[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 35 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: March 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
{time} 1540
IMPROVING AMERICA'S SCHOOLS ACT OF 1994
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Lewis of Georgia). Pursuant to House
Resolution 366 and rule XXIII, the Chair declares the House in the
Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union for the further
consideration of the bill, H.R. 6.
{time} 1542
in the committee of the whole
Accordingly the House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole
House on the State of the Union for the further consideration of the
bill (H.R. 6) to extend for 6 years the authorizations of
appropriations for the programs under the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965, and for certain other purposes, with Mr. Darden,
chairman pro tempore, in the chair.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. When the Committee of the Whole rose on
Tuesday, March 22, 1994, the amendment offered by the gentleman from
California [Mr. Doolittle] had been disposed of, and title IX of the
proposed Elementary and Secondary Education Act was open for amendment
at any point.
Are there further amendments to this title?
amendment offered by mr. hancock
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
The Clerk read as follows:
Amendment offered by Mr. Hancock: --Page 762, after line 8,
insert the following:
SEC. 9506. PROHIBITION AGAINST FUNDS FOR HOMOSEXUAL SUPPORT.
``(A) Prohibition.--No local educational agency that
receives funds under this Act shall implement or carry out a
program or activity that has either the purpose or effect of
encouraging or supporting homosexual as a positive lifestyle
alternative.
``(b) Definition.--A program or activity, for purposes of
this section, includes the distribution of instructional
materials, instruction, counseling, or other services on
school grounds, or referral of a pupil to an organization
that affirms a homosexual lifestyle.
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, this amendment is very simple. It will
prohibit any local educational agency that receives funds under H.R. 6
from implementing or carrying out any program or activity which has
either the purpose or effect of promoting homosexuality as a positive
lifestyle alternative. I just want to make clear from the very
beginning this amendment is not an unfunded mandate. If anything, it is
the reverse of a mandate.
My amendment does not impose on schools any duty to undertake a new
program or activity. It creates no requirement for schools to denounce
homosexuality in the classroom or to undertake a curriculum of any kind
on the subject of homosexuality. Very importantly, it does not prevent
schools from conducting traditional hygiene or health classes. All of
these decisions are up to local elected school boards and parents,
which is the way it ought to be.
This amendment does not even impose any new requirements to make
reports or certifications to the Federal Government, which is different
from a lot of legislation we pass here in Congress. It creates no extra
expense or special burdens. We are saving money, which is really rare.
All I am attempting to do is prevent the use of taxpayers' dollars to
promote homosexuality. That is all.
Mr. Chairman, my amendment does restrict what schools can do with
Federal funds. It also restricts what they can do with their own
resources if they accept Federal dollars. This is necessary to prevent
the shell game we have seen with other grantees who commingle Federal
funds with other moneys. My amendment is the only way to protect
Federal taxpayers from that kind of nonsense and evasion.
Some Members may ask why this amendment is necessary at all. Many may
not be aware of what sort of prohomosexual propaganda is actually
infiltrating our public schools. Believe it or not, right now in
community after community, our children are being exposed to the
homosexual lifestyle as early as elementary school. That lifestyle is
presented in an approving manner and as a legitimate alternative
lifestyle. This clearly defies the values of the overwhelming majority
of parents and taxpayers throughout America.
There are a host of programs and groups, including project 10, since
named project 21, I think it is pronounced SIECUS, Sex Information and
Education Council of the United States, Mutual Caring, Mutual Sharing,
and others which teach young people homosexuality is normal, healthy,
and desirable.
Students must explore their sexual feelings through secret
counseling. They are referred to gay and lesbian community centers to
meet and interact with homosexual adults. Film strips, books, and other
materials graphically portray homosexual acts, acts which are not only
offensive but dangerous behavior which can expose one to AIDS and other
serious health risks. Some even have a buddy system to help match up
homosexual couples.
Of course, traditional teachings against homosexuality are
systematically ridiculed as ignorance and bigotry. Where is this? So
far, in Alaska, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Louisiana,
Massachusetts Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont,
Virginia, and elsewhere.
In New York City, even elementary schools are exposed to
prohomosexual propaganda, including two books entitled, ``Heather's two
Mommies,'' and ``Daddy's Roommate.'' This is a clear effort to target
our young people.
One homosexual activist, Mr. Michael Swift, made this clear in the
Boston Gay Community News, He said of the homosexual movement,
We shall sodomize your sons feeble emblems of your
masculinity. We shall seduce them in your schools, in your
dormitories, in your gymnasiums, in your locker rooms, in
your sports arenas, in your seminaries, in your youth groups,
in your army bunkhouses, wherever men are with men together.
Your sons shall become our minions and do our bidding. They
will be recast in our image.
While this is just one activist, his mindset is highly instructive. I
do not believe our children should be recast in his image, especially
with Federal dollars. I do not appreciate this sort of attempt to
recruit our children and grandchildren to this lifestyle.
Before Members vote, I urge them to survey the literature in front of
me. I apologize in advance to Members who might be offended. Yes, some
of it is graphic and offensive, but it is the same garbage being forced
on our children.
Do not vote on this amendment without looking at this material for
yourself. What this comes down to is whether or not Members think
voters back home in their districts really approve of their hard-earned
money being used to bombard their children with prohomosexual
propaganda that directly contradicts their values.
If you think your taxpayers back home have a problem with this, then
I ask for your support of this amendment.
{time} 1550
Amendment offered by Mrs. unsoeld to the Amendment Offered by Mr.
Hancock
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment to the amendment.
The Clerk read as follows:
Amendment offered by Mrs. Unsoeld to the amendment offered
by Mr. Hancock:
In subsection (a) of the first amendment made to page 762,
after ``agency'' strike ``that received funds under this
Act''.
After ``shall'' insert ``use funds made available under
this Act to''.
Add at the end of subsection (a) the following: No local
educational agency shall use funds under this Act to
distribute or to aid in the distribution by any organization
of obscene material to minors on school grounds.
Add at the end of the first amendment made to page 762,
after line 8, add the following:
``(c) No Federal Control of Curriculum.--Nothing in this
section shall be construed--
``(1) to authorize an officer or employee of the Federal
Government to mandate, direct, or control a State, local
educational agency, or schools' instructional content,
curriculum, and related activities;
``(2) to limit the application of the General Education
Provisions Act;
``(3) to require the distribution of scientifically or
medically false or inaccurate materials or to prohibit the
distribution of scientifically or medically true or accurate
materials;
``(4) to create any legally enforceable right.
``(d) Rule of Construction.--In carrying out the provisions
of this section, the Secretary shall not--
``(1) review any curricula or instructional materials;
``(2) promulgate regulations; or
``(3) take any administrative or legal action against a
State or local educational agency or school.
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, I ask my colleagues to support my
amendment to the Hancock amendment to H.R. 6.
The Hancock amendment once more would give the Federal Government
jurisdiction over curriculum decisions. What with all of the discussion
we have heard in this bill about no Federal mandates, it seems
absolutely crazy to even consider giving the Federal Government this
control.
My amendment clarifies that restrictions contained in the amendment
apply only to funds provided under the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act and that it does not apply to the use of local funds. The
amendment also clarifies that nothing in this section shall interfere
with the rights of local communities to select curriculum appropriate
to the needs of the children in their communities.
Decisions regarding curriculum choices are best left to local school
officials and local elected school board members.
Education has always been a local matter. To change that now because
of the gentleman from Missouri's, Mr. Hancock's obsession or fear over
prohomosexual propaganda is not only misplaced, it would be illegal.
The Hancock amendment violates a basic principle of the general
Education Provisions Act and the Department of Education Organization
Act that states that the Federal Government cannot exercise any
direction, supervision, or control over the curriculum or program of
instruction of any educational institution.
The amendment's definition of program or activity in the Hancock
amendment is so broad that classroom discussions, library acquisitions,
and even private conversations in counseling sessions would be subject
to censorship under the threat of loss of all Federal funding.
Furthermore, we have just in this body passed lobbyist reform
legislation. We have said in response to the American public there is
too much influence by lobbyists on the legislative process, and yet
outside this Chamber's doors material is being distributed to warn, is
this coercion or blackmail, to warn Members that a vote for the Unsoeld
amendment will be scored in voters' guides as a vote to promote
homosexuality. Never mind what the facts are. These people will use it
to score. Is that not undue influence by lobbying groups and in total
violation to what this body did a very short time ago by more than a
two-thirds vote?
The Hancock amendment would set an extremely dangerous precedent for
Federal mandating and policing of local education programs. I urge my
colleagues to keep local control of local moneys and local schools with
the folks back home who know best what is going on in their
communities, what the needs are in their schools, and not to impose the
Federal Government, big brother, into local schools.
I urge adoption of the Unsoeld amendment.
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to strike the last
word.
The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, the gentleman from Missouri [Mr.
Hancock] is recognized for 5 minutes.
There was no objection.
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, the Unsoeld amendment--or what I will
refer to as the ``Unsoeld double-loophole'' amendment--is a gutting
amendment, pure and simple.
It is a desperate attempt to undermine my amendment completely. A
vote for the Unsoeld double-loophole amendment is essentially a vote
against the Hancock amendment to H.R. 6.
Indeed, a vote for the Unsoeld double-loophole amendment is a vote
for allowing this kind of prohomosexual propaganda to continue unabated
in our Nation's public schools.
Allow me to explain.
The Unsoeld amendment contains not one, but two separate and very
clever loopholes which will allow any school in the country to use
local, State, and Federal funds to blatantly promote and advocate the
homosexual lifestyle to preschoolers, elementary school students,
junior high students, and high school students.
The first loophole in the Unsoeld double-loophole amendment is that
it restricts only the use of Federal funds.
In fact, the Unsoeld amendment explicitly affirms the right of
schools to use other public resources to bombard our children and
grandchildren with prohomosexual propaganda in the classroom.
This first loophole is a green light to local educational agencies to
play the shell game we have come to know so well, where Federal
grantees pour all the money in the same pot and somehow insist they
didn't use Federal funds. As a result, there is absolutely no
accountability regarding the use of Federal tax dollars.
The is loophole No. 1.
The second loophole in the Unsoeld double-loophole amendment is even
more insidious.
The Hancock amendment targets those programs which have the purpose
or effect of promoting the homosexual lifestyle. The Unsoeld double-
loophole amendment changes that.
The Unsoeld amendment only targets those programs which have the
purpose of promoting homosexual lifestyle.
Now, what does this mean? It means any school can simply misrepresent
the purpose of their program--much as the New York State Board of
Education did with this literature which is making the rounds of the
Chamber. They claimed it was AIDS education.
All of these programs are instituted under the guise of something
other than promoting the homosexual lifestyle. Whether they pass it off
as cultural sensitivity training, sex education, or AIDS awareness, the
campaign to promote homosexuality as healthy, normal and desirable will
continue.
In fact, the Unsoeld double-loophole amendment would allow schools to
use even Federal funds to promote the homosexual lifestyle--that's
right, even Federal funds. All the school has to do is misrepresent or
lie about the purpose of the program.
So you see, the Unsoeld double-loophole amendment covers every base
to make it nearly impossible to prevent public resources of any kind
from being used to bombard our children and grandchildren with graphic,
prohomosexual propaganda.
What about the mandate argument raised by Mrs. Unsoeld and other
opponents of this amendment? My colleagues this is nothing but a red
herring.
While I am gratified my liberal colleagues have suddenly gotten
religion on the subject of local autonomy and the need to restrain Big
Brother government, let's be honest about this so-called mandate issue.
H.R. 6 itself contains no less than 23 specific, new unfunded
mandates--not counting the amendments we have added to it on this
floor. I have a list of them right here, prepared by the Congressional
Research Service at the request of the Unfunded Mandates Caucus.
The mandate issue is no excuse to oppose the Hancock amendment. If
you vote against the Hancock amendment on that basis, you better be
prepared to vote against H.R. 6.
{time} 1600
But for the record, the Hancock amendment is not an unfunded mandate.
It does not impose any new expense or burden on schools or States as an
unfunded mandate would. Schools and States are not required to make any
additional reports or certifications to the Federal Government. They
are not required to implement any new program or activity as a normal
mandate would.
The Hancock amendment simply restricts schools which choose to accept
Federal funds under this act from pursuing one particular type of
activity, promoting a homosexual lifestyle.
Why not have such a restriction? We are not in the business of
writing blank checks here in the Congress. As Members of Congress we
have a fiduciary responsibility regarding the use of Federal tax
dollars whether by an agency or a grantee such as a local school, and
the only way to effectively prevent the use of Federal tax dollars to
promote the homosexual lifestyle is the Hancock amendment.
My friends, I do not think you are going to escape this issue. You
are going on record here; profamily groups across the country are
watching this vote, which I will agree with my colleague, the public is
going to know about this vote.
Ask yourself a basic question: Do the taxpayers of your district
really want their hard-earned tax dollars and our Nation's public
schools used to bombard their children with homosexual propaganda? Of
course not. They will not be patient with more double talk coming out
of the U.S. Congress.
The Unsoeld double loophole is no shield either.
I urge my colleagues, for the sake of what is right and decent, for
the sake of the children of this country, to oppose and defeat the
Unsoeld double-loophole amendment and support the Hancock amendment to
H.R. 6.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
Mr. Chairman, I yield to the gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs.
Unsoeld].
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.
My colleague on the other side of the aisle, sponsor of the
amendment, referred to unfunded mandates. That was not in any of my
statement.
I would like to suggest that if the Hancock amendment is intended to
get at some of the literature or material that the gentleman from
Missouri [Mr. Hancock] referred to, I would point out that the board of
education's chancellor in New York has repudiated the use of such
material, and it will be talked about by another Member on this side.
But I would point out to the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock]
that if his objective is to not have this kind of material in any way
distributed at some kind of school-sponsored program, he should read my
amendment, which states:
No local educational agency shall use funds under this act
to distribute or to aid in the distribution by any
organization of obscene material to minors on school grounds.
Now, I believe that that takes care of his issue.
I would also like the gentleman to read his own definition in his
amendment which says that a program or activity for purposes of this
section which should be prohibited includes the distribution of
instructional materials, instruction, counseling, or other services on
school grounds or referral.
So under your definition of what would be prohibited would be a
referral of a pupil to an organization that affirms or discusses a
homosexual lifestyle, even in the context of providing health care.
That kind of Big Brother dictatorship from the Federal Government to
local schools, to local communities, in my view, is not acceptable. It
is not the American way of doing things.
Local decisions should be made by local people where they know best
the problems and how to solve them.
I would submit that, rather than being a loophole, my amendment
probably accomplishes what the gentleman was intending in his own
amendment, and really he should support it.
Mr. EMERSON. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to engage the gentleman from Missouri [Mr.
Hancock] in a colloquy if he would agree.
Did I understand the gentleman in his opening remarks to say that
there is literature that has been and is being distributed in public
schools in this country that the Parliamentarian has determined is not
fit for the eyes of Congress?
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. EMERSON. I am happy to yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
Mr. HANCOCK. That is exactly right.
Mr. EMERSON. So this is another example of where we are willing to
exempt ourselves, as it were, from some laws and regulations, yet have
other entities in our population be exposed to them?
Mr. HANCOCK. If the gentleman will yield further for just a moment,
in fact, the Unsoeld double-loophole amendment was changed from the
time we started. We just got it in which she added the words that we
did not even know about, obscene material. I think we have a problem
with the definition of ``obscene.''
I am assuming that when I handed her this literature a few days ago
that she agrees this is obscene material. We also have a few books here
which I did not give her which are being used which you are welcome to
come over and look at, and so they have corrected or at least changed,
and we are getting into the problem of defining ``obscene materials'';
but these materials have been used and are being used in public
education in lots of areas in the United States.
Mr. EMERSON. I would like to make one further point: The gentlewoman
was critical of the fact that there are certain interest groups in this
country who are seeking to inform Congress and the American public
about their perspective on this issue, and they are going to tell
people who belong to their organization how Members vote on this issue.
I have always understood that citizen communication or interest-group
communication with Congress was protected under the first amendment,
and people had the right to make expressions. The gentlewoman acted in
such horror that there were people in the corridors out here who were
expressing a point of view.
Have you ever come through those doors when there was not someone out
there expressing a particular point of view?
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. EMERSON. I yield to the gentleman from New York.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, I just had a very simple question. Some
materials have been handed out around this Chamber that are on the desk
here that were allegedly distributed to schoolchildren. Now, aside from
the one incident in New York where the Gay Men's Health Crisis has said
that material meant for adults was by mistake left on a table outside a
high school conference, can you cite chapter and verse as to where this
has been distributed to children?
Mr. HANCOCK. If the gentleman will yield, we have lots of materials:
Staples High School, Westport, CT; California, Unified School District,
San Francisco; at Pehoa in Hawaii, a high school; the Rainbow
Curriculum, and that is in the New York public schools; New Hampshire
public schools; Fairfax County in Virginia, under family life
education. Yes, we can cite where this is being done.
Mr. EMERSON. Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, I yield briefly to the
gentleman from New York [Mr. Nadler].
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, very briefly, my information, first of all,
in New York, this material has never been distributed as part of the
Rainbow Coalition in the New York City public schools. I do not know
about the other high schools. But I do know that with the exception of
the one mistake where this was put out at a high school citywide
conference on a table, the authors say this has never been and never
was mean to be and was never distributed to any schools, because it is
meant for adults. I know that your reference to the New York City
public schools is plainly mistaken.
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. EMERSON. I am happy to yield to the gentlewoman from Washington.
Mrs. UNSOELD. I believe it is highly appropriate for people outside
the doors or anyplace to be expressing their view. What I take
exception to is the threat that a vote is about to be scored, and then
he list of the organizations for which that scoring has been done, and
I do not think that is appropriate.
Mr. EMERSON. If I may say to the gentlewoman, every day the AFL-CIO
and the Chamber of Commerce, the NAM and the NRA, and I am sure any
number of interest groups in this country rate our votes according to
their perspective, and I would suggest there is absolutely nothing
inappropriate about that. It is clearly a matter of expression
protected, I think not only by the first amendment, but under other
provisions of the Constitution, and about the rights of citizens.
Mrs. UNSOELD. But a threat prior to the vote is probably exactly the
kind of lobbyist influence to which the public objects and to which we
should try to rise above as a legislative body representing those
people.
Mr. EMERSON. I fail to understand how we can represent our
constituencies if they are not to communicate with us, and certain
organizations which their own membership.
Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
Mr. Chairman, I did not intend to speak on this amendment, but I sat
in my office and watched it, and I decided that somebody needs to come
over here and talk about kids.
The fastest growing number of kids in this country, or the fastest
growing number of people who are contracting AIDS are young people. It
is happening across the board. It does not make any difference whether
you are in a rich community or a poor community or people of color or
anything else, it is all over the country.
{time} 1610
In my State, when I was in the State legislature, I put in the first
education money, back in 1984, in order to make money available to the
education system, and in 1988 the State of Washington passed a law
requiring AIDS education in all the schools and appropriated $8 million
of their own money to do it. I find it extraordinarily ironical that
folks who are usually up on their feet telling us that the Federal
Government ought to stay out of their business and that the beltway
does not know everything, are suddenly going to leap in on school
districts and decide what ought to happen.
Now, I am not going to defend what happened in every school district
across this country, but I will defend the right of the 280-some school
districts in the State of Washington to be able to decide what is an
appropriate curriculum for their people. And I think for us to be
putting in language that decides for them, the language of Mrs.
Unsoeld's amendment--``No educational agency shall use funds under this
act to distribute or aid in the distribution by any organization of
obscene material''--is about as clear-cut as you need. And for us to
then decide what obscenity is and for us to get down into that kind of
stuff is simply the Federal Government taking away the right of local
school districts to decide how to educate their kids.
There may be a problem in some district in the United States, but for
us to legislate on the basis of what went on in some in 6 or 3 or 2
districts across the country is simply an invasion by the Federal
Government, in a way, on this issue, the most personal of private
behavior that we are trying to get kids to change and understand what
they are doing, is in my opinion absolutely the wrong way to go.
I expect that in Chewelah, WA they are going to educate their kids a
little bit differently than in Rolla, MO, or in Charleston, SC or in a
whole lot of other places. And I will trust the school board and I will
trust the community to make those kinds of educational decisions for
their people.
For us not to have our communities involved in educating their kids
is a serious mistake. And if something happens, they can correct that.
That is not damage beyond belief. But for us in any way to stand
between our school districts and telling their kids about how you
contract AIDS, what it is about and what happens and what the end
result of it is, simply not good policy.
Mrs. Unsoeld's amendment is sufficient in this regard, and I do not
think you need to be delving any further into telling them.
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. McDERMOTT. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
Mr. HANCOCK. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Chairman, I am assuming the gentleman is voting against H.R. 6
because of the 23 other mandates in H.R. 6. Is that correct?
Mr. McDERMOTT. The Federal Government puts out money to aid
education. We allow States to use it in a whole lot of ways, and I
think there are things in the cities that we have done to support that.
Mr. HANCOCK. But we do make mandates, you will assume.
Mr. McDERMOTT. Yes. but I am not going to tell them how to run the
program or what the actual educational material is going to be.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman from Washington yield to
me?
Mr. McDERMOTT. I yield to the gentleman from Michigan.
Mr. KILDEE. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Chairman, I want to tell the gentleman from Missouri he may think
they are Federal mandates, but, as the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr.
Gunderson] pointed out the other day, he made it very clear that there
are no Federal mandates in this bill. There are no Federal mandates in
this bill. There are 23 reporting requirements, and those reporting
requirements can be paid for with Federal dollars, not State or local
dollars, but Federal dollars.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
(Mr. GUNDERSON asked and was given permission to revise and extend
his remarks.)
Mr. GUNDERSON. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman from Missouri [Mr.
Hancock] yield for a colloquy? I tried to get the gentleman when he
introduced his amendment, and he had yielded back his time already.
I want to go through the same discussion with the gentleman from
Missouri, in good faith, that I went through with the gentleman from
California [Mr. Doolittle], yesterday.
First and foremost, what does the gentleman mean by program or
activity?
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GUNDERSON. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
Mr. HANCOCK. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Chairman, the program or activity is defined as an activity with
the purpose or effect of encouraging or supporting homosexuality as a
positive lifestyle. That, I think, is pretty explicit. I have no
objection----
Mr. GUNDERSON. Let me give the gentleman some examples. It is very
important that we understand what we are or are not doing here.
Will counseling in school between a certified school counselor and a
student on that student's struggle for personal identity be considered
a program or activity under the gentleman's amendment?
Mr. HANCOCK. Counseling them for the purpose of the counseling which
we have here of homosexuality as a positive, affirmative lifestyle,
yes, I think that would be prohibited.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Let me take that one further. There is a recent study
out, I think it was actually a study by the Department of Health and
Human Services under the Bush administration, a 1989 report of the
Secretary of Health and Human Services, a task force on youth suicide,
which found that ``homosexuals were 2 times to 7 times more likely than
heterosexuals to attempt suicide.''
Now, that happened under the Bush administration. What happens if a
kid is found in a lunchroom or a restroom attempting suicide and is
discovered and they take that to the high school counselor and the
counselor says, ``Let's talk,'' and the kid says, ``I think I am a
homosexual''? Can that counselor respond in a way that encourages that
person, to accept themselves as a person to accept themselves as a
human being? That will have the effect of, quote unquote, promoting
homosexuality?
Mr. HANCOCK. I believe, under those circumstances the gentleman
describes, the proper position for a school official would be to refer
that student to an individual with the credentials that the gentleman
from Washington [Mr. McDermott] has, to be counseled.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Would the gentleman say under his amendment no school
guidance counselor in America would be able to counsel a student, boy
or girl, who came to them and said, ``I am really struggling with who I
am''?
Mr. HANCOCK. I think they could counsel them. I question whether we
have very many people in public education who are qualified to counsel
on this particular subject. I do not know that that is a requirement
for teaching.
Mr. GUNDERSON. None of us wanted to get into teacher certification.
Mr. HANCOCK. But we can counsel, and the proper thing to do, if an
individual should recognize that they are not qualified to counsel in
this field, they should refer them to the proper qualified counsel.
Mr. HYDE. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GUNDERSON. I yield to the gentleman from Illinois.
Mr. HYDE. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Chairman, of course a young man who has an ambivalence ought to
be counseled. He needs attention, care. But what this amendment
proscribes is encouraging or supporting homosexual lifestyle, and that
is different from giving advice and counseling.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Here is the problem I have with the amendment: I do
not know about anybody else, but it has the effect of--if you drop the
words ``has the effect of'' from his amendment, then I think what the
gentleman from Illinois is suggesting is clearly palatable.
You see, where I am trying to get the gentleman, I hope there is not
a person in America who supports an academic course in our public or
private schools promoting homosexuality.
{time} 1620
I do not support that, but what I am trying to deal with is an
amendment that goes beyond what I think is that legitimate intention to
some very destructive effects. No. 1 is dealing with counseling. The
second one I want to get to is the issue of education.
I say to the gentleman, ``I mean your amendment says that any school
that receives funds under this act cannot use any funds that has the
effect of promoting homosexuality under any program or activity. I
would assume by that you mean then that AIDS education is no longer
allowed activity in any public school in America if your amendment
passes.''
The CHAIRMAN. The time of the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr.
Gunderson] has expired.
(By unanimous consent the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Gunderson]
was allowed to proceed for 5 additional minutes.)
Mr. GUNDERSON. Mr. Chairman, I ask the gentleman, ``Can you respond?
I'm just trying to find out. I think, as I tried to discuss with you
some time ago, I think a discussion can lead us to a consensus in this
amendment that gets where you want to go that doesn't have the negative
effect that I feel.''
Mr. HYDE. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GUNDERSON. I yield to the gentleman from Illinois.
Mr. HYDE. Mr. Chairman, I just again revert to the language of the
amendment offered by the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock]. It
says, ``* * * shall implement or carry out a program or activity that
has either the purpose,'' and I know the words that trouble the
gentleman, ``or effect of encouraging or supporting homosexuality as a
positive lifestyle alternative.''
I think that fits what the gentleman himself has said is not----
Mr. GUNDERSON. So the gentleman does not believe then that, if this
amendment is adopted, that AIDS education will in any way be limited?
Mr. HYDE. Not at all. I would hope it would not be, and I would hope
that young people struggling with their own identity could get
counseling under this amendment so long as the life style of
homosexuality is not encouraged, is not encouraged. That does not mean
it has to be misunderstood, or condemned, or judgmental, but just not
to promote, encourage, it as a positive lifestyle.
Mr. GUNDERSON. OK; question No. 3:
What's the enforcement effect of your amendment? I mean we discussed
this yesterday with the Doolittle amendment as well. Let's assume a
school is found to have violated your amendment. What's the penalty?
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GUNDERSON. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, since the question was brought up
yesterday we did a little research, and we found that the Department of
Education, when they receive applications for Federal funds from
schools, that the schools swear to uphold the laws under this--under
the----
Mr. GUNDERSON. Do they have to sign a report ahead of time proving
they are not doing a thing of this sort?
Mr. HANCOCK. That is correct, and they also have to uphold the rules
and regulations, the mandates, if you want to call it that, the other
23 of the Department of Education. So, those funds could be removed, if
in fact--if they did not abide by the law.
Mr. GUNDERSON. OK; let me further ask the gentleman another question,
and I regret this is taking a lot of time, but the Reagan AIDS
commission listed three recommendations regarding education on AIDS in
the school system. One of them required States' boards of education
should mandate that an HIV education curriculum be developed that is
student AIDS sensitive; a recommendation was that local school boards
should do the same thing, and the third recommendation was that school
boards and parents should develop a means to incorporate values
emphasizing personal responsibility. How would those recommendations of
the Reagan AIDS commission be affected by the gentleman's amendment?
Mr. HANCOCK. Were those recommendations made to promote--to encourage
and support homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle? I do not think
so.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Well, does it have the effect of--
Mr. HANCOCK. No, in fact I think it is just the other way around. I
think that AIDS education, properly presented for what it is, but not
the type of literature that is being used in our public schools now,
this document here--
Mr. GUNDERSON. OK. It is my time, and I am running out of time, and
the gentleman is getting off the subject. Answer a question: Would you
agree to a unanimous consent request to delete the words ``or has the
effect of''?
Mr. HANCOCK. No.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Why not?
Mr. HANCOCK. Because there again it is part of the Unsoeld--
Mr. GUNDERSON. This has got nothing to do with the Unsoeld amendment.
I am talking about the gentleman's amendment.
Mr. HANCOCK. The Unsoeld amendment does do the same thing the
gentleman is asking me to do, and, no, I would agree because that opens
up the door for them to say, ``Well, we didn't intend for this to be
this way. We didn't intend.'' It opens up the door for them to get
around it by misrepresentation--
Mr. GUNDERSON. All right; I reclaim my time because I think my
colleagues see the problem. No matter how good the intentions might be
verbally, the problem is, if we adopt the Hancock amendment by itself,
it has the effect of prohibiting school counseling and guidance, it has
the effect of prohibiting AIDS education.
Now I put myself second to none in, quote unquote, advocating
Christian values around here, and I am aware of the flyer that is here.
But I am going to plead with all my colleagues on this amendment to
have the courage of their convictions and to recognize that as of
January of this year 63,000 young people between the ages of 20 to 29,
and most medical people say that means every one of those 63,000 was
infected with AIDS while they were teenagers, and I ask my colleagues
simply: How many kids do we have to kill before we have the courage to
stand up and say it's time to educate them and to do what is right, not
what is politically popular at that moment?
Mr. FORD of Michigan. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite
number of words.
Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr.
Gunderson] for his words. He is stepping right up to the plate on this
issue. But there is something more important at stake here.
We are not entertaining the country by one series of amendments after
another that do not rise to the intellectual level of scatological
jokes exchanged by naughty little boys in the boys' room in a grade
school, and that is what this debate, and the debate that we have been
having on a lot of these other issues, has become.
I say to my colleagues, Now you want to talk about homosexuality; you
don't have guts enough to talk straight. Now I'm telling you to your
face to quit dancing around with it and say what it is that you don't
want to have happen. Your amendment is so poorly written that the case
in New York that you're complaining about isn't covered by the
amendment.
Mr. Chairman, the March 23 New York Times has a description of what
happened in that case. The Hancock amendment does not do anything.
I will tell my colleague something else: Maybe we are lucky that you
don't know any more about education legislation than you do. There is
no enforcement in your legislation. On the other hand, the gentlelady's
amendment to your amendment, which I don't like, does make an
enforceable prohibition. There is a way to enforce it.
My colleagues, go ahead and pass this, and I say, If you think that
scatological jokes in a boys' room raise the intellectual level of a
grade school any place in this country, or lower it, then you vote for
the Hancock amendment because it will have just as much impact on the
intellectual content of education in this country, and if you don't
like what they are doing in New York in their schools, why don't you
move to New York and run for the school board?
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
Mr. Chairman, I was going to yield to the gentleman from Florida [Mr.
Stearns] because he was ahead of me, but please hang on, Cliff, and
allow me to say this:
My wife just called, mother of five, grandmother of nine, and she
suggested I read some of the stuff from the pamphlets that they are
distributing to young children in elementary schools.
I said, ``I'm already going to have a meeting with the
Parliamentarian about something else. I can't read that filthy,
pornographic material on national television. I can't do that, Sally.
We have got a decorum in this Chamber, and it may be the last sane
place in this Nation 20 or 30 years from now when our moral standards
have culturally melted down to the standards of Sodom and Gomorrah.''
I say to my colleagues, ``Look, I was born in Manhattan, and I was
raised in Beverly Hills from 10 to 19, when I went in the Air Force,
and those two communities have a particular penchant for poisoning
little Dorothy's in Kansas, or Iowa, or other parts of this country.''
Now the last Republican----
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, I have a point of personal privilege.
Mr. Chairman, I ask the gentleman to withdraw his comment about the
State of New York or Manhattan, his comment about my district poisoning
the rest of the country.
Mr. DORNAN. Ridiculous. Teach him parliamentary procedure.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman cannot rise to a question of personal
privilege at this point.
{time} 1630
Mr. DORNAN. Now, the last gentleman----
Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Chairman, I think this conversation is out of order
and has no place here.
Mr. FORD of Michigan. Mr. Chairman, take down the gentleman's words.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Michigan demands the words to be
taken down.
Mr. DORNAN. Take them down. I will wait.
The CHAIRMAN. The Clerk will report the gentleman's words.
{time} 1640
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw my
words.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from
California?
There was no objection.
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, do I not control the time now?
Mr. FORD of Michigan. Mr. Chairman, I am sorry. I think the words
should be taken down, and he should be silenced in this Chamber.
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, the parliamentary ruling already occurred.
The CHAIRMAN. The Committee has already agreed by unanimous consent
to allow the gentleman to withdraw his words.
Mr. FORD of Michigan. Mr. Chairman, I am standing on my feet trying
to deal with the Members around me. I object to the unanimous-consent
request and insist that the gentleman's words be read and he be
silenced for the rest of this debate.
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, it is my time.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman's objection is untimely.
The gentleman from California [Mr. Dornan] may proceed in order.
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, when I look at this material on the desk,
as a grandfather and as a father who is very lucky to have five
children, it puts me in a fighting mood. This is material promoting and
encouraging what a majority of people in this country consider grievous
sin. There is a Federal role when our society is degenerating, when our
culture is literally melting down, when we live in a country where the
whole world points at us and refers to our child pornography, our
drive-by shootings, our gangs and carjackings, where people are pulled
out of cars by teenagers and beaten sometimes to death.
Our culture is melting down. This is one of the root causes, trying
to sell sodomy as a healthy lifestyle.
Not, I notice that the distinguished, wonderful gentlewoman from the
great State of Washington said that the gentleman from Missouri [Mr.
Hancock] was obsessed with this issue. The word ``homophobe'' never
appeared in that dictionary until a new edition was put in here 2 years
ago. In my first 15 years around here, there was no such word. Why is
it that people are insulted when we stand up here in disgust of the
moral degeneration of our country and want to defend traditional family
values? I am tired of this. I am tired of this kind of a debate where I
pick up a book not fit for the eyes of adults with its obscene language
and X-rated pictures and a cover designed for children.
I notice that the gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. Frank] is here.
Here they are claiming, as homosexual people in history, Alexander the
Great, Susan B. Anthony, where it says she probably had a sexual
relationship with her lifelong friend Anna Dickinson, St. Augustin, for
Lord's sake. It goes on, Lord Byron, Julius Caesar, Frederick the
Great, that follows one of the Members of this House. Anne Frank, the
little 13-year-old girl in that attic in Holland, what an obscenity. It
goes on and on. Of course, Langston Hughes, John Maynard Keynes. Then
they throw in some people out of themselves, Leonardo da Vinci,
Michelangelo, grab anybody, Eleanor Roosevelt, Richard the Lionhearted.
This is destructive to the educational system of our wonderful country.
I hope this vote is rated. I will go on national radio and speak about
why this vote is important and should be rated.
I think that one of the gentleman over there, the chairman, was
hurling insults at my friend from Missouri right and left, suggesting
he was ignorant on his amendment and did not know what he was doing.
That it was lousy written legislation.
I was tempted to take down his words. I am glad I did not.
As far as my words are taken down, I will take that up with the
gentleman that I referred to earlier, because he has criticized me in
his press.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that debate on the
Hancock amendment and the amendments pending thereto end in 10 minutes.
That would give both sides a way to conclude their arguments.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from
Michigan?
Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Chairman, I object.
The CHAIRMAN. Objection is heard.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
I rise in opposition to the amendment offered by the gentleman from
Missouri. When I was in high school, I was a member of the debating
team. The national debate topic one year was whether the Federal
Government should provide aid to education. The chief conservative
argument in all the debates against Federal aid to education was that
along with Federal aid would come Federal control.
The liberal reply was that one did not follow the other. The Federal
Government could restrain itself. The Congress could restrain itself
from attempting to control, from attempting to dictate to local school
districts.
Now look at this amendment. It would mandate a cutoff of all Federal
funds to any school district that uses certain instructional materials
of which some Members in this Chamber disapprove. Why should we attempt
to seize control of classrooms, across the Nation? Why should we
dictate the preferences of the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] to
the local school districts, which are a lot closer to local citizens
that we are?
Do we not believe in local control of education, or are we in favor
of local control only when local school officials agree with us and
with our prejudices? What a policy. What an amendment.
The purpose of this amendment allegedly is to discourage
proselytization of homosexuality.
The effect of this amendment is much different. It would leave our
teachers bound and gagged, afraid to speak of anything which might
cause offense to the most bigoted and ignorant in the local community.
This amendment turns our most fundamental values on their head.
In considering this amendment, we are faced with a number of choices.
Do we want to encourage the kind of behavior we saw in this House a few
minutes ago? Are we going to teach children tolerance, or are we going
to teach them to be intolerant toward those who may be different from
us? Are we going to teach our children that open debate and
understanding are worthy values in a free society, or are we going to
teach them censorship and ignorance? Because if we vote for the Hancock
amendment, we choose for our children censorship, ignorance, and
intolerance. This amendment would impose a Federal mandate on every
teacher in America to the effect that if the mere existence of gay men
and lesbian women is mentioned at all, it must be in a negative light.
Why should we impose a curriculum of hate on every classroom in every
community on this Nation? Who would judge just what curriculum
materials have the effect of encouraging homosexuality and by what
standards would they judge? How could local school districts know that
would violate this amendment and bring down upon them the draconian
penalty of a cutoff of all Federal funds?
And what about the AIDS education, education about safe sex? Are we
to prohibit it?
The fact is there are gay boys and lesbian girls in our schools. That
is a fact. Nothing that we say in this Chamber will alter that fact.
The question is how to relate to it. How to relate to the fact that
these boys and girls are at a greater risk of AIDS than most others in
our society. How to prevent them from contracting AIDS. How to teach
the facts about AIDS in a socially acceptable context.
These are questions that local school officials must wrestle with and
that we are telling them, ``Don't deal with, be careful with how you
deal with it, because we will cut off all your aid to education.''
It is misinformation, lack of understanding and intolerance that
leads to this amendment. This amendment would mandate either that no
mention ever be made in school of the existence of gay men and lesbians
except in the language of fear, ignorance, and hate.
Let us not decide today that this is what we want to teach our
children. Let us reject, let us reject this terrible amendment.
Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
I yield to the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock].
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, I would just like to say that if everybody
in the United States, every parent, every person in the United States
could see this literature, I think he would find that 98 percent of the
people would come into the category that the gentleman mentioned of
being bigoted and ignorant.
Frankly, I resent a little bit, the gentleman complained about his
State of New York, I resent a little bit the gentleman calling the
people in my district bigoted and ignorant, because they do not want
this in their schools.
Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Chairman, I would just like to tone down the debate
here and see that we talk about some of the facts. As any piece of
legislation, everybody reads it differently.
I am sure the gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld] has promoted
an amendment here that she believes honestly clarifies, I think might
be the word, the Hancock amendment. But let me read what she is saying
in her amendment.
She is adding this to the Hancock amendment. ``No local educational
agency shall use funds under this Act to distribute or to aid in the
distribution by any organization of obscene material to minors on
school grounds.''
I have here a book. It is called ``Daddy's Roommate.'' This is not
obscene literature.
Let me ask the gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld], ``Heather
has two mommies.'' One teenager in 10, and I would be glad to yield to
the gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld], if this is considered
literature that would be allowed under her amendment to be distributed?
{time} 1650
Mrs. UNSOELD. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. STEARNS. I yield to the gentlewoman from Washington.
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, that is a local school and locally
elected school board's decision, not the Federal Government's.
Mr. STEARNS. I understand what the gentlewoman is saying, but I think
that is the crux of this whole debate, what the gentleman from Missouri
[Mr. Hancock] is saying.
Mrs. UNSOELD. Keeping Big Brother out of the high schools.
Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Chairman, we have used that argument, and I have
heard it so many times. I understand why the gentlewoman is using it on
her side.
This is the crux of the question, shall we allow the distribution of
this material in our schools or not? The gentleman from Missouri [Mr.
Hancock] believes that we should not, and obviously, the literature
that he has cited over here, which is obscene, I think the gentlewoman
would agree, the other literature he mentioned which is on the table,
that many of us can hardly open, is obscene.
Under the gentlewoman's amendment, as I understand it, she is saying
that literature could not be distributed?
Mrs. UNSOELD. If the gentleman will continue to yield, under the
amendment of the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] that literature
would not be prohibited.
Mr. STEARNS. The gentlewoman is saying that literature could be
circulated?
Mrs. UNSOELD. I am saying, Mr. Chairman, that the way his amendment
is worded, it did not apply to that literature and its distribution.
Mr. STEARNS. In conclusion, let me just say I think we have a
fundamental difference between what the gentlewoman is trying to do and
what the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] is trying to do.
Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Hancock amendment to prevent
parents from being forced to subsidize the teaching of values that run
directly counter to those they strive to teach their children, and
against the Unsoeld amendment, which would attempt to distort the
intentions of what the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] is trying
to do.
He is simply trying to say, ``Let us not subsidize the distribution
of material,'' not only like what I have in my hand, but obviously some
of the material over there which is really destructive.
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. STEARNS. I yield to the gentleman from California.
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, I just want to correct this. One of the
gentleman on our side mentioned the HHS study. That was thrown out by
Dr. Louis Sullivan, the Secretary of HHS, as being wrongheaded and
bigoted, particularly bigoted against the Catholic Church, which the
report accused of causing teenage suicide, in fact.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. STEARNS. I do not have much time. As I get near the end, I would
be glad to yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Mr. Chairman, I would like to clear up the charge that
was just made.
Mr. STEARNS. The gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Gunderson] knows how
much I respect him, and I am glad to yield to the gentleman.
Mr. GUNDERSON. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the gentleman yielding.
Mr. Chairman, I just want to point out that just because the whole
study was rejected does not mean a particular statistic in that study
was rejected.
Mr. STEARNS. I appreciate the gentleman's comment.
In my way of thinking. Mr. Chairman, particularly across the United
States, what we see here in these books and what the gentleman from
Missouri [Mr. Hancock] has mentioned, the number of schools
distributing this, it is used in the public schools to promote an
agenda which is contrary to what many Americans believe. I could quote
at length examples of homosexual groups who want to provide details of
the gay lifestyle to our schools, but instead, I just want to
concentrate on saying that our children need to be learning reading,
writing, and arithmetic, studying foreign languages, world cultures and
the sciences, and our children need to learn history, geography, and
economics.
How can we even be thinking about wasting their valuable time on
teaching and distributing materials like this? It simply has no place
in our schools. We have just been through a lengthy debate over how
much we should protect the very limited right to constitutionally
protected prayer.
The CHAIRMAN. The time of the gentleman from Florida [Mr. Stearne]
has expired.
(By unanimous consent, the gentleman from Florida, Mr. Stearns, was
given permission to proceed for 1 additional minute.)
Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Chairman, we know, however, that promoting values
that are shared by mainstream Americans, such as the Ten Commandments
or the Golden Rule, cannot even be done in our public schools, yet we
are distributing material like this.
At the local level, some are making every effort to force the
homosexual agenda into the normal school curriculum, it seems clear to
me, particularly in light of the constitutional prayer amendment that
we talked about earlier.
Therefore, I ask my colleagues to support real education on real
academic subjects, and urge my colleagues to vote yes on the Hancock
amendment, and no on the Unsoeld substitute.
Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the
requisite number of words.
Mr. Chairman, I want to join the Republican mayors of Los Angeles and
New York, Mr. Reardon and Mr. Giuliani, in opposing this amendment. The
Hancock amendment would cut off all Federal aid to the schools of New
York, presided over by Rudy Giuliani, whose office authorized the
statement of his opposition. It would cut off all aid to the schools of
Los Angeles. Do the Members know why? Because those schools have tried,
and two Republican mayors of those cities have continued to try, to
respond to some of the unhappiest children in America.
I am struck by this debate about promoting homosexuality. I have to
tell the Members, and I think I have had as much experience about it as
almost anybody in here, if you paid me to promote homosexuality, I do
not know what I would do. How do you promote homosexuality? What do
people think it is, a rock concert? A prize fight? How do you promote
homosexuality? What shallowness of understanding of basic human nature
leads Members to talk about promoting homosexuality, encouraging
homosexuality? What do they think it is, a taste for food?
In fact, people in New York and in Los Angeles and in other schools
who understand human nature and understand human sexuality know that
there are 15- and 16- and 17- and 18-year-old children who are tortured
by feelings they cannot control in a society that condemns them. They
have reached out to those children. They have established schools that
say to those kids, ``You are not worthless,'' that would not subject
those children to the kind of treatment that one of the Members sought
to subject another Member to on the floor. That is the kind of
insensitivity and bullying that exists. We know that.
Yes, I suppose if we have a 16- or a 17-year-old whose feelings are
homosexual and cannot turn them off, like a water faucet, despite the
shallowness of the understanding that some people in here have of human
nature, if we take that kid who has been abused and who has been picked
on and put him in a more supportive environment, then we lose our
money. How do we dare support that kid? How dare we tall her she is not
worthless? How dare we try to say that the person should not be
discouraged from going on with their life? That is what we are talking
about.
The literature that is being given out, and some Members here have
more interest in it than I do, that literature, if it is the literature
talked about in New York by the Gay Men's Health Crisis, was rejected
by the chancellor. That is why it is irrelevant to the gentleman's
amendment. The chancellor of the schools in New York, Mr. Cortines,
said that literature is no good. That was not in there by the schools.
The schools repudiated it.
What they do have in New York, in Los Angeles, under Republican
mayors, in San Francisco, is an effort to reach out. Let me say to the
Members, I think most Members understand that this kind of attempted
imposition on people who are trying to help young people is not good
public policy.
People worry about the politics. We all understand politics. Nobody
parachuted in here totally pure. However, may I please entreat my
colleagues, do not torture children. No vote is worth that. No vote is
worth adding to the pain of these teenagers. Please vote against the
Hancock amendment.
Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of
words.
Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the amendment offered by
the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock]. I know it is late in the
afternoon, and I will not take my full time, but I do want to say this,
that the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] is one of the finest,
and I might add, one of the kindest Members of this body, and I salute
him for the work that he has done in this regard.
Mr. Chairman, the people of this Nation want our schools to emphasize
the basics, and to do a better job in teaching core academic subjects,
the point that was made so eloquently by my friend, the gentleman from
Florida [Mr. Stearns] just a few moments ago. They do not want our
schools to go to some of the extremes and tangents we have seen in some
of the materials which schools have distributed and which they would be
prohibited from distributing under the Hancock amendment.
Mr. Chairman, I might just read a quote that was written last year in
Newsweek magazine by Joy Overbeck, a very liberal playwright and
columnist, and she was writing about another topic, but it really
relates to what we are talking about here today.
Writing of her sadness at the revealing clothes her 10-year-old
daughter felt peer pressure to wear, Ms. Overbeck said this:
It's not really that I want her to be a little girl
forever. It's just that it would be nice if she were a child
during her childhood. Instead, she has been bathed in the
fantasy of bodies and beauty that marinates our entire
culture. The result is an insidious form of premature sexual
awakening that is stealing our kids' youth.
Mr. Chairman, that is why so many parents in New York City rebelled
when the schools up there started to distribute the books ``Heather Has
Two Mommies'' and ``Daddy's Roommate.'' This is what we are talking
about, education of small children.
There is tremendous competition for Government dollars today. We are
having trouble coming up with enough money even for programs about
which there is great consensus. The overwhelming majority of the
American people do not want tax dollars spent to encourage or support
homosexuality. Even my friend, the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr.
Gunderson] agreed that he did not want that, either. Nothing in the
amendment of the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] prohibits anyone
from being a homosexual or having any type of homosexual activity. It
simply gives our schools some very needed direction.
To hear some of the most liberal Members of this body say that they
are just trying to keep Big Brother out of our schools has the most
hollow ring to it of anything I have ever heard said. I might say, in
response to what the last speaker said, you promote homosexuality by
handing out pamphlets and books telling impressionable young people
that homosexuality is a positive and healthy lifestyle. That is the
very thing that would be prohibited by this amendment. I urge its
support.
Mr. MILLER of California. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the
requisite number of words.
Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. MILLER of California. I yield to the gentleman from
Massachusetts.
Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Chairman, if the gentleman from
Tennessee [Mr. Duncan] thinks that teenagers decide on their sexual
activity and their basic sexual urges from reading pamphlets, he is a
poor guide, indeed, to public policy dealing with young people.
{time} 1700
Mr. MILLER of California. Mr. Chairman, in the 20 years I have been
in the House, somehow we have visited afternoon like this from time to
time when the House has the incredible ability to be so narrow-minded
and so shallow in its thinking, and to be so mean in its spirit. This
amendment is not about those materials that fascinate the gentleman at
the other table. This amendment is not about whatever the title of the
book is, ``Heather's Other Mommy,'' or somebody's roommate. This is not
what this is about.
This is about using those materials as a pretext to punish and to
ostracize a class of people in this country, and to deny them the
ability to make the same decisions that we want all of our children and
each one of us to make about our futures, about our lives, about our
sexuality, about our identity, about our crises.
For 10 years this House was nice enough to make me the chairman of
the Committee on Children, Youth, and Families. For a long time it was
only going to be the Committee on Children and Families, because people
here did not want it to carry the title ``youth,'' because youth scare
the living hell out of us, adolescence scares us. Fortunately, at that
time, the Catholic Church came forward and said they could not support
the creation of this committee if it did not include young people,
because young people are some of the most troubled and some of the most
vulnerable and some of the most at-risk people in our society. They
take special care, special nurturing, and we need to pay attention to
them.
In those 10 years and today after the end of that committee, I have
continued to spend an inordinate amount of time with young people in
the public schools and other schools of my district, talking to them
about themselves, and about our society, and about their chances to
confront it, and their fears, and their hopes and their aspirations.
And I think that all of us try to do that with our own children. And we
certainly all know our neighbors, our friends, the chairmen of our
finance committees, our donors, the people we come across in our daily
lives tell us a whole series of stories about their children. They tell
us about their children that are happy and wonderful, they tell us
about their children who are sad, the children that cannot make it in
college that are thinking about dropping out of school. They tell us
about all of those children. They tell us about their children who are
gay or lesbian, and we tell them we understand.
But somehow on the floor of this Congress, we do not permit ourselves
to say to this Nation we understand. Instead, what we do is to seek to
strike out in the meanest possible way when these young people are the
most vulnerable, to deny them the information, the counseling that may
be necessary. The gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Gunderson] had it about
right. If the counselor said to the young person who was thinking of
suicide, and tragically we know there are some young people who are gay
who have not only thought about suicide, but in fact have committed
suicide, if the young person said to the counselor, ``What should I
do,'' and if the counselor suggested go on living, that would have the
effect of promoting homosexuality under the Hancock amendment.
Are we really going to deny counselors, teachers, and others who
encounter our children, and these are our children, our collective
children, are we going to deny them the tools to say, ``Choose life.
Let us get you some additional counseling, some understanding, and let
us put you together with professionals so that you can see the
possibilities and the excitement of life over your despair at this
moment, for whatever reason''? That cannot be the policy of the U.S.
Congress, and it clearly cannot be the policy of this country.
I know it is new information to the gentleman from California [Mr.
Dornan] that before they put ``homophobe'' in the dictionary, there
were some, and before they were listed in the book, and before the
printing press, there were homosexuals and lesbians, before the
printing press, before the telegraph, before the media, before the 20th
century, before the 1960's there were homosexuals and lesbians. And we
should not, we should not as a society seek to punish those individuals
because they are in fact different from us. We must understand.
The CHAIRMAN. The time of the gentleman from California [Mr. Miller]
has expired.
(By unanimous consent, Mr. Miller of California was allowed to
proceed for 3 additional minutes.)
Mr. MILLER of California. Every study of this problem that we have
looked at in America says adolescents are the most vulnerable, they are
the most at risk. As was pointed out by the gentleman from
Massachusetts [Mr. Frank], school districts did not endorse these
materials. Richard Riordan is a wonderful superintendent of schools and
asked that they be taken out, that the policy not allow them. This is
not about those materials. It is about whether or not you can strike
out at homosexuals, whether or not you can mug them, and batter them,
and beat them on the floor of this Congress, because you cannot do it
in the street, because it is illegal. That is what this is about, and
the youngest and most vulnerable of those.
I would just hope that we would not accept this amendment. This
amendment is in fact poorly drafted.
I am one who believes in mandates from the Federal Government to
local school districts. But we in fact ought to do it when it is right,
and we certainly ought to do it where it does not create this kind of
harm. And I would hope that we would reject this amendment, if
necessary accept the Unsoeld amendment, but clearly these are decisions
for our constituents as families, as parents, as members of the school
board, and as members of our community.
Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Chairman, my distinguished colleague from California
has said on his side that he is protecting children, indicating we are
not, and said we are denying them tools. Is this what the gentleman
calls tools? We believe we are protecting children on this side. These
are not tools.
Mr. MILLER of California. I would say to the gentleman I do not know
if those are or are not, because I have not looked through all of that
material. Let me just say again I have held up a whole range of
materials, some which apparently people believe are obscene, some which
people object to and all of that. The point is in fact that that is not
official policy, and if it is, that is a matter I think really in terms
of local school districts, that is a matter for parents whose children
are going to those schools.
Mr. DORNAN. There is a common denominator. They all glorify and
promote sodomy, fisting, anal sex, and homosexual conduct. And the
gentleman says he is protecting the children.
Mr. MILLER of California. Mr. Chairman, I do not know that they do
that.
Mr. DORNAN. Here it is. Look at it. The gentleman said he had never
looked at it, and those who defend every level of pornography never
look at the material.
Mr. MILLER of California. I am taking back my time, Mr. Chairman.
This was not about that. The gentleman did not listen. This was not
about defending materials. This was about stopping, stopping the kind
of outrageous behavior that would be allowed under this amendment, and
preventing school districts from carrying out their functions to try
and help teachers and to take care of our young people. And I would
hope that we would reject this amendment.
Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that all debate
on this amendment be ended after 3 minutes by the gentlewoman from
Maryland [Mrs. Morella] and 2 minutes by the author of the amendment,
the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock], and then after that I would
ask that there be one-half hour on all future amendments and amendments
thereto, and 1 hour on the substitute and all amendments thereto, if it
is offered.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from
Pennsylvania?
Mr. INSLEE. Mr. Chairman, reserving the right to object, following
the conclusion of the Unsoeld amendment, there may be consideration of
another proposed amendment to the Hancock amendment. We would like to
reserve the ability to debate that matter.
Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Chairman, I would like to amend that request to
indicate the gentleman from California [Mr. Becerra] would also have 3
minutes on this discussion before we end it, and that if the Unsoeld
amendment would happen to be defeated, there would be a period of 5
minutes where they would have time to offer an amendment to the Hancock
amendment.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, if the gentleman will yield, I think this
is a reasonable compromise, and the gentleman from Washington [Mr.
Inslee] agrees with that unanimous consent request.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from
Pennsylvania?
There was no objection.
The CHAIRMAN. The Chair will announce, according to the Chair's
understanding of this agreement, there will be 10 minutes of future
debate on the Unsoeld amendment to the Hancock amendment. The time will
be equally divided between the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock], 5
minutes, and the gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld], 5 minutes,
and then that 3 of those minutes are reserved, 3 additional minutes
reserved for the gentleman from California [Mr. Becerra], is that
correct?
Mr. GOODLING. That is correct, Mr. Chairman, on this amendment.
The CHAIRMAN. On this amendment those are the ground rules.
Mr. GOODLING. Three minutes to the gentlewoman from Maryland [Mrs.
Morella], 3 minutes for the gentleman from California [Mr. Becerra],
and 2 minutes for the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock], to close
the debate on this particular issue.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentlewoman from Maryland [Mrs. Morella] is
recognized for 3 minutes.
Mrs. MORELLA. Mr. Chairman, I wanted to rise to reiterate my support
for the Unsoeld substitute amendment to the Hancock amendment. I have
listened to this debate. I would like to point out that, as this body
knows, I am a former educator. My husband and I have raised nine
children. We have 10 grandchildren. And I am against the Hancock
amendment because I do not think the Federal Government should
interfere with the decisions that are made on a local level.
Students in different parts of the Nation have different needs.
Educational issues should be addressed by the local level, by the
people that we elect or we appoint. So says my school board in
Montgomery County, MD, one of the best educational systems in the
country. So says a whole group of organizations, such as the Child
Welfare League of America, the National Association of Elementary
School Principals, the National Network of Runaway and Youth Services,
the National Council of Jewish Women, the American Association of
School Administrators, the United States Conference of Mayors, and the
American Public Health Association. They all believe, as I do, that
local school boards should preserve the right to develop programs that
conform to local community standards.
I would also point out, as has been mentioned, among the Conference
of Mayors are two Republican mayors of very large cities. Rudolf
Guiliani of New York City, and Richard Riordan of Los Angeles were
mentioned. But I want to point out they said:
The Hancock amendment would set an extremely dangerous
precedent for Federal mandating and policing of local
programs.
I also have concerns about the fact that there are administrative
burdens that would be imposed upon the school systems that are there to
educate in the basics. The Department of Education would have to issue
regulations regarding the content of what should or should not be
taught in the classroom, and all of our local school districts would
have to examine their curricula and instructional materials to make
sure that they do comply with these regulations set forth by the
Department of Education.
So, Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of local
school systems making the decisions about local school matters for all
children.
{time} 1710
The CHAIRMAN. According to the prior agreement, the gentleman from
California [Mr. Becerra] is recognized for 3 minutes.
Mr. BECERRA. Mr. Chairman, I have been here before, and what I am
about to say I have said before, but I have said it about a different
segment of the population. Normally when I take to this mike, it is to
talk about immigrants, but if you were to just replace the word
''immigrants'' with the words of ``young people'' who are desperate for
counseling and guidance and some attention, whether they are gay,
lesbian, or not, then you have heard what I am going to say before.
This amendment, is portrayed as one thing, but if it were to pass, I
guarantee it would do another.
Members, please, read the language of this amendment. See if you can
define its separate provisions. See if you can come up with some
definitions for what it says. See how it will rob our communities of
their local control to decide for themselves how they will manage their
local school affairs.
Notice the chilling effect it will have on schools and school
districts that want to provide guidance and counseling. Watch how it
will handcuff our schools that receive Federal funds that will be at
risk, who will be afraid to receive Federal funds if this amendment
passes.
And to Members of this body who represent large numbers of
minorities, please, read this amendment closely, because it will be the
Latino, the Asian American, the black American, the African-American
communities that will suffer most from this amendment.
I urge those Members to look very closely at this language in this
amendment.
I have been here before, and I have said this before. It pains me to
have to say it over and over and over, but this amendment is not what
it says it is. It is something much worse, whether it is intended as
something bad or not, it makes no difference, because we are about to
set policy by passing this amendment, should it pass, that we will
regret.
I hope the Members will take the time to read the one or two simple
paragraphs in this amendment and understand that this Hancock amendment
should not pass whether or not it is well-intentioned.
Mr. CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] has 2 minutes
remaining and is recognized.
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, frankly, ladies and gentlemen, Members of
the House, I had no idea when I came to the U.S. Congress 5 years ago
that I would ever be called upon to discuss the subject, frankly, that
we are discussing today except from the standpoint in private
counseling with people that are concerned about it.
But when I see things like this, frankly, this is the first amendment
I have ever offered on the House floor in the 5 years that I have been
in the U.S. Congress. I am not comfortable. I have helped a lot of
people do things. This made me so uncomfortable that I had to offer
this amendment on the House floor, because I am a grandfather, I am a
father.
Frankly, this type of stuff has no place in public education except
from the standpoint of counseling people that do have a problem, and
this amendment is not designed to keep that from happening. It has
absolutely nothing to do with it.
But it does; it would prohibit from advocating this lifestyle as an
acceptable alternative. I do not think of that as bigoted. I know
people that are homosexual, and I have no problem with that as long as
they do not advocate it, as long as they do not advocate it or promote
it.
I am fully aware of what this amendment will do. It will return
control, and it will tell people, ``Look, look what the schools are
doing.''
Let us get involved in the education of our children. Let us go to
the school board meetings. Let us see what is happening in our schools.
And I think this forum is going to bring that out.
I would also say this: I certainly hope, in closing, I certainly hope
that all of the rhetoric I have heard today about removing local
control, that Government cannot control locally, all of the people, the
liberals that have been doing it for the past 4 years, I hope they will
read their comments later when it comes to some of the other votes that
we are going to be doing throughout this session of Congress.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from California [Mr. Hunter] is
recognized for such time as he may consume.
(Mr. HUNTER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the Hancock
amendment.
Mr. CHAIRMAN. The gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld] is
recognized for 5 minutes.
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, I wanted to assure the gentleman from
Missouri [Mr. Hancock], the maker of the amendment, that I have no
question about his intent, but must seriously question the effect of
the amendment.
Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Washington [Mr.
Inslee].
Mr. INSLEE. Mr. Chairman, I also agree that the drafter of this
amendment, his intention is sincere, and many of us join you in your
intent, but this amendment, if passed with this current language, is
going to drive crazy a certain segment of our population, one of whom
is my brother.
Let me tell you something about my brother that you may not know. He
is a teacher. He is a teacher----
parliamentary inquiry
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, I have a parliamentary inquiry.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman will state his parliamentary inquiry.
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, do I have the right to close, or does the
gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld] have the right to close?
The CHAIRMAN. The gentlewoman from Washington is offering the
amendment to the amendment, and she has the right to close.
Mr. INSLEE. Mr. Chairman, as I was saying, my brother is a teacher.
He has a stressful, tough job. We should not add to his job the worry
that if a child comes to him and says, ``Frank, Mr. Inslee, I may kill
myself today because I am concerned about my sexual orientation,'' for
this Congress to tell my brother to tell that child to go out in the
hall and, ``Get ye from the school yard,'' is not what I want this
Congress to do.
I frankly do not think that is the intent of the drafter of this
amendment. But that is what the language says.
And I speak for my father who was a biology teacher, and if someone
raised his hand and said, ``Mr. Inslee, is there a genetic component to
sexual orientation,'' for him to have to worry about some bureaucrat
disagreeing with him to lose school funding, that is wrong.
I urge you to support the Unsoeld amendment.
parliamentary inquiry
Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Chairman, I have a parliamentary inquiry.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman will state his parliamentary inquiry.
Mr. GOODLING. This is contrary to the unanimous consent that was
requested. We are not going beyond the unanimous consent request.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentlewoman from Washington has 5 minutes. She has
yielded 1.
Mr. GOODLING. No; no. That was if this was defeated and there was a
substitute amendment.
The CHAIRMAN. The Chair divided the 10 minutes between the gentleman
from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] and the gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs.
Unsoeld].
Mr. GOODLING. But you only gave him 2 minutes.
The CHAIRMAN. The original request allotted 3 of the 5 minutes of the
gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] to the gentlewoman from Maryland.
Mr. GOODLING. No. I requested 3 minutes for the gentlewoman from
Maryland, 3 minutes for the gentleman from California and 2 minutes to
close for the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock]. The additional
time that we spoke about is if her amendment would happen to be
defeated, then she would have an opportunity to offer another, and you
were going to divide the 10 minutes at that particular time.
But now we are going beyond, and we will never get it stopped.
The CHAIRMAN. The Chair's understanding was that the gentleman
requested 10 additional minutes equally divided, and then granted an
additional 3 minutes to the gentleman from California [Mr. Becerra].
The Chair announced at the time that the time would be equally
divided between the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock] and the
gentlewoman from Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld].
Mr. GOODLING. We had a misunderstanding in communication.
The CHAIRMAN. The Chair regrets any misunderstanding.
Mr. GOODLING. The 10 minutes I meant was for the time that she may
need to offer a substitute or another amendment if her amendment went
down, and I thought that is what we discussed.
What time is now left?
The CHAIRMAN. The gentlewoman from Washington has 4 minutes
remaining.
Mr. GOODLING. And he has the other 3 of his 5?
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Missouri yielded 3 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Maryland.
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, could I have a unanimous consent request
that the 4 minutes be divided?
The CHAIRMAN. The gentlewoman requests that the 4 minutes remaining
be equally divided between the two sides.
Is there objection to the request of the gentlewoman from Washington?
There was no objection.
The CHAIRMAN. The time will be divided. The gentleman from Missouri
[Mr. Hancock] will be recognized for 2 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock].
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, I thought we were a little further along
than we were, and I thought everybody would like for it to be over.
The arguments that we are hearing, quite frankly, are misleading, and
I am not questioning anybody's judgment or their rationale.
As I talked to the gentleman yesterday about changing the amendment,
he pointed out to me, he says, ``Well,'' he says, ``maybe it is because
I am an attorney that I am reading into this thing,'' and maybe that is
so.
The only thing I know is I believe that our amendment is
straightforward. It would take somebody with a legal mind to read in
anything other than what is plainly said.
In fact, the amendment even in the verbiage is very limited. We did
not go into a lot of technicalities and legalese. It is very open,
straightforward, and above board. That is exactly what we wanted to do.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Washington
[Mrs. Unsoeld] for 2 minutes.
Mrs. UNSOELD. Mr. Chairman, I ask my colleagues to support my
amendment, to correct the amendment by the gentleman from Missouri [Mr.
Hancock], whose effect would be to prohibit the discussion of
homosexuality even in the context of providing health care as a result
of the passage of his amendment.
{time} 1720
I ask my colleagues to consider some of the words that were spoken on
this floor today and questions that were posed to us, Mr. Chairman. How
many children must die before we are willing to accept the teaching of
the local curriculum so that lives can be saved, so that the mental,
emotional health, as well as the physical needs of those children can
be met.
I ask my colleagues to support us today in our attempt to reach out
to those young people wherever they are, to support them in what they
need to go forward in their own lives and for us to stand aside and not
be the Federal Government dictating to the local school boards, but,
rather, to permit those people who run for the school board on the
local level, those people who know the issue on a day-to-day basis, who
visit those schools, who talk to the teachers, who talk to the parents,
who are the parents, to let them make these very important decisions. I
ask for support of the Unsoeld amendment.
The CHAIRMAN. All time has expired.
The question is on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from
Washington [Mrs. Unsoeld] to the amendment offered by the gentleman
from Missouri [Mr. Hancock].
The question was taken; and the Chairman announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
recorded vote
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The CHAIRMAN. The Chair announces that pursuant to clause 2(c) of
rule XXIII, the Chair many reduce to not less than 5 minutes the time
for any recorded vote that may be ordered on the Hancock amendment
without any business or debate.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 224,
noes 194, not voting 20, as follows:
[Roll No. 91]
AYES--224
Abercrombie
Ackerman
Andrews (ME)
Bacchus (FL)
Barca
Barcia
Barrett (WI)
Becerra
Beilenson
Bereuter
Bilbray
Bishop
Blute
Boehlert
Bonior
Borski
Boucher
Brooks
Brown (CA)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Byrne
Cantwell
Carr
Clay
Clayton
Clyburn
Coleman
Collins (IL)
Collins (MI)
Condit
Conyers
Coppersmith
Coyne
de la Garza
de Lugo (VI)
DeFazio
DeLauro
Dellums
Deutsch
Dicks
Dingell
Dixon
Dooley
Durbin
Edwards (CA)
Engel
English
Eshoo
Evans
Faleomavaega (AS)
Farr
Fazio
Fields (LA)
Filner
Fingerhut
Fish
Flake
Foglietta
Ford (MI)
Frank (MA)
Frost
Furse
Gejdenson
Gephardt
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gilman
Glickman
Gonzalez
Green
Gunderson
Gutierrez
Hamburg
Hamilton
Harman
Hastings
Hefner
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hoagland
Hobson
Hochbrueckner
Hoke
Horn
Houghton
Hoyer
Huffington
Hughes
Inslee
Jacobs
Jefferson
Johnson (CT)
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (SD)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnston
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kennedy
Kennelly
Kildee
Kleczka
Klein
Klug
Kolbe
Kopetski
Kreidler
Kyl
Lambert
Lantos
LaRocco
Lazio
Leach
Lehman
Levin
Lewis (GA)
Long
Lowey
Machtley
Maloney
Mann
Manton
Margolies-Mezvinsky
Markey
Martinez
Matsui
Mazzoli
McCandless
McCloskey
McCrery
McCurdy
McDermott
McHale
McKinney
Meehan
Meek
Menendez
Mfume
Miller (CA)
Mineta
Minge
Mink
Moakley
Mollohan
Moran
Morella
Murtha
Nadler
Neal (MA)
Neal (NC)
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Orton
Owens
Pallone
Pastor
Payne (NJ)
Pelosi
Penny
Peterson (FL)
Pomeroy
Price (NC)
Rangel
Reed
Reynolds
Richardson
Roemer
Rohrabacher
Romero-Barcelo (PR)
Rose
Rostenkowski
Roybal-Allard
Rush
Sabo
Sanders
Sawyer
Schenk
Schroeder
Schumer
Scott
Serrano
Sharp
Shays
Shepherd
Skaggs
Slattery
Slaughter
Smith (IA)
Snowe
Stark
Stokes
Strickland
Studds
Stupak
Swett
Swift
Synar
Thomas (CA)
Thompson
Thornton
Thurman
Torkildsen
Torres
Towns
Tucker
Underwood (GU)
Unsoeld
Velazquez
Vento
Visclosky
Washington
Waters
Watt
Waxman
Wheat
Williams
Wise
Woolsey
Wyden
Wynn
Yates
NOES--194
Allard
Andrews (TX)
Applegate
Archer
Armey
Bachus (AL)
Baesler
Baker (CA)
Baker (LA)
Ballenger
Barlow
Barrett (NE)
Bartlett
Barton
Bateman
Bevill
Bilirakis
Bliley
Boehner
Bonilla
Brewster
Browder
Bunning
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Canady
Castle
Chapman
Clement
Clinger
Coble
Collins (GA)
Combest
Cooper
Costello
Cox
Cramer
Crane
Crapo
Cunningham
Danner
Darden
Deal
DeLay
Diaz-Balart
Dickey
Doolittle
Dornan
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Edwards (TX)
Ehlers
Emerson
Everett
Ewing
Fawell
Fields (TX)
Fowler
Franks (CT)
Franks (NJ)
Gekas
Geren
Gillmor
Gingrich
Goodlatte
Goodling
Gordon
Goss
Grams
Hall (OH)
Hall (TX)
Hancock
Hansen
Hastert
Hayes
Hefley
Herger
Hoekstra
Holden
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hutto
Hyde
Inglis
Inhofe
Istook
Johnson, Sam
Kasich
Kim
King
Kingston
Klink
Knollenberg
LaFalce
Lancaster
Laughlin
Levy
Lewis (CA)
Lightfoot
Linder
Lipinski
Livingston
Lloyd
Manzullo
McCollum
McDade
McHugh
McInnis
McKeon
McNulty
Meyers
Mica
Michel
Miller (FL)
Molinari
Montgomery
Moorhead
Murphy
Myers
Nussle
Ortiz
Oxley
Packard
Parker
Paxon
Payne (VA)
Peterson (MN)
Petri
Pickett
Pombo
Porter
Portman
Poshard
Pryce (OH)
Quillen
Quinn
Rahall
Ramstad
Ravenel
Regula
Ridge
Roberts
Rogers
Ros-Lehtinen
Roth
Roukema
Rowland
Royce
Sangmeister
Santorum
Sarpalius
Saxton
Schaefer
Schiff
Sensenbrenner
Shaw
Shuster
Sisisky
Skeen
Skelton
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (OR)
Solomon
Spence
Spratt
Stearns
Stenholm
Stump
Sundquist
Talent
Tanner
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Tejeda
Traficant
Upton
Valentine
Volkmer
Vucanovich
Walker
Walsh
Whitten
Wilson
Wolf
Young (AK)
Young (FL)
Zeliff
Zimmer
NOT VOTING--20
Andrews (NJ)
Bentley
Berman
Blackwell
Cardin
Derrick
Ford (TN)
Gallegly
Gallo
Grandy
Greenwood
Lewis (FL)
McMillan
Natcher
Norton (DC)
Pickle
Smith (TX)
Thomas (WY)
Torricelli
Weldon
{time} 1745
Messrs. GORDON, SMITH of Michigan, and EDWARDS of Texas changed their
vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
So the amendment to the amendment was agreed to
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to the Hancock
amendments. The Hancock amendments would attempt to remove funding from
local school districts with activities and programs which instruct or
distribute materials to students that support homosexual orientation as
a positive adult outcome. The amendments are mean-spirited and
dangerous.
Mr. Chairman, on Monday night Tom Hanks won the Academy Award for
best performance by an actor for his starring role in Philadelphia. In
his moving acceptance speech, he particularly thanked to gay Americans
who influenced his decision to become an actor. Please not that Tom
Hanks was not made gay by these early influences. But he was made more
openminded and sensitive to others. His performance was a gift to all
of us.
Mr. Chairman, gay affirmative materials and activities do not make
people gay. Gay affirmative materials do, however, make people who are
eventually going to be lesbian or gay adults feel better about
themselves. Such affirmative materials also make those who will
eventually be heterosexual adults more openminded and accepting of
others who are different--and thus also feel better about themselves.
Clearly, lesbian and gay youth encounter special challenges because
they confront a frequently hostile environment. The Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention reports that gay youth are at high risk of
depression and suicide. According to former HHS Secretary Sullivan's
Task Force on Youth Report, gay youth make up 30 percent of completed
youth suicides. Gay youth are at least three times more likely than
other youth to try to take their own lives.
These distressing facts are largely due to the ways in which antigay
attitudes are promoted by certain individuals and groups in this
country. These amendments, if enacted, would further promote gay youth
depression, isolation and suicide. This is not a symbolic vote--real
young people will be irreparably harmed.
The proper role of Government is to protect and improve the lives of
all our young people. I urge my colleagues to reject the Hancock
amendments.
Mr. TOWNS. Mr. Chairman, as a former educator now representing a
highly diverse constituency, I must oppose the amendment offered by the
distinguished colleague from Missouri. This amendment undermines the
very nature and intent of education.
The purpose of education is to introduce and expose students to new
or existing information, stimuli, and methods in a controlled
environment through instruction and guidance. Certainly, lifestyles and
the teaching thereof are essential to human development in our society.
In teaching lifestyles we must explore an abundance of interrelated
fundamental elements such as interpersonal skills, effective
communication, and coping mechanisms. These skills are key ingredients
to success on all levels, in all endeavors. These elements prepare our
youth to better cope with, compete in, and later, prosper in this
increasingly complex society.
Therefore, I must reject any legislation which prohibits the teaching
of homosexuality as a lifestyle in our school systems throughout the
Nation. Nor can I support language that penalizes or paralyzes the
operation of associated schools, programs, and activities by barring
Federal funding.
Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to oppose the Hancock
amendments in the strongest terms possible and to urge my colleagues to
vote for the Unsoeld perfecting amendment.
As a life-long advocate of civil rights, as a career human resources
professional, and as the mother of a gay son, I urge my colleagues to
defeat this damaging amendment.
This amendment severely restricts the autonomy of local schools and
boards by reaching the long arm of Federal Government in a place where
it has never, ever been before--your local school. This amendment
dictates what conversations school administrators and teachers may have
with students, what may be taught, and what the curriculum should be.
Mr. Chairman, in that respect, this amendment is a first. Does the
gentleman offering it believe that it is OK for the Federal Government
to tell local schools that they cannot teach creationism or evolution?
I think not. I would wager that he would say it is best left up to
local discretion. And he would be right. We need to let local schools
and local communities decide what is appropriate to teach children.
But, even if this amendment did not increase Federal bureaucracy and
control, I would oppose it.
The fact is that many, many adolescents in school realize that they
are gay or lesbian, or believe that they might be. It is then that they
need the most support, especially from peers, teachers, school
administrators, and parents.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Bush,
Louis Sullivan, issued a report on youth suicide which revealed that
gay teens are two to three times more likely than their peers to
attempt suicide.
They are also at a far greater risk for drug abuse; dropping out of
school; running away from home; prostitution; and unwanted pregnancy.
Mr. Chairman, these are the exact children who need the most help.
This amendment takes a sledgehammer to their fragile existence by not
allowing them to receive counseling, whether it is about physical
health issues, or mental health issues.
But, Mr. Chairman, the most important issue here is who is in charge
of your local school? Mr. Hancock wants the Federal Government telling
local schools what they can and cannot do. I am opposed to that, and I
believe that the vast majority of this body is as well.
Again, I urge my colleagues to join me in soundly defeating this
destructive and dangerous amendment.
personal explanation
Ms. NORTON. Mr. Chairman, I was unavoidably detained during part of
this afternoon's consideration of H.R. 6, the Improving America's
Schools Act, and therefore missed rollcall votes on two amendments: the
Unsoeld amendment to the Hancock amendment--rollcall vote 91--and the
Hancock amendment as amended by the Unsoeld amendment--rollcall vote
number 92. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes'' on rollcall
vote 91 and ``yes'' on rollcall vote 92.
The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Hancock], as amended.
The question was taken; and the Chairman announced that the ayes
appeared to have it.
recorded vote
Mr. HANCOCK. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 301,
noes 120, not voting 17, as follows:
[Roll No. 92]
AYES--301
Abercrombie
Ackerman
Allard
Andrews (NJ)
Andrews (TX)
Applegate
Archer
Armey
Bachus (AL)
Baesler
Baker (CA)
Baker (LA)
Ballenger
Barca
Barcia
Barlow
Barrett (NE)
Bartlett
Barton
Bateman
Bentley
Bevill
Bilbray
Bilirakis
Bishop
Bliley
Blute
Boehlert
Boehner
Bonilla
Borski
Boucher
Brewster
Brooks
Browder
Brown (CA)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Burton
Buyer
Byrne
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Canady
Cantwell
Carr
Castle
Chapman
Clement
Clinger
Clyburn
Coble
Coleman
Collins (GA)
Combest
Condit
Cooper
Costello
Cox
Cramer
Crapo
Cunningham
Danner
Darden
de la Garza
de Lugo (VI)
Deal
Diaz-Balart
Dingell
Dooley
Doolittle
Dornan
Dreier
Duncan
Durbin
Edwards (TX)
Ehlers
Emerson
Everett
Ewing
Faleomavaega (AS)
Fawell
Fields (LA)
Fields (TX)
Fingerhut
Fish
Fowler
Franks (CT)
Franks (NJ)
Frost
Gephardt
Geren
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gilman
Gingrich
Glickman
Goodlatte
Goodling
Gordon
Goss
Grams
Green
Greenwood
Gunderson
Hall (OH)
Hall (TX)
Hamilton
Hancock
Hansen
Hastert
Hayes
Hefley
Hefner
Herger
Hobson
Hochbrueckner
Hoekstra
Holden
Horn
Houghton
Huffington
Hughes
Hunter
Hutto
Hyde
Inglis
Inhofe
Inslee
Istook
Jacobs
Jefferson
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (SD)
Johnson, Sam
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kasich
Kennedy
Kildee
Kim
King
Kingston
Klein
Klink
Klug
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kyl
LaFalce
Lambert
Lancaster
LaRocco
Laughlin
Lazio
Leach
Lehman
Levin
Levy
Lightfoot
Linder
Lipinski
Livingston
Lloyd
Long
Machtley
Mann
Manton
Manzullo
Martinez
Mazzoli
McCandless
McCloskey
McCollum
McCurdy
McDade
McHale
McHugh
McInnis
McKeon
McNulty
Meek
Menendez
Meyers
Mfume
Mica
Michel
Miller (FL)
Minge
Moakley
Molinari
Mollohan
Montgomery
Moorhead
Murphy
Murtha
Myers
Neal (MA)
Neal (NC)
Nussle
Oberstar
Obey
Ortiz
Orton
Oxley
Packard
Parker
Paxon
Payne (VA)
Penny
Peterson (FL)
Peterson (MN)
Petri
Pickett
Pombo
Pomeroy
Porter
Portman
Poshard
Price (NC)
Pryce (OH)
Quillen
Quinn
Rahall
Ramstad
Ravenel
Regula
Richardson
Ridge
Roberts
Roemer
Rogers
Rohrabacher
Romero-Barcelo (PR)
Ros-Lehtinen
Rose
Rostenkowski
Roth
Roukema
Rowland
Royce
Sangmeister
Santorum
Sarpalius
Saxton
Schaefer
Schiff
Sensenbrenner
Shaw
Shays
Shepherd
Shuster
Sisisky
Skeen
Skelton
Slattery
Smith (IA)
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (OR)
Snowe
Solomon
Spence
Spratt
Stearns
Stenholm
Stump
Stupak
Sundquist
Swett
Talent
Tanner
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Tejeda
Thomas (CA)
Thornton
Thurman
Traficant
Tucker
Upton
Valentine
Vento
Volkmer
Vucanovich
Walker
Walsh
Weldon
Whitten
Williams
Wilson
Wise
Wolf
Young (AK)
Young (FL)
Zeliff
Zimmer
NOES--120
Andrews (ME)
Bacchus (FL)
Barrett (WI)
Becerra
Beilenson
Bereuter
Blackwell
Bonior
Bunning
Clay
Clayton
Collins (IL)
Collins (MI)
Conyers
Coppersmith
Coyne
Crane
DeFazio
DeLauro
DeLay
Dellums
Deutsch
Dickey
Dicks
Dixon
Dunn
Edwards (CA)
Engel
English
Eshoo
Evans
Farr
Fazio
Filner
Flake
Foglietta
Ford (MI)
Frank (MA)
Furse
Gejdenson
Gonzalez
Gutierrez
Hamburg
Harman
Hastings
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hoagland
Hoyer
Hutchinson
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnston
Kennelly
Kleczka
Kopetski
Kreidler
Lantos
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (GA)
Lowey
Maloney
Margolies-Mezvinsky
Markey
Matsui
McCrery
McDermott
McKinney
Meehan
Miller (CA)
Mineta
Mink
Moran
Morella
Nadler
Olver
Owens
Pallone
Pastor
Payne (NJ)
Pelosi
Rangel
Reed
Reynolds
Roybal-Allard
Rush
Sabo
Sanders
Sawyer
Schenk
Schroeder
Schumer
Scott
Serrano
Sharp
Skaggs
Slaughter
Stark
Stokes
Strickland
Studds
Swift
Synar
Thompson
Torkildsen
Torres
Towns
Underwood (GU)
Unsoeld
Velazquez
Visclosky
Washington
Waters
Watt
Waxman
Wheat
Woolsey
Wyden
Wynn
Yates
NOT VOTING--17
Berman
Cardin
Derrick
Ford (TN)
Gallegly
Gallo
Gekas
Grandy
Hoke
Lewis (FL)
McMillan
Natcher
Norton (DC)
Pickle
Smith (TX)
Thomas (WY)
Torricelli
{time} 1756
Mr. SHARP, Mrs. LOWEY, Mrs. SCHROEDER, and Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON
of Texas changed their vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
Mr. ACKERMAN changed his vote from ``no'' to ``aye.''
So the amendment, as amended, was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
personal explanation
Mr. THOMAS of Wyoming. Mr. Chairman, during consideration of rollcall
votes No. 91 and No. 92 earlier today, I was unavoidably detained. Had
I been present, I would have voted ``no'' on rollcall No. 91 and
``yes'' on rollcall No. 92.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that the remainder
of the bill be printed in the Record and open to amendment at any
point, with the understanding that it does not affect the time
agreement and is consistent with the rule. Only amendments that have
been printed in the Record are in order.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from
Michigan?
There was no objection.
The text of the remainder of the committee amendment in the nature of
a substitute, as modified, is as follows:
``TITLE X--COORDINATED SERVICES PROJECTS
``SEC. 10001. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
``(a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
``(1) Growing numbers of children are negatively affected
by influences outside of the classroom which increase their
risk of academic failure.
``(2) Factors such as poor nutrition, unsafe living
conditions, physical and sexual abuse, family and gang
violence, inadequate health care, unemployment, lack of child
care and substance abuse adversely affect family
relationships and the ability of a child to learn.
``(3) Parents and other caregivers in today's high pressure
society often face demands which place restraints on their
time and affect their ability to adequately provide for the
needs of their families.
``(4) Access to health and social service programs can
address the basic physical and emotional needs of children so
that they can fully participate in the learning experiences
offered them in school.
``(5) Services for at-risk students need to be more
convenient, less fragmented, regulated and duplicative in
order to meet the needs of children and their families.
``(6) School personnel, parents, and support service
providers often lack knowledge of, and access to, available
services for at-risk students and their families in the
community, and have few resources to coordinate services and
make them accessible.
``(7) Service providers, such as teachers, social workers,
health care and child care providers, juvenile justice
workers and others, are often trained in separate disciplines
that provide little support for the coordination of services.
``(8) Coordination of services is more cost effective
because it substitutes prevention for expensive crisis
intervention.
``(9) Coordinating health and social services with
education can help the Nation meet the National Education
Goals by ensuring better outcomes for children.
``(b) Purpose of Coordinating Services.--The purpose of
this section is to provide elementary and secondary school
students and their families better access to the social,
health and education services necessary for students to
succeed in school and for their families to take an active
role in ensuring that children receive the best possible
education.
``SEC. 10002. DEFINITIONS.
``(a) The term `coordinated services project' refers to a
comprehensive approach to meeting the educational, health,
social service, and other needs of children and their
families, including foster children and their foster
families, through a communitywide partnership that links
public and private agencies providing such services or access
to such services through a coordination site at or near a
school.
``(b) An `eligible entity' is a local educational agency,
individual school, or consortium of schools.
``SEC. 10003. PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION.
``(a) Project Plans.--Eligible entities exercising their
authority under section 9206(b) shall submit to the Secretary
an application for the development of a plan or a plan for
the implementation of a coordinated services project.
``(b) Project Development.--The application for the
development of the coordinated services project, which can
last for up to one year, shall:
``(1) demonstrate that an assessment will be performed of
the economic, social, and health barriers to educational
achievement experienced by children and families, including
foster children and their foster families, in the community,
and the local, State, federal, and privately funded services
available to meet such needs;
``(2) identify the measures that will be taken to establish
a communitywide partnership that links public and private
agencies providing services to children and families; and
``(3) identify any other measures that will be taken to
develop a comprehensive plan for the implementation of a
coordinated services project or projects.
``(c) Project Implementation.--Eligible entities shall
submit to the Secretary a plan for the implementation or
expansion of a coordinated services project. Such plan shall
include--
``(1) the results of a children and families needs
assessment, which will include an assessment of the needs of
foster children;
``(2) the membership of the coordinated services project
partnership;
``(3) a description of the proposed coordinated services
project, its objectives, where it will be located, and the
staff that will be used to carry out the purposes of the
project;
``(4) a description of how the success of the coordinated
services project will be evaluated;
``(5) a description of the training to be provided to
teachers and appropriate personnel; and
``(6) information regarding whether or not a sliding scale
fee for services will be employed, and if not, an explanation
of why such scale is not feasible.
``SEC. 10004. USES OF FUNDS.
``(a) Funds utilized under the authority of section 9206(b)
may be used for activities under this title which include--
``(1) hiring a services coordinator;
``(2) making minor renovations to existing buildings;
``(3) purchasing basic operating equipment;
``(4) improving communications and information-sharing
between members of the coordinated services project
partnership;
``(5) providing training to teachers and appropriate
personnel concerning their role in a coordinated services
project; and
``(6) conducting the needs assessment required in section
10003(b)(1).
``(b) Projects operating under the authority of this title
shall comply with the requirements of Sec. 1121(b).
``SEC. 10005. CONTINUING AUTHORITY.
``The Secretary shall not approve the plan of any project
which fails to demonstrate that it is achieving effective
coordination after 2 years of implementation.
``SEC. 10006. FEDERAL AGENCY COORDINATION.
``(a) Agency Coordination.--The Secretaries of Education,
Health and Human Services, Labor, Housing and Urban
Development, Treasury, and Agriculture, and the Attorney
General shall review the programs administered by their
agencies to identify barriers to service coordination.
``(b) Report to Congress.--Such Secretaries and the
Attorney General shall submit jointly a report to the
Congress not later than 2 years after the date of the
enactment of the Improving America's Schools Act, based on
the review required under paragraph (a) recommending
legislative and regulatory action to address such barriers,
and during this time, shall use waiver authorities authorized
under this and other Acts.
``TITLE XI--SCHOOL FACILITIES IMPROVEMENT ACT
``SEC. 11001. FINDINGS.
``The Congress finds the following:
``(1) According to a 1991 survey conducted by the American
Association of School Administrators, 74 percent of all
public school buildings in the United States need to be
replaced.
``(2) Almost one-third of such buildings were built prior
to World War II.
``(3) It is estimated that 1 of every 4 public school
buildings in the United States is in inadequate condition,
and of such buildings, 61 percent need maintenance or major
repairs, 43 percent are obsolete, 42 percent contain
environmental hazards, 25 percent are overcrowded, and 13
percent are structurally unsound.
``(4) Large numbers of local educational agencies have
difficulties securing financing for school facility
improvement.
``SEC. 11002. PURPOSE.
``The purpose of this Act is the leverage limited Federal
funds to enable local educational agencies to finance the
costs associated with the improvement of school facilities
within their jurisdiction.
``SEC. 11003. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE IN THE FORM OF LOANS.
``(a) Authority and Conditions for Loans.--To assist local
educational agencies in the construction, reconstruction, or
renovation of schools, the Secretary may make loans of funds
to such agencies for the construction, reconstruction, or
renovation of such schools. Such assistance shall only be
provided--
``(1) to local educational agencies eligible for grants
under section 1124A of part A of title I, schools located on
Indian reservations, or local educational agencies eligible
for payments under section 8004.
``(2) if the Secretary finds that such constructions will
be undertaken in an economical manner, and that any such
construction, reconstruction or renovation is not or will not
be of elaborate or extravagant design or materials.
``(b) Priorities.--In approving loans under this title, the
Secretary shall consider--
``(1) the difficulty of the applicant in securing
affordable financing from other sources;
``(2) the threat the condition of the physical plant poses
to the safety and well-being of students;
``(3) the demonstrated need for the construction,
reconstruction, or renovation as based on the condition of
the facility; and
``(4) the age of the facility to be renovated or replaced.
``(c) Amount and Conditions of Loans.--A loan to a local
educational agency--
``(1) may be in an amount not exceeding the total
development cost of the facility, as determined by the
Secretary;
``(2) shall be secured in such manner and be repaid within
such period, not exceeding 50 years, as may be determined by
the Secretary; and
``(3) shall bear interest at a rate determined by the
Secretary which shall be the rate of interest paid by the
Secretary on funds obtained from the Secretary of the
Treasury minus 1 and one quarter per cent each year.
``SEC. 11004. GENERAL PROVISIONS.
``(a) Budget and Accounting.--In the performance of, and
with respect to, the functions, powers, and duties under this
part, the Secretary, notwithstanding the provisions of any
other law, shall--
``(1) prepare annually and submit a budget program as
provided for wholly owned Government corporations by chapter
91 of title 31, United States Code; and
``(2) maintain a set of accounts which shall be audited by
the Comptroller General in accordance with the provisions of
chapter 35 of title 31, United States Code, but such
financial transactions of the Secretary, as the making of
loans and vouchers approved by the Secretary, in connection
with such financial transactions shall be final and
conclusive upon all officers of the Government.
``(b) Use of Funds.--Funds made available to the Secretary
pursuant to the provisions of this part shall be deposited in
a checking account or accounts with the Treasurer of the
United States. Receipts and assets obtained or held by the
Secretary in connection with the performance of functions
under this part, and all funds available for carrying out the
functions of the Secretary under this part (including
appropriations therefor, which are hereby authorized), shall
be available, in such amounts as may from year to year be
authorized by the Congress, for the administrative expenses
of the Secretary in connection with the performance of such
functions.
``(c) Legal Powers.--In the performance of, and with
respect to, the functions, powers, and duties under this
part, the Secretary, notwithstanding the provisions of any
other law, may--
``(1) prescribe such rules and regulations as may be
necessary to carry out the purposes of this part;
``(2) sue and be sued;
``(3) foreclose on any property or commence any action to
protect or enforce any right conferred upon the Secretary by
any law, contract, or other agreement, and bid for and
purchase at any foreclosure or any other sale any property in
connection with which the Secretary has made a loan pursuant
to this part;
``(4) in the event of any such acquisition, notwithstanding
any other provision of law relating to the acquisition,
handling, or disposal of real property by the United States,
complete, administer, remodel and convert, dispose of, lease,
and otherwise deal with, such property, but any such
acquisition of real property shall not deprive any State or
political subdivision thereof of its civil or criminal
jurisdiction in and over such property or impair the civil
rights under the State or local laws of the inhabitants on
such property;
``(5) sell or exchange at public or private sale, or lease,
real or personal property, and sell or exchange any
securities or obligations, upon such terms as the Secretary
may fix;
``(6) obtain insurance against loss in connection with
property and other assets held; and
``(7) include in any contract or instrument made pursuant
to this part such other covenants, conditions, or provisions
as may be necessary to assure that the purposes of this part
will be achieved.
``(d) Contracts for Supplies or Services.--Section 3709 of
the Revised Statutes shall not apply to any contract for
services or supplies on account of any property acquired
pursuant to this part if the amount of such contract does not
exceed $1,000.
``(e) Applicability of Government Corporation Control
Act.--The provisions of section 9107(a) of title 31, United
States Code, which are applicable to corporations or agencies
subject to chapter 91 of such title, shall also be applicable
to the activities of the Secretary under this part.
``(f) Wage Rates.--The Secretary shall take such action as
may be necessary to ensure that all laborers and mechanics
employed by contractors or subcontractors on any project
assisted under this part--
``(1) shall be paid wages at rates not less than those
prevailing on the same type of work on similar construction
in the immediate locality as determined by the Secretary of
Labor in accordance with the Act of March 3, 1931 (Davis-
Bacon Act), as amended; and
``(2) shall be employed not more than 40 hours in any one
week unless the employee receives wages for the employee's
employment in excess of the hours specified above at a rate
not less than one and one-half times the regular rate at
which the employee is employed,
but the Secretary may waive the application of this
subsection in cases or classes of cases where laborers or
mechanics, not otherwise employed at any time in the
construction of such project, voluntarily donate their
services without full compensation for the purpose of
lowering the costs of construction and the Secretary
determines that any amounts saved thereby are fully credited
to the educational institution undertaking the construction.
``(g) Limitations.--(1) No loan shall be made under this
part to any local educational agency until 5 years after the
date on which a previous loan to that agency was made under
this part, unless the loan is intended to be used to
construct or reconstruct a facility damaged as a result of a
national disaster, as declared by the President.
``(2) Not more than 12.5 percent of the amount of the funds
provided for in this part in the form of loans annually shall
be made available to educational institutions within any one
State.
``SEC. 11005. DEFINITIONS.
``The term `school' is defined as structures suitable for
use as classrooms, laboratories, libraries, and related
facilities, the primary purpose of which is the instruction
of elementary and secondary school students.
``SEC. 11006. AUTHORIZATION.
``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this
title, $200,000,000 for fiscal year 1995 and such sums as may
be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.''.
``TITLE XII--URBAN AND RURAL EDUCATION ASSISTANCE
``PART A--URBAN EDUCATION DEMONSTRATION GRANTS
``SEC. 12000. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``(a) Demonstration Grants.--(1) There is authorized to be
appropriated $200,000,000 for fiscal year 1995, and such sums
as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1996 through
1999 to carry out the provisions of sections 12003 and 12103.
``(2) 50 percent of the amount appropriated under paragraph
(1) shall be reserved and made available only for the
purposes of section 12103. If the amount reserved for any
fiscal year for section 12103 is less than $50,000,000, the
Secretary shall grant awards on a competitive basis to local
educational agencies serving rural areas, making such that
there is an equitable geographic distribution of such awards.
If the amount reserved for any fiscal year for section 12103
exceeds $50,000,000, the Secretary shall grant awards in such
a manner that a local educational agency serving rural areas
in each State receives such an award.
``(3) 50 percent of the amount appropriated under paragraph
(1) shall be reserved and made available only for the
purposes of section 12003.
``(b) Higher Education and Research Grants.--(1) There are
authorized to be appropriated $50,000,000 for fiscal year
1995, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the
fiscal years 1996 through 1999 to carry out the provisions of
sections 12004 and 12104.
``(2) 50 percent of the amount appropriated under paragraph
(1) shall be reserved and made available only for the
purposes of section 12004.
``(3) 50 percent of the amount appropriated under paragraph
(1) shall be reserved and made available only for the
purposes of section 12104.
(c) Commissions.--``There are authorized to be appropriated
for fiscal years 1995, 1996, and 1997 such sums as may be
necessary to carry out the provisions of sections 12006 and
12105. Amounts appropriated pursuant to this authority shall
remain available until expended.
``(d) Evaluation.--There are authorized to be appropriated
for each of the fiscal years 1995 through 1999 such sums as
may be necessary to carry out the provisions of section
12005.
``SEC. 12001. FINDINGS.
``The Congress finds that--
``(1) the ability of the Nation's major urban school
systems to meet the Nation's educational goals will determine
the country's economic competitiveness and academic standing
in the world community;
``(2) the quality of public education in the Nation's major
urban areas has a direct effect on the economic development
of the Nation's inner cities;
``(3) the success of urban schools in boosting the
achievement of its minority youth attending such schools will
determine the ability of the Nation to close the gap between
the `haves and have-nots' in society;
``(4) the cost to America's businesses to provide remedial
education to high school graduates is approximately
$21,000,000,000 per year;
``(5) approximately \1/3\ of the Nation's work force will
be minority by the year 2000;
``(6) urban schools enroll a disproportionately large share
of the Nation's poor and `at-risk' youth;
``(7) urban schools enroll approximately \1/3\ of Nation's
poor, 40 percent of the Nation's African American children,
and 30 percent of the Nation's Hispanic youth;
``(8) nearly 20 percent of the Nation's limited English
proficient children and 15 percent of the Nation's disabled
youth are enrolled in urban schools;
``(9) the academic performance of students in the average
inner-city public school system is below that of students in
most other kinds of school systems;
``(10) urban schools systems have higher dropout rates,
more problems with health care and less parental
participation than other kinds of school systems;
``(11) urban preschoolers have one-half the access to early
childhood development programs as do other children;
``(12) shortages of teachers in urban school systems are
2.5 times greater than such shortages in other kinds of
school systems;
``(13) declining numbers of urban minority high school
graduates are pursuing postsecondary educational
opportunities;
``(14) urban schools systems have greater problems with
teen pregnancy, discipline, drug abuse and gangs than do
other kinds of school systems;
``(15) 75 percent of urban school buildings are over 25
years old, 33 percent of such buildings are over 50 years
old, and such buildings are often in serious disrepair and
create poor and demoralizing working and learning conditions;
``(16) solving the challenges facing our Nation's urban
schools will require the concerted and collaborative efforts
of all levels of government and all sectors of the community;
``(17) State and Federal funding or urban schools has not
adequately reflected need; and
``(18) Federal funding that is well targeted, flexible and
accountable would contribute significantly to addressing the
comprehensive needs of inner-city schools.
``SEC. 12002. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.
``It is the purpose of this Act to provide financial
assistance to--
``(1) assist urban schools in meeting national education
goals;
``(2) improve the educational and social well being of
urban public school children;
``(3) close the achievement gap between urban and nonurban
school children, while improving the achievement level of all
children nationally;
``(4) renovate and repair urban school buildings and
facilities;
``(5) conduct coordinated research on urban education
problems, solutions and promising practices;
``(6) improve the Nation's global economic and educational
competitiveness by improving the country's urban schools;
``(7) encourage community, parental and business
collaboration in the improvement or urban schools; and
``(8) review regulations whose simplification might improve
the achievement of urban school children.
``SEC. 12003. URBAN EDUCATION DEMONSTRATION GRANTS.
``(a) Authority.--The Secretary is authorized to make
grants to eligible local educational agencies serving an
urban area or State educational agencies in the case where
the State educational agency is the local educational agency
for activities designed to assist in local school improvement
efforts and school reform, and to assist the schools of such
agencies in meeting the National Education Goals.
``(b) Authorized Activities.--Funds under this section may
be used to--
``(1) increase academic achievement or urban school
children;
``(2) ensure the readiness of urban children for school;
``(3) increase the graduation rates of urban students;
``(4) prepare urban school graduates to enter higher
education, pursue careers, and exercise their
responsibilities as citizens;
``(5) recruit and retain qualified teachers, particularly
minority teachers and teachers specializing in areas of
critical shortage;
``(6) provide for ongoing staff development to increase the
professional capacities of the teaching staff and the skills
of teacher aides and paraprofessionals;
``(7) decrease the use of drugs and alcohol among urban
students and to ensure the physical and emotional well-being
of such students in a bias-free school environment;
``(8) coordinate and collaborate with parents, the
community, the private sector, and with other service
providers and programs;
``(9) acquire and improve access to educational technology;
and
``(10) assist the schools most in need of services by
replicating successful efforts of other urban local
educational agencies and expanding successful programs within
the eligible agency.
``(c) General Provisions.--An eligible local educational
agency desiring to receive a grant under this section shall
submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such
manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary
may reasonably require, consistent with this section.
``(d) Definitions.--Except as otherwise provided, for the
purposes of this part--
``(1) Central city.--The term `central city' has the same
meaning as that used by the United States Census Bureau.
``(2) Eligible local educational agency.--The term
`eligible local educational agency' means a local educational
agency which--
``(A) serves the largest central city in a State;
``(B) enrolls more than 30,000 students and serves a
central city with a population of at least 200,000 in a
metropolitan statistical area; or
``(C) enrolls between 25,000 and 30,000 students and serves
a central city with a population of at least 140,000 in a
metropolitan statistical area.
``(3) Metropolitan statistical area.--The term
`metropolitan statistical area' has the same meaning as that
used by the United States Census Bureau.
``SEC. 12004. RESEARCH AND EVALUATION GRANTS.
``The Secretary is authorized to make grants and enter into
contracts with eligible local educational agencies, and
institutions of higher education jointly with eligible local
educational agencies to conduct research and evaluate
programs for improving and reforming the Nation's urban
schools.
``SEC. 12005. USE OF FUNDS.
``Funds allotted to eligible local educational agencies and
institutions of higher education under section 12004 may be
used for--
``(1) collaborative and coordinated research and evaluation
of educational techniques or approaches used in multiple
eligible local educational agencies;
``(2) evaluation of projects assisted under title I;
``(3) collection and dissemination of information on
successful projects and approaches assisted under title I;
``(4) design and implementation of extension service
programs to allow an eligible local educational agency to
provide technical assistance to individual schools and
teachers involved in projects assisted under title I;
``(5) provision of data and information management services
to individual schools assisted under title I;
``(6) provision of staff training in schools assisted under
title I;
``(7) evaluation of progress made by eligible local
educational agencies assisted under this Act in meeting
national education goals;
``(8) provision of staff training in test interpretation
and use for diagnostic purposes;
``(9) provision of information to parents on test results
and test interpretation;
``(10) provision of technology and training in its research
and evaluation uses;
``(11) development of assessment tools of students in
individualized instruction;
``(12) research on school policies and practices which may
be barriers to the success of students in school; and
``(13) development and testing of new multiple, alternative
assessments of student progress toward the national education
goals which are race and gender bias-free and sensitive to
limited-English proficient and disabled students.
``SEC. 12006. AUGUSTUS F. HAWKINS NATIONAL COMMISSION ON
URBAN EDUCATION.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established a National
Commission on Urban Education (in this Act referred to as the
`Commission').
``(b) Membership.--
``(1) In general.--The Commission shall be composed of 12
members as follows:
``(A) 4 of the Members shall be appointed by the President.
``(B) 4 of the Members shall be appointed by the Speaker of
the House, including 2 Members of the House, of which 1 shall
be from each political party.
``(C) 4 of the members shall be appointed by the President
pro tempore of the Senate, including 2 Members of the Senate,
of which 1 shall be from each political party.
``(2) Chairperson.--The Chairperson of the Commission shall
be elected by the members of the Commission and shall
continue to serve for the duration of the Commission.
``(3) Vacancies.--Any vacancy in the Commission shall be
filled in the same manner as the original appointment.
``(c) Duties.--The Commission shall study the following
issues:
``(1) Demographic changes.--Demographic changes in student
enrollment and classroom teachers in the 10-year period prior
to the date of enactment of this Act.
``(2) Special needs.--Numbers and types of special needs of
students in urban schools.
``(3) Unserved or underserved students.--Number of unserved
or underserved students in urban schools eligible for
assistance under the Head Start Act, chapter 1 of title 1 of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, School
Dropout Demonstration Assistance Act of 1988, Drug Free
Schools and Communities Act of 1986. Carl D. Perkins
Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act, Education of
the Handicapped Act and other Federal programs.
``(4) student performance.--Program and management efforts
in urban schools designed to enhance student performance, and
reasons for the effectiveness of such efforts.
``(5) Financial support.--Financial support and funding
needs of urban schools from local, State, and Federal
sources.
``(6) Collaborate efforts.--Collaborative efforts and
programs between urban schools, the private sector, and
community groups.
``(7) Supply needs.--Supply needs for teachers in urban
schools in the 10-year period beginning on the date of
enactment of this Act.
``(d) Reports.--
``(1) In general.--The Commission shall submit a report
that includes recommendations to the President and to the
appropriate committees of the Congress on the findings of the
study required by this section. The report shall be submitted
as soon as practicable.
``(2) Proposal for changes in federal legislation.--The
report submitted under this section shall include proposals
for changes in Federal legislation.
``(e) Staff.--Such personnel as the Commission deems
necessary may be appointed by the Commission without regard
to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing
appointments in the competitive service, and may be paid
without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subtitle
III of chapter 53 of such title relating to classification
and General Schedule pay rates, but no individual so
appointed shall be paid in excess of the rate of basic pay
for level III of the Executive Schedule.
``(f) Compensation.--
``(1) In general.--Members of the Commission who are
officers or full-time employees of the United States shall
receive no additional pay, allowances, or benefits by reason
of their service on the Commission.
``(2) Travel expenses.--Each member shall receive travel
expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as
authorized by section 5702 and 5703 of title 5, United States
Code.
``(3) Special rule.--Members of the Commission who are not
officers or full-time employees of the United States may
receive a per diem and travel allowance as is provided by the
United States Code for persons in the Government service
employed intermittently.
``(g) Administration.--
``(1) In general.--The Commission or, on the authorization
of the Commission, any committee thereof, may, for the
purpose of carrying out the provisions of this section, hold
such hearings and site and act at such times and such places
within the United States as the Commission or such committee
considers advisable.
``(2) Consultation.--In carrying out its duties under this
section, the Commission shall consult with other Federal
agencies, representatives of State and local governments, and
private organizations to the extent feasible.
``(3) Information.--The Commission may secure directly from
any department or agency of the United States information
necessary to enable it to carry out this section. Upon
request of the Chairperson of the Commission, the head of
such department or agency shall furnish that information to
the Commission.
``(4) Contracts.--The Commission is authorized to enter
into contracts to secure the necessary data and information
to conduct its work and to obtain the services of experts and
consultants.
``(5) Cooperation.--The heads of all Federal agencies are,
to the extent practicable, directed to cooperate with the
Commission in carrying out this section.
``(6) Special rule.--The Commission is authorized to
utilize, with the consent of such agencies, the services,
personnel, information, and facilities of other Federal,
State, local, and private agencies with or without
reimbursement.
``(h) Termination.--The Commission shall terminate 3 years
after the date of its first meeting.
``SEC. 12007. EVALUATION.
``The Secretary is authorized directly, or through grants
or contracts to evaluate the programs and activities funded
under this title, broadly disseminate such information to
other school districts, and to report the results of such
evaluation to the Education and Labor Committee of the House
of Representatives and the Labor and Human Resources
Committee of the Senate.
``PART B--RURAL EDUCATION DEMONSTRATION GRANTS
``SEC. 12101. FINDINGS.
``The Congress finds that--
``(1) rural schools are essential to national efforts to
meet the National Education Goals;
``(2) approximately 60 percent of the Nation's public
school districts are rural, with populations of less than
2,500;
``(3) about 1 out of every 4 of America's rural school
children are living below the poverty level;
``(4) the quality of public education in rural areas has a
direct effect on the economic development of our country's
rural communities;
``(5) the academic performance of students in the average
rural school system is below that of students in most other
suburban school systems;
``(6) the average age of rural public school buildings is
more than 45 years old, creating poor and demoralizing
working and learning conditions;
``(7) shortages of teachers for rural school systems is
greater than in other kinds of school systems;
``(8) solving the challenges facing the Nation's rural
schools will require the concerted and collaborative efforts
of all levels of government and all sectors of the education
community; and
``(9) additional Federal funding would contribute
significantly to addressing the comprehensive needs of rural
schools.
``SEC. 12102. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.
``It is the purpose of this part to provide financial
assistance to rural schools to encourage innovative school
reform programs, the enhanced use of telecommunications
technology for learning, and inservice training and teacher
recruitment initiatives in cooperation with institutions of
higher education designed to augment local school improvement
activities.
``SEC. 12103. RURAL SCHOOL GRANTS.
``(a) Authority.--The Secretary is authorized to make
grants to local education agencies serving rural areas or
State educational agencies in the case where the State
educational agency is the local educational agency for
activities designed to assist in local school improvement
efforts.
``(b) Authorized Activities.--Funds under this title may be
used to--
``(1) assist rural schools in meeting National Education
goals and undertaking local school improvement initiatives;
``(2) develop pilot projects that experiment with
innovative ways to teach rural public school children more
effectively;
``(3) encourage rural school consortia for the purpose of
increasing efficiency and course offerings;
``(4) provide meaningful inservice training opportunities
for rural public school teachers; and
``(5) assist rural schools in acquiring and improving
access to educational technology, including distance learning
technologies.
``(c) General Provisions.--Each eligible entity desiring a
grant under this title shall submit an application to the
Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by
such information as the Secretary may reasonably require.
Awards made by the Secretary shall be of sufficient size and
scope to achieve significant rural school improvement.
``SEC. 12104. HIGHER EDUCATION GRANTS.
``(a) Grants.--The Secretary is authorized to make grants
to institutions of higher education, consortia of such
institutions, or partnerships between institutions of higher
education and local education agencies to assist rural
schools and local education agencies serving rural areas in
undertaking local school improvement activities.
``(b) Authorized Activities.--Funds under this section may
be used to--
``(1) assist rural schools in meeting National Education
Goals;
``(2) assist in the recruitment and training of teachers in
rural schools;
``(3) assist rural schools in the development of
appropriate innovative school improvement initiatives;
``(4) provide inservice training opportunities for teachers
in rural schools; and
``(5) provide technical assistance in the use and
installation of innovative telecommunications technology.
``(c) General Provisions.--Each eligible entity desiring a
grant under this section shall submit an application to the
Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by
such information as the Secretary may reasonably require.
``SEC. 12105. NATIONAL COMMISSION ON RURAL EDUCATION.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established a National
Commission on Rural Education.
``(b) Membership.--The Commission shall be composed of 12
members, 4 of whom shall be appointed by the President of the
United States, 4 of whom shall be appointed by the Speaker of
the House upon the recommendation of the majority leader and
the minority leader, and 4 of whom shall be appointed by the
President pro tempore of the Senate upon the recommendation
of the majority leader and the minority leader. A majority of
the members of the Commission shall be individuals involved
in rural education, with at least 2 individuals involved in
rural postsecondary education. The Chair of the Commission
shall be elected by the President from among his 4 appointees
and shall continue to serve during the duration of the
Commission. Vacancies in the Commission shall be filled in
the same manner as the original appointment.
``(c) Studies.--The Commission shall conduct a full and
complete study on the State of rural education in America.
Included in this analysis should be the impact of demographic
changes in rural schools, the special needs of these schools,
the current and future teacher needs of these schools, the
effectiveness of existing Federal education programs in
meeting the needs of these schools, the adequacy of financial
support for these schools, and any other issues that the
Commission deems to be important and essential for a complete
and exhaustive examination of the state and condition of
rural schools in America.
``(d) Staff.--The Commission may appoint such staff as may
be necessary by the Chair without regard to the provisions of
title 5, United States Code, governing appointments in the
competitive service, and may pay such staff without regard to
the provisions of chapter 51 of subchapter III of chapter 53
of such title relating to classification and General Schedule
pay rates, but no individual so appointed shall be paid in
excess of the rate authorized for GS-18 of the General
Schedule.
``(e) Compensation and Expenses.--(1) Members of the
Commission who are officers or full-time employees of the
United States shall serve without compensation in addition to
that received for their services as officers and employees of
the United States. Such members may be allowed travel
expenses and per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized
by section 5703 of title 5, United States Code.
``(2) Members of the Commission who are not officers or
full-time employees of the United States may each receive per
diem and travel allowance as is provided by the United States
Code for persons in the Government service employed
intermittently.
``(f) Administration.--(1) The Commission may organize
itself in whatever manner is most appropriate for the conduct
of its activities. It may hold such hearings and act at such
time and such places within the United States as it may
consider advisable. In carrying out its duties, the
Commission may consult with other Federal agencies,
representatives of State and local governments, and private
organizations to the extent feasible.
``(2) The Commission is authorized to secure directly from
any executive department, bureau, agency, board, commission,
office, independent establishment, or instrumentality,
information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics for the
purpose of this section, and each such department, bureau,
agency, board, commission, office, independent establishment,
or instrumentality is authorized and directed, to the extent
permitted by law, to furnish such information, suggestions,
estimates, and statistics directly to the Commission, upon
request by the Chair.
``(3) The Commission may enter into contracts for the
acquisition of information, suggestions, estimates, and
statistics for the purpose of this section. The Commission is
authorized to obtain the services of experts and consultants
without regard to section 3109 of title 5, United States
Code, and to set pay in accordance with such section.
``(4) The head of such Federal agency shall, to the extent
not prohibited by law, cooperate with the Commission in
carrying out this section. The Commission is authorized to
utilize, with their consent, the services, personnel,
information, and facilities of other Federal, State, local,
and private agencies with or without reimbursement.
``(g) Final Report.--The Commission shall report to
Congress its findings not later than 3 years after the date
of enactment of this Act. Such report may include legislative
recommendations. The Commission may make whatever interim
reports to Congress that it deems necessary.''.
TITLE II--AMENDMENTS TO THE GENERAL EDUCATION PROVISIONS ACT
PART A--APPLICABILITY OF THE GENERAL EDUCATION PROVISIONS ACT
SEC. 211. TITLE; APPLICABILITY; DEFINITIONS.
Section 400 of the General Education Provisions Act (20
U.S.C. 1221 et seq.; referred to in this title as ``the
Act'') is amended to read as follows:
``title; applicability; definitions
``Sec. 400. (a) This title may be cited as the `General
Education Provisions Act'.
``(b)(1) Except as otherwise provided, this title applies
to each applicable program of the Department of Education.
``(2) Except as otherwise provided, this title does not
apply to any contract made by the Department of Education.
``(c) As used in this title, the following terms have the
following meanings:
``(1) The term `applicable program' means any program for
which the Secretary or the Department has administrative
responsibility as provided by law or by delegation of
authority pursuant to law. The term includes each program for
which the Secretary or the Department has administrative
responsibility under the Department of Education Organization
Act or under statutes effective after the effective date of
that Act.
``(2) The term `applicable statute' means--
``(A) the Act or the title, part, section, or any other
subdivision of an Act, as the case may be, that authorizes
the appropriation for an applicable program;
``(B) this title; and
``(C) any other statute that by its terms expressly
controls the administration of an applicable program.
``(3) The term `Department' means the Department of
Education.
``(4) The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of
Education.
``(d) Nothing in this title shall be construed to affect
the applicability of title VI of the Civil Rights Act of
1964, title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, title V
of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Age Discrimination
Act, or other statutes prohibiting discrimination, to any
applicable program.''.
SEC. 212. REPEAL AND REDESIGNATION.
(a) The following provisions of the Act are repealed:
(1) Sections 400A, 401, 402, 405, 406, 406A, 406B, 406C,
407, 413, 416, 419, 421, 423, 424, 426A, and 429; and
(2) part D.
(b) Sections 403, 408, 409, 411, 412, 414, 415, 417, 420,
421A, 422, 425, 426, 427, 428, 430, 431, 432, 433, 434, 435,
436, 437, 438, 439, and 440 are redesignated as 401, 410,
411, 420, 421, 422, 423, 425, 426, 430, 431, 432, 433, 434,
435, 436, 437, 438, 439, 440, 441, 442, 443, 444, 445, and
446 respectively.
(c) Part E is redesignated as part D.
PART B--THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
SEC. 221. NEW HEADING FOR PART A.
The heading for part A of the Act is amended to read as
follows:
``Part A--Functions of the Department of Education''.
SEC. 222. OFFICE OF NON-PUBLIC EDUCATION.
Section 401 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended by--
(1) striking the heading of such section and inserting the
following new heading:
``office of non-public education''.
(2) striking subsections (a), (b), and (c); and
(3) striking ``(d)(1) There'' and inserting ``Sec. 401 (1)
There''.
SEC. 223. GENERAL AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.
Section 410 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended to read
as follows:
``general authority of the secretary
``Sec. 410. The Secretary, in order to carry out functions
otherwise vested by law or by delegation of authority
pursuant to law, and subject to limitations as may be
otherwise imposed by law, is authorized to make, promulgate,
issue, rescind, and amend rules and regulations governing the
manner of operation of, and governing the applicable programs
administered by, the Department.''.
SEC. 224. COORDINATION.
The Act is amended by inserting the following new section
412:
``coordination
``Sec. 412. The Advisory Council on Education Statistics,
the National Education Goals Panel, the National Education
Statistics and Improvement Council, and any other Board
established to analyze, address, or approve standards and
assessments shall coordinate and interact with one another in
order to ensure that each entity does not duplicate
activities to assist States in their efforts to reform their
educational systems.''.
PART C--APPROPRIATIONS AND EVALUATIONS
SEC. 230. FORWARD FUNDING.
Section 420 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended to read
as follows:
``forward funding
``Sec. 420. (a) To the end of affording the responsible
State, local, and Federal officers adequate notice of
available Federal financial assistance for carrying out
ongoing education activities and projects, appropriations for
grants, contracts, or other payments under any applicable
program are authorized to be included in the appropriations
Act for the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year during
which such activities and projects shall be carried out.
``(b) In order to effect a transition to the timing of
appropriation action authorized by subsection (a), the
application of this section may result in the enactment, in a
fiscal year, of separate appropriations for an applicable
program (whether in the same appropriations Act or otherwise)
for 2 consecutive fiscal years.''.
SEC. 231. AVAILABILITY OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) The heading for section 421 of the Act (as
redesignated) is amended to read as follows: ``availability
of appropriations on academic or school-year basis;
additional period for expenditure of funds''.
(b) Section 421 of the Act (as redesignated) is further
amended--
(1) in subsection (b) by striking ``(b) Notwithstanding''
and inserting ``(b)(1) Notwithstanding''; and
(2) in subsection (c) by striking ``section 3679(d)(2) of
the Revised Statutes'' and inserting ``section 1341(a) of
title 31 of the United States Code''.
SEC. 232. CONTINGENT EXTENSION OF PROGRAMS.
Section 422 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended to read
as follows:
``contingent extension of programs
``Sec. 422. (a) The authorization of appropriations for, or
duration of, an applicable program shall be automatically
extended for one additional fiscal year unless Congress, in
the regular session that ends prior to the beginning of the
terminal fiscal year of such authorization or duration, has
passed legislation that becomes law and extends or repeals
the authorization or duration of such program.
``(b) The amount authorized to be appropriated for the
period of automatic extension of an applicable program under
subsection (a) shall be the amount that was authorized to be
appropriated for that program during its terminal fiscal
year.
``(c) During the period of automatic extension of an
applicable program under subsection (a), the Secretary shall
administer such program, including the performance of all
required acts and determinations, in the same manner required
in the termination fiscal year by the applicable statute.
``(d) This section shall not apply to the authorization of
appropriations for a commission, council or committee which
is required by an applicable statute to terminate on a date
certain.''.
SEC. 233. STATE REPORTS.
Subpart 2 of part B of the Act is amended by inserting the
following new section 424 at the beginning of such subpart.
``responsibility of states to furnish information
``Sec. 424. (a) Each State educational agency shall submit
to the Secretary a report on or before March 15 of every
second year. Each such report shall include--
``(1) information with respect to the uses of Federal funds
in such State in the 2 preceding fiscal years under any
applicable program under the jurisdiction of the State
educational agency; and
``(2) information with respect to the uses of Federal funds
in such State in the 2 preceding fiscal years under any
Federal program administered by the State that provided
grants or contracts to a local educational agency in the
State.
``(b) Each report submitted as required by subsection (a)
shall--
``(1) list, with respect to each program for which
information is provided, all grants made to and contracts
entered into with local educational agencies and other public
and private agencies and institutions within the State during
each fiscal year concerned;
``(2) analyze the information included in the report by
local educational agency and by program;
``(3) include the total amount of funds available to the
State under each such program for each fiscal year concerned;
and
``(4) be made readily available by the State to local
educational agencies and institutions within the State and to
the public.
``(c) If the Secretary does not receive a report by the
date required under subsection (a), or receives an incomplete
report, the Secretary, not later than 30 days after such
report is required to be submitted, shall take all reasonable
measures to obtain the delinquent or incomplete information
from the State educational agency.
``(d) When the Secretary receives a report required under
subsection (a), the Secretary shall provide such information
to the National Center for Education Statistics, and shall
make such information available, at a reasonable cost, to any
individual who requests it.
``(e) The Secretary shall consult with the Speaker and
Minority Leader of the House of Representatives and the
Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate regarding the
costs and feasibility of making the information described in
subsection (a) available as part of a telecommunications
network that is readily accessible to every member of
Congress and other interested parties.
``(f) On or before August 15th of each year in which
reports are submitted under subsection (a), the Secretary
shall submit a report to the Committee on Education and Labor
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Labor
and Human Resources of the Senate. Such report shall
include--
``(1) an analysis of the content and data quality of such
reports;
``(2) a compilation of statistical data derived from such
reports; and
``(3) information obtained by the Secretary with respect
to--
``(A) direct grants made to local educational agencies by
the Federal Government; and
``(B) contracts entered into between such agencies and the
Federal Government.''.
SEC. 234. BIENNIAL EVALUATION REPORT.
Section 425 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended to read
as follows:
``biennial evaluation report
``Sec. 425. Not later than March 31 of each second year
beginning with 1995, the Secretary shall transmit to the
Committee on Education and Labor of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Labor and Human
Resources of the Senate an evaluation report on the
effectiveness of applicable programs during the two preceding
fiscal years in achieving their legislated purposes. Such
report shall--
``(1) contain program profiles that include legislative
citations, multi-year funding histories, and legislated
purposes;
``(2) contain recent evaluation information on the progress
being made toward the achievement of program objectives,
including listings of program performance indicators, data
from performance measurement based on the indicators,
evaluation information on the costs and benefits of the
applicable programs being evaluated.
``(3) contain selected significant program activities, such
as initiatives for program improvement, regulations, and
program monitoring and evaluation;
``(4) list the principal analyses and studies supporting
the major conclusions in such report; and
``(5) be prepared in concise summary form with necessary
detailed data and appendices, including available data to
indicate the effectiveness of the programs and projects by
the race, sex, disability and age of their beneficiaries.''.
SEC. 235. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.
(a) Section 423 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended by
striking ``Commissioner'' and inserting ``Secretary''.
(b) Section 426 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended
by--
(1) striking ``title I of'' and all that follows through
``Congress)'' and inserting ``title VIII of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965''; and
(2) striking ``subparagraph (C) of section 3(d)(2) or
section 403(1)(C)'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``sections
8003(c) or residing on property described in section
8012(4)(B)(ii)''.
SEC. 236. COORDINATION.
The National Assessment Governing Board, the Advisory
Council on Statistics, the National Education Goals Panel,
the National Education Statistics and Improvement Council,
and any other Board established to analyze, address, or
approve standards and assessments shall coordinate and
interact with one another in order to ensure that each entity
does not duplicate activities to assist States in their
efforts to reform their educational systems.
PART D--ADMINISTRATION OF EDUCATION PROGRAMS
SEC. 241. JOINT FUNDING OF PROGRAMS.
Section 430 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended to read
as follows:
``joint funding of programs
``Sec. 430. (a)(1) The Secretary is authorized to enter
into arrangements with other Federal agencies to jointly
carry out projects of common interest, to transfer to such
agencies funds appropriated under any applicable program, and
to receive and use funds from such agencies, for projects of
common interest.
``(2) Funds so transferred or received shall be used only
in accordance with the statutes authorizing the appropriation
of such funds, and shall be made available by contract or
grant only to recipients eligible to receive such funds under
such statutes.
``(3) If the Secretary enters into an agreement under this
subsection for the administration of a project, the agency
administering the project shall use its procedures to award
contracts or grants and to administer such awards, unless the
parties to the agreement specify the use of procedures of
another agency that is a party to the agreement.
``(4) If the Secretary has entered into an agreement
authorized under subsection (a) of this section and the
Secretary and the heads of the other agencies participating
in the agreement determine that joint funding is necessary to
address a special need consistent with the purposes and
authorized activities of each program that provides funding,
the Secretary and the heads of the other participating
agencies may develop a single set of criteria for jointly
funded projects and require each applicant for those projects
to submit a single application for review by the
participating agencies.
``(b) The Secretary may develop the criteria for, and
require the submission of, joint applications under two or
more applicable programs under which awards are made on a
competitive basis, and may jointly review and approve such
applications separately from other applications under such
programs, when the Secretary determines that such joint
awards are necessary to address a special need consistent
with the purposes and authorized activities of each such
program. An applicant for such a joint award must meet the
eligibility requirements of each such program.
``(c) The Secretary may not construe the provisions of this
section to take precedence over a limitation on joint funding
contained in an applicable statute.
``(d)(1) The Secretary shall provide notice to the
Committee on Education and Labor of the House of
Representatives and to the Committee on Labor and Human
Resources of the Senate of each joint funding agreement made
with other Federal agencies not later than 60 days following
the making of such agreements.
``(2) Such notice shall include--
``(A) a description of the purpose and objectives of the
joint funding arrangement;
``(B) the amounts and sources, by program, of the funds
dedicated to such arrangement; and
``(C) the criteria developed to govern the award of
contracts and grants.''.
SEC. 242. COLLECTION AND DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.
Section 431 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended by--
(1) striking ``(a) The Commissioner'' and inserting ``The
Secretary'';
(2) inserting ``and'' at the end of paragraph (2);
(3) striking ``; and'' at the end of paragraph (3) and
inserting ``.''; and
(4) striking paragraph (4) and subsections (b) and (c).
SEC. 243. REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.
(a) Section 432 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking ``Commissioner'' and inserting
``Secretary'';
(B) by striking ``and in the case of the program provided
for in title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965,'';
(C) in the third sentence thereof, by inserting a comma
after ``the hearing''; and
(D) in the fourth sentence thereof--
(i) by striking the comma after ``guidelines''; and
(ii) by inserting a comma after ``program'';
(2) in subsection (b), by striking ``Commissioner'' each
place it appears and inserting ``Secretary''; and
(3) in subsection (d), by striking ``Commissioner'' each
time it appears and inserting ``Secretary'' and by inserting
before the period ``or issue such other orders as the
Secretary may deem appropriate to achieve such compliance''.
(b) All statistics and other data collection and analysis
reported under this section shall, whenever feasible, be
collected cross-tabulated, analyzed, and reported by sex
within race or ethnicity and socioeconomic status. In the
event that the Secretary determines that such statistics or
data collection and analysis reveals no significant
differences among such categories, the Secretary shall
include in the relevant report incorporating such statistics
or data an explanation of such determination.
SEC. 244. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.
Section 434 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended in the
first sentence by striking ``the Commissioner'' and ``he''
and inserting ``the Secretary'' in lieu of each.
SEC. 245. USE OF FUNDS WITHHELD.
Section 435 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended to read
as follows:
``use of funds withheld
``Sec. 435. (a) At any time that the Secretary makes an
allotment or reallotment to any State under any applicable
program, the Secretary shall reduce such allotment or
reallotment by such amount as the Secretary determines such
allotment or reallotment would have been reduced, had the
data on which the allotment or reallotment is based excluded
all data relating to local educational agencies of the State
that, on the date of the Secretary's action, are ineligible
to receive the Federal financial assistance involved because
of failure to comply with title VI of the Civil Rights Act of
1964, title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, or the Age
Discrimination Act of 1975.
``(b) The Secretary may use any funds withheld under
subsection (a)--
``(1) to increase the allotments of other local educational
agencies within the State, or the allotments of all States,
in accordance with the statutes governing the program; or
``(2) for grants to local educational agencies of that
State in accordance with section 405 of the Civil Rights Act
of 1964, or for any other program administered by the
Department that is designed to enhance equity in education or
redress discrimination on the basis of race, color, national
origin, sex, age, or disability.''.
SEC. 246. APPLICATIONS.
Section 436 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended by
striking ``for three fiscal years'' and inserting ``for more
than one fiscal year''.
SEC. 247. REGULATIONS.
Section 437 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended--
(1) in the heading by striking ``: requirements and
enforcement'';
(2) in subsection (a) by--
(A) striking, in paragraph (1), ``Commissioner'' and
inserting ``Secretary''; and
(B) striking, in paragraph (2), ``Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare or the Office of Education, or by an
official of such agencies'' and inserting ``Secretary'';
(3) in subsection (b) by--
(A) striking ``Commissioner'' each place it appears and
inserting ``Secretary''; and
(B) striking the last sentence of paragraph (2)(B);
(4) in subsection (d) by--
(A) striking, in paragraph (1)--
(i) in the second sentence, ``transmission unless the
Congress shall, by concurrent resolution, find that the final
regulation is inconsistent with the Act from which it derives
its authority, and disapprove such final regulation, in whole
or in part'' and insert ``transmission'';
(ii) the last sentence; and
(iii) ``(1)'';
(B) striking paragraph (2);
(5) by striking subsections (e) and (f); and
(6) in subsection (g), by striking ``Commissioner'' each
place it appears and inserting ``Secretary''.
SEC. 248. RECORDS; REDUCTION IN RETENTION REQUIREMENTS.
Section 443 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking out ``grant, subgrant, contract,
subcontract, loan, or other arrangement (other than
procurement contracts awarded by an administrative head of an
educational agency)'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``grant,
subgrant, cooperative agreement, loan or other agreement'';
(B) by inserting ``financial or programmatic'' immediately
before ``audit.''; and
(C) by striking ``five'' in the last sentence and inserting
``three''; and
(2) in subsection (b), by striking out ``to any records of
a recipient which may be related, or pertinent to, the
grants, subgrants, contracts, subcontracts, loans, or other
arrangements'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``to any records
currently maintained by a recipient that may be related, or
pertinent to, grants, subgrants, cooperative agreements,
loans, or other arrangements''.
SEC. 249. RELEASE OF RECORDS.
Section 444(b)(1)(E) of the Act (as redesignated) is
amended to read as follows:
``(E) State and local officials or authorities to whom such
information is specifically allowed to be reported or
disclosed pursuant to State statute adopted--
``(i) before November 19, 1974, if the allowed reporting or
disclosure concerns the juvenile justice system and its
ability to effectively serve the student whose records are
released, or
``(ii) after November 19, 1974, if--
``(I) the allowed reporting or disclosure concerns the
juvenile justice system and its ability to effectively serve
the student whose records are released, and
``(II) the officials and authorities to whom such
information is disclosed certify in writing to the
educational agency or institution that the information will
not be disclosed to any other party except as provided under
State law without the prior written consent of the parent.''.
SEC. 250. PROTECTION OF PUPIL RIGHTS.
Section 445 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended to read
as follows:
``protection of pupil rights
``Sec. 445. (a) All instructional materials, including
teacher's manuals, films, tapes, or other supplementary
material which will be used in connection with any survey,
analysis, or evaluation as part of any applicable program
shall be available for inspection by the parents or guardians
of the children.
``(b) No student shall be required, as part of any
applicable program, to submit to a survey, analysis, or
evaluation that reveals information concerning--
``(1) political affiliations;
``(2) mental and psychological problems potentially
embarrassing to the student or his family;
``(3) sex behavior and attitudes;
``(4) illegal, antisocial, self-incriminating, and
demeaning behavior;
``(5) critical appraisals of other individuals with whom
respondents have close family relationships;
``(6) legally recognized privileged or analogous
relationships, such as those of lawyers, physicians, and
ministers; or
``(7) income (other than that required by law to determine
eligibility for participation in a program or for receiving
financial assistance under such program),
without the prior consent of the student (if the student is
an adult or emancipated minor), or in the case of an
unemancipated minor, without the prior written consent of the
parent.
``(c) Educational agencies and institutions shall give
parents and students effective notice of their rights under
this section.
``(d) The Secretary shall take such action as the Secretary
determines appropriate to enforce this section, except that
action to terminate assistance provided under an applicable
program shall be taken only if the Secretary determines
that--
``(1) there has been a failure to comply with such section;
and
``(2) compliance with such section cannot be secured by
voluntary means.
``(e) The Secretary shall establish or designate an office
and review board within the Department of Education to
investigate, process, review, and adjudicate violations of
the rights established under this section.''.
SEC. 251. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Section 452 of the Act is amended--
(1) in the first sentence of paragraph (2) of subsection
(a), by striking ``stating'' and all that follows through the
end of such sentence and inserting ``establishing a prima
facia case for the recovery of funds, including an analysis
reflecting the value of the program services actually
obtained in a determination of harm to the federal
interest.'';
(2) in the first sentence of paragraph (1) of subsection
(b), by striking ``30'' and inserting ``60''; and
(3) in subsection (d) by--
(A) striking ``(d) Upon'' and inserting ``(d)(1) Upon'';
(B) adding a new paragraph (2) as follows:
``(2) During the conduct of such review, there shall not
be any ex parte contact between the Secretary and individuals
representing the Department or the recipient.''.
(b) Section 459 of the Act is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1) of subsection (a) by striking ``, and
that the recipient is in all other respects in compliance
with the requirements of that program''; and
(2) subsection (c) is amended to read as follows:
``(c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, the
funds made available under this section shall remain
available for expenditure for a period of time deemed
reasonable by the Secretary, but in no case to exceed more
than 3 fiscal years following the later of--
``(1) the fiscal year in which final agency action under
section 452(e) is taken; or
``(2) if such recipient files a petition for judicial
review, the fiscal year in which final judical action under
section 458 is taken.''.
SEC. 252. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.
(a) The heading for Part C of the Act is amended by
striking ``Commissioner of Education'' and inserting
``Secretary''.
(b) Section 434 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended in
the second sentence thereof, by inserting ``is made'' after
``such determination''.
(c) Section 436 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended by
striking ``Commissioner'' each place it appears and inserting
``Secretary''.
(d)(1) The heading of section 440 of the Act (as
redesignated) is amended by striking ``educational''.
(2) Section 440 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended--
(A) by striking ``Commissioner'' each place it appears and
inserting ``Secretary''; and
(B) by inserting ``(c)'' before the last sentence and by
deleting ``paragraph (3)'' in such sentence and inserting
``subsection (b)(3)''.
(e) Section 441 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended--
(1) by striking ``Commissioner'' each place it appears and
inserting ``Secretary''; and
(2) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking the comma after ``submits a plan''; and
(B) by striking ``(subject, in the case of programs under
chapter 1 and chapter 2 of title I of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965, to the provisions of title V
of such Act)''.
(f) Section 442 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by striking ``that local education
agency'' and inserting ``that local educational agency''; and
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (2), by inserting a comma after
``program'';
(B) in paragraph (4), by striking ``Commissioner'' each
place it appears and inserting ``Secretary''; and
(C) in paragraph (7), by striking ``handicapped
individuals'' and inserting ``individuals with
disabilities''.
(g) Section 444 of the Act (as redesignated) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(4)(B)(ii), by striking the period at
the end thereof and inserting a semicolon;
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (1)(C), by striking ``(iii) an
administrative head of an education agency (as defined in
section 408(c)), or (iv)'' and inserting ``or (iii)'';
(B) in paragraph (1)(H), by striking ``1954'' and inserting
``1986''; and
(C) in paragraph (3)--
(i) by striking ``(C) an administrative head of an
education agency or (D)'' and inserting ``or (C)''; and
(ii) by striking ``education program'' and inserting
``education programs'';
(3) in subsection (d), by inserting a comma after
``education'';
(4) in subsection (f)--
(A) by striking ``The Secretary, or an administrative head
of an education agency,'' and inserting ``The Secretary'';
(B) by striking ``provisions of'' after ``enforce'';
(C) by striking ``according to the provisions of'' and
inserting ``in accordance with''; and
(D) by striking ``the provisions of'' after ``with''; and
(5) in subsection (g)--
(A) by striking ``Health, Education, and Welfare'' and
inserting ``Education''; and
(B) by striking ``the provisions of''.
SEC. 253. EQUITY FOR STUDENTS, TEACHERS, AND OTHER PROGRAM
BENEFICIARIES.
The Act is further amended by inserting after section 426
(as redesignated) a new section 427 to read as follows:
``equity for students, teachers, and other program beneficiaries
``Sec. 427. (a) The purpose of this section is to assist
the Department in implementing its mission to ensure equal
access to education and to promote educational excellence
throughout the Nation, by ensuring equal opportunities to
participate for all eligible students, teachers, and other
program beneficiaries in any project or activity carried out
under an applicable program and promoting their ability to
meet high standards.
``(b) The Secretary shall require each applicant for
assistance under an applicable program (other than an
individual) to develop and describe in its application the
steps it proposes to take to ensure equitable access to, and
equitable participation in, the project or activity to be
conducted with such assistance, by addressing the special
needs of students, teachers, and other program beneficiaries
in order to overcome barriers to equitable participation,
including barriers based on gender, race, color, national
origin, disability, and age.
``(c) The Secretary may establish criteria and provide
technical assistance for meeting the requirements of this
section.
``(d) Nothing in this section is intended to alter in any
way the rights or responsibilities established under the
statutes cited in section 400(d) of this Act.''.
PART E--RELATED AMENDMENTS TO OTHER ACTS
SEC. 261. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ORGANIZATION ACT
The Department of Education Organization Act is amended--
(1) by repealing sections 414 and 427;
(2) by redesignating sections 209, 210, 211, 212, 214, 215,
303, 304, 305, 306, 307, 415, 416, 417, 418, 419, 420, 421,
422, 423, 424, 425, 426, and 428 as sections 208, 209, 210,
211, 212, 213, 302, 303, 304, 305, 306, 414, 415, 416, 417,
418, 419, 420, 421, 422, 423, 424, 425, and 426;
(3) the table of contents is amended to read as follows:
``TABLE OF CONTENTS
``Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
``TITLE I--GENERAL PROVISIONS
``Sec. 101. Findings.
``Sec. 102. Purposes.
``Sec. 103. Federal-State Relationships.
``Sec. 104. Definitions.
``TITLE II--ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DEPARTMENT
``Sec. 201. Establishment.
``Sec. 202. Principal officers.
``Sec. 203. Office for Civil Rights.
``Sec. 204. Office of Elementary and Secondary Education.
``Sec. 205. Office of Postsecondary Education.
``Sec. 206. Office of Vocational and Adult Education.
``Sec. 207. Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
``Sec. 208. Office of Educational Research and Improvement.
``Sec. 209. Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Languages
Affairs.
``Sec. 210. Office of General Counsel.
``Sec. 211. Office of Inspector General.
``Sec. 212. Office of Correctional Education.
``Sec. 213. Federal Interagency Committee on Education.
``TITLE III--TRANSFERS OF AGENCIES AND FUNCTIONS
``Sec. 301. Transfers from the Department of Health, Education, and
Welfare.
``Sec. 302. Transfers from the Department of Labor.
``Sec. 303. Transfers of programs from the National Science Foundation.
``Sec. 304. Transfers from the Department of Justice.
``Sec. 305. Transfers from the Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
``Sec. 306. Effect of transfers.
``TITLE IV--ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
``Part A--Personnel Provisions
``Sec. 401. Officers and employees.
``Sec. 402. Experts and consultants.
``Sec. 403. Personnel reduction and annual limitations.
``Part B--General Administrative Provisions
``Sec. 411. General authority.
``Sec. 412. Delegation.
``Sec. 413. Reorganization.
``Sec. 414. Contracts.
``Sec. 415. Regional and field offices.
``Sec. 416. Acquisition and maintenance of property.
``Sec. 417. Facilities at remote locations.
``Sec. 418. Use of facilities.
``Sec. 419. Copyrights and patents.
``Sec. 420. Gifts and bequests.
``Sec. 421. Technical advice.
``Sec. 422. Working capital fund.
``Sec. 423. Funds transfer.
``Sec. 424. Seal of department.
``Sec. 425. Annual report.
``Sec. 426. Authorization of appropriations.
``TITLE V--TRANSITIONAL, SAVINGS, AND CONFORMING PROVISIONS
``Sec. 501. Transfer and allocation of appropriations and personnel.
``Sec. 502. Effect on personnel.
``Sec. 503. Agency terminations.
``Sec. 504. Incidental transfers.
``Sec. 505. Savings provisions.
``Sec. 506. Separability.
``Sec. 507. Reference.
``Sec. 508. Amendments.
``Sec. 509. Redesignation.
``Sec. 510. Coordination of programs affecting handicapped individuals.
``Sec. 511. Transition.
``TITLE VI--EFFECTIVE DATE AND INTERIM APPOINTMENTS
``Sec. 601. Effective date.
``Sec. 602. Interim appointments.''.
(4) in section 202(b), by inserting after paragraph (2) the
following:
``(3) There shall be in the Department, a Special Assistant
for Gender Equity who shall be appointed by the Secretary.
The Special Assistant shall promote, coordinate, and evaluate
gender equity programs, including the dissemination of
information, technical assistance, coordination of research
activities, and the administration of grant programs. The
Special Assistant shall report directly to the Secretary, and
shall perform such additional functions as the Secretary
shall prescribe.''.
TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO OTHER ACTS
PART A--AMENDMENTS TO THE INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT
SEC. 311. ALLOCATIONS UNDER SECTION 611 OF THE IDEA.
(a) Grant Amounts.--Section 611(a) of the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (referred to in this title as the
``IDEA'') is amended--
(1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
``(1) Except as provided in paragraph (5), the maximum
amount of the grant for which a State is eligible under this
section for any fiscal year is--
``(A) the sum of--
``(i) the number of children with disabilities in the
State, aged six through 21, who are receiving special
education and related services, as determined under paragraph
(3); and
``(ii) the number of such children in the State, aged three
through five, if the State is eligible for a grant under
section 619; multiplied by
``(B) 40 percent of the average per-pupil expenditure in
public elementary and secondary schools in the United
States.'';
(2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
``(2) For the purpose of this section, the term `State'
means each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.''; and
(3) in paragraph (5)(A)--
(A) in clause (i)--
(i) by striking ``and the State'' and inserting ``or the
combined percentage of such children counted by the Secretary
for the purpose of making fiscal year 199-- allocations under
this section and under subpart 2 of part D of chapter 1 of
title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965, as in effect the day before the date of the enactment
of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994, whichever is
greater, if the State''; and
(ii) by inserting ``and'' at the end thereof;
(B) in clause (ii)--
(i) by striking ``and the State'' and inserting ``or the
combined percentage of such children counted by the Secretary
for the purpose of making fiscal year 1994 allocations under
this section and under subpart 2 of part D of chapter 1 of
title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965, as in effect the day before the date of the enactment
of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994, whichever is
greater, if the State''; and
(ii) by striking out the semicolon and ``and'' at the end
thereof and inserting in lieu thereof a period; and
(C) by striking out clause (iii).
(b) Amount Received.--Section 611(b) of the IDEA is amended
to read as follows:
``(b)(1) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (g) of this
section, no State shall receive an amount under this section
for any of the fiscal years 1995 through 1999 that is less
than the combined amount it received for fiscal year 1994
under--
``(A) this section; and
``(B) subpart 2 of part D of chapter 1 of title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 as in effect
the day before the date of the enactment of the Improving
America's Schools Act of 1994, for children with disabilities
aged three through 21.
``(2) If, for fiscal year 1998 or 1999, the number of
children determined under subsection (a)(3) for any State is
less than the total number of children with disabilities,
aged three through 21, counted for such State's fiscal year
1994 grants under this section and under subpart 2 of part D
of chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965, as in effect the day before the date
of the enactment of the Improving America's Schools Act of
1994, the amount determined under paragraph (1) for such
State shall be reduced by the same percentage by which the
number of such children so declined.
``(3) In any fiscal year in which the amount appropriated
for grants under this section is less, in real dollar terms,
than the amount appropriated in the immediate preceding
fiscal year, the amount for each State under this subsection
will be reduced proportionately.''.
(c) Uses of Funds.--Section 611(c) of the IDEA is amended--
(1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
``(1) Of the funds received under subsection (a) by any
State for any fiscal year--
``(A) the State may use up to 25 percent in accordance with
paragraph (2); and
``(B) except as provided in paragraph (4), the State shall
distribute at least 75 percent to local educational agencies
and intermediate educational units, in accordance with
subsection (d), for use in accordance with priorities
established under section 612(3).'';
(2) in paragraph (2), by amending subparagraph (A) to read
as follows:
``(A) From the funds that any State may use under paragraph
(1)(A) for any fiscal year, the State--
``(i) may use 5 percent of the funds received under this
section or $450,000, whichever is greater, for administrative
costs related to carrying out sections 612 and 613; and
``(ii) shall use the remainder--
``(I) to provide support services and direct services,
subject to subparagraph (B), in accordance with priorities
established under section 612(3); and
``(II) for the administrative costs of monitoring and
complaint investigation, but only to the extent that such
costs exceed the costs of administration incurred during
fiscal year 1985.''.
(d) State Funds.--Section 611(d) of the IDEA is amended to
read as follows:
``(d)(1) From the total amount of funds available for any
fiscal year under subsection (c)(1)(B), the State shall
provide to each local educational agency or intermediate
educational unit an amount that bears the same ratio to such
total amount as the number of children, aged 3 through 21,
determined under subsection (a)(3) for such agency or unit
bears to the total number of such children determined for all
such agencies and units that apply for such funds.
``(2)(A) To the extent necessary, the State--
``(i) shall use funds available under subsection
(c)(2)(A)(ii) to ensure that each State-owned or State-
operated school or program or State-supported school or
program that received fiscal year 1994 funds under subpart 2
of part D of chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 receives, from the
combination of such funds and funds provided under paragraph
(1), an amount equal to--
``(I) the number of children, aged 6 through 21, determined
under subsection (a)(3) for such agency; multiplied by
``(II) the per-child amount provided under such subpart for
fiscal year 1994; and
``(ii) may use such funds to ensure that each local
educational agency that received fiscal year 1994 funds under
such subpart for children who had transferred from a State-
owned, State-operated, or State-supported school or program
assisted under such subpart receives, from the combination of
such funds and funds provided under paragraph (1), an amount
for each such child, aged 3 through 21, determined under
subsection (a)(3) for such agency, equal to the per-child
amount the agency received under such subpart for fiscal year
1994.
``(B) For the purpose of subparagraph (A), the number of
children determined under subsection (a)(3) for any State
agency or local educational agency shall not exceed the
number of children aged 3 through 21 for whom such agency
received funds under such subpart for such fiscal year.
``(3) In any fiscal year in which the amount appropriated
for grants under this section is less, in real dollar terms,
than the amount appropriated in the preceding fiscal year,
the amount for each State under this subsection will be
reduced proportionately.''.
(e) Jurisdiction.--Section 611(e)(1) of the IDEA is amended
to read as follows:
``(1) The jurisdictions to which this subsection applies
are Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau
(until the effective date of the Compact of Free Association
with the Government of Palau).''.
(f) Possible Ratable Reduction.--Section 611(g) of the IDEA
is amended to read as follows:
``(g)(1)(A) If the sums appropriated under subsection (h)
for any fiscal year are not sufficient to pay in full the
total of the amounts that all States are eligible to receive
under subsection (a), each such amount shall be ratably
reduced.
``(B) If additional funds become available for making such
payments for any fiscal year, such reduced amounts shall be
increased on the same basis as they were reduced.
``(C) Any State that receives any such additional funds
shall distribute them in accordance with this section, except
that any State that has used funds available under subsection
(c)(2)(A)(ii) for the purposes described in subsection (d)(2)
may--
``(i) deduct, from the amount that it would otherwise be
required to make available to local educational agencies and
intermediate educational units, the same amount of such
additional funds as it so used; and
``(ii) use such funds in accordance with subsection
(c)(2)(A)(ii).
``(2)(A) In any fiscal year for which payments have been
reduced and additional funds have not been made available
under paragraph (1) to pay in full the amounts for which all
States are eligible under this section, each State
educational agency shall fix dates by which each local
educational agency or intermediate educational unit shall
report to the State agency the amount of funds available to
it under this section that it estimates it will expend.
``(B) The State educational agency shall, in accordance
with this section, reallocate any funds that it determines
will not be used during the period of availability by such
local educational agencies and intermediate educational
units, and by any such agency or unit to which such funds
would be available if it applied for them under this part, to
such local educational agencies and intermediate educational
units that the State educational agency determines will need,
and be able to use, additional funds to carry out approved
programs.''.
SEC. 312. TREATMENT OF CHAPTER 1 STATE AGENCIES.
Part B of the IDEA is further amended by inserting after
section 614 the following new section:
``TREATMENT OF CHAPTER 1 STATE AGENCIES
``Sec. 614A. (a) For the purpose of making payments under
sections 611 and 619 of this Act, any State agency that
received funds for fiscal year 1994 under subpart 2 of part D
of chapter 1 of title I of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 shall be treated as if it were a local
educational agency.
``(b) The State educational agency shall ensure that each
State agency that owns or operates or supports a program or
school for children with disabilities with funds under this
part--
``(1) provides each child with a disability in such school
or program a free appropriate public education in accordance
with this part, including the due process protections of
section 615, as if it were a local educational agency; and
``(2) has on file with the State educational agency an
application that meets the requirements of section 614 that
the Secretary finds appropriate.
``(c) Section 611(c)(4) shall not apply with respect to a
State agency that is eligible for a payment under this part
by virtue of this section.''.
SEC. 313. INFANTS AND TODDLERS WITH DISABILITIES.
(a) Allotments.--Section 684(c) of the IDEA is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (5); and
(2) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting paragraphs (1)
through (4) to read as follows:
``(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (3) and (4), from
the funds remaining for each fiscal year after the
reservation and payments under subsections (a) and (b), the
Secretary shall first allot to each State an amount that
bears the same ratio to the amount of such remainder as the
number of infants and toddlers in the State bears to the
number of infants and toddlers in all States.
``(2) For fiscal year 1995 only, the Secretary shall allot
$34,000,000 of the remaining funds described in paragraph (1)
among the States in proportion to the relative numbers of
infants and toddlers who--
``(A) are counted on December 1, 1994; and
``(B) would have been eligible to be counted under section
1221(c)(1) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 as in effect before the enactment of the Improving
America's Schools Act of 1994.
``(3) Except as provided in paragraph (4), no State shall
receive an amount under this section for any fiscal year that
is less than the greater of--
``(A) one-half of one percent of the remaining amount
described in paragraph (1), not including any amounts
allotted under paragraph (2); or
``(B) $500,000.
``(4)(A) No State shall receive an amount under this
section for any of the fiscal years 1995 through 1999 that is
less than the combined amount it received for fiscal year
1994 under--
``(i) this part; and
``(ii) subpart 2 of part D of chapter 1 of title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 for children
with disabilities from birth through age two.
``(B) If, for fiscal year 1998 or 1999, the number of
infants and toddlers in any State, as determined under
paragraph (1), is less than the number of infants and
toddlers so determined for fiscal year 1994, the amount
determined under subparagraph (A) for that State shall be
reduced by the same percentage by which the number of those
infants and toddlers so declined.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a)
shall take effect beginning in fiscal year 1995.
PART B--EDUCATION FOR HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTH
SEC. 320. AMENDMENTS TO TABLE OF CONTENTS.
Section 101 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance
Act is amended by striking subtitles A and B of title VII and
inserting the following:
``Subtitle A--Adult Education for the Homeless
``Sec. 701. State literacy initiatives
``Subtitle B--Education for Homeless Children and Youth
``Sec. 721. Statement of policy.
``Sec. 722. Grants for state and local activities for the education of
homeless children and youth.
``Sec. 723. Local educational agency grants for the education of
homeless children and youth.
``Sec. 724. Secretarial responsibilities.
``Sec. 725. Definitions.
``Sec. 726. Authorization of appropriations.''.
SEC. 321. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
Subtitle A of title VII of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless
Assistance Act is amended to read as follows:
``Subtitle A--Adult Education for the Homeless
``SEC. 701. STATE LITERACY INITIATIVES.
``(a) General Authority.--(1) The Secretary of Education is
authorized to make grants to State educational agencies to
enable each such agency to implement, either directly or
through contracts and grants, a program of literacy training
and academic remediation for adult homeless individuals
within the State, which program shall--
``(A) include outreach activities; and
``(B) be coordinated with other agencies or organizations,
such as community-based organizations, nonprofit literacy-
action organizations, and funding recipients under the Adult
Education Act, title II of the Job Training Partnership Act,
the Youth Fair Chance program under title IV of the Job
Training Partnership Act, the Volunteers in Service to
America program under the Domestic Volunteers Service Act,
part C of this title, or the Job Opportunity and Basic Skills
program under the Social Security Act.
``(2) The Secretary of Education shall, in awarding grants
under this section, give special consideration to the
estimates submitted in the application submitted under
subsection (b) and make such awards in whatever amounts he or
she determines would best serve the purposes of this section.
``(b) Application.--Each State educational agency desiring
to receive a grant under this section shall submit to the
Secretary of Education an application at such time, in such
manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may
reasonably require. Each such application shall include an
estimate of the number of homeless individuals in the State
and the number of such individuals expected to be served.
``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--For the purpose of
carrying out the adult literacy and academic remediation
programs authorized by this section, there are authorized to
be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each of the
fiscal years 1995 through 1999.
``(d) Definition.--As used in this section, the term
`State' means each of the 50 States, the District of
Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin
Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau (until the effective date
of the Compact of Free Association with the Government of
Palau).''.
SEC. 322. EDUCATION FOR HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTH.
Subtitle B of title VII of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless
Assistance Act is amended to read as follows:
``Subtitle B--Education for Homeless Children and Youth
``SEC. 721. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
``It is the policy of the Congress that--
``(1) each State educational agency shall ensure that each
child of a homeless individual and each homeless youth has
equal access to the same free, appropriate public education,
including a public preschool education, as provided to other
children and youth;
``(2) in any State that has a compulsory residency
requirement as a component of its compulsory school
attendance laws or other laws, regulations, practices, or
policies that may act as a barrier to the enrollment,
attendance, or success in school of homeless children and
youth, the State will review and undertake steps to revise
such laws, regulations, practices, or policies to ensure that
homeless children and youth are afforded the same free,
appropriate public education as provided to other children
and youth;
``(3) homelessness alone should not be sufficient reason to
separate students from the mainstream school environment; and
``(4) homeless children and youth should have access to the
education and other services that they need to ensure that
they have an opportunity to meet the same challenging State
performance standards to which all students are held.
``SEC. 722. GRANTS FOR STATE AND LOCAL ACTIVITIES FOR THE
EDUCATION OF HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTH.
``(a) General Authority.--The Secretary is, in accordance
with the provisions of this section, authorized to make
grants to States to carry out the activities described in
subsections (d), (e), (f), and (g).
``(b) Application.--No State may receive a grant under this
section unless the State educational agency submits an
application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner,
and containing or accompanied by such information as the
Secretary may reasonably require.
``(c) Allocation and Reservations.--(1) Subject to
paragraph (2) and section 724(c), from the amounts
appropriated for each fiscal year pursuant to section 726,
the Secretary is authorized to allot to each State an amount
that bears the same ratio to the amount appropriated in each
such year as the amount allocated under section 1122 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to the State
in that year bears to the total amount allocated to all
States, except that no State shall receive less than
$100,000.
``(2)(A) The Secretary is authorized to reserve 0.1 percent
of the amount appropriated for each fiscal year pursuant to
section 726 to be allocated by the Secretary among the Virgin
Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau (until the effective date
of the Compact of Free Association with the Government of
Palau), according to their respective need, as determined by
the Secretary.
``(B)(i) The Secretary is authorized to transfer one
percent of the amount appropriated for each fiscal year under
section 726 to the Department of the Interior for programs
for Indian students served by schools funded by the Secretary
of the Interior, as determined under the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act, that are
consistent with the purposes of this Act.
``(ii) The Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior
shall enter into an agreement, consistent with the
requirements of this part, for the distribution and use of
these funds under terms that the Secretary determines best
meet the purposes of the covered programs. Such agreement
shall set forth the plans of the Secretary of the Interior
for the use of the amounts transferred, including appropriate
goals, objectives, and milestones.
``(3) As used in this subsection, the term `State' shall
not include the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or Palau.
``(d) Activities.--Grants under this section shall be
used--
``(1) to carry out the policies set forth in section 721 in
the State;
``(2) to provide activities for, and services to, homeless
children, including preschool-aged children, and homeless
youth that enable such children and youth to enroll in,
attend, and succeed in school, or, if appropriate, in
preschool programs;
``(3) to establish or designate an Office of Coordinator of
Education of Homeless Children and Youth in the State
educational agency in accordance with subsection (f);
``(4) to prepare and carry out the State plan described in
subsection (g); and
``(5) to develop and implement professional development
programs for school personnel to heighten their awareness of,
and capacity to respond to, specific problems in the
education of homeless children and youth.
``(e) State and Local Grants.--(1)(A) Subject to
subparagraph (B), if the amount allotted to the State
educational agency for any fiscal year under this subtitle
exceeds the amount such agency received for fiscal year 1990
under this subtitle, such agency shall provide grants to
local educational agencies for purposes of section 723.
``(B) The State educational agency may reserve not more
than the greater of five percent of the amount it receives
under this subtitle for any fiscal year, or the amount such
agency received under this subtitle for fiscal year 1990, to
conduct activities under subsection (f) directly or through
grants or contracts.
``(2) If the amount allotted to a State educational agency
for any fiscal year under this subtitle is less than the
amount such agency received for fiscal year 1990 under this
subtitle, such agency, at its discretion, may provide such
grants or may conduct activities under subsection (f)
directly or through grants or contracts.
``(f) Functions of the Office of Coordinator.--The
Coordinator of Education of Homeless Children and Youth
established in each State shall--
``(1) estimate the number of homeless children and youth in
the State and the number of such children and youth served
with assistance provided under the grants under this
subtitle;
``(2) gather, to the extent possible, reliable, valid, and
comprehensive information on the nature and extent of the
problems homeless children and youth have in gaining access
to public preschool programs and to public elementary and
secondary schools, the difficulties in identifying the
special needs of such children and youth, any progress made
by the State educational agency and local educational
agencies in the State in addressing such problems and
difficulties, and the success of the program under this
subtitle in allowing homeless children and youth to enroll
in, attend, and succeed in school;
``(3) develop and carry out the State plan described in
subsection (g);
``(4) prepare and submit to the Secretary not later than
October 1, 1997, and on October 1 of every third year
thereafter, a report on the information gathered pursuant to
paragraphs (1) and (2) and such additional information as the
Secretary may require to carry out responsibilities under
this subtitle;
``(5) facilitate coordination between the State educational
agency, the State social services agency, and other agencies
providing services to homeless children and youth and their
families, including children who are preschool age; and
``(6) develop relationships and coordinate with other
relevant education, child development, or preschool programs
and providers of services to homeless children, homeless
families, and runaway and homeless youth (including domestic
violence agencies, shelter operators, transitional housing
facilities, runaway and homeless youth centers, and
transitional living programs for homeless youth), to improve
the provision of comprehensive services to homeless children
and youth and their families.
``(g) State Plan.--(1) Each State shall submit to the
Secretary a plan to provide for the education of homeless
children and youth within the State, which plan shall
describe how such children and youth are or will be given the
opportunity to meet the same challenging State performance
standards all students are expected to meet, shall describe
the procedures the State educational agency will use to
identify such children and youth in the State and to assess
their special needs, and shall--
``(A) describe procedures for the prompt resolution of
disputes regarding the educational placement of homeless
children and youth;
``(B) describe programs for school personnel (including
principals, attendance officers, teachers and enrollment
personnel), to heighten the awareness of such personnel of
the specific needs of runaway and homeless youth;
``(C) describe procedures that ensure that homeless
children and youth who meet the relevant eligibility criteria
are able to participate in Federal, State, or local food
programs;
``(D) describe procedures that ensure that--
``(i) homeless children have equal access to the same
public preschool programs, administered by the State agency,
as provided to other children; and
``(ii) homeless children and youth who meet the relevant
eligibility criteria are able to participate in Federal,
State, or local before- and after-school care programs;
``(E) address problems set forth in the report provided to
the Secretary under subsection (f)(4);
``(F) address other problems with respect to the education
of homeless children and youth, including problems caused
by--
``(i) transportation issues; and
``(ii) enrollment delays that are caused by--
``(I) immunization requirements;
``(II) residency requirements;
``(III) lack of birth certificates, school records, or
other documentation; or
``(IV) guardianship issues;
``(G) demonstrate that the State and local educational
agencies in the State have developed, and will review and
revise, policies to remove barriers to the enrollment and
retention of homeless children and youth in schools in the
State; and
``(H) contain an assurance that the State educational
agency and local educational agencies in the State will adopt
policies and practices to ensure that homeless children and
youth are not isolated or stigmatized.
``(2) Each plan adopted under this subsection shall also
show how the State will ensure that local educational
agencies in the State will comply with the requirements of
paragraphs (3) through (9).
``(3)(A) The local educational agency that serves each
homeless child and youth shall, according to the child's or
youth's best interest, either--
``(i) continue the child's or youth's education in the
school of origin--
``(I) for the remainder of the academic year; or
``(II) in any case in which a family becomes homeless
between academic years, for the following academic year; or
``(ii) enroll the child or youth in any public school that
nonhomeless students who live in the attendance area in which
the child or youth is actually living are eligible to attend.
``(B) In determining the best interests of the child or
youth under subparagraph (A), the local educational agency
shall comply, to the extent possible, with the request made
by a parent or guardian regarding school selection.
``(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the term `school of
origin' means the school that the child or youth attended
when permanently housed, or the school in which the child or
youth was last enrolled.
``(D) The choice regarding placement shall be made
regardless of whether the child or youth lives with the
homeless parents or has been temporarily placed elsewhere by
the parents.
``(4) Each homeless child or youth shall be provided
services comparable to services offered to other students in
the school selected according to the provisions of paragraph
(3), including--
``(A) transportation services;
``(B) educational services for which the child or youth
meets the eligibility criteria, such as services provided
under title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965 or similar State or local programs, educational
programs for children with disabilities, and educational
programs for students with limited-English proficiency;
``(C) programs in vocational education;
``(D) programs for gifted and talented students; and
``(E) school meals programs.
``(5) Any record ordinarily kept by the school, including
immunization records, academic records, birth certificates,
guardianship records, and evaluations for special services or
programs, of each homeless child or youth shall be
maintained--
``(A) so that the records are available, in a timely
fashion, when a child or youth enters a new school district;
and
``(B) in a manner consistent with section 438 of the
General Education Provisions Act.
``(6) Each local educational agency serving homeless
children and youth that receives assistance under this
subtitle shall coordinate with local social services agencies
and other agencies or programs providing services to such
children or youth and their families, including services and
programs funded under the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act.
``(7)(A) Each local educational agency in a State that
receives a grant under this subtitle shall designate a
homelessness liaison to ensure that--
``(i) homeless children and youth enroll and succeed in the
schools of such agency; and
``(ii) homeless families, children, and youth receive
educational services for which they are eligible, including
preschool programs administered by the local educational
agency, and referrals to health care services, dental
services, mental health services, and other appropriate
services.
``(B) State coordinators and local educational agencies
shall inform school personnel, service providers, and
advocates working with homeless families of the duties of the
liaisons.
``(8) Each State and local educational agency shall review
and revise any policies that may act as barriers to the
enrollment of homeless children and youth in schools selected
in accordance with paragraph (3). In reviewing and revising
such policies, consideration shall be given to issues
concerning transportation, immunization, residency, birth
certificates, school records, and other documentation, and
guardianship. Special attention shall be given to ensuring
the enrollment and attendance of homeless children and youth
who are not currently attending school.
``SEC. 723. LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY GRANTS FOR THE EDUCATION
OF HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTH.
``(a) General Authority.--(1) The State educational agency
shall, in accordance with section 722(e) and with amounts
made available to such agency under section 726, make grants
to local educational agencies for the purpose of facilitating
the enrollment, attendance, and success in school of homeless
children and youth.
``(2) Unless otherwise specified, services under paragraph
(1) may be provided through programs on school grounds or at
other facilities. Where services are provided through
programs to homeless students on school grounds, schools may
provide services to other children and youth who are
determined by the local educational agency to be at risk of
failing in, or dropping out of, schools, on an incidental
basis. To the maximum extent practicable, services shall be
provided through existing programs and mechanisms that
integrate homeless individuals with nonhomeless individuals.
``(3) Services provided under this section are not intended
to replace the regular academic program and shall be designed
to expand upon or improve services provided as part of the
school's regular academic program.
``(b) Application.--A local educational agency that desires
to receive a grant under this section shall submit an
application to the State educational agency at such time, in
such manner, and containing or accompanied by such
information as the State educational agency may reasonably
require according to guidelines issued by the Secretary. Each
such application shall include--
``(1) a description of the services and programs for which
assistance is sought and the problems to be addressed through
the provision of such services and programs;
``(2) an assurance that the local educational agency's
combined fiscal effort per student or the aggregate
expenditures of that agency and the State with respect to the
provision of free public education by such agency for the
preceding fiscal year was not less than 90 percent of such
combined fiscal effort or aggregate expenditures for the
second preceding fiscal year;
``(3) an assurance that the applicant complies with, or
will use requested funds to come into compliance with,
paragraphs (3) through (9) of section 722(g); and
``(4) a description of policies and procedures that the
agency will implement to ensure that activities carried out
by the agency will not isolate or stigmatize homeless
children and youth.
``(c) Awards.--(1) The State educational agency shall, in
accordance with section 722(g) and with amounts made
available to such agency under section 726, award grants
under this section to local educational agencies submitting
an application under subsection (b) on the basis of the need
of such agencies.
``(2) In determining need under paragraph (1), the State
educational agency may consider the number of homeless
children and youth enrolled in preschool, elementary, and
secondary schools within the area served by the agency, and
shall consider the needs of such children and youth and the
ability of the agency to meet such needs. Such agency may
also consider--
``(A) the extent to which the proposed use of funds would
facilitate the enrollment, retention, and educational success
of homeless children and youth;
``(B) the extent to which the application reflects
coordination with other local and State agencies that serve
homeless children and youth, as well as the State plan
required by section 722(g);
``(C) the extent to which the applicant exhibits in the
application and in current practice a commitment to education
for all homeless children and youth; and
``(D) such other criteria as the agency determines
appropriate.
``(3) Grants awarded under this section shall be for terms
not to exceed three years.
``(d) Authorized Activities.--(1) A local educational
agency may use funds awarded under this section for
activities to carry out the purpose of this subtitle,
including--
``(A) the provision of tutoring and accelerated instruction
and enriched educational services that are linked to the
achievement of the same challenging standards the State
establishes for other children or youth;
``(B) the provision of expedited evaluations of the
strengths and needs of homeless children and youth, including
needs and eligibility for programs and services (such as
educational programs for gifted and talented students,
children with disabilities, and students with limited-English
proficiency, services provided under title I of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 or similar
State or local programs, programs in vocational education,
and school meals programs);
``(C) professional development and other activities for
educators and other school personnel that is designed to
heighten the understanding and sensitivity of such personnel
to the needs of homeless children and youth, the rights of
such children and youth under this Act, and the specific
educational needs of runaway and homeless youth;
``(D) the provision of referral services to homeless
children and youth for medical, dental, mental, and other
health services;
``(E) the provision of assistance to defray the excess cost
of transportation for students pursuant to sections 722(g)(4)
or 722(g)(9), not otherwise provided through Federal, State,
or local funding, where necessary to enable students to
attend the school selected under section 722(g)(3);
``(F) the provision of developmentally appropriate early
childhood education programs, not otherwise provided through
Federal, State, or local funding, for preschool-aged
children;
``(G) the provision of before- and after-school, mentoring,
and summer programs for homeless children and youth in which
a teacher or other qualified individual provides tutoring,
homework assistance, and supervision of educational
activities;
``(H) where necessary, the payment of fees and other costs
associated with tracking, obtaining, and transferring records
necessary to enroll homeless children and youth in school,
including birth certificates, immunization records, academic
records, guardianship records, and evaluations for special
programs or services;
``(I) the provision of education and training to the
parents of homeless children and youth about the rights of,
and resources available to, such children and youth;
``(J) the development of coordination between schools and
agencies providing services to homeless children and youth,
including programs funded under the Runaway and Homeless
Youth Act;
``(K) the provision of counseling (including violence
prevention counseling), social work, and psychological
services, and referrals for such services;
``(L) activities to address the particular needs of
homeless children and youth that may arise from domestic
violence;
``(M) the adaptation of space and purchase of supplies for
nonschool facilities made available under subsection (a)(2)
to provide services under this subsection;
``(N) the provision of school supplies; and
``(O) the provision of other extraordinary or emergency
assistance needed to enable homeless children and youth to
attend school.
``SEC. 724. SECRETARIAL RESPONSIBILITIES.
``(a) Review of Plans.--In reviewing the State plans
submitted by the State educational agencies under section
722(g), the Secretary shall use a peer review process and
shall evaluate whether State laws, policies, and practices
described in such plans adequately address the problems of
homeless children and youth relating to access to education
and placement as described in such plans.
``(b) Technical Assistance.--The Secretary shall provide
support and technical assistance to the State educational
agencies to assist such agencies to carry out their
responsibilities under this subtitle.
``(c) Evaluation and Dissemination.--The Secretary shall
conduct evaluation and dissemination activities of programs
designed to meet the educational needs of homeless elementary
and secondary school students, and may use funds appropriated
under section 726 to conduct such activities.
``(d) Submission and Distribution.--The Secretary shall
require applications for grants under this subtitle to be
submitted to the Secretary not later than the expiration of
the 60-day period beginning on the date that funds are
available for purposes of making such grants and shall make
such grants not later than the expiration of the 120-day
period beginning on such date.
``(e) Determination by Secretary.--The Secretary, based on
the information received from the States and information
gathered by the Secretary under subsection (d), shall
determine the extent to which State educational agencies are
ensuring that each homeless child and homeless youth has
access to a free appropriate public education as described in
section 721(1).
``(f) Reports.--The Secretary shall prepare and submit a
report to the Committee on Education and Labor of the House
of Representatives and the Committee on Labor and Human
Resources of the Senate on the programs and activities
authorized by this subtitle by December 31, 1997, and every
third year thereafter.
``SEC. 725. DEFINITIONS.
``For the purpose of this subtitle, unless otherwise
stated--
``(1) the term `Secretary' means the Secretary of
Education; and
``(2) the term `State' means each of the 50 States, the
District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
``SEC. 726. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``For the purpose of carrying out this subtitle, there are
authorized to be appropriate $30,000,000 for fiscal year 1995
and such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal
years 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999.''.
PART C--IMPACT AID STATUTES
SEC. 331. AMENDMENTS TO PUBLIC LAW 815.
(a) Section 2.--Section 2 of the Act of September 23, 1950
(Public Law 815, 81st Congress; 20 U.S.C. 632) is amended to
read as follows:
``SEC. 2. PORTION OF APPROPRIATIONS AVAILABLE FOR PAYMENTS.
``For each fiscal year the Secretary shall distribute the
funds appropriated in accordance with section 1 which shall
be available for carrying out the provisions of sections 5,
9, 10, and 14. The funds provided under section 1 for the
schools serving military dependents and Indian lands shall be
divided equally between section 5 and section 14 of this Act.
Funds provided under section 5 of this Act shall be divided
equally between the priority categories of section 1(a)(1)
and 1(a)(2) of this Act.''.
(b) Section 3.--Section 3 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 633) is
amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF PRIORITIES.
``Applications for construction or modification projects
provided for under this Act must be filed by June 30 of the
fiscal year prior to the year in which funds are first
requested. The Secretary shall use the following order of
priority in approving applications under section 5 and funded
in accordance with section 1(a)(1) and section 1(a)(2) of
this Act. The priority of payment of application under
section 1(a)(1) shall be based on the highest percentage of
number of children in need of minimum school facilities. The
priority of payment of applications under section 1(a)(2)
shall be based on the highest percentage of federally
connected students eligible for payment. The Secretary shall
use the priorities stated in this section in approving
applications in the event the funds appropriated under
section 1 of this title and remaining available on any such
date for payment to local educational agencies are less than
the Federal share of the cost of the projects with respect to
which applications have been filed prior to such date (and
for which funds under section 1 have not already been
obligated). Only applications meeting the conditions for
approval under this Act (other than section 6(b)(2)(C)) shall
be considered applications for purposes of the preceding
sentence. Such order of priority shall provide that
applications payments based upon increases in the number of
children residing on, or residing with a parent employed on
property which is party of a low-rent housing project
assisted under the United States Housing Act of 1937 shall
not be approved for any fiscal year until all other
applications under paragraph (2) of subsection (a) of section
5 have been approved for the fiscal year.''.
(c) Section 5.--Section 5 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 635) is
amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 5. LIMITATION ON TOTAL PAYMENTS TO ANY LOCAL
EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.
``(a) Subject to the limitations in subsection (c) the
total of the payments to a local educational agency under
this Act may not exceed the sum of--
``(1) the estimated increase, since the base year, in the
number of children determined with respect to such agency who
live on Federal property and have a parent who works on
Federal property multiplied by 100 percent of the average per
pupil cost of constructing minimum school facilities in the
State in which the school district of such agency is
situated; and
``(2) the estimated increase, since the base year, in the
number of children determined with respect to such agency who
have a parent who lives on or works on Federal property
multiplied by 50 percent of such cost;
``(3) In computing for any local educational agency the
number of children in an increase under paragraph (1) or (2),
the estimated number of children described in such paragraph
who will be in the membership of the schools of such agency
at the close of the increase period shall be compared with
the estimated number of such children in average daily
membership of the schools of such agency during the base
year. However, the base year average daily membership shall
be adjusted to exclude the number of children that formed the
basis for previous payments on applications approved 30 or
more years prior to the close of the increased period for the
current application.
``(b) If two of the paragraphs of subsection (a) apply to a
child, the local educational agency shall elect which of such
paragraphs shall apply to such child, except that,
notwithstanding the election of a local educational agency to
have paragraph (2) apply to a child instead of paragraph (1),
the determination of the maximum amount for such agency under
subsection (a) shall be made without regard to such election.
``(c) A local educational agency shall not be eligible to
have any amount included in its maximum by reason of
paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection (a) unless the
increase in children referred to in such paragraph is at
least 20, and in the case of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of
subsection (a), is--
``(1) equal to at least 6 percent of the number of
federally connected children who were in the average daily
membership of the schools of such agency during the base
year, or
``(2) at least 750,
whichever is the lesser.
``(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (c) of
this section, whenever and to the extent that, in his
judgment, exceptional circumstances exist which make such
action necessary to avoid inequity and avoid defeating the
purposes of the Act, the Secretary may waive or reduce the
minimum number requirement or any percentage requirement or
requirements in subsection (c).
``(e) In determining under this section the total of the
payments which may be made to a local educational agency on
the basis of any application, the total number of children
counted for purposes of paragraph (1) or (2), as the case may
be, of subsection (a) may not exceed--
``(1) the number of children whose membership at the close
of the increase period for the application is compared with
average daily membership in the base period for purposes of
that paragraph, provided that the base year average daily
membership does not include any children which formed the
basis of payment in the applications approved 30 or more
years ago, minus
``(2) the number of such children whose membership at the
close of the increase period was compared with membership in
the base year for purposes of such paragraph under the last
previous application, provided the application was funded
within the last 4 years, if any, of the agency on the basis
of which any payments have been or may be made to that
agency.''.
(d) Section 6.--Section 6 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 636) is
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(d) If the application has not been funded within the 3-
year period, the local educational agency must recertify
their need to have the application remain active.''.
SEC. 332. REPEAL OF PUBLIC LAW 874.
The Act of September 30, 1950 (Public Law 874, 81st
Congress; 20 U.S.C. 236 et seq.) is hereby repealed.
PART D--AMENDMENTS TO ADULT EDUCATION ACT
SEC. 335. AMENDMENTS TO ADULT EDUCATION ACT.
(a) Section 342(c)(11) of the Adult Education Act is
amended by inserting ``Even Start,'' after ``1963,''.
(b) Section 384(n) is amended by striking ``and 1995'' and
inserting ``1995, and 1996''.
PART E--AMENDMENTS TO EDUCATION COUNCIL ACT OF 1991
SEC. 341. FINDINGS.
Section 201 of the Education Council Act of 1991 (hereafter
in this Act referred to as the ``Act'') is amended--
(1) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
``(2) the writing problem has been magnified by the rapidly
changing student populations in the Nation's schools and the
growing number of students who are at risk because of
limited-English proficiency;'';
(2) in paragraph (6)--
(A) by inserting ``writing and reading are both fundamental
to learning, yet writing has been historically neglected in
the schools and colleges, and'' before ``most''; and
(B) by striking the comma before ``have'';
(3) by amending paragraph (10) to read as follows:
``(10) the National Writing Project has become a model for
programs to improve teaching in such other fields as
mathematics, science, history, literature, performing arts,
and foreign languages;'';
(4) by amending paragraph (15) to read as follows:
``(15) each year over 100,000 teachers voluntarily seek
training in National Writing Project intensive summer
institutes and workshops and school-year in-service programs
through one of the 154 regional sites located in 45 States,
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and in 4 sites that serve
United States teachers teaching in United States dependent
and independent schools;'';
(5) by striking paragraph (17);
(6) by redesignating paragraph (18) as paragraph (17);
(7) in paragraph (17) (as redesignated in paragraph (6)),
by striking the period at the end thereof and inserting a
semicolon; and
(8) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
``(18) independent evaluation studies have found the
National Writing Project to be highly cost effective compared
to other professional development programs for teachers; and
``(19) during 1991, the first year of Federal support for
the National Writing Project, the National Writing Project
matched the $1,951,975 in Federal support with $9,485,504 in
matching funds from State, local, and other sources.''.
SEC. 342. NATIONAL WRITING PROJECT.
Section 202 of the Act is amended--
(1) in subsection (d)--
(A) in paragraph (3)--
(i) by striking the subparagraph designation ``(A)''; and
(ii) by striking subparagraph (B); and
(B) by striking paragraph (4);
(2) in subsection (e)--
(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) of paragraph
(1), by striking ``to enable'' and inserting ``to pay the
Federal share of the cost of enabling''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(4) Federal share.--For the purpose of this subsection
the term `Federal share' means, with respect to the costs of
activities assisted under this subsection, 50 percent of such
costs to the elementary or secondary school teacher.'';
(3) by amending subsection (g) to read as follows:
``(g) Evaluation.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall conduct an
independent evaluation of the teacher training programs
assisted under this section. Such evaluation shall specify
the amount of funds expended by the National Writing Project
and each contractor receiving assistance under this section.
The results of such evaluation shall be made available to the
appropriate committees of the Congress.
``(2) Funding limitation.--The Secretary shall reserve not
more than $150,000 from the total amount appropriated
pursuant to the authority of subsection (i) for fiscal year
1994 and the 4 succeeding fiscal years to conduct the
evaluation described in paragraph (1).'';
(4) by amending subsection (h) to read as follows:
``(h) Research and Development Activities.--
``(1) Grants authorized.--From amounts appropriated
pursuant to the authority of subsection (i)(2), the National
Writing Project shall make grants to individuals and
institutions of higher education that either have
participated in a National Writing Project institute or are
institutions designated as National Writing Project sites, to
enable such individuals and institutions to conduct research
activities involving the teaching of writing.
``(2) Application review.--The National Writing Project
shall establish and operate a National Review Board that
shall consist of--
``(A) leaders in the field of research in writing; and
``(B) such other individuals as the National Writing
Project deems necessary.
``(3) Duties.--The National Review Board shall--
``(A) review all applications for assistance under this
subsection; and
``(B) recommended applications for assistance under this
subsection for funding by the National Writing Project.
``(4) Junior researcher priority and funding rule.--(A) In
awarding grants pursuant to paragraph (1), the National
Writing Project shall give priority to awarding such grants
to junior researchers.
``(B) The National Writing Project shall award not less
than 25 percent of the funds received pursuant to subsection
(i)(2) to junior researchers.
``(5) Availability of findings.--The National Writing
Project shall make available to the Secretary and to the
network of National Writing Project sites the findings of the
research conducted pursuant to the authority of paragraph
(1).''; and
(5) in subsection (i)--
(A) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by striking ``1991'' and inserting ``1994''; and
(ii) by striking ``fiscal years 1992 and 1993'' and
inserting ``each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years''; and
(B) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
``(2) Research and development.--In each fiscal year in
which the amount appropriated pursuant to the authority of
paragraph (1) equals or exceeds $10,000,000, there are
authorized to be appropriated $500,000 to carry out the
provisions of subsection (h).''.
TITLE IV--NATIONAL EDUCATION STATISTICS
SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ``National Education
Statistics Act of 1994''.
SEC. 402. FINDINGS; PURPOSE; DEFINITIONS.
(a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
(1) a Department of Education was established in 1867 ``for
the purpose of collecting such statistics and facts as shall
show the condition and progress of education in the several
States and territories, and of diffusing such information
respecting the organization and management of schools and
school systems and methods of teaching as shall aid the
people of the United States in the establishment and
maintenance of efficient school systems, and otherwise
promote the cause of education throughout the country'';
(2) today, while the role of the current Department of
Education is much broader, the National Center for Education
Statistics within the Department's Office of Educational
Research and Improvement continues to perform those crucial
original purposes; and
(3) looking to the 21st century, the National Center for
Education Statistics must be able to design and undertake,
effectively and efficiently, statistical activities that will
aid in reform of the Nation's educational systems.
(b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this title to ensure the
continuation of an effective mechanism for collecting and
reporting statistics and information showing the condition
and progress of education in the United States and other
nations in order to promote and accelerate the improvement of
American education.
(c) Definitions.--For the purpose of this title, the term--
(1) ``Assistant Secretary'' means the Assistant Secretary
for Educational Research and Improvement, provided for under
section 202(b)(1)(E) of the Department of Education
Organization Act;
(2) ``Department'' means the Department of Education;
(3) ``institution of higher education'' has the same
meaning given such term in section 1201 of the Higher
Education Act of 1965;
(4) ``local educational agency'' has the same meaning given
such term in section 9101(13) of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965;
(5) ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Education;
(6) ``State educational agency'' has the same meaning given
such term in section 9101(20) of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965; and
(7) ``United States'' and ``State'' mean--
(A) other than for the purpose of section 411, each of the
50 States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico; and
(B) for the purpose of section 411, mean the same as in
subparagraph (A) and include Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin
Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,
and the Republic of Palau (until the effective date of the
Compact of Free Association with the Government of Palau).
SEC. 403. NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS.
(a) Establishment.--There is established, within the Office
of Educational Research and Improvement established under
section 209 of the Department of Education Organization Act,
a National Center for Education Statistics (the ``Center'').
(b) Commissioner and Associate Commissioners.--(1) The
Center shall be headed by a Commissioner of Education
Statistics (the ``Commissioner'') who shall be appointed by
the President, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate, and who shall--
(A) have substantial knowledge of programs encompassed by
the Center;
(B) be paid in accordance with section 5315 of title 5,
United States Code; and
(C) serve for a term of 4 years, with the terms to expire
every fourth June 21, beginning in 1995.
(2) The Commissioner may appoint such Associate
Commissioners as the Commissioner determines are necessary
and appropriate.
SEC. 404. DUTIES OF THE CENTER.
(a) Duties.--The duties of the Center are to collect,
analyze, and disseminate statistics and other information
related to education in the United States and in other
nations, including--
(1) collecting, acquiring, compiling (where appropriate, on
a State by State basis), and disseminating full and complete
statistics on the condition and progress of education, at the
preschool, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary levels in
the United States, including data on--
(A) State and local school reform activities;
(B) student achievement and other educational outcomes at
all levels of education;
(C) out of school youth and adults;
(D) teachers, administrators, counselors, and other
educational personnel at all levels of education;
(E) the learning and teaching environment;
(F) financing and management of education; and
(G) the socioeconomic status of children;
(2) conducting and publishing reports and analyses of the
meaning and significance of such statistics;
(3) conducting longitudinal studies, as well as regular and
special surveys and data collections, necessary to report on
the condition and progress of education;
(4) collecting, analyzing, cross-tabulating, and reporting,
to the extent feasible, so as to provide information by
gender, race, socioeconomic status, limited-English
proficiency, and other population characteristics when such
disaggregated information would facilitate educational and
policy decisionmaking;
(5) assisting public and private educational agencies,
organizations, and institutions in improving and automating
statistical and data collection activities; and
(6) acquiring and disseminating data on educational
activities and student achievement in the United States
compared with foreign nations.
(b) Training Program.--The Commissioner may establish a
program to train employees of public and private educational
agencies, organizations, and institutions in the use of the
Center's standard statistical procedures and concepts and may
establish a fellows program to appoint such employees as
temporary fellows at the Center in order to assist the Center
in carrying out its duties.
SEC. 405. PERFORMANCE OF DUTIES.
(a) In General.--In carrying out the duties under this
title, the Commissioner may enter into grants, contracts, and
cooperative agreements.
(b) Gathering Information.--(1) The Commissioner may use
the statistical method known as sampling to carry out the
purpose of this title.
(2) The Commissioner may, as the Commissioner considers
appropriate, use information collected--
(A) from States, local educational agencies, public and
private schools, preschools, institutions of higher
education, libraries, administrators, teachers, students, the
general public, and such other individuals, organizations,
agencies, and institutions as the Commissioner may consider
appropriate; and
(B) by other offices within the Department and by other
Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities.
(3) The Commissioner may--
(A) enter into interagency agreements for the collection of
statistics;
(B) arrange with an agency, organization, or institution
for the collection of statistics; and
(C) assign employees of the Center to any such agency,
organization, or institution to assist in such collection.
(4) In order to maximize the effectiveness of Federal
efforts to serve the educational needs of children and youth,
the Commissioner shall--
(A) provide technical assistance to Department offices that
gather data for statistical purposes; and
(B) coordinate closely with other Department offices in the
collection of data.
SEC. 406. REPORTS.
(a) Report on the Condition and Progress of Education.--The
Commissioner shall, no later than June 1 of each year, submit
to the President and the Congress a statistical report
regarding the condition and progress of education in the
United States.
(b) Statistical Reports.--The Commissioner shall issue
regular statistical reports to the President and Congress on
such education topics as the Commissioner determines to be
appropriate.
(c) Special Reports.--The Commissioner may, whenever the
Commissioner considers it appropriate, issue special reports
on particular education topics.
SEC. 407. ADVISORY COUNCIL ON EDUCATION STATISTICS.
(a) Establishment.--There is established, within the
Center, the Advisory Council on Education Statistics
(referred to in this title as the ``Council'').
(b) Membership.--(1) The Council shall be composed of--
(A) 18 voting members who are users of education data and
who are appointed by the Secretary on the basis of their
experience and eminence within the field, of whom at least--
(i) 3 shall be practicing educators at the preschool,
elementary, or secondary level;
(ii) 3 shall be education policymakers;
(iii) 3 shall be professional statisticians;
(iv) 3 shall be education researchers; and
(v) 3 shall be experts in educational measurement;
(B) 3 individuals representing the general public,
appointed by the Secretary;
(C) the Director of the Census and the Commissioner of
Labor Statistics, as voting, ex officio members; and
(D) the Assistant Secretary and the Commissioner, as
nonvoting, ex officio members.
(2) The Commissioner shall appoint the presiding officer of
the Council from among the voting members.
(3) Members of the Council appointed under paragraph (1)(A)
shall be appointed for 3-year terms except that, in the case
of initial appointments, the Secretary shall make
appointments for shorter terms to the extent necessary to
avoid the expiration of the terms of more than 6 members in
the same calendar year.
(4)(A) The Council shall meet in public session at the call
of the presiding officer, except that it shall meet--
(i) at least 2 times during each calendar year; and
(ii) in addition, whenever 10 voting members request in
writing that the presiding officer call a meeting.
(B) 11 voting members of the Council shall constitute a
quorum.
(5) The Council shall--
(A) review general policies for the operation of the Center
and shall advise the Commissioner on standards to ensure that
statistics and other information disseminated by the Center
are of high quality and are not subject to partisan political
influence;
(B) advise the Commissioner on matters related to the
National Assessment of Education Progress, including--
(i) the development of student performance goals;
(ii) assessment design and development;
(iii) analysis, reporting, and dissemination of data;
(iv) interstate, regional, and national comparisons of
data; and
(v) recommendations for the improvement of such Assessment.
(6) The Council shall appoint a staff to enable the Council
to carry out its duties.
SEC. 408. CONFIDENTIALITY.
(a) General.--(1)(A) The Center shall develop and enforce
standards designed to protect the confidentiality of persons
in the collection, reporting, and publication of data under
this section.
(B) This section shall not be construed to protect the
confidentiality of information about institutions,
organizations, and agencies that receive grants from, or have
contracts or cooperative agreements with, the Federal
Government.
(2) No person may--
(A) use any individually identifiable information furnished
under this title for any purpose other than a statistical
purpose;
(B) make any publication whereby the data furnished by any
particular person under this title can be identified; or
(C) permit anyone other than the individuals authorized by
the Commissioner to examine the individual reports.
(b) Administration.--(1)(A) No department, bureau, agency,
officer, or employee of the Government, except the
Commissioner in carrying out the purposes of this title,
shall require, for any reason, copies of reports that have
been filed under this title with the Center or retained by
any individual respondent.
(B) Copies of such reports that have been so filed or
retained with the Center or any of its employees,
contractors, or agents shall be immune from legal process,
and shall not, without the consent of the individual
concerned, be admitted as evidence or used for any purpose in
any action, suit, or other judicial or administrative
proceeding.
(C) This paragraph shall apply only to individually
identifiable information (as defined in paragraph (5)(A)).
(2) Whoever, being or having been an employee or staff
member of the Department, having taken or subscribed the oath
of office, or having sworn to observe the limitations imposed
by subsection (a)(2), knowingly publishes or communicates any
individually identifiable information (as defined in
paragraph (5)(A)), the disclosure of which is prohibited by
subsection (a)(2), and that comes into such individual's
possession by reason of employment (or otherwise providing
services) under this title, shall be found guilty of a class
E felony and imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or fined
as specified in 18 U.S.C. 3571, or both.
(3) The Commissioner may utilize temporary staff, including
employees of Federal, State, or local agencies or
instrumentalities including local educational agencies, and
employees of private organizations to assist the Center in
performing its responsibilities, but only if such temporary
staff are sworn to observe the limitations imposed by this
section.
(4) No collection of information or data acquisition
activity undertaken by the Center shall be subject to any
review, coordination, or approval procedure except as
required by the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget under the rules and regulations established pursuant
to chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, except such
collection of information or data acquisition activity may be
subject to review or coordination if the Commissioner
determines that such review or coordination would be
beneficial.
(5) For the purposes of this section--
(A) the term ``individually identifiable information''
means any record, response form, completed survey, or
aggregation thereof from which information about individuals
may be revealed; and
(B) the term ``report'' means a response provided by or
about an individual to an inquiry from the Center and does
not include a statistical aggregation from which individually
identifiable information cannot be revealed.
(6) This paragraph shall not apply to--
(A) the survey required by section 1303(c) of the Higher
Education Amendments of 1986; or
(B) to any longitudinal study concerning access, choice,
persistence progress, or attainment in postsecondary
education.
(7) Any person who uses any data provided by the Center, in
conjunction with any other information or technique, to
identify any individual student, teacher, administrator, or
other individual and who knowingly discloses, publishes, or
uses for a purpose other than a statistical purpose, or who
otherwise violates subsection (a)(2)(A) or (B), shall be
found guilty of a class E felony and imprisoned for not more
than 5 years, or fined as specified in section 3571 of title
18 of the United States Code, or both.
(8) Nothing in this section shall restrict the right of the
Secretary, the Comptroller General of the United States, the
Director of the Congressional Budget Office, and the
Librarian of Congress to gain access to any reports or other
records, including information identifying individuals, in
the Center's possession, except that the same restrictions on
disclosure that apply to the Center under subsection (b)(1)
and (7) shall apply.
SEC. 409. DISSEMINATION.
(a) General Requests.--(1) The Center may furnish
transcripts or copies of tables and other statistical records
and make special statistical compilations and surveys for
State and local officials, public and private organizations,
and individuals.
(2) The Center shall provide State and local educational
agencies opportunities to suggest the development of
particular compilations of statistics, surveys, and analyses
that would assist such educational agencies.
(b) Congressional Requests.--The Center shall furnish such
special statistical compilations and surveys as the Congress
may request.
(c) Joint Statistical Projects.--The Secretary may engage
in joint statistical projects related to the purposes of this
Act or other statistical purposes authorized by law with
nonprofit organizations or agencies, and the cost of such
projects shall be shared equitably as determined by the
Secretary.
(d) Fees.--(1) Statistical compilations and surveys under
this section, other than those carried out pursuant to
subsections (b) and (c), may be made subject to the payment
of the actual or estimated cost of such work.
(2) All funds received in payment for work or services
described in this paragraph shall be deposited in a separate
account that may be used to pay directly the costs of such
work or services, to repay appropriations that initially bore
all or part of such costs, or to refund excess sums when
necessary.
(e) Access.--(1) The Center shall cooperate with other
Federal agencies having a need for educational data in
providing access to educational data received by the Center.
(2) The Center shall, in accordance with such terms and
conditions as the Secretary may prescribe, provide all
interested parties, including public and private agencies and
individuals, direct access to data collected by the Center
for the purposes of research and acquiring statistical
information.
SEC. 410. COOPERATIVE EDUCATION STATISTICS SYSTEMS.
The Commissioner shall establish 1 or more national
cooperative education statistics systems for the purpose of
producing and maintaining, with the cooperation of the
States, comparable and uniform information and data on
elementary and secondary education, postsecondary education,
and libraries that are useful for policymaking at the
Federal, State, and local levels. In carrying out this
section, the Commissioner may provide technical assistance
and make grants and enter into contracts and cooperative
agreements.
SEC. 411. NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS.
(a) Establishment.--The Commissioner shall, with the advice
of the Council established by section 407, carry out, through
grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements with 1 or more
qualified organizations, or consortia thereof, a National
Assessment of Educational Progress (the ``National
Assessment'').
(b) Purpose; Contents.--(1) The purpose of the National
Assessment is to provide a fair and accurate presentation of
educational achievement in reading, writing, and other
subjects that are included in National Education Goal Three.
(2) The Commissioner, in carrying out the National
Assessment, shall use sampling techniques that produce data
that are representative on a national and regional basis and
on a State basis pursuant to paragraph (3). In addition, the
Commissioner shall--
(A) collect and report data on a periodic basis, but at
least once every 2 years, on students at ages 9, 13, and 17
and in grades 4, 8, and 12 in public and private schools;
(B) report achievement data on a basis that ensures valid
and reliable trend reporting;
(C) include information on special groups; and
(D) ensure that achievement data are made available on a
timely basis following official reporting, in a manner that
facilitates further analysis.
(3)(A)(i) The Commissioner, in carrying out the National
Assessment, may conduct State assessments of student
achievement in grades 4, 8, and 12.
(ii) Each such State assessment, in each subject area and
at each grade level shall be conducted on a trial basis.
(B)(i) States wishing to participate in State assessments
shall enter into an agreement with the Secretary pursuant to
subsection (d)(2).
(ii) Such agreement shall contain information sufficient to
give States full information about the process for consensus
decisionmaking on objectives to be tested, and of the
standards for sampling, test administration, test security,
data collection, validation, and reporting.
(C) A participating State shall review and give permission
for the release of results from any test of its students
administered as a part of a State assessment prior to the
release of such data. Refusal by a State to release its data
shall not restrict the release of data from other States that
have approved the release of such data.
(4) In carrying out the National Assessment, the
Commissioner shall not collect any data that are not directly
related to the appraisal of educational performance,
achievement, and traditional demographic reporting variables,
or to the fair and accurate presentation of such information.
(5) In carrying out the National Assessment, the
Commissioner may provide technical assistance to States,
localities, and other parties.
(c) Access.--(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the
public shall have access to all data, questions, and test
instruments of the National Assessment.
(2)(A) The Commissioner shall ensure that all personally
identifiable information about students, their educational
performance, and their families, and that information with
respect to individual schools, remains confidential, in
accordance with section 552a of title 5, United States Code.
(B) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
Commissioner may decline to make available to the public for
a period, not to exceed 10 years after initial use, cognitive
questions that the Commissioner intends to reuse in the
future.
(C)(i) The Commissioner may, upon the request of a State
educational agency or a local educational agency, in a
limited number of cases and on a trial basis, make National
Assessment test instruments available for assessing aggregate
student achievement at the local educational agency level.
(ii)(I) Participation by a local educational agency shall
be voluntary.
(II) A State requesting the participation of a local
educational agency must accompany this request with a
statement of full written concurrence by such agency and that
such agency is requesting to participate in the local
assessment.
(iii) Before receiving such instruments, an agency shall
provide the Commissioner with assurances that confidentiality
and security requirements and testing protocols, prescribed
by the Commissioner, will be complied with in the use of such
instruments.
(d) Participation.--(1) Participation in the national and
regional assessments by State and local educational agencies
shall be voluntary.
(2) Participation in assessments made on a State basis
shall be voluntary. The Commissioner shall enter into an
agreement with any State that desires to carry out an
assessment for the State under this subsection. Each such
agreement shall contain provisions designed to ensure that
the State will--
(A) participate in the assessment; and
(B) pay from non-Federal sources the non-Federal share of
participation.
(3)(A) For each fiscal year, the non-Federal share for the
purpose of paragraph (2)(B) shall be--
(i) the cost of conducting the assessment at the school
level for all public schools in the State sample, including
the analysis and reporting of the data;
(ii) the cost of coordination within the State; and
(iii) other reasonable costs specified by the Secretary in
the agreement described in paragraph (2).
(B) The non-Federal share of payments under this paragraph
may be in cash or in kind, fairly valued.
(C) The agreement described in paragraph (2) shall describe
the manner in which, the costs of administering the
assessment to private nonprofit schools included in the State
sample may be met.
(4) The implementation of subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2)
of subsection (d) shall involve no cost to the Federal
Government.
(e) Student Performance Goals.--(1) The Commissioner shall
establish appropriate student performance goals for each age
and grade in each subject area to be tested under the
National Assessment.
(2) The Commissioner, with the advice of the Council, shall
establish rigorous standards for the evaluation of such
goals.
(3) Such goals shall be--
(A) devised through a national consensus approach,
providing for active participation of teachers, curriculum
specialists, local school administrators, parents, and
concerned members of the general public;
(B) used on a trial basis until the Commissioner
determines, through an evaluation under subsection (f), that
such goals meet the standards under paragraph (2) and are
reasonable, valid, and informative to the public; and
(C) updated as appropriate.
(f) Review of National and State Assessments.--(1) The
Commissioner shall provide for continuing reviews by the
National Academy of Education or the National Academy of
Sciences of the National Assessment, State assessments, local
educational agency assessments, and student performance
goals. Such reviews shall address whether each trial state
assessment is properly administered, produces high quality
data that is valid and reliable, produces data on student
achievement that is not otherwise available to the State
exclusive of data comparing participating States to each
other and the Nation, and is a cost-effective method of
producing the data. The Commissioner shall also carry out
evaluation studies by the Center and solicitation of public
comment on the conduct and usefulness of the National
Assessment. The Commissioner shall report to the Congress,
the President, and the Nation on the findings and
recommendations of such reviews.
(2) The Commissioner shall consider the findings and
recommendations in designing the competition to select the
organization, or organizations, through which the Office
carries out the National Assessment.
(g) Coverage Agreements.--(1) The Secretary and the
Secretary of Defense may enter into an agreement, including
such terms as are mutually satisfactory, to include in the
National Assessment the defense dependents education system
established under the Defense Dependents' Education Act of
1978.
(2) The Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior may
enter into an agreement, including such terms as are mutually
satisfactory, to include in the National Assessment schools
for Indian children operated or supported by the Bureau of
Indian Affairs.
SEC. 412. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this
title, $103,200,000 for fiscal year 1995 and such sums as may
be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1996, 1997, 1998,
and 1999.
TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS
SEC. 501. STUDY OF FEDERAL EFFORTS TO ASSIST IN SCHOOL
REFORM.
(a)(1) In addition to the national assessment conducted
pursuant to title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act as amended by this Act, the Secretary of Education shall
conduct a comprehensive study of how the Federal Government
has assisted the States to reform their educational systems
through the various education laws enacted during the 103d
Congress.
(2) Such study shall encompass the changes made in Federal
programs pursuant to this Act as well as in any other law
enacted during this Congress amending a Federal program
assisting pre-elementary, elementary, or secondary education.
In addition, such study shall encompass new initiatives
enacted into law, such as the Goals 2000: Educate America
Act, and the School-to-Work Opportunities Act.
(b)(1) This study shall include a comprehensive review of
these laws and programs to determine their overall effect
on--
(A) the readiness of children for schooling,
(B) the improvement in educational attainment of students
in elementary and secondary education, and
(C) the improvement in skills needed by students to obtain
employment upon completion of high school or further
education.
(2) This study shall also include a comprehensive review of
these programs to determine their overall effect--
(A) on school reform efforts undertaken by States,
(B) on efforts by States to adopt educational standards to
improve schooling for all children, to align their curricula,
teacher training, and assessments to such standards, and to
bring flexibility to the rules governing how education is to
be provided, and
(C) on student populations who have been the traditional
beneficiaries of Federal assistance to determine whether
their educational attainment has been improved through these
changes.
(3) This study shall also evaluate how the National
Assessment Governing Board, the Advisory Council on Education
Statistics, the National Education Goals Panel, the National
Education Statistics and Improvement Council and any other
Board established to analyze, address, or approve standards
and assessments coordinates, interacts, and/or duplicates
efforts to assist the States to reform their educational
systems.
(4) This study shall also include a review of these laws
and programs in such detail as the Secretary deems
appropriate and may involve cooperation with other Federal
departments and agencies in order to incorporate their
evaluations and recommendations.
(c)(1) The Secretary shall appoint an independent panel to
review the plan for this study, to advise on its progress,
and to comment, if it so wishes, on the final report.
(2) The Secretary shall submit this report by January 1,
1998, to the Committee on Education and Labor of the United
States House of Representatives and to the Committee on Labor
and Human Resources.
SEC. 502. BUDGET COMPLIANCE.
Any authority to make payments pursuant to the amendments
made by this Act shall be effective only to the extent
provided in appropriation Acts.
amendment offered by mr. durbin
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
The Clerk read as follows:
Amendment offered by Mr. Durbin:
--Page 439, strike lines 1 through 17 and insert the
following:
``(1) The term `drug and violence prevention' means--
``(A) with respect to drugs, prevention, early
intervention, rehabilitation referral, or education related
to the illegal use of alcohol, the use of tobacco and the use
of controlled, illegal, additive, or harmful substances,
including inhalants and anabolic steroids; and
``(B) with respect to violence, the promotion of school
safety, such that students and school personnel are free from
violent and disruptive acts, including sexual harassment on
school premises, going to and from school, and at school-
sponsored activities, through the creation and maintenance of
a school environment that is free from weapons and fosters
individual responsibility and respect for the rights of
others.
Page 762, after line 8, insert the following:
``SEC. 9506. NONSMOKING POLICY.
``(a) General Rule.--Each person who receives Federal funds
under this Act and provides services to elementary and
secondary school students pursuant to this Act shall, in
providing such services, establish and make a good-faith
effort to enforce a nonsmoking policy that, except as
provided in subsection (b)--
``(1) prohibits smoking in each indoor portion of a
facility used in connection with the provision of such
services; and
``(2) where appropriate, requires that signs be posted to
communicate the nonsmoking policy.
``(b) Permissible Features.--(1) The nonsmoking policy
described in subsection (a) may permit smoking in specially
designated areas of a facility if--
``(A) services are not normally provided directly to
children in the designated areas; and
``(B) the designated areas are ventilated separately from
areas of the facility in which such services are normally
provided directly to children to ensure that air from the
designated areas is directly exhausted to the outside and
does not recirculate or drift to other areas within the
facility.
``(2) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to
require the establishment of a designated smoking area.
``(c) Civil Penalty.--
``(1) Any person subject to the requirements of this
section who fails to comply with such requirements shall be
liable to the United States for a civil penalty in an amount
not to exceed $1,000 for each violation, but in no case shall
the amount be in excess of the amount of the Federal funds
received by the person for the provision of elementary and
secondary educational services for the fiscal year in which
the violation occurred. Each day a violation continues shall
constitute a separate violation.
``(2) A civil penalty for a violation of this section shall
be assessed by the Secretary to the person by an order made
on the record after opportunity for a hearing in accordance
with section 554 of title 5, United States Code. Before
issuing the order, the Secretary shall--
(A) give written notice to the person to be assessed a
civil penalty under the order of the proposal to issue the
order; and
``(B) provide the person an opportunity to request, not
later than 15 days after the date of receipt of the notice, a
hearing on the order.
``(3) In determining the amount of a civil penalty under
this subsection, the Secretary shall take into account the
nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the violation,
the ability of the violator to pay, any prior history of the
same kind of violation, the degree of culpability of the
violator, a demonstration by the violator of willingness to
comply with the requirements of this section, and such other
matters as justice may require.
``(4) The Secretary may compromise, modify, or remit, with
or without conditions, any civil penalty that may be imposed
under this subsection. The amount of the penalty as finally
determined or agreed upon in compromise may be deducted from
any sums that the United States owes to the person against
whom the penalty is assessed.
``(5) A person who has requested a hearing concerning the
assessment of a penalty pursuant to paragraph (2) and is
aggrieved by an order assessing a civil penalty may file a
petition for judicial review of the order with the United
States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
or for any other circuit in which the person resides or
transacts business. The petition may only be filed during the
30-day period beginning on the date of issuance of the order
making the assessment.
``(6) If a person fails to pay an assessment of a civil
penalty--
``(A) after the order making the assessment has become a
final order and without filing a petition for judicial review
in accordance with paragraph (5); or
``(B) after a court has entered a final judgment in favor
of the Secretary, the Attorney General shall recover the
amount assessed (plus interest at currently prevailing rates
from the last day of the 30-day period referred to in
paragraph (5) or the date of the final judgment, as the case
may be) in an action brought in an appropriate district court
of the United States. In the action, the validity, amount,
and appropriateness of the penalty shall not be subject to
review.
``(d) Effective Date.--
``(1) In general.--This section shall take effect on the
date which is 180 days after the date of enactment of the
Improving America's Schools Act of 1994, except as provided
in paragraph (2).
``(2) Collective bargaining agreements.--
``(A) In the case of a person described in subsection (a)
who employs individuals who are members of a labor
organization and provide elementary or secondary educational
services pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement that--
``(i) took effect before the date of enactment of the
Improving America's Schools Act of 1994, and
``(ii) includes provisions relating to smoking privileges
that are in violation of this section;
this section shall take effect on the date that is 180 days
after the date of enactment of the Improving America's
Schools Act of 1994 or the date specified in subparagraph
(B), whichever is later.
``(B) The date specified in this subparagraph is the
earlier of--
``(i) the first expiration date (after the date of
enactment of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994) of
the collective bargaining agreement containing the provisions
relating to smoking privileges, or
``(ii) the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment
of the Improving America's Schools Act of 1994.
``(e) Preemption.--Nothing in this section shall preempt or
otherwise affect any provision of law of a State or political
subdivision of a State that is as restrictive or more
restrictive than a provision of this section.
Mr. DURBIN (during the reading). Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous
consent that the amendment be considered as read and printed in the
Record.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from
Illinois?
There was no objection.
Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. DURBIN. I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania.
Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Chairman, we have read the gentleman's amendment,
and we accept his amendment.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. DURBIN. I yield to the gentleman from Michigan.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I accept the amendment.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. Chairman, let me say very briefly, I want to thank
the gentleman from Pennsylvania and the gentleman from Michigan for
accepting this amendment.
This amendment establishes smoke-free schools across America. It is
consistent but slightly different than the Goals 2000 legislation.
Mr. Chairman, scientific evidence is mounting that secondhand smoke
breathed by non-smokers is a dangerous and toxic environmental
pollutant. According to the American Medical Association, environmental
tobacco smoke is the third leading cause of early death in the United
States.
Children suffer the most from the effects of secondhand smoke. The
Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] estimates that, each year, smoke
from tobacco causes 150,000 to 300,000 cases of bronchitis and
pneumonia in children under 18 months of age. More than a million
children suffer from asthma attacks triggered by cigarettes.
We must protect our children from the harmful effects of secondhand
smoke by supporting the Durbin amendment. This legislation would
restrict smoking in public schools across the country, except in
separately ventilated areas. In my own district, Montgomery County, MD,
the schools are already smoke free. I believe that children in all
programs receiving ESEA funds should receive the same protection as the
students in Montgomery County, MD, enjoy.
There is a long list of actions that already have been taken to
protect children and adults from the ill effects of environmental
tobacco smoke:
McDonald's made the front page of major newspapers recently by
banning smoking in their company-owned restaurants.
Pentagon officials have announced that smoking will not be permitted
in the military workplace. This action affects more than 2\1/2\ million
uniformed and civilian personnel all over the world.
Many Federal agencies have banned smoking in their buildings,
including Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection
Agency, and the Office of Personnel Management.
The State of Maryland wants to ban smoking in the workplaces
throughout the State.
If Federal agencies, businesses, and local and State governments are
taking steps to protect Americans from the harmful effects of
secondhand smoke, how can we in Congress do less?
I urge my colleagues to support a very sensible approach to
protecting our children from secondhand smoke as proposed in
the amendment by Mr. Durbin. ``The Durbin amendment requires recipients
of Federal funds for elementary and secondary educational services to
establish and make a good-faith effort to enforce a nonsmoking policy
that prohibits smoking in each indoor portion of a facility used in
connection with the provision of educational services.'' However,
smoking is permitted in designated areas that meet two criteria. These
areas must be separately ventilated, and they must be areas where
services are not normally provided directly to children.
Local educational agencies that fail to abide by this amendment would
be subject to civil penalties. No Federal funds would be taken away
from those agencies and ESEA services to children would not be
affected. The amendment also addresses concerns that unions may have,
especially if they have collective bargaining contracts that include
smoking privileges. Unions would have 1 year to negotiate contract
revisions to comply with the law.
Mr. Chairman, secondhand smoke kills 3,000 people each year from lung
cancer. Thousands of children develop respiratory diseases from
secondhand smoke, which triggers asthma attacks in as many as a million
children. The least that we, in Congress, can do is to provide our
youth with an unpolluted, smokefree environment in school. I urge my
colleagues to vote in favor of the Durbin amendment.
The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Durbin].
The amendment was agreed to.
{time} 1800
amendment offered by mr. miller of florida
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
The Clerk read as follows:
Amendment offered by Mr. Miller of Florida: Beginning on
page 768, strike line 22 and all that follows through line 7
on page 776 (and redesignate the subsequent parts
accordingly).
The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to the order of the Committee of the Whole of
earlier today, debate on this amendment and all amendments thereto will
be limited to 30 minutes. The gentleman from Florida [Mr. Miller] will
be recognized for 15 minutes, and a Member opposed will be recognized
for 15 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida [Mr. Miller].
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, my amendment would eliminate
$200 million in new spending from H.R. 6, intended to provide funding
for low-interest direct loans for the construction of school
facilities. This funding was not requested by President Clinton in his
1995 budget. It is a new, unwanted program put into H.R. 6 by the
committee at the last minute, without even being considered by the
Subcommittee on Elementary and Secondary Education.
This $200 million program is another provision buried in H.R. 6 that
represents unnecessary and wasteful spending that will not contribute
to better education.
This Congress loves to create new programs, but leave questions of
financing for later. It is particularly hard to argue against spending
new money on education without looking like a bad guy. We can all agree
that real solutions to many of the problems facing this country are
dependent on improving our country's education system.
I question our rationale, however, for dumping more and more Federal
money on the problem as a real solution. I think it may be more of a
political cop-out. The problem is not that the Federal Government
spends too little but that we spend with too little thought. As a
nation, we are already spending more on the education of our children
than our competitors.
My amendment would delete a new program that would allow local
educating agencies to receive loans from the Federal Government at an
interest rate that is 1.25 percentage points lower than what the
Federal Treasury borrows at. Sounds great. Or does it?
One possible result of these federally subsidized loans would be to
discourage the normal process of raising money for planned construction
at the local level. Instead, some local school officials may decide to
come to Washington to lobby the powers that be in Congress. That, in
and of itself, would create a misallocation of scarce school dollars.
And what will they find when they get here? Too few dollars to fund
any number of potentially important school construction projects. Look
at the funding for this program: $200 million in budget authority in
fiscal year 1995, to be divided between over 15,000 school districts.
It is not even clear that these federally subsidized loans would
provide a greater benefit to local schools. Currently, most local
school districts finance new school construction through tax-exempt
municipal bonds. According to the Congressional Research Service, local
school districts ``are likely to find that this subsidized taxable
borrowing is not efficient.'' Even at 1.25 percentage points below
Treasury bonds, municipal bonds may still offer a lower rate. And,
then, the idea of 50-year loans is absurd. I have never heard of a 50-
year loan.
Plain and simply that is irresponsible spending.
And, of course, every Federal dollar comes with strings attached, and
congressional meddling into local school decisions. One example: New
requirements, similar to Davis-Bacon mandates on Federal construction
projects, that will set a prevailing wage on school building plans
financed with this new Federal loan program. The end result would be
higher labor costs that would increase the costs of the project
dramatically.
Mr. Chairman, a significant majority of this Congress recently voted
in favor of the balanced budget amendment to the Constitution;
unfortunately, not the two-thirds required for final passage. We may
remain unwilling to admit it, but the fact remains: the Federal
Government cannot even come close to meeting its current spending
obligations. As important as education is, we cannot keep borrowing and
going into debt. With major health care and crime legislation before us
this year, we must set priorities.
We love to talk about deficit reduction, but here is where the tough
choices are actually made. If you are serious about balancing the
budget--and if you voted for the balanced budget amendment, as I did--
you will vote to trim this new program from H.R. 6.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN. Does the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Kildee] rise in
opposition to the amendment?
Mr. KILDEE. Yes, Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.
The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Kildee] is recognized
for 15 minutes.
Mr. KILDEE. I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from
California [Mr. Miller].
Mr. MILLER of California. Mr. Chairman, I hope that the Members would
reject this amendment. This is an attempt to try to deal with a
situation that occurs throughout our Nation, and that is that many,
many of our schools are in very inadequate condition, for safety and
health reasons, to educate our children. They are also among some of
the poorest districts which are not able to put together the financing
to take care of either the major renovation of those schools and/or the
rebuilding of those schools. This would allow those school districts
that cannot float bonds to acquire money for the purposes of
renovation. We can no longer continue to accept in this country that
poor children must go to poor schools. We have to change that learning
environment. This $200 million would allow us to potentially leverage
about $1 billion in school construction funds. This is very similar to
a program that we now have in the Higher Education Act to provide for
programs in higher education facilities.
Mr. Chairman, I would hope we would reject this amendment. This is a
well-thought-out amendment. It means a great deal to poorer school
districts throughout the entire country. I would hope that we would
accept this and understand that this has a great potential to help many
of our poorer school districts to put in new facilities that are
necessary for the modernization of schools and to meet the demands of
new technology.
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Goodling].
(Mr. GOODLING asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the amendment. The
gentleman from Pennsylvania is correct, there has been very little
emphasis on this amendment, very little study, no hearings, and I have
to say that contrary to what we just heard, it really does not give all
poor school districts in the country an equal opportunity.
As it is written, Mr. Chairman, the amendment would only allow
Federal loans to school districts which receive concentration grants.
Let me tell the Members, in my district I have a very, very poor school
district, but because of the county situation, which we are correcting
down the line, they do not receive concentration grants.
There are also many rural school districts that are quite poor that
cannot receive concentration grants. Therefore, they do not qualify for
this program.
Of course, Mr. Chairman, as mentioned by the gentleman from Florida
[Mr. Miller], school districts have 50 years to repay. If they do
anything about infrastructure, they are going to discover that their
loans and the costs of the loans are far greater than this, so we would
be treating education differently than anything else. I think the
gentleman from Florida [Mr. Miller] has a good amendment, and I support
that amendment.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Montana [Mr. Williams].
Mr. WILLIAMS. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding time
to me.
Mr. Chairman, all of us have come to the point where we would rather
take turns coming to the floor here and objecting to earmarking
facilities in appropriation bills. We have become adamant, many of us
in this House, that earmarking is the wrong way to provide needed
facilities. I am calling it earmarking. America calls it pork.
We could spend hours, if we had more than just a few minutes, reading
to each other our own words about earmarking and pork. This bill, Mr.
Chairman, has in it for the first time an established way for the
Congress to simply authorize renovation and construction of new
facilities, and do it in a way that we do not earmark them, that we no
longer will do that.
We cannot have it both ways. We cannot be against pork and then be
against a process which the gentleman from California has put in this
bill, and the gentleman from Florida would take out, a process which
just establishes an institutional way to get on with the business of
upgrading existing education facilities and building new ones.
If we want to continue to force Members to come to the floor and
earmark projects, which is the wrong way to do it, then vote yes on the
gentleman's amendment. If Members would rather take the pork out of it
and have a legitimate authorization process go forward, that avoids the
politics of getting enough votes to get one's own pork for their own
district, then vote no on the gentleman's amendment and keep the
language in the bill the way it is.
Finally, let me say this. There is an enormous national need for
renovation of existing school facilities and for new school facilities.
The condition of America's educational facilities in city after city
after city in this country is a national disgrace.
{time} 1810
Some facilities do not even have adequate lavatories. Many facilities
have no science laboratories. The roofs are caving in. I was in a
school the other day in a city in Montana that could have been a school
that went through the earthquake in Los Angeles.
But should I come to the floor of the House and insist that I
earmark, and as some would say pork money for a facility? No, let us
take Pat Williams and the others out of it. Let us not have us
earmarking and porking. Let us simply have a legitimate process of
authorization which we now have in the bill.
I urge my colleagues to reject the gentleman's amendment by voting
no.
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I want to say I am not opposing
the way money is allocated. I am opposed to the entire program. It is a
totally new program of $200 million of funding. We have already taken a
bill and a program that was $900 million when President Clinton
introduced it which is now $2 billion higher, and now we have to start
cutting our spending. I am not opposed to building schools. It is being
done very effectively at the local level.
Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio [Mr.
Boehner].
Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Chairman, I thank my colleague for yielding the time
and I rise in support of this amendment.
The Federal Government in Washington, DC, is now going to accept the
responsibility to build schools in America. The gentleman from Florida
[Mr. Miller] and I have been offering a series of amendments throughout
this bill because we believe a number of programs were added in
committee that were not requested by the President, that were not
wanted by the Department of Education, but were wanted by Members of
Congress. And this is another example of another program added to this
bill that dilutes the focus of what we are trying to do by helping
disadvantaged students around this country.
We would all like to have all of the money possible to do all of the
great things that we want to do. But we do not have unlimited
resources. We have scarce resources. As a result, I think we have a
responsibility to focus our help where it is most needed.
Every district in America has schools that are falling apart. I would
be the first one to admit that. The gentleman from Colorado made a
great plea about a school in Montana, and I would suggest under the
language of this amendment that there is not one school district in
Montana that would ever qualify under the amendment that we have before
us.
But let us get back to the focus of this. The Federal Government has
no responsibility to build schools in America. That responsibility
belongs to States and local communities and it ought to stay there.
Second, I would point out, 50 years, we are going to allow school
districts 50 years which they get to pay back. In 50 years the
buildings will not be there, which prompts the question: Is this a loan
program, or let us be honest and call it what it is, a grant program,
because the districts that would qualify under this amendment are
districts that cannot afford the buildings, frankly. Let us be honest.
They are never going to be able to afford to pay them back.
The last point I would make is a provision in this amendment that
would require the construction of these schools to be done under Davis-
Bacon. For all of us in this Chamber, we understand that Davis-Bacon
laws are going to add 15 percent to 20 percent to the cost of
construction. We are going to further burden local districts by
requiring them to build these buildings under the Davis-Bacon Act, and
it is totally unnecessary.
So with all due respect to the authors of the amendment, I believe
that the gentleman from Florida has a very good amendment. We ought to
strike this language and save this $200 million authorization, and keep
that focus back in on title I and chapter 2 where we would like to have
it.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, before yielding to the gentleman from
Texas, I would like to say that in my capacity as chairman of this
subcommittee, I have visited schools throughout this country and I have
seen school buildings in which a Federal judge would not let us house
prisoners. As a matter of fact, in my home county where I was born and
raised, Genesee County, Michigan, the Federal judge ordered the closing
of the county jail, and that county jail was in much better condition
than some schools I have seen in this country.
Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas [Mr. Gene
Green].
Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the
Miller amendment to H.R. 6. The chairman of the subcommittee pointed
out that but for the problems with getting amendments up here on the
floor on the crime bill, we are willing to spend billions of dollars to
build prisons and help States build prisons. I think it is time we
started spending some of that money to build schools, because we know
that we cannot build our way out of the crisis, and maybe if we build a
few more schools we will not have to build prisons next year.
But this amendment would eliminate title XI in the bill which
provides direct loans for the rehabilitation and the building of
facilities. Some of the Nation's schools are in a complete state of
disrepair, and this program will set us in the right direction in
addressing the incredible needs for better school facilities. If we
listen to the opposition, they are going to tell us we should not be
doing this, they would not want us to provide funding at all, and even
this small amount, $200 million all over the country, will not help
everyone. But it will get leverage.
Research indicates that the total dollar amount needed to address
school facilities is $13 billion nationwide. This modest amount of $200
million in direct loans to school districts for constructing these new
facilities will address some of that shortcoming with what both the
local schools and school districts and the States are doing.
In Texas we have been involved in a school finance controversy for
over 20 years, and it is interesting to note that part of the current
school court order for our schools includes a requirement that school
facilities be addressed. School facilities are a vital part of the
component, as much a part as the school books and as much a part as the
teachers, and to say we should not help with facilities in the Federal
Government is like putting our heads in the sand.
I urge my colleagues to vote against the Miller Florida amendment and
give our schools some assistance to provide our Nation's school
children the education they deserve. This will not solve all of the
facility problems, but it will be leverage, and it will help.
Again, I urge a ``no'' vote.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New
Jersey [Mr. Andrews].
(Mr. ANDREWS of New Jersey asked and was given permission to revise
and extend his remarks.)
Mr. ANDREWS of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from
Michigan for yielding me the time. I rise to oppose the amendment of
the gentleman from Florida.
The gentleman from Florida has made an eloquent and convincing case
that we should not create a $200 million a year Federal school
construction program. He has made a convincing case as to why the
Federal Government should no meddle in the affairs of school
construction. He has made a convincing case about not spending money we
do not have. He has argued, with all due respect, against a bill that
is not here.
Let me describe what this bill does as opposed to the arguments made
against it by our friend from Florida. It is true that under the rather
bizarre bookkeeping rules that we have in the Federal Government that
this has a $200 million a year price tag attached to it. It is also
true that if this program operates under any normal economic
assumptions, it will run in the black.
Here is how it works: if a school district borrows $10 million
directly from the Federal Government to build a school, it will pay an
interest rate under this bill of 1.25 percent below the Federal
Government's 30-year rate to borrow money. Today that means that that
school district would borrow money at approximately 5 percent.
The Federal Government would acquire that $10 million, either by
raising it the way we do, or by borrowing it, and today the Federal
Government borrows money at an average of 4.87 percent.
So here is the way it works: The Federal taxpayers would incur a debt
service obligation of about $487,000 this year to produce the $10
million school loan. The school that borrows the money would pay us
back $500,000.
Now in Washington arithmetic, that says we are in the red. In the
real world arithmetic, that says we wind up as Federal taxpayers
$13,000 in the black each year. If this were a $200 million a year
grant program, I would join the gentleman from Florida in supporting
his amendment. It is not. This is a program that will leverage up this
year $1 billion of new school construction on a cash flow basis to the
taxpayers that returns in the black.
I also thought, with all due respect to my friends, that Republicans
support programs that pay for themselves and do not put the country in
the red. If that is the case, this passes the litmus test of a
Republican program, and my friends should oppose the Miller amendment
and leave the bill the way that it is.
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the
distinguished gentleman from Texas [Mr. Armey], the chairman of the
Republican Conference.
Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me the
time. I rise in support of the Miller amendment.
{time} 1820
Ladies and gentlemen, we build schools so we can teach children. Let
me suggest to you what will be the lessons the schoolchildren of
America will draw from this bill.
If this provision remains in the bill, they will be told by their
Government that irrespective of the concept of dual federalism which
they are taught in their civics classes, the Federal Government should
be so involved in local education issues that despite the 200 or so
billion dollars this Government is in debt each year, we ought to
create a $200 million program wherein we will make loans from the
Federal Government to the local school district to construct schools,
and we will lend that money to the local school district for 1.25
percent less than what we borrow the money for. This is hardly a lesson
in prudent finance to teach our young people.
And we will need the $200 million to cover what, the interest subsidy
and defaults, so we are writing here a provision into the bill that
assumes that the local school districts will default on even a
subsidized loan paid at rates more favorable than the lender-borrower.
Furthermore, we are going to teach our youngsters that in
consideration for their well-being, we are going to force all of these
States and all of these school districts within these States that avail
themselves of this largesse, that they must disregard their own State's
laws and construct the schools in a more costly fashion that complies
with Davis-Bacon.
If our schoolchildren are dumb enough to buy that, ladies and
gentlemen, they will never graduate.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New
Jersey [Mr. Andrews].
Mr. ANDREWS of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for
yielding me this time.
Let me just make this point: The $200 million figure that my friend,
the gentleman from Texas, made reference to is not tied to loan
defaults. The loan default rate for public school districts across this
country is almost always, almost always less than 3 percent of money
borrowed. That is simply not the reason for the $200 million, just a
rather strange and arcane budget system that the gentleman helped to
write.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New
York [Mr. Engel].
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment
offered by the gentleman from Florida [Mr. Miller] to strike title XI,
School Facilities Improvement.
I would like to say at the outset that I find it somewhat incredulous
that we are hearing some ranting and raving from the other side of the
aisle about Federal encroachment into education when we have had
amendment after amendment coming from the other side of the aisle
mandating that the Federal Government get involved in curricula and
other things and not allow the local level, local school districts,
people back home to shape their own destiny. I do not think the
argument cuts one way and not another way.
Title XI authorizes low-interest Federal direct loan programs modeled
after the existing higher education, college housing, and academic
facilities loan program, and the program, as was mentioned, would be
directed to poorer school districts for school construction,
reconstruction, and renovation projects.
This low-interest loan program will use limited Federal resources to
leverage a maximum amount of aid to local schools. Preliminary
estimates from the Congressional Budget Office indicate that the
program's $200 million authorization will make about $1 billion in loan
principal available to borrowers. According to recent studies, one in
every four public school buildings in the United States is in
inadequate condition. In fact, over 75 percent of our Nation's urban
school buildings are over 25 years old and 33 percent of the buildings
are over 50 years old.
The total cost of making needed replacements and renovations is
estimated to exceed $100 billion. Financing such repairs is primarily
the responsibility of States and local districts, but limited Federal
aid is vital to support local projects in those areas where the costs
of such activities would otherwise be prohibitive.
Let me say it has been my pleasure working with my colleagues, the
gentleman from California [Mr. Miller] and the gentleman from New
Jersey [Mr. Andrews], on this innovative and important proposal. I
thank them for their leadership in this area.
If we expect our children to meet the national goals set forth in the
Educate America Act, we must provide them at the very minimum a safe
and comfortable environment conducive to learning.
I urge my colleagues to oppose the Miller amendment.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to my
colleague, the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Hoekstra], a freshman
member of the Committee on Education and Labor.
Mr. HOEKSTRA. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support today of the Miller
amendment.
I think it is important for our colleagues to recognize where and how
this money makes its way to Washington and then back to the local
school districts.
First, if we ever get to a point where we have a balanced budget, the
dollars are going to be coming from constituents from local school
districts. They have a habit of coming to Washington where we will
establish a new bureaucracy to administer the loan funds, so the
dollars coming from local school districts, we will eat up a portion of
those costs in administrative costs. School districts will then have to
apply to get this money back to their districts, and once they receive
the money, they will be burdened with new Federal mandates in terms of
how they will construct or how they may use these dollars for a
construction project.
Once again, we will burden them with things like Davis-Bacon
regulations, so that not going out and getting competitive bids, they
will be mandated to provide the prevailing wages within that district
regardless of whether they have received competitive bids. So rather
than going out and helping the neediest school districts, what we will
be doing is sending money back to them and tying up and spending this
billion dollars in ways that are not most cost-effective to the
individual school districts.
Let us leave the money back in the local districts.
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the
gentleman from Wyoming [Mr. Thomas].
Mr. THOMAS of Wyoming. Mr. Chairman, I am not a member of the
committee, and I have to tell you that I have listened to this debate
now endlessly, and I am amazed at what is going on here.
I guess you have to kind of rethink this thing. I am a little
surprised that we think all the knowledge on education resides here. I
am a little surprised to think that all the resources in education
reside here.
It seems to me this is one of the things in this country that has
been strong because it has been locally controlled and local
responsibility.
And we move increasingly to take a bankrupt Federal Government and
want to provide funding for that kind of thing. It is surprising to me
that we was to go deeper with the Federal Government, intruding
themselves into local government that has worked well for that very
reason.
Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my
time.
Mr. Chairman, as a fiscal conservative, my problem is this is a new
program, $200 million of new spending that we do not have.
Where is the $200 million going to come from? We have a freeze on
spending. We have pay-go type rules. We are going to have to take them
from somewhere else.
Are we going to take them from title I, from the Eisenhower program,
from chapter 2? We do not have the money to create a totally new loan
program.
A lot of States are not going to be able to take advantage of this.
In Florida, in my district, we do not have prevailing-wage laws, and
all of a sudden we are going to enforce prevailing-wage laws in
Florida. There is no school district in Florida that would even want
this.
The interest rate is 1\1/4\ percent of the taxable interest rate,
1\1/4\ percent below. School districts borrow it at a tax-exempt rate.
Even the A-1 rating, the Congressional Research Service says, is lower
than that 1\1/4\ below the taxable rate. This does not make any sense.
It costs us $200 million a year. Let us focus our money on chapter 2,
title I, on the Eisenhower program, and put the money where it is best
needed.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the
gentleman from Florida [Mr. Miller].
The question was taken; and the Chairman announced that the noes
appeared to have it.
recorded vote
Mr. MILLER of Florida, Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 181,
noes 235, not voting 22, as follows:
[Roll No. 93]
AYES--181
Allard
Andrews (TX)
Archer
Armey
Bachus (AL)
Baker (CA)
Baker (LA)
Ballenger
Barca
Bartlett
Barton
Bateman
Bentley
Bereuter
Bilirakis
Bliley
Boehner
Bonilla
Bunning
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Canady
Castle
Chapman
Clinger
Coble
Collins (GA)
Combest
Condit
Cooper
Costello
Cox
Crane
Crapo
Cunningham
Darden
DeLay
Dickey
Doolittle
Dornan
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Ehlers
Emerson
Everett
Ewing
Fawell
Fields (TX)
Fish
Fowler
Franks (NJ)
Gekas
Geren
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gingrich
Glickman
Goodlatte
Goodling
Goss
Grams
Greenwood
Gunderson
Hall (TX)
Hamilton
Hancock
Hansen
Hastert
Hefley
Herger
Hobson
Hoekstra
Hoke
Holden
Houghton
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hutto
Hyde
Inglis
Inhofe
Istook
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, Sam
Kanjorski
Kasich
Kim
King
Kingston
Klink
Klug
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kyl
LaFalce
Laughlin
Levy
Lewis (CA)
Lightfoot
Linder
Livingston
Machtley
Manzullo
Margolies-Mezvinsky
McCollum
McCrery
McDade
McInnis
McKeon
Meyers
Mica
Michel
Miller (FL)
Minge
Moorhead
Morella
Myers
Nussle
Orton
Oxley
Packard
Paxon
Penny
Peterson (FL)
Peterson (MN)
Petri
Pombo
Porter
Portman
Poshard
Pryce (OH)
Quillen
Ramstad
Ravenel
Regula
Ridge
Roberts
Rohrabacher
Roth
Roukema
Rowland
Royce
Sangmeister
Saxton
Schaefer
Schiff
Sensenbrenner
Shaw
Shays
Shuster
Skeen
Skelton
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (OR)
Snowe
Solomon
Spence
Stearns
Stenholm
Stump
Sundquist
Talent
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Thomas (WY)
Thurman
Upton
Valentine
Vucanovich
Walker
Wolf
Young (AK)
Young (FL)
Zeliff
Zimmer
NOES--235
Abercrombie
Ackerman
Andrews (ME)
Andrews (NJ)
Bacchus (FL)
Baesler
Barcia
Barlow
Barrett (WI)
Becerra
Beilenson
Berman
Bevill
Bilbray
Bishop
Blackwell
Blute
Boehlert
Bonior
Borski
Boucher
Brewster
Brooks
Browder
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Byrne
Cantwell
Carr
Clay
Clayton
Clement
Clyburn
Coleman
Collins (IL)
Collins (MI)
Conyers
Coppersmith
Coyne
Cramer
Danner
de la Garza
de Lugo (VI)
Deal
DeFazio
DeLauro
Dellums
Deutsch
Diaz-Balart
Dicks
Dingell
Dixon
Dooley
Durbin
Edwards (CA)
Edwards (TX)
Engel
English
Eshoo
Evans
Faleomavaega (AS)
Farr
Fazio
Fields (LA)
Filner
Fingerhut
Flake
Foglietta
Ford (MI)
Frank (MA)
Franks (CT)
Frost
Furse
Gejdenson
Gephardt
Gilman
Gonzalez
Gordon
Green
Gutierrez
Hall (OH)
Hamburg
Harman
Hastings
Hayes
Hefner
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hoagland
Hochbrueckner
Horn
Hoyer
Huffington
Hughes
Inslee
Jacobs
Jefferson
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (SD)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnston
Kaptur
Kennedy
Kennelly
Kildee
Kleczka
Klein
Kopetski
Kreidler
Lambert
Lancaster
Lantos
LaRocco
Lazio
Leach
Levin
Lewis (GA)
Lipinski
Lloyd
Long
Lowey
Maloney
Mann
Manton
Markey
Martinez
Matsui
Mazzoli
McCandless
McCloskey
McCurdy
McDermott
McHale
McHugh
McKinney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek
Menendez
Mfume
Miller (CA)
Mineta
Mink
Moakley
Molinari
Mollohan
Montgomery
Moran
Murphy
Nadler
Neal (MA)
Neal (NC)
Norton (DC)
Oberstar
Olver
Ortiz
Owens
Pallone
Parker
Pastor
Payne (NJ)
Payne (VA)
Pelosi
Pickett
Pomeroy
Price (NC)
Quinn
Rahall
Rangel
Reed
Reynolds
Richardson
Roemer
Rogers
Romero-Barcelo (PR)
Ros-Lehtinen
Rose
Rostenkowski
Roybal-Allard
Rush
Sabo
Sanders
Sarpalius
Sawyer
Schenk
Schroeder
Schumer
Scott
Serrano
Sharp
Shepherd
Sisisky
Skaggs
Slattery
Slaughter
Smith (IA)
Spratt
Stark
Stokes
Strickland
Studds
Stupak
Swett
Synar
Tanner
Tauzin
Tejeda
Thomas (CA)
Thompson
Thornton
Torkildsen
Torres
Towns
Traficant
Tucker
Underwood (GU)
Unsoeld
Velazquez
Vento
Visclosky
Volkmer
Walsh
Washington
Waters
Watt
Waxman
Whitten
Williams
Wilson
Wise
Woolsey
Wyden
Wynn
Yates
NOT VOTING--22
Applegate
Barrett (NE)
Brown (CA)
Cardin
Derrick
Ford (TN)
Gallegly
Gallo
Grandy
Lehman
Lewis (FL)
McMillan
Murtha
Natcher
Obey
Pickle
Santorum
Smith (TX)
Swift
Torricelli
Weldon
Wheat
{time} 1850
Messrs. WALSH, DIXON, PARKER, and NEAL of Massachusetts, and Ms.
LAMBERT changed their vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
Messrs. HOLDEN, SKELTON, ISTOOK, and EWING changed their vote from
``no'' to ``aye.''
So the amendment was rejected.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
____________________