BEST Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3119 To award grants to States to establish or improve, and carry out a Seal of Biliteracy program to recognize high-level student proficiency in speak- ing, reading, and writing in both English and a second language. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 5, 2019 Ms. BROWNLEY of California (for herself, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. CA´RDENAS, and Mr. LANGEVIN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To award grants to States to establish or improve, and carry out a Seal of Biliteracy program to recognize high- level student proficiency in speaking, reading, and writ- ing in both English and a second language. 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 ‘‘Biliteracy Education 4 Seal and Teaching Act’’ or the ‘‘BEST Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3119.IH H3119 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 3119 IH (1) The people of the United States celebrate 1 cultural and linguistic diversity and seek to prepare 2 students with skills to succeed in the 21st century. 3 (2) It is fitting to commend the dedication of 4 students who have achieved proficiency in multiple 5 languages and to encourage their peers to follow in 6 their footsteps. 7 (3) The study of world languages in elementary 8 and secondary schools should be encouraged because 9 it contributes to a student’s cognitive development 10 and to the national economy and security. 11 (4) The congressionally requested Commission 12 on Language Learning, in its 2017 report ‘‘Amer- 13 ica’s Languages: Investing in Language Education 14 for the 21st Century,’’ notes the pressing national 15 need for more Americans proficient in two or more 16 languages, for national security, economic growth, 17 and the fulfillment of the potential of all Americans. 18 (5) Recognition of student achievement in lan- 19 guage proficiency will enable institutions of higher 20 education and employers to readily recognize and ac- 21 knowledge the valuable expertise of bilingual stu- 22 dents in academia and the workplace. 23 (6) California has pioneered the first State sys- 24 tem in the Nation to recognize students for achiev- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3119.IH H3119 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 3119 IH ing proficiency in multiple languages. In 2012, Cali- 1 fornia awarded a Seal of Biliteracy to over 10,000 2 graduating high school seniors in 37 school districts. 3 By 2019, 35 States and the District of Columbia 4 will have adopted the Seal of Biliteracy. 5 (7) Students in every State should be able to 6 benefit from a Seal of Biliteracy program. 7 SEC. 3. STATE SEAL OF BILITERACY PROGRAM. 8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Education 9 shall award grants to States to establish or improve, and 10 carry out a Seal of Biliteracy program to recognize stu- 11 dent proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing in both 12 English and a second language. 13 (b) GRANT APPLICATION.—In order to receive a 14 grant under this section, a State shall submit an applica- 15 tion to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 16 containing such information and assurances as the Sec- 17 retary may require, including— 18 (1) a description of the criteria a student must 19 meet to demonstrate proficiency in speaking, read- 20 ing, and writing in both English and a second lan- 21 guage; 22 (2) assurances that a student who meets the re- 23 quirements under paragraph (1)— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3119.IH H3119 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 3119 IH (A) receives a permanent seal or other 1 marker on the student’s secondary school di- 2 ploma or its equivalent; and 3 (B) receives documentation of proficiency 4 in the student’s official academic transcript; 5 and 6 (3) assurances that a student is not charged a 7 fee for submitting an application under subsection 8 (c). 9 (c) STUDENT PARTICIPATION IN A SEAL OF 10 BILITERACY PROGRAM.—To participate in a Seal of 11 Biliteracy program, a student must submit an application 12 to the State that serves the student at such time, in such 13 manner, and containing such information and assurances 14 as the State may require, including assurances that the 15 student— 16 (1) will receive a secondary school diploma or 17 its equivalent in the year the student submits an ap- 18 plication; and 19 (2) has met the criteria established by the State 20 under subsection (b)(1). 21 (d) STUDENT ELIGIBILITY FOR APPLICATION.—A 22 student who gained proficiency in a second language out- 23 side of school may apply to participate in a Seal of 24 Biliteracy program under subsection (c). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3119.IH H3119 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 3119 IH (e) USE OF FUNDS.—Grant funds made available 1 under this section shall be used for— 2 (1) the administrative costs of establishing or 3 improving, and carrying out a Seal of Biliteracy pro- 4 gram; and 5 (2) public outreach and education about such 6 program. 7 (f) GRANT TERMS.— 8 (1) DURATION.—A grant awarded under this 9 section shall be for a period of 2 years, and may be 10 renewed at the discretion of the Secretary. 11 (2) RENEWAL.—At the end of a grant term, the 12 recipient of such grant may reapply for a grant 13 under this section. 14 (3) LIMITATIONS.—A grant recipient under this 15 section shall not have more than 1 grant under this 16 section at anytime. 17 (4) RETURN OF UNSPENT GRANT FUNDS.—Not 18 later than 6 months after the date on which a grant 19 term ends, a recipient of a grant under this section 20 shall return any unspent grant funds to the Sec- 21 retary. 22 (g) REPORT.—Not later than 9 months after receiv- 23 ing a grant under this section, a grant recipient shall issue 24 a report to the Secretary describing the implementation 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3119.IH H3119 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 3119 IH of the Seal of Biliteracy program for which the State re- 1 ceived such grant. 2 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 3 (1) ESEA DEFINITIONS.—The terms ‘‘sec- 4 ondary school’’, ‘‘Secretary’’, and ‘‘State’’ have the 5 meanings given those terms in section 8101 of the 6 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 7 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 8 (2) SECOND LANGUAGE.—The term ‘‘second 9 language’’ means any language other than English, 10 including Braille and American Sign Language. 11 (3) SEAL OF BILITERACY PROGRAM.—The term 12 ‘‘Seal of Biliteracy program’’ means any program es- 13 tablished or improved, and carried out with funds 14 received under this section. 15 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 16 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 17 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024 18 to carry out this section. 19 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:12 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H3119.IH H3119 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS