Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act 2011or SOAR Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award five-year grants on a competitive basis to nonprofit organizations to carry out a program to provide expanded school choice opportunities to students who are District of Columbia (DC) residents and who come from households: (1) receiving assistance under the supplemental nutrition assistance program under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008; or (2) with incomes not exceeding 185% of the poverty line, except in certain grandfathered circumstances.
Prescribes special rules for funding opportunity scholarships for DC students.
Prescribes requirements for schools participating in such grant programs. Requires each participating school to administer a nationally norm-referenced standardized test in reading and mathematics to each enrolled student receiving an opportunity scholarship.
Repeals the DC School Choice Incentive Act of 2003 (title III of division C of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004). Deems this Act as the reauthorization of the opportunity scholarship program under such Act.
[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 206 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 206
To reauthorize the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 26, 2011
Mr. Lieberman (for himself, Ms. Collins, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Alexander,
and Mr. Ensign) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To reauthorize the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program, and for other
purposes.
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 ``Scholarships for Opportunity and
Results Act of 2011'' or the ``SOAR Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Parents are best equipped to make decisions for their
children, including the educational setting that will best
serve the interests and educational needs of their child.
(2) For many parents in the District of Columbia, public
school choice provided under the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965, as amended by the No Child Left Behind
Act of 2001, as well as under other public school choice
programs, is inadequate. More educational options are needed to
ensure all families in the District of Columbia have access to
a quality education. In particular, funds are needed to provide
low-income parents with enhanced public opportunities and
private educational environments, regardless of whether such
environments are secular or nonsecular.
(3) While the per-student cost for students in the public
schools of the District of Columbia is one of the highest in
the United States, test scores for such students continue to be
among the lowest in the Nation. The National Assessment of
Educational Progress (NAEP), an annual report released by the
National Center for Education Statistics, reported in its 2009
study that students in the District of Columbia were being
outperformed by every State in the Nation. On the 2009 NAEP, 56
percent of fourth grade students scored ``below basic'' in
reading, and 44 percent scored ``below basic'' in mathematics.
Among eighth grade students, 49 percent scored ``below basic''
in reading and 60 percent scored ``below basic'' in
mathematics. On the 2009 NAEP reading assessment, only 17
percent of the District of Columbia fourth grade students could
read proficiently, while only 13 percent of the eighth grade
students scored at the proficient or advanced level.
(4) In 2003, Congress passed the DC School Choice Incentive
Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-199, 118 Stat. 126), to provide
opportunity scholarships to parents of students in the District
of Columbia to enable them to pursue a high quality education
at a public or private elementary or secondary school of their
choice. The DC opportunity scholarship program (DC OSP) under
such Act was part of a comprehensive 3-part funding arrangement
that also included additional funds for the District of
Columbia public schools, and additional funds for public
charter schools of the District of Columbia. The intent of the
approach was to ensure that progress would continue to be made
to improve public schools and public charter schools, and that
funding for the opportunity scholarship program would not lead
to a reduction in funding for the District of Columbia public
and charter schools. Resources would be available for a variety
of educational options that would give families in the District
of Columbia a range of choices with regard to the education of
their children.
(5) The DC OSP was established in accordance with the U.S.
Supreme Court decision, Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, 536 U.S. 639
(2002), which found that a program enacted for the valid
secular purpose of providing educational assistance to low-
income children in a demonstrably failing public school system
is constitutional if it is neutral with respect to religion and
provides assistance to a broad class of citizens who direct
government aid to religious and secular schools solely as a
result of their genuine and independent private choices.
(6) Since the inception of the DC OSP, it has consistently
been oversubscribed. Parents express strong support for the
opportunity scholarship program. Rigorous studies of the
program by the Institute of Education Sciences have shown
significant improvements in parental satisfaction and in
reading scores that are more dramatic when only those students
consistently using the scholarships are considered. The program
also was found to result in significantly higher graduation
rates for DC OSP students.
(7) The DC OSP is a program that offers families in need,
in the District of Columbia, important alternatives while
public schools are improved. This program should be
reauthorized as 1 part of a 3-part comprehensive funding
strategy for the District of Columbia school system that
provides new and equal funding for public schools, public
charter schools, and opportunity scholarships for students to
attend private schools.
SEC. 3. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to provide low-income parents residing
in the District of Columbia, particularly parents of students who
attend elementary schools or secondary schools identified for
improvement, corrective action, or restructuring under section 1116 of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316),
with expanded opportunities for enrolling their children in other
schools in the District of Columbia, at least until the public schools
in the District of Columbia have adequately addressed shortfalls in
health, safety, and security, and the students in the District of
Columbia public schools are testing in mathematics and reading at or
above the national average.
SEC. 4. GENERAL AUTHORITY.
(a) Authority.--From amounts made available to carry out this
section in accordance with section 14(b)(1), the Secretary shall award
grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities with approved
applications under section 5 to carry out a program to provide eligible
students with expanded school choice opportunities. The Secretary may
award a single grant or multiple grants, depending on the quality of
applications submitted and the priorities of this Act.
(b) Duration of Grants.--The Secretary shall make grants under this
section for a period of not more than 5 years.
(c) Memorandum of Understanding.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary and the Mayor of the
District of Columbia shall enter into a memorandum of
understanding regarding the implementation of the program
authorized under subsection (a) and the funding described in
paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 14(b).
(2) Contents.--The memorandum of understanding shall
address how the Mayor of the District of Columbia will ensure
that the public schools and the public charter schools of the
District of Columbia comply with all reasonable requests for
information as necessary to fulfill the requirements for
evaluations conducted under section 9.
(d) Special Rules.--
(1) Use of funds.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, funds appropriated for the DC opportunity scholarship
program under the Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 (Public Law
111-8, 123 Stat. 654), the Consolidated Appropriations Act of
2010 (Public Law 111-117, 123 Stat. 3181), or any other Act,
shall be available until expended and may be used to provide
opportunity scholarships under section 7 to new applicants.
(2) Repeal of site inspection and reporting requirements.--
The fourth and fifth provisos under the heading ``Federal
Payment for School Improvement'' of title IV of Division C of
the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-
117, 123 Stat. 3182) are repealed. Any unobligated amounts
reserved to carry out such provisos shall be made available to
an eligible entity for administrative purposes or for
opportunity scholarships under a grant under subsection (a),
including for opportunity scholarships for new applicants for
the 2011-2012 school year.
SEC. 5. APPLICATIONS.
(a) In General.--In order to receive a grant under section 4(a), an
eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the
Secretary may require.
(b) Contents.--The Secretary may not approve the request of an
eligible entity for a grant under section 4(a) unless the entity's
application includes--
(1) a detailed description of--
(A) how the entity will address the priorities
described in section 6;
(B) how the entity will ensure that if more
eligible students seek admission in the program than
the program can accommodate, eligible students are
selected for admission through a random selection
process which gives weight to the priorities described
in section 6;
(C) how the entity will ensure that if more
participating eligible students seek admission to a
participating school than the school can accommodate,
participating eligible students are selected for
admission through a random selection process;
(D) how the entity will notify parents of eligible
students of the expanded choice opportunities in order
to allow the parents to make informed decisions;
(E) the activities that the entity will carry out
to provide parents of eligible students with expanded
choice opportunities through the awarding of
scholarships under section 7(a);
(F) how the entity will determine the amount that
will be provided to parents for the tuition, fees, and
transportation expenses, if any;
(G) how the entity will--
(i) seek out private elementary schools and
secondary schools in the District of Columbia
to participate in the program; and
(ii) ensure that participating schools will
meet the reporting and other requirements of
this Act, and accommodate site visits in
accordance with section 7(a)(4)(D);
(H) how the entity will ensure that participating
schools are financially responsible and will use the
funds received under a grant under section 4(a)
effectively;
(I) how the entity will address the renewal of
scholarships to participating eligible students,
including continued eligibility; and
(J) how the entity will ensure that a majority of
its voting board members or governing organization are
residents of the District of Columbia; and
(2) an assurance that the entity will comply with all
requests regarding any evaluation carried out under section 9.
SEC. 6. PRIORITIES.
In awarding grants under section 4(a), the Secretary shall give
priority to applications from eligible entities that will most
effectively--
(1) give priority to eligible students who, in the school
year preceding the school year for which the eligible student
is seeking a scholarship, attended an elementary school or
secondary school identified for improvement, corrective action,
or restructuring under section 1116 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316);
(2) give priority to students whose household includes a
sibling or other child who is already participating in the
program of the eligible entity under section 4(a), regardless
of whether such students have, in the past, been assigned as
members of a control study group for the purposes of an
evaluation under section 9;
(3) target resources to students and families that lack the
financial resources to take advantage of available educational
options; and
(4) provide students and families with the widest range of
educational options.
SEC. 7. USE OF FUNDS.
(a) Opportunity Scholarships.--
(1) In general.--Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), an
eligible entity receiving a grant under section 4(a) shall use
the grant funds to provide eligible students with opportunity
scholarships to pay the tuition, fees, and transportation
expenses, if any, to enable the eligible students to attend the
District of Columbia private elementary school or secondary
school of their choice beginning in school year 2011-2012. Each
such eligible entity shall ensure that the amount of any
tuition or fees charged by a school participating in such
eligible entity's program under section 4(a) to an eligible
student participating in the program does not exceed the amount
of tuition or fees that the school charges to students who do
not participate in the program.
(2) Payments to parents.--An eligible entity receiving a
grant under section 4(a) shall make scholarship payments under
the program under section 4(a) to the parent of the eligible
student participating in the program, in a manner which ensures
that such payments will be used for the payment of tuition,
fees, and transportation expenses (if any), in accordance with
this Act.
(3) Amount of assistance.--
(A) Varying amounts permitted.--Subject to the
other requirements of this section, an eligible entity
receiving a grant under section 4(a) may award
scholarships in larger amounts to those eligible
students with the greatest need.
(B) Annual limit on amount.--
(i) Limit for school year 2011-2012.--The
amount of assistance provided to any eligible
student by an eligible entity under a program
under section 4(a) for school year 2011-2012
may not exceed--
(I) $8,000 for attendance in
kindergarten through grade 8; and
(II) $12,000 for attendance in
grades 9 through 12.
(ii) Cumulative inflation adjustment.--The
limits described in clause (i) shall apply for
each school year following school year 2011-
2012, except that the Secretary shall adjust
the maximum amounts of assistance (as described
in clause (i) and adjusted under this clause
for the preceding year) for inflation, as
measured by the percentage increase, if any,
from the preceding fiscal year in the Consumer
Price Index for All Urban Consumers, published
by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
Department of Labor.
(4) Participating school requirements.--None of the funds
provided under subsection (a) for opportunity scholarships may
be used by an eligible student to enroll in a participating
private school unless the participating school--
(A) has and maintains a valid certificate of
occupancy issued by the District of Columbia;
(B) makes readily available to all prospective
students information on its school accreditation;
(C) in the case of a school that has been operating
for 5 years or less, submits to the eligible entity
administering the program proof of adequate financial
resources reflecting the financial sustainability of
the school and the school's ability to be in operation
through the school year;
(D) agrees to submit to site visits as determined
to be necessary by the eligible entity, except that a
participating school shall not be required to submit to
more than one site visit per year;
(E) has financial systems, controls, policies, and
procedures to ensure that funds are used in accordance
with the requirements of this Act; and
(F) ensures that each teacher of core subject
matter in the school has a baccalaureate degree or
equivalent degree.
(b) Administrative Expenses.--An eligible entity receiving a grant
under section 4(a) may use not more than 3 percent of the amount
provided under the grant each year for the administrative expenses of
carrying out its program under such section during the year,
including--
(1) determining the eligibility of students to participate;
(2) selecting eligible students to receive scholarships;
(3) determining the amount of scholarships and issuing the
scholarships to eligible students; and
(4) compiling and maintaining financial and programmatic
records.
(c) Parental Assistance.--An eligible entity receiving a grant
under section 4(a) may use not more than 2 percent of the amount
provided under the grant each year for the expenses of educating
parents about the program under this Act and assisting parents through
the application process under this Act during the year, including--
(1) providing information about the program and the
participating schools to parents of eligible students;
(2) providing funds to assist parents of students in
meeting expenses that might otherwise preclude the
participation of eligible students in the program; and
(3) streamlining the application process for parents.
(d) Student Academic Assistance.--An eligible entity receiving a
grant under section 4(a) may use not more than 1 percent of the amount
provided under the grant each year for expenses to provide tutoring
services to participating eligible students that need additional
academic assistance in the students' new schools. If there are
insufficient funds to pay for these costs for all such students, the
eligible entity shall give priority to students who previously attended
an elementary school or secondary school that was identified for
improvement, corrective action, or restructuring under section 1116 of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6316) as
of the time the student attended the school.
SEC. 8. NONDISCRIMINATION.
(a) In General.--An eligible entity or a school participating in
any program under this Act shall not discriminate against program
participants or applicants on the basis of race, color, national
origin, religion, or sex.
(b) Applicability and Single Sex Schools, Classes, or Activities.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the prohibition of sex discrimination in subsection (a)
shall not apply to a participating school that is operated by,
supervised by, controlled by, or connected to a religious
organization to the extent that the application of subsection
(a) is inconsistent with the religious tenets or beliefs of the
school.
(2) Single sex schools, classes, or activities.--
Notwithstanding subsection (a) or any other provision of law, a
parent may choose and a school may offer a single sex school,
class, or activity.
(3) Applicability.--For purposes of this Act, the
provisions of section 909 of the Education Amendments of 1972
(20 U.S.C. 1688) shall apply to this Act as if section 909 of
the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1688) were part of
this Act.
(c) Children With Disabilities.--Nothing in this Act may be
construed to alter or modify the provisions of the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.).
(d) Religiously Affiliated Schools.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, a school participating in any program under this Act that
is operated by, supervised by, controlled by, or connected to,
a religious organization may exercise its right in matters of
employment consistent with title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-1 et seq.), including the exemptions in
such title.
(2) Maintenance of purpose.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, funds made available under section 7(a) to
eligible students, which are used at a participating school as
a result of their parents' choice, shall not, consistent with
the first amendment of the United States Constitution,
necessitate any change in the participating school's teaching
mission, require any participating school to remove religious
art, icons, scriptures, or other symbols, or preclude any
participating school from retaining religious terms in its
name, selecting its board members on a religious basis, or
including religious references in its mission statements and
other chartering or governing documents.
(e) Rule of Construction.--A scholarship (or any other form of
support provided to parents of eligible students) provided under
section 7(a) shall be considered assistance to the student and shall
not be considered assistance to the school that enrolls the eligible
student. The amount of any such scholarship (or other form of support
provided to parents of an eligible student) shall not be treated as
income of the parents for purposes of Federal tax laws or for
determining eligibility for any other Federal program.
SEC. 9. EVALUATIONS.
(a) In General.--
(1) Duties of the secretary and the mayor.--The Secretary
and the Mayor of the District of Columbia shall--
(A) jointly enter into an agreement with the
Institute of Education Sciences of the Department of
Education to evaluate annually the performance of
students who received scholarships under the 5-year
program under section 4(a), and the Mayor shall ensure
that, for the purposes of this evaluation, all public
and public charter schools of the District of Columbia
comply with all reasonable requests for information;
(B) jointly enter into an agreement to monitor and
evaluate the use of funds authorized and appropriated
under paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 14(b) for the
public schools and public charter schools of the
District of Columbia; and
(C) make the evaluations public in accordance with
subsection (c).
(2) Duties of the secretary.--The Secretary, through a
grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, shall--
(A) ensure that the evaluation under paragraph
(1)(A) is conducted using the strongest possible
research design for determining the effectiveness of
the program funded under section 4(a) that addresses
the issues described in paragraph (4); and
(B) disseminate information on the impact of the
program in increasing the academic growth and
achievement of participating students, and on the
impact of the program on students and schools in the
District of Columbia.
(3) Duties of the institute of education sciences.--The
Institute of Education Sciences shall--
(A) use a grade appropriate measurement each school
year to assess participating eligible students;
(B) measure the academic achievement of all
participating eligible students; and
(C) work with the eligible entities to ensure that
the parents of each student who applies for an
opportunity scholarship under a program under section
4(a) (regardless of whether the student receives the
scholarship) and the parents of each student
participating in the scholarship program under section
4(a), agree that the student will participate in the
measurements given annually by the Institute of
Education Sciences for the period for which the student
applied for or received the scholarship, respectively,
except that nothing in this subparagraph shall affect a
student's priority for an opportunity scholarship as
provided under section 6(2).
(4) Issues to be evaluated.--The issues to be evaluated
include--
(A) a comparison of the academic growth and
achievement of participating eligible students in the
measurements described in this section with the
academic growth and achievement of eligible students in
the same grades in the public schools and public
charter schools of the District of Columbia, who sought
to participate in the scholarship program but were not
selected;
(B) the success of the program in expanding choice
options for parents, improving parental and student
satisfaction, and increasing parental involvement in
the education of their children;
(C) the reasons parents choose for their children
to participate in the program;
(D) a comparison of the retention rates, dropout
rates, and (if appropriate) graduation and college
admission rates of students who participate in the
program funded under section 4(a), as compared to the
retention rates, dropout rates, and (if appropriate)
graduation and college admission rates of students of
similar backgrounds who do not participate in such
program;
(E) the impact of the program on students, and
public elementary schools and secondary schools, in the
District of Columbia;
(F) a comparison of the safety of the schools
attended by students who participate in the program
funded under section 4(a) and the schools attended by
students who do not participate in the program, based
on the perceptions of the students and parents and on
objective measures of safety;
(G) such other issues as the Secretary considers
appropriate for inclusion in the evaluation; and
(H) an analysis of the issues described in
subparagraphs (A) through (G) with respect to the
subgroup of eligible students participating in the
program funded under section 4(a) who consistently use
the opportunity scholarships to attend a participating
school.
(5) Prohibition.--Personally identifiable information
regarding the results of the measurements used for the
evaluations may not be disclosed, except to the parents of the
student to whom the information relates.
(b) Reports.--The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on
Appropriations, Education and the Workforce, and Oversight and
Government Reform of the House of Representatives and the Committees on
Appropriations, Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate--
(1) annual interim reports, not later than December 1 of
each year for which a grant is made under section 4(a), on the
progress and preliminary results of the evaluation of the
program funded under such section; and
(2) a final report, not later than 1 year after the final
year for which a grant is made under section 4(a), on the
results of the evaluation of the program funded under such
section.
(c) Public Availability.--All reports and underlying data gathered
pursuant to this section shall be made available to the public upon
request, in a timely manner following submission of the applicable
report under subsection (b), except that personally identifiable
information shall not be disclosed or made available to the public.
(d) Limit on Amount Expended.--The amount expended by the Secretary
to carry out this section for any fiscal year may not exceed 5 percent
of the total amount appropriated to carry out section 4(a) for the
fiscal year.
SEC. 10. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Activities Reports.--Each eligible entity receiving funds under
section 4(a) during a year shall submit a report to the Secretary not
later than July 30 of the following year regarding the activities
carried out with the funds during the preceding year.
(b) Achievement Reports.--
(1) In general.--In addition to the reports required under
subsection (a), each grantee receiving funds under section 4(a)
shall, not later than September 1 of the year during which the
second academic year of the grantee's program is completed and
each of the next 2 years thereafter, submit to the Secretary a
report, including any pertinent data collected in the preceding
2 academic years, concerning--
(A) the academic growth and achievement of students
participating in the program;
(B) the graduation and college admission rates of
students who participate in the program, where
appropriate; and
(C) parental satisfaction with the program.
(2) Prohibiting disclosure of personal information.--No
report under this subsection may contain any personally
identifiable information.
(c) Reports to Parent.--
(1) In general.--Each grantee receiving funds under section
4(a) shall ensure that each school participating in the
grantee's program under this Act during a year reports at least
once during the year to the parents of each of the school's
students who are participating in the program on--
(A) the student's academic achievement, as measured
by a comparison with the aggregate academic achievement
of other participating students at the student's school
in the same grade or level, as appropriate, and the
aggregate academic achievement of the student's peers
at the student's school in the same grade or level, as
appropriate;
(B) the safety of the school, including the
incidence of school violence, student suspensions, and
student expulsions; and
(C) the accreditation status of the school.
(2) Prohibiting disclosure of personal information.--No
report under this subsection may contain any personally
identifiable information, except as to the student who is the
subject of the report to that student's parent.
(d) Report to Congress.--
(1) Reports by secretary.--The Secretary shall submit to
the Committees on Appropriations, Education and the Workforce,
and Oversight and Government Reform of the House of
Representatives, and the Committees on Appropriations, Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions, and Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs of the Senate, an annual report on the
findings of the reports submitted under subsections (a) and
(b).
(2) Reports by mayor.--In order for funds under paragraphs
(2) and (3) of section 14(b) to be made available to the
District of Columbia, the Mayor of the District of Columbia
shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations, the Committee
on Education and the Workforce, and the Committee on Oversight
and Government Reform, of the House of Representatives, and the
Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions, and the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, information
on--
(A) how the funds authorized and appropriated under
paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 14(b) for the public
schools and public charter schools of the District of
Columbia were utilized; and
(B) how such funds are contributing to student
achievement.
SEC. 11. OTHER REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS.
(a) Requests for Data and Information.--Each school participating
in a program funded under section 4(a) shall comply with all requests
for data and information regarding evaluations conducted under section
9(a).
(b) Rules of Conduct and Other School Policies.--Each school
participating in a program funded under section 4(a), including each
participating school described in section 8(d), may require eligible
students to abide by any rules of conduct and other requirements
applicable to all other students at the school.
(c) Nationally Norm-Referenced Standardized Tests.--
(1) In general.--Each school participating in a program
funded under section 4(a) shall administer a nationally norm-
referenced standardized test in reading and mathematics to each
student enrolled in the school who is receiving an opportunity
scholarship. The results of such test shall be reported to the
student's parents or legal guardians and to the Secretary,
through the Institute of Education Sciences of the Department
of Education, for the purposes of conducting the evaluation
under section 9.
(2) Make-up session.--If a school participating in a
program funded under section 4(a) does not administer a
nationally norm-referenced standardized test or the Institute
of Education Sciences does not receive data regarding the
results of such test for a student who is receiving an
opportunity scholarship, then the Secretary, acting through the
Institute of Education Sciences, shall administer such test not
less than once during each school year to each student
receiving an opportunity scholarship.
SEC. 12. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Elementary school.--The term ``elementary school''
means an institutional day or residential school, including a
public elementary charter school, that provides elementary
education, as determined under District of Columbia law.
(2) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means
any of the following:
(A) A nonprofit organization.
(B) A consortium of nonprofit organizations.
(3) Eligible student.--The term ``eligible student'' means
a student who is a resident of the District of Columbia and
comes from a household--
(A) receiving assistance under the supplemental
nutrition assistance program established under the Food
and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.); or
(B) whose income does not exceed--
(i) 185 percent of the poverty line; or
(ii) in the case of a student participating
in the program under this Act in the preceding
year, 300 percent of the poverty line.
(4) Parent.--The term ``parent'' has the meaning given that
term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(5) Poverty line.--The term ``poverty line'' has the
meaning given that term in section 9101 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(6) Secondary school.--The term ``secondary school'' means
an institutional day or residential school, including a public
secondary charter school, that provides secondary education, as
determined under District of Columbia law, except that the term
does not include any education beyond grade 12.
(7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Education.
SEC. 13. TRANSITION PROVISIONS.
(a) Repeal.--The DC School Choice Incentive Act of 2003 (title III
of division C of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004 (Public Law
108-199; 118 Stat. 126)) is repealed.
(b) Reauthorization of Program.--This Act shall be deemed to be the
reauthorization of the District of Columbia opportunity scholarship
program under the DC School Choice Incentive Act of 2003.
(c) Orderly Transition.--Subject to subsections(d) and (e), the
Secretary shall take such steps as the Secretary determines to be
appropriate to provide for the orderly transition to the authority of
this Act from any authority under the provisions of the DC School
Choice Incentive Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-199; 118 Stat. 126), as
the DC School Choice Incentive Act of 2003 was in effect on the day
before the date of enactment of this Act.
(d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act or a repeal made by
this Act shall be construed to alter or affect the memorandum of
understanding entered into with the District of Columbia, or any grant
or contract awarded, under the DC School Choice Incentive Act of 2003
(Public Law 108-199; 118 Stat. 126), as the DC School Choice Incentive
Act of 2003 was in effect on the day before the date of enactment of
this Act.
(e) Multi-Year Awards.--The recipient of a multi-year grant or
contract award under the DC School Choice Incentive Act of 2003 (Public
Law 108-199; 118 Stat. 126), as the DC School Choice Incentive Act of
2003 was in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act,
shall continue to receive funds in accordance with the terms and
conditions of such award.
SEC. 14. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this Act, for the uses described in
subsection (b), $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 and each of the 4
succeeding fiscal years.
(b) Use of Funds Authorized Under This Act.--For each fiscal year,
any amount appropriated to carry out this Act shall be equally divided
among--
(1) the Secretary, in order to carry out the District of
Columbia opportunity scholarship program established under
section 4(a);
(2) the District of Columbia Public Schools, in order to
improve public school education in the District of Columbia;
and
(3) the State Education Office of the District of Columbia,
in order to expand quality public charter schools in the
District of Columbia.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S283)
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. (text of measure as introduced: CR S283-287)
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 112-195.
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