[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3562 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3562

To provide for the collection and dissemination of statistics designed 
 to show the condition and progress of education in the United States, 
 to promote and improve the cause of education throughout the Nation, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 19, 1993

   Mr. Kildee (for himself and Mr. Ford of Michigan) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 
                                 Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for the collection and dissemination of statistics designed 
 to show the condition and progress of education in the United States, 
 to promote and improve the cause of education throughout the Nation, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be 
cited as the ``National Education Statistics Act of 1993''.

                     findings; purpose; definitions

    Sec. 2. (a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
            (1) a Department of Education was established in 1867 ``for 
        the purpose of collecting such statistics and facts as shall 
        show the condition and progress of education in the several 
        States and Territories, and of diffusing such information 
        respecting the organization and management of schools and 
        school systems and methods of teaching as shall aid the people 
        of the United States in the establishment and maintenance of 
        efficient school systems, and otherwise promote the cause of 
        education throughout the country'';
            (2) today, while the role of the current Department of 
        Education is much broader, the National Center for Education 
        Statistics within the Department's Office of Educational 
        Research and Improvement continues to perform those crucial 
        original purposes; and
            (3) looking to the 21st Century, the National Center for 
        Education Statistics must be able to design and undertake, 
        effectively and efficiently, statistical activities that will 
        aid in reform of our Nation's educational systems.
    (b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this Act to ensure the 
continuation of an effective mechanism for collecting and reporting 
statistics and information showing the condition and progress of 
education in the United States and other nations in order to promote 
and accelerate the improvement of American education.
    (c) Definitions.--For the purpose of this Act, the term--
            (1) ``Assistant Secretary'' means the Assistant Secretary 
        for Educational Research and Improvement, provided for under 
        section 202(b)(1)(E) of the Department of Education 
        Organization Act;
            (2) ``Department'' means the Department of Education;
            (3) ``institution of higher education'' has the same 
        meaning as that term is used in section 1201 of the Higher 
        Education Act of 1965;
            (4) ``local educational agency'' has the same meaning as 
        that term is used in section 1471 of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965;
            (5) ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Education;
            (6) ``State educational agency'' has the same meaning as 
        that term is used in section 1471 of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965; and
            (7) ``United States'' and ``State''--
                    (A) mean, other than for the purpose of section 11, 
                each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and 
                the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; and
                    (B) for the purpose of section 11, include Guam, 
                American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of 
                the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Republic of Palau 
                (until the effective date of the Compact of Free 
                Association with the Government of Palau).

                national center for education statistics

    Sec. 3. (a) Establishment.--There is established, within the Office 
of Educational Research and Improvement established under section 209 
of the Department of Education Organization Act, a National Center for 
Education Statistics (the ``Center'').
    (b) Commissioner and Associate Commissioners.--(1) The Center shall 
be headed by a Commissioner of Education Statistics (the 
``Commissioner'') who shall be appointed by the President, by and with 
the advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall--
            (A) have substantial knowledge of programs encompassed by 
        the Center;
            (B) be paid in accordance with section 5315 of title 5, 
        United States Code; and
            (C) serve for a term of 4 years, with the terms to expire 
        every fourth June 21, beginning in 1995.
    (2) The Commissioner may appoint such Associate Commissioners as 
the Commissioner determines are necessary and appropriate.

                          duties of the center

    Sec. 4. (a) Duties.--The duties of the Center are to collect, 
analyze, and disseminate statistics and other information related to 
education in the United States and in other nations, including--
            (1) acquiring, compiling (where appropriate, on a State-by-
        State basis), and disseminating full and complete statistics on 
        the condition and progress of education in the United States, 
        including data on--
                    (A) State and local education reform;
                    (B) student achievement and other educational 
                outcomes (including data on special student populations 
                and data on high school completions, dropouts, and 
                adult literacy);
                    (C) educational access and opportunity (including 
                data on financial aid to postsecondary students);
                    (D) teaching (including data on curriculum, 
                instruction, the conditions of the education workplace, 
                and the supply of, and demand for, teachers);
                    (E) the learning environment (including data on 
                libraries and the incidence of crime, violence, and 
                substance abuse);
                    (F) the financing and management of education 
                (including data on revenues and expenditures); and
                    (G) the social and economic status of children;
            (2) conducting and publishing reports and analyses of the 
        meaning and significance of such statistics;
            (3) conducting longitudinal studies, as well as regular and 
        special surveys and data collections, necessary to report on 
        the condition and progress of education;
            (4) assisting public and private educational agencies, 
        organizations, and institutions in improving and automating 
        their statistical and data collection activities; and
            (5) acquiring and disseminating data on educational 
        activities and student achievement in the United States 
        compared with those in foreign nations.
    (b) Training Program.--The Commissioner may establish a program to 
train employees of public and private educational agencies, 
organizations, and institutions in the use of the Center's standard 
statistical procedures and concepts and may establish a fellows program 
to appoint such employees as temporary fellows at the Center in order 
to assist the Center in carrying out its duties.

                         performance of duties

    Sec. 5. (a) General.--In carrying out the duties under this Act, 
the Commissioner may enter into grants, contracts, and cooperative 
agreements.
    (b) Gathering Information.--(1) The Commissioner may use the 
statistical method known as sampling to carry out the purpose of this 
Act.
    (2) The Commissioner may, as he or she considers appropriate, use 
information collected--
            (A) from States, local educational agencies, schools, 
        institutions of higher education, libraries, administrators, 
        teachers, students, the general public, and such other 
        individuals, organizations, agencies, and institutions as the 
        Commissioner may consider appropriate; and
            (B) by other offices within the Department and by other 
        Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities.
    (3) The Commissioner may--
            (A) enter into interagency agreements for the collection of 
        statistics;
            (B) arrange with any agency, organization, or institution 
        for the collection of statistics; and
            (C) assign employees of the Center to any such agency, 
        organization, or institution to assist in such collection.
    (4) In order to maximize the effectiveness of Federal efforts to 
serve the educational needs of children and youth, the Commissioner 
shall--
            (A) provide technical assistance to Department offices that 
        gather data for statistical purposes; and
            (B) coordinate closely with other Department offices in the 
        collection of data.

                                reports

    Sec. 6. (a) Report on the Condition and Progress of Education.--The 
Commissioner shall, no later than June 1 of each year, submit to the 
President and the Congress a statistical report on the condition and 
progress of education in the United States.
    (b) Statistical Reports.--The Commissioner shall issue regular 
statistical reports to the President and Congress on such education 
topics as the Commissioner determines to be appropriate.
    (c) Special Reports.--The Commissioner may, whenever he or she 
considers it appropriate, issue special reports on particular education 
topics.

                advisory council on education statistics

    Sec. 7. (a) Establishment.--There is established, within the 
Center, the Advisory Council on Education Statistics (the ``Council'').
    (b) Membership.--(1) The Council shall be composed of--
            (A) 15 voting members who are users of education data and 
        who are appointed by the Secretary on the basis of their 
        experience and eminence within the field, of whom at least--
                    (i) three shall be educators;
                    (ii) three shall be education policy-makers;
                    (iii) three shall be professional statisticians; 
                and
                    (iv) three shall be education researchers;
            (B) the Director of the Census and the Commissioner of 
        Labor Statistics, as voting, ex officio members; and
            (C) the Assistant Secretary and the Commissioner, as 
        nonvoting, ex officio members.
    (2) The Secretary shall appoint the presiding officer of the 
Council from among the voting members.
    (3) Members of the Council appointed under paragraph (1)(A) shall 
be appointed for three-year terms except that, in the case of initial 
appointments, the Secretary shall make appointments for shorter terms 
to the extent necessary to avoid the expiration of the terms of more 
than five members in the same calendar year.
    (4)(A) The Council shall meet at the call of the presiding officer, 
except that it shall meet--
            (i) at least two times during each calendar year; and
            (ii) in addition, whenever eight voting members request in 
        writing that the presiding officer call a meeting.
    (B) Nine voting members of the Council shall constitute a quorum.
    (5) The Council shall review general policies for the operation of 
the Center and shall advise the Commissioner on standards to ensure 
that statistics and other information disseminated by the Center are of 
high quality and are not subject to partisan political influence.

                            confidentiality

    Sec. 8. (a) In General.--(1) The Center shall develop and enforce 
standards designed to protect the confidentiality of persons in the 
collection, reporting, and publication of data under this section. The 
section shall not be construed to protect the confidentiality of 
information about institutions, organizations, and agencies that 
receive grants from, or have contracts or cooperative agreements with, 
the Federal Government.
    (2) No person may--
            (A) use any individually identifiable information furnished 
        under this Act for any purpose other than a statistical 
        purpose;
            (B) make any publication whereby the data furnished by any 
        particular person under this Act can be identified; or
            (C) permit anyone other than the individuals authorized by 
        the Commissioner to examine the individual reports.
    (b) Administration.--(1) No department, bureau, agency, officer, or 
employee of the government, except the Commissioner in carrying out the 
purposes of this Act, shall require, for any reason, copies of reports 
that have been filed under this Act with the Center or retained by any 
individual respondent. Copies of such reports that have been so filed 
or retained with the Center or any of its employees, contractors, or 
agents shall be immune from legal process, and shall not, without the 
consent of the individual concerned, be admitted as evidence or used 
for any purpose in any action, suit, or other judicial or 
administrative proceeding. This paragraph shall apply only to 
individually identifiable information (as defined in paragraph (4)(A)).
    (2) Whoever, being or having been an employee or staff member of 
the Department, having taken or subscribed the oath of office, or 
having sworn to observe the limitations imposed by subsection (a)(2), 
knowingly publishes or communicates any individually identifiable 
information (as defined in paragraph (4)(A)), the disclosure of which 
is prohibited by subsection (a)(2), and that comes into his or her 
possession by reason of employment (or otherwise providing services) 
under this Act, shall be found guilty of a class E felony and 
imprisoned for not more than five years, or fined as specified in 18 
U.S.C. 3571, or both.
    (3) The Commissioner may utilize temporary staff, including 
employees of Federal, State, or local agencies or instrumentalities 
including local educational agencies, and employees of private 
organizations to assist the Center in performing its responsibilities, 
but only if such temporary staff are sworn to observe the limitations 
imposed by this section.
    (4) For the purposes of this section--
            (A) the term ``individually identifiable information'' 
        means any record, response form, completed survey, or 
        aggregation thereof from which information about particular 
        individuals may be revealed; and
            (B) the term ``report'' means a response provided by or 
        about an individual to an inquiry from the Center and does not 
        include a statistical aggregation from which individually 
        identifiable information cannot be revealed.
    (5) Any person who uses any data provided by the Center, in 
conjunction with any other information or technique, to identify any 
individual student, teacher, administrator, or other individual and who 
knowingly discloses, publishes, or uses such data for a purpose other 
than a statistical purpose, or who otherwise violates subsections 
(a)(2) (A) or (B), shall be found guilty of a class E felony and 
imprisoned for not more than five years, or fined as specified in 18 
U.S.C. 3571, or both.
    (6) Nothing in this section shall restrict the right of the 
Secretary, the Comptroller General of the United States, the Director 
of the Congressional Budget Office, and the Librarian of Congress to 
gain access to any reports or other records, including information 
identifying individuals, in the Center's possession, except that the 
same restrictions on disclosure that apply to the Center under 
subsection (b)(1) and (5) shall apply.

                             dissemination

    Sec. 9. (a) General Requests.--(1) The Center may furnish 
transcripts or copies of tables and other statistical records and make 
special statistical compilations and surveys for State and local 
officials, public and private organizations, and individuals.
    (2) The Center shall provide State and local educational agencies 
opportunities to suggest the development of particular compilations of 
statistics, surveys, and analyses that would assist those educational 
agencies.
    (b) Congressional Requests.--The Center shall furnish such special 
statistical compilations and surveys as the Congress may request.
    (c) Joint Statistical Projects.--The Secretary may engage in joint 
statistical projects related to the purposes of this Act, or other 
statistical purposes authorized by law, with nonprofit organizations or 
agencies, and the cost of such projects shall be shared equitably as 
determined by the Secretary.
    (d) Fees.--(1) Statistical compilations and surveys under this 
section, other than those carried out pursuant to subsections (b) and 
(c), may be made subject to the payment of the actual or estimated cost 
of such work.
    (2) All funds received in payment for work or services described in 
this subsection may be used to pay directly the costs of such work or 
services, to repay appropriations that initially bore all or part of 
such costs, or to refund excess sums when necessary.
    (e) Access.--(1) The Center shall, consistent with section 8, 
participate with other Federal agencies having a need for educational 
data in providing access to educational data received by the Center.
    (2) The Center shall, in accordance with such terms and conditions 
as the Secretary may prescribe, provide all interested parties, 
including public and private agencies and individuals, direct access to 
data collected by the Center for the purposes of research and acquiring 
statistical information.

                cooperative education statistics systems

    Sec. 10. The Commissioner may establish one or more national 
cooperative education statistics systems for the purpose of producing 
and maintaining, with the cooperation of the States, comparable and 
uniform information and data on elementary and secondary education, 
postsecondary education, and libraries that are useful for policymaking 
at the Federal, State, and local levels. In carrying out this section, 
the Commissioner may provide technical assistance and make grants and 
enter into contracts and cooperative agreements.

              national assessment of educational progress

    Sec. 11. (a) Establishment.--The Commissioner shall, with the 
advice of the National Assessment Governing Board established by 
section 12, carry out, through grants, contracts, or cooperative 
agreements with one or more qualified organizations, or consortia 
thereof, a National Assessment of Educational Progress (the ``National 
Assessment'').
    (b) Purpose; Contents.--(1) The purpose of the National Assessment 
is to provide a fair and accurate presentation of educational 
achievement in reading, writing, and the other subjects included in 
National Education Goal Three. The Commissioner, in carrying out the 
National Assessment, shall use sampling techniques that produce data 
that are representative on a national and regional basis and on a State 
basis pursuant to paragraph (2). In addition, the Commissioner shall--
            (A) collect and report data on a periodic basis, but at 
        least once every two years, on students at ages 9, 13, and 17 
        and in grades 4, 8, and 12;
            (B) report achievement data on a basis that ensures valid 
        and reliable trend reporting;
            (C) include information on special groups; and
            (D) ensure that achievement data are made available on a 
        timely basis following official reporting, in a manner that 
        facilitates further analysis.
    (2)(A) The Commissioner, in carrying out the National Assessment, 
may conduct State assessments of student achievement in grades 4, 8, 
and 12.
    (B) States wishing to participate in State assessments shall enter 
into an agreement with the Secretary pursuant to subsection (d)(2). 
Such agreement shall contain information sufficient to give States full 
information about the process for consensus decisionmaking on 
objectives to be tested, required in section 12(e)(5), and of the 
standards for sampling, test administration, test security, data 
collection, validation, and reporting.
    (C) A participating State shall review and give permission for the 
release of results from any test of its students administered as a part 
of a State assessment prior to the release of such data. Refusal by a 
State to release its data shall not restrict the release of data from 
other States that have approved the release of such data.
    (3) In carrying out the National Assessment, the Commissioner shall 
not collect any data that are not directly related to the appraisal of 
educational performance, achievement, and traditional demographic 
reporting variables, or to the fair and accurate presentation of such 
information.
    (4) In carrying out the National Assessment, the Commissioner may 
provide technical assistance to States, localities, and other parties.
    (c) Access.--(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the public 
shall have access to all data, questions, and test instruments of the 
National Assessment.
    (2)(A) The Commissioner shall ensure that all personally 
identifiable information about students, their educational performance, 
and their families, and that information with respect to individual 
schools, remains confidential, in accordance with section 552a of title 
5, United States Code.
    (B) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary may 
decline to make available to the public for a period, not to exceed 10 
years following their initial use, cognitive questions that the 
Secretary intends to reuse in the future.
    (C) The Secretary may, upon the request of a State educational 
agency or a local educational agency, make National Assessment test 
instruments available for assessing aggregate student achievement at 
the school or district level. Before receiving such instruments, an 
agency shall provide assurances, satisfactory to the Secretary, that 
security requirements and testing protocols, prescribed by the 
Commissioner, will be complied with in the use of such instruments.
    (d) Participation.--(1) Participation in the national and regional 
assessments by State and local educational agencies shall be voluntary.
    (2) Participation in assessments made on a State basis shall be 
voluntary. The Secretary shall enter into an agreement with any State 
that desires to carry out an assessment for the State under this 
subsection. Each such agreement shall contain provisions designed to 
ensure that the State will--
            (A) participate in the assessment; and
            (B) pay from non-Federal sources the non-Federal share of 
        participation.
    (3)(A) For each fiscal year, the non-Federal share for the purpose 
of paragraph (2)(B) shall be--
            (i) the cost of conducting the assessment at the school 
        level for all public schools in the State sample;
            (ii) the cost of coordination within the State; and
            (iii) other reasonable costs specified by the Secretary in 
        the agreement described in paragraph (2).
    (B) The non-Federal share of payments under this paragraph may be 
in cash or in kind, fairly valued.
    (C) The agreement described in paragraph (2) shall describe the 
manner in which the costs of administering the assessment to private 
non-profit schools included in the State sample may be met.
    (e) Review of National and State Assessments.--The Secretary shall 
provide for continuing reviews of both national and State assessments, 
including evaluation studies by the Center and solicitation of public 
comment on the conduct and usefulness of the National Assessment. The 
Secretary shall report to the Congress, the President, and the Nation 
on the findings and recommendations of such reviews. The Commissioner 
shall consider the findings and recommendations in designing the 
competition to select the organization, or organizations, through which 
the Office carries out the National Assessment.
    (f) Coverage Agreements.--(1) The Secretary and the Secretary of 
Defense may enter into an agreement, including such terms as are 
mutually satisfactory, to include in the National Assessment elementary 
and secondary schools operated by the Department of Defense.
    (2) The Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior may enter into 
an agreement, including such terms as are mutually satisfactory, to 
include in the National Assessment schools for Indian children operated 
or supported by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

                  national assessment governing board

    Sec. 12. (a) Establishment.--There is established the National 
Assessment Governing Board (the ``Board''), which shall formulate 
policy guidelines for the National Assessment.
    (b) Membership.--(1) The Board shall be appointed by the Secretary 
and be composed of--
            (A) two Governors, or former Governors, who shall not be 
        members of the same political party;
            (B) two State legislators, who shall not be members of the 
        same political party;
            (C) two chief State school officers;
            (D) one superintendent of a local educational agency;
            (E) one member of a State board of education;
            (F) one member of a local board of education;
            (G) three classroom teachers representing the grade levels 
        at which the National Assessment is conducted;
            (H) one representative of business or industry;
            (I) two curriculum specialists;
            (J) three testing and measurement experts, who shall have 
        training and experience in the field of testing and 
        measurement;
            (K) one nonpublic school administrator or policymaker;
            (L) two school principals, one elementary and one 
        secondary; and
            (M) four additional members who are representatives of the 
        general public, including parents.
    (2) The Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and 
Improvement shall serve as an ex officio, nonvoting member of the 
Board.
    (3) The Secretary and the Board shall ensure at all times that the 
membership of the Board reflects regional, racial, gender, and cultural 
balance and diversity and that it exercises its independent judgment, 
free from inappropriate influences and special interests.
    (c) Terms.--Members of the Board shall serve for terms not to 
exceed four years which shall be staggered, as determined by the 
Secretary. Any appointed member of the Board who changes status under 
subsection (b) during the term of the appointment of the member may 
continue to serve as a member until the expiration of such term.
    (d) Vacancies.--As vacancies occur, new members of the Board shall 
be appointed by the Secretary from among individuals who are nominated 
by the Board after consultation with representatives of the groups 
listed in subsection (b)(1). For each vacancy, the Board shall nominate 
at least three individuals who, by reason of experience or training, 
are qualified in that particular Board vacancy.
    (e) Duties.--(1) In carrying out its functions under this section 
the Board shall--
            (A) select subject areas to be assessed (consistent with 
        section 11(b)(1));
            (B) identify appropriate achievement goals for each age and 
        grade in each subject area to be tested under the National 
        Assessment;
            (C) develop assessment objectives;
            (D) develop test specifications;
            (E) design the methodology of the assessment;
            (F) develop guidelines for analysis plans and for reporting 
        and disseminating results;
            (G) develop standards and procedures for interstate, 
        regional, and national comparisons; and
            (H) take appropriate actions needed to improve the form and 
        use of the National Assessment.
    (2) The Board may delegate any of its procedural and administrative 
functions to its staff.
    (3) The Board shall have final authority on the appropriateness of 
cognitive items.
    (4) The Board shall take steps to ensure that all items selected 
for use in the National Assessment are free from racial, cultural, 
gender, or regional bias.
    (5) Each learning area assessment shall have goal statements 
devised through a national consensus approach, providing for active 
participation of teachers, curriculum specialists, local school 
administrators, parents, and concerned members of the general public.
    (f) Personnel.--(1) In the exercise of its responsibilities, the 
Board shall be independent of the Secretary and the other offices and 
officers of the Department of Education.
    (2) The Secretary may appoint, at the direction of the Board, such 
staff as the Board requires. Such appointments may include, for terms 
not to exceed three years, without regard to the provisions of title 5, 
United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, 
not more than six technical employees to administer this subsection, 
who may be paid without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and 
subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title relating to classification 
and General Schedule pay rates.
    (g) Commissioner Reports.--The Commissioner shall report to the 
Board at regular intervals on the Department's actions to implement the 
decisions of the Board.
    (h) Administration.--(1) Not to exceed ten percent of the funds 
available for the National Assessment for any fiscal year may be used 
for administrative expenses (including staff, consultants, and 
contracts) and to carry out the Board's functions described in 
subsection (e).
    (2) For the purposes of its administrative functions, the Board 
shall have the authorities authorized by the Federal Advisory Committee 
Act and shall be subject to the open meeting provisions of that law.

                    authorizations of appropriations

    Sec. 13. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may 
be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1995 through 1999 to carry 
out this Act.

                                 repeal

    Sec. 14. Section 406 of the General Education Provisions Act (20 
U.S.C. 1221e-1) is repealed.

                                 <all>

HR 3562 IH--2
HR 3562 IH--3