mr. chairman , i thank the gentleman for yielding me this time . 
mr. chairman , the head start bill before us today is a good bill , i plan on voting for it , but i also believe that the souder amendment will make it an even better bill by restoring the full authority of the parent policy councils in the head start program . 
currently , head start programs across the country are jointly governed by a board of directors made up of experts and by a policy council made up of parents . 
regrettably , the head start reauthorization bill before us fundamentally changes the authority of the parent policy councils . 
specifically , it removes their ability to vote on program policy and instead makes them merely an advisory committee to the board . 
well , who knows what is best for kids , the parents who are with them every day , or the bureaucrats and politicians who live 1 , 000 miles away ? 
clearly , the parents are in the best position to know what is best for the children , and i do not have to guess about that . 
on august 8 , 2005 , i personally met with 120 head start parents in orlando , florida . 
they told me they were concerned about the reduced role of the parent policy councils under this bill , and they wanted to restore the voting authority . 
that is what the souder amendment does . 
i urge my colleagues to vote `` yes . '' 