Final House ESEA Reauthorization Package

 

ACTION: REAUTHORIZE THE REMAINING TITLES OF ESEA (TITLES III, IV, VI, 21ST CENTURY SCHOOLS, AND GENERAL PROVISIONS) WITH PROVISIONS THAT ASSURE FOCUS AND EFFECTIVENESS OF FEDERAL FUNDS ON NATIONAL PRIORITIES, EFFICIENT ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAMS THROUGH STATE EDUCATION AGENCIES, AND A SUFFICIENT RESERVE OF FUNDS FOR SEAs TO BUILD CAPACITY AND SUPPORT LOCAL DISTRICTS AND SCHOOLS IN THEIR EFFORTS TO APPROVE STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT. Authorize 21st Century Community Schools as a formula program administered by state education agencies and focused on before and afterschool extended learning opportunities for students in high poverty schools. Assure continuation of an adequate state set-aside in Title VI and the other titles to enable efficient and effective administration of programs, as well as to provide essential support and capacity-building services by the SEA to local districts and schools. Reject proposals to authorize transfer of federal funds among the various federal programs which are targeted to major national priorities in education.

STATUS: The House Education and Workforce Committee will mark up the last bill in its series of separate ESEA reauthorization bills during the last two weeks of March. The House has passed a bipartisan Title I reauthorization bill and Title II Teacher Empowerment Act and Straight A's bills on a partisan basis. A bipartisan bill to reauthorize Even Start and Family Literacy programs is awaiting action by the full House. The titles awaiting action by the House Committee include Title III Technology, Title IV Safe and Drug Free Schools, Title VI Innovative Strategies, 21st Century Community Learning Centers, and the General Provisions of ESEA.

ISSUES:

A draft or working document of the House bill is not available, but Majority Members and staff indicate that the following are among the issues under consideration:

  1. a block grant of the 21st Century Community Schools Act and Safe and Drug Free Schools programs as a single state-administered formula program;
  2. a cap on the state administration and leadership set-aside under Title VI at FY2000 levels; and
  3. an additional flexibility mechansim called "transferability," which would authorize states to transfer up to 100% of the state set-aside for any ESEA formula program except Title I into any other program, and authorize local districts to transfer up to 30% of funds under each of these programs to another (100% of funds could be transferred with a waiver from the SEA).
These issues raise the following concerns.
 

ISSUES:

A. 21st Century Community Learning Centers
 

ACTION: REAUTHORIZE THE 21ST CENTURY AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAM AS A POVERTY-BASED FORMULA PROGRAM ADMINISTERED BY SEAs WITH QUALITY CRITERIA FOR GRANTS TO LEAs ON BEHALF OF SCHOOLS AND A SHARPENED FOCUS ON ACADEMICALLY-RELATED ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES AND EXTENDED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL. OPPOSE A TITLE IV/21ST CENTURY BLOCK GRANT.

21st Century After-School funds should be allocated to states on a formula targeted to poverty and administered through the SEA to local districts on behalf of local schools. As this program grows to $500 million, it is most effectively and efficiently administered by state education agencies to over 100,000 local communities. Federal programs of direct grants to local areas which by-pass the states do not connect with state resources used for the same purposes and seldom are sustained and expanded within the states. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act provides for the efficient and effective administration of federal K-12 programs by state educational agencies, which can then be held accountable, along with local districts, for program results. This program should now be administered by the states.

The 21st Century After-School program fills an urgent unmet need for extended learning opportunities for disadvantaged students. Although some Title I and Title VI funds are spent on this purpose, the shortage of quality enrichment and extended learning programs at schools during non-school hours is critical, as evidenced by the over $900 million in applications for the $40 million appropriated for 21st Century Schools in its second year. This program is essential to support and enhance the regular academic program.

21st Century After-School should be reauthorized as a separate title or component of ESEA, rather than block granting it with the Safe and Drug Free Schools program. 21st Century Schools has a very different purpose and addresses a substantially different need than the Safe and Drug Free Schools (SDFSCA) program. While some SDFSCA funds can and do support afterschool care, it is not the primary purpose of the program, nor are the afterschool services provided through the program focused on enrichment activities related to the academic program and extended learning time. These are distinct national priorities requiring programs with different purposes, use, and accountability for federal education funds.
 

Part B. State Level Set-Asides for SEA Administration and Leadership
 

ACTION: PROVIDE FOR ADEQUATE SEA SET-ASIDES (10%-15%) TO ENABLE SEAs TO PROVIDE INCREASED TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO LEAs AND EFFECTIVELY ADMINISTER FEDERAL PROGRAMS IN LIGHT OF NEW ACCOUNTABILITY REQUIREMENTS. AUTHORIZE SEAs AND LOCAL DISTRICTS TO USE TITLE VI FUNDS TO CONTINUE TO DEVELOP STANDARDS AND NEW ALIGNED ASSESSEMENTS CONNECTED TO PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE CURRICULUM.

Existing and reauthorized ESEA programs involve a substantial assignment of responsibility and administration for federal funds to the states. These transfers are accompanied by increased expectations for states to establish standards, performance indicators and benchmarks, and accountability systems to ensure results and student achievement. They also require increased service and technical assistance by the states to assist local communities in improving the quality of programs, especially where they are below standard.

SEAs must be provided adequate resources to carry out these responsibilities, or the expectation of improved effectiveness and efficiency in the use of federal funds by the states will not be realized. SEAs must continue to have a source of federal funds such as Title VI to continue to develop standards in all core subject areas, as well as new aligned assessments. Setting standards, providing for effective quality review, monitoring, and accountability, particularly providing increased service to districts and schools with the lowest performance, requires greater levels of personnel and state capacity than was the case for earlier responsibilities of regulation and report monitoring. The standards-setting process is a continual one and must reach the classroom through aligned assessments, professional development, and the curriculum.

SEAs use economies of scale and regional service delivery systems to provide critical quality services and build capacity of local districts and schools beyond what LEAs and schools, particularly those with the highest poverty and lowest performing students, could secure on their own. Districts and schools rely on these supports and in general, request far greater services than the state or intermediate agencies can provide. A sufficent state-level set-aside is essential in each ESEA formula program to assure quality and effectiveness through the federal-state-local partnership.
 

Part C. Transferability
 

ACTION: OPPOSE EFFORTS TO ADD "TRANSFERABILITY" MECHANISMS TO ESEA PROGRAMS. TRANSFERABILITY UNDERCUTS ACCOUNTABILITY FOR FEDERAL FUNDS AND WOULD RESULT IN DECREASED FUNDING LEVELS.

The House Majority is developing a new, overarching flexibility mechanism known as "transferability." While no legislation or specific proposal has been offered, reports from the Majority indicate the following is under consideration:

Transferability would allow LEAs to transfer up to 30% of their federal allocation from any ESEA formula program other than Title I into any other ESEA formula program. Money could be transferred into Title I, but not away from it. With permission from the SEA, up to 100% of funds could be transferred.

At the state level, SEAs could transfer up to 100% of their state leadership funds between and among any federal formula program (again, money could be transferred to Title I, but not away from it).

The transferability provision raises the following concerns which are very similar to those for Straight A's and block grants:

March 2000
Council of Chief State School Officers
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