I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7692 

To provide a grant program for elementary schools, secondary schools, and 

institutions of higher education to help offset costs associated with complying with guidelines, recommendations, and other public health communications issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 

or a State, Indian Tribe, Tribal organization, or locality related to 

mitigating the hazards presented by COVID–19. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 20, 2020 

Ms. TITUS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Education and Labor 

A BILL 

To provide a grant program for elementary schools, secondary schools, and institutions of higher education to 

help offset costs associated with complying with guidelines, recommendations, and other public health communications issued by the Centers for Disease Control and 

Prevention, or a State, Indian Tribe, Tribal organization, 

or locality related to mitigating the hazards presented 

by COVID–19. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reopen Schools Safely 

3 Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. STATE GRANT PROGRAM TO SAFELY REOPEN 

5 SCHOOLS. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

8 has the meaning given the term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ in 

9 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu10 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

11 (2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

12 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

13 meaning given the term in section 102 of the Higher 

14 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002). 

15 (3) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 

16 ‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given 

17 the term in section 8101 of the Elementary and Sec18 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

19 (4) OUTLYING AREAS.—The term ‘‘outlying 

20 areas’’ means American Samoa, the Commonwealth 

21 of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the 

22 United States Virgin Islands. 

23 (5) PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT.—The 

24 term ‘‘personal protective equipment’’ has the mean25 ing given the term in section 20005 of the CARES 

26 Act (Public Law 116–136). 


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1 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

2 the Secretary of Education. 

3 (7) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

4 the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the 

5 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 

6 (8) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘Tribal 

7 organization’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘trib8 al organization’’ in section 4 of the Indian Self-De9 termination and Education Assistance Act (25 

10 U.S.C. 5304). 

11 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF GRANT PROGRAM.— 

12 (1) RESERVATION.—From the amount appro13 priated to carry out this section for a fiscal year, the 

14 Secretary shall reserve one-half of 1 percent for the 

15 Bureau of Indian Education and one-half of 1 per16 cent for the outlying areas. 

17 (2) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary shall 

18 award grants to States from allotments made to the 

19 States under paragraph (3) to offset costs associated 

20 with complying with guidelines, recommendations, 

21 and other public health communications issued by 

22 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or 

23 a State, Indian Tribe, Tribal organization, or local24 ity related to mitigating the hazards presented by 

25 Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19). 


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1 (3) ALLOTMENT FORMULA.—From the amount 

2 appropriated to carry out this section for a fiscal 

3 year and not reserved under paragraph (1), the Sec4 retary shall allot to each State for such fiscal year 

5 an amount that is equal to the sum of— 

6 (A) the amount that bears the same rela7 tion to 60 percent of the amount appropriated 

8 for such fiscal year and not reserved under 

9 paragraph (1), as the number of individuals 

10 aged 5 through 24 in the State bears to the 

11 total number of such individuals in all States, 

12 and 

13 (B) the amount that bears the same rela14 tion to 40 percent of the amount appropriated 

15 for such fiscal year and not reserved under 

16 paragraph (1), as the number of children count17 ed under section 1124(c) of the Elementary and 

18 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

19 6333(c)) in the State bears to the total number 

20 of such children counted in all States. 

21 (c) APPLICATION.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of a State 

23 that desires to receive a grant under this section 

24 shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 


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1 time, in such manner, and accompanied by such in2 formation as the Secretary may require. 

3 (2) TIMELINE.—The Secretary shall— 

4 (A) not later than 15 days after the date 

5 of enactment of this Act, issue a notification for 

6 applications for grants under this section; and 

7 (B) not later than 30 days after the date 

8 of notification for applications for grants under 

9 this section, begin to award grants under this 

10 section. 

11 (d) ALLOWABLE USES OF FUNDS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives a 

13 grant under this section shall use not less than 95 

14 percent of the grant funds to award subgrants only 

15 to local educational agencies or institutions of higher 

16 education to enable such agencies and institutions to 

17 offset costs associated with complying with guide18 lines, recommendations, and other public health 

19 communications issued by the Centers for Disease 

20 Control and Prevention, or a State, Indian Tribe, 

21 Tribal organization, or locality related to mitigating 

22 the hazards presented by Coronavirus Disease 2019 

23 (COVID–19), including by carrying out the fol24 lowing: 


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1 (A) Designing and implementing exposure 

2 control plans. 

3 (B) Hiring personnel and purchasing 

4 equipment necessary for health screenings, in5 cluding temperature screenings. 

6 (C) Purchasing in vitro diagnostic products 

7 (as defined in section 809.3 of title 21, Code of 

8 Federal Regulations) for the detection of 

9 SARS–CoV–2 or the diagnosis of the virus that 

10 causes COVID–19 that are approved, cleared, 

11 or authorized under section 510(k), 513, or 564 

12 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act 

13 (21 U.S.C. 360(k); 360c; 360bbb–3), including 

14 both diagnostic and serological tests, as appro15 priate. 

16 (D) Purchasing and installing physical 

17 barriers and reconfiguring physical public 

18 school buildings, including classrooms and other 

19 aspects of the school’s learning environment, to 

20 provide for adequate social distancing. 

21 (E) Providing students, educators, and 

22 school staff with personal protective equipment. 

23 (F) Purchasing sanitation supplies, includ24 ing EPA-approved disinfectant and hiring ade25 quate personnel to conduct school cleanings. 


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1 (G) Developing and providing training re2 lated to COVID–19, including the use of per3 sonal protective equipment. 

4 (H) Purchasing and installing new ventila5 tion systems, as necessary. 

6 (I) Purchasing any other items, personnel, 

7 or services determined necessary or rec8 ommended by the Secretary or a State, Indian 

9 Tribe, Tribal organization, or locality related to 

10 mitigating the hazards presented by COVID– 

11 19. 

12 (J) Hiring transportation personnel and 

13 purchasing vehicles to transport students. 

14 (K) Purchasing connected devices for stu15 dents to use at home, high-speed internet or 

16 broadband access, or other technology to ensure 

17 students can complete all schoolwork at home. 

18 (L) Purchasing secure, third-party applica19 tions for symptom monitoring and associated 

20 information technology services. 

21 (2) CONSULTATION.—A State that receives a 

22 grant under this section shall engage in meaningful 

23 consultation on the distribution of grant funds with 

24 local educational agencies, institutions of higher edu25 cation, labor organizations, parents, students, school 


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1 support staff, public health experts, the State edu2 cational agency, and educators. 

3 (3) ADMINISTRATIVE FUNDS.—A State that re4 ceives a grant under this section may reserve not 

5 more than 5 percent of the grant funds for adminis6 trative costs and to develop State standards for miti7 gating COVID–19 in schools. 

8 (4) APPLICATION FOR SUBGRANTS.—A State 

9 that receives a grant under this section shall estab10 lish an application process for local educational 

11 agencies and institutions of higher education to 

12 apply for subgrants under this section. 

13 (e) REIMBURSEMENT OF FUNDS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives a 

15 grant under this section may reimburse a local edu16 cational agency or institution of higher education for 

17 costs associated with safely reopening if the local 

18 educational agency or institution of higher education 

19 purchased or had expenditures that qualify as an al20 lowable use of funds under subsection (d). 

21 (2) DATE OF REIMBURSEMENT ELIGIBILITY.— 

22 A local educational agency or institution of higher 

23 education may only be reimbursed under paragraph 

24 (1) for a cost incurred after the date of the COVID– 

25 19 national emergency. 


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1 (3) COVID–19 NATIONAL EMERGENCY.—In 

2 this subsection, the term ‘‘COVID–19 national 

3 emergency’’ means the national emergency declared 

4 by the President under the National Emergencies 

5 Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) on March 13, 2020, 

6 with respect to the coronavirus. 

7 (f) RECEIPTS AND RECORDS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives a 

9 grant under this section or a local educational agen10 cy or institution of higher education that receives a 

11 subgrant under this section shall keep all receipts 

12 and records on the use of such grant or subgrant 

13 funds. 

14 (2) RECEIPTS FOR REIMBURSEMENT OF

15 FUNDS.—Prior to reimbursing a local educational 

16 agency or institution of education for an allowable 

17 use of funds under subsection (d) pursuant to sub18 section (e), the State shall certify that such funds 

19 were spent on expenses that are deemed an allowable 

20 use of funds as described in subsection (d). 

21 (g) REPORTS.— 

22 (1) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY AND INSTI23 TUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION REPORTS.—Each 

24 local educational agency or institution of higher edu25 cation that receives a subgrant under this section 


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1 shall submit a report to the State that awarded the 

2 subgrant that details the use of the subgrant funds. 

3 (2) STATE REPORTS.—Each State that receives 

4 a grant under this section shall submit an annual re5 port to the Secretary that details the use of the 

6 grant funds, including the amount of funds reim7 bursed by the State to local educational agencies or 

8 institutions of higher education. 

9 (3) SECRETARY REPORT.—The Secretary 

10 shall— 

11 (A) submit an annual report to Congress 

12 on the grant program carried out under this 

13 section; and 

14 (B) make such report publicly available. 

15 (h) RETURNING FUNDS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any funds received under 

17 this section that are unexpended on the date that is 

18 1 year after the date of receipt of the funds shall be 

19 returned to the Secretary. 

20 (2) REALLOCATION.—The Secretary shall re21 allocate funds returned under paragraph (1) to the 

22 remaining States in accordance with subsection 

23 (b)(3). 

24 (i) RESTRICTIONS.—A State that receives a grant 

25 under this section or a local educational agency or instituVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:05 Aug 06, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7692.IH H7692

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1 tion of higher education that receives a subgrant under 

2 this section may not resell any unused supplies or mate3 rials purchased with funds received under this section. 

4 (j) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—A State’s applica5 tion for grant funds under this section shall include assur6 ances that the State shall, to the greatest extent prac7 ticable, maintain support for elementary and secondary 

8 education, and State support for higher education (which 

9 shall include State funding to institutions of higher edu10 cation and State need-based financial aid, and shall not 

11 include support for capital projects or for research and 

12 development or tuition and fees paid by students) in fiscal 

13 years 2020, 2021, and 2022 at least at the levels of such 

14 support that is the average of such State’s support for 

15 elementary and secondary education and for higher edu16 cation provided in the 3 fiscal years preceding the date 

17 of enactment of this Act. 

18 (k) EQUITABLE SERVICES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

20 (A) PROVISION OF EQUITABLE SERV21 ICES.—Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), 

22 a local educational agency receiving funds 

23 under this section shall provide equitable serv24 ices to students from low-income families, and 

25 teachers of such students, in non-public schools 


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1 in the same manner as provided under section 

2 1117 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu3 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6320) (including 

4 the specific requirements of subsections 

5 (a)(4)(A)(i) and (c) of such section), subject to 

6 paragraph (2), as determined in consultation 

7 with representatives of non-public schools. 

8 (B) DETERMINATION OF PROPORTIONAL

9 SHARE.—In determining the proportional share 

10 of expenditures for the equitable services de11 scribed in subparagraph (A), a local educational 

12 agency shall use the proportion determined 

13 under section 1117(a)(4)(A)(i) of the Elemen14 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

15 U.S.C. 6320(a)(4)(A)(i)) for the purposes of 

16 part A of title I of such Act for fiscal year 

17 2019. 

18 (C) ELIGIBLE STUDENTS AND TEACH19 ERS.—A local educational agency required to 

20 provide equitable services under subparagraph 

21 (A) shall provide such services to students and 

22 teachers at non-public schools whose students 

23 or teachers were eligible to receive equitable 

24 services from such local educational agency dur25 ing fiscal year 2019 under section 1117 of the 


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1 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

2 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6320). 

3 (2) PUBLIC CONTROL OF FUNDS.—The control 

4 of funds for the services and assistance provided to 

5 a non-public school under paragraph (1), and title to 

6 materials, equipment, and property purchased with 

7 such funds, shall be in a public agency, and a public 

8 agency shall administer such funds, materials, equip9 ment, and property and shall provide such services 

10 (or may contract for the provision of such services 

11 with a public or private entity). 

12 (l) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

13 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

14 $90,000,000,000 for fiscal years 2020 through 2022. 

Æ 


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