[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 949 Introduced in House (IH)]
107th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 949
To provide funds to States to establish and administer periodic teacher
testing and merit pay programs for elementary and secondary school
teachers.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 8, 2001
Mr. Fossella introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide funds to States to establish and administer periodic teacher
testing and merit pay programs for elementary and secondary school
teachers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS; AND PURPOSES.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Measures to
Encourage Results in Teaching Act of 2001''.
(b) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) All students deserve to be taught by well-educated,
competent, and qualified teachers.
(2) More than ever before, education has and will continue
to become the ticket not only to economic success but to basic
survival. Students will not succeed in meeting the demands of a
knowledge-based, 21st century society and economy if the
students do not encounter more challenging work in school. For
future generations to have the opportunities to achieve success
the future generations will need to have an education and a
teacher workforce second to none.
(3) No other intervention can make the difference that a
knowledgeable, skillful teacher can make in the learning
process. At the same time, nothing can fully compensate for
weak teaching that, despite good intentions, can result from a
teacher's lack of opportunity to acquire the knowledge and
skill needed to help students master the curriculum.
(4) The Federal Government established the Dwight D.
Eisenhower Professional Development Program in 1985 to ensure
that teachers and other educational staff have access to
sustained and high-quality professional development. This
ongoing development must include the ability to demonstrate and
judge the performance of teachers and other instructional
staff.
(5) States should evaluate their teachers on the basis of
demonstrated ability, including tests of subject matter
knowledge, teaching knowledge, and teaching skill. States
should develop a test for their teachers and other
instructional staff with respect to the subjects taught by the
teachers and staff, and should administer the test every 3 to 5
years.
(6) Evaluating and rewarding teachers with a compensation
system that supports teachers who become increasingly expert in
a subject area, are proficient in meeting the needs of students
and schools, and demonstrate high levels of performance
measured against professional teaching standards, will
encourage teachers to continue to learn needed skills and
broaden teachers' expertise, thereby enhancing education for
all students.
(c) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are as follows:
(1) To provide incentives for States to establish and
administer periodic teacher testing and merit pay programs for
elementary school and secondary school teachers.
(2) To encourage States to establish merit pay programs
that have a significant impact on teacher salary scales.
(3) To encourage programs that recognize and reward the
best teachers, and encourage those teachers that need to do
better.
SEC. 2. STATE INCENTIVES FOR TEACHER TESTING AND MERIT PAY.
(a) Amendments.--Title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by redesignating part E as part F;
(2) by redesignating sections 2401 and 2402 as sections
2501 and 2502, respectively; and
(3) by inserting after part D the following:
``PART E--STATE INCENTIVES FOR TEACHER TESTING AND MERIT PAY
``SEC. 2401. STATE INCENTIVES FOR TEACHER TESTING AND MERIT PAY.
``(a) State Awards.--Notwithstanding any other provision of this
title, from funds described in subsection (b) that are made available
for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall make an award to each State
that--
``(1) administers a test to each elementary school and
secondary school teacher in the State, with respect to the
subjects taught by the teacher, every 3 to 5 years; and
``(2) has an elementary school and secondary school teacher
compensation system that is based on merit.
``(b) Available Funding.--The amount of funds referred to in
subsection (a) that are available to carry out this section for a
fiscal year is 50 percent of the amount of funds appropriated to carry
out this title that are in excess of the amount so appropriated for
fiscal year 2001, except that no funds shall be available to carry out
this section for any fiscal year for which--
``(1) the amount appropriated to carry out this title
exceeds $600,000,000; or
``(2) each of the several States is eligible to receive an
award under this section.
``(c) Award Amount.--A State shall receive an award under this
section in an amount that bears the same relation to the total amount
available for awards under this section for a fiscal year as the number
of States that are eligible to receive such an award for the fiscal
year bears to the total number of all States so eligible for the fiscal
year.
``(d) Use of Funds.--Funds provided under this section may be used
by States to carry out the activities described in section 2207.
``(e) Definition of State.--For the purpose of this section, the
term `State' means each of the 50 States and the District of
Columbia.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall
take effect on October 1, 2001.
SEC. 3. TEACHER TESTING AND MERIT PAY.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a
State may use Federal education funds--
(1) to carry out a test of each elementary school or
secondary school teacher in the State with respect to the
subjects taught by the teacher; or
(2) to establish a merit pay program for the teachers.
(b) Definitions.--In this section, the terms ``elementary school''
and ``secondary school'' have the meanings given the terms in section
14101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
8801).
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