[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 13 (Tuesday, January 24, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S449]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DAINES (for himself, Mr. Perdue, Mr. Cruz, Mr. Lee, Mr. 
        Johnson, and Mr. Rubio):
  S. 221. A bill to allow a State to submit a declaration of intent to 
the Secretary of Education to combine certain funds to improve the 
academic achievement of students; to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, as a fifth-generation Montanan and product 
of Montana public schools from kindergarten through college, husband to 
an elementary school teacher, and father of four children, I understand 
how important a first rate education is to our kids' future. That is 
why I am reintroducing the Academic Partnerships Lead Us to Success, or 
A-PLUS, Act this Congress. This measure will help expand local control 
of our schools and return Federal education dollars where they belong: 
closer to the classrooms. By shifting control back to the States, 
individual and effective solutions can be created to address the 
multitude of unique challenges facing schools across the country. 
Through these ``laboratories of democracy,'' Americans can watch and 
learn how students can benefit when innovative reforms are implemented 
on the local level. This bill would give states greater flexibility in 
allocating federal education funding and ensuring academic achievement 
in their schools. With A-PLUS, States would be freed from Washington-
knows-best performance metrics and failed testing requirements. Should 
this legislation be adopted, states would need to adhere to all civil 
rights laws and work towards advancing educational opportunities for 
disadvantaged children as well. States would be held accountable by 
parents and teachers because a bright light would shine directly on the 
decisions made by State capitals and local school districts. With 
freedom from Federal mandates comes more responsibility, transparency, 
and accountability on States. It would also reduce the administrative 
and compliance burdens on state and local education agencies, and 
ensure greater public transparency in student academic achievement and 
the use of federal education funds. Increasing educational opportunity 
in Montana and across the country isn't going happen through federal 
mandates or one-size-fits-none regulations. We need to empower our 
States, our local school boards, our teachers, and parents to work 
together to develop solutions that best fit our kids' unique needs. 
That is precisely what my A-PLUS Act does. Washington is the problem--
and we have the solutions in Montana and in states across the country. 
The A-PLUS Act goes a long ways towards returning the responsibility 
for our kids' education closer to home and reduces the influence of the 
Federal Government over our classrooms. I want to thank Senators Cruz, 
Perdue, Johnson, Lee, and Rubio for helping reintroduce the A-PLUS Act 
this Congress. I ask my other Senate colleagues to join us in 
empowering our schools to serve their students, not DC bureaucrats, and 
support this important piece of legislation.
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