[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 740 Introduced in House (IH)]
108th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 740
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to encourage new school
construction through the creation of a new class of bond.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 12, 2003
Ms. Loretta Sanchez of California (for herself, Mr. Towns, Ms. Corrine
Brown of Florida, Mr. Paul, Mr. Boucher, Mr. Wexler, and Mr. Holden)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Ways and Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to encourage new school
construction through the creation of a new class of bond.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Expand and Rebuild America's Schools
Act of 2003''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Many States and school districts will need to build new
schools in order to accommodate increasing student enrollments;
the Department of Education has predicted that the Nation will
need 6,000 more schools by the year 2006.
(2) In response to reduced class mandates enforced by State
governments and increased enrollment, many school districts
have been forced to utilize temporary classrooms and other
structures to accommodate increased school populations, along
with resorting to year-round schedules for students.
(3) Research has proven a direct correlation between the
condition of school facilities and student achievement.
Recently, researchers found that students assigned to schools
in poor condition can be expected to fall 10.9 percentage
points behind those in buildings in excellent condition.
Similar studies have demonstrated up to a 20 percent
improvement in test scores when students were moved from a
school with poor facilities to a new facility.
(4) While school construction and maintenance are primarily
a State and local concern, States and communities have not, on
their own, met the increasing burden of providing acceptable
school facilities, and the poorest communities have had the
greatest difficulty meeting this need.
(5) Many local educational agencies have difficulties
securing financing for school facility construction and
renovation, especially in States that require a \2/3\ majority
of voter approval for the passage of local bond initiatives.
(6) The Federal Government, by providing interest subsidies
and similar types of support, can lower the costs of State and
local school infrastructure investment, creating an incentive
for businesses to support local school infrastructure
improvement efforts.
(7) The United States competitive position within the world
economy is vulnerable if America's future workforce continues
to be educated in schools not equipped for the 21st century.
America must do everything in its power to properly educate its
people to compete in the global marketplace.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to encourage public-private partnerships for the
financing of school construction and expansion, and
(2) to help local educational agencies bring all public
school facilities up to an acceptable standard and build the
additional classrooms needed to educate the growing number of
students who will enroll in the next decade.
SEC. 4. CREDIT TO HOLDERS OF SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION BONDS.
(a) In General.--Subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to business-related
credits) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``SEC. 30B. CREDIT TO HOLDERS OF SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION BONDS.
``(a) Allowance of Credit.--In the case of an eligible taxpayer who
holds a school construction bond on the credit allowance date of such
bond which occurs during the taxable year, there shall be allowed as a
credit against the tax imposed by this chapter for such taxable year
the amount determined under subsection (b).
``(b) Amount of Credit.--The amount of the credit determined under
this subsection with respect to any school construction bond is the
amount equal to the product of--
``(1) the credit rate determined by the Secretary under
section 1397E(b)(2) for the month in which such bond was
issued, multiplied by
``(2) the face amount of the bond held by the taxpayer on
the credit allowance date.
``(c) Limitation Based on Amount of Tax.--The credit allowed under
subsection (a) for any taxable year shall not exceed the excess of--
``(1) the sum of the regular tax liability (as defined in
section 26(b)) plus the tax imposed by section 55, over
``(2) the sum of the credits allowable under this part
(other than under this section and subpart C thereof, relating
to refundable credits) and section 1397E.
``(d) School Construction Bond.--For purposes of this section--
``(1) In general.--The term `school construction bond'
means any bond issued as part of an issue if--
``(A) 95 percent or more of the proceeds of such
issue are to be used for a qualified purpose with
respect to a new qualified school established by an
eligible local education agency.
``(B) the bond is issued by a State or local
government within the jurisdiction of which such school
is located,
``(C) the issuer--
``(i) designates such bond for purposes of
this section,
``(ii) certifies that it has written
assurances that the private business
contribution requirement of paragraph (2) will
be met with respect to such school, and
``(iii) certifies that it has the written
approval of the eligible local education agency
for such bond issuance, and
``(D) the term of each bond which is part of such
issue does not exceed the maximum term permitted under
section 1397E(d)(3).
``(2) Private business contribution requirement.--
``(A) In general.--For purposes of paragraph (1),
the private business contribution requirement of this
paragraph is met with respect to any issue if the
eligible local education agency that established the
qualified school has written commitments from private
entities to make qualified contributions having a
present value (as of the date of issuance of the issue)
of not less than 10 percent of the proceeds of the
issue.
``(B) Qualified contributions.--For purposes of
subparagraph (A), the term `qualified contribution'
means any contribution (of a type and quality
acceptable to the eligible local education agency) of--
``(i) equipment for use in the qualified
school (including state-of-the-art technology
and vocational equipment),
``(ii) technical assistance in developing
curriculum or in training teachers in order to
promote appropriate market driven technology in
the classroom,
``(iii) services of employees as volunteer
mentors,
``(iv) internships, field trips, or other
educational opportunities outside the school
for students, or
``(v) any other property or service
specified by the eligible local education
agency.
``(3) Qualified school.--
``(A) In general.--The term `qualified school'
means any public school which is established by and
operated under the supervision of an eligible local
education agency to provide education or training below
the postsecondary level if--
``(i) such public school is designed in
cooperation with business to enhance the
academic curriculum, increase graduation and
employment rates, and better prepare students
for the rigors of college and the increasingly complex workforce,
``(ii) students in such public school will
be subject to the same academic standards and
assessments as other students educated by the
local education agency,
``(iii) a well-structured program to
alleviate overcrowding and to improve students'
education has been constructed and implemented
in the opinion of the Secretary of Education,
and
``(iv) at least 2 of the following
requirements are met:
``(I) There is a reasonable
expectation (as of the date of issuance
of the bonds) that at least 35 percent
of the population attending such public school will be eligible for
free or reduced-cost lunches under the school lunch program established
under the National School Lunch Act.
``(II) There is a reasonable
expectation (as of the date of issuance
of the bonds) that the student growth
rate over the next 5 years for the
school district in which such public
school is to be located will be at
least 10 percent.
``(III) The average student-teacher
ratio for such district as of the date
of issuance of the bonds is at least 28
to 1.
``(B) Eligible local education agency.--The term
`eligible local education agency' means any local
educational agency as defined in section 14101 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
``(4) Qualified purpose.--
``(A) In general.--The term `qualified purpose'
means, with respect to any qualified school--
``(i) constructing a new school facility,
and
``(ii) providing equipment for use at such
facility.
``(B) School facility.--The term `school facility'
means a new public structure suitable for use as a
classroom, laboratory, library, media center, or
related facility whose primary purpose is the
instruction of public elementary or secondary students.
Such term does not include an athletic stadium, or any
other structure or facility intended primarily for
athletic exhibitions, contests, games, or events for
which admission is charged to the general public.
``(e) Limitation on Amount of Bonds Designated.--
``(1) National limitation.--There is a national school
construction bond limitation for each calendar year. Such
limitation is $400,000,000 for 2004 and 2005, and, except for
carryovers as provided under the rules applicable under
paragraph (4), zero thereafter.
``(2) Allocation of limitation.--The national school
construction bond limitation for a calendar year shall be
allocated by the Secretary among the States on the basis of
their respective populations of individuals below the poverty
line (as defined by the Office of Management and Budget). The
limitation amount allocated to a State under the preceding
sentence shall be allocated by the Secretary of Education to
qualified schools within such State.
``(3) Designation subject to limitation amount.--The
maximum aggregate face amount of bonds issued during any
calendar year which may be designated under subsection (d)(1)
with respect to any qualified school shall not exceed the
limitation amount allocated to such school under paragraph (2)
for such calendar year.
``(4) Carryover of unused limitation.--If for any calendar
year--
``(A) the limitation amount for any State, exceeds
``(B) the amount of bonds issued during such year
which are designated under subsection (d)(1) with
respect to qualified schools within such State,
the limitation amount for such State for the following calendar
year shall be increased by the amount of such excess.
``(f) Other Definitions.--The definitions in subsections (d)(6) and
(f) of section 1397E shall apply for purposes of this section.
``(g) Credit Included in Gross Income.--Gross income includes the
amount of the credit allowed to the taxpayer under this section.''
(b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of sections for subpart B of
part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code is amended by adding
at the end the following new item:
``Sec. 30B. Credit to holders of
school construction bonds.''
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall
apply to obligations issued after December 31, 2003.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
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