[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1169 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1169

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to clarify 
                  Federal requirements under such Act.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 16, 2007

Ms. McCollum of Minnesota (for herself, Mr. Ellison, Mr. Gene Green of 
   Texas, and Mr. Oberstar) introduced the following bill; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to clarify 
                  Federal requirements under such Act.

    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 shall be cited as the ``Student Achievement and Successful 
Schools Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) Access to a high quality public education for all 
        children is essential to a fully functioning democracy.
            (2) Primary responsibility for the operation, quality, and 
        governance of the public schools of the United States lies with 
        State and local governments.
            (3) Bipartisan reviews of the No Child Left Behind Act of 
        2001 (Public Law 107-110; 115 Stat. 1425) have suggested that 
        granting States flexibility to meet the goals of the law will 
        result in better student successes, more accountability, a 
        stronger democracy, and a more robust economy.
            (4) More than 30 States are considering legislation 
        requesting the Federal Government to provide waivers or other 
        means of flexibility, calling for additional money to cover 
        mandates required under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 
        prohibiting a State from spending State funds to comply with 
        such mandates, or requiring that a State will comply only in 
        areas fully funded by the Federal Government, or fully opting-
        out of the mandates required under the No Child Left Behind Act 
        of 2001.
            (5) States have been financially penalized, amounting to a 
        total of nearly $1,300,000, for not meeting the Federal 
        requirements. These fines are in addition to education cuts 
        sustained at the Federal, State, and local levels.
            (6) School districts across the country have rejected or 
        reallocated funding under part A of title I of the Elementary 
        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) to 
        avoid costly sanctions associated with failing to make adequate 
        yearly progress under such Act.
            (7) States, school districts, education advocacy groups, 
        and schools have filed lawsuits in response to the No Child 
        Left Behind Act of 2001, including lawsuits filed by school 
        districts in Michigan, Vermont, Texas, California, and 
        Connecticut, the National Education Association, and the 
        California League of United Latin American Citizens. Several 
        States, school districts, education advocacy groups, and 
        schools are considering joining in or filing their own 
        litigation and have questioned the constitutionality of the No 
        Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
            (8) The Department of Education has recognized the flaws in 
        the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and has issued several 
        changes to the regulations promulgated pursuant to such Act.
            (9) Since being signed into law, schools have been 
        consistently underfunded from what was promised by Congress in 
        the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
            (10) All children should have the opportunity to succeed 
        with a high quality, public education.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) full funding should be provided to schools to allow 
        them to satisfy Federal mandates required under the No Child 
        Left Behind Act of 2001; and
            (2) States and school districts should have the necessary 
        flexibility in implementing the No Child Left Behind Act of 
        2001 to ensure that all students are successful and achieve all 
        of the goals of the law.

SEC. 4. ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS.

    (a) In General.--Subpart 1 of part A of title I of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) is 
amended--
            (1) in section 1111(b)(2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (C), by striking ```Adequate 
                yearly progress''' and inserting ``Except as provided 
                in subparagraph (N), `adequate yearly progress''';
                    (B) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``12 years'' 
                and inserting ``16 years'';
                    (C) in subparagraph (I)--
                            (i) by striking ``subparagraph (C)(v) must 
                        meet or exceed the objectives'' and inserting 
                        ``subparagraph (C)(v), subject to subparagraph 
                        (M), must meet or exceed the objectives''; and
                            (ii) by striking ``subparagraph (C)(v) does 
                        not meet those objectives'' and inserting 
                        ``subparagraph (C)(v), subject to subparagraph 
                        (M), does not meet those objectives'';
                    (D) by adding after subparagraph (K) the following 
                new subparagraphs:
                    ``(L) Special rule.--A State may allow the 
                exclusion of one or more students from the calculation 
                used to determine whether a school makes adequate 
                yearly progress under this paragraph based on special 
                circumstances identified by the Secretary affecting 
                individual students, including--
                            ``(i) emergency medical conditions;
                            ``(ii) exceptional or uncontrollable 
                        circumstances, such as a natural disaster or an 
                        incident of school violence; or
                            ``(iii) an unusual pattern of attendance as 
                        determined by the State educational agency, 
                        provided that the local educational agency in 
                        which the student is enrolled is implementing a 
                        plan to increase participation in the 
                        assessments described in paragraph (3).
                    ``(M) Single count of students.--In meeting the 
                definition of adequate yearly progress under 
                subparagraph (C), a State may allow students counted in 
                two or more groups described in subparagraph (C)(v)(II) 
                to be counted as an equal fraction of one for each such 
                group.
                    ``(N) Other measures of adequate yearly progress.--
                Notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph, 
                a State may establish an alternative definition of 
                adequate yearly progress, subject to approval by the 
                Secretary under subsection (e) (except that such 
                approval shall not apply as such definition applies to 
                students with disabilities and limited English 
                proficient students). Nothing in this subparagraph 
                shall be construed as requiring a State that 
                establishes an approved alternative definition of 
                adequate yearly progress under this subparagraph to 
                satisfy the requirements of adequate yearly progress 
                defined in subparagraph (C). Such alternative 
                definition may--
                            ``(i) include measures of student 
                        achievement over a period of time (such as a 
                        value added accountability system) or the 
                        progress of some or all of the groups of 
                        students described in subparagraph (C)(v) to 
                        the next higher level of achievement described 
                        under subclauses (II) and (III) of paragraph 
                        (1)(D)(ii) as a factor in determining whether a 
                        school, local educational agency, or State has 
                        made adequate yearly progress, as described in 
                        this paragraph; or
                            ``(ii) use the measures of performance and 
                        progress described in subparagraph (A) as the 
                        sole basis for determining whether the State, 
                        its local educational agencies, or schools have 
                        met adequate yearly progress, provided--
                                    ``(I) the primary goal of such 
                                definition is that all students in each 
                                group described in subparagraph (C)(v) 
                                meet or exceed the proficient level of 
                                academic achievement, established by 
                                the State, not later than 16 years 
                                after the end of the 2001-2002 school 
                                year; and
                                    ``(II) such definition includes 
                                intermediate goals, as required under 
                                subparagraph (H).''; and
            (2) in section 1116(c)(10)--
                    (A) by amending subparagraph (B)(ii) to read as 
                follows:
                            ``(ii) shall take corrective action with 
                        respect to a local educational agency--
                                    ``(I) that fails to make adequate 
                                yearly progress, as defined by the 
                                State, in the same subject and averaged 
                                across all grades and in at least one 
                                grade span (as determined by the State) 
                                for a group described in section 
                                1111(b)(2)(C)(v) by the end of the 
                                second full school year after the 
                                identification of such agency under 
                                paragraph (3); and
                                    ``(II) whose total number of 
                                students (who are members of a group 
                                described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)) 
                                who did not meet or exceed the 
                                proficient level of academic 
                                achievement exceed 35 percent of all 
                                students enrolled in a school in such 
                                agency who took the assessment in such 
                                subject and averaged across all grades; 
                                and''; and
                    (B) by amending subparagraph (F) to read as 
                follows:
                    ``(F) Delay.--Notwithstanding subparagraph (B)(ii), 
                a State educational agency may delay, for a period not 
                to exceed 1 year, implementation of corrective action 
                under this paragraph if the local educational agency 
                makes adequate yearly progress for 1 year or its 
                failure to make adequate yearly progress is due to--
                            ``(i) exceptional or uncontrollable 
                        circumstances, such as a natural disaster;
                            ``(ii) a precipitous and unforeseen decline 
                        in the financial resources of the local 
                        educational agency; or
                            ``(iii) a sudden or significant increase in 
                        the number or percentage of students 
                        represented by any group described in section 
                        1111(b)(2)(C)(v).''.
    (b) Grants for Administrative Costs.--In addition to funds that are 
already available for this purpose, the Secretary of Education shall 
allocate Federal funds to pay for administrative costs associated with 
demonstrating achievement of adequate yearly progress in accordance 
with subsections (a) and (c).
    (c) Effective Dates.--
            (1) Amendments.--The amendments made by this section shall 
        take effect and apply as if they had been made by the No Child 
        Left Behind Act of 2001.
            (2) Regulations.--The Secretary of Education shall enforce 
        any regulations that the Secretary has promulgated on or after 
        the date of the enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act of 
        2001 as if such regulations had been promulgated on such date.

SEC. 5. MEASURING STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT THROUGH LONGITUDINAL GROWTH.

    (a) In General.--Section 1111(b) of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A)--
                            (i) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at 
                        the end;
                            (ii) in clause (iii), by striking the 
                        period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new clause:
                            ``(iv) include information relating to 
                        approved providers of supplemental educational 
                        services under section 1116(e).''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (C)--
                            (i) in clause (vi), by striking ``and'' at 
                        the end;
                            (ii) in clause (vii), by striking the 
                        period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new clause:
                            ``(viii) at the State's discretion, 
                        measures the progress of public elementary 
                        schools, secondary schools, and local 
                        educational agencies by tracking the progress 
                        of individual students or cohorts of students 
                        on a longitudinal basis in lieu of, or in 
                        addition to, comparing the proficiency of a 
                        class of students with the proficiency of 
                        earlier classes of students.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(11) Longitudinal progress of transferring students.--
                    ``(A) In general.--If a State chooses to measure 
                adequate yearly progress on a longitudinal basis in 
                accordance with paragraph (2)(C)(viii), the State may 
                exclude from such measurement of progress at a school 
                any student who transferred to that school at the 
                beginning of or during the school year involved.
                    ``(B) Students who frequently transfer.--The 
                Secretary by regulation--
                            ``(i) shall ensure that a State choosing to 
                        measure adequate yearly progress on a 
                        longitudinal basis has in effect a system for 
                        measuring the progress of students who 
                        frequently transfer among schools; and
                            ``(ii) in the case of a student who attends 
                        three or more schools in any five-year period, 
                        shall provide for the sharing of school 
                        records.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect and apply beginning with the first academic year that 
begins after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 6. SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL SERVICES.

    (a) In General.--Section 1116(e) of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316(e)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (4)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``(developed 
                through continuous consultation with local educational 
                agencies in the State)'' after ``objective criteria'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``; and'' at 
                the end;
                    (C) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at 
                the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (D) by adding after subparagraph (E) the following 
                new subparagraph:
                    ``(F) develop procedures by which a local 
                educational agency may--
                            ``(i) present complaints and documentation 
                        of such complaints to the State educational 
                        agency regarding the qualifications, operation, 
                        or evaluation of approved providers or of 
                        potential providers seeking such approval; and
                            ``(ii) demonstrate to the State educational 
                        agency that a provider should not be authorized 
                        to provide supplemental services, as described 
                        in this subsection, to any school or schools 
                        under the jurisdiction of such local 
                        educational agency.'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (12) as paragraph (13);
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (11) the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(12) Local educational agencies as providers.--Nothing in 
        this section shall be construed to prohibit a local educational 
        agency that has failed to make adequate yearly progress or is 
        in improvement, corrective action, or restructuring status 
        pursuant to subsection (c) from providing supplemental 
        services, solely due to such failure. In developing and 
        applying objective criteria under paragraph (4)(B) and 
        withdrawing approval for providers under paragraph (4)(D), a 
        State educational agency may not consider whether a local 
        educational agency made adequate yearly progress or its status 
        under subsection (c).''; and
            (4) in paragraph (13), as redesignated by paragraph (2) of 
        this subsection--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``who did not 
                meet or exceed the proficient level of academic 
                achievement in the yearly student academic assessments 
                required under section 1111 for the child's grade level 
                to meet the State's student academic achievement 
                standards'' before the semicolon; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (B)--
                            (i) in clause (ii), by striking ``and'' at 
                        the end;
                            (ii) by adding at the end the following new 
                        clause:
                            ``(iv) provides supplemental educational 
                        services by individuals who are highly 
                        qualified to the same extent and in the same 
                        manner as a teacher under section 9101(23) with 
                        respect to the student receiving such services; 
                        and''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect and apply beginning with the first academic year that 
begins after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 7. HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHERS.

    (a) Extension of Deadline To Satisfy Requirements.--Section 1119 of 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6319) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (d) by striking ``not later than 4 years 
        after the date of enactment'' and inserting ``not later than 
        the end of the 2006-2007 school year,''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(m) Deadlines for Teachers and Paraprofessionals To Be the 
Same.--
            ``(1) In general.--If the Secretary extends a deadline 
        specified in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall also extend all 
        other deadlines specified in paragraph (2) to the same extent.
            ``(2) Deadlines covered.--The deadlines referred to in 
        paragraph (1) are the following:
                    ``(A) The deadlines for teachers to be highly 
                qualified, as required by subsections (a)(2), 
                (a)(2)(A), and (a)(3).
                    ``(B) The deadline for paraprofessionals to be 
                highly qualified, as required by subsection (d).''.
    (b) High Objective Uniform State Standard of Evaluation.--Section 
9101(23)(C)(ii)(III) of such Act (20 U.S.C. 7801(23)(C)(ii)(III)) is 
amended by inserting ``including a streamlined process under which 
teachers of multiple subjects may demonstrate competency in each 
individual subject'' before the semicolon.
    (c) Grants for Paraprofessional Training.--In addition to funds 
that are already available for this purpose, the Secretary of Education 
shall allocate Federal funds to pay for paraprofessional training under 
subsections (c) and (d) of section 1119 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6319).

SEC. 8. PERFORMANCE BONUSES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Education shall make grants, in 
amounts determined appropriate by the Secretary, to eligible States to 
be used for non-administrative functions by schools that have closed 
achievement gaps by not less than ten percent between subgroups 
described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(C)(v)(II)), as 
demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Secretary.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary $50,000,000 to carry out this section.

SEC. 9. CONDITIONAL IMPLEMENTATION.

    (a) In General.--Section 1116 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsection:
    ``(i) Conditional Implementation.--Notwithstanding any other 
provision of this section, a State educational agency, local 
educational agency, or school, as applicable, may defer the 
requirements of subsections (b)(7) and (b)(8) and subsection (c)(7) and 
(c)(10) in any fiscal year in which the amount appropriated under 
section 1002(a) of this Act and section 611(i) of the Individuals with 
Disabilities Education Act (42 U.S.C. 1411(i)) does not equal or exceed 
the amount authorized under such section for such fiscal year. For 
purposes of determining the amounts referred to in the preceding 
sentence for fiscal year 2008 and subsequent fiscal years, the amount 
authorized to be appropriated under section 1002(a) of this Act in each 
such fiscal year shall be $2,500,000,000 more than the amount for the 
preceding fiscal year. Such determination shall only apply for the 
purposes of this subsection.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall take 
effect beginning with the first fiscal year beginning after the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 10. STUDY BY GAO.

    (a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
conduct a study to--
            (1) determine whether increases in Federal elementary and 
        secondary education funding since the date of the enactment of 
        the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110; 115 
        Stat. 1425) are sufficient to cover the costs of Federal 
        requirements mandated by that Act;
            (2) identify the costliest provisions of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.);
            (3) identify cuts to programs and activities made by 
        schools in order to implement requirements mandated by the No 
        Child Left Behind Act of 2001;
            (4) determine--
                    (A) the amount of Federal funds provided to 
                implement the requirements of the Elementary and 
                Secondary Education Act of 1965 disaggregated by the 
                percentages of such funds used to implement each such 
                requirement; and
                    (B) the percentage of State costs to implement such 
                requirements in each such area;
            (5) determine the cost of aligning elementary and secondary 
        curricula to comply with the requirements of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965;
            (6) determine the cost of calculating adequate yearly 
        progress; and
            (7) determine the costs of student assessments under the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 
shall submit to Congress a report containing the results of the study 
conducted under this section.
                                 <all>