Ensign to join conference panel on education bills

Benjamin Grove

Wednesday, July 11, 2001 | 10:22 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Republican Senate leaders on Tuesday tapped Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., to be a member of a key panel of House and Senate lawmakers who will finalize details in a sweeping education bill before Congress sends it to President Bush.

Ensign said he was thrilled he will be "in the room" when the joint House-Senate panel meets behind closed doors to negotiate compromises between the House and Senate versions of a bill that aims to overhaul a number of education policies. So called "conference committees" are convened routinely when the House and Senate pass different versions of the the same bill.

Ensign said his top priority will be to protect a "high-growth grant" provision written into the Senate bill, but not the House version.

The provision, authored by Ensign, would aid fast-growing states by annually updating the number of low-income students in each state who qualify for federal Title I money. Title I money is given to states for mostly reading and math programs and teachers' aides.

In the past, the number of Title I students in each state have been calculated every few years, which means fast-growing states have not gotten a fair share of federal money every year. The legislation translates to an additional $6 million a year to Nevada school districts, Ensign has said.

Ensign said it's not clear if the measure would be controversial, but added that "everything is always in danger" during conference committee negotiating sessions.

The panel meeting schedule has not been announced.