America’s College Promise Act of 2021

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1396 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish State and Indian Tribe grants for community colleges and grants for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Minority- Serving Institutions, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 27, 2021 Ms. BALDWIN (for herself, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Ms. KLO- BUCHAR, Mr. LEAHY, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. CARDIN, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, and Mr. DURBIN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish State and Indian Tribe grants for community colleges and grants for Historically Black Colleges and Univer- sities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Minority- Serving Institutions, 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 ‘‘America’s College 4 Promise Act of 2021’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1396 IS TITLE I—STATE AND INDIAN 1 TRIBE GRANTS FOR COMMU- 2 NITY COLLEGES 3 SEC. 101. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 4 Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 5 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 6 the following: 7 ‘‘PART J—AMERICA’S COLLEGE PROMISE 8 FEDERAL-STATE PARTNERSHIP 9 ‘‘Subpart 1—State and Indian Tribe Grants for 10 Community Colleges 11 ‘‘SEC. 499A. IN GENERAL. 12 ‘‘From amounts appropriated under section 499G for 13 any fiscal year, the Secretary shall award grants to eligible 14 States and Indian tribes to pay the Federal share of ex- 15 penditures needed to carry out the activities and services 16 described in section 499E. 17 ‘‘SEC. 499B. FEDERAL SHARE; NON-FEDERAL SHARE. 18 ‘‘(a) FEDERAL SHARE.— 19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 20 the amount of the Federal share of a grant under 21 this subpart shall be based on a formula, determined 22 by the Secretary, that provides, for each eligible stu- 23 dent in the State or Indian tribe, a per-student 24 amount that is equal to 75 percent of— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1396 IS ‘‘(A) for the 2022–2023 award year, the 1 average resident community college tuition and 2 fees per student in all States for the most re- 3 cent year for which data are available; and 4 ‘‘(B) for each subsequent award year, the 5 amount determined under this paragraph for 6 the preceding award year, increased by the less- 7 er of— 8 ‘‘(i) a percentage equal to the esti- 9 mated percentage increase in the Con- 10 sumer Price Index (as determined by the 11 Secretary) since the date of such deter- 12 mination; or 13 ‘‘(ii) 3 percent. 14 ‘‘(2) INDIAN TRIBES.—The amount of the Fed- 15 eral share for an Indian tribe receiving a grant 16 under this subpart shall be the lesser of— 17 ‘‘(A) the amount determined in accordance 18 with paragraph (1) with respect to such tribe; 19 or 20 ‘‘(B) the amount that is 95 percent of the 21 total amount needed to waive tuition and fees 22 for all eligible students enrolled in the commu- 23 nity colleges operated or controlled by such 24 tribe. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1396 IS ‘‘(b) STATE OR TRIBAL SHARE.— 1 ‘‘(1) FORMULA.— 2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara- 3 graph (B), the State or tribal share of a grant 4 under this subpart for each fiscal year shall be 5 the amount needed to pay 25 percent of the av- 6 erage resident community college tuition and 7 fees per student in the 2022–2023 award year 8 for all eligible students in the State or tribe for 9 such fiscal year. 10 ‘‘(B) INDIAN TRIBES.—The tribal share of 11 a grant awarded to an Indian tribe under this 12 subpart for each fiscal year shall be the lesser 13 of— 14 ‘‘(i) the amount determined in accord- 15 ance with subparagraph (A) with respect 16 to such tribe; or 17 ‘‘(ii) 5 percent of the total amount 18 needed to waive tuition and fees for all eli- 19 gible students enrolled in the community 20 colleges operated or controlled by such 21 tribe. 22 ‘‘(2) NEED-BASED AID.—A State or Indian 23 tribe may include, as part of the State or tribal 24 share, any need-based financial aid that— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1396 IS ‘‘(A) is provided from State or tribal funds 1 to an eligible student; and 2 ‘‘(B) may be used by such student to pay 3 costs of attendance other than tuition and fees. 4 ‘‘(3) NO IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—A State or 5 Indian tribe shall not include in-kind contributions 6 for purposes of the State or tribal share described 7 in paragraph (1). 8 ‘‘(c) DETERMINING NUMBER OF ELIGIBLE STU- 9 DENTS.— 10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of subsection 11 (a) and subsection (b), the Secretary shall develop 12 and implement a formula for accurately estimating 13 the number of eligible students in a State or Indian 14 tribe and for making adjustments based on the num- 15 ber of eligible students enrolled on less than a full- 16 time basis and the associated tuition and fees 17 charged to such students in proportion to the degree 18 to which each such student is not attending on a 19 full-time basis. 20 ‘‘(2) INITIAL DETERMINATION.—For the first 21 year for which grants are awarded under this sub- 22 part, the number of eligible students in a State or 23 Indian tribe shall be considered to be equal to the 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1396 IS number of eligible students who were in the State or 1 tribe for the preceding school year. 2 ‘‘(d) ADJUSTMENT OF GRANT AMOUNT.—Not later 3 than 180 days after the date on which a State or Indian 4 tribe receives a grant under this subpart, the Secretary 5 shall— 6 ‘‘(1) in consultation with the State or tribe con- 7 cerned, determine whether the actual number of eli- 8 gible students in the State or tribe for the year cov- 9 ered by the grant is greater than the estimated num- 10 ber of such students that was used to determine the 11 amount of the grant; and 12 ‘‘(2) in the case of a determination under para- 13 graph (1) that the actual number of eligible students 14 in the State or tribe is higher than such estimate, 15 issue a supplementary grant payment to the State or 16 tribe in an amount that ensures that the total 17 amount of the grant funds received by the State or 18 tribe under this subpart for the year covered by the 19 grant accurately reflects the higher number of eligi- 20 ble students. 21 ‘‘SEC. 499C. APPLICATIONS. 22 ‘‘(a) SUBMISSION.—In order to receive a grant under 23 this subpart, a State or Indian tribe shall submit an appli- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1396 IS cation to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 1 containing such information as the Secretary may require. 2 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—Each application under subsection 3 (a) shall include— 4 ‘‘(1) an estimate of the number of eligible stu- 5 dents in the State or Indian tribe and the cost of 6 waiving community college tuition and fees for all el- 7 igible students for each fiscal year covered by the 8 grant; 9 ‘‘(2) an assurance that each community college 10 in the State, or operated or controlled by the Indian 11 tribe, as applicable, will waive tuition and fees for el- 12 igible students in accordance with section 499D(a); 13 ‘‘(3) a description of the promising and evi- 14 dence-based institutional reforms and innovative 15 practices to improve student outcomes, including 16 transfer and completion rates, that have been or will 17 be adopted by each such community college, such 18 as— 19 ‘‘(A) providing comprehensive academic, 20 career, and student support services (including 21 mentoring, advising, case management services, 22 and career pathway navigation), especially for 23 low-income, first-generation, and adult stu- 24 dents, and other students belonging to racial 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1396 IS and other groups that are historically underrep- 1 resented in higher education; 2 ‘‘(B) providing direct support services, or 3 assistance in applying for such services, such 4 as— 5 ‘‘(i) childcare, transportation, and 6 emergency financial assistance; 7 ‘‘(ii) assistance in obtaining health in- 8 surance coverage and accessing health care 9 services, including behavioral and mental 10 health services; 11 ‘‘(iii) affordable housing; 12 ‘‘(iv) nutrition assistance programs or 13 free or discounted food; and 14 ‘‘(v) means-tested Federal benefit pro- 15 grams, or similar State, tribal, or local 16 benefit programs; 17 ‘‘(C) providing accelerated learning oppor- 18 tunities, such as dual or concurrent enrollment 19 programs, including early college high school 20 programs, and reforming course scheduling and 21 credit awarding policies to better meet the 22 needs of students and shorten time to comple- 23 tion; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1396 IS ‘‘(D) strengthening and reforming remedial 1 and developmental education, especially for low- 2 income, first-generation, and adult students, 3 and other students belonging to racial and 4 other groups that are historically underrep- 5 resented in higher education, including through 6 the use of multiple measures (such as a stu- 7 dent’s college entrance examination score, grade 8 point average, high school course list, or a 9 placement examination) to identify students in 10 need of remedial education; 11 ‘‘(E) utilizing career pathways, including 12 through building capacity for career and tech- 13 nical education, as defined in section 3(5) of 14 the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Edu- 15 cation Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2302(5)), and 16 programs of study, as defined in section 3(41) 17 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 2302(41)), or degree 18 pathways; or 19 ‘‘(F) providing expanded opportunities for 20 participating in work-based learning, which may 21 include apprenticeship programs, in students’ 22 programs of study; 23 ‘‘(4) a description of how the State or Indian 24 tribe will ensure that programs leading to a recog- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1396 IS nized postsecondary credential meet the quality cri- 1 teria established by the State under section 123(a) 2 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 3 (29 U.S.C. 3153(a)) or other quality criteria deter- 4 mined appropriate by the State or Indian tribe; 5 ‘‘(5) an assurance that each community college 6 in the State or under the authority of the Indian 7 tribe have entered into program participation agree- 8 ments under section 487; 9 ‘‘(6) an assurance that the State or Indian tribe 10 will, to the maximum extent practicable, assist eligi- 11 ble students in obtaining information about and ac- 12 cessing means-tested Federal benefit programs and 13 similar, State, tribal, and local benefit programs for 14 which such students may be eligible; 15 ‘‘(7) an assurance that, for each year of the 16 grant, the State or Indian tribe will notify each eligi- 17 ble student of the student’s remaining eligibility for 18 assistance under this subpart; 19 ‘‘(8) if the application is submitted by a 20 State— 21 ‘‘(A) a description of how the State will 22 support the scaling and increased adoption of 23 the reforms and practices described in para- 24 graph (3); 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1396 IS ‘‘(B) an assurance that the State will, to 1 the extent practicable, consider changes to 2 State law that will enable more community col- 3 lege students to be eligible for means-tested 4 Federal benefit programs and similar State 5 benefit programs; 6 ‘‘(C) an assurance that the State will meet 7 the requirements of section 499D(b)(1) relating 8 to the alignment of secondary and postsec- 9 ondary education; and 10 ‘‘(D) an assurance that the State will meet 11 the requirements of section 499D(b)(2) relating 12 to the improvement of transfer pathways be- 13 tween institutions of higher education; and 14 ‘‘(9) an assurance that the State or Indian tribe 15 will clearly communicate to prospective students, 16 their families, and the general public— 17 ‘‘(A) plans to implement the program 18 funded under this subpart; and 19 ‘‘(B) how eligible students can attend a 20 community college operated by the State or 21 tribe without paying the cost of tuition and 22 fees. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 May 28, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1396.IS S1396 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1396 IS ‘‘SEC. 499D. PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS. 1 ‘‘(a) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR STATES AND IN- 2 DIAN TRIBES.—As a condition of receiving a grant under 3 this subpart, a State or Indian tribe shall meet the fol- 4 lowing requirements: 5 ‘‘(1) For each year of the grant the total 6 amount of community college tuition and fees 7 charged to an eligible student in the State or Indian 8 tribe shall be $0. 9 ‘‘(2) For each year of the grant no amount of 10 financial assistance for which an eligible student 11 qualifies may be applied to such tuition or fees. 12 ‘‘(b) STATE REQUIREMENTS.—As a condition of re- 13 ceiving a grant under this subpart, a State shall meet the 14 following requirements: 15 ‘‘(1) ALIGNMENT OF K–12 AND HIGHER EDU- 16 CATION.— 17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The State shall— 18 ‘‘(i) submit a plan to align the re- 19 quirements for receiving a regular high 20 school diploma from public schools in the 21 State with the requirements for entering 22 credit-bearing coursework at community 23 colleges in such State; and 24 ‘‘(ii) not later than 3 years after the 25 date on which the State first recei [Text truncated for display. 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