[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2884 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2884

                  To provide dollars to the classroom.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 24, 2003

  Mr. Pitts introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
                  To provide dollars to the classroom.

    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 ``Dollars to the Classroom Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANTS TO STATES.

    The Secretary may award grants in accordance with this Act to 
States for use by States and local educational agencies to improve 
classroom services and activities for students.

SEC. 3. GRANT AWARD.

    (a) Reservation of Funds.--From the amount appropriated to carry 
out this Act for any fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve--
            (1) \1/2\ of 1 percent for the outlying areas, to be 
        distributed among the outlying areas on the basis of their 
        relative need, as determined by the Secretary in accordance 
        with the purposes of this section; and
            (2) \1/2\ of 1 percent for the Secretary of the Interior 
        for programs under this Act in schools operated or funded by 
        the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
    (b) State Allocations.--Funds appropriated to carry out this Act 
for any fiscal year, which are not reserved under subsection (a), shall 
be allocated among the States as follows:
            (1) Hold harmless.--Subject to paragraph (2), no State 
        shall receive an award under this section for any fiscal year 
        that is less than the aggregate amount such State received to 
        carry out programs or activities for fiscal year 2003 under the 
        following provisions (as in effect on the day preceding the 
        date of the enactment of this Act):
                    (A) Part F of title I of the Elementary and 
                Secondary Education Act of 1965.
                    (B) Part A of title II of the Elementary and 
                Secondary Education Act of 1965.
                    (C) Subpart 1 of part D of title II of the 
                Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
                    (D) Part A of title V of the Elementary and 
                Secondary Education Act of 1965.
                    (E) Subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento 
                Homeless Assistance Act.
            (2) Insufficient funds.--If the amount of appropriations to 
        carry out this Act for any fiscal year is insufficient to pay 
        the full amounts that all States are eligible to receive under 
        paragraph (1) for such year, the Secretary shall ratably reduce 
        such amounts for such year.
            (3) Remaining funds.--If funds remain after meeting the 
        requirements of paragraph (1), such remaining funds shall be 
        allocated among the States in the following manner:
                    (A) 50 percent of such remaining funds shall be 
                allocated to the States in proportion to their grants 
                under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
                Education Act of 1965 for the preceding fiscal year; 
                and
                    (B) 50 percent of such remaining funds shall be 
                allocated to the States in proportion to the number of 
                children ages 5 through 17 who reside in the States, 
                according to the most recent available data that are 
                satisfactory to the Secretary.
    (c) Definition of State.--For purposes of this section, the term 
``State'' includes the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
    (d) Definition of Outlying Area.--For purposes of this section, the 
term ``outlying area'' includes American Samoa, Guam, the United States 
Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
    (e) Payments.--Funds awarded to a State under this Act shall be 
paid to the individual or entity in the State that is responsible for 
the State administration of Federal education funds pursuant to State 
law.
    (f) Use of State Awards.--
            (1) In general.--From the amount made available to a State 
        under subsection (b) for a fiscal year, the State--
                    (A) shall use not more than 5 percent of the amount 
                to support programs or activities, for children ages 5 
                through 17, that the State determines appropriate, of 
                which the State shall distribute 20 percent of the 5 
                percent to local educational agencies in the State to 
                pay the administrative expenses of the local 
                educational agencies that are associated with the 
                activities and services assisted under this section; 
                and
                    (B) shall distribute, pursuant to section 4(a), not 
                less than 95 percent of the amount to local educational 
                agencies in the State for the fiscal year to enable the 
                local educational agencies to pay the costs of 
                activities or services provided in the classroom, for 
                children ages 5 through 17, that the local educational 
                agencies determine appropriate subject to the 
                requirements of section 4(b).
            (2) Administrative expenses.--For the purpose of paragraph 
        (1)(B), the costs of activities and services provided in the 
        classroom exclude the administrative expenses associated with 
        the activities and services.
    (g) Supplement not Supplant.--A State or local educational agency 
shall use funds received under this Act only to supplement the amount 
of funds that would, in the absence of such Federal funds, be made 
available from non-Federal sources for the education of pupils 
participating in programs assisted under this Act, and not to supplant 
such funds.
    (h) Annual Reports.--
            (1) In general.--Each State receiving assistance under this 
        part shall issue a report on an annual basis, not later than 
        April 1 of each year beginning the year after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, to the Secretary, the Committee on 
        Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives, 
        the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions of the 
        Senate, and the Committees on Appropriations of the House of 
        Representatives and the Senate that describes how funds under 
        this Act have been used to improve student performance in that 
        State.
            (2) Certification.--Each report submitted under this 
        subsection shall include a certification by the State that 95 
        percent of funding provided under this Act during the preceding 
        fiscal year has been expended by local educational agencies 
        within that State for classroom activities and services 
        pursuant to subsection (f)(1)(B).
            (3) Measures of performance.--In determining student 
        academic performance within the State, the State shall use such 
        measures of student academic performance as it deems 
        appropriate. The State may disaggregate data by poverty, 
        subject area, race, gender, geographic location, or other 
        criteria as the State deems appropriate.
            (4) Availability of report.--Each State shall make the 
        report described in this subsection available to parents and 
        members of the public throughout that State.

SEC. 4. LOCAL AWARDS.

    (a) Determination of Amount of Funds.--
            (1) In general.--The individual or entity in the State that 
        is responsible for the State administration of Federal 
        education funds pursuant to State law of each State receiving 
        assistance under this Act, in consultation with the Governor of 
        such State, the chief State school officer of such State, 
        representatives from the State legislature, and representatives 
        from local educational agencies within such State, shall 
        develop a formula for the allocation of funds described in 
        section 3, to local educational agencies, taking into 
        consideration--
                    (A) poverty rates within each local educational 
                agency;
                    (B) children living in sparsely populated areas;
                    (C) an equitable distribution of funds among urban, 
                rural, and suburban areas;
                    (D) children whose education imposes a higher than 
                average cost per child; and
                    (E) such other factors as considered appropriate.
            (2) Hold harmless.--Subject to paragraph (3), no local 
        educational agency shall receive an award under this subsection 
        for any fiscal year in an amount that is less than the sum of 
        the following:
                    (A) The aggregate amount the local educational 
                agency received to carry out programs or activities for 
                fiscal year 2003 under the following provisions (as in 
                effect on the day preceding the date of the enactment 
                of this Act):
                            (i) Part F of title I of the Elementary and 
                        Secondary Education Act of 1965.
                            (ii) Part A of title II of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
                            (iii) Subpart 1 of part D of title II of 
                        the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
                        1965.
                            (iv) Part A of title V of the Elementary 
                        and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
                            (v) Subtitle B of title VII of the 
                        McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.
                    (B) For each of fiscal years 2004 through 2008, the 
                aggregate amount the local educational agency is 
                eligible to receive during the fiscal year pursuant to 
                all multiyear awards made prior to the date of 
                enactment of this Act under any program that is 
                repealed by section 8 and is not listed in subparagraph 
                (A).
            (3) Insufficient funds.--If the amount allocated to a State 
        to carry out this Act for any fiscal year is insufficient to 
        pay the full amounts that all local educational agencies in 
        such State are eligible to receive under paragraph (2) for such 
        year, the State shall ratably reduce such amounts for such 
        year.
    (b) Local Uses of Funds.--Funds made available under this section 
to a local educational agency shall be used for the following classroom 
services and activities:
            (1) Programs for the acquisition and use of instructional 
        and educational materials, including library services and 
        materials (including media materials), assessments, reference 
        materials, and other curricular materials which are tied to 
        high academic standards and which will be used to improve 
        student achievement and which are part of an overall education 
        reform program.
            (2) Professional development for instructional staff.
            (3) Programs to improve the higher order thinking skills of 
        disadvantaged elementary and secondary school students and to 
        prevent students from dropping out of school.
            (4) Efforts to lengthen the school day or the school year.
            (5) Programs to combat illiteracy in the student 
        population.
            (6) Programs to provide for the educational needs of gifted 
        and talented children.
            (7) Promising education reform projects that are tied to 
        State student content and performance standards.
            (8) Carrying out comprehensive school reform programs that 
        are based on reliable research.
            (9) Programs for homeless children and youth.
            (10) Programs that are built upon partnerships between 
        local educational agencies and institutions of higher 
        education, educational service agencies, libraries, businesses, 
        regional educational laboratories, or other educational 
        entities, for the purpose of providing educational services 
        consistent with this section.
            (11) The acquisition of books, materials and equipment, 
        payment of compensation of instructional staff, and 
        instructional activities that are necessary for the conduct of 
        programs in magnet schools.
            (12) Programs to promote academic achievement among women 
        and girls.
            (13) Programs to provide for the educational needs of 
        children with limited English proficiency or who are American 
        Indian, Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian.
            (14) Activities to provide the academic support, 
        enrichment, and motivation to enable all students to reach high 
        State standards.
            (15) Efforts to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio.
            (16) Projects and programs which assure the participation 
        in mainstream settings in arts and education programs of 
        individuals with disabilities.
            (17) Projects and programs to integrate arts education into 
        the regular elementary and secondary school curriculum.
            (18) Programs designed to educate students about the 
        history and principles of the Constitution of the United 
        States, including the Bill of Rights, and to foster civic 
        competence and responsibility.
            (19) Mathematics and science education instructional 
        materials.
            (20) Programs designed to improve the quality of student 
        writing and learning and the teaching of writing as a learning 
        process.
            (21) Technology related to the implementation of school-
        based reform programs, including professional development to 
        assist teachers and other school officials regarding how to 
        effectively use such equipment and software.
            (22) Computer software and hardware for instructional use.
            (23) Developing, adapting, or expanding existing and new 
        applications of technology.
            (24) Acquiring connectivity linkages, resources, and 
        services, including the acquisition of hardware and software, 
        for use by teachers, students, and school library media 
        personnel in the classroom or in school library media centers, 
        in order to improve student learning.
            (25) After-school programs designed to engage children in a 
        constructive manner and to promote their academic, 
        developmental, and personal growth.
            (26) Developing, constructing, acquiring, maintaining, 
        operating, and obtaining technical assistance in the use of 
        telecommunications audio and visual facilities and equipment 
        for use in the classroom.
            (27) Developing, acquiring, and obtaining technical 
        assistance in the use of educational and instructional video 
        programming for use in the classroom.
    (c) Parent Involvement.--Each local educational agency receiving 
assistance under this section shall involve parents and members of the 
public in planning for the use of funds provided under this section.

SEC. 5. PARTICIPATION OF CHILDREN ENROLLED IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS.

    Each local educational agency that receives funds under this Act 
shall provide for the participation of children enrolled in private 
schools, and their teachers or other educational personnel, in the 
activities and services assisted under this Act in the same manner as 
private school children, and their teachers or other educational 
personnel, participate in activities and services under the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) pursuant 
to sections 9501, 9502, 9503, and 9504 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7881, 
7882, 7883, and 7884).

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act--
            (1) the term ``local educational agency'' has the meaning 
        given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801);
            (2) the term ``educational service agency'' has the meaning 
        given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801);
            (3) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        Education; and
            (4) except as otherwise provided, the term ``State'' means 
        each of the several States of the United States, the District 
        of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American 
        Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and 
        the United States Virgin Islands.

SEC. 7. GENERAL PROVISIONS.

    (a) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed 
to authorize an officer or employee of the Federal Government to 
require, direct, or control a State, local educational agency, or 
school's specific instructional content of pupil performance standards 
and assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction as a condition 
of eligibility to receive funds under this Act.
    (b) State and Local Determinations.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall not issue any 
        regulation regarding the type of classroom activities or 
        services that may be assisted under this Act.
            (2) Instructional method and setting.--No local educational 
        agency shall be required to provide services under this Act 
        through a particular instructional method or in a particular 
        instructional setting in order to receive funding under this 
        Act.

SEC. 8. REPEALS.

    The following provisions are repealed:
            (1) Section 1503 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
        Act of 1965.
            (2) Part F of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965.
            (3) Part A of title II of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965.
            (4) Part B of title II of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965.
            (5) Part C of title II of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 165.
            (6) Part D of title II of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965.
            (7) Part D of title V of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965.
            (8) Subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 
        Assistance Act.

SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 
$4,383,333,000 for fiscal year 2004, $4,470,999,000 for fiscal year 
2005, $4,560,419,000 for fiscal year 2006, $4,651,628,000 for fiscal 
year 2007, and $4,744,660,000 for fiscal year 2008.
                                 <all>