I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1525 

To provide high-quality public charter school options for students by enabling 

such public charter schools to expand and replicate. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 13, 2011 

Mr. POLIS (for himself, Mr. HOLT, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. 

PAULSEN, Mr. HIMES, and Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 

Workforce 

A BILL 

To provide high-quality public charter school options for students by enabling such public charter schools to expand 

and replicate. 

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 ‘‘All Students Achieving 

5 through Reform Act of 2011’’ or ‘‘All-STAR Act of 2011’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CHARTER SCHOOL EXPANSION AND REPLICATION. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart 1 of part B of title V of 

8 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

9 U.S.C. 7221 et seq.) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking section 5212; 

2 (2) by redesignating section 5210 as section 

3 5211; and 

4 (3) by inserting after section 5209 the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 5210. CHARTER SCHOOL EXPANSION AND REPLICA7 TION. 

8 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this section to 

9 support State efforts to expand and replicate high-quality 

10 public charter schools to enable such schools to serve addi11 tional students, with a priority to serve those students who 

12 attend identified schools or schools with a low graduation 

13 rate. 

14 ‘‘(b) SUPPORT FOR PROVEN CHARTER SCHOOLS AND

15 INCREASING THE SUPPLY OF HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER

16 SCHOOLS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From the 

18 amounts appropriated under section 5200 for any 

19 fiscal year, the Secretary shall award grants, on a 

20 competitive basis, to eligible entities to enable the el21 igible entities to make subgrants to eligible public 

22 charter schools under subsection (e)(1) and carry 

23 out the other activities described in subsection (e), 

24 in order to allow the eligible public charter schools 


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1 to serve additional students through the expansion 

2 and replication of such schools. 

3 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT OF GRANTS.—In determining the 

4 grant amount to be awarded under this subsection 

5 to an eligible entity, the Secretary shall consider— 

6 ‘‘(A) the number of eligible public charter 

7 schools under the jurisdiction or in the service 

8 area of the eligible entity that are operating; 

9 ‘‘(B) the number of openings for new stu10 dents that could be created in such schools with 

11 such grant; 

12 ‘‘(C) the number of students eligible for 

13 free or reduced price lunches under the Richard 

14 B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 

15 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) who are on waiting lists 

16 for charter schools under the jurisdiction or in 

17 the service area of the eligible entity, and other 

18 information with respect to charter schools in 

19 such jurisdiction or the service area that sug20 gest the interest of parents in charter school 

21 enrollment for their children; 

22 ‘‘(D) the number of students attending 

23 identified schools or schools with a low gradua24 tion rate in the State or area where an eligible 


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1 entity intends to replicate or expand eligible 

2 public charter schools; and 

3 ‘‘(E) the success of the eligible entity in 

4 overseeing public charter schools and the likeli5 hood of continued or increased success because 

6 of the grant under this section. 

7 ‘‘(3) DURATION OF GRANTS.—A grant under 

8 this section shall be for a period of not more than 

9 3 years, except that an eligible entity receiving such 

10 grant may, at the discretion of the Secretary, con11 tinue to expend grant funds after the end of the 

12 grant period. An eligible entity that received a grant 

13 under this section may still be eligible to receive a 

14 grant under this section. 

15 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—To be 

17 considered for a grant under this section, an eligible 

18 entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at 

19 such time, in such manner, and containing such in20 formation as the Secretary may require. 

21 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The application described in 

22 paragraph (1) shall include, at a minimum, the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(A) RECORD OF SUCCESS.—Documenta25 tion of the record of success of the eligible entiVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:33 Apr 15, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1525.IH H1525

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1 ty in overseeing or operating public charter 

2 schools, including— 

3 ‘‘(i) the performance of public charter 

4 school students on the academic assess5 ments described in section 1111(b)(3) of 

6 the State where such schools are located, 

7 including, if available, a measurement of 

8 academic, longitudinal growth on such as9 sessments (as defined by the Secretary or 

10 State law) for all students schoolwide and 

11 as disaggregated by— 

12 ‘‘(I) economic disadvantage; 

13 ‘‘(II) race and ethnicity; 

14 ‘‘(III) disability status; and 

15 ‘‘(IV) status as a student with 

16 limited English proficiency; 

17 ‘‘(ii) demonstrated success in closing 

18 historic achievement gaps for the sub19 groups of students described in clause (i); 

20 ‘‘(iii) the status of such schools under 

21 section 1116 in making adequate yearly 

22 progress or as identified schools; and 

23 ‘‘(iv) in the case of public charter 

24 schools that are secondary schools, the 

25 high school graduation rates and rates of 


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1 college acceptance, enrollment, and persist2 ence of students, where possible. 

3 ‘‘(B) PLAN.—A plan for— 

4 ‘‘(i) replicating and expanding eligible 

5 public charter schools operated or overseen 

6 by the eligible entity; 

7 ‘‘(ii) identifying eligible public charter 

8 schools, or networks of eligible public char9 ter schools, to receive subgrants under this 

10 section; 

11 ‘‘(iii) increasing the number of open12 ings in eligible public charter schools for 

13 students attending identified schools and 

14 schools with a low graduation rate; 

15 ‘‘(iv) ensuring that eligible public 

16 charter schools receiving a subgrant under 

17 this section enroll students through a ran18 dom lottery for admission, unless the char19 ter school is using the subgrant to expand 

20 the school to serve additional grades, in 

21 which case such school may reserve seats 

22 in the additional grades for— 

23 ‘‘(I) each student enrolled in the 

24 grade preceding each such additional 

25 grade; 


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1 ‘‘(II) siblings of students enrolled 

2 in the charter school, if such siblings 

3 desire to enroll in such grade; and 

4 ‘‘(III) children of the charter 

5 school’s founders, staff, or employees; 

6 ‘‘(v)(I) in the case of an eligible entity 

7 described in subparagraph (A) or (C) of 

8 subsection (k)(4), the manner in which the 

9 eligible entity will work with identified 

10 schools and schools with a low graduation 

11 rate that are eligible to enroll students in 

12 a public charter school receiving a 

13 subgrant under this section and that are 

14 under the eligible entity’s jurisdiction, and 

15 the local educational agencies serving such 

16 schools, to— 

17 ‘‘(aa) engage in community out18 reach, provide information in a lan19 guage that the parents can under20 stand, and communicate with parents 

21 of students at identified schools and 

22 schools with a low graduation rate 

23 who are eligible to attend a public 

24 charter school receiving a subgrant 

25 under this section about the opporVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:33 Apr 15, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1525.IH H1525

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1 tunity to enroll in or transfer to such 

2 school, in a manner consistent with 

3 section 444 of the General Education 

4 Provisions Act (commonly known as 

5 the ‘Family Educational Rights and 

6 Privacy Act of 1974’); and 

7 ‘‘(bb) ensure that a student can 

8 transfer to an eligible public charter 

9 school if the public charter school 

10 such student was attending in the 

11 previous school year is no longer an 

12 eligible public charter school; 

13 ‘‘(II) in the case of an eligible entity 

14 described in subparagraph (B) or (D) of 

15 subsection (k)(4), the manner in which the 

16 eligible entity will work with the local edu17 cational agency to carry out the activities 

18 described in items (aa) and (bb) of sub19 clause (I); 

20 ‘‘(vi) disseminating to public schools 

21 under the jurisdiction or in the service 

22 area of the eligible entity, in a manner 

23 consistent with section 444 of the General 

24 Education Provisions Act (commonly 

25 known as the ‘Family Educational Rights 


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1 and Privacy Act of 1974’), the best prac2 tices, programs, or strategies learned by 

3 awarding subgrants to eligible public char4 ter schools under this section, with par5 ticular emphasis on the best practices with 

6 respect to— 

7 ‘‘(I) focusing on closing the 

8 achievement gap; or 

9 ‘‘(II) successfully addressing the 

10 education needs of low-income stu11 dents; and 

12 ‘‘(vii) in the case of an eligible entity 

13 described in subsection (k)(4)(D)— 

14 ‘‘(I) supporting the short-term 

15 and long-term success of the proposed 

16 project, by— 

17 ‘‘(aa) developing a multi18 year financial and operating 

19 model for the eligible entity; and 

20 ‘‘(bb) including, with the 

21 plan, evidence of the dem22 onstrated commitment of current 

23 partners, as of the time of the 

24 application, for the proposed 

25 project and of broad support 


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1 from stakeholders critical to the 

2 project’s long-term success; 

3 ‘‘(II) closing public charter 

4 schools that do not meet acceptable 

5 standards of performance; and 

6 ‘‘(III) achieving the objectives of 

7 the proposed project on time and 

8 within budget, which shall include the 

9 use of clearly defined responsibilities, 

10 timelines, and milestones for accom11 plishing project tasks. 

12 ‘‘(C) CHARTER SCHOOL INFORMATION.— 

13 The number of— 

14 ‘‘(i) eligible public charter schools that 

15 are operating in the State in which the eli16 gible entity intends to award subgrants 

17 under this section; 

18 ‘‘(ii) public charter schools approved 

19 to open or likely to open during the grant 

20 period in such State; 

21 ‘‘(iii) available openings in eligible 

22 public charter schools in such State that 

23 could be created through the replication or 

24 expansion of such schools if the grant is 

25 awarded to the eligible entity; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) students on public charter school 

2 waiting lists (if such lists are available) 

3 in— 

4 ‘‘(I) the State in which the eligi5 ble entity intends to award subgrants 

6 under this section; and 

7 ‘‘(II) each local educational agen8 cy serving an eligible public charter 

9 school that may receive a subgrant 

10 under this section from the eligible 

11 entity; and 

12 ‘‘(v) students, and the percentage of 

13 students, in a local educational agency who 

14 are attending eligible public charter schools 

15 that may receive a subgrant under this 

16 section from the eligible entity. 

17 ‘‘(D) TRADITIONAL PUBLIC SCHOOL IN18 FORMATION.—In the case of an eligible entity 

19 that is a State educational agency or local edu20 cational agency, a list of the identified schools 

21 and schools with a low graduation rate under 

22 the jurisdiction of the eligible entity, including 

23 the name and location of each such school, the 

24 number and percentage of students under the 

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1 tending such school, and such demographic and 

2 socioeconomic information as the Secretary may 

3 require. 

4 ‘‘(E) ASSURANCE.—In the case of an eligi5 ble entity described in subsection (k)(4)(A), an 

6 assurance that the eligible entity will include in 

7 the notifications provided under section 

8 1116(c)(6) to parents of each student enrolled 

9 in a school served by a local educational agency 

10 identified for school improvement or corrective 

11 action under paragraph (1) or (7) of section 

12 1116(c), information (in a language that the 

13 parents can understand) about the eligible pub14 lic charter schools receiving subgrants under 

15 this section. 

16 ‘‘(3) MODIFICATIONS.—The Secretary may 

17 modify or waive any information requirement under 

18 paragraph (2)(C) for an eligible entity that dem19 onstrates that the eligible entity cannot reasonably 

20 obtain the information. 

21 ‘‘(d) PRIORITIES FOR AWARDING GRANTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In awarding grants under 

23 this section, the Secretary shall give priority to eligi24 ble entities that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) serve or plan to serve a large percent2 age of low-income students from identified 

3 schools or public schools with a low graduation 

4 rate; 

5 ‘‘(B) oversee or plan to oversee one or 

6 more eligible public charter schools; 

7 ‘‘(C) provide evidence of effective moni8 toring of the academic success of students who 

9 attend public charter schools under the jurisdic10 tion of the eligible entity; 

11 ‘‘(D) in the case of eligible entities that are 

12 local educational agencies under State law, have 

13 a cooperative agreement under section 

14 1116(b)(11); and 

15 ‘‘(E) are under the jurisdiction of, or plan 

16 to award subgrants under this section in, a 

17 State that— 

18 ‘‘(i) ensures that all public charter 

19 schools (including such schools served by a 

20 local educational agency and such schools 

21 considered to be a local educational agency 

22 under State law) receive, in a timely man23 ner, the Federal, State, and local funds to 

24 which such schools are entitled under ap25 plicable law; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) does not have a cap that restricts 

2 the growth of public charter schools in the 

3 State; 

4 ‘‘(iii) provides funding (such as cap5 ital aid distributed through a formula or 

6 access to revenue generated bonds, and in7 cluding funding for school facilities) on a 

8 per-pupil basis to public charter schools 

9 commensurate with the amount of funding 

10 (including funding for school facilities) 

11 provided to traditional public schools; 

12 ‘‘(iv) provides strong evidence of sup13 port for public charter schools and has in 

14 place innovative policies that support aca15 demically successful charter school growth; 

16 ‘‘(v) authorizes public charter schools 

17 to offer early childhood education pro18 grams, including prekindergarten, in ac19 cordance with State law; 

20 ‘‘(vi) authorizes all public charter 

21 schools to serve as school food authorities; 

22 ‘‘(vii) ensures that each public charter 

23 school in the State— 


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1 ‘‘(I) has a high degree of auton2 omy over the public charter school’s 

3 budget and expenditures; 

4 ‘‘(II) has a written performance 

5 contract with an authorized public 

6 chartering agency that ensures that 

7 the school has an independent gov8 erning board with a high degree of 

9 autonomy; and 

10 ‘‘(III) in the case of an eligible 

11 public charter school receiving a 

12 subgrant under this section, amends 

13 its charter to reflect the growth activi14 ties described in subsection (e); 

15 ‘‘(viii) has an appeals process for the 

16 denial of an application for a charter 

17 school; 

18 ‘‘(ix) provides that an authorized pub19 lic chartering agency that is not a local 

20 educational agency, such as a State char21 tering board, is available for each indi22 vidual or entity seeking to operate a char23 ter school pursuant to such State law; 


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1 ‘‘(x) allows any public charter school 

2 to be a local educational agency in accord3 ance with State law; 

4 ‘‘(xi) ensures that each authorized 

5 public chartering agency in the State sub6 mits annual reports to the State edu7 cational agency, and makes such reports 

8 available to the public, on the performance 

9 of the schools authorized or approved by 

10 such public chartering agency, which re11 ports shall include— 

12 ‘‘(I) the authorized public char13 tering agency’s strategic plan for au14 thorizing or approving public charter 

15 schools and any progress toward 

16 achieving the objectives of the stra17 tegic plan; 

18 ‘‘(II) the authorized public char19 tering agency’s policies for authorizing 

20 or approving public charter schools, 

21 including how such policies examine a 

22 school’s— 

23 ‘‘(aa) financial plan and 

24 policies, including financial con25 trols and audit requirements; 


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1 ‘‘(bb) plan for identifying 

2 and successfully (in compliance 

3 with all applicable laws and regu4 lations) serving students with 

5 disabilities, students who are 

6 English language learners, stu7 dents who are academically be8 hind their peers, and gifted stu9 dents; and 

10 ‘‘(cc) capacity and capability 

11 to successfully launch and subse12 quently operate a public charter 

13 school, including the backgrounds 

14 of the individuals applying to the 

15 agency to operate such school 

16 and any record of such individ17 uals operating a school; 

18 ‘‘(III) the authorized public char19 tering agency’s policies for renewing, 

20 not renewing, and revoking a charter 

21 school’s charter, including the role of 

22 student academic achievement in such 

23 decisions; 

24 ‘‘(IV) the authorized public char25 tering agency’s transparent, timely, 


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1 and effective process for closing down 

2 academically unsuccessful public char3 ter schools; 

4 ‘‘(V) the academic performance 

5 of each operating public charter 

6 school authorized or approved by the 

7 authorized public chartering agency, 

8 including the information reported by 

9 the State in the State annual report 

10 card under section 1111(h)(1)(C) for 

11 such school; 

12 ‘‘(VI) the status of the author13 ized public chartering agency’s charter 

14 school portfolio, by identifying all 

15 charter schools served by the public 

16 chartering agency in the categories of 

17 approved (but not yet open), oper18 ating, renewed, transferred, revoked, 

19 not renewed, voluntarily closed, or 

20 never opened; 

21 ‘‘(VII) the authorizing functions 

22 provided by the authorized public 

23 chartering agency to the public char24 ter schools it serves, including the 

25 agency’s operating costs and expenses 


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1 as detailed through annually audited 

2 financial statements that conform 

3 with generally accepted accounting 

4 principles; and 

5 ‘‘(VIII) the services purchased 

6 (such as accounting, transportation, 

7 and data management and analysis) 

8 from the authorized public chartering 

9 agency by the public charter schools 

10 authorized or approved by such agen11 cy, including an itemized accounting 

12 of the actual costs of such services; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(xii) have or will have (within 1 year 

15 after receiving a grant under this section) 

16 a State policy and process for overseeing 

17 and reviewing the effectiveness and quality 

18 of the State’s authorized public chartering 

19 agencies, including— 

20 ‘‘(I) a process for reviewing and 

21 evaluating the performance of the au22 thorized public chartering agencies in 

23 authorizing or approving charter 

24 schools, including a process that en25 ables the authorized public chartering 


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1 agencies to respond to any State con2 cerns; and 

3 ‘‘(II) any other necessary policies 

4 to ensure effective charter school au5 thorizing in the State in accordance 

6 with the principles of quality charter 

7 school authorizing, as determined by 

8 the State in consultation with the 

9 charter school community and stake10 holders. 

11 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL PRIORITIES.—In addition to 

12 giving priority for grants under this section to eligi13 ble entities that meet the requirements of paragraph 

14 (1), the Secretary may also give priority to eligible 

15 entities that— 

16 ‘‘(A) provide online-learning blended with 

17 learning in a physical school building; or 

18 ‘‘(B) propose to replicate or expand a 

19 model that serves students with disabilities and 

20 students with status as students with limited 

21 English proficiency at rates comparable to the 

22 rates of such students served in the local edu23 cational agencies serving the schools of the eli24 gible entities. 


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1 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE.—In awarding grants 

2 under this section, the Secretary may determine how 

3 the priorities described in paragraph (1) and (2) will 

4 apply to the different types of eligible entities de5 fined in subsection (k)(4). 

6 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity receiving a 

7 grant under this section shall use the grant funds to award 

8 subgrants in accordance with paragraph (1), and may use 

9 such funds to establish a reserve account in accordance 

10 with paragraph (2) or to cover administrative tasks, dis11 semination activities, and outreach in accordance with 

12 paragraph (3). 

13 ‘‘(1) SUBGRANTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity shall 

15 use grant funds under this section to award 

16 subgrants, in such amount as the eligible entity 

17 determines is appropriate, to eligible public 

18 charter schools to replicate or expand such 

19 schools. 

20 ‘‘(B) APPLICATION.—An eligible public 

21 charter school desiring to receive a subgrant 

22 under this subsection shall submit an applica23 tion to the eligible entity at such time, in such 

24 manner, and containing such information as the 

25 eligible entity may require. 


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1 ‘‘(C) USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible public 

2 charter school receiving a subgrant under this 

3 subsection shall use the subgrant funds to pro4 vide for an increase in the school’s enrollment 

5 of students through the replication or expansion 

6 of the school, which may include use of funds 

7 to— 

8 ‘‘(i) support the physical expansion of 

9 school buildings, including financing the 

10 development of new buildings and cam11 puses to meet increased enrollment needs; 

12 ‘‘(ii) pay costs associated with hiring 

13 additional teachers to serve additional stu14 dents; 

15 ‘‘(iii) provide transportation to addi16 tional students to and from the school, in17 cluding providing transportation to stu18 dents who transfer to the school under a 

19 cooperative agreement established under 

20 section 1116(b)(11); 

21 ‘‘(iv) purchase instructional materials, 

22 implement teacher and principal profes23 sional development programs, and hire ad24 ditional non-teaching staff; and 


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1 ‘‘(v) support any necessary activities 

2 associated with the school carrying out the 

3 purposes of this section. 

4 ‘‘(D) PRIORITY.—In awarding subgrants 

5 under this subsection, an eligible entity shall 

6 give priority to an eligible public charter 

7 school— 

8 ‘‘(i) that has significantly closed any 

9 achievement gap on the State academic as10 sessments described in section 1111(b)(3) 

11 among the groups of students described in 

12 section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v) by improving 

13 scores; 

14 ‘‘(ii) that— 

15 ‘‘(I)(aa) ranks in at least the top 

16 25th percentile of the schools in the 

17 State, as ranked by the percentage of 

18 students in the proficient or advanced 

19 level of achievement on the State aca20 demic assessments in mathematics 

21 and reading or language arts de22 scribed in section 1111(b)(3); or 

23 ‘‘(bb) has an average student 

24 score on an examination (chosen by 

25 the Secretary) that is at least in the 


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1 60th percentile in reading and at least 

2 in the 75th percentile in mathematics; 

3 ‘‘(II) has, if available, an average 

4 student academic, longitudinal growth 

5 on the State academic assessments in 

6 mathematics and reading described in 

7 section 1111(b)(3) (as defined by the 

8 Secretary or State law) that is at or 

9 above the State average growth on the 

10 assessments from 1 academic year to 

11 the next academic year; and 

12 ‘‘(III) serves a high-need student 

13 population and is eligible to partici14 pate in a schoolwide program under 

15 section 1114, with additional priority 

16 given to schools that serve, as com17 pared to other schools that have sub18 mitted an application under this sub19 section— 

20 ‘‘(aa) a greater percentage 

21 of low-income students; and 

22 ‘‘(bb) a greater percentage 

23 of not less than 2 groups of stu24 dents described in section 

25 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II); and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) that meets the criteria described 

2 in clause (i) and serves low-income stu3 dents who have transferred to such school 

4 under a cooperative agreement described in 

5 section 1116(b)(11). 

6 ‘‘(E) DURATION OF SUBGRANT.—A 

7 subgrant under this subsection shall be awarded 

8 for a period of not more than 3 years, except 

9 that an eligible public charter school receiving a 

10 subgrant under this subsection may, at the dis11 cretion of the eligible entity, continue to expend 

12 subgrant funds after the end of the subgrant 

13 period. 

14 ‘‘(2) FACILITY FINANCING AND REVOLVING

15 LOAN FUND.—An eligible entity may use not more 

16 than 25 percent of the amount of the grant funds 

17 received under this section to establish a reserve ac18 count described in subsection (f) to facilitate public 

19 charter school facility acquisition and development 

20 by— 

21 ‘‘(A) conducting credit enhancement initia22 tives (as referred to in subpart 2) in support of 

23 the development of facilities for eligible public 

24 charter schools serving students; 


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1 ‘‘(B) establishing a revolving loan fund for 

2 use by an eligible public charter school receiving 

3 a subgrant under this subsection from the eligi4 ble entity under such terms as may be deter5 mined by the eligible entity to allow such school 

6 to expand to serve additional students; 

7 ‘‘(C) facilitating, through direct expendi8 ture or financing, the acquisition or develop9 ment of public charter school buildings by the 

10 eligible entity or an eligible public charter 

11 school receiving a subgrant under this sub12 section from the eligible entity, which may be 

13 used as both permanent locations for eligible 

14 public charter schools or incubators for growing 

15 charter schools; or 

16 ‘‘(D) establishing a partnership with 1 or 

17 more community development financial institu18 tions (as defined in section 103 of the Commu19 nity Development Banking and Financial Insti20 tutions Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702)) or other 

21 mission-based financial institutions to carry out 

22 the activities described in subparagraphs (A), 

23 (B), and (C). 

24 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATIVE TASKS, DISSEMINATION

25 ACTIVITIES, AND OUTREACH.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity may 

2 use not more than 7.5 percent of the grant 

3 funds awarded under this section to cover ad4 ministrative tasks, dissemination activities, and 

5 outreach. 

6 ‘‘(B) NONPROFIT ASSISTANCE.—In car7 rying out the administrative tasks, dissemina8 tion activities, and outreach described in sub9 paragraph (A), an eligible entity may contract 

10 with an organization described in section 

11 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

12 (26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3)) and exempt from tax 

13 under section 501(a) of such Code (26 U.S.C. 

14 501(a)). 

15 ‘‘(f) RESERVE ACCOUNT.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To assist eligible entities in 

17 the development of new public charter school build18 ings or facilities for eligible public charter schools, 

19 an eligible entity receiving a grant under this section 

20 may, in accordance with State and local law, directly 

21 or indirectly, alone or in collaboration with others, 

22 deposit the amount of funds described in subsection 

23 (e)(2) in a reserve account established and main24 tained by the eligible entity. 


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1 ‘‘(2) INVESTMENT.—Funds received under this 

2 section and deposited in the reserve account estab3 lished under this subsection shall be invested in obli4 gations issued or guaranteed by the United States or 

5 a State, or in other similarly low-risk securities. 

6 ‘‘(3) REINVESTMENT OF EARNINGS.—Any earn7 ings on funds received under this subsection shall be 

8 deposited in the reserve account established under 

9 this section and used in accordance with the purpose 

10 described in subsection (a). 

11 ‘‘(4) RECOVERY OF FUNDS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in ac13 cordance with chapter 37 of title 31, United 

14 States Code, shall collect— 

15 ‘‘(i) all funds in a reserve account es16 tablished by an eligible entity under this 

17 subsection if the Secretary determines, not 

18 earlier than 2 years after the date the eli19 gible entity first received funds under this 

20 section, that the eligible entity has failed to 

21 make substantial progress carrying out the 

22 purpose described in paragraph (1); or 

23 ‘‘(ii) all or a portion of the funds in 

24 a reserve account established by an eligible 

25 entity under this subsection if the SecVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:33 Apr 15, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1525.IH H1525

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1 retary determines that the eligible entity 

2 has permanently ceased to use all or a por3 tion of funds in such account to accomplish 

4 the purpose described in paragraph (1). 

5 ‘‘(B) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITY.—The Sec6 retary shall not exercise the authority provided 

7 under subparagraph (A) to collect from any eli8 gible entity any funds that are being properly 

9 used to achieve such purpose. 

10 ‘‘(C) PROCEDURES.—Sections 451, 452, 

11 and 458 of the General Education Provisions 

12 Act shall apply to the recovery of funds under 

13 subparagraph (A). 

14 ‘‘(D) CONSTRUCTION.—This paragraph 

15 shall not be construed to impair or affect the 

16 authority of the Secretary to recover funds 

17 under part D of the General Education Provi18 sions Act. 

19 ‘‘(5) REALLOCATION.—Any funds collected by 

20 the Secretary under paragraph (4) shall be awarded 

21 to eligible entities receiving grants under this section 

22 in the next fiscal year. 

23 ‘‘(g) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY.—The financial 

24 records of each eligible entity and eligible public charter 

25 school receiving a grant or subgrant, respectively, under 


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1 this section shall be maintained in accordance with gen2 erally accepted accounting principles and shall be subject 

3 to an annual audit by an independent public accountant. 

4 ‘‘(h) NATIONAL EVALUATION.— 

5 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL EVALUATION.—From the 

6 amounts appropriated under section 5200, the Sec7 retary shall conduct an independent, comprehensive, 

8 and scientifically sound evaluation, by grant or con9 tract and using the highest quality research design 

10 available, of the impact of the activities carried out 

11 under this section on— 

12 ‘‘(A) student achievement, including 

13 achievement on State academic assessments de14 scribed in section 1111(b)(3) and, if applicable, 

15 longitudinal academic growth on the assess16 ments (as defined by the Secretary or State 

17 law); and 

18 ‘‘(B) other areas, as determined by the 

19 Secretary. 

20 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 4 years after the 

21 date of the enactment of the All Students Achieving 

22 through Reform Act of 2011, and biannually there23 after, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re24 port on the results of the evaluation described in 

25 paragraph (1). 


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1 ‘‘(i) REPORTS.—Each eligible entity receiving a grant 

2 under this section shall prepare and submit to the Sec3 retary the following: 

4 ‘‘(1) REPORT.—A report that contains such in5 formation as the Secretary may require concerning 

6 use of the grant funds by the eligible entity, includ7 ing the academic achievement of the students at8 tending eligible public charter schools as a result of 

9 the grant. Such report shall be submitted before the 

10 end of the 4-year period beginning on the date of en11 actment of the All Students Achieving through Re12 form Act of 2011 and every 2 years thereafter. 

13 ‘‘(2) PERFORMANCE INFORMATION.—Such per14 formance information as the Secretary may require 

15 for the national evaluation conducted under sub16 section (h)(1). 

17 ‘‘(j) INAPPLICABILITY.—The provisions of sections 

18 5201 through 5209 shall not apply to the program under 

19 this section. 

20 ‘‘(k) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 ‘‘(1) ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS.—The term 

22 ‘adequate yearly progress’ has the meaning given 

23 such term in a State’s plan in accordance with sec24 tion 1111(b)(2)(C). 


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1 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE TASKS, DISSEMINATION

2 ACTIVITIES, AND OUTREACH.—The term ‘adminis3 trative tasks, dissemination activities, and outreach’ 

4 includes costs and activities associated with— 

5 ‘‘(A) recruiting and selecting students to 

6 attend eligible public charter schools; 

7 ‘‘(B) outreach to parents of students en8 rolled in identified schools or schools with low 

9 graduation rates; 

10 ‘‘(C) providing information to such parents 

11 and school officials at such schools regarding el12 igible public charter schools receiving subgrants 

13 under this section; 

14 ‘‘(D) necessary oversight of the grant pro15 gram under this section; and 

16 ‘‘(E) initiatives and activities to dissemi17 nate the best practices, programs, or strategies 

18 learned in eligible public charter schools to 

19 other public schools operating in the State 

20 where the eligible entity intends to award sub21 grants under this section. 

22 ‘‘(3) CHARTER SCHOOL.—The term ‘charter 

23 school’ means— 

24 ‘‘(A) a charter school, as defined in section 

25 5211(1); or 


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1 ‘‘(B) a school that meets the requirements 

2 of such section, except for subparagraph (D), 

3 and provides prekindergarten or adult education 

4 services. 

5 ‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en6 tity’ means— 

7 ‘‘(A) a State educational agency; 

8 ‘‘(B) an authorized public chartering agen9 cy; 

10 ‘‘(C) a local educational agency that has 

11 authorized or is planning to authorize a public 

12 charter school; or 

13 ‘‘(D) an organization, including a non14 profit charter management organization, that 

15 has an organizational mission and record of 

16 success supporting the replication and expan17 sion of high-quality charter schools and is— 

18 ‘‘(i) described in section 501(c)(3) of 

19 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 

20 U.S.C. 501(c)(3)); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) exempt from tax under section 

22 501(a) of such Code (26 U.S.C. 501(a)). 

23 ‘‘(5) ELIGIBLE PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL.— 

24 The term ‘eligible public charter school’ means a 


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1 charter school, including a public charter school that 

2 is being developed by a developer, that— 

3 ‘‘(A) has made adequate yearly progress 

4 for the last 2 of 3 consecutive school years; 

5 ‘‘(B) has, if available, an average student 

6 academic, longitudinal academic growth on 

7 State academic assessments in mathematics and 

8 reading described in section 1111(b)(3) (as de9 fined by the Secretary or State law) that is at 

10 or above the State average growth on such as11 sessments from 1 academic year to the next 

12 academic year; and 

13 ‘‘(C) in the case of a public charter school 

14 that is a secondary school, has, for the most re15 cent school year for which data is available, met 

16 or exceeded the graduation rate required by the 

17 State in order to make adequate yearly progress 

18 for such year. 

19 ‘‘(6) IDENTIFIED SCHOOL.—The term ‘identi20 fied school’ means a school identified for school im21 provement, corrective action, or restructuring under 

22 paragraph (1), (7), or (8) of section 1116(b). 

23 ‘‘(7) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 

24 ‘local educational agency’ includes any charter school 


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1 that is a local educational agency, as determined by 

2 State law. 

3 ‘‘(8) LOW-INCOME STUDENT.—The term ‘low4 income student’ means a student eligible for free or 

5 reduced price lunches under the Richard B. Russell 

6 National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et 

7 seq.). 

8 ‘‘(9) GRADUATION RATE.—The term ‘gradua9 tion rate’ has the meaning given the term in section 

10 1111(b)(2)(C)(vi), as clarified in section 

11 200.19(b)(1) of title 34, Code of Federal Regula12 tions. 

13 ‘‘(10) SCHOOL FOOD AUTHORITY.—The term 

14 ‘school food authority’ has the meaning given the 

15 term in section 250.3 of title 7, Code of Federal 

16 Regulations (or any corresponding similar regulation 

17 or ruling), except that the term may include a con18 sortium of charter schools. 

19 ‘‘(11) SCHOOL YEAR.—The term ‘school year’ 

20 has the meaning given such term in section 12(d) of 

21 the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act 

22 (42 U.S.C. 1760(d)). 

23 ‘‘(12) TRADITIONAL PUBLIC SCHOOL.—The 

24 term ‘traditional public school’ does not include any 

25 charter school, as defined in section 5211.’’. 


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1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Part B 

2 of title V of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

3 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7221 et seq.) is amended— 

4 (1) by striking section 5231; and 

5 (2) by inserting before subpart 1 the following: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 5200. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR 

7 SUBPARTS 1 AND 2. 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Of the amounts appropriated for 

9 fiscal year 2012 and each of the succeeding 5 years to 

10 carry out subparts 1 and 2, the Secretary shall spend no 

11 less than 20 percent and no more than 40 percent on rep12 lication and expansion of high-quality charter schools. 

13 ‘‘(b) ALLOCATION.—In allocating funds appropriated 

14 under this section for any fiscal year, the Secretary shall 

15 consider— 

16 ‘‘(1) the relative need among the programs car17 ried out under sections 5202, 5205, 5210, and sub18 part 2; and 

19 ‘‘(2) the quality of the applications submitted 

20 for such programs.’’. 

21 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The Elementary 

22 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 

23 et seq.) is amended— 

24 (1) in section 2102(2) (20 U.S.C. 6602(2)), by 

25 striking ‘‘5210’’ and inserting ‘‘5211’’; 


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1 (2) in section 5204(e) (20 U.S.C. 7221c(e)), by 

2 striking ‘‘5210(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘5211(1)’’; 

3 (3) in section 5211(1) (as redesignated by sub4 section (a)(1)) (20 U.S.C. 7221i(1)), by striking 

5 ‘‘The term’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as otherwise pro6 vided, the term’’; 

7 (4) in section 5230(1) (20 U.S.C. 7223i(1)), by 

8 striking ‘‘5210’’ and inserting ‘‘5211’’; and 

9 (5) in section 5247(1) 20 U.S.C. 7225f(1)), by 

10 striking ‘‘5210’’ and inserting ‘‘5211’’. 

11 (d) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

12 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is 

13 amended— 

14 (1) by inserting before the item relating to sub15 part 1 of part B of title V the following: 

‘‘Sec. 5200. Authorization of appropriations for subparts 1 and 2.’’; 

16 (2) by striking the items relating to sections 

17 5210 and 5211; and 

18 (3) by inserting after the item relating to sec19 tion 5209 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 5210. Charter school expansion and replication. 

‘‘Sec. 5211. Definitions.’’. 

Æ 


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