Protection and Advocacy in Education Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8187 To authorize grants to establish a national education protection and advocacy program to enforce the rights and protections under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SEPTEMBER 8, 2020 Mr. DESAULNIER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To authorize grants to establish a national education protec- tion and advocacy program to enforce the rights and protections under the Individuals with Disabilities Edu- cation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 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 ‘‘Protection and Advo- 4 cacy in Education Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:29 Sep 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8187 IH SEC. 2. GRANTS TO ESTABLISH A NATIONAL EDUCATION 1 PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY PROGRAM. 2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 3 (1) AMERICAN INDIAN CONSORTIUM.—The term 4 ‘‘American Indian consortium’’ has the meaning 5 given the term in section 102 of the Developmental 6 Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 7 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15002). 8 (2) EDUCATIONAL SETTING.—The term ‘‘edu- 9 cational setting’’ includes any setting, including Fed- 10 eral, in which a student (including a child, youth, or 11 an adult) eligible for education and related services 12 under the Acts listed in subsection (b) receives such 13 services. 14 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 15 the Secretary of Education. 16 (4) PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY SYSTEM.—The 17 term ‘‘protection and advocacy system’’ means a 18 protection and advocacy system established under 19 section 143 of the Developmental Disabilities Assist- 20 ance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 21 15043 et seq.). 22 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall make 23 grants to a protection and advocacy system for the pur- 24 pose of protecting and advocating for the educational 25 needs of children, youth, and adults who are (or may be) 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8187 IH eligible for services under the Individuals with Disabilities 1 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), section 504 of 2 the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794 et seq.), 3 or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 4 12101 et seq.). 5 (c) USES OF FUNDS.—A protection and advocacy 6 system may use a grant under this section to— 7 (1) monitor compliance with, and identify con- 8 ditions and practices that violate the Acts described 9 in subsection (b); 10 (2) advocate for— 11 (A) safe and humane conditions and the 12 elimination of aversive and dangerous practices 13 at educational settings, including seclusion and 14 restraint; 15 (B) redress of violations of the law and, 16 provide representation in dispute resolution; 17 and 18 (C) systemic change in educational setting 19 to address violations; and 20 (3) pursue administrative, legal, and other ap- 21 propriate remedies to ensure that children, youth, 22 and adults with disabilities are receiving the edu- 23 cational services and rights to which they are enti- 24 tled under the Individuals with Disabilities Edu- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:29 Sep 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8187 IH cation Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), section 504 of 1 the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794 et 2 seq.), and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 3 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 4 (d) SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible for a 5 grant under this section, a protection and advocacy system 6 shall— 7 (1) have the authority to investigate incidents 8 of abuse and neglect of youth, children, and adults 9 with disabilities in educational settings if the inci- 10 dents are reported to the protection and advocacy 11 system or if there is probable cause to believe that 12 the incidents occurred; 13 (2) have the authority to pursue legal, adminis- 14 trative, and other appropriate remedies or ap- 15 proaches to ensure the protection of, and advocacy 16 for, the rights of children, youth, and adults who are 17 eligible or who may be eligible for assistance under 18 the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 19 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), the Americans with Disabil- 20 ities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), or sec- 21 tion 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 22 U.S.C. 794); and 23 (3) have the same authorities as set forth in the 24 Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8187 IH Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15001 et seq.) and 1 any regulations issued under such Act, including the 2 authority to access individuals, records, and edu- 3 cational settings. 4 (e) APPLICATION.—A protection and advocacy sys- 5 tem shall submit an application to address the needs of 6 children, youth, and adults with disabilities in educational 7 settings described in subsection (b) to the Secretary at 8 such time, in such form and manner, and accompanied 9 by such information as the Secretary may require. 10 (f) APPROPRIATIONS LESS THAN $6,600,000.— 11 (1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to any fiscal 12 year in which the amount appropriated pursuant to 13 subsection (k) to carry out this section is less than 14 $6,600,000, the Secretary shall make grants from 15 such amount among protection and advocacy sys- 16 tems that apply for a grant under this section. 17 (2) AMOUNT OF GRANT.—The amount of a 18 grant under paragraph (1) shall not be less than— 19 (A) $120,000 for a protection and advo- 20 cacy system located in 1 of the several States, 21 the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth 22 of Puerto Rico; and 23 (B) $60,000 for a protection and advocacy 24 system located in American Samoa, the Com- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 8187 IH monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 1 Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, or the 2 American Indian Consortium. 3 (g) APPROPRIATIONS OF $6,600,000 OR MORE.— 4 (1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to any fiscal 5 year in which the amount appropriated pursuant to 6 subsection (k) to carry out this section is not less 7 than $6,600,000, the Secretary shall make grants 8 from such amount not later than October 1 of the 9 fiscal year to protection and advocacy systems that 10 apply for a grant under this section. 11 (2) AMOUNT OF GRANT.—Subject to paragraph 12 (3), the amount of a grant to a protection and advo- 13 cacy system under paragraph (1) shall be equal to 14 an amount bearing the same ratio to the total 15 amount appropriated for the fiscal year involved 16 pursuant to subsection (k) as the population of the 17 State in which the grantee is located bears to the 18 population of all States. 19 (3) MINIMUMS.—The amount of a grant under 20 paragraph (1) shall not be less than— 21 (A) $120,000 for a protection and advo- 22 cacy system located in one of the several States, 23 the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth 24 of Puerto Rico; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 8187 IH (B) $60,000 for a protection and advocacy 1 system located in American Samoa, the Com- 2 monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 3 Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, or the 4 American Indian Consortium. 5 (4) ADJUSTMENT.—For each fiscal year in 6 which the total amount appropriated under sub- 7 section (k) to carry out this section is $10,000,000 8 or more, and such appropriated amount exceeds the 9 total amount appropriated to carry out this section 10 in the preceding fiscal year, the Secretary shall in- 11 crease each of the minimum grant amounts de- 12 scribed in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph 13 (3) by a percentage equal to the percentage increase 14 in the total amount appropriated under subsection 15 (k) to carry out this section between the preceding 16 fiscal year and the fiscal year involved. 17 (h) DIRECT PAYMENT.—Notwithstanding any other 18 provision of law, the Secretary shall pay directly to any 19 protection and advocacy system that complies with this 20 section, the total amount of the grant for such system, 21 unless the system provides otherwise for such payment. 22 (i) ANNUAL REPORT.—Each protection and advocacy 23 system that receives a grant under this section shall sub- 24 mit an annual report to the Secretary concerning the serv- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 8187 IH ices provided to protect and advocate for the educational 1 needs of children, youth, and adults who are (or may be) 2 eligible for services under the Individuals with Disabilities 3 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) or section 504 4 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), or the 5 Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 6 et seq.). 7 (j) ADMINISTRATIVE, REPORTING, AND OVERSIGHT 8 REQUIREMENTS.—To the extent possible, reporting, moni- 9 toring, program financing, and other administrative and 10 oversight requirements established by the Secretary under 11 this section shall be consistent with the administrative, re- 12 porting, and oversight requirements for a protection and 13 advocacy system under the Developmental Disabilities As- 14 sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 150001 15 et seq.). 16 (k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 17 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 18 necessary to carry out the provisions in this section for 19 each of fiscal years 2021 through 2030. 20 (l) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 21 (1) APPROPRIATIONS OF LESS THAN 22 $6,750,000.—For any fiscal year in which the amount 23 appropriated to carry out this section is less than 24 $6,750,000, the Secretary shall set aside 1 percent 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 8187 IH of the funds appropriated (but not less than 1 $50,000) to make a grant to a national organization 2 with experience in providing training and technical 3 assistance to protection and advocacy systems to 4 provide such training and technical assistance. 5 (2) APPROPRIATIONS OF NOT LESS THAN 6 $6,750,000.—For any fiscal year in which the amount 7 appropriated to carry out this section is not less 8 than $6,750,000, the Secretary shall set aside 2 per- 9 cent of the funds appropriated to make a grant to 10 a national organization with experience in providing 11 training and technical assistance to protection and 12 advocacy systems to provide such training and tech- 13 nical assistance. 14 (m) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—A protection 15 and advocacy system shall use funds under this section 16 only to supplement the funds that would, in the absence 17 of such funds, be made available from non-Federal funds 18 for the uses described in subsection (c), and not to sup- 19 plant such funds. 20 (n) CARRYOVER AND PROGRAM INCOME.—Any 21 amount paid to a protection and advocacy system for a 22 fiscal year under this section that remains unobligated at 23 the end of such fiscal year shall remain available to such 24 system for obligation during the subsequent fiscal year. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 8187 IH Program income generated from such amount shall re- 1 main available for 2 additional fiscal years after the year 2 in which such amount was paid to the protection and advo- 3 cacy system. 4 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:19 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H8187.IH H8187 ctelli on DSK11ZRN23PROD with BILLS