[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2164 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2164

    To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to 
authorize local educational agencies in rural areas to obtain a limited 
  waiver of certain requirements relating to the employment of highly 
                          qualified teachers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 4, 2004

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to 
authorize local educational agencies in rural areas to obtain a limited 
  waiver of certain requirements relating to the employment of highly 
                          qualified teachers.

    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 ``Assisting America's Rural Schools 
Act''.

SEC. 2. RURAL WAIVER OF CERTAIN QUALIFICATIONS FOR TEACHERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 1119(a) of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6319(a)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
            ``(4) Availability of waiver for rural local educational 
        agencies.--
                    ``(A) New hires.--Upon application by a rural local 
                educational agency, the Secretary may grant the agency 
                the authority to defer, for a 1-year period beginning 
                on the date any teacher who is new to the profession 
                first begins employment with the agency as a middle or 
                secondary school teacher, the application to such 
                teacher of the requirement in section 9101(23)(B)(ii) 
                regarding demonstration of a high level of competency 
                in each of the academic subjects in which the teacher 
                teaches. During the deferral period, the teacher shall 
                be considered to have satisfied such requirement if the 
                teacher has demonstrated a high level of competency, in 
                accordance with such section, in 1 of the academic 
                subjects in which the teacher teaches.
                    ``(B) Existing employees.--Upon application by a 
                rural local educational agency, the Secretary may grant 
                the agency the authority to defer, for a 1-year period 
                beginning on the date any middle or secondary school 
                teacher who is not new to the profession first begins 
                teaching an academic subject that the teacher has not 
                previously taught, the application to such teacher of 
                the requirement in section 9101(23)(C)(ii) regarding 
                demonstration of competence in all of the academic 
                subjects in which the teacher teaches. During the 
                deferral period, the teacher shall be considered to 
                have satisfied such requirement if the teacher has 
                demonstrated competence, in accordance with such 
                section, in 1 of the academic subjects in which the 
                teacher teaches.
                    ``(C) Terms and conditions.--The Secretary may, in 
                the Secretary's discretion, establish such terms and 
                conditions on the authority granted to a rural local 
                educational agency under this paragraph as the 
                Secretary determines to be appropriate.
                    ``(D) Definition.--For purposes of this paragraph, 
                the term `rural local educational agency' means a local 
                educational agency with respect to which--
                            ``(i) each county in which a school served 
                        by the agency is located has a total population 
                        density of fewer than 10 persons per square 
                        mile; or
                            ``(ii) all schools served by the agency are 
                        designated with a school locale code of 7 or 8, 
                        as determined by the Secretary.''.
    (b) Regulations.--
            (1) Deadline.--The Secretary of Education shall promulgate 
        regulations to carry out the amendment made by subsection (a) 
        not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
        Act.
            (2) Application procedures.--The regulations promulgated 
        pursuant to paragraph (1) shall specify procedures to be used 
        by rural local educational agencies in submitting applications 
        under section 1119(a)(4) of the Elementary and Secondary 
        Education Act of 1965 (as added by subsection (a)).
            (3) Eligibility.--The regulations promulgated pursuant to 
        paragraph (1) shall specify the criteria the Secretary of 
        Education will use in--
                    (A) determining whether to grant a waiver under 
                subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 1119(a)(4) of the 
                Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (as 
                added by subsection (a)); and
                    (B) establishing terms and conditions under 
                subparagraph (C) of such section.
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