House Republicans Pull NCLB Reauthorization From House Floor

House Republicans have pulled a controversial bill that would have reauthorized the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law.

Dubbed the Student Success Act, HR5 was pulled from the House floor after leadership determined it didn’t have sufficient support. Both conservatives and liberals opposed the bill, though for different reasons.

The House successfully passed an almost identical bill in 2013, but parents and grassroots conservative groups who have been actively fighting against the Common Core standards in their states claimed HR5 would still require excessive amounts of federal intrusion into education, an area that is reserved to the states and localities in the U.S. Constitution.

Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI), who opposed HR5, tweeted:

CONFIRMED: Reauthorization of #NoChildLeftBehind (#HR5) has been pulled from consideration. Your calls, emails & tweets made a difference!

— Justin Amash (@repjustinamash) February 27, 2015

According to Politico, political contention over funding for the Department of Homeland Security “complicated” the debate over HR5.

Nevertheless, the Student Success Act lacked support. Both the conservative Heritage Foundation and the Club for Growth opposed the bill.

House leaders attempted to sweeten the deal for conservatives by including amendments, including one that would have prohibited school-based health centers from distributing information about abortion as part of sex education.

Democrats too were highly critical of the bill. As Breitbart News reported on Wednesday, President Obama threatened to veto the bill if passed, claiming it “abdicates the historic federal role in elementary and secondary education of ensuring the education progress of all of America’s students, including students from low-income families, students with disabilities, English learners and students of color.”

The Obama administration used waivers to NCLB’s onerous regulations to entice states into adopting “common,” uniform standards, aligned testing, teacher evaluation programs, and student data collection systems.

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), head of the Senate’s education committee, and ranking member Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) are reportedly working together on a “bipartisan bill that they hope can clear the chamber,” and be signed into law by President Obama, reports Politico.

“We’re making good progress,” Alexander reportedly said. “I’m very pleased with the way we’re working with Sen. Murray right now.”