[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 968 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 968

 To establish the Healthy and High Performance Schools Program in the 
            Department of Education and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 25, 2001

 Mrs. Clinton introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish the Healthy and High Performance Schools Program in the 
            Department of Education and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Healthy and High Performance Schools 
Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds the following:
            (1) American kindergarten through grade 12 schools spend 
        over $6,000,000,000 annually on energy costs, which is more 
        than is spent on books and computers combined.
            (2) Approximately 25,000,000 students are attending schools 
        with at least 1 unsatisfactory environmental condition.
            (3) Educators teach and students learn best in an 
        environment that is comfortable, healthy, naturally lit where 
        possible, and in good repair, and studies have indicated that 
        student achievement is greater and attendance higher when those 
        conditions are met.
            (4) Over half of our Nation's kindergarten through grade 12 
        schools are more than 40 years old and in need of renovation to 
        reach such standard of efficiency and comfort, and 6,000 new 
        schools will be required over the next 10 years to accommodate 
        the growing number of students.
            (5) Inadequate ventilation in school buildings, poor 
        lighting and acoustical quality, and uncomfortable temperatures 
        can cause poor health and diminish students' capacity to 
        concentrate and excel.
            (6) Inefficient use of water, either in consumption or from 
        poorly maintained systems, is prevalent in older schools.
            (7) Using a whole building approach in the design of new 
        schools and the renovation of existing schools (considering how 
        materials, systems, and products connect and overlap and also 
        how a school is integrated on its site and within the 
        surrounding community) will result in healthy and high 
        performance school buildings.
            (8) Adoption of whole building concepts has been shown to 
        result in dramatic improvements in student and teacher 
        performance.
            (9) Adopting a whole building approach usually results in a 
        lower life cycle cost for the school building than for a 
        conventionally designed and built building.
            (10) Systematic use of energy conservation in school 
        construction and renovation projects can save at least one 
        quarter of current energy costs, leaving more money for 
        teachers and educational materials.
            (11) The use of renewable energy sources such as 
        daylighting, solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower, and biomass 
        power in a building already designed to be energy-efficient can 
        help meet the building's energy needs without added emissions.
            (12) Using environmentally preferable products and 
        providing for adequate supplies of fresh air will improve 
        indoor air quality and provide healthful school buildings.
            (13) Most school districts do not have the knowledge of 
        cutting-edge design and technologies to integrate optimum 
        efficiency and environmentally healthy designs into new school 
        construction or into school renovations.
    (b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this Act to assist local 
educational agencies in the production of high performance elementary 
school and secondary school buildings that are healthful, productive, 
energy-efficient, and environmentally sound.

SEC. 3. PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION.

    (a) Program.--There is established in the Department of Education 
the High Performance Schools Program (in this Act referred to as the 
``Program'').
    (b) Grants.--The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of 
Energy and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, 
may, through the Program, award grants to State educational agencies to 
permit such State educational agencies to carry out subsection (c).
    (c) State Use of Funds.--
            (1) Subgrants.--
                    (A) In general.--A State educational agency 
                receiving a grant under this Act shall use the grant 
                funds made available under section 4(a)(1) to award 
                subgrants to local educational agencies to permit such 
                local educational agencies to carry out the activities 
                described in subsection (d).
                    (B) Limitation.--A State educational agency shall 
                award subgrants under subparagraph (A) to local 
                educational agencies that have made a commitment to use 
                the subgrant funds to develop healthy, high performance 
                school buildings in accordance with the plan developed 
                and approved pursuant to subparagraph (C)(i).
                    (C) Implementation.--
                            (i) Plans.--A State educational agency 
                        shall award subgrants under paragraph (1) only 
                        to local educational agencies that, in 
                        consultation with the State educational agency 
                        and State offices with responsibilities 
                        relating to energy and health, have developed 
                        plans that the State educational agency 
                        determines to be feasible and appropriate in 
                        order to achieve the purposes for which such 
                        subgrants are made.
                            (ii) Supplementing grant funds.--The State 
                        educational agency shall encourage qualifying 
                        local educational agencies to supplement their 
                        subgrant funds with funds from other sources in 
                        the implementation of their plans.
            (2) Administration.--A State educational agency receiving a 
        grant under this Act shall use the grant funds made available 
        under section 4(a)(2)--
                    (A) to evaluate compliance by local educational 
                agencies with the requirements of this Act;
                    (B) to distribute information and materials to 
                clearly define and promote the development of healthy, 
                high performance school buildings for both new and 
                existing facilities;
                    (C) to organize and conduct programs for school 
                board members, school district personnel, architects, 
                engineers, and others to advance the concepts of 
                healthy, high performance school buildings;
                    (D) to obtain technical services and assistance in 
                planning and designing high performance school 
                buildings; and
                    (E) to collect and monitor information pertaining 
                to the high performance school building projects funded 
                under this Act.
            (3) Promotion.--Subject to section 4(a), a State 
        educational agency receiving a grant under this Act may use 
        grant funds for promotional and marketing activities, including 
        facilitating private and public financing, working with school 
        administrations, students, and communities, and coordinating 
        public benefit programs.
    (d) Local Use of Funds.--
            (1) In general.--A local educational agency receiving a 
        subgrant under subsection (c)(1) shall use such subgrant funds 
        for new school building projects and renovation projects that--
                    (A) achieve energy-efficiency performance that 
                reduces energy use to at least 30 percent below that of 
                a school constructed in compliance with standards 
                prescribed in Chapter 8 of the 2000 International 
                Energy Conservation Code, or a similar State code 
                intended to achieve substantially equivalent results; 
                and
                    (B) achieve environmentally healthy schools in 
                compliance with Federal and State codes intended to 
                achieve healthy and safe school environments.
            (2) Existing buildings.--A local educational agency 
        receiving a subgrant under subsection (c)(1) for renovation of 
        existing school buildings shall use such subgrant funds to 
        achieve energy efficiency performance that reduces energy use 
        below the school's baseline consumption, assuming a 3-year, 
        weather-normalized average for calculating such baseline and to 
        help bring schools into compliance with health and safety 
        standards.

SEC. 4. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.

    (a) In General.--A State receiving a grant under this Act shall 
use--
            (1) not less than 70 percent of such grant funds to carry 
        out section 3(c)(1); and
            (2) not less than 15 percent of such grant funds to carry 
        out section 3(c)(2).
    (b) Reservation.--The Secretary may reserve an amount not to exceed 
$300,000 per year from amounts appropriated under section 6 to assist 
State educational agencies in coordinating and implementing the 
Program. Such funds may be used to develop reference materials to 
further define the principles and criteria to achieve healthy, high 
performance school buildings.

SEC. 5. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall conduct a biennial review of 
State actions implementing this Act, and shall report to Congress on 
the results of such reviews.
    (b) Reviews.--In conducting such reviews, the Secretary shall 
assess the effectiveness of the calculation procedures used by State 
educational agencies in establishing eligibility of local educational 
agencies for subgrants under this Act, and may assess other aspects of 
the Program to determine whether the aspects have been effectively 
implemented.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 
out this Act--
            (1) $250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 
        2005; and
            (2) such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 
        2006 through 2011.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Elementary school and secondary school.--The terms 
        ``elementary school'' and ``secondary school'' have the same 
        meanings given such terms in section 14101 of the Elementary 
        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8801).
            (2) Healthy, high performance school building.--The term 
        ``healthy, high performance school building'' means a school 
        building which, in its design, construction, operation, and 
        maintenance, maximizes use of renewable energy and energy-
        efficient practices, is cost-effective on a life cycle basis, 
        uses affordable, environmentally preferable, durable materials, 
        enhances indoor environmental quality, protects and conserves 
        water, and optimizes site potential.
            (3) Local educational agency.--The term ``local educational 
        agency'' has the same meaning given such term in section 14101 
        of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 8801).
            (4) Renewable energy.--The term ``renewable energy'' means 
        energy produced by solar, wind, geothermal, hydroelectric, or 
        biomass power.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Education.
            (6) State educational agency.--The term ``State educational 
        agency'' has the same meaning given such term in section 14101 
        of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 8801).
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