XXXX Voted to Allow Class Size Reduction Funding to Be Reduced. In 1999, McConnell voted for the Lott amendment to S.280, which was an amendment to allow local education agencies to redirect all or part of the $1.2 billion in the Fiscal Year 1999 Omnibus Appropriations (PL 105-277) for new teachers to special education programs under IDEA. This would reduce funding for the class size reduction program. [Vote 40, 3/11/99] XXXX Voted Against Reducing Class Size and Hiring New Teachers With $11.4 Billion in Funding. In 1999, XXXX voted against limiting debate on a motion to recommit the bill to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee with instructions that would add language authorizing $11.4 billion over six years for hiring new teachers to reduce class size. [Vote 36, 3/10/99] XXXX Voted Against Efforts to Hire 100,000 New Teachers to Reduce Class Sizes. In 1998, XXXX voted against Murray amendment: Expresses sense of Congress that Congress should support efforts to hire 100,000 new teachers to reduce class sizes in first, second, and third grades to average of 18 students per class. [Vote 93, 4/22/98] XXXX Voted Against Reducing Class Size in Public Schools. In 1998, XXXX voted against a motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to allow consideration of the Murray amendment to S.Con.Res.86, which was an amendment to provide $7.3 billion over five years to hire as many as 100,000 additional school teachers. [Vote 50, 3/31/98] TEACHERS XXXX Voted For Tax Bill That Benefited Wealthy While Raising Expenses for 3.27 Million Teachers. In May 2006, XXXX voted for the final version of the $70 billion tax reconciliation bill that removed a provision that had allowed 3.27 million teachers – including 19,343 in New Hampshire – to save $814 million through an educator expenses tax deduction in 2003. The provision, which allowed teachers to deduct to $250 of out-of-pocket expenses they paid for books and classroom supplies, was included in earlier versions of the bill but was stripped in the final version. Meanwhile, the tax bill XXXX supported would only save middle income Americans $20 each while the top tenth of 1 percent (whose average income is $5.3 million) would save $82,415. [Vote 118, 5/11/06; IRS Data, October 2005; Democratic Policy Committee, 9/26/06 New York Times, 5/5/06]  XXXX Voted Against Extending Expiring Teacher Expenses Tax Deduction. In November 2005, XXXX voted against a $58 billion tax cut package that would have extended expiring tax cuts, including the deduction for teachers’ out-of-pocket expenses. [Vote 330, 11/17/05; Conrad Press Release, 11/17/05] XXXX Voted Against Student Loan Forgiveness for Teachers. In March 2005, XXXX voted against an amendment that would have provided up to $23,000 in student loan forgiveness to new teachers in high-need schools. [Vote 68, 3/17/05; NEA Congressional Report Card] XXXX Voted Against Adding $437 Million for Teacher Quality Programs. On September 10, 2003, XXXX voted against an amendment that provided for an additional $437 million for teacher quality programs to the Education, Labor, HHS appropriations bill. [Vote 343, 9/10/03] XXXX Voted Against A Tax Credit For Teachers’ Expenses. In 2001, XXXX voted not to consider an amendment that would create a new tax credit of up to $2,000 for education loan expenses of nurses and teachers, and would direct the Secretary of the Treasury to increase the tax rate on the top bracket by the amount necessary to offset the cost of the new credit. The motion was rejected, 43-56. [HR 1836, Vote 157, 5/22/01] XXXX Voted to Call For Extra Tax Relief For Teachers. In 2001, XXXX voted to express the sense of the Senate that Congress and the President should pass legislation providing elementary and secondary level educators with additional tax relief in recognition of the many out of pocket, unreimbursed expenses they incur to improve the education of our Nation's students. The amendment was agreed to, 95-3. [S 1, Vote 95, 5/8/01] 76