[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1968 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 1968

To allow States to let Federal funds for the education of disadvantaged 
  children follow low-income children to the accredited or otherwise 
     State-approved public school, private school, or supplemental 
               educational services program they attend.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 28, 2014

  Mr. Alexander (for himself, Mr. Coats, Mr. Cornyn, and Mr. Vitter) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
          Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To allow States to let Federal funds for the education of disadvantaged 
  children follow low-income children to the accredited or otherwise 
     State-approved public school, private school, or supplemental 
               educational services program they attend.

    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 ``Scholarships for Kids Act''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to improve the academic achievement of 
the disadvantaged by encouraging State efforts to expand the 
educational choices available to low-income students.

SEC. 3. SCHOLARSHIPS FOR KIDS PROGRAM.

    Subpart 2 of part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6331 et seq.) is amended by adding at 
the end the following:

``SEC. 1128. SCHOLARSHIPS FOR KIDS PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Eligible child.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `eligible child' means 
                a child residing in a participating State who--
                            ``(i) is not older than 21;
                            ``(ii) is entitled to a free public 
                        education through grade 12; and
                            ``(iii)(I) is from a family with an income 
                        below the poverty level on the basis of the 
                        most recent satisfactory data published by the 
                        Department of Commerce; or
                            ``(II) is a child described in subparagraph 
                        (B).
                    ``(B) Exception for continuing eligibility.--A 
                participating State may elect to serve a child as an 
                eligible child under an approved program under this 
                section if--
                            ``(i) such child was an eligible child 
                        described in subparagraph (A) during the 
                        previous fiscal year;
                            ``(ii) such child is from a family with an 
                        income that is not greater than 200 percent of 
                        the poverty level on the basis of the most 
                        recent satisfactory data published by the 
                        Department of Commerce for the preceding year; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) the State educational agency has 
                        determined that the child qualifies for 
                        continuing eligibility, as defined by the 
                        participating State in its declaration of 
                        intent under subsection (d).
                    ``(C) Criteria of poverty.--In determining if a 
                family has an income below the poverty level for 
                purposes of this section, a State shall use the poverty 
                threshold, for the most recently completed calendar 
                year, most recently published by the Bureau of the 
                Census.
            ``(2) Participating state.--The term `participating State' 
        means a State whose declaration of intent to exercise the State 
        option for a Scholarships for Kids program is approved by the 
        Secretary as described in subsection (d).
            ``(3) State.--The term `State' means each of the several 
        States of the United States, the District of Columbia, and the 
        Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
            ``(4) Supplemental educational services program.--The term 
        `supplemental educational services program' means a program 
        providing supplemental educational services, as defined in 
        section 1116(e)(12).
    ``(b) Scholarships for Kids Program Authorized.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law and to the extent permitted under State law, a 
        participating State may use the funds made available under this 
        subpart to carry out a Scholarships for Kids program in 
        accordance with subsection (c).
            ``(2) Inapplicability of other requirements.--
        Notwithstanding any other provision of this part or any other 
        law, a participating State carrying out a Scholarships for Kids 
        program that meets the requirements of this section, and the 
        local educational agencies in such State, shall not be required 
        to meet any other requirements under this Act or any other law, 
        except as provided in paragraph (3), in order to receive the 
        State's funds under this subpart.
            ``(3) Academic standards, academic assessments, and 
        reporting on performance disaggregated by student subgroup.--A 
        participating State carrying out a Scholarships for Kids 
        program that meets the requirements of this section, and the 
        local educational agencies within such State, shall comply with 
        paragraphs (1), (3), (6), and (7) of subsection (b), and 
        subsection (h), of section 1111, and with the requirements of 
        subpart 2 of part E of title IX (except for section 9521).
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--
            ``(1) Student grants.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Each participating State shall 
                use the funds made available under section 1122 and not 
                reserved under paragraph (2) or (3) to carry out a 
                Scholarships for Kids program, under which the State 
                shall--
                            ``(i) establish a per-pupil amount for the 
                        grants under this section, based on the number 
                        of eligible children in the State, as described 
                        in subparagraph (B); and
                            ``(ii) make a grant available on behalf of 
                        each eligible child, in the amount determined 
                        under such subparagraph, that the parents of 
                        the eligible child may use for any of the 
                        following purposes, as allowed by State law:
                                    ``(I) To supplement the budget of 
                                any public school the eligible child is 
                                able to attend without fees.
                                    ``(II) To pay for all, or a 
                                portion, of any fees required to attend 
                                another public school in the 
                                participating State.
                                    ``(III) To pay for all, or a 
                                portion, of the tuition and fees 
                                required to attend an accredited or 
                                otherwise State-approved private 
                                school.
                                    ``(IV) To pay for all, or a 
                                portion, of the fees required to 
                                participate in a State-approved 
                                supplemental educational services 
                                program.
                    ``(B) Calculation of grant amounts.--Each 
                participating State shall calculate the amount of the 
                grant to be awarded to each eligible child for each 
                fiscal year by dividing the allocation to the 
                participating State under this subpart remaining after 
                the participating State reserves any funds under 
                paragraph (2) or (3), by the total number of eligible 
                children, as determined by the participating State.
            ``(2) Administrative expenses.--A participating State may 
        reserve not more than 3 percent of its allocation under section 
        1122 for administrative costs associated with carrying out the 
        participating State's duties and functions under this section, 
        including--
                    ``(A) certifying the eligibility of children living 
                in the participating State;
                    ``(B) disseminating information to parents of 
                eligible children about public schools, private 
                schools, and programs of supplemental educational 
                services that are available to eligible children in the 
                participating State;
                    ``(C) paying the costs of administering any tests 
                required to be administered to eligible children 
                participating in the program; and
                    ``(D) providing subgrants to local educational 
                agencies in the participating State for any of these 
                purposes.
            ``(3) Transportation for eligible children.--A 
        participating State may reserve not more than 2 percent of its 
        allocation under section 1122 to provide transportation for 
        eligible children to the public school, private school, or 
        supplemental educational services program the eligible children 
        attend in accordance with paragraph (1)(A)(ii).
    ``(d) State Declaration of Intent.--
            ``(1) In general.--In order to carry out a Scholarships for 
        Kids program under this section, a State educational agency 
        shall submit a declaration of intent to exercise the State 
        option for a Scholarships for Kids program to the Secretary 
        that satisfies the requirements of this subsection.
            ``(2) Contents.--Each declaration of intent submitted under 
        paragraph (1) shall provide the following:
                    ``(A) A description of the program to be 
                administered under this section, including the per-
                student amount calculated under subsection (c)(1)(B) 
                that will follow each eligible child to the school or 
                supplemental educational services program the eligible 
                child attends.
                    ``(B) An assurance that funds made available under 
                this section will be spent in accordance with the 
                requirements of this section.
                    ``(C)(i) An assurance that the State will provide a 
                parent of each eligible child within the State who 
                receives or is offered a grant under this section with 
                the option to use grant funds for 1 (or more than 1 if 
                the parent so chooses) of any of the following, as 
                allowed by State law:
                            ``(I) To supplement the budget of any 
                        public school the eligible child is able to 
                        attend without fees.
                            ``(II) To pay for all, or a portion, of any 
                        fees required to attend another public school 
                        in the participating State.
                            ``(III) To pay for all, or a portion, of 
                        the tuition and fees to attend an accredited or 
                        otherwise State-approved private school.
                            ``(IV) To pay for all, or a portion, of the 
                        fees required to participate in a supplemental 
                        educational services program.
                    ``(ii) A description of the procedures the State 
                will implement to carry out the requirements of clause 
                (i), including any accreditation or other method by 
                which the State will approve private schools and 
                providers of supplemental educational services programs 
                to accept grant funds under this section.
                    ``(D) An assurance that the State will publish, in 
                a widely read or distributed medium, an annual report 
                that contains--
                            ``(i) the number of students, schools, and 
                        providers of programs of supplemental 
                        educational services that participated in the 
                        program assisted under this section;
                            ``(ii) information regarding the academic 
                        progress of students receiving a grant under 
                        this section in meeting challenging State 
                        student academic achievement standards under 
                        section 1111(b)(1), if the State requires that 
                        students receiving a grant participate in the 
                        academic assessments administered under section 
                        1111(b)(3); and
                            ``(iii) such other information as the State 
                        may require.
                    ``(E) A description of how the State will define 
                continuing eligibility with respect to children who 
                have participated in the State's Scholarships for Kids 
                program for the preceding year, in accordance with 
                subsection (a)(1)(B).
                    ``(F) An assurance that the State will assist each 
                local educational agency, public school, and 
                participating private school affected by the State 
                declaration of intent to meet the requirements of this 
                section.
                    ``(G) An assurance that the State will use Federal 
                funds awarded as grants to eligible children under this 
                section to supplement any funds from non-Federal 
                sources that would, in the absence of such Federal 
                funds, be made available to such students or to the 
                schools or programs of supplemental educational 
                services the students attend, and not to supplant such 
                funds.
                    ``(H) An assurance that the State will comply with 
                the requirements of paragraphs (1), (3), (6), and (7) 
                of subsection (b), and subsection (h), of section 1111.
                    ``(I) An assurance that the State will participate 
                in biennial State academic assessments in grades 4 and 
                8 in reading and mathematics under the National 
                Assessment of Educational Progress carried out under 
                section 303(b)(3) of the National Assessment of 
                Educational Progress Authorization Act if the Secretary 
                pays the costs of administering such assessments.
            ``(3) Review and approval by the secretary.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) establish a process to review the 
                        declarations of intent received from States 
                        under this subsection; and
                            ``(ii) by not later than 30 days after the 
                        submission of a State declaration of intent, 
                        approve the State declaration or, if the 
                        Secretary clearly demonstrates that the State 
                        declaration of intent does not meet the 
                        requirements of this subsection, carry out the 
                        requirements of paragraph (4).
                    ``(B) Standard and nature of review.--The Secretary 
                shall conduct a good faith review of State declarations 
                of intent in their totality and in deference to State 
                and local judgments, with the goal of promoting 
                parental choice.
            ``(4) State declaration of intent determination, 
        demonstration, and revision.--If the Secretary determines that 
        a State declaration of intent does not meet the requirements of 
        this subsection, the Secretary shall, prior to disapproving the 
        declaration of intent--
                    ``(A) immediately notify the State of the 
                determination;
                    ``(B) provide to the State a detailed description 
                of the specific requirements of this subsection that 
                the Secretary determined were not met in the 
                declaration of intent;
                    ``(C) offer the State an opportunity to revise and 
                resubmit its declaration of intent within 30 days of 
                the determination;
                    ``(D) provide technical assistance, upon request of 
                the State, in order to assist the State in meeting the 
                requirements of this subsection; and
                    ``(E) provide an opportunity for a public hearing 
                not later than 30 days after receiving from the State a 
                revised declaration of intent, with public notice 
                provided not less than 15 days before the hearing.
            ``(5) State declaration of intent disapproval.--The 
        Secretary shall have the authority to disapprove a State 
        declaration of intent if--
                    ``(A) the State has been notified and offered an 
                opportunity to revise and resubmit the declaration of 
                intent with technical assistance, in accordance with 
                paragraph (4); and
                    ``(B)(i) the State does not submit a revised 
                declaration of intent; or
                    ``(ii) the State submits a revised declaration of 
                intent that the Secretary determines, after an 
                opportunity for a hearing conducted in accordance with 
                paragraph (4)(E), does not meet the requirements of 
                this subsection.
            ``(6) Recognition by operation of law.--If the Secretary 
        fails to take action on a declaration of intent submitted by a 
        State within the time specified in paragraph (3)(A)(ii), the 
        declaration of intent, as submitted, shall be deemed to be 
        approved.
            ``(7) Limitations.--The Secretary shall not have the 
        authority to require a State, as a condition of approval of the 
        State declaration of intent under this subsection, to--
                    ``(A) submit any standards for academic content or 
                student academic achievement for review or approval;
                    ``(B) enter into a voluntary partnership with 
                another State to develop and implement academic 
                assessments, State academic content standards, and 
                accountability systems;
                    ``(C) include in, or delete from, such a 
                declaration of intent any criterion that specifies, 
                describes, or prescribes any standard or measure that 
                the State uses to establish, implement, or improve--
                            ``(i) State standards;
                            ``(ii) assessments;
                            ``(iii) State accountability systems;
                            ``(iv) systems that measure student growth;
                            ``(v) measures of other academic 
                        indicators; or
                            ``(vi) teacher and principal evaluation 
                        systems; or
                    ``(D) require the collection, publication, or 
                transmission to the Department of individual student 
                data that is not expressly required to be collected 
                under this Act.
    ``(e) Accountability for Academic Progress.--A participating State 
may require each eligible child receiving a grant under this section to 
take academic assessments implemented by the State educational agency 
under section 1111(b)(3) or an alternative assessment approved by the 
State educational agency of the participating State, if the 
participating State pays any costs associated with administering the 
assessment.
    ``(f) Nondiscrimination and Other Requirements for Schools and 
Providers of Supplemental Educational Services Programs.--
            ``(1) Nondiscrimination.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (B), a school or provider of a 
                supplemental educational services program that 
                participates in a program under this section by 
                accepting grant funds under this section on behalf of 
                an eligible child under this section shall agree to not 
                discriminate against program participants or applicants 
                on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, 
                or sex.
                    ``(B) Exceptions.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Notwithstanding any 
                        other provision of law, the prohibition of sex 
                        discrimination in subparagraph (A) shall not 
                        apply to a participating school that is 
                        operated by, supervised by, controlled by, or 
                        connected to a religious organization to the 
                        extent that the application of subparagraph (A) 
                        is inconsistent with the religious tenets or 
                        beliefs of the school.
                            ``(ii) Single-sex school, class, or 
                        activity.--Notwithstanding subparagraph (A) or 
                        any other provision of law, a parent may 
                        choose, and a school may offer, a single-sex 
                        school, class, or activity.
                    ``(C) Applicability.--Section 909 of the Education 
                Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1688) shall apply to this 
                section as if such section 909 were part of this 
                section.
            ``(2) Children with disabilities.--Nothing in this section 
        shall be construed to alter or modify the Individuals with 
        Disabilities Education Act.
            ``(3) Rules of conduct and other school policies.--A 
        participating school or provider of supplemental educational 
        services may require eligible children attending the school or 
        receiving the services, respectively, to abide by any rules of 
        conduct or other requirements applicable to all other students 
        served by the school or the provider of supplemental 
        educational services.
            ``(4) Religiously affiliated schools and providers of 
        supplemental educational services.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Notwithstanding any other 
                provision of law, a school or provider of supplemental 
                educational services participating in a program under 
                this section that is operated by, supervised by, 
                controlled by, or connected to, a religious 
                organization may exercise its right in matters of 
                employment consistent with title VII of the Civil 
                Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-1 et seq.), 
                including the exemptions in such title.
                    ``(B) Maintenance of purpose.--Notwithstanding any 
                other provision of law, funds made available under this 
                section to eligible students that are received by a 
                participating school or supplemental educational 
                services provider, as a result of their parents' 
                choice, shall not, consistent with the first amendment 
                of the Constitution of the United States--
                            ``(i) necessitate any change in the 
                        participating school's teaching mission;
                            ``(ii) require any participating school to 
                        remove religious art, icons, scriptures, or 
                        other symbols; or
                            ``(iii) preclude any participating school 
                        from retaining religious terms in its name, 
                        selecting its board members on a religious 
                        basis, or including religious references in its 
                        mission statements and other chartering or 
                        governing documents.
    ``(g) National Program Assessment.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the 
        Director of the Institute of Education Sciences, shall carry 
        out a national assessment of activities carried out with 
        Federal funds under this section in order--
                    ``(A) to determine the effectiveness of this 
                section in achieving the purposes of this section; and
                    ``(B) to provide timely information to the 
                President, Congress, the States, local educational 
                agencies, and the public on how to implement this 
                section more effectively, including recommendations for 
                legislative and administrative action that can achieve 
                the purposes of this section more effectively.
            ``(2) Scope of assessment.--The national assessment shall 
        assess activities supported under this section, including--
                    ``(A) the implementation of programs assisted under 
                this section by participating States and the impact of 
                such programs on improving the academic achievement of 
                low-income children to meet the challenging academic 
                content and student academic achievement standards 
                adopted by the participating States under section 
                1111(b)(1), based on the State academic assessments 
                adopted under section 1111(b)(3), to the extent 
                applicable;
                    ``(B) the types of programs and services in 
                participating States that have demonstrated the 
                greatest effectiveness in helping low-income students 
                reach the challenging academic content and student 
                academic achievement standards developed by the 
                participating States; and
                    ``(C) the effectiveness of States, local 
                educational agencies, schools, and other recipients of 
                assistance under this section in achieving the purposes 
                of this section, by--
                            ``(i) improving the academic achievement of 
                        low-income children and their performance on 
                        State assessments, where applicable, as 
                        compared with other children; and
                            ``(ii) improving the participation of 
                        parents of low-income children in the education 
                        of their children.
            ``(3) Sources of information and data collection.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In conducting the assessment 
                under this subsection, the Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) analyze existing data from States 
                        required for reports under this Act and the 
                        Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 
                        and summarize major findings from such reports; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) analyze data from the National 
                        Assessment of Educational Progress carried out 
                        under section 303(b)(2) of the National 
                        Assessment of Educational Progress 
                        Authorization Act.
                    ``(B) Special rule.--The information and data used 
                to prepare the assessment, as described in subparagraph 
                (A), shall be derived from existing State and local 
                reporting requirements and data sources. Nothing in 
                this paragraph shall be construed as authorizing, 
                requiring, or allowing any additional reporting 
                requirements, data elements, or information to be 
                reported to the Secretary not otherwise explicitly 
                authorized by any other Federal law.
            ``(4) Reports.--
                    ``(A) Interim report.--Not later than 3 years after 
                the date of enactment of the Scholarships for Kids Act, 
                the Secretary shall transmit to the President, the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House 
                of Representatives, and the Committee on Health, 
                Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, an 
                interim report on the national assessment conducted 
                under this subsection.
                    ``(B) Final report.--Not later than 5 years after 
                the date of enactment of the Scholarships for Kids Act, 
                the Secretary shall transmit to the President, the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House 
                of Representatives, and the Committee on Health, 
                Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a final 
                report on the national assessment conducted under this 
                subsection.
    ``(h) Prohibition Against Federal Mandates, Direction, or 
Control.--Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize 
the Secretary or any other officer or employee of the Federal 
Government to mandate, direct, control, or exercise any direction or 
supervision over the instructional content or materials, curriculum, 
program of instruction, academic content and student academic 
achievement standards, or academic assessments of a State, local 
educational agency, elementary school or secondary school, or provider 
of supplemental educational services.''.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 1002 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 6302) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 1002. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    ``For the purpose of carrying out part A, there are authorized to 
be appropriated $23,955,840,000 for fiscal year 2015 and each of the 5 
succeeding fiscal years.''.

SEC. 5. PROGRAM CONSOLIDATION.

    (a) Consolidation of Certain Federal Education Programs.--The 
following provisions are repealed:
            (1) Section 1003 and parts B, C, D, E, F, G, and H of title 
        I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 6301 et seq.).
            (2) Titles II, III, IV, V, VI, and VII of the Elementary 
        and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6601 et seq., 
        6801 et seq., 7101 et seq., 7301 et seq., 7401 et seq.).
            (3) Clauses (iii) and (iv) of section 105(f)(1)(B) of the 
        Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003 (48 U.S.C. 
        1921d(f)(1)(B)(iii) and (iv)).
            (4) The Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act 
        of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.).
            (5) Subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 
        Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.).
            (6) The Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 (20 
        U.S.C. 9601 et seq.).
            (7) Part A of title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
        (20 U.S.C. 1022 et seq.).
            (8) Sections 402B and 402C of the Higher Education Act of 
        1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a-12, 1070a-13).
            (9) Section 410 of the Agricultural Research Extension, and 
        Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7630).
            (10) Section 1417(j) of the National Agricultural Research, 
        Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3152(j)).
            (11) Section 4101 of the Patient Protection and Affordable 
        Care Act (42 U.S.C. 280h-4 note).
            (12) Section 9 of the National Science Foundation 
        Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n).
            (13) Section 399Z-1 of the Public Health Service Act (42 
        U.S.C. 280h-5).
            (14) Sections 14005, 14006, and 14007 of the American 
        Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5; 123 
        Stat. 282).
    (b) Effective Date.--Subsection (a) shall take effect on October 1, 
2015.
    (c) Additional Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) In general.--After consultation with the appropriate 
        committees of Congress and the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget, each applicable Secretary shall prepare 
        recommended legislation containing technical and conforming 
        amendments to reflect the changes made by this Act.
            (2) Submission to congress.--Not later than 6 months after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, each applicable Secretary 
        shall submit the recommended legislation referred to under 
        paragraph (1) to the appropriate committees of Congress.
            (3) Definition of applicable secretary.--For purposes of 
        this section, the term ``applicable Secretary'' means a 
        Secretary with authority over a program or provision of law 
        described in subsection (a).
                                 <all>