providing child care for dependents of their employees. [Vote 152, 6/27/97] MINORITY AND LOW INCOME EDUCATION XXXX Voted Against $210 Million for Hispanic Education Programs. In September 2003, XXXX voted against increasing funding for Hispanic education programs by $210 million, including $20 million for dropout prevention, $85 million for language instruction, and $4.5 million for migrant education. [Vote 322, 9/3/03] XXXX Voted For $250 Million Grant Program To Provide Technology In Schools With Minority, Low- Income Students. On April 30, 2003, XXXX voted to provide grants for network technology to schools with large minority and low-income populations. The vote was on a bill that would establish a $250 million National Science Foundation program from fiscal 2004 to fiscal 2008 to provide digital and wireless network technology instruction to schools with large minority and low-income populations. The grants could be used to purchase new digital and wireless network technology and infrastructure and to educate teachers. [S 196, Vote 136, 4/30/03] XXXX Voted Against Funding for Low Income Children and Education. In November 2001, XXXX voted against an amendment that would transfer $1 billion of the Title I increase into the Target Assistance Grant Fund, which benefits low-income children. It also would allocate $650 million for education finance incentive grants. [HR 3061, Vote 317, 11/1/01] XXXX Voted Against $750 Million for Bilingual Education Programs. On a vote of 62-34, XXXX voted against an amendment to express the sense of the Senate that Congress should appropriate $750 million for bilingual education programs in 2002 for a total of $11.5 billion through 2008. [S 1, Vote 100, 5/10/01] XXXX Voted Against Vocational Education for Welfare Recipients. In 1997, XXXX voted against expanding vocational education for welfare recipients. [Vote 119, 6/25/97] XXXX Voted Against Education and Nutrition Programs for Low-Income Children. In 1997, McConnell voted against ensuring education and nutrition programs for low-income children. [Vote 8, 2/11/97] McConnell Opposed Restoring Funding to Indian Education. In 1995, McConnell voted to table an amendment to the FY ‘96 Interior Appropriations by Sen. Bingaman that appropriated $81.3 million (level funding) for Indian Education, as opposed to the proposed $54.7 million proposed, which would have cut Indian education by nearly $30 million. [Vote 377, 8/9/95] AMERICORPS AND SERVICE XXXX Voted Against Expanding Service Programs to More than Triple the Americans Involved. In March 2009, XXXX voted against a bill that would significantly expand national and community service programs such as AmeriCorps. The bill eventually could more than triple the number of Americans in national service programs, at an estimated cost of $5.7 billion over five years. The pace of expansion will depend on how much funding is appropriated over that period. The bill would amend the 1990 National and Community Service Act to expand the mission of the Corporation for National and Community Service and introduce new service programs that would provide incentives for students and senior citizens to participate in volunteer community service. The legislation would increase the education reward for participants in national volunteer programs from $4,725 to $5,350, and it would peg the reward to the maximum Pell grant in the future. People older than 55 could transfer the education reward to a child, foster child or grandchild. The bill passed 79-19. [CQ Today, 3/26/09; Vote 115, 3/26/09] XXXX Voted to Protect $100 Million in Funding for AmeriCorps. In 2003, XXXX voted against an amendment that would strike from the bill a provision appropriating $100 million to AmeriCorps. [HR 2657, Vote 272, 7/11/03] SCHOOL SAFETY 81