Congressman Charles B. Rangel, ranking Democrat on the House Ways and Means committee, commended mayors at the June 14 plenary session for supporting a bill that he is sponsoring on behalf of President Clinton that would provide $25 billion in school construction and modernization tax credits. He told mayors that his proposal, the Public School Modernization Act of 1999 (H.R. 1660), currently has 117 co-sponsors and continues to pick up bipartisan support. He then urged them to contact their congressional delegation and encourage them to support the legislation.

During the annual meeting, mayors adopted a resolution urging Congress to include school construction tax credits as a priority in any tax bill it may consider this year. Also, 64 mayors signed a letter addressed to the chairmen of the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees urging support for the legislation.

In explaining the problems facing school children, Rangel criticized the current system for "locking up more young people than any other nation" and for "investing more in metal detectors than in education." He said "whether you’re talking about teen-parents, drugs or violence, the answer is the same--education! education! education!" He told mayors "I believe that improving our public schools should be our highest priority. Approximately 90 percent of the students attending kindergarten through 12 attend public schools. Yet some have argued that the federal government should have no role in assisting public schools at these levels. I strongly disagree."