WASHINGTON, DC – December 8, 2015 – U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) today released the following statement ahead of the Senate’s vote tomorrow on the Every Child Achieves Act conference report:

“While this bill may be well-intentioned and makes some improvements to our current policy, it is a missed opportunity to truly put an end to unnecessary federal intervention into education.  I have always believed that education decisions should be made at a local level and that Congress should empower parents and teachers – not Washington bureaucrats.  Instead, this bill extends some of the same failed policies that could provide a path for top-down federal mandates like Common Core.

“I know that local communities make better decisions for their students, parents, teachers, and administrators than Washington does.  That is why I will continue to fight against bureaucratic red-tape and misguided policies like Common Core.  It’s time to restore local control over our nation’s education system and get Washington out of our classrooms.”

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