Learning Recovery Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 676 To establish a learning recovery grant program and fund the Institute of Education Sciences for certain purposes, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 1, 2021 Mr. SCOTT of Virginia (for himself, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Mr. SABLAN, Mr. POCAN, Ms. WILD, Mrs. HAYES, Mr. JONES, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Ms. BONAMICI, and Mr. DESAULNIER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To establish a learning recovery grant program and fund the Institute of Education Sciences for certain purposes, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Learning Recovery Act 4 of 2021’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 6 In this Act: 7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro- 8 vided, a term used in this Act that is defined in sec- 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 676 IH tion 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu- 1 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801) has the mean- 2 ing given the term in such section. 3 (2) ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED STU- 4 DENT.—The term ‘‘economically disadvantaged stu- 5 dent’’ as used in this Act is used in the same man- 6 ner as such term is used in the Elementary and Sec- 7 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et 8 seq.). 9 (3) HIGH-POVERTY LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN- 10 CY.—The term ‘‘high-poverty local educational agen- 11 cy’’ means, with respect to a local educational agen- 12 cy in a State, a local educational agency that serves 13 a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged 14 students than the local educational agency that 15 serves the median percentage of economically dis- 16 advantaged students, based on the percentages of 17 economically disadvantaged students served by all 18 local educational agencies in such State. 19 (4) HIGH-POVERTY SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘high- 20 poverty school’’ means, with respect to a school 21 served by a local educational agency, a school that 22 serves a higher percentage of economically disadvan- 23 taged students than a school that serves the median 24 percentage of economically disadvantaged students, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 676 IH based on the percentages of economically disadvan- 1 taged students at all schools served by such local 2 educational agency. 3 (5) MISSING STUDENT.—The term ‘‘missing 4 student’’, used with respect to a local educational 5 agency, means a student— 6 (A) who was enrolled in a school served by 7 the local educational agency in the most re- 8 cently completed school year; and 9 (B) who— 10 (i) has been chronically absent from a 11 school served by the local educational agen- 12 cy at any time during the COVID–19 pan- 13 demic; or 14 (ii) with respect to the school year for 15 which funds are being allocated to such 16 local educational agency under this Act, 17 has neither reenrolled in such a school nor 18 has reported moving to a different school 19 system. 20 (6) OVERALL PER-PUPIL REDUCTION IN STATE 21 FUNDS.—The term ‘‘overall per-pupil reduction in 22 State funds’’ means, with respect to a fiscal year— 23 (A) the amount of any reduction in the 24 total amount of State funds provided to all local 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 676 IH educational agencies in the State in such fiscal 1 year compared to the total amount of such 2 funds provided to all local educational agencies 3 in the State in the previous fiscal year; divided 4 by 5 (B) the aggregate number of children in 6 average daily attendance in all schools served 7 by all local educational agencies in the State in 8 the fiscal year for which the determination is 9 being made. 10 (7) SCHOOL EXTENSION PROGRAM.—The term 11 ‘‘school extension program’’ means an evidence- 12 based comprehensive program (such as a summer 13 school, extended day, or extended school year pro- 14 gram) at an elementary school or secondary school 15 that provides for learning time, at any point in the 16 calendar year, that is— 17 (A) in addition to the minimum number of 18 school days and hours required by State law for 19 such elementary school or secondary school; 20 (B) a minimum of 3 weeks of school or the 21 equivalent of 120 hours; and 22 (C) a maximum of 10 weeks of school or 23 the equivalent of 400 hours. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 676 IH (8) VULNERABLE STUDENTS.—The term ‘‘vul- 1 nerable students’’ includes the following students: 2 (A) A student with disabilities. 3 (B) A low-income student. 4 (C) An English learner. 5 (D) A minority student. 6 (E) A student experiencing homelessness. 7 (F) A migrant student. 8 (G) A student in foster care. 9 (H) A student involved with the juvenile 10 justice system. 11 TITLE I—REACHING STUDENTS 12 AND MEETING UNFINISHED 13 LEARNING NEEDS 14 SEC. 101. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 15 (a) RESERVATIONS.—From the amount appropriated 16 under section 106 for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall 17 reserve— 18 (1) one-half of 1 percent for allotments for the 19 outlying areas, in proportion to the relative amount 20 such outlying areas received under part A of title I 21 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 22 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) for the preceding fis- 23 cal year; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 676 IH (2) one-half of 1 percent for the Secretary of 1 the Interior, in consultation with the Secretary of 2 Education, for programs under this title in schools 3 operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian Edu- 4 cation. 5 (b) STATE ALLOTMENTS.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—From the amount appro- 7 priated under section 106 (and not reserved under 8 subsection (a)), the Secretary shall allot grants to 9 State educational agencies with an approved applica- 10 tion under section 102 in proportion to the relative 11 amount the States of such agencies received under 12 part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary 13 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) for 14 the preceding fiscal year. 15 (2) REALLOTMENT.—If a State educational 16 agency does not receive a grant under this title for 17 a fiscal year, the Secretary shall reallot the amount 18 of the grant to the remaining State educational 19 agencies in accordance with paragraph (1). 20 (3) STATE RESERVATIONS.—A State edu- 21 cational agency receiving a grant under this sub- 22 section may reserve up to 5 percent of such grant 23 for State level activities described under section 24 102(c), of which not more than 1 percent may be 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 676 IH used for administrative purposes related to such ac- 1 tivities. 2 (c) LOCAL ALLOCATIONS.—After making a reserva- 3 tion under subsection (b)(3), a State educational agency 4 shall allocate the remaining grant amount received under 5 this section to local educational agencies in the State with 6 an approved application under section 103 in proportion 7 to the relative amount such local educational agencies re- 8 ceived under part A of title I of the Elementary and Sec- 9 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) 10 for the preceding fiscal year. 11 SEC. 102. STATE APPLICATION AND ACTIVITIES. 12 (a) SECRETARIAL REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary 13 shall— 14 (1) not later than 15 days after the date of en- 15 actment of this Act, issue a notice for applications; 16 and 17 (2) not later than 15 days after receipt of an 18 application, approve or deny such application. 19 (b) STATE APPLICATION.—To receive a grant under 20 section 101(b), a State educational agency shall submit 21 an application to the Secretary at such time, in such man- 22 ner, and requiring such information as the Secretary may 23 reasonably require. Such application shall— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 676 IH (1) describe how the State educational agency 1 will use funds reserved under section 101(b)(3) to 2 support local educational agencies receiving alloca- 3 tions under section 101(c) from the State edu- 4 cational agency; 5 (2) provide an assurance that the State edu- 6 cational agency, and each local educational agency 7 receiving an allocation under section 101(c) from 8 such State educational agency— 9 (A) will meet the requirements of section 10 105; and 11 (B) will widely inform the public by post- 12 ing on its website information on the avail- 13 ability of each school extension program to be 14 funded with such allocation in an easily under- 15 standable format and in multiple languages 16 that parents can understand, to the extent 17 practicable; 18 (3) provide a description of the application the 19 State educational agency will use under section 103 20 for local educational agencies to receive allocations; 21 and 22 (4) provide an assurance that the State edu- 23 cational agency will meet the maintenance of effort, 24 maintenance of equity, and supplement, not supplant 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 676 IH requirements in subsections (d) through (f), respec- 1 tively. 2 (c) STATE ACTIVITIES.—From funds reserved under 3 section 101(b)(3), a State educational agency— 4 (1) shall— 5 (A) provide technical assistance to local 6 educational agencies receiving an allotment 7 under section 101(c), with a priority for such 8 local educational agencies that serve— 9 (i) high percentages of low-income 10 children; and 11 (ii) high concentrations of students 12 who have been negatively or disproportion- 13 ately affected (academically, socially, and 14 emotionally) by the pandemic and school 15 closures; 16 (B) support local educational agencies in 17 coordinating with a designated regional edu- 18 cational laboratory (as described in section 174 19 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 20 (20 U.S.C. 9564)) to effectively use data and 21 evidence-based strategies to address learning re- 22 covery needs for students with disabilities, mi- 23 nority children, English learners, and low-in- 24 come students; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 676 IH (C) monitor the use of funds received by 1 local educational agencies receiving allocations 2 under section 101(c); and 3 (D) collect and analyze the data described 4 under section 104 from such local educational 5 agencies; and 6 (2) may support existing activities to combat 7 learning loss due to COVID–19 as long as such ac- 8 tivities meet the applicable requirements of this title. 9 (d) STATE MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—A State 10 educational agency receiving a grant under this title shall 11 maintain support for elementary and secondary education 12 for the fiscal year for which such grant is received at least 13 at the proportional levels of such State’s support for ele- 14 mentary and secondary education relative to such State’s 15 overall spending, averaged over fiscal years 2017, 2018, 16 and 2019. 17 (e) STATE MAINTENANCE OF EQUITY.— 18 (1) HIGH-POVERTY LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN- 19 CIES.—For a fiscal year in which a State edu- 20 cational agency receives a grant under section 21 101(b), in a case in which a per-pupil reduction in 22 State funding occurs for any high-poverty local edu- 23 cational agency in the State, such reduction may not 24 exceed the overall per-pupil reduction in State funds, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 676 IH if any, across all local educational agencies in such 1 State in such fiscal year. 2 (2) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES WITH THE 3 HIGHEST SHARE OF ECONOMICALLY DISADVAN- 4 TAGED STUDENTS.—For the fiscal year in which a 5 State educational agency receives a grant under sec- 6 tion 101(b), the State educational agency may not 7 reduce State funding for the 20 percent of local edu- 8 cational agencies in the State with the highest per- 9 centage of economically disadvantaged students 10 (based on the percentages of economically disadvan- 11 taged students served by all local educational agen- 12 cies in the State) below the level of funding provided 13 to such local educational agencies in fiscal year 14 2019. 15 (f) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Funds made 16 available to State educational agencies under this title 17 shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, other Fed- 18 eral and non-Federal funds that would otherwise be used 19 for activities authorized under this title. 20 SEC. 103. LOCAL APPLICATION AND ACTIVITIES. 21 (a) LOCAL APPLICATION.—To receive an allocation 22 under section 101(c), a local educational agency shall sub- 23 mit an application to the applicable State educational 24 agency at such time, in such manner, and requiring such 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Feb 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H676.IH H676 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 676 IH information as the State educational agency may reason- 1 ably require. Such application shall— 2 (1) describe how the local educational agency 3 will use funds to locate missing students and re- 4 engage the students and their families with the 5 school community; 6 (2) describe how the local educational agency 7 plans to facilitate family engagement to address con- 8 cerns about student learning, social-emotional well- 9 being, and COVID–19 safety; 10 (3) describe how the local educational agency 11 plans to diagnose, measure, and reduce unfinished 12 learning among students, including vulnerable stu- 13 dents; 14 (4) describe how the local educational agency 15 plans to implement evidence-based interventions and 16 strategies that meet the requirements of section 17 8101(21)(A)(i) of the Elementary and Secondary 18 Education Act of 1965 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]