II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2304 

To amend the charter school program under the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act of 1965. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 7, 2014 

Mr. KIRK (for himself, Ms. LANDRIEU, Mr. ALEXANDER, Mr. BENNET, Mrs. 

FEINSTEIN, Mr. PAUL, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. VITTER, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. SCOTT, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. HATCH, Mr. CARPER, Mr. MCCONNELL, and Mr. CRUZ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 

and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Expanding Oppor5 tunity through Quality Charter Schools Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 

7 Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in 

8 this Act a section or other provision is amended or reVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:31 May 13, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2304.IS S2304

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1 pealed, such amendment or repeal shall be considered to 

2 be made to that section or other provision of the Elemen3 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

4 6301 et seq.). 

5 SEC. 3. PURPOSE. 

6 Section 5201 (20 U.S.C. 7221) is amended to read 

7 as follows: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 5201. PURPOSE. 

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

10 ‘‘(1) improve the United States education sys11 tem and educational opportunities for all individuals 

12 in the United States by supporting innovation in 

13 public education in public school settings that pre14 pare students to compete in, and contribute to, the 

15 global economy; 

16 ‘‘(2) provide financial assistance for the plan17 ning, program design, and initial implementation of 

18 charter schools; 

19 ‘‘(3) increase the number of high-quality char20 ter schools available to students across the Nation; 

21 ‘‘(4) evaluate the impact of such schools on stu22 dent achievement, families, and communities, and 

23 share best practices among charter schools and other 

24 public schools; 


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

2 charter schools for facilities financing in an amount 

3 more nearly commensurate to the amount the States 

4 have typically provided for traditional public schools; 

5 ‘‘(6) expand opportunities for students with dis6 abilities, students who are limited English proficient, 

7 and other traditionally underserved students to at8 tend charter schools and meet challenging State aca9 demic achievement standards; and 

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

11 school authorizing process in order to improve per12 formance management, including transparency, mon13 itoring, and evaluation of such schools.’’. 

14 SEC. 4. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 

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

16 as follows: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 5202. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to 

19 carry out a charter school program that supports charter 

20 schools that serve elementary school and secondary school 

21 students by— 

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

23 the replication of high-quality charter schools, and 

24 the expansion of high-quality charter schools; 


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1 ‘‘(2) assisting charter schools in accessing cred2 it to acquire and renovate facilities for school use; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(3) carrying out national activities to sup5 port— 

6 ‘‘(A) the startup of charter schools, the 

7 replication of high-quality charter schools, and 

8 the expansion of high-quality charter schools; 

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

10 charter schools for all schools; 

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

12 charter school program on schools participating 

13 in such program; and 

14 ‘‘(D) stronger charter school authorizing. 

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

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

17 Secretary shall— 

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

19 school facilities assistance under section 5204; 

20 ‘‘(2) reserve not less than 25 percent to carry 

21 out national activities under section 5205; and 

22 ‘‘(3) use the remaining amount after the res23 ervations under paragraphs (1) and (2) to carry out 

24 section 5203. 


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1 ‘‘(c) PRIOR GRANTS AND SUBGRANTS.—The recipi2 ent of a grant or subgrant under this subpart, as such 

3 subpart was in effect on the day before the date of enact4 ment of the Expanding Opportunity through Quality 

5 Charter Schools Act, shall continue to receive funds in ac6 cordance with the terms and conditions of such grant or 

7 subgrant.’’. 

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

9 SCHOOLS. 

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

11 as follows: 

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

13 SCHOOLS. 

14 ‘‘(a) STATE ENTITY DEFINED.—For purposes of this 

15 section, the term ‘State entity’ means— 

16 ‘‘(1) a State educational agency; 

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

18 ‘‘(3) a Governor of a State; or 

19 ‘‘(4) a charter school support organization. 

20 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From the amount 

21 available under section 5202(b)(3), the Secretary shall 

22 award, on a competitive basis, grants to State entities hav23 ing applications approved under subsection (f) to enable 

24 such entities to— 

25 ‘‘(1) award subgrants to eligible applicants— 


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1 ‘‘(A) to open new charter schools; 

2 ‘‘(B) to replicate high-quality charter 

3 schools; or 

4 ‘‘(C) to expand high-quality charter 

5 schools; and 

6 ‘‘(2) provide technical assistance to eligible ap7 plicants and authorized public chartering agencies in 

8 carrying out the activities described in paragraph (1) 

9 and work with authorized public chartering agencies 

10 in the State to improve authorizing quality. 

11 ‘‘(c) STATE ENTITY USES OF FUNDS.— 

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

13 grant under this section shall— 

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

15 grant funds to award subgrants to eligible ap16 plicants, in accordance with the quality charter 

17 school program described in the entity’s appli18 cation pursuant to subsection (f), for the pur19 poses described in subparagraphs (A) through 

20 (C) of subsection (b)(1); 

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

22 such funds to carry out the activities described 

23 in subsection (b)(2); and 

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

25 such funds for administrative costs, which may 


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1 include the administrative costs of providing 

2 technical assistance. 

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

4 may use a grant received under this section to carry 

5 out the activities described in subparagraph (A) of 

6 paragraph (1) directly or through grants, contracts, 

7 or cooperative agreements. 

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

9 this Act shall prohibit the Secretary from awarding 

10 grants to State entities, or State entities from 

11 awarding subgrants to eligible applicants, that use a 

12 weighted lottery, or an equivalent lottery mechanism, 

13 to give better chances for school admission to all or 

14 a subset of educationally disadvantaged students 

15 if— 

16 ‘‘(A) the use of a weighted lottery in favor 

17 of such students is not prohibited by State law, 

18 and such State law is consistent with the laws 

19 described in subparagraph (G) of section 

20 5210(2); and 

21 ‘‘(B) such weighted lottery is not used for 

22 the purpose of creating schools exclusively to 

23 serve a particular subset of students. 

24 ‘‘(d) PROGRAM PERIODS; PEER REVIEW; DISTRIBU25 TION OF SUBGRANTS; WAIVERS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) PROGRAM PERIODS.— 

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

3 Secretary to a State entity under this section 

4 shall be for a period of not more than 3 years, 

5 and may be renewed by the Secretary for 1 ad6 ditional 2-year period. 

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

8 by a State entity under this section— 

9 ‘‘(i) shall be for a period of not more 

10 than 3 years, of which an eligible applicant 

11 may use not more than 18 months for 

12 planning and program design; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) may be renewed by the State en14 tity for 1 additional 2-year period. 

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

16 State entity awarding subgrants under this section, 

17 shall use a peer review process to review applications 

18 for assistance under this section. 

19 ‘‘(3) DISTRIBUTION OF SUBGRANTS.—Each 

20 State entity awarding subgrants under this section 

21 shall award subgrants in a manner that, to the ex22 tent practicable and applicable, ensures that such 

23 subgrants— 


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1 ‘‘(A) prioritize eligible applicants that plan 

2 to serve a significant number of students from 

3 low-income families; 

4 ‘‘(B) are distributed throughout different 

5 areas, including urban, suburban, and rural 

6 areas; and 

7 ‘‘(C) will assist charter schools rep8 resenting a variety of educational approaches. 

9 ‘‘(4) WAIVERS.—The Secretary may waive any 

10 statutory or regulatory requirement over which the 

11 Secretary exercises administrative authority, except 

12 any such requirement relating to the elements of a 

13 charter school described in section 5210(2), if— 

14 ‘‘(A) the waiver is requested in an ap15 proved application under this section; and 

16 ‘‘(B) the Secretary determines that grant17 ing such a waiver will promote the purposes of 

18 this subpart. 

19 ‘‘(e) LIMITATIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) GRANTS.—A State entity may not receive 

21 more than 1 grant under this section at a time. 

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

23 not receive more than 1 subgrant under this section 

24 for each individual charter school for each grant pe25 riod or renewal period, unless the eligible applicant 


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1 demonstrates to the State entity that the charter 

2 school has demonstrated a strong track record of 

3 positive results over the course of the grant period 

4 regarding the elements described in subparagraphs 

5 (A) and (D) of section 5210(8). 

6 ‘‘(f) APPLICATIONS.—A State entity desiring to re7 ceive a grant under this section shall submit an application 

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

9 Secretary may require. The application shall include the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘(1) DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM.—A descrip12 tion of the State entity’s objectives in running a 

13 quality charter school program under this section 

14 and how the objectives of the program will be car15 ried out, including— 

16 ‘‘(A) a description of how the State entity 

17 will— 

18 ‘‘(i) support the opening of new char19 ter schools and, if applicable, the replica20 tion of high-quality charter schools and the 

21 expansion of high-quality charter schools, 

22 and the proposed number of charter 

23 schools to be opened, replicated, or ex24 panded under the State entity’s program; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) inform eligible charter schools, 

2 developers, and authorized public char3 tering agencies of the availability of funds 

4 under the program; 

5 ‘‘(iii) work with eligible applicants to 

6 ensure that the eligible applicants access 

7 all Federal funds that such applicants are 

8 eligible to receive, and help the charter 

9 schools supported by such applicants and 

10 the students attending those charter 

11 schools— 

12 ‘‘(I) participate in the Federal 

13 programs in which the schools and 

14 students are eligible to participate; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(II) receive the commensurate 

17 share of Federal funds the schools 

18 and students are eligible to receive 

19 under such programs; 

20 ‘‘(iv) in the case of a State entity that 

21 is not a State educational agency— 

22 ‘‘(I) work with the State edu23 cational agency and the charter 

24 schools in the State to maximize char25 ter school participation in Federal and 


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1 State programs for charter schools; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(II) work with the State edu4 cational agency to operate the State 

5 entity’s program under this section, if 

6 applicable; 

7 ‘‘(v) ensure each eligible applicant 

8 that receives a subgrant under the State 

9 entity’s program— 

10 ‘‘(I) is opening or expanding 

11 schools that meet the definition of a 

12 charter school under section 5210(2); 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(II) is prepared to continue to 

15 operate such charter schools once the 

16 subgrant funds under this section are 

17 no longer available; 

18 ‘‘(vi) support charter schools in local 

19 educational agencies with large numbers of 

20 schools that have been identified by the 

21 State for improvement; 

22 ‘‘(vii) work with charter schools to 

23 promote inclusion of all students and sup24 port all students upon enrollment in order 


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1 to promote retention of students in the 

2 school; 

3 ‘‘(viii) work with charter schools on 

4 recruitment practices, including efforts to 

5 engage groups that may otherwise have 

6 limited opportunities to attend charter 

7 schools; 

8 ‘‘(ix) share best and promising prac9 tices among charter schools and other pub10 lic schools; 

11 ‘‘(x) ensure that charter schools re12 ceiving funds under the State entity’s pro13 gram meet the educational needs of their 

14 students, including students with disabil15 ities and students who are limited English 

16 proficient; and 

17 ‘‘(xi) support efforts to increase char18 ter school quality initiatives, including 

19 meeting the quality authorizing elements 

20 described in paragraph (2)(D); 

21 ‘‘(B) a description of how the State will ac22 tively monitor and hold authorized public char23 tering agencies accountable to ensure high-qual24 ity authorizing activity, including by estab25 lishing authorizing standards and by approving, 


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1 re-approving, and revoking the authority of an 

2 authorized public chartering agency based on 

3 the performance of the charter schools author4 ized by such agency in the areas of student 

5 achievement, student safety, financial manage6 ment, and compliance with all applicable stat7 utes; 

8 ‘‘(C) a description of the extent to which 

9 the State entity— 

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

11 priorities described in subsection (g)(2); 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(ii) is working to develop or 

14 strengthen a cohesive statewide system to 

15 support the opening of new charter schools 

16 and, if applicable, the replication of high17 quality charter schools and the expansion 

18 of high-quality charter schools; 

19 ‘‘(D) a description of how the State entity 

20 will award subgrants, on a competitive basis, in21 cluding— 

22 ‘‘(i) a description of the application 

23 each eligible applicant desiring to receive a 

24 subgrant will be required to submit, which 

25 application shall include— 


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1 ‘‘(I) a description of the roles 

2 and responsibilities of eligible appli3 cants and of any charter management 

4 organizations or other organizations 

5 with which the eligible applicant will 

6 partner to open charter schools, in7 cluding administrative and contractual 

8 roles and responsibilities; 

9 ‘‘(II) a description of the quality 

10 controls agreed to between the eligible 

11 applicant and the authorized public 

12 chartering agency involved, such as a 

13 contract or performance agreement, 

14 and how a school’s performance on 

15 the State’s academic accountability 

16 system and impact on student 

17 achievement, which may include stu18 dent growth, will be primary factors 

19 for renewal or revocation of the 

20 school’s charter; and 

21 ‘‘(III) a description of how the 

22 autonomy and flexibility granted to 

23 the charter school are consistent with 

24 the definition of a charter school in 

25 section 5210(2); and 


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1 ‘‘(IV) a description of the 

2 planned activities and expenditures of 

3 subgrant funds for purposes of open4 ing a new charter school, replicating a 

5 high-quality charter school, or expand6 ing a high-quality charter school, and 

7 how the charter school will maintain 

8 financial sustainability after the end 

9 of the subgrant period; and 

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

11 entity will review applications from eligible 

12 applicants; 

13 ‘‘(E) in the case of a State entity that 

14 partners with an outside organization to carry 

15 out the State entity’s quality charter school 

16 program, in whole or in part, a description of 

17 the roles and responsibilities of the partner; and 

18 ‘‘(F) a description of how the State entity 

19 will help the charter schools receiving funds 

20 under the State entity’s program address the 

21 transportation needs of the schools’ students. 

22 ‘‘(2) ASSURANCES.—Assurances that— 

23 ‘‘(A) each charter school receiving funds 

24 through the State entity’s grant program will 

25 have a high degree of autonomy over budget 


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1 and operations, including autonomy over per2 sonnel decisions; 

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

4 schools in meeting the educational needs of 

5 their students, as described in paragraph 

6 (1)(A)(x); 

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

8 authorized public chartering agency of any 

9 charter school that receives funds under the en10 tity’s program— 

11 ‘‘(i) ensures that each charter school 

12 under the authority of such agency is 

13 meeting the requirements of this Act, part 

14 B of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu15 cation Act, title VI of the Civil Rights Act 

16 of 1964, and section 504 of the Rehabilita17 tion Act of 1973; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) adequately monitors and provides 

19 adequate technical assistance to each char20 ter school under the authority of such 

21 agency in recruiting, enrolling, and meet22 ing the needs of all students, including stu23 dents with disabilities and students who 

24 are limited English proficient; 


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1 ‘‘(D) the State entity will promote quality 

2 authorizing, such as through providing technical 

3 assistance, to support all authorized public 

4 chartering agencies in the State in improving 

5 the monitoring of the charter schools authorized 

6 by such agency, including by— 

7 ‘‘(i) using annual performance data, 

8 which may include graduation rates and 

9 student academic growth data, as appro10 priate, to measure a school’s progress to11 ward becoming a high-quality charter 

12 school; 

13 ‘‘(ii) reviewing the schools’ inde14 pendent, annual audits of financial state15 ments conducted in accordance with gen16 erally accepted accounting principles, and 

17 ensuring any such audits are publically re18 ported; and 

19 ‘‘(iii) holding charter schools account20 able to the academic, financial, and oper21 ational quality controls agreed to between 

22 the charter school and the authorized pub23 lic chartering agency involved, such as 

24 through renewal, non-renewal, or revoca25 tion of the school’s charter; and 


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1 ‘‘(E) the State entity will ensure that each 

2 charter school in the State makes publicly avail3 able, consistent with the dissemination require4 ments of the annual State report card, informa5 tion to help parents make informed decisions 

6 about the education options available to their 

7 children, including information on the edu8 cational program, student support services, and 

9 annual performance and enrollment data for the 

10 groups of students described in section 

11 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II). 

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

13 justification for waivers of any Federal statutory or 

14 regulatory provisions that the State entity believes 

15 are necessary for the successful operation of the 

16 charter schools that will receive funds under the en17 tity’s program under this section, and a description 

18 of any State or local rules, generally applicable to 

19 public schools, that will be waived, or otherwise not 

20 apply, to such schools or, in the case of a State enti21 ty defined in subsection (a)(4), a description of how 

22 the State entity will work with the State to request 

23 necessary waivers, if applicable. 

24 ‘‘(g) SELECTION CRITERIA; PRIORITY.— 


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

2 shall award grants to State entities under this sec3 tion on the basis of the quality of the applications 

4 submitted under subsection (f), after taking into 

5 consideration— 

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

7 the State’s public charter school law and how 

8 the State entity will work to maximize the flexi9 bility provided to charter schools under the law; 

10 ‘‘(B) the proposed number of new charter 

11 schools to be opened, and, if applicable, the 

12 number of high-quality charter schools to be 

13 replicated or expanded under the program, and 

14 the number of new students to be served by 

15 such schools; 

16 ‘‘(C) the likelihood that the schools opened, 

17 replicated, or expanded by eligible applicants re18 ceiving subgrant funds will increase the aca19 demic achievement of the school’s students and 

20 progress toward becoming high-quality charter 

21 schools; and 

22 ‘‘(D) the quality of the State entity’s plan 

23 to— 


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1 ‘‘(i) monitor the eligible applicants re2 ceiving subgrants under the State entity’s 

3 program; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) provide technical assistance and 

5 support for— 

6 ‘‘(I) the eligible applicants receiv7 ing subgrants under the State entity’s 

8 program; and 

9 ‘‘(II) quality authorizing efforts 

10 in the State. 

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

12 section, the Secretary shall give priority to a State 

13 entity to the extent that the entity meets the fol14 lowing criteria: 

15 ‘‘(A) The State entity is located in a State 

16 that— 

17 ‘‘(i) allows at least one entity that is 

18 not a local educational agency to be an au19 thorized public chartering agency for each 

20 developer seeking to open a charter school 

21 in the State; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a State in which 

23 local educational agencies are the only au24 thorized public chartering agencies, the 


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1 State has an appeals process for the denial 

2 of an application for a charter school. 

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

4 that ensures that charter schools receive equi5 table financing, as compared to traditional pub6 lic schools, in a prompt manner. 

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

8 that provides charter schools one or more of the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(i) Funding for facilities. 

11 ‘‘(ii) Assistance with facilities acquisi12 tion. 

13 ‘‘(iii) Access to public facilities. 

14 ‘‘(iv) The ability to share in bonds or 

15 mill levies. 

16 ‘‘(v) The right of first refusal to pur17 chase public school buildings. 

18 ‘‘(vi) Low- or no-cost leasing privi19 leges. 

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

21 that uses best practices from charter schools to 

22 help improve struggling schools and local edu23 cational agencies. 

24 ‘‘(E) The State entity supports charter 

25 schools that support at-risk students through 


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1 activities such as dropout prevention or dropout 

2 recovery. 

3 ‘‘(F) The State entity ensures that each 

4 charter school has a high degree of autonomy 

5 over the charter school’s budget and operations, 

6 including autonomy over personnel decisions. 

7 ‘‘(G) The State entity has taken steps to 

8 ensure that all authorizing public chartering 

9 agencies implement best practices for charter 

10 school authorizing. 

11 ‘‘(h) LOCAL USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible applicant 

12 receiving a subgrant under this section shall use such 

13 funds to carry out activities related to opening a new char14 ter school, replicating a high-quality charter school, or ex15 panding a high-quality charter school, which may in16 clude— 

17 ‘‘(1) supporting the acquisition, expansion, or 

18 preparation of a charter school building to meet in19 creasing enrollment needs, including financing the 

20 development of a new building and ensuring that a 

21 school building complies with applicable statutes and 

22 regulations; 

23 ‘‘(2) paying costs associated with hiring addi24 tional teachers to serve additional students; 


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1 ‘‘(3) providing transportation to students to 

2 and from the charter school; 

3 ‘‘(4) providing instructional materials, imple4 menting teacher and principal professional develop5 ment programs, and hiring additional non-teaching 

6 staff; and 

7 ‘‘(5) supporting any necessary activities that as8 sist the charter school in carrying out the purposes 

9 of this section, such as preparing individuals to serve 

10 as members of the charter school’s board. 

11 ‘‘(i) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Each State entity 

12 receiving a grant under this section shall submit to the 

13 Secretary, at the end of the third year of the grant period 

14 and at the end of any renewal period, a report that in15 cludes the following: 

16 ‘‘(1) The number of students served by each 

17 subgrant awarded under this section and, if applica18 ble, the number of new students served during each 

19 year of the subgrant period. 

20 ‘‘(2) The number and amount of subgrants 

21 awarded under this section to carry out each of the 

22 following: 

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

24 ‘‘(B) The replication of high-quality char25 ter schools. 


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1 ‘‘(C) The expansion of high-quality charter 

2 schools. 

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

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

5 as applicable. 

6 ‘‘(4) A description of— 

7 ‘‘(A) how the State entity complied with, 

8 and ensured that eligible applicants complied 

9 with, the assurances described in the State enti10 ty’s application; and 

11 ‘‘(B) how the State entity worked with au12 thorized public chartering agencies, including 

13 how the agencies worked with the management 

14 company or leadership of the schools that re15 ceived subgrant funds, if applicable.’’. 

16 SEC. 6. FACILITIES FINANCING ASSISTANCE. 

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

18 as follows: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 5204. FACILITIES FINANCING ASSISTANCE. 

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

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

22 under section 5202(b)(1), the Secretary shall use 

23 not less than 50 percent to award not less than 3 

24 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities 

25 that have the highest-quality applications approved 


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1 under subsection (d) to demonstrate innovative 

2 methods of assisting charter schools to address the 

3 cost of acquiring, constructing, and renovating facili4 ties by enhancing the availability of loans or bond fi5 nancing. 

6 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—For pur7 poses of this section, the term ‘eligible entity’ 

8 means— 

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

10 local governmental entity; 

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

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

13 subparagraphs (A) and (B). 

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

15 evaluate each application submitted under subsection (d), 

16 and shall determine whether the application is sufficient 

17 to merit approval. 

18 ‘‘(c) GRANT CHARACTERISTICS.—Grants under sub19 section (a) shall be of a sufficient size, scope, and quality 

20 so as to ensure an effective demonstration of an innovative 

21 means of enhancing credit for the financing of charter 

22 school acquisition, construction, or renovation. 

23 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.— 

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

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


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1 Secretary an application in such form as the Sec2 retary may reasonably require. 

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

4 under paragraph (1) shall contain— 

5 ‘‘(A) a statement identifying the activities 

6 proposed to be undertaken with funds received 

7 under subsection (a), including how the eligible 

8 entity will determine which charter schools will 

9 receive assistance, and how much and what 

10 types of assistance charter schools will receive; 

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

12 charter schools in the application’s development 

13 and the design of the proposed activities; 

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

15 expertise in capital market financing; 

16 ‘‘(D) a description of how the proposed ac17 tivities will leverage the maximum amount of 

18 private-sector financing capital relative to the 

19 amount of government funding used and other20 wise enhance credit available to charter schools, 

21 including how the entity will offer a combina22 tion of rates and terms more favorable than the 

23 rates and terms that a charter school could re24 ceive without assistance from the entity under 

25 this section; 


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1 ‘‘(E) a description of how the eligible enti2 ty possesses sufficient expertise in education to 

3 evaluate the likelihood of success of a charter 

4 school program for which facilities financing is 

5 sought; and 

6 ‘‘(F) in the case of an application sub7 mitted by a State governmental entity, a de8 scription of the actions that the entity has 

9 taken, or will take, to ensure that charter 

10 schools within the State receive the funding the 

11 charter schools need to have adequate facilities. 

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

13 entity receiving a grant under this section shall use the 

14 funds deposited in the reserve account established under 

15 subsection (f) to assist one or more charter schools in ac16 cessing private sector capital to accomplish one or more 

17 of the following objectives: 

18 ‘‘(1) The acquisition (by purchase, lease, dona19 tion, or otherwise) of an interest (including an inter20 est held by a third party for the benefit of a charter 

21 school) in improved or unimproved real property 

22 that is necessary to commence or continue the oper23 ation of a charter school. 

24 ‘‘(2) The construction of new facilities, includ25 ing predevelopment costs, or the renovation, repair, 


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1 or alteration of existing facilities, necessary to com2 mence or continue the operation of a charter school. 

3 ‘‘(3) The predevelopment costs required to as4 sess sites for purposes of paragraph (1) or (2) and 

5 which are necessary to commence or continue the 

6 operation of a charter school. 

7 ‘‘(f) RESERVE ACCOUNT.— 

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

9 to accomplish the objectives described in subsection 

10 (e), an eligible entity receiving a grant under sub11 section (a) shall, in accordance with State and local 

12 law, directly or indirectly, alone or in collaboration 

13 with others, deposit the funds received under sub14 section (a) (other than funds used for administrative 

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

16 account established and maintained by the eligible 

17 entity for this purpose. Amounts deposited in such 

18 account shall be used by the eligible entity for one 

19 or more of the following purposes: 

20 ‘‘(A) Guaranteeing, insuring, and rein21 suring bonds, notes, evidences of debt, loans, 

22 and interests therein, the proceeds of which are 

23 used for an objective described in subsection 

24 (e). 


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1 ‘‘(B) Guaranteeing and insuring leases of 

2 personal and real property for an objective de3 scribed in such subsection. 

4 ‘‘(C) Facilitating financing by identifying 

5 potential lending sources, encouraging private 

6 lending, and other similar activities that di7 rectly promote lending to, or for the benefit of, 

8 charter schools. 

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

10 charter schools, or by other public entities for 

11 the benefit of charter schools, by providing 

12 technical, administrative, and other appropriate 

13 assistance (including the recruitment of bond 

14 counsel, underwriters, and potential investors 

15 and the consolidation of multiple charter school 

16 projects within a single bond issue). 

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

18 section and deposited in the reserve account estab19 lished under paragraph (1) shall be invested in obli20 gations issued or guaranteed by the United States or 

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

22 ‘‘(3) REINVESTMENT OF EARNINGS.—Any earn23 ings on funds received under subsection (a) shall be 

24 deposited in the reserve account established under 


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1 paragraph (1) and used in accordance with such 

2 subsection. 

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

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

5 funds received under subsection (a) for the administrative 

6 costs of carrying out its responsibilities under this section 

7 (excluding subsection (k)). 

8 ‘‘(h) AUDITS AND REPORTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) FINANCIAL RECORD MAINTENANCE AND

10 AUDIT.—The financial records of each eligible entity 

11 receiving a grant under subsection (a) shall be main12 tained in accordance with generally accepted ac13 counting principles and shall be subject to an annual 

14 audit by an independent public accountant. 

15 ‘‘(2) REPORTS.— 

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

17 eligible entity receiving a grant under sub18 section (a) annually shall submit to the Sec19 retary a report of the entity’s operations and 

20 activities under this section. 

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

22 submitted under subparagraph (A) shall in23 clude— 

24 ‘‘(i) a copy of the most recent finan25 cial statements, and any accompanying 


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1 opinion on such statements, prepared by 

2 the independent public accountant review3 ing the financial records of the eligible en4 tity; 

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

6 audit of the financial records of the eligible 

7 entity that was conducted under paragraph 

8 (1) during the reporting period; 

9 ‘‘(iii) an evaluation by the eligible en10 tity of the effectiveness of its use of the 

11 Federal funds provided under subsection 

12 (a) in leveraging private funds; 

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

14 charter schools served during the reporting 

15 period, including the amount of funds used 

16 by each school, the type of project facili17 tated by the grant, and the type of assist18 ance provided to the charter schools; 

19 ‘‘(v) a description of the activities car20 ried out by the eligible entity to assist 

21 charter schools in meeting the objectives 

22 set forth in subsection (e); and 

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1 taken by the eligible entity under this sec2 tion (excluding subsection (k)) during the 

3 reporting period. 

4 ‘‘(C) SECRETARIAL REPORT.—The Sec5 retary shall review the reports submitted under 

6 subparagraph (A) and shall provide a com7 prehensive annual report to Congress on the ac8 tivities conducted under this section (excluding 

9 subsection (k)). 

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

11 OBLIGATION.—No financial obligation of an eligible entity 

12 entered into pursuant to this section (such as an obliga13 tion under a guarantee, bond, note, evidence of debt, or 

14 loan) shall be an obligation of, or guaranteed in any re15 spect by, the United States. The full faith and credit of 

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

17 which may be required to be paid under any obligation 

18 made by an eligible entity pursuant to any provision of 

19 this section. 

20 ‘‘(j) RECOVERY OF FUNDS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in accord22 ance with chapter 37 of title 31, United States 

23 Code, shall collect— 

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

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1 section (f)(1) if the Secretary determines, not 

2 earlier than 2 years after the date on which the 

3 eligible entity first received funds under this 

4 section (excluding subsection (k)), that the eli5 gible entity has failed to make substantial 

6 progress in carrying out the purposes described 

7 in subsection (f)(1); or 

8 ‘‘(B) all or a portion of the funds in a re9 serve account established by an eligible entity 

10 under subsection (f)(1) if the Secretary deter11 mines that the eligible entity has permanently 

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

13 such account to accomplish any purpose de14 scribed in such subsection. 

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

16 shall not exercise the authority provided in para17 graph (1) to collect from any eligible entity any 

18 funds that are being properly used to achieve one or 

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

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

21 451, 452, and 458 of the General Education Provi22 sions Act shall apply to the recovery of funds under 

23 paragraph (1). 

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

25 not be construed to impair or affect the authority of 


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1 the Secretary to recover funds under part D of the 

2 General Education Provisions Act. 

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

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

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

6 facilities aid program’ means a program in which a 

7 State makes payments, on a per-pupil basis, to char8 ter schools to provide the schools with financing— 

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

10 charter school facilities; or 

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

12 funding charter school facilities. 

13 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—From the amount re15 served under section 5202(b)(1) and remaining 

16 after the Secretary makes grants under sub17 section (a), the Secretary shall make grants, on 

18 a competitive basis, to States to pay for the 

19 Federal share of the cost of establishing or en20 hancing, and administering, per-pupil facilities 

21 aid programs. 

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

23 grants under this subsection for periods of not 

24 more than 5 years. 


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1 ‘‘(C) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal 

2 share of the cost described in subparagraph (A) 

3 for a per-pupil facilities aid program shall be 

4 not more than— 

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

6 first fiscal year for which the program re7 ceives assistance under this subsection; 

8 ‘‘(ii) 80 percent for the second such 

9 year; 

10 ‘‘(iii) 60 percent for the third such 

11 year; 

12 ‘‘(iv) 40 percent for the fourth such 

13 year; and 

14 ‘‘(v) 20 percent for the fifth such 

15 year. 

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

17 grant under this subsection may partner with 1 

18 or more organizations to provide up to 50 per19 cent of the State share of the cost of estab20 lishing or enhancing, and administering, the 

21 per-pupil facilities aid program. 

22 ‘‘(E) MULTIPLE GRANTS.—A State may 

23 receive more than 1 grant under this sub24 section, so long as the amount of such grant 


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1 funds provided to charter schools increases with 

2 each successive grant. 

3 ‘‘(3) USE OF FUNDS.— 

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

5 a grant under this subsection shall use the 

6 funds made available through the grant to es7 tablish or enhance, and administer, a per-pupil 

8 facilities aid program for charter schools in the 

9 State. 

10 ‘‘(B) EVALUATIONS; TECHNICAL ASSIST11 ANCE; DISSEMINATION.—From the amount 

12 made available to a State through a grant 

13 under this subsection for a fiscal year, the State 

14 may reserve not more than 5 percent to carry 

15 out evaluations, to provide technical assistance, 

16 and to disseminate information. 

17 ‘‘(C) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.— 

18 Funds made available under this subsection 

19 shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, 

20 State and local public funds expended to pro21 vide per-pupil facilities aid programs, operations 

22 financing programs, or other programs, for 

23 charter schools. 

24 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—No 

2 State may be required to participate in a pro3 gram carried out under this subsection. 

4 ‘‘(B) STATE LAW.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to 

6 receive a grant under this subsection, a 

7 State shall establish or enhance, and ad8 minister, a per-pupil facilities aid program 

9 for charter schools in the State, that— 

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

11 ‘‘(II) provides annual financing, 

12 on a per-pupil basis, for charter 

13 school facilities. 

14 ‘‘(ii) SPECIAL RULE.—A State that is 

15 required under State law to provide char16 ter schools in the State with access to ade17 quate facility space may be eligible to re18 ceive a grant under this subsection if the 

19 State agrees to use the funds to develop a 

20 per-pupil facilities aid program consistent 

21 with the requirements of this subsection. 

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

23 grant under this subsection, a State shall submit an 

24 application to the Secretary at such time, in such 


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1 manner, and containing such information as the Sec2 retary may require.’’. 

3 SEC. 7. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES. 

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

5 as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 5205. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES. 

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

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

9 ‘‘(1) use not less than 80 percent of such funds 

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

11 and 

12 ‘‘(2) use the remainder of such funds to— 

13 ‘‘(A) disseminate technical assistance to 

14 State entities in awarding subgrants under sec15 tion 5203(b)(1)(A); 

16 ‘‘(B) disseminate best practices regarding 

17 public charter schools; 

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

19 school program carried out under this subpart, 

20 including the impact on student achievement; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(D) make grants, on a competitive basis, 

23 for the purpose of carrying out the activities de24 scribed in section 5203(h), to eligible applicants 

25 that desire to open a charter school, replicate a 


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1 high-quality charter school, or expand a high2 quality charter school in— 

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

4 grant under section 5203; or 

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

6 grant under section 5203. 

7 ‘‘(b) GRANTS FOR THE REPLICATION AND EXPAN8 SION OF HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER SCHOOLS.—The Sec9 retary shall make grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible 

10 entities having applications approved under paragraph (2) 

11 to enable such entities to replicate a high-quality charter 

12 school or expand a high-quality charter school. 

13 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—For 

14 purposes of this subsection, the term ‘eligible entity’ 

15 means— 

16 ‘‘(A) a charter management organization 

17 that, at the time of the application, operates or 

18 manages one or more high-quality charter 

19 schools; or 

20 ‘‘(B) a nonprofit organization that oversees 

21 and coordinates the activities of a group of such 

22 charter management organizations. 

23 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—An eligi24 ble entity desiring to receive a grant under this sub25 section shall submit an application to the Secretary 


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1 at such time and in such manner as the Secretary 

2 may require. The application shall include the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘(A) A description of the eligible entity’s 

5 objectives for implementing a high-quality char6 ter school program with funding under this sub7 section, including a description of the proposed 

8 number of high-quality charter schools to be 

9 replicated or expanded with funding under this 

10 subsection. 

11 ‘‘(B) A description of the educational pro12 gram that the eligible entity will implement in 

13 the charter schools that the eligible entity pro14 poses to replicate or expand, including informa15 tion on how the program will enable all stu16 dents to meet challenging State academic 

17 standards, the grade levels or ages of students 

18 that will be served, and the instructional prac19 tices that will be used. 

20 ‘‘(C) A multi-year financial and operating 

21 model for the eligible entity, including a de22 scription of how the operation of the charter 

23 schools to be replicated or expanded will be sus24 tained after the grant under this subsection has 

25 ended. 


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1 ‘‘(D) A description of how the eligible enti2 ty will inform all students in the community, in3 cluding students with disabilities, students who 

4 are limited English proficient, and other educa5 tionally disadvantaged students, about the char6 ter schools to be replicated or expanded with 

7 funding under this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(E) For each charter school currently op9 erated or managed by the eligible entity— 

10 ‘‘(i) student assessment results for all 

11 students and for the subgroups of students 

12 described in section 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II); 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(ii) attendance and student retention 

15 rates for the most recently completed 

16 school year and, if applicable, the most re17 cent available 4-year adjusted cohort high 

18 school graduation rate (as defined in sec19 tion 200.19(b)(1)(i)(A) of title 34, Code of 

20 Federal Regulations, or a successor regula21 tion). 

22 ‘‘(F) Information on any significant com23 pliance issues encountered, within the last 3 

24 years, by any school operated or managed by 


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1 the eligible entity, including in the areas of stu2 dent safety and financial management. 

3 ‘‘(G) A request and justification for any 

4 waivers of Federal statutory or regulatory re5 quirements that the eligible entity believes are 

6 necessary for the successful operation of the 

7 charter schools to be opened or expanded with 

8 funding under this subsection. 

9 ‘‘(3) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The Secretary 

10 shall select eligible entities to receive grants under 

11 this subsection, on the basis of the quality of the ap12 plications submitted under paragraph (2), after tak13 ing into consideration such factors as— 

14 ‘‘(A) the degree to which the eligible entity 

15 has demonstrated success in increasing aca16 demic achievement and attainment for all stu17 dents attending the charter schools the eligible 

18 entity operates or manages; 

19 ‘‘(B) the degree to which the eligible entity 

20 has demonstrated success in increasing aca21 demic achievement and attainment for the sub22 groups of students described in section 

23 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II); 

24 ‘‘(C) the quality of the eligible entity’s fi25 nancial and operating model as described under 


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1 paragraph (2)(C), including the quality of the 

2 eligible entity’s plan for sustaining the oper3 ation of the charter schools to be replicated or 

4 expanded after the grant under this subsection 

5 has ended; 

6 ‘‘(D) a determination that the eligible enti7 ty has not operated or managed a significant 

8 proportion of charter schools that— 

9 ‘‘(i) have been closed; 

10 ‘‘(ii) have had a school charter re11 voked due to problems with statutory or 

12 regulatory compliance; or 

13 ‘‘(iii) have had the school’s affiliation 

14 with the eligible entity revoked; and 

15 ‘‘(E) a determination that the eligible enti16 ty has not experienced significant problems with 

17 statutory or regulatory compliance that could 

18 lead to the revocation of a school’s charter. 

19 ‘‘(4) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

20 section, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible 

21 entities that operate or manage charter schools that, 

22 in the aggregate, serve students at least 60 percent 

23 of whom are eligible for a free or reduced price 

24 lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School 

25 Lunch Act. 


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1 ‘‘(5) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Except as oth2 erwise provided in this subsection, grants awarded 

3 under subsection (a)(2)(D) and subsection (b) shall 

4 have the same terms and conditions as grants 

5 awarded to State entities under section 5203.’’. 

6 SEC. 8. RECORDS TRANSFER. 

7 Section 5208 (20 U.S.C. 7221g) is amended by in8 serting ‘‘as quickly as possible and’’ before ‘‘to the extent 

9 practicable’’. 

10 SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. 

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

12 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and 

13 (3) as paragraphs (2), (5), and (6), respectively; 

14 (2) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para15 graph (1), and moving such paragraph so as to pre16 cede paragraph (2), as redesignated by paragraph 

17 (1) of this section; 

18 (3) in paragraph (2), as redesignated by para19 graph (1)— 

20 (A) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘, 

21 and part B’’ and inserting ‘‘, the Americans 

22 with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 

23 et seq.), section 444 of the General Education 

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1 ferred to as the ‘Family Educational Rights 

2 and Privacy Act of 1974’), and part B’’; 

3 (B) by striking subparagraph (H) and in4 serting the following: 

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

6 send their children, and which— 

7 ‘‘(i) admits students on the basis of a 

8 lottery, if more students apply for admis9 sion than can be accommodated; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a school that has 

11 an affiliated charter school (such as a 

12 school that is part of the same network of 

13 schools), automatically enrolls students 

14 who are enrolled in the immediate prior 

15 grade level of the affiliated charter school 

16 and, for any additional student openings or 

17 student openings created through regular 

18 attrition in student enrollment in the affili19 ated charter school and the enrolling 

20 school, admits students on the basis of a 

21 lottery as described in clause (i);’’; 

22 (C) by striking subparagraph (I) and in23 serting the following: 

24 ‘‘(I) agrees to comply with the same Fed25 eral and State audit requirements as do other 


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1 elementary schools and secondary schools in the 

2 State, unless such State audit requirements are 

3 waived by the State;’’; 

4 (D) in subparagraph (K), by striking 

5 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

6 (E) in subparagraph (L), by striking the 

7 period at the end and inserting a semicolon; 

8 and 

9 (F) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(M) may serve prekindergarten or post11 secondary students.’’; 

12 (4) by inserting after paragraph (2), as redesig13 nated by paragraph (1), the following: 

14 ‘‘(3) CHARTER MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION.— 

15 The term ‘charter management organization’ means 

16 a nonprofit organization that operates or manages 

17 multiple charter schools by centralizing or sharing 

18 certain functions or resources. 

19 ‘‘(4) CHARTER SCHOOL SUPPORT ORGANIZA20 TION.—The term ‘charter school support organiza21 tion’ means a nonprofit, nongovernmental entity that 

22 is not an authorized public chartering agency and 

23 provides on a statewide basis— 


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1 ‘‘(A) assistance to developers during the 

2 planning, program design, and initial implemen3 tation of a charter school; and 

4 ‘‘(B) technical assistance to operating 

5 charter schools.’’; 

6 (5) in paragraph (5)(B), as redesignated by 

7 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘under section 

8 5203(d)(3)’’; and 

9 (6) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(7) EXPANSION OF A HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER

11 SCHOOL.—The term ‘expansion of a high-quality 

12 charter school’ means increasing the enrollment at a 

13 high-quality charter school by not less than 50 per14 cent or adding 2 or more grades to a high-quality 

15 charter school. 

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

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

18 school that— 

19 ‘‘(A) shows evidence of strong academic re20 sults, which may include strong academic 

21 growth, as determined by a State; 

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

23 of student safety, financial management, or 

24 statutory or regulatory compliance; 


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1 ‘‘(C) has demonstrated success in signifi2 cantly increasing student academic achieve3 ment, including graduation rates where applica4 ble, for all students served by the charter 

5 school; and 

6 ‘‘(D) has demonstrated success in increas7 ing student academic achievement, including 

8 graduation rates where applicable, for the sub9 groups of students described in section 

10 1111(b)(2)(C)(v)(II), except that such dem11 onstration is not required in a case in which the 

12 number of students in a group is insufficient to 

13 yield statistically reliable information or the re14 sults would reveal personally identifiable infor15 mation about an individual student. 

16 ‘‘(9) REPLICATION OF A HIGH-QUALITY CHAR17 TER SCHOOL.—The term ‘replication of a high-qual18 ity charter school’ means the opening of a charter 

19 school— 

20 ‘‘(A) under an existing charter or an addi21 tional charter, if permitted by State law; 

22 ‘‘(B) based on the model of a high-quality 

23 charter school; and 

24 ‘‘(C) that will be operated or managed by 

25 the same nonprofit organization that operates 


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1 or manages such high-quality charter school 

2 under an existing charter.’’. 

3 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

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

5 as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 5211. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

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

8 this subpart $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2015 and such 

9 sums as may be necessary for each of the 5 succeeding 

10 fiscal years.’’. 

11 SEC. 11. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

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

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

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

15 section 2 is amended— 

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

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

‘‘SUBPART 1—CHARTER SCHOOL PROGRAM’’; 

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

19 and inserting the following: 

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

20 and 

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

22 and inserting the following: 

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


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1 (c) SUBPART HEADING.—The heading for subpart 1 

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

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

Æ 


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