I

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1538

To provide flexibility to certain local educational agencies that develop voluntary public and private parental choice programs under title VI of

the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 22, 1999

Mr. ROGAN (for himself, Mr. SOUDER, Mr. PITTS, Ms. GRANGER, Mr. WAMP,

Mr. MCINTOSH, and Mr. TIAHRT) introduced the following bill; which

was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in

addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To provide flexibility to certain local educational agencies

that develop voluntary public and private parental choice

programs under title VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

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 ‘‘Educational Opportu5 nities Act of 1999’’.
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1 TITLE I—HELP SCHOLARSHIPS

2 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

3 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Helping Empower

4 Low-income Parents (HELP) Scholarships Amendments

5 of 1999’’.

6 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS.

7 Section 6003 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu8 cation Act of 1965 is amended—

9 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘DEFI10 NITION’’ and inserting ‘‘DEFINITIONS’’;

11 (2) by striking ‘‘(1)’’, ‘‘(2)’’, and ‘‘(3)’’;

12 (3) in the matter proceeding subparagraph (A),

13 by striking ‘‘title the term’’ and inserting the fol14 lowing:

15 ‘‘title—

16 ‘‘(1) the term’’;

17 (4) by striking the period at the end; and

18 (5) by adding at the end the following:

19 ‘‘(2) the term ‘poverty line’ means the poverty

20 line (as defined by the Office of Management and

21 Budget, and revised annually in accordance with sec22 tion 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant

23 Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) applicable to a family of

24 the size involved; and
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1 ‘‘(3) the term ‘voluntary public and private pa2 rental choice program’ means a program that meets

3 the requirements of section 6301(b)(10), is author4 ized by State law, and includes 1 or more private

5 schools to allow low-income parents to choose the

6 appropriate school for their children.’’.

7 SEC. 103. FINDINGS.

8 Congress finds the following:

9 (1) Congress strongly supports the efforts to

10 expand educational opportunities for low-income

11 families.

12 (2) The HELP Scholarships and the education

13 tax credit proposed under this Act are designed to

14 provide additional learning opportunities and tools

15 for individuals living in economically-disadvantaged

16 communities in a manner consistent with the edu17 cation flexibility initiatives already adopted by Con18 gress.

19 SEC. 104. ALLOCATION TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN20 CIES.

21 Section 6102(a) of the Elementary and Secondary

22 Education Act of 1965 is amended to read as follows:

23 ‘‘(a) DISTRIBUTION RULE.—

24 ‘‘(1) STATE FUNDS.—
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the amount made

2 available to a State educational agency each fis3 cal year to carry out this title, the agency may

4 reserve for State programs—

5 ‘‘(i) not more than 10 percent; or

6 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a State that has in

7 effect a law that establishes a voluntary

8 public and private parental choice pro9 gram, not more than 25 percent.

10 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON USE OF CERTAIN RE11 SERVED AMOUNTS.—If a State educational

12 agency reserves under subparagraph (A) more

13 than 10 percent of amounts made available to

14 the agency for a fiscal year, the agency shall

15 use amounts in excess of 10 percent of amounts

16 so made available only for voluntary public and

17 private parental choice programs.

18 ‘‘(2) LOCAL FUNDS.—A State educational agen19 cy shall distribute amounts made available to the

20 agency under this title that are not reserved under

21 paragraph (1) to local educational agencies within

22 such State that are located in an area designated as

23 an empowerment zone or an enterprise community

24 under section 1391 of the Internal Revenue Code of

25 1986.
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1 SEC. 105. USES OF FUNDS.

2 (a) STATE USES OF FUNDS.—Section 6201(a)(1) of

3 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is

4 amended—

5 (1) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘and’’

6 after the semicolon; and

7 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the fol8 lowing:

9 ‘‘(D) establishing voluntary public and pri10 vate parental choice programs in accordance

11 with section 6301(b)(10); and’’.

12 (b) LOCAL USES OF FUNDS.—Section 6301(b) of the

13 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is

14 amended—

15 (1) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

16 the semicolon;

17 (2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period and

18 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

19 (3) by inserting after paragraph (9) the fol20 lowing:

21 ‘‘(10) voluntary public and private parental

22 choice programs that—

23 ‘‘(A) are located in an area designated as

24 an empowerment zone or an enterprise commu25 nity under section 1391 of the Internal Revenue

26 Code of 1986;
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1 ‘‘(B) ensure that participation in such a

2 voluntary public and private parental choice

3 program is limited to families whose family in4 come does not exceed 185 percent of the pov5 erty line;

6 ‘‘(C) ensure that—

7 ‘‘(i) the maximum amount of a vol8 untary public and private parental choice

9 scholarship does not exceed the per pupil

10 expenditure of the local educational agency

11 in which an applicant for a voluntary pub12 lic and private parental choice scholarship

13 resides;

14 ‘‘(ii) the minimum amount of a vol15 untary public and private parental choice

16 scholarship is not less than 60 percent of

17 the per pupil expenditure of the local edu18 cational agency in which an applicant for

19 a voluntary public and private parental

20 choice scholarship resides or the cost of

21 tuition at a private school, whichever is

22 less;

23 ‘‘(D) ensure that for a private school,

24 which may include a religiously affiliated school,
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1 choosing to participate in a voluntary public

2 and private parental choice program—

3 ‘‘(i) such a school is permitted to im4 pose the same academic requirements for

5 all students, including students selected for

6 a scholarship as provided under this para7 graph;

8 ‘‘(ii) receipt of funds under this title

9 is not conditioned with requirements or

10 regulations that preclude the use of such

11 funds for sectarian educational purposes or

12 require removal of religious art, icons,

13 scripture, or other symbols; and

14 ‘‘(iii) such a school is in compliance

15 with all State requirements applicable to

16 the operation of a private school that are

17 in effect in the year preceding the date of

18 the enactment of the Helping Empower

19 Low-income Parents (HELP) Scholarships

20 Amendments of 1997;

21 ‘‘(E) may allow State, local, and private

22 funds to be used for voluntary public and pri23 vate parental choice programs; and

24 ‘‘(F) ensure priority for students who were

25 enrolled in a public school in the school year
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1 preceding the school year in which a voluntary

2 public and private parental choice school begins

3 operation.’’.

4 SEC. 106. EVALUATION.

5 Part D of title VI of the Elementary and Secondary

6 Education Act of 1965 is amended—

7 (1) by adding at the end of section 6402 the

8 following new subsection:

9 ‘‘(j) APPLICATION.—This section shall not apply to

10 funds that a State or local educational agency uses to es11 tablish a voluntary public and private parental choice pro12 gram in accordance with section 6301(b)(10).’’; and

13 (2) by adding at the end of such part the fol14 lowing new sections:

15 ‘‘SEC. 6404. EVALUATION.

16 ‘‘(a) ANNUAL EVALUATION.—

17 ‘‘(1) CONTRACT.—The Comptroller General of

18 the United States shall enter into a contract, with

19 an evaluating agency that has demonstrated experi20 ence in conducting evaluations, for the conduct of an

21 ongoing rigorous evaluation of the programs estab22 lished under section 6301(b)(10).

23 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL EVALUATION REQUIREMENT.—

24 The contract described in paragraph (1) shall re25 quire the evaluating agency entering into such con-
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1 tract to evaluate annually each program established

2 under section 6301(b)(10) in accordance with the

3 evaluation criteria described in subsection (b) and

4 each such program that has applied for an education

5 flexibility waiver under section 6304.

6 ‘‘(3) TRANSMISSION.—The contract described

7 in paragraph (1) shall require the evaluating agency

8 entering into such contract to transmit to the Comp9 troller General of the United States the findings of

10 each annual evaluation under paragraph (1).

11 ‘‘(b) EVALUATION CRITERIA.—The Comptroller Gen12 eral of the United States, in consultation with the Sec13 retary, shall establish minimum criteria for evaluating

14 each program established under section 6301(b)(10). Such

15 criteria shall provide for—

16 ‘‘(1) a description of the implementation of

17 each program established under section 6301(b)(10)

18 and the program’s effects on all participants,

19 schools, and communities in the program area, with

20 particular attention given to the effect of parent par21 ticipation in the life of the school and the level of

22 parental satisfaction with the program; and

23 ‘‘(2) a comparison of the educational achieve24 ment of all students in the program area, including

25 a comparison between—
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1 ‘‘(A) students receiving a voluntary public

2 and private parental choice scholarships under

3 section 6301(b)(10); and

4 ‘‘(B) students not receiving a voluntary

5 public and private parental choice scholarships

6 under such section.

7 ‘‘(c) EVALUATION FUNDS.—Pursuant to the author8 ity provided under section 14701, the Secretary shall re9 serve not more than 0.50 percent of the amount of funds

10 made available under section 6002 to carry out this sec11 tion. To determine the amount necessary for evaluation

12 purposes, the Secretary shall consider the prospective

13 scale and scope of the evaluation, including the number

14 of local educational agencies conducting voluntary public

15 and private choice programs.

16 ‘‘SEC. 6405. APPLICABILITY.

17 ‘‘(a) NOT SCHOOL AID.—Subject to subsection (b),

18 funds used under this title to establish a voluntary public

19 and private parental choice program shall be considered

20 assistance to the student and shall not be considered as

21 assistance to any school that chooses to participate in such

22 program.

23 ‘‘(b) NO FEDERAL CONTROL.—The Secretary is not

24 permitted to exercise any direction, supervision, or control

25 over curricula, program of instruction, administration, or
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1 personnel of any school that chooses to participate in a

2 voluntary public and private choice program established

3 under 6309(b)(10).’’.

4 TITLE II—EDUCATION TAX

5 CREDIT

6 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

7 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Children’s Education

8 Tax Credit Act’’.

9 SEC. 202. CREDIT FOR EDUCATION EXPENSES.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart C of part IV of sub11 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of

12 1986 (relating to refundable credits) is amended by redes13 ignating section 35 as section 36 and by inserting after

14 section 34 the following new section:

15 ‘‘SEC. 35. EDUCATION EXPENSES.

16 ‘‘(a) GENERAL RULE.—In the case of an individual,

17 there shall be allowed as a credit against the tax imposed

18 by this subtitle for the taxable year the amount of the

19 qualified education expenses paid by the taxpayer during

20 the taxable year for the education of any individual with

21 respect to whom the taxpayer is allowed a deduction under

22 section 151(c).

23 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The amount allowed as a credit

24 under subsection (a) for any taxable year with respect to
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1 the qualified education expenses of any 1 individual shall

2 not exceed $1,000.

3 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—

4 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED EDUCATION EXPENSES.—

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘qualified

6 education expenses’ means amounts paid for—

7 ‘‘(i) tuition and fees required for the

8 enrollment or attendance of a student at

9 an eligible zone educational institution, and

10 ‘‘(ii) fees, tutoring, books, supplies,

11 computer equipment (including related

12 software and services) and other equip13 ment required for courses of instruction at

14 an eligible zone educational institution.

15 ‘‘(B) MEALS AND LODGING EXPENSES NOT

16 INCLUDED.—Such term does not include any

17 amount paid, directly or indirectly, for meals,

18 lodging, or similar personal, living, or family ex19 penses. In the event an amount paid for tuition

20 or fees includes an amount for meals, lodging,

21 or similar expenses which is not separately stat22 ed, the portion of such amount which is attrib23 utable to meals, lodging, or similar expenses

24 shall be determined under regulations pre25 scribed by the Secretary.
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1 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL RULE FOR HOME SCHOOL2 ING.—In the case of education furnished in the

3 home (as a substitute for public education)

4 which meets the requirements of State law re5 lating to compulsory school attendance, the

6 term ‘qualified education expenses’ means

7 amounts paid for tutoring, books, supplies,

8 computer equipment (including related software

9 and services), and other equipment used in fur10 nishing such education.

11 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ZONE EDUCATIONAL INSTITU12 TION.—

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘eligible

14 zone educational institution’ means any school

15 described in subparagraph (B) which is located

16 in an area designated as an empowerment zone

17 or an enterprise community under section 1391.

18 ‘‘(B) SCHOOLS DESCRIBED.—A school de19 scribed in this subparagraph is any of the fol20 lowing:

21 ‘‘(i) A secondary school.

22 ‘‘(ii) An elementary school.

23 ‘‘(ii) Any private, parochial, religious,

24 or home school organized for the purpose
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1 of providing elementary or secondary edu2 cation, or both.

3 ‘‘(3) ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY

4 SCHOOLS.—The terms ‘elementary school’ and ‘sec5 ondary school’ have the respective meanings given

6 such terms by section 14101 of the Elementary and

7 Secondary Education Act of 1965.

8 ‘‘(d) ADJUSTMENT FOR CERTAIN SCHOLARSHIPS.—

9 The amounts otherwise taken into account under sub10 section (a) as qualified education expenses of any indi11 vidual during any period shall be reduced (before the ap12 plication of subsection (b)) by the sum of the amounts

13 received with respect to such individual for the taxable

14 year as a qualified scholarship which under section 117

15 is not includable in gross income.

16 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe

17 such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the pro18 visions of this section.’’

19 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—

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

21 31, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘or’’

22 after ‘‘1978,’’ and by inserting before the period ‘‘,

23 or enacted by the Children’s Education Tax Credit

24 Act’’.
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1 (2) The table of sections for subpart C of part

2 IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code is

3 amended by striking the last item and inserting the

4 following new items:

‘‘Sec. 35. Education expenses.

‘‘Sec. 36. Overpayments of tax.’’

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

6 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after

7 the date of the enactment of this Act.

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