H.R. 7746, Helping Educators with Learning Preparation Act
Summary
H.R. 7746 was introduced in the House of Representatives on July 23, 2020, by Hill of Arkansas, for himself and Gonzalez of Ohio, and referred to the Committee on Education and Labor. It may be cited as the Helping Educators with Learning Preparation Act or the HELP Act. Section 2 directs the Secretary of Education to establish a grant program to provide funds to States to assist local educational agencies with expenses related to reopening and resuming instruction during school year 2020–2021 arising from the COVID–19 pandemic. It also provides for State allocations from the funds made available.
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Cite this document
“H.R. 7746, Helping Educators with Learning Preparation Act.”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/bills-bills-116hr7746ih-bills-116hr7746ih/
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I
116TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 7746
To direct the Secretary of Education to establish a formula grant program
to provide funds to assist educational agencies with expenses related
to resuming educational activities during the 2020–2021 school year
arising from the COVID–19 pandemic, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 23, 2020
Mr. HILL of Arkansas (for himself and Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio) introduced
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
Labor
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Education to establish a formula
grant program to provide funds to assist educational
agencies with expenses related to resuming educational
activities during the 2020–2021 school year arising from
the COVID–19 pandemic, and for other purposes.
1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Helping Educators
5 with Learning Preparation Act’’ or the ‘‘HELP Act’’.
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1 SEC. 2. PROVIDING FUNDS TO AID SCHOOLS IN REOPENING
2 AND RESUMING INSTRUCTION IN RESPONSE
3 TO THE COVID–19 PANDEMIC.
4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after the
5 date of enactment of this section, the Secretary of Edu-
6 cation shall establish a grant program (in this section re-
7 ferred to as the ‘‘Program’’) to provide funds to States
8 to assist local educational agencies with expenses related
9 to reopening and resuming instruction during school year
10 2020–2021 arising from the COVID–19 pandemic.
11 (b) STATE ALLOCATIONS.—From the funds made
12 available under subsection (h) for a fiscal year, the Sec-
13 retary shall—
14 (1) reserve three-quarters of 1 percent for allot-
15 ments for the outlying areas, to be distributed
16 among such outlying areas on the basis of their rel-
17 ative need, as determined by the Secretary, in ac-
18 cordance with the purpose of the Program;
19 (2) reserve one-half of 1 percent for the Sec-
20 retary of the Interior for schools operated or funded
21 by the Bureau of Indian Education, to be distributed
22 among such schools on the basis of their relative
23 need, as determined by the Secretary of the Interior,
24 in accordance with the purpose of the Program; and
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25 (3) from the remaining funds, allocate to each
26 eligible State an amount equal to the sum of—
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1 (A) an amount that bears the same rela-
2 tionship to 20 percent of such funds as the
3 number of individuals aged 5 through 17 in the
4 State, as determined by the Secretary on the
5 basis of the most recent satisfactory data, bears
6 to the number of those individuals in all such
7 States, as so determined; and
8 (B) an amount that bears the same rela-
9 tionship to 80 percent of such funds as the
10 number of individuals aged 5 through 17 from
11 families with incomes below the poverty line in
12 the State, as determined by the Secretary on
13 the basis of the most recent satisfactory data,
14 bears to the number of those individuals in all
15 such States, as so determined.
16 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—
17 (1) STATE USE OF FUNDS.—
18 (A) SUBGRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL
19 AGENCIES.—Each State shall use not less than
20 90 percent of funds allocated to such State
21 under subsection (b) to make subgrants to local
22 educational agencies.
23 (B) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS TO LOCAL
24 EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—The amount of a
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1 subgrant under subparagraph (A) shall be equal
2 to the sum of—
3 (i) an amount that bears the same re-
4 lationship to 20 percent of the funds to be
5 used by a State for such subgrants as the
6 number of individuals aged 5 through 17
7 in the geographic area served by the local
8 education agency, as determined by the
9 Secretary on the basis of the most recent
10 satisfactory data, bears to the number of
11 those individuals in the geographic areas
12 served by all eligible local educational
13 agencies in the State, as so determined;
14 and
15 (ii) an amount that bears the same re-
16 lationship to 80 percent of such funds as
17 the number of individuals aged 5 through
18 17 from families with incomes below the
19 poverty line in the geographic area served
20 by the local educational agency, as deter-
21 mined by the Secretary on the basis of the
22 most recent satisfactory data, bears to the
23 number of those individuals in the geo-
24 graphic areas served by all eligible local
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1 educational agencies in the State, as so de-
2 termined.
3 (C) STATE EXPENSES.—From funds not
4 otherwise allocated under this paragraph, a
5 State may reserve not more than 30 percent for
6 administrative costs associated with the Pro-
7 gram and the remainder for providing technical
8 assistance and other emergency services to local
9 educational agencies in response to the
10 COVID–19 pandemic, as the State determines
11 appropriate, including making grants or enter-
12 ing into contracts.
13 (2) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY USE OF
14 FUNDS.—A local educational agency shall use funds
15 received under the Program to cover expenses re-
16 lated to reopening and resuming instruction during
17 school year 2020–2021, including the following:
18 (A) Educational technology (including
19 hardware, software, and connectivity) for stu-
20 dents that aids in regular and substantive edu-
21 cational interaction between students and their
22 classroom instructors, including low-income stu-
23 dents and students with disabilities, which may
24 include assistive technology or adaptive equip-
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25 ment.
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1 (B) Facility sanitization.
2 (C) Personal protective equipment.
3 (D) School supplies.
4 (E) Staffing.
5 (F) Student transportation.
6 (G) Other expenses necessary to maintain
7 operations and continue services.
8 (d) ELIGIBILITY.—A State is eligible for funds under
9 the Program if such State submits an application not later
10 than 60 days after the date of enactment of this section
11 in such form and containing such information and assur-
12 ances (including that such State shall submit a report on
13 how subgrants made in accordance with the Program were
14 used) as the Secretary determines appropriate.
15 (e) REPORTS.—
16 (1) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 14
17 months after the date on which each State receiving
18 funds under the Program has obligated such funds,
19 the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report de-
20 tailing—
21 (A) the amount of funds awarded to each
22 State, and how such funds were used;
23 (B) the amount of each subgrant made by
24 a State to a local educational agency, and how
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25 such subgrant was used;
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1 (C) the amount of funds reserved for each
2 of the outlying areas, and how such funds were
3 used; and
4 (D) the amount of funds reserved for the
5 Bureau of Indian Affairs, and how such funds
6 were used, on the basis of information reported
7 by the Secretary of the Interior.
8 (2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF REPORTS.—The
9 Secretary shall make the report required under this
10 subsection publicly available.
11 (f) TIMING REQUIREMENTS FOR GRANT ADMINIS-
12 TRATION.—
13 (1) APPLICATION REVIEW.—Not later than 30
14 days after the receipt of an application required
15 under subsection (d), the Secretary shall make a
16 final determination regarding the acceptance or re-
17 jection of such application.
18 (2) AWARD OF FUNDS.—Not later than 90 days
19 after the date of enactment of this section, the Sec-
20 retary shall allocate, in accordance with subsection
21 (b), all funds made available under subsection (h).
22 (g) LIMITATIONS ON FUNDS.—
23 (1) TERMINATION OF FUNDS AVAILABILITY.—A
24 State receiving funds under the Program may obli-
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25 gate and spend such funds until 1 year after the
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1 date of receipt or until September 30, 2021, which-
2 ever comes last.
3 (2) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Funds
4 made available under the Program shall be used to
5 supplement, and not supplant, other Federal, State,
6 and local funds that would otherwise be expended to
7 carry out activities under the Program.
8 (h) PROGRAM FUNDING.—
9 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To
10 carry out the Program, there is authorized to be ap-
11 propriated $25,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2021.
12 (2) USE OF AVAILABLE FUNDS.—Notwith-
13 standing any other provision of law, and in addition
14 to amounts made available pursuant to paragraph
15 (1), the Secretary shall use all funds made available
16 to the Secretary for any program or activity that re-
17 main unobligated as of September 30, 2020, to carry
18 out the Program, except that the Secretary may not
19 use funds appropriated pursuant to the Coronavirus
20 Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.
21 (i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi-
22 nitions apply:
23 (1) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term
24 ‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given
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25 such term in section 8101 of the Elementary and
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1 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801),
2 including the limitation in such section on receipt of
3 funds under special programs for elementary or sec-
4 ondary schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Edu-
5 cation.
6 (2) OUTLYING AREA.—The term ‘‘outlying
7 area’’ means—
8 (A) American Samoa, the Commonwealth
9 of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and
10 the United States Virgin Islands; and
11 (B) notwithstanding section
12 105(f)(1)(B)(v) of the Compact of Free Asso-
13 ciation Amendments Act of 2003 (48 U.S.C.
14 1921d(f)(1)(B)(v)) and any other law, the Fed-
15 erated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the
16 Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.
17 (3) POVERTY LINE.—The term ‘‘poverty line’’
18 has the meaning given such term in such section
19 8101.
20 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
21 the Secretary of Education.
22 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of
23 the several States, the District of Columbia, and the
24 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
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