| 1 | 1 | | I |
|---|
| 2 | 2 | | 119THCONGRESS |
|---|
| 3 | 3 | | 1 |
|---|
| 4 | 4 | | STSESSION H. R. 84 |
|---|
| 5 | 5 | | To expand opportunity for Native American children through additional |
|---|
| 6 | 6 | | options in education, and for other purposes. |
|---|
| 7 | 7 | | IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
|---|
| 8 | 8 | | JANUARY3, 2025 |
|---|
| 9 | 9 | | Mr. B |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | | IGGSof Arizona introduced the following bill; which was referred to the |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | | Committee on Education and Workforce |
|---|
| 12 | 12 | | A BILL |
|---|
| 13 | 13 | | To expand opportunity for Native American children through |
|---|
| 14 | 14 | | additional options in education, and for other purposes. |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | | Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1 |
|---|
| 16 | 16 | | tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 |
|---|
| 17 | 17 | | SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 |
|---|
| 18 | 18 | | This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Native American Edu-4 |
|---|
| 19 | 19 | | cation Opportunity Act’’. 5 |
|---|
| 20 | 20 | | SEC. 2. NATIVE AMERICAN EDUCATION OPPORTUNITY PRO-6 |
|---|
| 21 | 21 | | GRAM. 7 |
|---|
| 22 | 22 | | (a) I |
|---|
| 23 | 23 | | NGENERAL.—Part B of title XI of the Edu-8 |
|---|
| 24 | 24 | | cation Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2000 et seq.) is 9 |
|---|
| 25 | 25 | | amended— 10 |
|---|
| 26 | 26 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 27 | 27 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 2 |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 29 | 29 | | (1) by redesignating section 1141 as section 1 |
|---|
| 30 | 30 | | 1142; and 2 |
|---|
| 31 | 31 | | (2) by inserting after section 1140 the fol-3 |
|---|
| 32 | 32 | | lowing: 4 |
|---|
| 33 | 33 | | ‘‘SEC. 1141. FUNDING OF TRIBAL-BASED EDUCATION SAV-5 |
|---|
| 34 | 34 | | INGS ACCOUNT PROGRAMS. 6 |
|---|
| 35 | 35 | | ‘‘(a) P |
|---|
| 36 | 36 | | ROGRAMAUTHORIZED.— 7 |
|---|
| 37 | 37 | | ‘‘(1) D |
|---|
| 38 | 38 | | ISBURSEMENTS.—At the request of 8 |
|---|
| 39 | 39 | | Tribes, the Secretary of Education and the Sec-9 |
|---|
| 40 | 40 | | retary of the Interior shall, for the 2025–2026 10 |
|---|
| 41 | 41 | | school year and each subsequent school year, dis-11 |
|---|
| 42 | 42 | | burse amounts transferred under paragraphs (2) 12 |
|---|
| 43 | 43 | | and (3) of section 2101(a) of the Elementary and 13 |
|---|
| 44 | 44 | | Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 14 |
|---|
| 45 | 45 | | 6611(a)) for the fiscal year to such Tribes that ad-15 |
|---|
| 46 | 46 | | minister education savings account programs to en-16 |
|---|
| 47 | 47 | | able the Tribes to award grants to education savings 17 |
|---|
| 48 | 48 | | accounts for ESA eligible students for such school 18 |
|---|
| 49 | 49 | | year, in accordance with subsection (b). 19 |
|---|
| 50 | 50 | | ‘‘(2) A |
|---|
| 51 | 51 | | PPLICABILITY.—This section shall apply 20 |
|---|
| 52 | 52 | | with respect to ESA eligible students who have sub-21 |
|---|
| 53 | 53 | | mitted their application for participation under this 22 |
|---|
| 54 | 54 | | section to the Tribe of which the student is an en-23 |
|---|
| 55 | 55 | | rolled member on or after January 1, 2025. 24 |
|---|
| 56 | 56 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 57 | 57 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 3 |
|---|
| 58 | 58 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 59 | 59 | | ‘‘(3) ACCOUNT ADMINISTRATION .—A Tribe may 1 |
|---|
| 60 | 60 | | enter into an agreement with a nonprofit entity for 2 |
|---|
| 61 | 61 | | the administration of the accounts created through 3 |
|---|
| 62 | 62 | | the Tribe’s education savings account program. 4 |
|---|
| 63 | 63 | | ‘‘(4) R |
|---|
| 64 | 64 | | EQUIRED USE OF FUNDS .—Funds dis-5 |
|---|
| 65 | 65 | | bursed to a Tribe under this section shall be used 6 |
|---|
| 66 | 66 | | to deposit $8,000 each year in the Tribal education 7 |
|---|
| 67 | 67 | | savings accounts of ESA eligible students who have 8 |
|---|
| 68 | 68 | | not yet attained a regular high school diploma or its 9 |
|---|
| 69 | 69 | | recognized equivalent. 10 |
|---|
| 70 | 70 | | ‘‘(5) P |
|---|
| 71 | 71 | | ERMISSIBLE USE OF FUNDS .—Funds dis-11 |
|---|
| 72 | 72 | | bursed to a Tribe under this section may be used 12 |
|---|
| 73 | 73 | | for— 13 |
|---|
| 74 | 74 | | ‘‘(A) private tutoring, including academic, 14 |
|---|
| 75 | 75 | | Native language, or cultural tutoring; 15 |
|---|
| 76 | 76 | | ‘‘(B) costs of attendance at a private ele-16 |
|---|
| 77 | 77 | | mentary school or secondary school recognized 17 |
|---|
| 78 | 78 | | by the State, which may include a private 18 |
|---|
| 79 | 79 | | school that has a religious mission; 19 |
|---|
| 80 | 80 | | ‘‘(C) private online learning programs; 20 |
|---|
| 81 | 81 | | ‘‘(D) services provided by a public elemen-21 |
|---|
| 82 | 82 | | tary school or secondary school attended by the 22 |
|---|
| 83 | 83 | | child on a less than full-time basis, including in-23 |
|---|
| 84 | 84 | | dividual classes and extracurricular activities 24 |
|---|
| 85 | 85 | | and programs; 25 |
|---|
| 86 | 86 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 87 | 87 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 4 |
|---|
| 88 | 88 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 89 | 89 | | ‘‘(E) textbooks, curriculum programs, or 1 |
|---|
| 90 | 90 | | other instructional materials, including any sup-2 |
|---|
| 91 | 91 | | plemental materials required by a curriculum 3 |
|---|
| 92 | 92 | | program, private school, private online learning 4 |
|---|
| 93 | 93 | | program, or a public school, or any parent di-5 |
|---|
| 94 | 94 | | rected curriculum associated with K–12 edu-6 |
|---|
| 95 | 95 | | cation; 7 |
|---|
| 96 | 96 | | ‘‘(F) computer hardware or other techno-8 |
|---|
| 97 | 97 | | logical devices that are used to help meet a stu-9 |
|---|
| 98 | 98 | | dent’s educational needs, except that such hard-10 |
|---|
| 99 | 99 | | ware or devices may not be purchased by a par-11 |
|---|
| 100 | 100 | | ent more than once in an 18-month period; 12 |
|---|
| 101 | 101 | | ‘‘(G) educational software and applica-13 |
|---|
| 102 | 102 | | tions; 14 |
|---|
| 103 | 103 | | ‘‘(H) uniforms purchased for attendance at 15 |
|---|
| 104 | 104 | | a private school recognized by the State; 16 |
|---|
| 105 | 105 | | ‘‘(I) fees for nationally standardized as-17 |
|---|
| 106 | 106 | | sessment exams, advanced placement exams, 18 |
|---|
| 107 | 107 | | any exams related to college or university ad-19 |
|---|
| 108 | 108 | | mission, or tuition or fees for preparatory 20 |
|---|
| 109 | 109 | | courses for such exams; 21 |
|---|
| 110 | 110 | | ‘‘(J) fees for summer education programs 22 |
|---|
| 111 | 111 | | and specialized after-school education programs 23 |
|---|
| 112 | 112 | | (but not including after-school childcare); 24 |
|---|
| 113 | 113 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 114 | 114 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 5 |
|---|
| 115 | 115 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 116 | 116 | | ‘‘(K) educational services and therapies, 1 |
|---|
| 117 | 117 | | including occupational, behavioral, physical, 2 |
|---|
| 118 | 118 | | speech-language, and audiology therapies; 3 |
|---|
| 119 | 119 | | ‘‘(L) transportation to receive a service 4 |
|---|
| 120 | 120 | | under paragraph (4); 5 |
|---|
| 121 | 121 | | ‘‘(M) costs of attendance at an institution 6 |
|---|
| 122 | 122 | | of higher education; 7 |
|---|
| 123 | 123 | | ‘‘(N) costs associated with an apprentice-8 |
|---|
| 124 | 124 | | ship or other vocational training program; 9 |
|---|
| 125 | 125 | | ‘‘(O) fees for State-recognized industry 10 |
|---|
| 126 | 126 | | certification exams, and tuition or fees for pre-11 |
|---|
| 127 | 127 | | paratory courses for such exams; 12 |
|---|
| 128 | 128 | | ‘‘(P) contributions to a college savings ac-13 |
|---|
| 129 | 129 | | count, which may include contributions to a 14 |
|---|
| 130 | 130 | | qualified tuition program (as defined in section 15 |
|---|
| 131 | 131 | | 529(b)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 16 |
|---|
| 132 | 132 | | 1986) or other prepaid tuition plan offered by 17 |
|---|
| 133 | 133 | | a State; or 18 |
|---|
| 134 | 134 | | ‘‘(Q) any other educational expenses ap-19 |
|---|
| 135 | 135 | | proved by the Secretary. 20 |
|---|
| 136 | 136 | | ‘‘(b) D |
|---|
| 137 | 137 | | ISBURSEMENTS.— 21 |
|---|
| 138 | 138 | | ‘‘(1) A |
|---|
| 139 | 139 | | NNUAL DISBURSEMENTS .—A Tribe that 22 |
|---|
| 140 | 140 | | receives a disbursement amount under subsection (a) 23 |
|---|
| 141 | 141 | | shall make semi-annual distributions of such amount 24 |
|---|
| 142 | 142 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 143 | 143 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 6 |
|---|
| 144 | 144 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 145 | 145 | | to education savings accounts for ESA eligible stu-1 |
|---|
| 146 | 146 | | dents. 2 |
|---|
| 147 | 147 | | ‘‘(2) L |
|---|
| 148 | 148 | | IMITATION.—A Tribe shall allocate not 3 |
|---|
| 149 | 149 | | more than 5 percent of the amount received per 4 |
|---|
| 150 | 150 | | pupil under this section to the administration of the 5 |
|---|
| 151 | 151 | | education savings account programs of the Tribe. 6 |
|---|
| 152 | 152 | | ‘‘(3) R |
|---|
| 153 | 153 | | OLL OVER AND REMAINING FUNDS IN AN 7 |
|---|
| 154 | 154 | | ACCOUNT.—Amounts remaining in the Tribal edu-8 |
|---|
| 155 | 155 | | cation savings account of a student at the end of a 9 |
|---|
| 156 | 156 | | school year shall remain available until expended for 10 |
|---|
| 157 | 157 | | use in accordance with this section. 11 |
|---|
| 158 | 158 | | ‘‘(4) T |
|---|
| 159 | 159 | | ERMINITION AND RETURN OF FUNDS .— 12 |
|---|
| 160 | 160 | | The Tribal education savings account of a student 13 |
|---|
| 161 | 161 | | shall terminate on— 14 |
|---|
| 162 | 162 | | ‘‘(A) the date on which the student enrolls 15 |
|---|
| 163 | 163 | | in a public elementary school or secondary 16 |
|---|
| 164 | 164 | | school on a full-time basis; 17 |
|---|
| 165 | 165 | | ‘‘(B) in the case of a student who is pur-18 |
|---|
| 166 | 166 | | suing postsecondary education, the earlier of— 19 |
|---|
| 167 | 167 | | ‘‘(i) the date on which the student 20 |
|---|
| 168 | 168 | | completes postsecondary education; or 21 |
|---|
| 169 | 169 | | ‘‘(ii) the date on which the student at-22 |
|---|
| 170 | 170 | | tains the age of 25 years; 23 |
|---|
| 171 | 171 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 172 | 172 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 7 |
|---|
| 173 | 173 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 174 | 174 | | ‘‘(C) in the case of a student who is an in-1 |
|---|
| 175 | 175 | | dividual with a disability, the date on which the 2 |
|---|
| 176 | 176 | | student attains the age of 26 years; or 3 |
|---|
| 177 | 177 | | ‘‘(D) in the case of an individual not de-4 |
|---|
| 178 | 178 | | scribed in subparagraph (B) or (C), the earlier 5 |
|---|
| 179 | 179 | | of— 6 |
|---|
| 180 | 180 | | ‘‘(i) the date on which the student at-7 |
|---|
| 181 | 181 | | tains the age of 25 years; or 8 |
|---|
| 182 | 182 | | ‘‘(ii) the expiration of any 2-year pe-9 |
|---|
| 183 | 183 | | riod during which funds in the account are 10 |
|---|
| 184 | 184 | | not used in accordance with this section. 11 |
|---|
| 185 | 185 | | ‘‘(c) C |
|---|
| 186 | 186 | | OMPULSORYATTENDANCEREQUIREMENTS.— 12 |
|---|
| 187 | 187 | | A State that receives funds under this title shall consider 13 |
|---|
| 188 | 188 | | a child with a Tribal education savings account for a 14 |
|---|
| 189 | 189 | | school year as meeting the State’s compulsory school at-15 |
|---|
| 190 | 190 | | tendance requirements for such school year. 16 |
|---|
| 191 | 191 | | ‘‘(d) S |
|---|
| 192 | 192 | | PECIALRULE.—In the case of a child with a 17 |
|---|
| 193 | 193 | | Tribal education savings account who attends a public 18 |
|---|
| 194 | 194 | | school on a less than full-time basis in a school year— 19 |
|---|
| 195 | 195 | | ‘‘(1) the child may not attend the public school 20 |
|---|
| 196 | 196 | | free of charge; and 21 |
|---|
| 197 | 197 | | ‘‘(2) funds in the account, in an amount deter-22 |
|---|
| 198 | 198 | | mined pursuant to an agreement between the parent 23 |
|---|
| 199 | 199 | | of the child and the local educational agency con-24 |
|---|
| 200 | 200 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 201 | 201 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 8 |
|---|
| 202 | 202 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 203 | 203 | | cerned, shall be used to pay for the child’s costs of 1 |
|---|
| 204 | 204 | | attendance at such school. 2 |
|---|
| 205 | 205 | | ‘‘(e) T |
|---|
| 206 | 206 | | RIBALCONSULTATION.— 3 |
|---|
| 207 | 207 | | ‘‘(1) I |
|---|
| 208 | 208 | | N GENERAL.—Before providing edu-4 |
|---|
| 209 | 209 | | cational services to ESA eligible students, and on an 5 |
|---|
| 210 | 210 | | annual basis thereafter, a participating educational 6 |
|---|
| 211 | 211 | | service provider shall engage in consultation with ap-7 |
|---|
| 212 | 212 | | propriate Tribal officials before providing edu-8 |
|---|
| 213 | 213 | | cational services to ESA eligible students. 9 |
|---|
| 214 | 214 | | ‘‘(2) D |
|---|
| 215 | 215 | | OCUMENTATION.—The participating edu-10 |
|---|
| 216 | 216 | | cational service provider shall maintain in the pro-11 |
|---|
| 217 | 217 | | vider’s records and provide to the Bureau of Indian 12 |
|---|
| 218 | 218 | | Education a written affirmation signed by the ap-13 |
|---|
| 219 | 219 | | propriate officials of the participating Tribes or 14 |
|---|
| 220 | 220 | | Tribal organizations approved by the Tribes that the 15 |
|---|
| 221 | 221 | | consultation required by this section has occurred. If 16 |
|---|
| 222 | 222 | | such officials do not provide such affirmation within 17 |
|---|
| 223 | 223 | | a reasonable period of time, the affected educational 18 |
|---|
| 224 | 224 | | service provider shall forward documentation that 19 |
|---|
| 225 | 225 | | such consultation has taken place to the Bureau of 20 |
|---|
| 226 | 226 | | Indian Education. 21 |
|---|
| 227 | 227 | | ‘‘(3) R |
|---|
| 228 | 228 | | ULE OF CONSTRUCTION .—Nothing in 22 |
|---|
| 229 | 229 | | this section shall be construed to require the partici-23 |
|---|
| 230 | 230 | | pating educational service provider to determine who 24 |
|---|
| 231 | 231 | | are the appropriate officials. 25 |
|---|
| 232 | 232 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 233 | 233 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 9 |
|---|
| 234 | 234 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 235 | 235 | | ‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—Consultation required under 1 |
|---|
| 236 | 236 | | this section shall not interfere with the timely ap-2 |
|---|
| 237 | 237 | | proval and operation of participating educational 3 |
|---|
| 238 | 238 | | service providers. 4 |
|---|
| 239 | 239 | | ‘‘(f) R |
|---|
| 240 | 240 | | ULE OFCONSTRUCTION.—A grant awarded to 5 |
|---|
| 241 | 241 | | an ESA eligible student under this section shall be consid-6 |
|---|
| 242 | 242 | | ered assistance to the student and shall not be considered 7 |
|---|
| 243 | 243 | | assistance to a school that enrolls the ESA eligible student 8 |
|---|
| 244 | 244 | | or any other educational service provider from which the 9 |
|---|
| 245 | 245 | | ESA eligible student receives services. The amounts pro-10 |
|---|
| 246 | 246 | | vided on behalf of an ESA eligible student under this sec-11 |
|---|
| 247 | 247 | | tion shall not be treated as income of the parent or the 12 |
|---|
| 248 | 248 | | student for purposes of Federal tax laws or for deter-13 |
|---|
| 249 | 249 | | mining eligibility for any other Federal program. 14 |
|---|
| 250 | 250 | | ‘‘(g) T |
|---|
| 251 | 251 | | ERMINATION.—The authority to carry out this 15 |
|---|
| 252 | 252 | | section shall expire on the date that is 5 years after the 16 |
|---|
| 253 | 253 | | date of the enactment of this Act. 17 |
|---|
| 254 | 254 | | ‘‘(h) D |
|---|
| 255 | 255 | | EFINITIONS.—In this section: 18 |
|---|
| 256 | 256 | | ‘‘(1) A |
|---|
| 257 | 257 | | PPROPRIATE OFFICIALS.—The term ‘ap-19 |
|---|
| 258 | 258 | | propriate officials’ means— 20 |
|---|
| 259 | 259 | | ‘‘(A) Tribal officials who are elected; or 21 |
|---|
| 260 | 260 | | ‘‘(B) appointed Tribal leaders or officials 22 |
|---|
| 261 | 261 | | designated in writing. 23 |
|---|
| 262 | 262 | | ‘‘(2) E |
|---|
| 263 | 263 | | DUCATIONAL SERVICE PROVIDER .—The 24 |
|---|
| 264 | 264 | | term ‘educational service provider’ means an edu-25 |
|---|
| 265 | 265 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 266 | 266 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 10 |
|---|
| 267 | 267 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 268 | 268 | | cational service provider that has entered into an 1 |
|---|
| 269 | 269 | | agreement with a Tribe. 2 |
|---|
| 270 | 270 | | ‘‘(3) ESA |
|---|
| 271 | 271 | | ELIGIBLE STUDENT .—The term 3 |
|---|
| 272 | 272 | | ‘ESA eligible student’ means an individual who is— 4 |
|---|
| 273 | 273 | | ‘‘(A) an elementary school or secondary 5 |
|---|
| 274 | 274 | | school Tribal enrolled student who attended a 6 |
|---|
| 275 | 275 | | school operated by the Bureau of Indian Edu-7 |
|---|
| 276 | 276 | | cation in the semester preceding the date on 8 |
|---|
| 277 | 277 | | which the student first applies for participation 9 |
|---|
| 278 | 278 | | in an education savings account program; or 10 |
|---|
| 279 | 279 | | ‘‘(B) a child who— 11 |
|---|
| 280 | 280 | | ‘‘(i) will be eligible to attend a school 12 |
|---|
| 281 | 281 | | operated by the Bureau of Indian Edu-13 |
|---|
| 282 | 282 | | cation for kindergarten or any other ele-14 |
|---|
| 283 | 283 | | mentary school grade in the next semester 15 |
|---|
| 284 | 284 | | that will start after the date on which the 16 |
|---|
| 285 | 285 | | student first applies for participation in an 17 |
|---|
| 286 | 286 | | education savings account program; or 18 |
|---|
| 287 | 287 | | ‘‘(ii) will not be attending a school op-19 |
|---|
| 288 | 288 | | erated by the Bureau of Indian Education, 20 |
|---|
| 289 | 289 | | receiving an education savings account 21 |
|---|
| 290 | 290 | | from another Tribe, or attending a public 22 |
|---|
| 291 | 291 | | elementary school or secondary school, 23 |
|---|
| 292 | 292 | | while the student is participating in an 24 |
|---|
| 293 | 293 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 294 | 294 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 11 |
|---|
| 295 | 295 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 296 | 296 | | education savings account program of a 1 |
|---|
| 297 | 297 | | Tribe. 2 |
|---|
| 298 | 298 | | ‘‘(4) E |
|---|
| 299 | 299 | | DUCATION SAVINGS ACCOUNT PRO -3 |
|---|
| 300 | 300 | | GRAM.—The term ‘education savings account pro-4 |
|---|
| 301 | 301 | | gram’ means a program administered by a Tribe in 5 |
|---|
| 302 | 302 | | which the Tribe awards a grant to an account man-6 |
|---|
| 303 | 303 | | aged by the Tribe or a nonprofit entity on behalf of 7 |
|---|
| 304 | 304 | | a parent of an elementary school or secondary school 8 |
|---|
| 305 | 305 | | student from which the parent may purchase goods 9 |
|---|
| 306 | 306 | | and services needed for the education of the student. 10 |
|---|
| 307 | 307 | | ‘‘(5) N |
|---|
| 308 | 308 | | ONPROFIT ENTITY DEFINED .—In this 11 |
|---|
| 309 | 309 | | paragraph, the term ‘nonprofit entity’ means an en-12 |
|---|
| 310 | 310 | | tity that is described in the section 501(c)(3) of the 13 |
|---|
| 311 | 311 | | Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and is exempt from 14 |
|---|
| 312 | 312 | | taxation under section 501(a) of such Code. 15 |
|---|
| 313 | 313 | | ‘‘(6) P |
|---|
| 314 | 314 | | ARENT.—The term ‘parent’ has the 16 |
|---|
| 315 | 315 | | meaning given the term in section 8101 of the Ele-17 |
|---|
| 316 | 316 | | mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 18 |
|---|
| 317 | 317 | | U.S.C. 7801). 19 |
|---|
| 318 | 318 | | ‘‘(7) T |
|---|
| 319 | 319 | | RIBE.—The term ‘Tribe’ means any rec-20 |
|---|
| 320 | 320 | | ognized Indian Tribe included on the current list 21 |
|---|
| 321 | 321 | | published by the Secretary under section 104 of the 22 |
|---|
| 322 | 322 | | Federally Recognized Indian Tribe Act of 1994 (25 23 |
|---|
| 323 | 323 | | U.S.C. 5131).’’. 24 |
|---|
| 324 | 324 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 325 | 325 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 12 |
|---|
| 326 | 326 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 327 | 327 | | (b) CONFORMINGAMENDMENT.—Section 1126(c) of 1 |
|---|
| 328 | 328 | | the Education Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2006(c)) 2 |
|---|
| 329 | 329 | | is amended by striking ‘‘section 1141(12)’’ and inserting 3 |
|---|
| 330 | 330 | | ‘‘section 1142(12)’’. 4 |
|---|
| 331 | 331 | | SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO THE ELEMENTARY AND SEC-5 |
|---|
| 332 | 332 | | ONDARY EDUCATION ACT OF 1965. 6 |
|---|
| 333 | 333 | | Section 2101(a) of the Elementary and Secondary 7 |
|---|
| 334 | 334 | | Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6611(a)) is amended 8 |
|---|
| 335 | 335 | | at the end by inserting the following new paragraph: 9 |
|---|
| 336 | 336 | | ‘‘(3) one-half of one percent for Tribes that ad-10 |
|---|
| 337 | 337 | | minister education savings account programs under 11 |
|---|
| 338 | 338 | | section 1141 of part B of title XI of the Education 12 |
|---|
| 339 | 339 | | Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2000 et seq.).’’. 13 |
|---|
| 340 | 340 | | SEC. 4. CHARTER SCHOOLS AUTHORIZED. 14 |
|---|
| 341 | 341 | | (a) I |
|---|
| 342 | 342 | | NGENERAL.—The Bureau of Indian Education 15 |
|---|
| 343 | 343 | | is authorized to approve and fund a Bureau-Funded Char-16 |
|---|
| 344 | 344 | | ter School at any school operated or funded by the Bureau 17 |
|---|
| 345 | 345 | | of Indian Education. 18 |
|---|
| 346 | 346 | | (b) U |
|---|
| 347 | 347 | | SE OFBUREAUFACILITIES.—Tribes are au-19 |
|---|
| 348 | 348 | | thorized to use existing Bureau of Indian Education facili-20 |
|---|
| 349 | 349 | | ties for the operation, management, and expansion of 21 |
|---|
| 350 | 350 | | grades in Bureau-funded charter schools, as defined in 22 |
|---|
| 351 | 351 | | subsection (d)(1). 23 |
|---|
| 352 | 352 | | (c) U |
|---|
| 353 | 353 | | SE OFFUNDS.—Funds dispersed to Tribes 24 |
|---|
| 354 | 354 | | under this section may be used for subcontracts with a 25 |
|---|
| 355 | 355 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 356 | 356 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 13 |
|---|
| 357 | 357 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 358 | 358 | | Tribal organization or developer to manage or operate Bu-1 |
|---|
| 359 | 359 | | reau-funded charter schools. 2 |
|---|
| 360 | 360 | | (d) D |
|---|
| 361 | 361 | | EFINITIONS.—In this section: 3 |
|---|
| 362 | 362 | | (1) B |
|---|
| 363 | 363 | | UREAU-FUNDED CHARTER SCHOOL .—The 4 |
|---|
| 364 | 364 | | term ‘‘Bureau-Funded Charter School’’ means a 5 |
|---|
| 365 | 365 | | school that— 6 |
|---|
| 366 | 366 | | (A) is approved by the Tribal government 7 |
|---|
| 367 | 367 | | where the school operates and is approved and 8 |
|---|
| 368 | 368 | | funded by the Bureau of Indian Education; 9 |
|---|
| 369 | 369 | | (B) is exempt from significant Federal, 10 |
|---|
| 370 | 370 | | State, or local rules that inhibit the flexible op-11 |
|---|
| 371 | 371 | | eration and management of Bureau-funded 12 |
|---|
| 372 | 372 | | schools, but not from any rules relating to the 13 |
|---|
| 373 | 373 | | other requirements of this paragraph; 14 |
|---|
| 374 | 374 | | (C) is created by a developer as a Bureau- 15 |
|---|
| 375 | 375 | | funded school, or is adapted by a developer 16 |
|---|
| 376 | 376 | | from an existing Bureau-funded school; 17 |
|---|
| 377 | 377 | | (D) operates in pursuit of a specific set of 18 |
|---|
| 378 | 378 | | educational objectives determined by the 19 |
|---|
| 379 | 379 | | school’s developer and agreed to by each Tribe 20 |
|---|
| 380 | 380 | | served and the Bureau of Indian Education; 21 |
|---|
| 381 | 381 | | (E) provides a program of elementary or 22 |
|---|
| 382 | 382 | | secondary education, or both; 23 |
|---|
| 383 | 383 | | (F) is not affiliated with a sectarian school 24 |
|---|
| 384 | 384 | | or religious institution; 25 |
|---|
| 385 | 385 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 386 | 386 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 14 |
|---|
| 387 | 387 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 388 | 388 | | (G) does not charge tuition; 1 |
|---|
| 389 | 389 | | (H) complies with the Age Discrimination 2 |
|---|
| 390 | 390 | | Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.), title VI 3 |
|---|
| 391 | 391 | | of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 4 |
|---|
| 392 | 392 | | 2000d et seq.), title IX of the Education 5 |
|---|
| 393 | 393 | | Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), 6 |
|---|
| 394 | 394 | | section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 7 |
|---|
| 395 | 395 | | (29 U.S.C. 794), the Americans with Disabil-8 |
|---|
| 396 | 396 | | ities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), 9 |
|---|
| 397 | 397 | | section 1232g of this title (commonly referred 10 |
|---|
| 398 | 398 | | to as the ‘‘Family Educational Rights and Pri-11 |
|---|
| 399 | 399 | | vacy Act of 1974’’), and part B of the Individ-12 |
|---|
| 400 | 400 | | uals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 13 |
|---|
| 401 | 401 | | 1411 et seq.); 14 |
|---|
| 402 | 402 | | (I) is a school to which parents choose to 15 |
|---|
| 403 | 403 | | send their children, and that— 16 |
|---|
| 404 | 404 | | (i) admits students on the basis of a 17 |
|---|
| 405 | 405 | | lottery, consistent with section 18 |
|---|
| 406 | 406 | | 4303(c)(3)(A) of the Elementary and Sec-19 |
|---|
| 407 | 407 | | ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 20 |
|---|
| 408 | 408 | | 7221b(c)(3)(A)), if more students apply 21 |
|---|
| 409 | 409 | | for admission than can be accommodated; 22 |
|---|
| 410 | 410 | | or 23 |
|---|
| 411 | 411 | | (ii) automatically enrolls students who 24 |
|---|
| 412 | 412 | | are enrolled in the immediate prior grade 25 |
|---|
| 413 | 413 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 414 | 414 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 15 |
|---|
| 415 | 415 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 416 | 416 | | level of Bureau-funded schools and, for any 1 |
|---|
| 417 | 417 | | additional student openings or student 2 |
|---|
| 418 | 418 | | openings created through regular attrition 3 |
|---|
| 419 | 419 | | in student enrollment in the affiliated 4 |
|---|
| 420 | 420 | | charter school and the enrolling school, ad-5 |
|---|
| 421 | 421 | | mits students on the basis of a lottery as 6 |
|---|
| 422 | 422 | | described in clause (i); 7 |
|---|
| 423 | 423 | | (J) agrees to comply with the same Fed-8 |
|---|
| 424 | 424 | | eral audit requirements as do other Bureau- 9 |
|---|
| 425 | 425 | | funded schools, unless such Federal audit re-10 |
|---|
| 426 | 426 | | quirements are waived by the Bureau of Indian 11 |
|---|
| 427 | 427 | | Education; 12 |
|---|
| 428 | 428 | | (K) meets all applicable Federal health 13 |
|---|
| 429 | 429 | | and safety requirements; 14 |
|---|
| 430 | 430 | | (L) operates in accordance with Federal 15 |
|---|
| 431 | 431 | | law; 16 |
|---|
| 432 | 432 | | (M) has a written performance contract 17 |
|---|
| 433 | 433 | | with the Bureau of Indian Education that in-18 |
|---|
| 434 | 434 | | cludes a description of how student perform-19 |
|---|
| 435 | 435 | | ance will be measured in charter schools pursu-20 |
|---|
| 436 | 436 | | ant to assessments that are required of other 21 |
|---|
| 437 | 437 | | schools and pursuant to any other assessments 22 |
|---|
| 438 | 438 | | mutually agreeable to the Bureau of Indian 23 |
|---|
| 439 | 439 | | Education, Tribe(s) served, and the charter 24 |
|---|
| 440 | 440 | | school; and 25 |
|---|
| 441 | 441 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 442 | 442 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 16 |
|---|
| 443 | 443 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 444 | 444 | | (N) may serve students in early childhood 1 |
|---|
| 445 | 445 | | education programs. 2 |
|---|
| 446 | 446 | | (2) D |
|---|
| 447 | 447 | | EVELOPER.—The term ‘‘developer’’ means 3 |
|---|
| 448 | 448 | | an individual or group of individuals (including a 4 |
|---|
| 449 | 449 | | public, private, or Tribal nonprofit organization), 5 |
|---|
| 450 | 450 | | which may include teachers, administrators and 6 |
|---|
| 451 | 451 | | other school staff, parents, or other members of the 7 |
|---|
| 452 | 452 | | local community in which a charter school project 8 |
|---|
| 453 | 453 | | will be carried out. 9 |
|---|
| 454 | 454 | | SEC. 5. GAO STUDY. 10 |
|---|
| 455 | 455 | | Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment 11 |
|---|
| 456 | 456 | | of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 12 |
|---|
| 457 | 457 | | shall— 13 |
|---|
| 458 | 458 | | (1) conduct a review of the implementation of 14 |
|---|
| 459 | 459 | | the programs established by this Act during the pre-15 |
|---|
| 460 | 460 | | ceding 3-year period, including any factors impact-16 |
|---|
| 461 | 461 | | ing increased participation in education savings ac-17 |
|---|
| 462 | 462 | | count programs established pursuant to the amend-18 |
|---|
| 463 | 463 | | ments made by this Act; 19 |
|---|
| 464 | 464 | | (2) submit a report describing the results of the 20 |
|---|
| 465 | 465 | | review under paragraph (1) to— 21 |
|---|
| 466 | 466 | | (A) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the 22 |
|---|
| 467 | 467 | | Senate; and 23 |
|---|
| 468 | 468 | | (B) the Subcommittee on Indian, Insular 24 |
|---|
| 469 | 469 | | and Alaska Native Affairs of the Committee on 25 |
|---|
| 470 | 470 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 471 | 471 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB 17 |
|---|
| 472 | 472 | | •HR 84 IH |
|---|
| 473 | 473 | | Natural Resources of the House of Representa-1 |
|---|
| 474 | 474 | | tives; and 2 |
|---|
| 475 | 475 | | (3) make the report described in paragraph (2) 3 |
|---|
| 476 | 476 | | publicly available. 4 |
|---|
| 477 | 477 | | SEC. 6. SEVERABILITY. 5 |
|---|
| 478 | 478 | | If any provision of this Act, or an amendment made 6 |
|---|
| 479 | 479 | | by this Act, or the application of such provision or amend-7 |
|---|
| 480 | 480 | | ment to any person or circumstance, is held to be invalid, 8 |
|---|
| 481 | 481 | | the remainder of this Act, or an amendment made by this 9 |
|---|
| 482 | 482 | | Act, or the application of such provision to other persons 10 |
|---|
| 483 | 483 | | or circumstances, shall not be affected. 11 |
|---|
| 484 | 484 | | Æ |
|---|
| 485 | 485 | | VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jan 29, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H84.IH H84 |
|---|
| 486 | 486 | | kjohnson on DSK7ZCZBW3PROD with $$_JOB |
|---|