing adults for occupational training, to enter the workforce, or improve their employment status…. That is why the $622 million authorized in WIOA in FY 2016 for Title II is so important.“
•  The American Association of Community Colleges has also urged Congress to increase funding for adult education in the bill, noting that “demand for these programs far outstrips supply, as tens of thousands of individuals remain on service waitlists. In FY 2013, funding for this program was slashed and has not substantially recovered.“

NCL members have also been contacting with members of Congress over the last two weeks with a similar message. Appropriations subcommittees have been asked to complete their work on funding levels of their respective bill by Friday, November 20th. The goal is to have an omnibus bill completed and passed by December 11th.

It’s not too late to help! If your U.S. Senator or Representative is listed below, consider contacting his or her office this week. (You can find your Senator’s phone number here and your U.S. Representative’s phone number here.)

House Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee
Representative Andrew P. Harris	Maryland
Representative Barbara Lee	California
Representative Chaka Fattah	Pennsylvania
Representative Charles W. Dent	Pennsylvania
Representative Chuck Fleischmann	Tennessee
Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard	California
Representative Martha Roby	Alabama
Representative Michael K. Simpson	Idaho
Representative Rosa L. DeLauro (Ranking Member)	Connecticut
Representative Scott E. Rigell	Virginia
Representative Steve Womack	Arkansas
Representative Tom Cole (Chairman)	Oklahoma
Senate Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee
Senator Bill Cassidy	Louisiana
Senator Brian Schatz	Hawaii
Senator Jack Reed	Rhode Island
Senator James Lankford	Oklahoma
Senator Jeanne Shaheen	New Hampshire
Senator Jeffrey Merkley	Oregon
Senator Jerry Moran	Kansas
Senator Lamar Alexander	Tennessee
Senator Lindsey O. Graham	South Carolina
Senator Mark Steven Kirk	Illinois
Senator Patty Murray (Ranking Member)	Washington
Senator Richard C. Shelby	Alabama
Senator Richard J. Durbin	Illinois
Senator Roy Blunt (Chairman)	Missouri
Senator Shelley Moore Capito	West Virginia
Senator Tammy Baldwin	Wisconsin
Appropriation Committee Chairs/Ranking Members
Senator Thad Cochran (Chair, Senate)	Mississippi
Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (Ranking Member, Senate	Maryland
Representative Harold Rogers (Chair, House)	Kentucky
Representative Nita M. Lowey (Ranking Member, House)	New York