[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2528 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2528

 To direct the Secretary of Education to award grants to States to pay 
  the Federal share of carrying out full-day prekindergarten programs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 21, 2015

   Mrs. Davis of California introduced the following bill; which was 
        referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To direct the Secretary of Education to award grants to States to pay 
  the Federal share of carrying out full-day prekindergarten programs.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Expanded Access to 
Real Learning for our Young Act'' or the ``EARLY Act''.

SEC. 2. UNIVERSAL PREKINDERGARTEN AND EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION GRANT 
              PROGRAM.

    (a) Program Authorization.--From amounts appropriated under 
subsection (g), the Secretary of Education is authorized to award 
grants, on a competitive basis, to States to pay the Federal share of 
carrying out full-day prekindergarten programs.
    (b) State Application.--To receive a grant under this Act, a State 
shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such 
manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.
    (c) Use of Funds.--A State that receives a grant under this Act 
shall use such grant funds to carry out a prekindergarten program that, 
at a minimum--
            (1) if practicable, is located at a public school in the 
        State or, if not practicable, is carried out by a private or 
        other community provider;
            (2) permits each 4-year-old child in the State to be 
        voluntarily enrolled by the child's parent in the 
        prekindergarten program, and which is made available at no cost 
        to families who make a combined income of up to 400 percent of 
        the poverty line;
            (3) is a full-day program that runs the length of the 
        regular school year;
            (4) maintains a maximum class size of 20 children, with at 
        least 1 prekindergarten teacher per classroom;
            (5) ensures that the ratio of children to prekindergarten 
        teachers and teacher aides does not exceed 10 to 1;
            (6) is taught by teachers who are paid a salary comparable 
        to teachers of kindergarten through grade 12 at public schools 
        in the State;
            (7) requires the State in which the program is located to 
        determinate a minimum level of parental engagement in their 
        child's program; and
            (8) meets any other criteria that the Secretary may 
        require.
    (d) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary 
shall give priority to States that will use the grants to carry out a 
prekindergarten program at a public school.
    (e) Federal Share.--The Federal share of a grant under this Act 
shall not exceed 75 percent of the costs of carrying out the activities 
described in subsection (c).
    (f) Supplement Not Supplant.--Grant funds received under this Act 
shall be used to supplement and not supplant other Federal early 
childhood education funds in the State.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this Act such sums as may be necessary for 
each of the fiscal years 2016 through 2020.
    (h) Definitions.--In this Act:
            (1) ESEA terms.--The terms ``elementary school'', 
        ``parent'', ``poverty line'', ``secondary school'', and 
        ``State'' have the meanings given the terms in section 9101 of 
        the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        9101).
            (2) Public school.--The term ``public school'' means a 
        public elementary school or public secondary school.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Education.
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