[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 135 (Tuesday, October 15, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H7900-H7901]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     PER-PUPIL EXPENDITURE REQUIREMENTS FOR HEAVILY IMPACTED LOCAL 
                          EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES

  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 5599) to apply guidelines for the determination of per-pupil 
expenditure requirements for heavily impacted local educational 
agencies, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 5599

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

     SECTION 1. PER-PUPIL EXPENDITURE REQUIREMENT FOR NEW HEAVILY 
                   IMPACTED LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.

       (a) In General.--Section 8003(b)(2)(C)(i)(II)(bb) of the 
     Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     7703(B)(2)(c)(i)(II)(bb)) is amended to read as follows:

       ``(bb) for a local educational agency that has a total 
     student enrollment of less than 350 students, has a per-pupil 
     expenditure that is less than the average per-pupil 
     expenditure of generally comparable local educational 
     agencies (determined according to the procedures described in 
     section 222.74(b) of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations, 
     as such section was in effect on January 1, 2000) in the 
     State in which the local educational agency is located; 
     and''.

       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section 
     shall be effective on September 30, 2001, and shall apply 
     with respect to fiscal year 2002, and all subsequent fiscal 
     years.

     SEC. 2. ELIGIBILITY OF BONESTEEL-FAIRFAX SCHOOL DISTRICT IN 
                   BONESTEEL, SOUTH DAKOTA.

       The Secretary of Education shall deem the local educational 
     agency serving the Bonesteel-Fairfax school district, 26-5, 
     in Bonesteel, South Dakota, to be eligible in fiscal year 
     2003 for a basic support payment for heavily impacted local 
     educational agencies under section 8003(b)(2) of the 
     Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     7703(b)(2)).

     SEC. 3. APPLICATION OF CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, SEQUOYAH 
                   COUNTY, OKLAHOMA.

       Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary 
     of Education shall treat as timely filed an application filed 
     by Central School District, Sequoyah County, Oklahoma, for 
     payment for federally connected students for fiscal year 
     2003, pursuant to section 8003 of the Elementary and 
     Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7703), and shall 
     process such application for payment, if the Secretary has 
     received such application not later than 30 days after the 
     date of enactment of this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Culberson) and the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Culberson).


                             General Leave

  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
on H.R. 5599.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege today to rise in support of H.R. 
5599, which is a noncontroversial and very straightforward piece of 
legislation to make technical amendments to the Impact Aid program. I 
want to thank the gentleman from South Dakota (Mr. Thune) for 
sponsoring this legislation and for his diligence in bringing this bill 
before the House today.
  This legislation makes three technical and, as I say, very 
noncontroversial corrections to the Education Code. First, the bill 
will correct a drafting error that occurred during the reauthorization 
of the Impact Aid program. This technical correction will allow the 
Department of Education to continue to use their current methodology in 
interpreting regulations, the process by which they determine which 
small school districts qualify for heavily impacted status.
  Secondly, the bill will allow the Bonesteel-Fairfax School District 
in South Dakota to continue to remain eligible to receive Impact Aid 
funding for 1 year, to allow them to resolve a financing issue at the 
local level that would otherwise have a significant impact on their 
budget. Districts such as this one have a great deal of federally or 
nonprivately owned property. Therefore, this Impact Aid funding is 
essential for them to continue to operate at funding levels that they 
have already budgeted for. So this is a very, very important correction 
that is vitally necessary.
  Finally, Mr. Speaker, this legislation requires the Department of 
Education to accept as timely filed a late application from a school 
district in Oklahoma that will allow them to continue to receive their 
Impact Aid funding on time.
  This legislation is very simple and straightforward, Mr. Speaker. It 
is a technical bill that contains technical corrections to the 
Education Code. We on the Committee on Education and the Workforce 
wanted to be certain that any errors that occurred during the drafting 
process were corrected and any school district that might suffer as a 
result of changes or potential misinterpretation of the Impact Aid 
formulas would be corrected by this legislation.
  I again want to thank the gentleman from South Dakota for offering 
this legislation, and I want to urge my colleagues in the House to 
support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5599. This legislation makes 
several technical fixes to the Impact Aid program.
  First, the bill clarifies Department of Education policy that small 
school districts can use other local school districts to determine 
their eligibility for

[[Page H7901]]

heavily impacted payments. This corrects a technical error in the 2000 
reauthorization of Impact Aid.
  Second, the bill maintains the eligibility of a school district in 
South Dakota for heavily impacted status for 1 year.
  Third, H.R. 5599 permits Central School District in Oklahoma to file 
their fiscal year 2002 Impact Aid application despite having not filed 
this application before the deadline.
  This legislation is similar to other bills this House has passed when 
technical fixes to the Impact Aid statute were needed in the past. I 
urge all Members to support this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I urge support for this important legislation by the Members of the 
House. It is noncontroversial and simply technical corrections.
  Mr. THUNE. Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Impact Aid Coalition 
Steering Committee, I want to thank Chairman Boehner for supporting 
this bill to make technical corrections to Impact Aid as it applies to 
two small local education agencies in South Dakota.
  My state places a high emphasis on quality public schools, and South 
Dakotans know the value of a quality education. The federal Impact Aid 
Program plays a big role in improving schools on or near Federal lands 
in my state.
  South Dakota is proud to be home of the Mt. Rushmore National 
Memorial Black Hills National Forest, Buffalo Gap and Fort Pierre 
National Grasslands, Badlands National Park, and nine Sioux Indian 
reservations. In fact, nearly 17 percent of South Dakota is Federal 
land--we rank 13th in the nation.
  Thirty-four school districts throughout South Dakota rely heavily on 
Impact Aid funding to provide education to children on or near the 
Federal lands in my state. In all, this program in South Dakota impacts 
over 32,000 students.
  While H.R. 5599 makes only small technical corrections, the impact of 
this bill on the Isabel and Bonesteel-Fairfax School Districts in South 
Dakota will be significant.
  The Isabel School District is located in the Cheyenne River Sioux 
Reservation in north-central South Dakota. H.R. 5599 will ensure that 
the Impact Aid Program Office correctly follows the methodology for 
determining comparable per pupil expenditure levels for heavily 
impacted school districts as provided in current regulations. This will 
guarantee placement in the correct ``heavily impacted'' category where 
they belong.
  The Bonesteel-Fairfax School District in south-central South Dakota 
will lose one-third of their total budget unless H.R. 5599 provides a 
waiver that allows them to correct a mistake made when calculating 
their local funding request.
  These provisions within H.R. 5599 will have a real impact on hundreds 
of students in some of the poorest, most heavily impacted school 
districts in America.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to again than Chairman Boehner and his staff for 
their help to ensure that these students will receive adequate Impact 
Aid funding.
  Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Culberson) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 5599.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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