II

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1502

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

NOVEMBER 9, 1997

Received

AN ACT

Entitled the ‘‘District of Columbia Student Opportunity

Scholarship Act of 1997’’.

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

3 SEC. 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS; PRECEDENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘District of Columbia Student Opportunity Scholarship

6 Act of 1997’’.

7 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find8 ings:

9 (1) Public education in the District of Columbia

10 is in a crisis, as evidenced by the following:

11 (A) The District of Columbia schools have

12 the lowest average of any school system in the
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1 Nation on the National Assessment of Edu2 cation Progress.

3 (B) 72 percent of fourth graders in the

4 District of Columbia tested below basic pro5 ficiency on the National Assessment of Edu6 cation Progress in 1994.

7 (C) Since 1991, there has been a net de8 cline in the reading skills of District of Colum9 bia students as measured in scores on the

10 standardized Comprehensive Test of Basic

11 Skills.

12 (D) At least 40 percent of District of Co13 lumbia students drop out of or leave the school

14 system before graduation.

15 (E) The National Education Goals Panel

16 reported in 1996 that both students and teach17 ers in District of Columbia schools are sub18 jected to levels of violence that are twice the na19 tional average.

20 (F) Nearly two-thirds of District of Colum21 bia teachers reported that violent student be22 havior is a serious impediment to teaching.

23 (G) Many of the District of Columbia’s

24 152 schools are in a state of terrible disrepair,
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1 including leaking roofs, bitterly cold classrooms,

2 and numerous fire code violations.

3 (2) Significant improvements in the education

4 of educationally deprived children in the District of

5 Columbia can be accomplished by—

6 (A) increasing educational opportunities

7 for the children by expanding the range of edu8 cational choices that best meet the needs of the

9 children;

10 (B) fostering diversity and competition

11 among school programs for the children;

12 (C) providing the families of the children

13 more of the educational choices already avail14 able to affluent families; and

15 (D) enhancing the overall quality of edu16 cation in the District of Columbia by increasing

17 parental involvement in the direction of the

18 education of the children.

19 (3) The 350 private schools in the District of

20 Columbia and the surrounding area offer a more

21 safe and stable learning environment than many of

22 the public schools.

23 (4) Costs are often much lower in private

24 schools than corresponding costs in public schools.
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1 (5) Not all children are alike and therefore

2 there is no one school or program that fits the needs

3 of all children.

4 (6) The formation of sound values and moral

5 character is crucial to helping young people escape

6 from lives of poverty, family break-up, drug abuse,

7 crime, and school failure.

8 (7) In addition to offering knowledge and skills,

9 education should contribute positively to the forma10 tion of the internal norms and values which are vital

11 to a child’s success in life and to the well-being of

12 society.

13 (8) Schools should help to provide young people

14 with a sound moral foundation which is consistent

15 with the values of their parents. To find such a

16 school, parents need a full range of choice to deter17 mine where their children can best be educated.

18 (c) PRECEDENTS.—The United States Supreme

19 Court has determined that programs giving parents choice

20 and increased input in their children’s education, includ21 ing the choice of a religious education, do not violate the

22 Constitution. The Supreme Court has held that as long

23 as the beneficiary decides where education funds will be

24 spent on such individual’s behalf, public funds can be used

25 for education in a religious institution because the public
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1 entity has neither advanced nor hindered a particular reli2 gion and therefore has not violated the establishment

3 clause of the first amendment to the Constitution. Su4 preme Court precedents include—

5 (1) Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972);

6 Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 268 U.S. 510 (1925);

7 and Meyer v. Nebraska, 262 U.S. 390 (1923) which

8 held that parents have the primary role in and are

9 the primary decision makers in all areas regarding

10 the education and upbringing of their children;

11 (2) Mueller v. Allen, 463 U.S. 388 (1983)

12 which declared a Minnesota tax deduction program

13 that provided State income tax benefits for edu14 cational expenditures by parents, including tuition in

15 religiously affiliated schools, does not violate the

16 Constitution;

17 (3) Witters v. Department of Services for the

18 Blind, 474 U.S. 481 (1986) in which the Supreme

19 Court ruled unanimously that public funds for the

20 vocational training of the blind could be used at a

21 Bible college for ministry training; and

22 (4) Zobrest v. Catalina Foothills School Dis23 trict, 509 U.S. 1 (1993) which held that a deaf child

24 could receive an interpreter, paid for by the public,

25 in a private religiously affiliated school under the In-
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1 dividual with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C.

2 1400 et seq.). The case held that providing an inter3 preter in a religiously affiliated school did not violate

4 the establishment clause of the first amendment of

5 the Constitution.

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

7 As used in this Act—

8 (1) the term ‘‘Board’’ means the Board of Di9 rectors of the Corporation established under section

10 3(b)(1);

11 (2) the term ‘‘Corporation’’ means the District

12 of Columbia Scholarship Corporation established

13 under section 3(a);

14 (3) the term ‘‘eligible institution’’—

15 (A) in the case of an eligible institution

16 serving a student who receives a tuition scholar17 ship under section 4(c)(1), means a public, pri18 vate, or independent elementary or secondary

19 school; and

20 (B) in the case of an eligible institution

21 serving a student who receives an enhanced

22 achievement scholarship under section 4(c)(2),

23 means an elementary or secondary school, or an

24 entity that provides services to a student en25 rolled in an elementary or secondary school to
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1 enhance such student’s achievement through in2 struction described in section 4(c)(2);

3 (4) the term ‘‘parent’’ includes a legal guardian

4 or other person standing in loco parentis; and

5 (5) the term ‘‘poverty line’’ means the income

6 official poverty line (as defined by the Office of Man7 agement and Budget, and revised annually in ac8 cordance with section 673(2) of the Community

9 Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) appli10 cable to a family of the size involved.

11 SEC. 3. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SCHOLARSHIP CORPORA12 TION.

13 (a) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be es15 tablished a private, nonprofit corporation, to be

16 known as the ‘‘District of Columbia Scholarship

17 Corporation’’, which is neither an agency nor estab18 lishment of the United States Government or the

19 District of Columbia Government.

20 (2) DUTIES.—The Corporation shall have the

21 responsibility and authority to administer, publicize,

22 and evaluate the scholarship program in accordance

23 with this Act, and to determine student and school

24 eligibility for participation in such program.
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1 (3) CONSULTATION.—The Corporation shall ex2 ercise its authority—

3 (A) in a manner consistent with maximiz4 ing educational opportunities for the maximum

5 number of interested families; and

6 (B) in consultation with the District of Co7 lumbia Board of Education or entity exercising

8 administrative jurisdiction over the District of

9 Columbia Public Schools, the Superintendent of

10 the District of Columbia Public Schools, and

11 other school scholarship programs in the Dis12 trict of Columbia.

13 (4) APPLICATION OF PROVISIONS.—The Cor14 poration shall be subject to the provisions of this

15 Act, and, to the extent consistent with this Act, to

16 the District of Columbia Nonprofit Corporation Act

17 (D.C. Code, sec. 29–501 et seq.).

18 (5) RESIDENCE.—The Corporation shall have

19 its place of business in the District of Columbia and

20 shall be considered, for purposes of venue in civil ac21 tions, to be a resident of the District of Columbia.

22 (6) FUND.—There is established in the Treas23 ury a fund that shall be known as the District of

24 Columbia Scholarship Fund, to be administered by

25 the Secretary of the Treasury.
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1 (7) DISBURSEMENT.—The Secretary of the

2 Treasury shall make available and disburse to the

3 Corporation, before October 15 of each fiscal year or

4 not later than 15 days after the date of enactment

5 of an Act making appropriations for the District of

6 Columbia for such year, whichever occurs later, such

7 funds as have been appropriated to the District of

8 Columbia Scholarship Fund for the fiscal year in

9 which such disbursement is made.

10 (8) AVAILABILITY.—Funds authorized to be ap11 propriated under this Act shall remain available

12 until expended.

13 (9) USES.—Funds authorized to be appro14 priated under this Act shall be used by the Corpora15 tion in a prudent and financially responsible man16 ner, solely for scholarships, contracts, and adminis17 trative costs.

18 (10) AUTHORIZATION.—

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to

20 be appropriated to the District of Columbia

21 Scholarship Fund—

22 (i) $7,000,000 for fiscal year 1998;

23 (ii) $8,000,000 for fiscal year 1999;

24 and
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1 (iii) $10,000,000 for each of fiscal

2 years 2000 through 2002.

3 (B) LIMITATION.—Not more than 7.5 per4 cent of the amount appropriated to carry out

5 this Act for any fiscal year may be used by the

6 Corporation for salaries and administrative

7 costs.

8 (b) ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT; BOARD OF

9 DIRECTORS.—

10 (1) BOARD OF DIRECTORS; MEMBERSHIP.—

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall

12 have a Board of Directors (referred to in this

13 Act as the ‘‘Board’’), comprised of 7 members

14 with 6 members of the Board appointed by the

15 President not later than 30 days after receipt

16 of nominations from the Speaker of the House

17 of Representatives and the Majority Leader of

18 the Senate.

19 (B) HOUSE NOMINATIONS.—The President

20 shall appoint 3 of the members from a list of

21 9 individuals nominated by the Speaker of the

22 House of Representatives in consultation with

23 the Minority Leader of the House of Represent24 atives.
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1 (C) SENATE NOMINATIONS.—The Presi2 dent shall appoint 3 members from a list of 9

3 individuals nominated by the Majority Leader

4 of the Senate in consultation with the Minority

5 Leader of the Senate.

6 (D) DEADLINE.—The Speaker of the

7 House of Representatives and Majority Leader

8 of the Senate shall submit their nominations to

9 the President not later than 30 days after the

10 date of the enactment of this Act.

11 (E) APPOINTEE OF MAYOR.—The Mayor

12 shall appoint 1 member of the Board not later

13 than 60 days after the date of the enactment of

14 this Act.

15 (F) POSSIBLE INTERIM MEMBERS.—If the

16 President does not appoint the 6 members of

17 the Board in the 30-day period described in

18 subparagraph (A), then the Speaker of the

19 House of Representatives and the Majority

20 Leader of the Senate shall each appoint 2 mem21 bers of the Board, and the Minority Leader of

22 the House of Representatives and the Minority

23 Leader of the Senate shall each appoint 1 mem24 ber of the Board, from among the individuals

25 nominated pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and
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1 (B), as the case may be. The appointees under

2 the preceding sentence together with the ap3 pointee of the Mayor, shall serve as an interim

4 Board with all the powers and other duties of

5 the Board described in this Act, until the Presi6 dent makes the appointments as described in

7 this subsection.

8 (2) POWERS.—All powers of the Corporation

9 shall vest in and be exercised under the authority of

10 the Board.

11 (3) ELECTIONS.—Members of the Board annu12 ally shall elect 1 of the members of the Board to be

13 the Chairperson of the Board.

14 (4) RESIDENCY.—All members appointed to the

15 Board shall be residents of the District of Columbia

16 at the time of appointment and while serving on the

17 Board.

18 (5) NONEMPLOYEE.—No member of the Board

19 may be an employee of the United States Govern20 ment or the District of Columbia Government when

21 appointed to or during tenure on the Board, unless

22 the individual is on a leave of absence from such a

23 position while serving on the Board.

24 (6) INCORPORATION.—The members of the ini25 tial Board shall serve as incorporators and shall take
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1 whatever steps are necessary to establish the Cor2 poration under the District of Columbia Nonprofit

3 Corporation Act (D.C. Code, sec. 29–501 et seq.).

4 (7) GENERAL TERM.—The term of office of

5 each member of the Board shall be 5 years, except

6 that any member appointed to fill a vacancy occur7 ring prior to the expiration of the term for which the

8 predecessor was appointed shall be appointed for the

9 remainder of such term.

10 (8) CONSECUTIVE TERM.—No member of the

11 Board shall be eligible to serve in excess of 2 con12 secutive terms of 5 years each. A partial term shall

13 be considered as 1 full term. Any vacancy on the

14 Board shall not affect the Board’s power, but shall

15 be filled in a manner consistent with this Act.

16 (9) NO BENEFIT.—No part of the income or as17 sets of the Corporation shall inure to the benefit of

18 any Director, officer, or employee of the Corpora19 tion, except as salary or reasonable compensation for

20 services.

21 (10) POLITICAL ACTIVITY.—The Corporation

22 may not contribute to or otherwise support any po23 litical party or candidate for elective public office.

24 (11) NO OFFICERS OR EMPLOYEES.—The mem25 bers of the Board shall not, by reason of such mem-
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1 bership, be considered to be officers or employees of

2 the United States Government or of the District of

3 Columbia Government.

4 (12) STIPENDS.—The members of the Board,

5 while attending meetings of the Board or while en6 gaged in duties related to such meetings or other ac7 tivities of the Board pursuant to this Act, shall be

8 provided a stipend. Such stipend shall be at the rate

9 of $150 per day for which the member of the Board

10 is officially recorded as having worked, except that

11 no member may be paid a total stipend amount in

12 any calendar year in excess of $5,000.

13 (c) OFFICERS AND STAFF.—

14 (1) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—The Corporation

15 shall have an Executive Director, and such other

16 staff, as may be appointed by the Board for terms

17 and at rates of compensation, not to exceed level

18 EG–16 of the Educational Service of the District of

19 Columbia, to be fixed by the Board.

20 (2) STAFF.—With the approval of the Board,

21 the Executive Director may appoint and fix the sal22 ary of such additional personnel as the Executive

23 Director considers appropriate.

24 (3) ANNUAL RATE.—No staff of the Corpora25 tion may be compensated by the Corporation at an
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1 annual rate of pay greater than the annual rate of

2 pay of the Executive Director.

3 (4) SERVICE.—All officers and employees of the

4 Corporation shall serve at the pleasure of the Board.

5 (5) QUALIFICATION.—No political test or quali6 fication may be used in selecting, appointing, pro7 moting, or taking other personnel actions with re8 spect to officers, agents, or employees of the Cor9 poration.

10 (d) POWERS OF THE CORPORATION.—

11 (1) GENERALLY.—The Corporation is author12 ized to obtain grants from, and make contracts with,

13 individuals and with private, State, and Federal

14 agencies, organizations, and institutions.

15 (2) HIRING AUTHORITY.—The Corporation may

16 hire, or accept the voluntary services of, consultants,

17 experts, advisory boards, and panels to aid the Cor18 poration in carrying out this Act.

19 (e) FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT AND RECORDS.—

20 (1) AUDITS.—The financial statements of the

21 Corporation shall be—

22 (A) maintained in accordance with gen23 erally accepted accounting principles for non24 profit corporations; and
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1 (B) audited annually by independent cer2 tified public accountants.

3 (2) REPORT.—The report for each such audit

4 shall be included in the annual report to Congress

5 required by section 11(c).

6 (f) ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITIES.—

7 (1) SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION SCHEDULE AND

8 PROCEDURES.—Not later than 30 days after the ini9 tial Board is appointed and the first Executive Di10 rector of the Corporation is hired under this Act, the

11 Corporation shall implement a schedule and proce12 dures for processing applications for, and awarding,

13 student scholarships under this Act. The schedule

14 and procedures shall include establishing a list of

15 certified eligible institutions, distributing scholarship

16 information to parents and the general public (in17 cluding through a newspaper of general circulation),

18 and establishing deadlines for steps in the scholar19 ship application and award process.

20 (2) INSTITUTIONAL APPLICATIONS AND ELIGI21 BILITY.—

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible institution

23 that desires to participate in the scholarship

24 program under this Act shall file an application

25 with the Corporation for certification for par-
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1 ticipation in the scholarship program under this

2 Act that shall—

3 (i) demonstrate that the eligible insti4 tution has operated with not less than 25

5 students during the 3 years preceding the

6 year for which the determination is made

7 unless the eligible institution is applying

8 for certification as a new eligible institu9 tion under subparagraph (C);

10 (ii) contain an assurance that the eli11 gible institution will comply with all appli12 cable requirements of this Act;

13 (iii) contain an annual statement of

14 the eligible institution’s budget; and

15 (iv) describe the eligible institution’s

16 proposed program, including personnel

17 qualifications and fees.

18 (B) CERTIFICATION.—

19 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided

20 in subparagraph (C), not later than 60

21 days after receipt of an application in ac22 cordance with subparagraph (A), the Cor23 poration shall certify an eligible institution

24 to participate in the scholarship program

25 under this Act.
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1 (ii) CONTINUATION.—An eligible insti2 tution’s certification to participate in the

3 scholarship program shall continue unless

4 such eligible institution’s certification is re5 voked in accordance with subparagraph

6 (D).

7 (C) NEW ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—

8 (i) IN GENERAL.—An eligible institu9 tion that did not operate with at least 25

10 students in the 3 years preceding the year

11 for which the determination is made may

12 apply for a 1-year provisional certification

13 to participate in the scholarship program

14 under this Act for a single year by provid15 ing to the Corporation not later than July

16 1 of the year preceding the year for which

17 the determination is made—

18 (I) a list of the eligible institu19 tion’s board of directors;

20 (II) letters of support from not

21 less than 10 members of the commu22 nity served by such eligible institution;

23 (III) a business plan;

24 (IV) an intended course of study;
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1 (V) assurances that the eligible

2 institution will begin operations with

3 not less than 25 students;

4 (VI) assurances that the eligible

5 institution will comply with all appli6 cable requirements of this Act; and

7 (VII) a statement that satisfies

8 the requirements of clauses (ii) and

9 (iv) of subparagraph (A).

10 (ii) CERTIFICATION.—Not later than

11 60 days after the date of receipt of an ap12 plication described in clause (i), the Cor13 poration shall certify in writing the eligible

14 institution’s provisional certification to

15 participate in the scholarship program

16 under this Act unless the Corporation de17 termines that good cause exists to deny

18 certification.

19 (iii) RENEWAL OF PROVISIONAL CER20 TIFICATION.—After receipt of an applica21 tion under clause (i) from an eligible insti22 tution that includes a statement of the eli23 gible institution’s budget completed not

24 earlier than 12 months before the date

25 such application is filed, the Corporation
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1 shall renew an eligible institution’s provi2 sional certification for the second and third

3 years of the school’s participation in the

4 scholarship program under this Act unless

5 the Corporation finds—

6 (I) good cause to deny the re7 newal, including a finding of a pattern

8 of violation of requirements described

9 in paragraph (3)(A); or

10 (II) consistent failure of 25 per11 cent or more of the students receiving

12 scholarships under this Act and at13 tending such school to make appro14 priate progress (as determined by the

15 Corporation) in academic achieve16 ment.

17 (iv) DENIAL OF CERTIFICATION.—If

18 provisional certification or renewal of pro19 visional certification under this subsection

20 is denied, then the Corporation shall pro21 vide a written explanation to the eligible

22 institution of the reasons for such denial.

23 (D) REVOCATION OF ELIGIBILITY.—

24 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation,

25 after notice and hearing, may revoke an el-
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1 igible institution’s certification to partici2 pate in the scholarship program under this

3 Act for a year succeeding the year for

4 which the determination is made for—

5 (I) good cause, including a find6 ing of a pattern of violation of pro7 gram requirements described in para8 graph (3)(A); or

9 (II) consistent failure of 25 per10 cent or more of the students receiving

11 scholarships under this Act and at12 tending such school to make appro13 priate progress (as determined by the

14 Corporation) in academic achieve15 ment.

16 (ii) EXPLANATION.—If the certifi17 cation of an eligible institution is revoked,

18 the Corporation shall provide a written ex19 planation of the Corporation’s decision to

20 such eligible institution and require a pro

21 rata refund of the proceeds of the scholar22 ship funds received under this Act.

23 (3) PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGI24 BLE INSTITUTIONS.—
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1 (A) REQUIREMENTS.—Each eligible insti2 tution participating in the scholarship program

3 under this Act shall—

4 (i) provide to the Corporation not

5 later than June 30 of each year the most

6 recent annual statement of the eligible in7 stitution’s budget; and

8 (ii) charge a student that receives a

9 scholarship under this Act not more than

10 the cost of tuition and mandatory fees for,

11 and transportation to attend, such eligible

12 institution as other students who are resi13 dents of the District of Columbia and en14 rolled in such eligible institution.

15 (B) COMPLIANCE.—The Corporation may

16 require documentation of compliance with the

17 requirements of subparagraph (A), but neither

18 the Corporation nor any governmental entity

19 may impose requirements upon an eligible insti20 tution as a condition for participation in the

21 scholarship program under this Act, other than

22 requirements established under this Act.

23 SEC. 4. SCHOLARSHIPS AUTHORIZED.

24 (a) ELIGIBLE STUDENTS.—The Corporation is au25 thorized to award tuition scholarships under subsection
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1 (c)(1) and enhanced achievement scholarships under sub2 section (c)(2) to students in kindergarten through

3 grade 12—

4 (1) who are residents of the District of Colum5 bia; and

6 (2) whose family income does not exceed 185

7 percent of the poverty line.

8 (b) SCHOLARSHIP PRIORITY.—

9 (1) FIRST.—The Corporation first shall award

10 scholarships to students described in subsection (a)

11 who—

12 (A) are enrolled in a District of Columbia

13 public school or preparing to enter a District of

14 Columbia public kindergarten, except that this

15 subparagraph shall apply only for academic

16 years 1997–1998, 1998–1999, and 1999–2000;

17 or

18 (B) have received a scholarship from the

19 Corporation for the academic year preceding

20 the academic year for which the scholarship is

21 awarded.

22 (2) SECOND.—If funds remain for a fiscal year

23 for awarding scholarships after awarding scholar24 ships under paragraph (1), the Corporation shall

25 award scholarships to students who are described in
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1 subsection (a), not described in paragraph (1), and

2 otherwise eligible for a scholarship under this Act.

3 (3) LOTTERY SELECTION.—The Corporation

4 shall award scholarships to students under this sub5 section using a lottery selection process whenever the

6 amount made available to carry out this Act for a

7 fiscal year is insufficient to award a scholarship to

8 each student who is eligible to receive a scholarship

9 under this Act for the fiscal year.

10 (c) USE OF SCHOLARSHIP.—

11 (1) TUITION SCHOLARSHIPS.—A tuition schol12 arship may be used for the payment of the cost of

13 the tuition and mandatory fees for, and transpor14 tation to attend, an eligible institution located within

15 the geographic boundaries of the District of Colum16 bia; Montgomery County, Maryland; Prince Georges

17 County, Maryland; Arlington County, Virginia; Alex18 andria City, Virginia; Falls Church City, Virginia;

19 Fairfax City, Virginia; or Fairfax County, Virginia.

20 (2) ENHANCED ACHIEVEMENT SCHOLARSHIP.—

21 An enhanced achievement scholarship may be used

22 only for the payment of the costs of tuition and

23 mandatory fees for, and transportation to attend, a

24 program of instruction provided by an eligible insti25 tution which enhances student achievement of the
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1 core curriculum and is operated outside of regular

2 school hours to supplement the regular school pro3 gram.

4 (e) NOT SCHOOL AID.—A scholarship under this Act

5 shall be considered assistance to the student and shall not

6 be considered assistance to an eligible institution.

7 SEC. 5. SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS.

8 (a) AWARDS.—From the funds made available under

9 this Act, the Corporation shall award a scholarship to a

10 student and make scholarship payments in accordance

11 with section 6.

12 (b) NOTIFICATION.—Each eligible institution that re13 ceives the proceeds of a scholarship payment under sub14 section (a) shall notify the Corporation not later than 10

15 days after—

16 (1) the date that a student receiving a scholar17 ship under this Act is enrolled, of the name, address,

18 and grade level of such student;

19 (2) the date of the withdrawal or expulsion of

20 any student receiving a scholarship under this Act,

21 of the withdrawal or expulsion; and

22 (3) the date that a student receiving a scholar23 ship under this Act is refused admission, of the rea24 sons for such a refusal.

25 (c) TUITION SCHOLARSHIP.—
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1 (1) EQUAL TO OR BELOW POVERTY LINE.—For

2 a student whose family income is equal to or below

3 the poverty line, a tuition scholarship may not ex4 ceed the lesser of—

5 (A) the cost of tuition and mandatory fees

6 for, and transportation to attend, an eligible in7 stitution; or

8 (B) $3,200 for fiscal year 1998, with such

9 amount adjusted in proportion to changes in

10 the Consumer Price Index for all urban con11 sumers published by the Department of Labor

12 for each of fiscal years 1999 through 2002.

13 (2) ABOVE POVERTY LINE.—For a student

14 whose family income is greater than the poverty line,

15 but not more than 185 percent of the poverty line,

16 a tuition scholarship may not exceed the lesser of—

17 (A) 75 percent of the cost of tuition and

18 mandatory fees for, and transportation to at19 tend, an eligible institution; or

20 (B) $2,400 for fiscal year 1998, with such

21 amount adjusted in proportion to changes in

22 the Consumer Price Index for all urban con23 sumers published by the Department of Labor

24 for each of fiscal years 1999 through 2002.
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1 (d) ENHANCED ACHIEVEMENT SCHOLARSHIP.—An

2 enhanced achievement scholarship may not exceed the

3 lesser of—

4 (1) the costs of tuition and mandatory fees for,

5 and transportation to attend, a program of instruc6 tion at an eligible institution; or

7 (2) $500 for 1998, with such amount adjusted

8 in proportion to changes in the Consumer Price

9 Index for all urban consumers published by the De10 partment of Labor for each of fiscal years 1999

11 through 2002.

12 SEC. 6. SCHOLARSHIP PAYMENTS.

13 (a) PAYMENTS.—The Corporation shall make schol14 arship payments to the parent of a student awarded a

15 scholarship under this Act.

16 (b) DISTRIBUTION OF SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS.—Schol17 arship funds may be distributed by check, or another form

18 of disbursement, issued by the Corporation and made pay19 able directly to a parent of a student awarded a scholar20 ship under this Act. The parent may use the scholarship

21 funds only for payment of tuition, mandatory fees, and

22 transportation costs as described in this Act.

23 (c) PRO RATA AMOUNTS FOR STUDENT WITH24 DRAWAL.—If a student receiving a scholarship under this

25 Act withdraws or is expelled from an eligible institution
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1 after the proceeds of a scholarship is paid to the eligible

2 institution, then the eligible institution shall refund to the

3 Corporation on a pro rata basis the proportion of any such

4 proceeds received for the remaining days of the school

5 year. Such refund shall occur not later than 30 days after

6 the date of the withdrawal or expulsion of the student.

7 SEC. 7. CIVIL RIGHTS.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—An eligible institution participat9 ing in the scholarship program under this Act shall not

10 discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin,

11 or sex in carrying out the provisions of this Act.

12 (b) APPLICABILITY AND CONSTRUCTION WITH RE13 SPECT TO DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEX.—

14 (1) APPLICABILITY.—With respect to discrimi15 nation on the basis of sex, subsection (a) shall not

16 apply to an eligible institution that is controlled by

17 a religious organization if the application of sub18 section (a) is inconsistent with the religious tenets of

19 the eligible institution.

20 (2) CONSTRUCTION.—With respect to discrimi21 nation on the basis of sex, nothing in subsection (a)

22 shall be construed to require any person, or public

23 or private entity to provide or pay, or to prohibit any

24 such person or entity from providing or paying, for

25 any benefit or service, including the use of facilities,
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1 related to an abortion. Nothing in the preceding sen2 tence shall be construed to permit a penalty to be

3 imposed on any person or individual because such

4 person or individual is seeking or has received any

5 benefit or service related to a legal abortion.

6 (3) SINGLE-SEX SCHOOLS, CLASSES, OR ACTIVI7 TIES.—With respect to discrimination on the basis

8 of sex, nothing in subsection (a) shall be construed

9 to prevent a parent from choosing, or an eligible in10 stitution from offering, a single-sex school, class, or

11 activity.

12 (c) REVOCATION.—Notwithstanding section

13 3(f)(2)(D), if the Corporation determines that an eligible

14 institution participating in the scholarship program under

15 this Act is in violation of subsection (a), then the Corpora16 tion shall revoke such eligible institution’s certification to

17 participate in the program.

18 SEC. 8. CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES.

19 Nothing in this Act shall affect the rights of students,

20 or the obligations of the District of Columbia public

21 schools, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education

22 Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.).

23 SEC. 9. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act shall be con25 strued to prevent any eligible institution which is operated
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1 by, supervised by, controlled by, or connected to, a reli2 gious organization from employing, admitting, or giving

3 preference to, persons of the same religion to the extent

4 determined by such institution to promote the religious

5 purpose for which the eligible institution is established or

6 maintained.

7 (b) SECTARIAN PURPOSES.—Nothing in this Act

8 shall be construed to prohibit the use of funds made avail9 able under this Act for sectarian educational purposes, or

10 to require an eligible institution to remove religious art,

11 icons, scripture, or other symbols.

12 SEC. 10. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—An eligible institution participat14 ing in the scholarship program under this Act shall report

15 to the Corporation not later than July 30 of each year

16 in a manner prescribed by the Corporation, the following

17 data:

18 (1) Student achievement in the eligible institu19 tion’s programs.

20 (2) Grade advancement for scholarship stu21 dents.

22 (3) Disciplinary actions taken with respect to

23 scholarship students.
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1 (4) Graduation, college admission test scores,

2 and college admission rates, if applicable for scholar3 ship students.

4 (5) Types and amounts of parental involvement

5 required for all families of scholarship students.

6 (6) Student attendance for scholarship and

7 nonscholarship students.

8 (7) General information on curriculum, pro9 grams, facilities, credentials of personnel, and dis10 ciplinary rules at the eligible institution.

11 (8) Number of scholarship students enrolled.

12 (9) Such other information as may be required

13 by the Corporation for program appraisal.

14 (b) CONFIDENTIALITY.—No personal identifiers may

15 be used in such report, except that the Corporation may

16 request such personal identifiers solely for the purpose of

17 verification.

18 SEC. 11. PROGRAM APPRAISAL.

19 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 4 years after the date

20 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall

21 enter into a contract, with an evaluating agency that has

22 demonstrated experience in conducting evaluations, for an

23 independent evaluation of the scholarship program under

24 this Act, including—
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1 (1) a comparison of test scores between scholar2 ship students and District of Columbia public school

3 students of similar backgrounds, taking into account

4 the students’ academic achievement at the time of

5 the award of their scholarships and the students’

6 family income level;

7 (2) a comparison of graduation rates between

8 scholarship students and District of Columbia public

9 school students of similar backgrounds, taking into

10 account the students’ academic achievement at the

11 time of the award of their scholarships and the stu12 dents’ family income level;

13 (3) the satisfaction of parents of scholarship

14 students with the scholarship program; and

15 (4) the impact of the scholarship program on

16 the District of Columbia public schools, including

17 changes in the public school enrollment, and any im18 provement in the academic performance of the public

19 schools.

20 (b) PUBLIC REVIEW OF DATA.—All data gathered in

21 the course of the study described in subsection (a) shall

22 be made available to the public upon request except that

23 no personal identifiers shall be made public.

24 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than Septem25 ber 1 of each year, the Corporation shall submit a progress
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1 report on the scholarship program to the appropriate com2 mittees of Congress. Such report shall include a review

3 of how scholarship funds were expended, including the ini4 tial academic achievement levels of students who have par5 ticipated in the scholarship program.

6 (d) AUTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be ap7 propriated for the study described in subsection (a),

8 $250,000, which shall remain available until expended.

9 SEC. 12. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

10 (a) JURISDICTION.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The United States District

12 Court for the District of Columbia shall have juris13 diction in any action challenging the constitutional14 ity of the scholarship program under this Act and

15 shall provide expedited review.

16 (2) STANDING.—The parent of any student eli17 gible to receive a scholarship under this Act shall

18 have standing in an action challenging the constitu19 tionality of the scholarship program under this Act.

20 (b) APPEAL TO SUPREME COURT.—Notwithstanding

21 any other provision of law, any order of the United States

22 District Court for the District of Columbia which is issued

23 pursuant to an action brought under subsection (a) shall

24 be reviewable by appeal directly to the Supreme Court of

25 the United States.
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1 SEC. 13. APPROPRIATION OF INITIAL FEDERAL CONTRIBU2 TION TO FUND.

3 There are hereby appropriated, out of any money in

4 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $7,000,000 for

5 the District of Columbia Scholarship Fund.

6 SEC. 14. EFFECTIVE DATE.

7 This Act shall be effective for each of the fiscal years

8 1998 through 2002.

Passed the Senate November 9, 1997.

Attest: GARY SISCO,

Secretary.
105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1502

AN ACT

Entitled the ‘‘District of Columbia Student

Opportunity Scholarship Act of 1997’’.