Spratt Helps Secure $1.4 million for Statewide Fiber Optic Network

WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. John Spratt (D-SC) helped secure $1.4 million to develop the Clemson University Cyberinstitute (CUCI), which will deploy a state-of-the-art fiber optic network for the state. The money was included in the omnibus spending bill for fiscal year 2009.

“There is an urgent need in South Carolina for a fiber optic network,” said Spratt. “South Carolina missed the early cyberinstitute (CI) wave of the late 1990’s. This project will allow us to catch up and even surpass other leading CI centers in the country.”

Spratt said the key to CI integration is the Clemson University Lambda Rail (CULR) Portal, a single-point access conduit to the National Lambda Rail (NLR) and other national super-high-speed fiber optical research networks. CULR provides network connectivity and operations center services for a potential statewide fiber optic network, which would support research, health sciences, and instruction. The funds will also be used to extend the foundational CULR fiber optic network portal beyond Upstate South Carolina to Columbia, Charleston, and other areas that have research and education centers, thereby forming the optical fiber backbone of a statewide Lambda Rail. The project is expected to bring new technology jobs to the state.

Spratt Secures $1.6 Million for National Advocacy Center

WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. John Spratt (D-SC) secured $1.6 million for the Ernest F. Hollings National Advocacy Center (NAC) in Columbia. The funds were part of the omnibus spending bill for fiscal year 2009.

“This funding means that state and local prosecutors from across the country can have the training they need to be skilled, effective, more professional prosecutors,” Spratt said. “I was pleased to help get the funds through Congress.”

The NAC is a joint venture between the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) and is located on the campus of the University of South Carolina in Columbia. The facility was created specifically to train federal, state, and local prosecutors in advocacy skills and management. Since 1997, 22,000 prosecutors from across the country have benefited from the program, making it a vital resource for the professional education of America’s prosecutors.

Last year, after the NAC was burdened by layoffs and cancelled classes, Spratt sponsored a bill, signed by President Bush, to address funding uncertainty and shortfalls at the NAC. Spratt’s bill authorized up to $4.75 million each year over five years (FY09-FY12) for a Justice Department grant program to support training for state and local prosecutors. The $1.6 million for fiscal year 2009 is part of that grant program.
“The classes and other programs at the NAC seek to strengthen a prosecutor’s advocacy skills by offering a wide range of specialized subjects, from child abuse to gang crime to cyber crime and identity theft. These programs are worthy of funding,” Spratt said.

Agreement Reached on FY10 Budget Plan

WASHINGTON – Senate and House negotiators reached agreement late today on a budget plan for fiscal year 2010 that embraces the priorities of the President’s budget. Like the House and Senate budget resolutions passed earlier this month, the conference agreement puts the budget back on a fiscally sustainable path while making strategic investments to rebuild the economy, through investments in health care reform, higher education, and energy independence.

“We have agreed on a framework that will cut the federal budget deficit by nearly two thirds by 2013, and even further in 2014,” said House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt. “The record deficit for this year – most of it inherited from the Bush Administration – represents 12 percent of GDP. Our budget cuts the deficit to a more sustainable level of 3.0 percent in 2014.”

The Democratic budget is designed to lower the deficit from $1.7 trillion in 2009 to $523 billion by 2014. “Our budget cuts the deficit by $1.2 trillion by 2014,” said Spratt. “I think it’s fair to call this a deficit-reduction budget.”

The conference agreement includes a level of discretionary funding between that of the House and Senate budgets, providing $10 billion less than the President’s request for 2010. It matches the President’s request to increase defense funding by 4 percent.

“Our plan will support initiatives to boost the economy – in health care, in alternative energies, and in education, expanding access to college for more people,” Spratt said. “These are investments with proven returns and the cost of these initiatives will be offset.”

If legislation for health care reform and education investment cannot be achieved through regular procedures, then the budget’s reconciliation instructions requiring committees to report legislation by October 15 provide a fall-back to ensure that these initiatives can move through Congress.

The budget agreement includes tax cuts of more than $1.7 trillion over the next ten years for middle-income Americans, permanently extending the middle-income tax cuts adopted in 2001 and 2003: the 10 percent bracket, the child tax credit, and marriage penalty relief. It also indexes the alternative minimum tax to keep it from burdening middle-income taxpayers for whom it was never intended. And it extends estate tax exemptions at the 2009 levels, and indexes the exemptions for future years.

The full House and Senate are each expected to vote on the fiscal year 2010 budget conference agreement this week.

ETV to Broadcast "Finding Money For College"

While rescue packages and financial market instability continue to color the fiscal landscape, ETV and the South Carolina Department of Education offer hopeful options during the annual broadcast of Finding Money for College.

This timely program provides students and parents with valuable information on ways to pay for a college education. The show airs LIVE on Sunday, Jan. 25 at 5 p.m. on all ETV channels.

The two-hour telecast features financial aid professionals from public and private colleges and universities in South Carolina. In addition, guidance counselors will offer advice and representatives from the South Carolina Higher Education Tuition Grants, South Carolina Student Loan Corporation and South Carolina Commission on Higher Education answer questions on accessing scholarships, grants and loans.

Viewers are invited to call in with questions during the live broadcast via a toll-free number that will be announced on air.

School Funding Discussion

A special live edition of the “In Our Schools” television program this coming weekend features a roundtable discussion on funding 21st century public schools in South Carolina.

The one-hour telecast airs at 6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 17, on SCETV. “In Our Schools” is a series designed for parents, educators and community partners and produced by ITV, which is part of the Department of Education, with ETV’s assistance.

The Aug. 17 program will be hosted by State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex, who will lead a conversation with business, education and community leaders on the negative impact of property tax reduction legislation, on the shortfall in funding for education and on the need for comprehensive revenue and funding reform. Viewers can participate in the program by e-mailing their questions to inourschools@scetv.org.

Sunday night’s program will be repeated on Aug. 21 and 25 and on Sept. 8 from 10:30-11:30 a.m. on Channel 301 for taping by schools (unlimited rights).