IIB 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 10 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 12, 2014 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

AN ACT 

To amend the charter school program under 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Success and Oppor3 tunity through Quality Charter Schools Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 

5 Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in 

6 this Act a section or other provision is amended or re7 pealed, such amendment or repeal shall be considered to 

8 be made to that section or other provision of the Elemen9 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

10 6301 et seq.). 

11 SEC. 3. SUBPART HEADING; PURPOSE. 

12 (a) SUBPART HEADING.—The heading for subpart 1 

13 of part B of title V (20 U.S.C. 7221 et seq.) is amended 

14 to read as follows: ‘‘Charter School Program’’. 

15 (b) PURPOSE.—Section 5201 (20 U.S.C. 7221) is 

16 amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 5201. PURPOSE. 

18 ‘‘It is the purpose of this subpart to— 

19 ‘‘(1) improve the United States education sys20 tem and education opportunities for all Americans 

21 by supporting innovation in public education in pub22 lic school settings that prepare students to compete 

23 and contribute to the global economy; 

24 ‘‘(2) provide financial assistance for the plan25 ning, program design, and initial implementation of 

26 charter schools; 


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1 ‘‘(3) expand the number of high-quality charter 

2 schools available to students across the Nation; 

3 ‘‘(4) evaluate the impact of such schools on stu4 dent achievement, families, and communities, and 

5 share best practices between charter schools and 

6 other public schools; 

7 ‘‘(5) encourage States to provide support to 

8 charter schools for facilities financing in an amount 

9 more nearly commensurate to the amount the States 

10 have typically provided for traditional public schools; 

11 ‘‘(6) improve student services to increase oppor12 tunities for students with disabilities, English learn13 ers, and other traditionally underserved students to 

14 attend charter schools and meet challenging State 

15 academic achievement standards; 

16 ‘‘(7) support efforts to strengthen the charter 

17 school authorizing process to improve performance 

18 management, including transparency, oversight, 

19 monitoring, and evaluation of such schools; and 

20 ‘‘(8) support quality accountability and trans21 parency in the operational performance of all au22 thorized public chartering agencies, which include 

23 State educational agencies, local educational agen24 cies, and other authorizing entities.’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 

2 Section 5202 (20 U.S.C. 7221a) is amended to read 

3 as follows: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 5202. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—This subpart authorizes the Sec6 retary to carry out a charter school program that supports 

7 charter schools that serve elementary school and sec8 ondary school students by— 

9 ‘‘(1) supporting the startup of charter schools, 

10 and the replication and expansion of high-quality 

11 charter schools; 

12 ‘‘(2) assisting charter schools in accessing cred13 it to acquire and renovate facilities for school use; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(3) carrying out national activities to sup16 port— 

17 ‘‘(A) charter school development; 

18 ‘‘(B) the dissemination of best practices of 

19 charter schools for all schools; 

20 ‘‘(C) the evaluation of the impact of the 

21 program on schools participating in the pro22 gram; and 

23 ‘‘(D) stronger charter school authorizing. 

24 ‘‘(b) FUNDING ALLOTMENT.—From the amount 

25 made available under section 5211 for a fiscal year, the 

26 Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) reserve 12.5 percent to support charter 

2 school facilities assistance under section 5204; 

3 ‘‘(2) reserve not more than 10 percent to carry 

4 out national activities under section 5205; and 

5 ‘‘(3) use the remaining amount after the Sec6 retary reserves funds under paragraphs (1) and (2) 

7 to carry out section 5203. 

8 ‘‘(c) PRIOR GRANTS AND SUBGRANTS.—The recipi9 ent of a grant or subgrant under this subpart or subpart 

10 2, as such subpart was in effect on the day before the 

11 date of enactment of the Success and Opportunity through 

12 Quality Charter Schools Act, shall continue to receive 

13 funds in accordance with the terms and conditions of such 

14 grant or subgrant. 

15 ‘‘(d) GAO REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after the 

16 date of enactment of the Success and Opportunity through 

17 Quality Charter Schools Act, the Comptroller General of 

18 the United States shall submit a report to the Secretary 

19 and Congress that— 

20 ‘‘(1) examines whether the funds authorized to 

21 be reserved by State entities for administrative costs 

22 under section 5203(b)(1)(C) is appropriate; and 

23 ‘‘(2) if determined not to be appropriate, makes 

24 recommendations on the appropriate reservation of 

25 funding for such administrative costs.’’. 


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1 SEC. 5. GRANTS TO SUPPORT HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER 

2 SCHOOLS. 

3 Section 5203 (20 U.S.C. 7221b) is amended to read 

4 as follows: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 5203. GRANTS TO SUPPORT HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER 

6 SCHOOLS. 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—From the amount reserved 

8 under section 5202(b)(3), the Secretary shall award 

9 grants to State entities having applications approved pur10 suant to subsection (f) to enable such entities to— 

11 ‘‘(1) award subgrants to eligible applicants for 

12 opening and preparing to operate— 

13 ‘‘(A) new charter schools; 

14 ‘‘(B) replicated, high-quality charter school 

15 models; or 

16 ‘‘(C) expanded, high-quality charter 

17 schools; and 

18 ‘‘(2) provide technical assistance to eligible ap19 plicants and authorized public chartering agencies in 

20 carrying out the activities described in paragraph (1) 

21 and work with authorized public chartering agencies 

22 in the State to improve authorizing quality. 

23 ‘‘(b) STATE USES OF FUNDS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State entity receiving a 

25 grant under this section shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) use not less than 90 percent of the 

2 grant funds to award subgrants to eligible ap3 plicants, in accordance with the quality charter 

4 school program described in the State entity’s 

5 application approved pursuant to subsection (f), 

6 for the purposes described in subparagraphs 

7 (A) through (C) of subsection (a)(1); 

8 ‘‘(B) reserve not less than 7 percent of 

9 such funds to carry out the activities described 

10 in subsection (a)(2); and 

11 ‘‘(C) reserve not more than 3 percent of 

12 such funds for administrative costs which may 

13 include technical assistance. 

14 ‘‘(2) CONTRACTS AND GRANTS.—A State entity 

15 may use a grant received under this section to carry 

16 out the activities described in subparagraphs (A) 

17 and (B) of paragraph (1) directly or through grants, 

18 contracts, or cooperative agreements. 

19 ‘‘(3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

20 this Act shall prohibit the Secretary from awarding 

21 grants to States that use a weighted lottery to give 

22 slightly better chances for admission to all, or a sub23 set of, educationally disadvantaged students if— 

24 ‘‘(A) the use of weighted lotteries in favor 

25 of such students is not prohibited by State law, 


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1 and such State law is consistent with laws de2 scribed in section 5210(1)(G); and 

3 ‘‘(B) such weighted lotteries are not used 

4 for the purpose of creating schools exclusively 

5 to serve a particular subset of students. 

6 ‘‘(c) PROGRAM PERIODS; PEER REVIEW; GRANT

7 NUMBER AND AMOUNT; DIVERSITY OF PROJECTS; WAIV8 ERS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) PROGRAM PERIODS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) GRANTS.—A grant awarded by the 

11 Secretary to a State entity under this section 

12 shall be for a period of not more than 5 years. 

13 ‘‘(B) SUBGRANTS.—A subgrant awarded 

14 by a State entity under this section shall be for 

15 a period of not more than 5 years, of which an 

16 eligible applicant may use not more than 18 

17 months for planning and program design. 

18 ‘‘(2) PEER REVIEW.—The Secretary, and each 

19 State entity receiving a grant under this section, 

20 shall use a peer review process to review applications 

21 for assistance under this section. 

22 ‘‘(3) GRANT AWARDS.—The Secretary shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) for each fiscal year for which funds 

24 are appropriated under section 5211— 


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1 ‘‘(i) award not less than 3 grants 

2 under this section; 

3 ‘‘(ii) wholly fund each grant awarded 

4 under this section, without making con5 tinuation awards; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) fully obligate the funds appro7 priated for the purpose of awarding grants 

8 under this section in the fiscal year for 

9 which such grants are awarded; and 

10 ‘‘(B) prior to the start of the final year of 

11 the grant period of each grant awarded under 

12 this section to a State entity, review whether 

13 the State entity is using the grant funds for the 

14 agreed upon uses of funds and whether the full 

15 amount of the grant will be needed for the re16 mainder of the grant period and may, as deter17 mined necessary based on that review, termi18 nate or reduce the amount of the grant and re19 allocate the remaining grant funds to other 

20 State entities during the succeeding grant com21 petition under this section. 

22 ‘‘(4) DIVERSITY OF PROJECTS.—Each State en23 tity receiving a grant under this section shall award 

24 subgrants under this section in a manner that, to 

25 the extent possible, ensures that such subgrants— 


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1 ‘‘(A) are distributed throughout different 

2 areas, including urban, suburban, and rural 

3 areas; and 

4 ‘‘(B) will assist charter schools rep5 resenting a variety of educational approaches. 

6 ‘‘(5) WAIVERS.—The Secretary may waive any 

7 statutory or regulatory requirement over which the 

8 Secretary exercises administrative authority except 

9 any such requirement relating to the elements of a 

10 charter school described in section 5210(1), if— 

11 ‘‘(A) the waiver is requested in an ap12 proved application under this section; and 

13 ‘‘(B) the Secretary determines that grant14 ing such a waiver will promote the purpose of 

15 this subpart. 

16 ‘‘(d) LIMITATIONS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) GRANTS.—The Secretary shall not award 

18 a grant to a State entity under this section in a case 

19 in which such award would result in more than 1 

20 grant awarded under this section being carried out 

21 in a State at the same time. 

22 ‘‘(2) SUBGRANTS.—An eligible applicant may 

23 not receive more than 1 subgrant under this section 

24 per individual charter school for a 5-year period, un25 less the eligible applicant demonstrates to the State 


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1 entity not less than 3 years of improved educational 

2 results in the areas described in subparagraphs (A) 

3 and (D) of section 5210(8) for students enrolled in 

4 such charter school. 

5 ‘‘(e) APPLICATIONS.—A State entity desiring to re6 ceive a grant under this section shall submit an application 

7 to the Secretary at such time and in such manner as the 

8 Secretary may require. The application shall include the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(1) DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM.—A descrip11 tion of the State entity’s objectives under this sec12 tion and how the objectives of the program will be 

13 carried out, including a description— 

14 ‘‘(A) of how the State entity— 

15 ‘‘(i) will support the opening of new 

16 charter schools, replicated, high-quality 

17 charter school models, or expanded, high18 quality charter schools, and a description 

19 of the proposed number of each type of 

20 charter school or model, if applicable, to be 

21 opened under the State entity’s program; 

22 ‘‘(ii) will inform eligible charter 

23 schools, developers, and authorized public 

24 chartering agencies of the availability of 

25 funds under the program; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) will work with eligible applicants 

2 to ensure that the eligible applicants access 

3 all Federal funds that they are eligible to 

4 receive, and help the charter schools sup5 ported by the applicants and the students 

6 attending the charter schools— 

7 ‘‘(I) participate in the Federal 

8 programs in which the schools and 

9 students are eligible to participate; 

10 ‘‘(II) receive the commensurate 

11 share of Federal funds the schools 

12 and students are eligible to receive 

13 under such programs; and 

14 ‘‘(III) meet the needs of students 

15 served under such programs, including 

16 student with disabilities and English 

17 learners; 

18 ‘‘(iv) will have clear plans and proce19 dures to assist students enrolled in a char20 ter school that closes or loses its charter to 

21 attend other high-quality schools; 

22 ‘‘(v) in the case in which the State en23 tity is not a State educational agency— 

24 ‘‘(I) will work with the State edu25 cational agency and the charter 


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1 schools in the State to maximize char2 ter school participation in Federal and 

3 State programs for charter schools; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(II) will work with the State 

6 educational agency to adequately op7 erate the State entity’s program 

8 under this section, where applicable; 

9 ‘‘(vi) will ensure each eligible appli10 cant that receives a subgrant under the 

11 State entity’s program to open and prepare 

12 to operate a new charter school, a rep13 licated, high-quality charter school model, 

14 or an expanded, high-quality charter 

15 school— 

16 ‘‘(I) will ensure such school or 

17 model meets the requirements under 

18 section 5210(1); and 

19 ‘‘(II) is prepared to continue to 

20 operate such school or model, in a 

21 manner consistent with the eligible 

22 applicant’s application, after the 

23 subgrant funds have expired; 

24 ‘‘(vii) will support charter schools in 

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1 bers of schools identified by the State for 

2 improvement, including supporting the use 

3 of charter schools to improve, or in turning 

4 around, struggling schools; 

5 ‘‘(viii) will work with charter schools 

6 to promote inclusion of all students, in7 cluding eliminating any barriers to enroll8 ment for foster youth or unaccompanied 

9 homeless youth, and support all students 

10 once they are enrolled to promote retention 

11 including through the use of fair discipli12 nary practice; 

13 ‘‘(ix) will work with charter schools on 

14 recruitment practices, including efforts to 

15 engage groups that may otherwise have 

16 limited opportunities to participate in char17 ter schools, and to ensure such schools do 

18 not have in effect policies or procedures 

19 that may create barriers to enrollment of 

20 students, including educationally disadvan21 taged students, and are in compliance with 

22 all Federal and State laws on enrollment 

23 practices; 

24 ‘‘(x) will share best and promising 

25 practices between charter schools and 


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1 other public schools, including, where ap2 propriate, instruction and professional de3 velopment in core academic subjects, and 

4 science, technology, engineering, and math 

5 education, including computer science; 

6 ‘‘(xi) will ensure the charter schools 

7 receiving funds under the State entity’s 

8 program meet the educational needs of 

9 their students, including students with dis10 abilities and English learners; 

11 ‘‘(xii) will support efforts to increase 

12 quality initiatives, including meeting the 

13 quality authorizing elements described in 

14 paragraph (2)(E); 

15 ‘‘(xiii) in the case of a State entity 

16 not described in clause (xiv), will provide 

17 oversight of authorizing activity, including 

18 how the State will approve, actively mon19 itor, and re-approve or revoke the author20 ity of an authorized public chartering 

21 agency based on the performance of the 

22 charter schools authorized by such agency 

23 in the areas of student achievement, stu24 dent safety, financial management, and 


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1 compliance with all applicable statutes and 

2 regulations; 

3 ‘‘(xiv) in the case of a State entity de4 fined in subsection (i)(4), will work with 

5 the State to provide assistance to and over6 sight of authorized public chartering agen7 cies for authorizing activity described in 

8 clause (xiii); and 

9 ‘‘(xv) will work with eligible applicants 

10 receiving a subgrant under the State enti11 ty’s program to support the opening of 

12 charter schools or charter school models 

13 described in clause (i) that are secondary 

14 schools; 

15 ‘‘(B) of the extent to which the State enti16 ty— 

17 ‘‘(i) is able to meet and carry out the 

18 priorities listed in subsection (f)(2); and 

19 ‘‘(ii) is working to develop or 

20 strengthen a cohesive statewide system to 

21 support the opening of new charter 

22 schools, replicated, high-quality charter 

23 school models, or expanded, high-quality 

24 charter schools; 


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1 ‘‘(C) of how the State entity will carry out 

2 the subgrant competition, including— 

3 ‘‘(i) a description of the application 

4 each eligible applicant desiring to receive a 

5 subgrant will submit, including— 

6 ‘‘(I) a description of the roles 

7 and responsibilities of eligible appli8 cants, partner organizations, and 

9 management organizations, including 

10 the administrative and contractual 

11 roles and responsibilities; 

12 ‘‘(II) a description of the quality 

13 controls agreed to between the eligible 

14 applicant and the authorized public 

15 chartering agency involved, such as a 

16 contract or performance agreement, 

17 how a school’s performance in the 

18 State’s academic accountability sys19 tem will be a primary factor for re20 newal or revocation of the school’s 

21 charter, and how the State entity and 

22 the authorized public chartering agen23 cy involved will reserve the right to re24 voke or not renew a school’s charter 

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1 ational factors involving the manage2 ment of the school; 

3 ‘‘(III) a description of how the el4 igible applicant will solicit and con5 sider input from parents and other 

6 members of the community on the im7 plementation and operation of each 

8 charter school receiving funds under 

9 the State entity’s program; and 

10 ‘‘(IV) a description of the 

11 planned activities and expenditures 

12 for the subgrant funds for purposes of 

13 opening and preparing to operate a 

14 new charter school, a replicated, high15 quality charter school model, or an ex16 panded, high-quality charter school, 

17 and how the school or model will 

18 maintain financial sustainability after 

19 the end of the subgrant period; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) a description of how the State 

21 entity will review applications; 

22 ‘‘(D) in the case of an entity that partners 

23 with an outside organization to carry out the 

24 State entity’s quality charter school program, in 


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1 whole or in part, of the roles and responsibil2 ities of this partner; 

3 ‘‘(E) of how the State entity will help the 

4 charter schools receiving funds under the State 

5 entity’s program consider the transportation 

6 needs of the schools’ students; and 

7 ‘‘(F) of how the State entity will support 

8 diverse charter school models, including models 

9 that serve rural communities. 

10 ‘‘(2) ASSURANCES.—Assurances, including a 

11 description of how the assurances will be met, 

12 that— 

13 ‘‘(A) each charter school receiving funds 

14 under the State entity’s program will have a 

15 high degree of autonomy over budget and oper16 ations; 

17 ‘‘(B) the State entity will support charter 

18 schools in meeting the educational needs of 

19 their students as described in paragraph 

20 (1)(A)(xi); 

21 ‘‘(C) the State entity will ensure that the 

22 authorized public chartering agency of any 

23 charter school that receives funds under the 

24 State entity’s program— 


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1 ‘‘(i) adequately monitors each charter 

2 school in recruiting, enrolling, and meeting 

3 the needs of all students, including stu4 dents with disabilities and English learn5 ers; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) ensures that each charter school 

7 solicits and considers input from parents 

8 and other members of the community on 

9 the implementation and operation of the 

10 school; 

11 ‘‘(D) the State entity will provide adequate 

12 technical assistance to eligible applicants to— 

13 ‘‘(i) meet the objectives described in 

14 clauses (viii) and (ix) of paragraph (1)(A) 

15 and paragraph (2)(B); and 

16 ‘‘(ii) recruit, enroll, and retain tradi17 tionally underserved students, including 

18 students with disabilities and English 

19 learners, at rates similar to traditional 

20 public schools; 

21 ‘‘(E) the State entity will promote quality 

22 authorizing, such as through providing technical 

23 assistance and supporting all authorized public 

24 chartering agencies in the State to improve the 


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1 oversight of their charter schools, including 

2 by— 

3 ‘‘(i) assessing annual performance 

4 data of the schools, including, as appro5 priate, graduation rates, student academic 

6 growth, and rates of student attrition; 

7 ‘‘(ii) reviewing the schools’ inde8 pendent, annual audits of financial state9 ments conducted in accordance with gen10 erally accepted accounting principles, and 

11 ensuring any such audits are publically re12 ported; and 

13 ‘‘(iii) holding charter schools account14 able to the academic, financial, and oper15 ational quality controls agreed to between 

16 the charter school and the authorized pub17 lic chartering agency involved, such as 

18 through renewal, non-renewal, or revoca19 tion of the school’s charter; 

20 ‘‘(F) the State entity will work to ensure 

21 that charter schools are included with the tradi22 tional public schools in decision-making about 

23 the public school system in the State; and 

24 ‘‘(G) The State entity will ensure that each 

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1 able, consistent with the dissemination require2 ments of the annual State report card, informa3 tion to help parents make informed decisions 

4 about the education options available to their 

5 children, including information for each school 

6 on— 

7 ‘‘(i) the educational program; 

8 ‘‘(ii) student support services; 

9 ‘‘(iii) annual performance and enroll10 ment data, disaggregated by the groups of 

11 students described in section 

12 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II); and 

13 ‘‘(iv) any other information the State 

14 requires all other public schools to report 

15 for purposes of section 1111(h)(1)(D). 

16 ‘‘(3) REQUESTS FOR WAIVERS.—A request and 

17 justification for waivers of any Federal statutory or 

18 regulatory provisions that the State entity believes 

19 are necessary for the successful operation of the 

20 charter schools that will receive funds under the 

21 State entity’s program under this section, and a de22 scription of any State or local rules, generally appli23 cable to public schools, that will be waived, or other24 wise not apply to such schools or, in the case of a 

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1 tion of how the State entity will work with the State 

2 to request necessary waivers where applicable. 

3 ‘‘(f) SELECTION CRITERIA; PRIORITY.— 

4 ‘‘(1) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The Secretary 

5 shall award grants to State entities under this sec6 tion on the basis of the quality of the applications 

7 submitted under subsection (e), after taking into 

8 consideration— 

9 ‘‘(A) the degree of flexibility afforded by 

10 the State’s public charter school law and how 

11 the State entity will work to maximize the flexi12 bility provided to charter schools under the law; 

13 ‘‘(B) the ambitiousness of the State enti14 ty’s objectives for the quality charter school 

15 program carried out under this section; 

16 ‘‘(C) the quality of the strategy for assess17 ing achievement of those objectives; 

18 ‘‘(D) the likelihood that the eligible appli19 cants receiving subgrants under the program 

20 will meet those objectives and improve edu21 cational results for students; 

22 ‘‘(E) the State entity’s plan to— 

23 ‘‘(i) adequately monitor the eligible 

24 applicants receiving subgrants under the 

25 State entity’s program; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) work with the authorized public 

2 chartering agencies involved to avoid dupli3 cation of work for the charter schools and 

4 authorized public chartering agencies; and 

5 ‘‘(iii) provide adequate technical as6 sistance and support for— 

7 ‘‘(I) the charter schools receiving 

8 funds under the State entity’s pro9 gram; and 

10 ‘‘(II) quality authorizing efforts 

11 in the State; and 

12 ‘‘(F) the State entity’s plan to solicit and 

13 consider input from parents and other members 

14 of the community on the implementation and 

15 operation of the charter schools in the State. 

16 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

17 section, the Secretary shall give priority to State en18 tities to the extent that they meet the following cri19 teria: 

20 ‘‘(A) In the case of a State entity located 

21 in a State that allows an entity other than a 

22 local educational agency to be an authorized 

23 public chartering agency, the State has a qual24 ity authorized public chartering agency that is 

25 an entity other than a local educational agency. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The State entity is located in a State 

2 that does not impose any limitation on the 

3 number or percentage of charter schools that 

4 may exist or the number or percentage of stu5 dents that may attend charter schools in the 

6 State. 

7 ‘‘(C) The State entity is located in a State 

8 that ensures equitable financing, as compared 

9 to traditional public schools, for charter schools 

10 and students in a prompt manner. 

11 ‘‘(D) The State entity is located in a State 

12 that uses charter schools and best practices 

13 from charter schools to help improve struggling 

14 schools and local educational agencies. 

15 ‘‘(E) The State entity partners with an or16 ganization that has a demonstrated record of 

17 success in developing management organiza18 tions to support the development of charter 

19 schools in the State. 

20 ‘‘(F) The State entity supports charter 

21 schools that support at-risk students through 

22 activities such as dropout prevention, dropout 

23 recovery, or comprehensive career counseling 

24 practices. 


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1 ‘‘(G) The State entity authorizes all char2 ter schools in the State to serve as school food 

3 authorities. 

4 ‘‘(H) The State entity has taken steps to 

5 ensure that all authorizing public chartering 

6 agencies implement best practices for charter 

7 school authorizing. 

8 ‘‘(g) LOCAL USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible applicant 

9 receiving a subgrant under this section shall use such 

10 funds to carry out activities related to opening and pre11 paring to operate a new charter school, a replicated, high12 quality charter school model, or an expanded, high-quality 

13 charter school, such as— 

14 ‘‘(1) preparing teachers and school leaders, in15 cluding through professional development; 

16 ‘‘(2) acquiring equipment, educational mate17 rials, and supplies; and 

18 ‘‘(3) necessary renovations and minor facilities 

19 repairs (excluding construction). 

20 ‘‘(h) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Each State enti21 ty receiving a grant under this section shall submit to the 

22 Secretary, at the end of the third year of the 5-year grant 

23 period and at the end of such grant period, a report on— 

24 ‘‘(1) the number of students served by each 

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1 ble, how many new students were served during each 

2 year of the subgrant period; 

3 ‘‘(2) the progress the State entity made toward 

4 meeting the priorities described in subsection (f)(2), 

5 as applicable; 

6 ‘‘(3) how the State entity met the objectives of 

7 the quality charter school program described in the 

8 State entity’s application under subsection (e), in9 cluding how the State entity met the objective of 

10 sharing best and promising practices described in 

11 subsection (e)(1)(A)(x) in areas such as instruction, 

12 professional development, curricula development, and 

13 operations between charter schools and other public 

14 schools, and the extent to which, if known, such 

15 practices were adopted and implemented by such 

16 other public schools; 

17 ‘‘(4) how the State entity complied with, and 

18 ensured that eligible applicants complied with, the 

19 assurances described in the State entity’s applica20 tion; 

21 ‘‘(5) how the State entity worked with author22 ized public chartering agencies, including how the 

23 agencies worked with the management company or 

24 leadership of the schools that received subgrants 

25 under this section; 


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1 ‘‘(6) the number of subgrants awarded under 

2 this section to carry out each of the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) The opening of new charter schools. 

4 ‘‘(B) The opening of replicated, high-qual5 ity charter school models. 

6 ‘‘(C) The opening of expanded, high-qual7 ity charter schools; and 

8 ‘‘(7) how the State entity has worked with char9 ter schools receiving funds under the State entity’s 

10 program to foster community involvement in the 

11 planning for and opening of such schools. 

12 ‘‘(i) STATE ENTITY DEFINED.—For purposes of this 

13 section, the term ‘State entity’ means— 

14 ‘‘(1) a State educational agency; 

15 ‘‘(2) a State charter school board; 

16 ‘‘(3) a Governor of a State; or 

17 ‘‘(4) a charter school support organization.’’. 

18 SEC. 6. FACILITIES FINANCING ASSISTANCE. 

19 Section 5204 (20 U.S.C. 7221c) is amended to read 

20 as follows: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 5204. FACILITIES FINANCING ASSISTANCE. 

22 ‘‘(a) GRANTS TO ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From the amount reserved 

24 under section 5202(b)(1), the Secretary shall not 

25 use less than 50 percent to award grants to eligible 


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1 entities that have the highest-quality applications 

2 approved under subsection (d), after considering the 

3 diversity of such applications, to demonstrate inno4 vative methods of assisting charter schools to ad5 dress the cost of acquiring, constructing, and ren6 ovating facilities by enhancing the availability of 

7 loans or bond financing. 

8 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—For pur9 poses of this section, the term ‘eligible entity’ 

10 means— 

11 ‘‘(A) a public entity, such as a State or 

12 local governmental entity; 

13 ‘‘(B) a private nonprofit entity; or 

14 ‘‘(C) a consortium of entities described in 

15 subparagraphs (A) and (B). 

16 ‘‘(b) GRANTEE SELECTION.—The Secretary shall 

17 evaluate each application submitted under subsection (d), 

18 and shall determine whether the application is sufficient 

19 to merit approval. 

20 ‘‘(c) GRANT CHARACTERISTICS.—Grants under sub21 section (a) shall be of a sufficient size, scope, and quality 

22 so as to ensure an effective demonstration of an innovative 

23 means of enhancing credit for the financing of charter 

24 school acquisition, construction, or renovation. 

25 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To receive a grant under 

2 subsection (a), an eligible entity shall submit to the 

3 Secretary an application in such form as the Sec4 retary may reasonably require. 

5 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—An application submitted 

6 under paragraph (1) shall contain— 

7 ‘‘(A) a statement identifying the activities 

8 proposed to be undertaken with funds received 

9 under subsection (a), including how the eligible 

10 entity will determine which charter schools will 

11 receive assistance, and how much and what 

12 types of assistance charter schools will receive; 

13 ‘‘(B) a description of the involvement of 

14 charter schools in the application’s development 

15 and the design of the proposed activities; 

16 ‘‘(C) a description of the eligible entity’s 

17 expertise in capital market financing; 

18 ‘‘(D) a description of how the proposed ac19 tivities will leverage the maximum amount of 

20 private-sector financing capital relative to the 

21 amount of public funding used and otherwise 

22 enhance credit available to charter schools, in23 cluding how the eligible entity will offer a com24 bination of rates and terms more favorable than 

25 the rates and terms that a charter school could 


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1 receive without assistance from the eligible enti2 ty under this section; 

3 ‘‘(E) a description of how the eligible enti4 ty possesses sufficient expertise in education to 

5 evaluate the likelihood of success of a charter 

6 school program for which facilities financing is 

7 sought; and 

8 ‘‘(F) in the case of an application sub9 mitted by a State governmental entity, a de10 scription of the actions that the entity has 

11 taken, or will take, to ensure that charter 

12 schools within the State receive the funding the 

13 charter schools need to have adequate facilities. 

14 ‘‘(e) CHARTER SCHOOL OBJECTIVES.—An eligible 

15 entity receiving a grant under this section shall use the 

16 funds deposited in the reserve account established under 

17 subsection (f) to assist one or more charter schools to ac18 cess private sector capital to accomplish one or more of 

19 the following objectives: 

20 ‘‘(1) The acquisition (by purchase, lease, dona21 tion, or otherwise) of an interest (including an inter22 est held by a third party for the benefit of a charter 

23 school) in improved or unimproved real property 

24 that is necessary to commence or continue the oper25 ation of a charter school. 


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1 ‘‘(2) The construction of new facilities, or the 

2 renovation, repair, or alteration of existing facilities, 

3 necessary to commence or continue the operation of 

4 a charter school. 

5 ‘‘(3) The predevelopment costs required to as6 sess sites for purposes of paragraph (1) or (2) and 

7 which are necessary to commence or continue the 

8 operation of a charter school. 

9 ‘‘(f) RESERVE ACCOUNT.— 

10 ‘‘(1) USE OF FUNDS.—To assist charter schools 

11 to accomplish the objectives described in subsection 

12 (e), an eligible entity receiving a grant under sub13 section (a) shall, in accordance with State and local 

14 law, directly or indirectly, alone or in collaboration 

15 with others, deposit the funds received under sub16 section (a) (other than funds used for administrative 

17 costs in accordance with subsection (g)) in a reserve 

18 account established and maintained by the eligible 

19 entity for this purpose. Amounts deposited in such 

20 account shall be used by the eligible entity for one 

21 or more of the following purposes: 

22 ‘‘(A) Guaranteeing, insuring, and rein23 suring bonds, notes, evidences of debt, loans, 

24 and interests therein, the proceeds of which are 


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1 used for an objective described in subsection 

2 (e). 

3 ‘‘(B) Guaranteeing and insuring leases of 

4 personal and real property for an objective de5 scribed in subsection (e). 

6 ‘‘(C) Facilitating financing by identifying 

7 potential lending sources, encouraging private 

8 lending, and other similar activities that di9 rectly promote lending to, or for the benefit of, 

10 charter schools. 

11 ‘‘(D) Facilitating the issuance of bonds by 

12 charter schools, or by other public entities for 

13 the benefit of charter schools, by providing 

14 technical, administrative, and other appropriate 

15 assistance (including the recruitment of bond 

16 counsel, underwriters, and potential investors 

17 and the consolidation of multiple charter school 

18 projects within a single bond issue). 

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

20 section and deposited in the reserve account estab21 lished under paragraph (1) shall be invested in obli22 gations issued or guaranteed by the United States or 

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

24 ‘‘(3) REINVESTMENT OF EARNINGS.—Any earn25 ings on funds received under subsection (a) shall be 


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1 deposited in the reserve account established under 

2 paragraph (1) and used in accordance with such 

3 paragraph. 

4 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—An 

5 eligible entity may use not more than 2.5 percent of the 

6 funds received under subsection (a) for the administrative 

7 costs of carrying out its responsibilities under this section 

8 (excluding subsection (k)). 

9 ‘‘(h) AUDITS AND REPORTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) FINANCIAL RECORD MAINTENANCE AND

11 AUDIT.—The financial records of each eligible entity 

12 receiving a grant under subsection (a) shall be main13 tained in accordance with generally accepted ac14 counting principles and shall be subject to an annual 

15 audit by an independent public accountant. 

16 ‘‘(2) REPORTS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) GRANTEE ANNUAL REPORTS.—Each 

18 eligible entity receiving a grant under sub19 section (a) annually shall submit to the Sec20 retary a report of its operations and activities 

21 under this section. 

22 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each annual report 

23 submitted under subparagraph (A) shall in24 clude— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a copy of the most recent finan2 cial statements, and any accompanying 

3 opinion on such statements, prepared by 

4 the independent public accountant review5 ing the financial records of the eligible en6 tity; 

7 ‘‘(ii) a copy of any report made on an 

8 audit of the financial records of the eligible 

9 entity that was conducted under paragraph 

10 (1) during the reporting period; 

11 ‘‘(iii) an evaluation by the eligible en12 tity of the effectiveness of its use of the 

13 Federal funds provided under subsection 

14 (a) in leveraging private funds; 

15 ‘‘(iv) a listing and description of the 

16 charter schools served during the reporting 

17 period, including the amount of funds used 

18 by each school, the type of project facili19 tated by the grant, and the type of assist20 ance provided to the charter schools; 

21 ‘‘(v) a description of the activities car22 ried out by the eligible entity to assist 

23 charter schools in meeting the objectives 

24 set forth in subsection (e); and 


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1 ‘‘(vi) a description of the characteris2 tics of lenders and other financial institu3 tions participating in the activities under4 taken by the eligible entity under this sec5 tion (excluding subsection (k)) during the 

6 reporting period. 

7 ‘‘(C) SECRETARIAL REPORT.—The Sec8 retary shall review the reports submitted under 

9 subparagraph (A) and shall provide a com10 prehensive annual report to Congress on the ac11 tivities conducted under this section (excluding 

12 subsection (k)). 

13 ‘‘(i) NO FULL FAITH AND CREDIT FOR GRANTEE

14 OBLIGATION.—No financial obligation of an eligible entity 

15 entered into pursuant to this section (such as an obliga16 tion under a guarantee, bond, note, evidence of debt, or 

17 loan) shall be an obligation of, or guaranteed in any re18 spect by, the United States. The full faith and credit of 

19 the United States is not pledged to the payment of funds 

20 which may be required to be paid under any obligation 

21 made by an eligible entity pursuant to any provision of 

22 this section. 

23 ‘‘(j) RECOVERY OF FUNDS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in accord2 ance with chapter 37 of title 31, United States 

3 Code, shall collect— 

4 ‘‘(A) all of the funds in a reserve account 

5 established by an eligible entity under sub6 section (f)(1) if the Secretary determines, not 

7 earlier than 2 years after the date on which the 

8 eligible entity first received funds under this 

9 section (excluding subsection (k)), that the eli10 gible entity has failed to make substantial 

11 progress in carrying out the purposes described 

12 in subsection (f)(1); or 

13 ‘‘(B) all or a portion of the funds in a re14 serve account established by an eligible entity 

15 under subsection (f)(1) if the Secretary deter16 mines that the eligible entity has permanently 

17 ceased to use all or a portion of the funds in 

18 such account to accomplish any purpose de19 scribed in subsection (f)(1). 

20 ‘‘(2) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITY.—The Secretary 

21 shall not exercise the authority provided in para22 graph (1) to collect from any eligible entity any 

23 funds that are being properly used to achieve one or 

24 more of the purposes described in subsection (f)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(3) PROCEDURES.—The provisions of sections 

2 451, 452, and 458 of the General Education Provi3 sions Act 20 U.S.C. 124, 1234a, 1234g shall apply 

4 to the recovery of funds under paragraph (1). 

5 ‘‘(4) CONSTRUCTION.—This subsection shall 

6 not be construed to impair or affect the authority of 

7 the Secretary to recover funds under part D of the 

8 General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1234 

9 et seq.). 

10 ‘‘(k) PER-PUPIL FACILITIES AID PROGRAM.— 

11 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF PER-PUPIL FACILITIES AID

12 PROGRAM.—In this subsection, the term ‘per-pupil 

13 facilities aid program’ means a program in which a 

14 State makes payments, on a per-pupil basis, to char15 ter schools to provide the schools with financing— 

16 ‘‘(A) that is dedicated solely for funding 

17 charter school facilities; or 

18 ‘‘(B) a portion of which is dedicated for 

19 funding charter school facilities. 

20 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—From the amount 

22 under section 5202(b)(1) remaining after the 

23 Secretary makes grants under subsection (a), 

24 the Secretary shall make grants, on a competi25 tive basis, to States to pay for the Federal 


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1 share of the cost of establishing or enhancing, 

2 and administering per-pupil facilities aid pro3 grams. 

4 ‘‘(B) PERIOD.—The Secretary shall award 

5 grants under this subsection for periods of not 

6 more than 5 years. 

7 ‘‘(C) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal 

8 share of the cost described in subparagraph (A) 

9 for a per-pupil facilities aid program shall be 

10 not more than— 

11 ‘‘(i) 90 percent of the cost, for the 

12 first fiscal year for which the program re13 ceives assistance under this subsection; 

14 ‘‘(ii) 80 percent in the second such 

15 year; 

16 ‘‘(iii) 60 percent in the third such 

17 year; 

18 ‘‘(iv) 40 percent in the fourth such 

19 year; and 

20 ‘‘(v) 20 percent in the fifth such year. 

21 ‘‘(D) STATE SHARE.—A State receiving a 

22 grant under this subsection may partner with 1 

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1 lishing or enhancing, and administering the per2 pupil facilities aid program. 

3 ‘‘(E) MULTIPLE GRANTS.—A State may 

4 receive more than 1 grant under this sub5 section, so long as the amount of such funds 

6 provided to charter schools increases with each 

7 successive grant. 

8 ‘‘(3) USE OF FUNDS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives 

10 a grant under this subsection shall use the 

11 funds made available through the grant to es12 tablish or enhance, and administer, a per-pupil 

13 facilities aid program for charter schools in the 

14 State of the applicant. 

15 ‘‘(B) EVALUATIONS; TECHNICAL ASSIST16 ANCE; DISSEMINATION.—From the amount 

17 made available to a State through a grant 

18 under this subsection for a fiscal year, the State 

19 may reserve not more than 5 percent to carry 

20 out evaluations, to provide technical assistance, 

21 and to disseminate information. 

22 ‘‘(C) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.— 

23 Funds made available under this subsection 

24 shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, 

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1 vide per pupil facilities aid programs, oper2 ations financing programs, or other programs, 

3 for charter schools. 

4 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—No 

6 State may be required to participate in a pro7 gram carried out under this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(B) STATE LAW.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro10 vided in clause (ii), to be eligible to receive 

11 a grant under this subsection, a State shall 

12 establish or enhance, and administer, a 

13 per-pupil facilities aid program for charter 

14 schools in the State, that— 

15 ‘‘(I) is specified in State law; and 

16 ‘‘(II) provides annual financing, 

17 on a per-pupil basis, for charter 

18 school facilities. 

19 ‘‘(ii) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwith20 standing clause (i), a State that is required 

21 under State law to provide its charter 

22 schools with access to adequate facility 

23 space, but which does not have a per-pupil 

24 facilities aid program for charter schools 

25 specified in State law, may be eligible to 


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1 receive a grant under this subsection if the 

2 State agrees to use the funds to develop a 

3 per-pupil facilities aid program consistent 

4 with the requirements of this subsection. 

5 ‘‘(5) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to receive a 

6 grant under this subsection, a State shall submit an 

7 application to the Secretary at such time, in such 

8 manner, and containing such information as the Sec9 retary may require.’’. 

10 SEC. 7. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES. 

11 Section 5205 (20 U.S.C. 7221d) is amended to read 

12 as follows: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 5205. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES. 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—From the amount reserved 

15 under section 5202(b)(2), the Secretary shall— 

16 ‘‘(1) use not less than 75 percent of such funds 

17 to award grants in accordance with subsection (b); 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(2) use not more than 25 percent of such 

20 funds to— 

21 ‘‘(A) provide technical assistance to State 

22 entities in awarding subgrants under section 

23 5203, and eligible entities and States receiving 

24 grants under section 5204; 

25 ‘‘(B) disseminate best practices; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) evaluate the impact of the charter 

2 school program, including the impact on stu3 dent achievement, carried out under this sub4 part. 

5 ‘‘(b) GRANTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 

7 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible applicants 

8 for the purpose of carrying out the activities de9 scribed in section 5202(a)(1), subparagraphs (A) 

10 through (C) of section 5203(a)(1), and section 

11 5203(g). 

12 ‘‘(2) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Except as oth13 erwise provided in this subsection, grants awarded 

14 under this subsection shall have the same terms and 

15 conditions as grants awarded to State entities under 

16 section 5203. 

17 ‘‘(3) CHARTER MANAGEMENT ORGANIZA18 TIONS.—The Secretary shall— 

19 ‘‘(A) use not less than 75 percent of the 

20 funds described in subsection (a)(1) to make 

21 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible appli22 cants described in paragraph (4)(B); and 

23 ‘‘(B) notwithstanding paragraphs (1)(A) 

24 and (2) of section 5203(f)— 


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1 ‘‘(i) award grants to eligible appli2 cants on the basis of the quality of the ap3 plications submitted under this subsection; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(ii) in awarding grants to eligible ap6 plicants described in paragraph (4)(B), 

7 take into consideration whether such an el8 igible applicant— 

9 ‘‘(I) demonstrates a high propor10 tion of high-quality charter schools 

11 within the network of the eligible ap12 plicant; 

13 ‘‘(II) demonstrates success in 

14 serving students who are educationally 

15 disadvantaged; 

16 ‘‘(III) does not have a significant 

17 proportion of charter schools that 

18 have been closed, had their charter re19 voked for compliance issues, or had 

20 their affiliation with such eligible ap21 plicant revoked; 

22 ‘‘(IV) has sufficient procedures in 

23 effect to ensure timely closure of low24 performing or financially-mismanaged 

25 charter schools and clear plans and 


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1 procedures in effect for the students 

2 in such schools to attend other high3 quality schools; and 

4 ‘‘(V) demonstrates success in 

5 working with schools identified for im6 provement by the State. 

7 ‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE APPLICANT DEFINED.—For pur8 poses of this subsection, the term ‘eligible applicant’ 

9 means an eligible applicant (as defined in section 

10 5210) that— 

11 ‘‘(A) desires to open a charter school in— 

12 ‘‘(i) a State that did not apply for a 

13 grant under section 5203; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) a State that did not receive a 

15 grant under section 5203; or 

16 ‘‘(B) is a charter management organiza17 tion. 

18 ‘‘(c) CONTRACTS AND GRANTS.—The Secretary may 

19 carry out any of the activities described in this section di20 rectly or through grants, contracts, or cooperative agree21 ments.’’. 

22 SEC. 8. RECORDS TRANSFER. 

23 Section 5208 (20 U.S.C. 7221g) is amended— 

24 (1) by inserting ‘‘as quickly as possible and’’ 

25 before ‘‘to the extent practicable’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘section 602’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘section 602(14)’’. 

3 SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. 

4 Section 5210 (20 U.S.C. 7221i) is amended— 

5 (1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol6 lows: 

7 ‘‘(1) CHARTER SCHOOL.—The term ‘charter 

8 school’ means a public school that— 

9 ‘‘(A) in accordance with a specific State 

10 statute authorizing the granting of charters to 

11 schools, is exempt from significant State or 

12 local rules that inhibit the flexible operation 

13 and management of public schools, but not 

14 from any rules relating to the other require15 ments of this paragraph; 

16 ‘‘(B) is created by a developer as a public 

17 school, or is adapted by a developer from an ex18 isting public school, and is operated under pub19 lic supervision and direction; 

20 ‘‘(C) operates in pursuit of a specific set of 

21 educational objectives determined by the 

22 school’s developer and agreed to by the author23 ized public chartering agency; 

24 ‘‘(D) provides a program of elementary or 

25 secondary education, or both; 


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1 ‘‘(E) is nonsectarian in its programs, ad2 missions policies, employment practices, and all 

3 other operations, and is not affiliated with a 

4 sectarian school or religious institution; 

5 ‘‘(F) does not charge tuition; 

6 ‘‘(G) complies with the Age Discrimination 

7 Act of 1975, title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 

8 1964, title IX of the Education Amendments of 

9 1972, section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

10 1973, part B of the Individuals with Disabil11 ities Education Act, the Americans with Dis12 abilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), 

13 and section 444 of the General Education Pro14 visions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232(g)) (commonly 

15 known as the ‘Family Education Rights and 

16 Privacy Act of 1974’); 

17 ‘‘(H) is a school to which parents choose to 

18 send their children, and admits students on the 

19 basis of a lottery if more students apply for ad20 mission than can be accommodated, except that 

21 in cases in which students who are enrolled in 

22 a charter school affiliated (such as by sharing 

23 a network) with another charter school, those 

24 students may be automatically enrolled in the 

25 next grade level at such other charter school, so 


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1 long as a lottery is used to fill seats created 

2 through regular attrition in student enrollment; 

3 ‘‘(I) agrees to comply with the same Fed4 eral and State audit requirements as do other 

5 elementary schools and secondary schools in the 

6 State, unless such State audit requirements are 

7 waived by the State; 

8 ‘‘(J) meets all applicable Federal, State, 

9 and local health and safety requirements; 

10 ‘‘(K) operates in accordance with State 

11 law; 

12 ‘‘(L) has a written performance contract 

13 with the authorized public chartering agency in 

14 the State that includes a description of how 

15 student performance will be measured in char16 ter schools pursuant to State assessments that 

17 are required of other schools and pursuant to 

18 any other assessments mutually agreeable to 

19 the authorized public chartering agency and the 

20 charter school; and 

21 ‘‘(M) may serve prekindergarten or post22 secondary students.’’; 

23 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through 

24 (4) as paragraphs (4) through (6), respectively; 


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1 (3) by inserting after paragraph (1), the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(2) CHARTER MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION.— 

4 The term ‘charter management organization’ means 

5 a not-for-profit organization that manages a network 

6 of charter schools linked by centralized support, op7 erations, and oversight. 

8 ‘‘(3) CHARTER SCHOOL SUPPORT ORGANIZA9 TION.—The term ‘charter school support organiza10 tion’ means a nonprofit, nongovernmental entity that 

11 is not an authorized public chartering agency, which 

12 provides on a statewide basis— 

13 ‘‘(A) assistance to developers during the 

14 planning, program design, and initial implemen15 tation of a charter school; and 

16 ‘‘(B) technical assistance to charter schools 

17 to operate such schools.’’; 

18 (4) in paragraph (5)(B), as so redesignated, by 

19 striking ‘‘under section 5203(d)(3)’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(7) EXPANDED, HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER

22 SCHOOL.—The term ‘expanded, high-quality charter 

23 school’ means a high-quality charter school that has 

24 either significantly increased its enrollment or added 

25 one or more grades to its school. 


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1 ‘‘(8) HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER SCHOOL.—The 

2 term ‘high-quality charter school’ means a charter 

3 school that— 

4 ‘‘(A) shows evidence of strong academic re5 sults, which may include strong academic 

6 growth as determined by a State; 

7 ‘‘(B) has no significant issues in the areas 

8 of student safety, operational and financial 

9 management, or statutory or regulatory compli10 ance; 

11 ‘‘(C) has demonstrated success in signifi12 cantly increasing student academic achieve13 ment, including graduation rates where applica14 ble, consistent with the requirements under title 

15 I, for all students served by the charter school; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(D) has demonstrated success in increas18 ing student academic achievement, including 

19 graduation rates where applicable, for the 

20 groups of students described in section 

21 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II), except that such dem22 onstration is not required in a case in which the 

23 number of students in a group is insufficient to 

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1 sults would reveal personally identifiable infor2 mation about an individual student. 

3 ‘‘(9) REPLICATED, HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER

4 SCHOOL MODEL.—The term ‘replicated, high-quality 

5 charter school model’ means a high-quality charter 

6 school that has opened a new campus under an ex7 isting charter or an additional charter if required or 

8 permitted by State law.’’. 

9 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

10 Section 5211 (20 U.S.C. 7221j) is amended to read 

11 as follows: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 5211. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

13 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

14 this subpart $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2015 and each 

15 of the 5 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 

16 SEC. 11. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

17 (a) REPEAL.—Subpart 2 of part B of title V (20 

18 U.S.C. 7223 et seq.) is repealed. 

19 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in 

20 section 2 is amended— 

21 (1) by striking the item relating to subpart 1 

22 of part B of title V and inserting the following: 

‘‘Subpart 1—Charter School Program’’; 

23 (2) by striking the item relating to section 5203 

24 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 5203. Grants to support high-quality charter schools.’’; 


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52 

HR 10 RFS

1 (3) by striking the item relating to section 5204 

2 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 5204. Facilities financing assistance.’’; 

3 and 

4 (4) by striking the items relating to subpart 2 

5 of part B of title V. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 9, 2014. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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