While many education groups were relieved to hear that Congress finally acted after six years and passed a conference report for the Higher Education Act Reauthorization, the White House could still complicate things.
According to CongressDaily, White House spokesman Scott Stanzel says President Bush is still undecided about signing the bill. Stanzel said the President needs time to look at the Conference Committee's modifications.
It is possible the Administration will hear from the National Governors Association (NGA) as it considers the bill. The NGA actively opposed the higher ed bill because it contained a provision that would require states to show they are maintaining the same level of funding. The group says this penalizes states, who would have to defend why they made a one-time increased funding allocation during times of surplus, but had to go back to previous funding levels in more challenging economic times.
