[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 156 (Thursday, September 28, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1286]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              H.R. 3354, STATE ASSESSMENT GRANTS AMENDMENT

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                         HON. SUZANNE BONAMICI

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 28, 2017

  Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer my bipartisan 
amendment to H.R. 3354 to increase funding for State Assessment Grants.
  I want to thank my colleague and friend, Representative Costello for 
his continued leadership on this issue, and for his commitment to a 
successful implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
  In the last Congress, we passed the Every Student Succeeds Act, a 
bipartisan bill, to leave behind No Child Left Behind. After 14 years, 
Democrats and Republicans in both Chambers came together on a 
compromise legislation to update federal K-12 education policy and 
reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
  ESSA ensures equity protections for America's students. It supports 
our most vulnerable and underserved students and works to close the 
achievement gap. ESSA gives states and school districts flexibility to 
develop their own plans for holding schools accountable, measuring 
student success, and encouraging improvements. It also recognizes the 
important role of assessments in education. Assessments serve as a tool 
to monitor student progress and gauge how students are performing 
across each state. Assessments also inform teacher instruction by 
providing valuable information to support student learning. ESSA 
includes provisions from the SMART Act, a bipartisan bill I authored 
with Representative Costello to help make assessments more effective.
  Our amendment would provide full funding for ESSA's State Assessment 
Grants. State Assessment Grants provide critical resources to help 
states and school districts build high-quality assessment systems that 
support teachers and students. By fully funding State Assessment 
Grants, states and school districts can audit their assessment systems 
and reduce excessive, repetitive testing. This funding can also help 
states--like my home state of Oregon--develop new assessments to 
strengthen student learning. Oregon is preparing to pilot a K-3 
formative assessment to improve student outcomes.
  The good work being done in Oregon is an example of what is possible 
if states have the resources and flexibility they need to focus on 
student success. I thank my colleague Representative Costello for his 
partnership, and I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

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