II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 378 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide a tax incentive 

to individuals teaching in elementary and secondary schools located in 

rural or high unemployment areas and to individuals who achieve certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 17, 2011 

Mr. ROCKEFELLER introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide 

a tax incentive to individuals teaching in elementary and 

secondary schools located in rural or high unemployment 

areas and to individuals who achieve certification from 

the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, 

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 ‘‘Incentives to Educate 

5 American Children Act of 2011’’ or the ‘‘I Teach Act of 

6 2011’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find3 ings: 

4 (1) As a result of retirements and decreasing 

5 retention of beginning teachers, classrooms are filled 

6 with less experienced teachers. The most common 

7 number of years of teaching experience for public 

8 school teachers has decreased from 15 years experi9 ence in 1987–1988 to just 1 year teaching experi10 ence in the most recent data for 2007–2008. Stu11 dents deserve teachers with more experience and 

12 training. 

13 (2) Recent research confirms that additional 

14 years of teaching experience at the same grade level 

15 (up to 20 years) add a direct positive impact on stu16 dent achievement. 

17 (3) The most recent data (2007–2008) from 

18 the National Center for Education Statistics find 32 

19 percent of America’s public schools are in rural 

20 school districts, and the increased transportation 

21 costs these school districts face mean they have less 

22 money for instructional costs and salaries. Depart23 ment of Education data show that rural school dis24 tricts have the lowest base salaries for starting 

25 teachers and this continues as teachers move to the 


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1 top of the local salary range. Rural schools face 

2 these challenges in all States. 

3 (4) A 2009 study by the Education Trust re4 ports that high poverty high schools are twice as 

5 likely not to have teachers certified in their fields 

6 than low poverty schools. The same study found the 

7 percentage of first year teachers to be higher in high 

8 poverty schools in cities, suburbs, and small towns. 

9 Rural schools have first year teacher rates above the 

10 national average regardless of poverty rate. 

11 (5) The National Board for Professional Teach12 ing Standards was founded in 1987 as a follow up 

13 to the landmark 1983 report, ‘‘A Nation at Risk’’, 

14 by the Carnegie Task Force on Teaching. The Na15 tional Board for Professional Teaching Standards is 

16 an independent, nonprofit, and nonpartisan organi17 zation the mission of which is to establish high and 

18 rigorous standards for what accomplished teachers 

19 should know and be able to do. 

20 (6) Nearly 91,000 teachers from all 50 States 

21 and the District of Columbia have completed certifi22 cation by the National Board for Professional 

23 Teaching Standards, where certification is a rigorous 

24 assessment process for teachers. 


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1 (7) In 2008, the National Research Council 

2 (NRC) of the National Academies affirmed that stu3 dents taught by National Board certified teachers 

4 make higher gains on achievement tests than those 

5 taught by teachers who have not applied for or have 

6 not achieved certification. 

7 (8) A recent study by the Economic Policy In8 stitute found that public school teachers earn signifi9 cantly less than other college graduates. The study 

10 found teachers were paid on average only 77 percent 

11 as much as other college graduates and the disparity 

12 is growing. 

13 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol14 lows: 

15 (1) To encourage teachers, through a refund16 able tax credit, to work in public elementary and 

17 secondary schools located in rural areas or schools 

18 with high poverty. 

19 (2) To provide an additional tax credit to teach20 ers who achieve certification from the National 

21 Board for Professional Teaching Standards in order 

22 to recruit and retain highly qualified teachers in 

23 public elementary and secondary schools. 


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1 SEC. 3. REFUNDABLE TAX CREDIT FOR INDIVIDUALS 

2 TEACHING IN ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY 

3 SCHOOLS LOCATED IN HIGH POVERTY OR 

4 RURAL AREAS AND CERTIFIED TEACHERS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart C of part IV of sub6 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

7 1986 is amended by inserting after section 36C the fol8 lowing new section: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 36D. TAX CREDIT FOR INDIVIDUALS TEACHING IN EL10 EMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS LO11 CATED IN HIGH POVERTY OR RURAL AREAS 

12 AND CERTIFIED TEACHERS. 

13 ‘‘(a) ALLOWANCE OF CREDIT.—In the case of an eli14 gible teacher, there shall be allowed as a credit against 

15 the tax imposed by this subtitle for the taxable year an 

16 amount equal to the applicable amount for the eligible aca17 demic year ending during such taxable year. 

18 ‘‘(b) APPLICABLE AMOUNT.—For purposes of this 

19 section— 

20 ‘‘(1) TEACHERS IN SCHOOLS IN RURAL AREAS

21 OR SCHOOLS WITH HIGH POVERTY.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an eligi23 ble teacher who performs services in a public 

24 kindergarten or a public elementary or sec25 ondary school described in subparagraph (B) 


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1 during the eligible academic year, the applicable 

2 amount is $1,000. 

3 ‘‘(B) SCHOOL DESCRIBED.—A public kin4 dergarten or a public elementary or secondary 

5 school is described in this subparagraph if— 

6 ‘‘(i) at least 75 percent of the stu7 dents attending such kindergarten or 

8 school receive free or reduced-cost lunches 

9 under the school lunch program established 

10 under the Richard B. Russell National 

11 School Lunch Act, or 

12 ‘‘(ii) such kindergarten or school has 

13 a School Locale Code of 41, 42, or 43, as 

14 determined by the Secretary of Education. 

15 ‘‘(2) CERTIFIED TEACHERS.—In the case of an 

16 eligible teacher who is certified by the National 

17 Board for Professional Teaching Standards for the 

18 eligible academic year, the applicable amount is 

19 $1,000. 

20 ‘‘(3) CERTIFIED TEACHERS IN SCHOOLS IN

21 RURAL AREAS OR SCHOOLS WITH HIGH POVERTY.— 

22 In the case of an eligible teacher described in para23 graphs (1) and (2), the applicable amount is $2,000. 

24 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE TEACHER.—For purposes of this sec25 tion, the term ‘eligible teacher’ means, for any eligible acaVerDate Mar 15 2010 18:50 Feb 18, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S378.IS S378

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1 demic year, an individual who is a kindergarten through 

2 grade 12 classroom teacher or instructor in a public kin3 dergarten or a public elementary or secondary school on 

4 a full-time basis for such eligible academic year. 

5 ‘‘(d) ADDITIONAL DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 

6 this section— 

7 ‘‘(1) ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY

8 SCHOOLS.—The terms ‘elementary school’ and ‘sec9 ondary school’ have the respective meanings given 

10 such terms by section 9101 of the Elementary and 

11 Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

12 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ACADEMIC YEAR.—The term ‘el13 igible academic year’ means any academic year end14 ing in a taxable year beginning after December 31, 

15 2011.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

17 (1) Paragraph (2) of section 1324(b) of title 

18 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting 

19 ‘‘36D,’’ after ‘‘36C,’’. 

20 (2) The table of sections for subpart C of part 

21 IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Rev22 enue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting after the 

23 item relating to section 36C the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 36D. Tax credit for individuals teaching in elementary and secondary 

schools located in high poverty or rural areas and certified 

teachers.’’. 


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1 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall apply to academic years ending in tax3 able years beginning after December 31, 2011. 

Æ 


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