Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria Education Relief Act of 2017

Summary: . The expanded summary of the Senate passed version is repeated here.) Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria Education Relief Act of 2017 (Sec. 2) This bill provides educational relief in areas for which the President has declared a major disaster or an emergency as a result of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, or Maria or Tropical Storms Harvey, Irma, or Maria (affected areas). In the case of an institution of higher education (IHE) that is located in an affected area, the Department of Education (ED) must waive matching fund requirements under the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program (FSEOG) or the Federal Work-Study Program (FWS). In the case of an IHE that is not located in an affected area but has enrolled or accepted for enrollment students affected by the hurricanes or tropical storms, ED may waive the matching fund requirements under FSEOG or FWS. The waivers apply to funds made available for award years 2016-2017 and 2017-2018. Affected students are individuals who have applied for or received student financial assistance under title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, and: (1) who were enrolled or accepted for enrollment on August 25, 2017, at IHEs that are located in affected areas; (2) who are dependent students who are enrolled or accepted for enrollment on that date at IHEs that are not located in affected areas, but whose parents resided or were employed on that date in affected areas; or (3) who suffered direct economic hardship as a direct result of the hurricanes or tropical storms. If IHEs return FSEOG and FWS funds that were allocated for award year 2016-2017, then ED must reallocate the remaining funds to affected IHEs. The bill extends until September 30, 2018, the deadline for ED to obligate funds for FSEOG or FWS.  The bill terminates ED's waiver authority on September 30, 2018. (Sec. 3) In addition, the bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require Project School Emergency Response to Violence grants to be distributed to private schools on an equitable basis. 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
    This Act may be cited as the ``Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria 
Education Relief Act of 2017''.
SEC. 2. ALLOCATION AND USE OF CAMPUS-BASED HIGHER EDUCATION ASSISTANCE.
    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
        (1) Affected area.--The term ``affected area'' means an area 
    for which the President declared a major disaster or an emergency 
    under section 401 or 501, respectively, of the Robert T. Stafford 
    Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170 and 
    5191) as a result of Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane 
    Maria, Tropical Storm Harvey, Tropical Storm Irma, or Tropical 
    Storm Maria.
        (2) Affected student.--The term ``affected student'' means an 
    individual who has applied for or received student financial 
    assistance under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
    U.S.C. 1070 et seq.), and who--
            (A) was enrolled or accepted for enrollment on August 25, 
        2017, at an institution of higher education that is located in 
        an affected area;
            (B) is a dependent student who was enrolled or accepted for 
        enrollment on August 25, 2017, at an institution of higher 
        education that is not located in an affected area, but whose 
        parent or parents resided or was employed on August 25, 2017, 
        in an affected area; or
            (C) suffered direct economic hardship as a direct result of 
        Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Maria, Tropical 
        Storm Harvey, Tropical Storm Irma, or Tropical Storm Maria, as 
        determined by the Secretary.
        (3) Institution of higher education.--The term ``institution of 
    higher education'' has the meaning given the term in section 102 of 
    the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002).
        (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
    Education.
    (b) Waivers.--
        (1) Waiver of non-federal share requirement.--Notwithstanding 
    sections 413C(a)(2) and 443(b)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 
    1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070b-2(a)(2) and 1087-53(b)(5)), with respect to 
    funds made available for award years 2016-2017 and 2017-2018--
            (A) in the case of an institution of higher education that 
        is located in an affected area, the Secretary shall waive the 
        requirement that a participating institution of higher 
        education provide a non-Federal share to match Federal funds 
        provided to the institution for the programs authorized 
        pursuant to subpart 3 of part A and part C of title IV of the 
        Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070b et seq. and 1087-
        51 et seq.); and
            (B) in the case of an institution of higher education that 
        is not located in an affected area but has enrolled or accepted 
        for enrollment any affected students, the Secretary may waive 
        the non-Federal share requirement described in subparagraph (A) 
        after considering the institution's student population and 
        existing resources.
        (2) Waiver of reallocation rules.--
            (A) Authority to reallocate.--Notwithstanding sections 
        413D(d) and 442(d) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 1070b-3(d) and 1087-52(d)), the Secretary shall--
                (i) reallocate any funds returned under such section 
            413D or 442 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 that were 
            allocated to institutions of higher education for award 
            year 2016-2017 to an institution of higher education that 
            is eligible under subparagraph (B); and
                (ii) waive the allocation reduction for award year 
            2018-2019 for an institution of higher education that is 
            eligible under subparagraph (B) returning more than 10 
            percent of its allocation under such section 413D or 442 of 
            the Higher Education Act of 1965 for award year 2017-2018.
            (B) Institutions eligible for reallocation.--An institution 
        of higher education is eligible under this subparagraph if the 
        institution--
                (i) participates in the program for which excess 
            allocations are being reallocated; and
                (ii)(I) is located in an affected area; or
                (II) has enrolled or accepted for enrollment any 
            affected students in award year 2017-2018.
            (C) Basis of reallocation.--The Secretary shall--
                (i) determine the manner in which excess allocations 
            will be reallocated pursuant to this paragraph; and
                (ii) give preference in making reallocations to the 
            needs of institutions of higher education located in an 
            affected area.
            (D) Additional waiver authority.--Notwithstanding any other 
        provision of law, in order to carry out this paragraph, the 
        Secretary may waive or modify any statutory or regulatory 
        provision relating to the reallocation of excess allocations 
        under subpart 3 of part A or part C of title IV of the Higher 
        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070b et seq. and 1087-51 et 
        seq.) in order to ensure that assistance is received by 
        institutions of higher education that are eligible under 
        subparagraph (B).
        (3) Availability of funds date extension.--Notwithstanding any 
    other provision of law--
            (A) any funds available to the Secretary under sections 
        413A and 441 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        1070b and 1087-51) for which the period of availability would 
        otherwise expire on September 30, 2017, shall be available for 
        obligation by the Secretary until September 30, 2018, for the 
        purposes of the programs authorized pursuant to subpart 3 of 
        part A and part C of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 
        1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070b et seq. and 1087-51 et seq.); and
            (B) the Secretary may recall any funds allocated to an 
        institution of higher education for award year 2016-2017 under 
        section 413D or 442 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 1070b-3 and 1087-52), that, if not returned to the 
        Secretary as excess allocations pursuant to either of those 
        sections, would otherwise lapse on September 30, 2017, and 
        reallocate those funds in accordance with paragraph (2)(A).
    (c) Emergency Requirement.--This section is designated as an 
emergency requirement pursuant to section 4(g) of the Statutory Pay-As-
You-Go Act of 2010 (title I of Public Law 111-139; 2 U.S.C. 933(g)).
    (d) Report.--Not later than October 1, 2018, the Secretary shall 
submit to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 
the Senate and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the 
House of Representatives information on--
        (1) the total volume of assistance received by each eligible 
    institution of higher education under subsection (b)(2); and
        (2) the total volume of the non-Federal share waived for each 
    institution of higher education under subsection (b)(1).
    (e) Sunset.--The provisions of subsection (b) shall cease to be 
effective on September 30, 2018.
SEC. 3. PROJECT SERV AND EQUITABLE SERVICES FOR CHILDREN AND TEACHERS 
IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS.
    Section 8501(b)(1) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7881(b)(1)) is amended--
        (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'';
        (2) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at the end and 
    inserting ``; and''; and
        (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(F) section 4631, with regard to Project SERV.''.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.