S. 4261, Safely Creating Healthy Opening Options Locally Act
Summary
Senate bill 4261 of the 116th Congress, 2D Session, is the Safely Creating Healthy Opening Options Locally Act (SCHOOL Act), a bill to establish a grant program to assist elementary and secondary schools with reopening after closures related to COVID–19. Perdue introduced it on July 22, 2020, and it was referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Section 3 has the Secretary of Education, acting in partnership with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, award grants to local education agencies. Section 5 requires an online data clearinghouse that is publicly available online. Section 6 authorizes $50,000,000,000 to carry out section 3 and $500,000,000 to carry out sections 4 and 5.
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“S. 4261, Safely Creating Healthy Opening Options Locally Act.”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/bills-bills-116s4261is-bills-116s4261is/
, SHA-256 ae2ab9740769674e037fe606dbcb7b25e18dfd2dad704eb7111833f2500a63db.Full text
II
116TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
S. 4261
To establish a grant program to assist elementary and secondary schools
with reopening after closures related to COVID–19, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
JULY 22, 2020
Mr. PERDUE introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
A BILL
To establish a grant program to assist elementary and sec-
ondary schools with reopening after closures related to
COVID–19, 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 ‘‘Safely Creating
5 Healthy Opening Options Locally Act’’ or the ‘‘SCHOOL
6 Act’’.
7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
8 Congress finds the following:
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1 (1) The absence of in-person learning has re-
2 minded the Nation of how critical schools are for
3 children, parents, families, and their communities.
4 (2) Our Nation’s goal is safely getting students
5 back to school in the Fall. To do so successfully, our
6 teachers and schools will need the support necessary
7 to maintain safety.
8 (3) School districts must apply recommenda-
9 tions from State and local health officials to ensure
10 that students, teachers, and faculty can safely re-
11 turn to the classroom.
12 SEC. 3. STATE GRANT PROGRAM TO SAFELY REOPEN
13 SCHOOLS.
14 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
15 (1) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term
16 ‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given
17 the term in section 8101 of the Elementary and Sec-
18 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
19 (2) PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT.—The
20 term ‘‘personal protective equipment’’ has the mean-
21 ing given the term in section 20005 of the CARES
22 Act (Public Law 116–136).
23 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
24 the Secretary of Education.
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1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF GRANT PROGRAM.—From
2 the amount appropriated to carry out this section, the Sec-
3 retary, acting in partnership with the Secretary of Health
4 and Human Services, shall award grants to local education
5 agencies to enable those local educational agencies to carry
6 out the activities described in subsection (d).
7 (c) APPLICATIONS; AWARD CRITERIA.—
8 (1) APPLICATION.—A local educational agency
9 desiring a grant under this section shall submit an
10 application to the Secretary at such time, in such
11 manner, and containing such information as the Sec-
12 retary may require, including—
13 (A) school reopening plans, which shall in-
14 clude—
15 (i) a process for notifying parents of
16 a student’s potential interaction with
17 known cases of COVID–19 during school
18 activities, which shall be carried out in a
19 manner that complies with the require-
20 ments under section 444 of the General
21 Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C.
22 1232g), commonly known as the ‘‘Family
23 Educational Rights and Privacy Act of
24 1974’’, and other applicable privacy laws,
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25 and is developed and implemented in con-
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1 sultation with administrators of the local
2 educational agency and State and local
3 public health officials; and
4 (ii) a certification that those reopen-
5 ing plans do not infringe on student suc-
6 cess and meet the guidelines, recommenda-
7 tions, and other public health communica-
8 tions issued by the Centers for Disease
9 Control and Prevention; and
10 (B) information relating to the award cri-
11 teria described in paragraph (2).
12 (2) AWARD CRITERIA.—In awarding grants
13 under this section, the Secretary shall determine
14 which local educational agencies will receive a grant,
15 and the amount of each such grant, after consid-
16 ering school size, school setting, specific school
17 needs, and timing of in-person classes.
18 (d) USE OF FUNDS.—A local educational agency re-
19 ceiving funds under this section shall use such funds to
20 carry out one or more of the following:
21 (1) Purchasing personal protective equipment.
22 (2) Cleaning and disinfection of schools.
23 (3) Purchase of supplies necessary to carry out
24 reopening plans described in subsection (c).
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1 (4) Paying costs associated with school compli-
2 ance with guidelines, recommendations, and other
3 public health communications issued by the Centers
4 for Disease Control and Prevention, or a State, In-
5 dian Tribe, Tribal organization, or locality related to
6 mitigating the hazards presented by Coronavirus
7 Disease 2019 (COVID–19).
8 SEC. 4. CONNECTING HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS WITH
9 SCHOOLS.
10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in partnership
11 with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall
12 develop a process for connecting health care professionals
13 to schools in order to assist such schools with symptom
14 checks, check-ins, and additional supports that schools
15 need relating to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19).
16 (b) TELEHEALTH.—The Secretary shall work jointly
17 with the Secretary of Health and Human Services to de-
18 velop recommendations about how to expand access to
19 telehealth services for students and teachers in areas with
20 a shortage of health care professionals.
21 (c) GUIDANCE ON REQUIREMENT FOR COVERAGE OF
22 TESTING FOR COVID–19 IN SCHOOL SETTINGS.—Not
23 later than September 8, 2020, the Secretary of Health and
24 Human Services shall issue guidance clarifying that the
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25 requirement under section 6001(a)(1) of the Families
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1 First Coronavirus Response Act (Public Law 116–127),
2 as amended by the CARES Act (Public Law 116–136),
3 applies in the case of items and services furnished to an
4 individual during a health care provider office visit that
5 occurs in a school setting through telehealth, to the extent
6 provided in such section.
7 (d) GUIDANCE ON PROVIDING REIMBURSEMENT FOR
8 TELEHEALTH SERVICES PROVIDED IN A SCHOOL-BASED
9 SETTING UNDER MEDICAID AND CHIP.—Not later than
10 September 8, 2020, the Secretary of Health and Human
11 Services, through the Administrator of the Centers for
12 Medicare & Medicaid Services, shall issue a State Health
13 Official letter to advise directors of State Medicaid pro-
14 grams under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42
15 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) and State Children’s Health Insur-
16 ance Programs under title XXI of such Act (42 U.S.C.
17 1397aa et seq.) on how States may provide for coverage
18 under such programs for telehealth services furnished to
19 students, teachers, and other school officials in a school-
20 based setting, including actions States can take without
21 Federal approval to provide coverage under such programs
22 for such services.
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1 SEC. 5. CLEARINGHOUSE OF BEST PRACTICES RELATING
2 TO SCHOOL REOPENING.
3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish an
4 online data clearinghouse to collect and maintain informa-
5 tion relating to school reopening after school closures due
6 to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19), including best
7 practices for such reopening.
8 (b) CRITERIA FOR CLEARINGHOUSE INFORMA-
9 TION.—The information contained in such clearing-
10 house—
11 (1) shall be evidence-based (as defined in sec-
12 tion 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
13 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801));
14 (2) shall not promote specific types of products;
15 and
16 (3) shall be organized by school setting (such as
17 urban, rural, or suburban), school size, and the age
18 of students attending the school.
19 (c) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—The online data clear-
20 inghouse established under this section shall be publicly
21 available online.
22 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
23 There are authorized to be appropriated—
24 (1) $50,000,000,000 to carry out section 3; and
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25 (2) $500,000,000 to carry out sections 4 and 5.
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