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 Representa2 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’’. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 7746 IH

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 Edu6 cation shall establish a grant program (in this section re7 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 Sec13 retary shall— 

14 (1) reserve three-quarters of 1 percent for allot15 ments for the outlying areas, to be distributed 

16 among such outlying areas on the basis of their rel17 ative need, as determined by the Secretary, in ac18 cordance with the purpose of the Program; 

19 (2) reserve one-half of 1 percent for the Sec20 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 

25 (3) from the remaining funds, allocate to each 

26 eligible State an amount equal to the sum of— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 7746 IH

1 (A) an amount that bears the same rela2 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 rela9 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 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 7746 IH

1 subgrant under subparagraph (A) shall be equal 

2 to the sum of— 

3 (i) an amount that bears the same re4 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 re16 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 deter21 mined by the Secretary on the basis of the 

22 most recent satisfactory data, bears to the 

23 number of those individuals in the geo24 graphic areas served by all eligible local 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 7746 IH

1 educational agencies in the State, as so de2 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 Pro7 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 enter12 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 re16 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 stu20 dents that aids in regular and substantive edu21 cational interaction between students and their 

22 classroom instructors, including low-income stu23 dents and students with disabilities, which may 

24 include assistive technology or adaptive equip25 ment. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 7746 IH

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 assur12 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 de20 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 

25 such subgrant was used; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 7746 IH

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 ADMINIS12 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 re17 jection of such application. 

18 (2) AWARD OF FUNDS.—Not later than 90 days 

19 after the date of enactment of this section, the Sec20 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 obli25 gate and spend such funds until 1 year after the 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 7746 IH

1 date of receipt or until September 30, 2021, which2 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 ap11 propriated $25,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2021. 

12 (2) USE OF AVAILABLE FUNDS.—Notwith13 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 re17 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 defi22 nitions apply: 

23 (1) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 

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

25 such term in section 8101 of the Elementary and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 7746 IH

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 sec4 ondary schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Edu5 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 Asso13 ciation Amendments Act of 2003 (48 U.S.C. 

14 1921d(f)(1)(B)(v)) and any other law, the Fed15 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. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS