II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 473 

To implement programs and activities to raise children up out of poverty 

and save the next generation. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 12, 2015 

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

to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To implement programs and activities to raise children up 

out of poverty and save the next generation. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Saving Our Next Generation Act’’ or the ‘‘SONG Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings; sense of the Senate. 

TITLE I—LEADERSHIP ACTIVITIES 

Subtitle A—General Programs for Children 

Sec. 101. President’s Commission on Children. 


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Sec. 102. Strengthening the social capital of local communities. 

Sec. 103. Minimum wage increases. 

Sec. 104. Permanent extension and modifications to child tax credit. 

Sec. 105. Modifications to earned income tax credit. 

Sec. 106. Assets for Independence Act. 

Sec. 107. Community Services Block Grant program. 

Sec. 108. Grants for working groups on children. 

Subtitle B—Children’s Savings Accounts 

Sec. 110. Definitions. 

PART I—AMENDMENTS TO THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT

Sec. 111. Interest in, and distribution from, a qualified tuition program required to be disregarded under the TANF program. 

Sec. 112. Exclusion of interest in, and distribution from, a qualified tuition 

program from resources under the SSI program. 

Sec. 113. Child’s savings account required to be disregarded under the TANF 

program. 

Sec. 114. Exclusion of child’s savings account from resources under the SSI 

program. 

PART II—AMENDMENT TO THE FOOD AND NUTRITION ACT OF 2008 

Sec. 121. Exclusion of child’s savings accounts from resources under the supplemental nutrition assistance program. 

PART III—AMENDMENT TO LOW-INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE ACT

OF 1981 

Sec. 131. Exclusion of child’s savings accounts from resources under the LowIncome Home Energy Assistance Program. 

Subtitle C—Family and Medical Leave 

PART I—INCLUSION

Sec. 141. Leave to care for a same-sex spouse, domestic partner, parent-in-law, 

adult child, sibling, grandchild, or grandparent. 

Sec. 142. Leave for civil service employees to care for same-sex spouse, domestic partner, partner-in-law, adult child, sibling, grandchild, or 

grandparent. 

PART II—FAMILY INVOLVEMENT LEAVE

Sec. 151. Family involvement leave. 

Sec. 152. Family involvement leave for civil service employees. 

PART III—LEAVE FOR ADDRESSING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Sec. 161. Leave for addressing domestic violence. 

Sec. 162. Leave for addressing domestic violence for civil service employees. 

PART IV—BEREAVEMENT LEAVE

Sec. 171. Bereavement leave. 

Sec. 172. Bereavement leave for civil service employees. 


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TITLE II—HEALTH PROGRAMS 

Subtitle A—Ensuring Access 

Sec. 201. Coordination and extension of funding for demonstration project to 

address health professions workforce needs and maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs. 

Sec. 202. Health and dental providers. 

Sec. 203. Direct certification for programs with overlapping eligibility. 

Sec. 204. GAO report. 

Sec. 205. Assuring coverage continuity for former foster care children up to age 

26. 

Sec. 206. Drug treatment for juveniles. 

Subtitle B—Strengthen Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) 

Sec. 211. References; effective date. 

PART I—COVERAGE STABILITY AND REDUCED BUREAUCRACY

Sec. 221. Assuring care continuity during transitions among CHIP, Medicaid, 

and qualified health plans. 

Sec. 222. State flexibility to provide for continuous eligibility. 

Sec. 223. Outreach to targeted populations. 

PART II—BENEFITS AND AFFORDABILITY

Sec. 231. Ensuring coverage of preventive health services under Medicaid and 

CHIP. 

PART III—CONTINUING DELIVERY SYSTEM REFORM

Sec. 241. Supporting evidence-based care coordination in communities. 

Sec. 242. Ensuring care coordination for children. 

PART IV—MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 251. Inclusion of therapeutic foster care as medical assistance. 

Subtitle C—Promoting Accountability and Excellence in Child Welfare 

Sec. 261. Child Welfare Innovation Grant Program. 

Sec. 262. Ensuring that child welfare Federal discretionary funding is only 

used for evidence-based programs. 

Sec. 263. Continuation of authority to approve demonstration projects designed 

to test innovative strategies in State child welfare programs. 

Sec. 264. Reports to Congress. 

TITLE III—EDUCATION 

Sec. 301. Definitions. 

Subtitle A—Presidential Task Force on K–12 Education 

Sec. 311. Establishing the Presidential Task Force on K–12 Education. 

Subtitle B—Pupils Prepared for School 

Sec. 321. Definitions. 


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PART I—PRESCHOOL HOME LEARNING

Sec. 322. Parental support for preschool home learning. 

PART II—GRANTS SUPPORTING UNIVERSAL PREKINDERGARTEN FOR ALL

ELIGIBLE CHILDREN

Sec. 323. Universal prekindergarten development grants to States. 

Sec. 324. Two years of voluntary, high-quality, full-day, universal prekindergarten for all eligible children. 

PART III—IMPROVING ACCESS TO PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAMS FOR LOWINCOME CHILDREN

Sec. 325. Low-income prekindergarten grants. 

PART IV—HEAD START, EARLY HEAD START, AND EVEN START

Sec. 326. Expanding Head Start and Early Head Start services. 

Sec. 327. Improving reading skills of low-income children and families through 

reauthorizing the William F. Goodling Even Start Family Literacy Program. 

Subtitle C—Elementary School and Secondary School Programs 

PART I—EXPANDED SCHOOL CALENDARS

Sec. 331. Demonstration grants for States to implement expanded school calendar program. 

PART II—PREGNANT AND PARENTING STUDENTS ACCESS TO EDUCATION

Sec. 335. Short title. 

Sec. 336. Purposes. 

Sec. 337. Grants for State and local activities for the education of pregnant 

and parenting students. 

Sec. 338. Local educational agency subgrants for the education of pregnant and 

parenting students. 

Sec. 339. Conversion to categorical program in event of failure of State regarding expenditure of grants. 

Sec. 340. National activities. 

Sec. 341. Effect on Federal and State nondiscrimination laws. 

Sec. 342. Adding pregnant and parenting data to State report cards. 

Sec. 343. Authorization of appropriations. 

PART III—HEALTHY FOOD, NUTRITION EDUCATION, AND PHYSICAL

ACTIVITY

Sec. 351. Health education and physical education as core academic subjects. 

Sec. 352. Allowing funds under the Carol M. White Physical Education Program to be used for additional healthy eating activities. 

Sec. 353. Enhancing school nutrition. 

Sec. 354. Allowing teacher and principal training and recruitment funds to be 

used for instruction in nutrition, fitness, and wellness. 

PART IV—EDUCATION AND ACADEMIC SUPPORT

Sec. 356. Evaluation and identification of best practices regarding education 

and academic support. 


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Sec. 357. Best practice replication grants. 

Sec. 358. Study on extended learning time models. 

Subtitle D—Business Engagement in Schools 

Sec. 361. Reauthorizing the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education 

Act of 2006. 

Sec. 362. Interagency committee. 

Subtitle E—Support for Parents 

Sec. 371. State and local parenting grant programs. 

Subtitle F—College Affordability 

Sec. 376. Student loan refinancing. 

Sec. 377. Publicity of the public loan repayment plan for public service employees. 

Sec. 378. Student loans allowed to be discharged in bankruptcy. 

Sec. 379. Requirements for private educational lenders regarding discharge of 

student loans. 

Sec. 380. Prohibitions for consumer reporting agencies and furnishers of information to consumer reporting agencies related to private education loans. 

Sec. 381. Entrance counseling assessment. 

Sec. 382. National grant to develop and pilot measures of accountability for 

value and cost-effectiveness in higher education. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF THE SENATE. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Too many children still live in poverty. Not 

4 all children in need are benefitting from existing 

5 quality programs. This compromises their ability to 

6 be healthy, to do well in school, and to raise healthy 

7 families themselves. 

8 (2) Poverty is a vicious cycle, but it can be bro9 ken. 

10 (3) Many factors contribute to poverty and poor 

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1 safe housing and communities. Education and good 

2 health are keys for economic and social success. 

3 (4) Economically, poverty predicts most of the 

4 poor educational and health outcomes, while poor 

5 health and low educational outcomes tend to predict 

6 poverty. 

7 (b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the 

8 Senate that the programs most critical to improving child 

9 well-being should be fully funded, including— 

10 (1) the Medicaid program under title XIX of 

11 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.); 

12 (2) the State Children’s Health Insurance Pro13 gram established under title XXI of the Social Secu14 rity Program (42 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.); 

15 (3) the supplemental nutrition assistance pro16 gram established under the Food and Nutrition Act 

17 of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.); 

18 (4) the special supplemental nutrition program 

19 for women, infants, and children established by sec20 tion 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 

21 U.S.C. 1786); 

22 (5) the child and adult care food program es23 tablished under section 17 of the Richard B. Russell 

24 National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766); 


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1 (6) the emergency food assistance program es2 tablished under the Emergency Food Assistance Act 

3 of 1983 (7 U.S.C. 7501 et seq.); 

4 (7) the temporary assistance for needy families 

5 program established under part A of title IV of the 

6 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.); 

7 (8) the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood 

8 Home Visiting program under section 511 of the So9 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 711); 

10 (9) the Early Head Start and Head Start pro11 grams under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9801 

12 et seq.); 

13 (10) the Family and Child Education program; 

14 (11) school-based health centers programs; 

15 (12) programs under the Child Care and Devel16 opment Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 

17 et seq.); 

18 (13) programs under the Individuals with Dis19 abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.); 

20 (14) programs under title I of the Elementary 

21 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

22 6301 et seq.); 

23 (15) school meal programs; and 

24 (16) housing assistance programs. 


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1 TITLE I—LEADERSHIP 

2 ACTIVITIES 

3 Subtitle A—General Programs for 

4 Children 

5 SEC. 101. PRESIDENT’S COMMISSION ON CHILDREN. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the 

7 President’s Commission on Children (referred to in this 

8 section as the ‘‘Commission’’). 

9 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

10 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Commission shall be 

11 composed of 20 members to be appointed by the 

12 President, by and with the advice and consent of the 

13 Senate, of which— 

14 (A) at least one member shall be a rep15 resentative of businesses; 

16 (B) at least one member shall be a rep17 resentative of public entities with expertise in 

18 child health and welfare; 

19 (C) at least one member shall be a rep20 resentative of private entities with expertise in 

21 child health and welfare; 

22 (D) at least one member shall be a rep23 resentative of nonprofit entities with expertise 

24 in child health and welfare; and 


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1 (E) at least one member shall be a rep2 resentative of child advocacy groups. 

3 (2) DATE FOR APPOINTMENT.—The appoint4 ments of the members of the Commission shall be 

5 made not later than 6 months after the date of en6 actment of this Act. 

7 (3) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.— 

8 Members shall be appointed for a term of 4 years, 

9 except that of the initial members, 10 such members 

10 shall be appointed for a term of 2 years. Any va11 cancy in the Commission shall not affect its powers, 

12 but shall be filled in the same manner as the origi13 nal appointment. Members may be reappointed. 

14 (4) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 30 days 

15 after the date on which all members of the Commis16 sion have been appointed, the Commission shall hold 

17 its first meeting. 

18 (5) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at 

19 the call of the Chairperson. 

20 (6) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

21 the Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a 

22 lesser number of members may hold hearings. 

23 (7) CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIRMAN.—The 

24 Commission shall select a Chairperson and Vice 

25 Chairperson from among its members. 


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1 (c) DUTIES.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall— 

3 (A) identify interventions to spur innova4 tion to improve national child well-being out5 comes, including— 

6 (i) evaluating the remuneration of 

7 professions responsible for children, includ8 ing medical, education, and caretaker pro9 fessionals; and 

10 (ii) evaluating the developmental 

11 model of Federal child health, education, 

12 and welfare programs; 

13 (B) prioritize Federal partnerships and 

14 Federal collaboration with other entities to im15 prove children health, education, and welfare, 

16 including— 

17 (i) identifying Federal programs that 

18 should require cross-sector collaboration 

19 for funding; 

20 (ii) identifying cross-training opportu21 nities in federally funded programs; and 

22 (iii) expanding collaboration among 

23 Federal departments and agencies, includ24 ing with respect to— 


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1 (I) programs established under 

2 the Child Abuse Prevention and 

3 Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5101 et 

4 seq.); and 

5 (II) the early and periodic 

6 screening, diagnostic, and treatment 

7 program established under title XIX 

8 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

9 1396 et seq.); 

10 (C) prioritize the sustainability and long11 term success of Federal child health, education, 

12 and welfare programs, including through pro13 viding incentives for State foundations to pro14 vide leadership and identify available resources; 

15 (D) identify and provide advice of where 

16 and how to streamline and coordinate Federal 

17 child health, education, and welfare programs, 

18 services, and eligibility (as appropriate), includ19 ing— 

20 (i) identifying gaps across such pro21 grams (by age and time of year); 

22 (ii) identifying child-related areas of 

23 high risk to better target limited resources; 

24 and 


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1 (iii) identifying Federal program 

2 where auto-enrollment of children would be 

3 appropriate; 

4 (E) provide for the conduct of a decennial 

5 White House Conference on Improving the Sta6 tus of Children, such initial conference to be 

7 conducted not later than 3 years after the date 

8 of enactment of this Act; 

9 (F) submit the reports described in para10 graph (2); and 

11 (G) carry out such other activities as the 

12 President or Commission determine appro13 priate. 

14 (2) REPORTS.— 

15 (A) BIENNIAL REPORT.—Not later than 2 

16 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 

17 and biennially thereafter, the Commission shall 

18 submit to the President and the appropriate 

19 committees of Congress, a report concerning 

20 the activities of the Commission under sub21 section (c), including the recommendations and 

22 accomplishments of the Commission during the 

23 period for which the report is being submitted. 

24 (B) SURGEON GENERAL.—Not later than 

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1 sultation with the Surgeon General, shall sub2 mit to the President and the appropriate com3 mittees of Congress, a report on improving the 

4 health of children. 

5 (C) BUDGET REPORT.—The Commission, 

6 in consultation and conjunction with the Office 

7 of Management and Budget, shall biannually 

8 submit to the President and the appropriate 

9 committees of Congress, an assessment of the 

10 overall impact of the Federal budget on chil11 dren, including an assessment of the impact of 

12 the Federal budget on child well-being. 

13 (d) COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

14 (1) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—Each mem15 ber of the Commission who is not an officer or em16 ployee of the Federal Government shall be com17 pensated at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of 

18 the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV 

19 of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 

20 5, United States Code, for each day (including travel 

21 time) during which such member is engaged in the 

22 performance of the duties of the Commission. All 

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1 pensation in addition to that received for their serv2 ices as officers or employees of the United States. 

3 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of the 

4 Commission shall be allowed travel expenses, includ5 ing per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates author6 ized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of 

7 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 

8 away from their homes or regular places of business 

9 in the performance of services for the Commission. 

10 (3) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.— 

11 Any Federal Government employee may be detailed 

12 to the Commission without reimbursement, and such 

13 detail shall be without interruption or loss of civil 

14 service status or privilege. 

15 (4) PROCUREMENT OF TEMPORARY AND INTER16 MITTENT SERVICES.—The Chairman of the Commis17 sion may procure temporary and intermittent serv18 ices under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States 

19 Code, at rates for individuals which do not exceed 

20 the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay 

21 prescribed for level V of the Executive Schedule 

22 under section 5316 of such title. 

23 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

24 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

25 necessary to carry out this section. 


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1 SEC. 102. STRENGTHENING THE SOCIAL CAPITAL OF LOCAL 

2 COMMUNITIES. 

3 (a) INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE.—The Secretary of 

4 Health and Human Services (referred to in this section 

5 as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall enter into a contract with the 

6 Institute of Medicine under which the Institute shall con7 duct a study and submit to the Secretary a report on evi8 dence-based best practices and innovations for fostering 

9 safe and stable families, including implementing men10 toring programs. The Secretary shall make such report 

11 publically available. 

12 (b) GRANTS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

14 grants to eligible entities to enable such entities to 

15 carry out programs and activities to implement the 

16 best practices and innovations identified in the re17 port submitted under subsection (a). 

18 (2) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

19 grant under paragraph (1), an entity shall— 

20 (A) be a State or local government, a fed21 erally recognized Indian tribe, or an institute of 

22 higher education; and 

23 (B) submit to the Secretary an application 

24 at such time, in such manner, and containing 

25 such information as the Secretary may require. 


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1 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—An entity shall use 

2 amounts received under a grant under this sub3 section to implement programs and activities de4 scribed in the application submitted by the entity 

5 under paragraph (2)(B). 

6 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

7 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, 

8 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 

9 2016 through 2020. 

10 SEC. 103. MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES. 

11 (a) MINIMUM WAGE.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair 

13 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(a)(1)) 

14 is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(1) except as otherwise provided in this sec16 tion, not less than— 

17 ‘‘(A) $8.20 an hour, beginning on the first 

18 day of the sixth month that begins after the 

19 date of enactment of the Saving Our Next Gen20 eration Act; 

21 ‘‘(B) $9.15 an hour, beginning 1 year after 

22 that first day; 

23 ‘‘(C) $10.10 an hour, beginning 2 years 

24 after that first day; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) beginning on the date that is 3 years 

2 after that first day, and annually thereafter, the 

3 amount determined by the Secretary pursuant 

4 to subsection (h);’’. 

5 (2) DETERMINATION BASED ON INCREASE IN

6 THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX.—Section 6 of the 

7 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206) 

8 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(h)(1) Each year, by not later than the date that 

10 is 90 days before a new minimum wage determined under 

11 subsection (a)(1)(D) is to take effect, the Secretary shall 

12 determine the minimum wage to be in effect pursuant to 

13 this subsection for the subsequent 1-year period. The wage 

14 determined pursuant to this subsection for a year shall 

15 be— 

16 ‘‘(A) not less than the amount in effect under 

17 subsection (a)(1) on the date of such determination; 

18 ‘‘(B) increased from such amount by the annual 

19 percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for 

20 Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (United 

21 States city average, all items, not seasonally ad22 justed), or its successor publication, as determined 

23 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics; and 

24 ‘‘(C) rounded to the nearest multiple of $0.05. 


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1 ‘‘(2) In calculating the annual percentage increase in 

2 the Consumer Price Index for purposes of paragraph 

3 (1)(B), the Secretary shall compare such Consumer Price 

4 Index for the most recent month, quarter, or year avail5 able (as selected by the Secretary prior to the first year 

6 for which a minimum wage is in effect pursuant to this 

7 subsection) with the Consumer Price Index for the same 

8 month in the preceding year, the same quarter in the pre9 ceding year, or the preceding year, respectively.’’. 

10 (b) BASE MINIMUM WAGE FOR TIPPED EMPLOY11 EES.—Section 3(m)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act 

12 of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(1)) is amended to read as fol13 lows: 

14 ‘‘(1) the cash wage paid such employee, which 

15 for purposes of such determination shall be not less 

16 than— 

17 ‘‘(A) for the 1-year period beginning on 

18 the first day of the sixth month that begins 

19 after the date of enactment of the Saving Our 

20 Next Generation Act, $3.00 an hour; 

21 ‘‘(B) for each succeeding 1-year period 

22 until the hourly wage under this paragraph 

23 equals 70 percent of the wage in effect under 

24 section 6(a)(1) for such period, an hourly wage 

25 equal to the amount determined under this 


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1 paragraph for the preceding year, increased by 

2 the lesser of— 

3 ‘‘(i) $0.95; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) the amount necessary for the 

5 wage in effect under this paragraph to 

6 equal 70 percent of the wage in effect 

7 under section 6(a)(1) for such period, 

8 rounded to the nearest multiple of $0.05; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(C) for each succeeding 1-year period 

11 after the year in which the hourly wage under 

12 this paragraph first equals 70 percent of the 

13 wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for the 

14 same period, the amount necessary to ensure 

15 that the wage in effect under this paragraph re16 mains equal to 70 percent of the wage in effect 

17 under section 6(a)(1), rounded to the nearest 

18 multiple of $0.05; and’’. 

19 (c) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.—Section 6 of the Fair 

20 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (as amended by subsection 

21 (a)) (29 U.S.C. 206) is further amended by adding at the 

22 end the following: 

23 ‘‘(i) Not later than 60 days prior to the effective date 

24 of any increase in the minimum wage determined under 

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1 ance with subparagraph (B) or (C) of section 3(m)(1), as 

2 amended by the Saving Our Next Generation Act, the Sec3 retary shall publish in the Federal Register and on the 

4 website of the Department of Labor a notice announcing 

5 the adjusted required wage.’’. 

6 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

7 subsections (a) and (b) shall take effect on the first day 

8 of the sixth month that begins after the date of enactment 

9 of this Act. 

10 SEC. 104. PERMANENT EXTENSION AND MODIFICATIONS TO 

11 CHILD TAX CREDIT. 

12 (a) PERMANENT EXTENSION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Clause (i) of section 

14 24(d)(1)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

15 is amended by striking ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘$3,000’’. 

17 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (d) 

18 of section 24 of such Code is amended by striking 

19 paragraph (4). 

20 (3) ELIMINATION OF INFLATION ADJUST21 MENT.—Subsection (d) of section 24 of such Code is 

22 further amended by striking paragraph (3). 

23 (b) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.—Section 24 of the In24 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 

25 end the following new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(g) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any taxable 

3 year beginning in a calendar year after 2014, the 

4 dollar amounts in subsections (a) and (b)(2) shall 

5 each be increased by an amount equal to— 

6 ‘‘(A) such dollar amount, multiplied by 

7 ‘‘(B) the cost-of-living adjustment deter8 mined under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar 

9 year in which the taxable year begins, deter10 mined by substituting ‘calendar year 2013’ for 

11 ‘calendar year 1992’ in subparagraph (B) 

12 thereof. 

13 ‘‘(2) ROUNDING.—If a dollar amount in sub14 section (a) or (b)(2), as increased under paragraph 

15 (1), is not a multiple of $50, such amount shall be 

16 rounded to the nearest multiple of $50.’’. 

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

18 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

19 December 31, 2014. 

20 SEC. 105. MODIFICATIONS TO EARNED INCOME TAX CRED21 IT. 

22 (a) PERMANENT EXTENSION OF MODIFICATIONS TO

23 EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT.— 

24 (1) INCREASE IN CREDIT PERCENTAGE FOR

25 FAMILIES WITH 3 OR MORE CHILDREN.—Paragraph 


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1 (1) of section 32(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

2 1986, as amended by the Tax Increase Prevention 

3 Act of 2014, is amended by adding at the end the 

4 following flush sentence: 

5 ‘‘In the case of an eligible individual with 3 or more quali6 fying children, the second column shall be applied by sub7 stituting ‘45’ for ‘40’.’’. 

8 (2) JOINT RETURNS.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (B) of 

10 section 32(b)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code 

11 of 1986, as amended by the Tax Increase Pre12 vention Act of 2014, is amended by striking 

13 ‘‘$3,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$5,000.’’. 

14 (B) INFLATION ADJUSTMENTS.—Clause 

15 (ii) of section 32(j)(1)(B) of such Code is 

16 amended— 

17 (i) by striking ‘‘$3,000’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘$5,000’’, 

19 (ii) by striking ‘‘subsection 

20 (b)(2)(B)(iii)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection 

21 (b)(2)(B)’’, and 

22 (iii) by striking ‘‘calendar year 2007’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘calendar year 2008’’. 

24 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 32(b) 

25 of such Code is amended by striking paragraph (3). 


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1 (b) INCREASED CREDIT FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH NO

2 QUALIFYING CHILDREN.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The table in subparagraph 

4 (A) of section 32(b)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code 

5 of 1986 is amended— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘$4,220’’ in the second col7 umn and inserting ‘‘$8,820’’, and 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘$5,280’’ in the last col9 umn and inserting ‘‘$10,425’’. 

10 (2) INFLATION ADJUSTMENTS.—Subparagraph 

11 (B) of section 32(j)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code 

12 of 1986, as amended by this Act, is amended— 

13 (A) in clause (i)— 

14 (i) by inserting ‘‘(except as provided 

15 in clause (iii))’’ after ‘‘(b)(2)(A)’’, and 

16 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end, and 

17 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

18 clause: 

19 ‘‘(iii) in the case of the $8,820 and 

20 $10,4250 amount in the table in sub21 section (b)(2)(A), by substituting ‘calendar 

22 year 2012’ for ‘calendar year 1992’ in sub23 paragraph (B) of such section 1.’’. 

24 (c) CREDIT ALLOWED FOR CERTAIN CHILDLESS IN25 DIVIDUALS OVER AGE 21.—Subclause (II) of section 


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1 32(c)(1)(A)(ii) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

2 amended by striking ‘‘age 25’’ and inserting ‘‘age 21’’. 

3 (d) MODIFICATION OF CERTAIN ELIGIBILITY

4 RULES.— 

5 (1) MODIFICATION OF ABANDONED SPOUSE

6 RULE.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 32(c)(1) of the 

8 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to eli9 gible individual) is amended by adding at the 

10 end the following new paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(G) CERTAIN MARRIED INDIVIDUALS LIV12 ING APART.—For purposes of this section, an 

13 individual who— 

14 ‘‘(i) is married (within the meaning of 

15 section 7703(a)) and files a separate re16 turn for the taxable year, 

17 ‘‘(ii) lives with a qualifying child of 

18 the individual for more than one-half of 

19 such taxable year, and 

20 ‘‘(iii)(I) during the last 6 months of 

21 such taxable year, does not have the same 

22 principal place of abode as the individual’s 

23 spouse, or 

24 ‘‘(II) has a legally binding separation 

25 agreement with the individual’s spouse and 


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1 is not a member of the same household 

2 with the individual’s spouse by the end of 

3 the taxable year, 

4 shall not be considered as married.’’. 

5 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

6 (i) The last sentence of section 

7 32(c)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code 

8 of 1986 is amended by striking ‘‘section 

9 7703’’ and inserting ‘‘section 7703(a)’’. 

10 (ii) Section 32(d) of such Code is 

11 amended by striking ‘‘In the case of an in12 dividual who is married (within the mean13 ing of section 7703)’’ and inserting ‘‘In the 

14 case of an individual who is married (with15 in the meaning of section 7703(a)) and is 

16 not described in subsection (c)(1)(G)’’. 

17 (2) SIMPLIFICATION OF RULES REGARDING

18 PRESENCE OF QUALIFYING CHILD.— 

19 (A) TAXPAYER ELIGIBLE FOR CREDIT FOR

20 WORKER WITHOUT QUALIFYING CHILD IF

21 QUALIFYING CHILD CLAIMED BY ANOTHER

22 MEMBER OF FAMILY.—Section 32(c)(1) of the 

23 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to eli24 gible individual), as amended by this Act, is 


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1 amended by adding at the end the following 

2 new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(H) TAXPAYER ELIGIBLE FOR CREDIT

4 FOR WORKER WITHOUT QUALIFYING CHILD IF

5 QUALIFYING CHILD CLAIMED BY ANOTHER

6 MEMBER OF FAMILY.— 

7 ‘‘(i) GENERAL RULE.—Except as pro8 vided in clause (ii), in the case of 2 or 

9 more eligible individuals who may claim for 

10 such taxable year the same individual as a 

11 qualifying child, if such individual is 

12 claimed as a qualifying child by such an el13 igible individual, then any other such eligi14 ble individual who does not make such a 

15 claim of such child or of any other quali16 fying child may be considered an eligible 

17 individual without a qualifying child for 

18 purposes of the credit allowed under this 

19 section for such taxable year. 

20 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION IF QUALIFYING

21 CHILD CLAIMED BY PARENT.—If an indi22 vidual is claimed as a qualifying child for 

23 any taxable year by an eligible individual 

24 who is a parent of such child, then no 

25 other custodial parent of such child who 


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1 does not make such a claim of such child 

2 may be considered an eligible individual 

3 without a qualifying child for purposes of 

4 the credit allowed under this section for 

5 such taxable year.’’. 

6 (B) TAXPAYER ELIGIBLE FOR CREDIT FOR

7 WORKER WITHOUT QUALIFYING CHILD IF

8 QUALIFYING CHILDREN DO NOT HAVE VALID

9 SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER.—Subparagraph (F) 

10 of section 32(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue 

11 Code of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(F) INDIVIDUALS WHO DO NOT INCLUDE

13 TIN, ETC., OF ANY QUALIFYING CHILD.—In the 

14 case of any eligible individual who has one or 

15 more qualifying children, if no qualifying child 

16 of such individual is taken into account under 

17 subsection (b) by reason of paragraph (3)(D), 

18 for purposes of the credit allowed under this 

19 section, such individual may be considered an 

20 eligible individual without a qualifying child.’’. 

21 (e) ELIMINATION OF DISQUALIFIED INVESTMENT IN22 COME TEST.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 32 of the Internal 

24 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking sub25 section (i). 


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1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

2 (A) Section 32(j)(1)(B)(i) of such Code, as 

3 amended by this Act, is amended— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘subsections’’ and in5 serting ‘‘subsection’’, and 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘and (i)(1)’’. 

7 (B) Section 32(j)(2) of such Code is 

8 amended to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘(2) ROUNDING.—If any dollar amount in sub10 section (b)(2)(A) (after being increased under sub11 paragraph (B) thereof), after being increased under 

12 paragraph (1), is not a multiple of $10, such 

13 amount shall be rounded to the next nearest mul14 tiple of $10.’’. 

15 (f) EFFECTIVE DATES.—The amendments made by 

16 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

17 December 31, 2014. 

18 SEC. 106. ASSETS FOR INDEPENDENCE ACT. 

19 (a) REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 416 of the Assets 

20 for Independence Act (42 U.S.C. 604 note) is amended 

21 by striking ‘‘and 2003,’’ and inserting ‘‘2003, 2015, 2016, 

22 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020,’’. 

23 (b) NEWBORN DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNTS.—The As24 sets for Independence Act is amended by adding at the 

25 end the following new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 417. NEWBORN DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT DEM2 ONSTRATION PROJECTS. 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this title: 

4 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE NEWBORN.—The term ‘eligible 

5 newborn’ means an individual who meets the eligi6 bility criteria in subsection (c) and is selected by a 

7 qualified entity to participate in a newborn develop8 ment account demonstration project. 

9 ‘‘(2) NEWBORN DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘newborn 

11 development account’ means a trust created or 

12 organized in the United States exclusively for 

13 the purpose of paying the qualified expenses of 

14 an eligible newborn, or enabling the eligible 

15 newborn to make an emergency withdrawal, but 

16 only if the written governing instrument cre17 ating the trust contains the requirements de18 scribed in clauses (i), (ii), and (iv) through (vi) 

19 of section 404(a)(5). 

20 ‘‘(B) INVESTMENT OF ASSETS.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause 

22 (ii), the assets of a newborn development 

23 account shall be invested in accordance 

24 with the direction of the eligible newborn 

25 after consultation with the qualified entity 


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1 providing deposits for the eligible newborn 

2 under subsection (e). 

3 ‘‘(ii) INVESTMENTS.—The assets of a 

4 newborn development account shall be in5 vested in accordance with the direction of 

6 the qualified entity providing deposits for 

7 the eligible newborn under subsection (e), 

8 in a manner that provides an appropriate 

9 balance between return, liquidity, and risk, 

10 until the eligible newborn attains age 18. 

11 ‘‘(C) CUSTODIAL ACCOUNTS.—For pur12 poses of subparagraph (A), a custodial account 

13 shall be treated as a trust if the assets of the 

14 custodial account are held by a bank (as de15 fined in section 408(n) of the Internal Revenue 

16 Code of 1986) or another person who dem17 onstrates, to the satisfaction of the Secretary, 

18 that the manner in which such person will ad19 minister the custodial account will be consistent 

20 with the requirements of this title, and if the 

21 custodial account would, except for the fact that 

22 it is not a trust, constitute a newborn develop23 ment account described in subparagraph (A). 

24 For purposes of this title, in the case of a cus25 todial account treated as a trust by reason of 


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1 the preceding sentence, the custodian of that 

2 custodial account shall be treated as the trustee 

3 of the account. 

4 ‘‘(3) NEWBORN DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT DEM5 ONSTRATION PROJECT.—The term ‘newborn develop6 ment account demonstration project’ means a dem7 onstration project conducted under this section. 

8 ‘‘(b) APPROVAL OF DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) ANNOUNCEMENT OF DEMONSTRATION

10 PROJECTS.—Not later than 3 months after the date 

11 of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall pub12 licly announce the availability of funding under this 

13 title for newborn development account demonstration 

14 projects and shall ensure that applications to con15 duct such demonstration projects are widely avail16 able to qualified entities. 

17 ‘‘(2) SUBMISSION.—Not later than 6 months 

18 after the date of enactment of this section, a quali19 fied entity may submit to the Secretary an applica20 tion to conduct a demonstration project under this 

21 section. 

22 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA AND PREFERENCES.—In consid23 ering whether to approve an application to conduct 

24 a demonstration project under this section, the Sec25 retary shall assess the criteria described in section 


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1 405(c) and give preferences to applications with the 

2 elements described in section 405(d). 

3 ‘‘(4) APPROVAL.—Not later than 9 months 

4 after the date of enactment of this section, the Sec5 retary shall, on a competitive basis, approve such ap6 plications to conduct demonstration projects under 

7 this section as the Secretary considers to be appro8 priate, taking into account the assessments required 

9 by paragraph (3). The Secretary shall ensure, to the 

10 maximum extent practicable, that the applications 

11 that are approved involve a range of communities 

12 (both rural and urban) and diverse populations. 

13 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An individual shall be eligi15 ble to participate in a demonstration project under 

16 this section if the individual meets the following cri17 teria: 

18 ‘‘(A) NEWBORN.—The individual is born 

19 on or after October 1, 2016, and is selected by 

20 a qualified entity to participate in a demonstra21 tion project under this section within 1 year of 

22 the date of the individual’s birth. 

23 ‘‘(B) INCOME AND NET WORTH TEST.— 

24 The individual is a member of a household with 

25 an adjusted gross income that does not exceed 


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1 400 percent of the poverty line (as determined 

2 by the Office of Management and Budget) and 

3 a net worth, as of the end of the calendar year 

4 preceding the determination of eligibility, that 

5 does not exceed $1,000,000. 

6 ‘‘(C) CONSENT OF PARENT OR GUARD7 IAN.—The parent or legal guardian of the indi8 vidual has agreed to the individual’s participa9 tion in the demonstration project. 

10 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF NET WORTH.—For 

11 purposes of determining the net worth of a house12 hold under paragraph (1)(B), a household’s assets 

13 shall not be considered to include the primary dwell14 ing unit and one motor vehicle owned by a member 

15 of the household. 

16 ‘‘(3) INDIVIDUALS UNABLE TO COMPLETE THE

17 PROJECT.—The Secretary shall establish such regu18 lations as are necessary to ensure compliance with 

19 this title if an individual participating in a newborn 

20 development account demonstration project moves 

21 from the community in which the project is con22 ducted or is otherwise unable to continue partici23 pating in that project, including regulations prohib24 iting future eligibility to participate in any other 

25 demonstration project conducted under this title. 


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1 ‘‘(d) DEMONSTRATION AUTHORITY; ANNUAL

2 GRANTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) DEMONSTRATION AUTHORITY.—If the Sec4 retary approves an application to conduct a dem5 onstration project under this section, the Secretary 

6 shall, not later than 10 months after the date of en7 actment of this section, authorize the applicant to 

8 conduct the project for 5 project years in accordance 

9 with the approved application and the requirements 

10 of this title. 

11 ‘‘(2) GRANT AUTHORITY.—For each project 

12 year of a demonstration project conducted under 

13 this section, the Secretary may make a grant to the 

14 qualified entity authorized to conduct the project. In 

15 making such a grant, the Secretary shall make the 

16 grant on the first day of the project year in an 

17 amount not to exceed the lesser of— 

18 ‘‘(A) the aggregate amount of funds com19 mitted as matching contributions from non20 Federal public or private sector sources; or 

21 ‘‘(B) $1,000,000. 

22 ‘‘(e) DEPOSITS BY QUALIFIED ENTITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not less than once every 3 

24 months during each project year, each qualified enti25 ty under this title shall deposit in the newborn develVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 opment account of each individual participating in a 

2 project under this section, or into a parallel account 

3 maintained by the qualified entity— 

4 ‘‘(A) from the non-Federal funds described 

5 in section 405(c)(4), a matching contribution of 

6 not less than $0.50 and not more than $4 for 

7 every $1 of earned income (as defined in section 

8 911(d)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

9 1986) deposited in the account by a project 

10 participant during that period; 

11 ‘‘(B) from the grant made under sub12 section (d)(2), an amount equal to the matching 

13 contribution made under subparagraph (A); and 

14 ‘‘(C) any interest that has accrued on 

15 amounts deposited under subparagraph (A) or 

16 (B) on behalf of that individual. 

17 ‘‘(2) INITIAL DEPOSIT.—Upon the establish18 ment of a newborn development account, the quali19 fied entity providing deposits for such account shall 

20 deposit in the account $1,000 from the grant made 

21 under subsection (d)(2). 

22 ‘‘(f) ASSIGNMENT OF SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT

23 NUMBER.—In the case of an individual who is selected 

24 by a qualified entity to participate in a newborn develop25 ment account demonstration project and does not have a 


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1 social security account number, the Secretary shall coordi2 nate with the Commissioner of Social Security to ensure 

3 that such individual is assigned a social security account 

4 number as required under section 205(c)(2)(B)(i)(II) of 

5 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(B)(i)(II)). 

6 ‘‘(g) APPLICATION.—Except as otherwise provided, 

7 all requirements of this title shall— 

8 ‘‘(1) apply to newborn development accounts in 

9 the same manner in which they apply to individual 

10 development accounts; and 

11 ‘‘(2) apply to newborn development demonstra12 tion projects in the same manner in which they 

13 apply to other demonstration projects conducted 

14 under this title.’’. 

15 (c) REPAYMENT OF INITIAL DEPOSIT PRINCIPAL.— 

16 Section 202(q) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

17 402(q)) is amended by adding at the end the following 

18 new paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(12) In the case of an individual who partici20 pated in a newborn development account demonstra21 tion project under section 417 of the Assets for 

22 Independence Act, beginning with the first month 

23 for which such individual is entitled to an old-age, 

24 wife’s, husband’s, widow’s, or widow’s insurance 

25 benefit, the amount of such benefit shall be reduced 


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1 by up to 25 percent each month until the total 

2 amount by which such individual’s benefits have 

3 been reduced equals $1,000.’’. 

4 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

5 (1) Section 404 of the Assets for Independence 

6 Act is amended— 

7 (A) in paragraph (3)— 

8 (i) by inserting ‘‘or eligible newborn’’ 

9 after ‘‘eligible individual’’; 

10 (ii) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 

11 ‘‘or newborn development account’’ after 

12 ‘‘individual development account’’; and 

13 (iii) by inserting ‘‘or newborn’’ after 

14 ‘‘the individual’’ each place it appears; 

15 (B) in paragraph (5)(A)(vi)— 

16 (i) by inserting ‘‘or newborn develop17 ment account’’ after ‘‘individual develop18 ment account’’; and 

19 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or eligible newborn’’ 

20 after ‘‘eligible individual’’; 

21 (C) in paragraph (8)— 

22 (i) by inserting ‘‘or newborn develop23 ment account’’ after ‘‘individual develop24 ment account’’ each place it appears; 


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1 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or eligible newborn’’ 

2 after ‘‘eligible individual’’ each place it ap3 pears; 

4 (iii) in subparagraph (D), by inserting 

5 ‘‘or NDAs’’ after ‘‘IDAs’’ in the subpara6 graph heading; and 

7 (iv) by adding at the end the following 

8 new subparagraph: 

9 ‘‘(E) RETIREMENT EXPENSES FOR ELIGI10 BLE NEWBORNS.—In the case of an eligible 

11 newborn who has attained early retirement age 

12 (as defined in section 216(l) of the Social Secu13 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 416)), amounts paid from 

14 the newborn development account of such eligi15 ble newborn directly to the eligible newborn for 

16 purposes of enabling the eligible newborn to 

17 meet necessary living expenses.’’; and 

18 (D) in paragraph (9)— 

19 (i) by inserting ‘‘or newborn’’ after 

20 ‘‘an individual’’; 

21 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or newborn develop22 ment account’’ after ‘‘individual develop23 ment account’’; and 

24 (iii) by inserting ‘‘or newborn’’ before 

25 ‘‘during the period’’. 


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1 (2) Section 416 of the Assets for Independence 

2 Act is amended— 

3 (A) by inserting ‘‘and section 202(q)(12) 

4 of the Social Security Act’’ after ‘‘Internal Rev5 enue Code of 1986’’; and 

6 (B) by inserting ‘‘or newborn development 

7 account’’ after ‘‘individual development ac8 count’’. 

9 SEC. 107. COMMUNITY SERVICES BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM. 

10 Section 674(a) of the Community Services Block 

11 Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9903(a)) is amended by striking 

12 ‘‘2003’’ and inserting ‘‘2014’’. 

13 SEC. 108. GRANTS FOR WORKING GROUPS ON CHILDREN. 

14 (a) WORKING GROUPS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 

16 Human Services (referred to in this section as the 

17 ‘‘Secretary’’) shall award grant to States to establish 

18 Governors Working Groups on Children, that pro19 vide innovative, independent, bipartisan, and sus20 tainable leadership at the State level for improving 

21 the health status of children. 

22 (2) FUNDING.—In awarding grants under this 

23 subsection, the Secretary shall ensure that grants 

24 funds and activities are coordinated with existing 


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1 funding streams and programs targeted at improv2 ing the health status of children. 

3 (3) ASSESSMENT.—States receiving grants 

4 under this section shall use a portion of grant funds 

5 to assess the impact of State budget allocations to 

6 health on child well-being outcomes. 

7 (4) HEALTH EDUCATION COORDINATORS.— 

8 Each State receiving a grant under this subsection 

9 shall appoint a health education coordinator to re10 view and coordinate health and education resources, 

11 services, and programs of the State, as appropriate. 

12 (b) NATIONAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANT.— 

13 The Secretary shall award a grant to an institution of 

14 higher education, a national nonprofit organization, or a 

15 foundation, that is capable of providing technical assist16 ance on a national basis, to provide technical assistance 

17 to such States and Indian tribes to— 

18 (1) identify best practices for improving the 

19 health status of children; 

20 (2) provide consultation, training, and technical 

21 assistance to improve the health status of children; 

22 and 

23 (3) improve efforts of States and Indian tribes 

24 at capacity building. 


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1 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘Indian 

2 tribe’’ has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

3 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 

4 (25 U.S.C. 450b). 

5 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

6 authorized to be appropriated, such sums as may be nec7 essary to carry out this section. 

8 Subtitle B—Children’s Savings 

9 Accounts 

10 SEC. 110. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this subtitle: 

12 (1) CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNT.—The term 

13 ‘‘child’s savings account’’ means a trust created or 

14 organized exclusively for the purpose of paying the 

15 qualified expenses of only an individual who, when 

16 the trust is created or organized, has not attained 

17 18 years of age, if the written governing instrument 

18 creating the trust contains the following require19 ments: 

20 (A) The trustee is a federally insured fi21 nancial institution, or a State insured financial 

22 institution if a federally insured financial insti23 tution is not available. 

24 (B) The assets of the trust will be invested 

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1 vidual or of a parent or guardian of the indi2 vidual, after consultation with the entity pro3 viding the initial contribution to the trust or, if 

4 applicable, a matching or other contribution for 

5 the individual. 

6 (C) The assets of the trust will not be 

7 commingled with other property except in a 

8 common trust fund or common investment 

9 fund. 

10 (D) Any amount in the trust that is attrib11 utable to an account seed or matched deposit 

12 may be paid or distributed from the trust only 

13 for the purpose of paying qualified expenses of 

14 the individual. 

15 (2) QUALIFIED EXPENSES.—The term ‘‘quali16 fied expenses’’ means, with respect to an individual, 

17 expenses that— 

18 (A) are incurred after the individual re19 ceives a secondary school diploma or its recog20 nized equivalent; and 

21 (B) are— 

22 (i) postsecondary educational expenses 

23 (as defined in section 529 of the Internal 

24 Revenue Code of 1986) of the individual; 


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1 (ii) for the purchase of a first home 

2 by the individual; or 

3 (iii) for the capitalization of a busi4 ness owned by the individual. 

5 PART I—AMENDMENTS TO THE SOCIAL 

6 SECURITY ACT 

7 SEC. 111. INTEREST IN, AND DISTRIBUTION FROM, A QUALI8 FIED TUITION PROGRAM REQUIRED TO BE 

9 DISREGARDED UNDER THE TANF PROGRAM. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 408(a) of the Social Secu11 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 608(a)) is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following: 

13 ‘‘(13) REQUIREMENT TO DISREGARD INTEREST

14 IN AND DISTRIBUTION FROM, A QUALIFIED TUITION

15 PROGRAM.—A State to which a grant is made under 

16 section 403 shall disregard the value of any interest 

17 in, or distribution from, a qualified tuition program 

18 (as defined in section 529(b) of the Internal Rev19 enue Code of 1986), in determining the eligibility of, 

20 and the amount or type of assistance to be provided 

21 to an individual or family under the State program 

22 funded under this part.’’. 

23 (b) PENALTY FOR NONCOMPLIANCE.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 409(a) of such Act 

2 (42 U.S.C. 609(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

3 the following: 

4 ‘‘(17) PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO DISREGARD

5 INTEREST IN, OR DISTRIBUTION FROM, A QUALIFIED

6 TUITION PROGRAM.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary finds 

8 that a State to which a grant is made under 

9 section 403 for a fiscal year has failed to com10 ply with section 408(a)(13) during the fiscal 

11 year, the Secretary shall reduce the grant oth12 erwise payable to the State under section 

13 403(a)(1) for the succeeding fiscal year by the 

14 percentage specified in subparagraph (B) of 

15 this paragraph. 

16 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF REDUCTION.—The re17 duction required under subparagraph (A) shall 

18 be— 

19 ‘‘(i) not less than 1 nor more than 2 

20 percent; 

21 ‘‘(ii) not less than 2 nor more than 3 

22 percent, if the finding is the 2nd consecu23 tive finding made pursuant to subpara24 graph (A); or 


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1 ‘‘(iii) not less than 3 nor more than 5 

2 percent, if the finding is the 3rd or a sub3 sequent consecutive such finding.’’. 

4 (2) NO EXCEPTION FOR REASONABLE CAUSE.— 

5 Section 409(b)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 609(b)(2)) 

6 is amended by striking ‘‘or (13)’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘(13), or (17)’’. 

8 SEC. 112. EXCLUSION OF INTEREST IN, AND DISTRIBUTION 

9 FROM, A QUALIFIED TUITION PROGRAM 

10 FROM RESOURCES UNDER THE SSI PRO11 GRAM. 

12 Section 1613(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

13 1382b(a)) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

15 (16); 

16 (2) by striking the period at the end of para17 graph (17) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

18 (3) by inserting after paragraph (17) the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(18) the value of any interest in, or distribu21 tion from, a qualified tuition program (as defined in 

22 section 529(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

23 1986).’’. 


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1 SEC. 113. CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNT REQUIRED TO BE 

2 DISREGARDED UNDER THE TANF PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 408(a)(13) of the Social 

4 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 608(a)), as amended by section 

5 111(a) of this Act, is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘(13)’’ and all that follows 

7 through ‘‘A State’’ and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘(13) REQUIREMENT TO DISREGARD INTEREST

9 IN, AND DISTRIBUTION FROM, A QUALIFIED TUITION

10 PROGRAM, AND VALUE OF A CHILD’S SAVINGS AC11 COUNT.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State’’; and 

13 (2) by inserting ‘‘and the value of any child’s 

14 savings account (as defined in section 401 of the 

15 SONG Act)’’ after ‘‘1986)’’. 

16 (b) PENALTY FOR NONCOMPLIANCE.—Section 

17 409(a)(17) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 608(a)(17)), as added 

18 by section 101(b)(1) of this Act, is amended in the para19 graph heading, by inserting ‘‘OR VALUE OF A CHILD’S SAV20 INGS ACCOUNT’’ after ‘‘PROGRAM’’. 

21 SEC. 114. EXCLUSION OF CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNT FROM 

22 RESOURCES UNDER THE SSI PROGRAM. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1613(a) of the Social Se24 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 1382b(a)), as amended by section 

25 112 of this Act, is amended— 


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•S 473 IS

1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

2 (17); 

3 (2) by striking the period at the end of para4 graph (18) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (3) by inserting after paragraph (18) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(19) any child’s savings account (as defined in 

8 section 401 of the SONG Act), including accrued in9 terest or other earnings thereon.’’. 

10 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 1613(e)(5) 

11 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1382b) is amended by inserting 

12 ‘‘of this Act or section 110 of the SONG Act’’ before the 

13 period. 

14 (c) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Effective imme15 diately after the repeal of the amendments made by the 

16 Improving Access to Clinical Trials Act of 2009 (Public 

17 Law 111–255), section 1613(a) of the Social Security Act 

18 (42 U.S.C. 1382b(a)), as amended by the preceding provi19 sions of this subtitle, is amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

21 (15); 

22 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

23 (16); and 


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•S 473 IS

1 (3) by striking paragraph (17) and redesig2 nating paragraphs (18) and (19) as paragraphs (17) 

3 and (18), respectively. 

4 PART II—AMENDMENT TO THE FOOD AND 

5 NUTRITION ACT OF 2008 

6 SEC. 121. EXCLUSION OF CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNTS 

7 FROM RESOURCES UNDER THE SUPPLE8 MENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

9 Section 5(g) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 

10 (7 U.S.C. 2014(g)) is amended by adding at the end the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘(9) EXCLUSION OF CHILD’S SAVINGS AC13 COUNTS FROM ALLOWABLE FINANCIAL RE14 SOURCES.— 

15 ‘‘(A) EXCLUSION.—The Secretary shall ex16 clude from financial resources under this sub17 section the value of funds in any child’s savings 

18 account. 

19 ‘‘(B) CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNT.—For 

20 purposes of subparagraph (A), the term ‘child’s 

21 savings account’ has the meaning given such 

22 term in section 110 of the SONG Act.’’. 


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1 PART III—AMENDMENT TO LOW-INCOME HOME 

2 ENERGY ASSISTANCE ACT OF 1981 

3 SEC. 131. EXCLUSION OF CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNTS 

4 FROM RESOURCES UNDER THE LOW-INCOME 

5 HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

6 Section 2605(f) of the Low-Income Home Energy As7 sistance Act of 1981 (42 U.S.C. 8624(f)) is amended by 

8 adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(3) EXCLUSION OF CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNTS

10 FROM ALLOWABLE FINANCIAL RESOURCES.— 

11 ‘‘(A) EXCLUSION.—The income of a household 

12 shall be determined under this section without re13 gard to the value of funds in any child’s savings ac14 count. 

15 ‘‘(B) CHILD’S SAVINGS ACCOUNT.—For pur16 poses of subparagraph (A), the term ‘child’s savings 

17 account’ has the meaning given such term in section 

18 110 of the SONG Act.’’. 

19 Subtitle C—Family and Medical 

20 Leave 

21 PART I—INCLUSION 

22 SEC. 141. LEAVE TO CARE FOR A SAME-SEX SPOUSE, DO23 MESTIC PARTNER, PARENT-IN-LAW, ADULT 

24 CHILD, SIBLING, GRANDCHILD, OR GRAND25 PARENT. 

26 (a) DEFINITIONS.— 


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1 (1) INCLUSION OF ADULT CHILDREN AND CHIL2 DREN OF A DOMESTIC PARTNER.—Section 101(12) 

3 of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 

4 U.S.C. 2611(12)) is amended— 

5 (A) by inserting ‘‘a child of an individual’s 

6 domestic partner,’’ after ‘‘a legal ward,’’; and 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘who is—’’ and all that 

8 follows and inserting ‘‘and includes an adult 

9 child.’’. 

10 (2) INCLUSION OF GRANDCHILDREN, GRAND11 PARENTS, PARENTS-IN-LAW, SIBLINGS, AND DOMES12 TIC PARTNERS.—Section 101 of the Family and 

13 Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611) is fur14 ther amended by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(20) DOMESTIC PARTNER.—The term ‘domes16 tic partner’, used with respect to an employee, 

17 means— 

18 ‘‘(A) the person recognized as the domestic 

19 partner of the employee under any domestic 

20 partner registry or civil union law of the State 

21 or political subdivision of a State where the em22 ployee resides, or the person who is lawfully 

23 married to the employee under the law of the 

24 State where the employee resides and who is 

25 the same sex as the employee; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) in the case of an unmarried employee 

2 who lives in a State where a person cannot 

3 marry a person of the same sex under the laws 

4 of the State, a single, unmarried adult person 

5 of the same sex as the employee who is in a 

6 committed, personal (as defined in regulations 

7 issued by the Secretary) relationship with the 

8 employee, who is not a domestic partner to any 

9 other person, and who is designated to the em10 ployer by such employee as that employee’s do11 mestic partner. 

12 ‘‘(21) GRANDCHILD.—The term ‘grandchild’, 

13 used with respect to an employee, means any person 

14 who is a son or daughter of a son or daughter of 

15 the employee. 

16 ‘‘(22) GRANDPARENT.—The term ‘grand17 parent’, used with respect to an employee, means a 

18 parent of a parent of the employee. 

19 ‘‘(23) PARENT-IN-LAW.—The term ‘parent-in20 law’, used with respect to an employee, means a par21 ent of the spouse or domestic partner of the em22 ployee. 

23 ‘‘(24) SIBLING.—The term ‘sibling’, used with 

24 respect to an employee, means any person who is a 

25 son or daughter of the employee’s parent. 


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1 ‘‘(25) SON-IN-LAW OR DAUGHTER-IN-LAW.— 

2 The term ‘son-in-law or daughter-in-law’, used with 

3 respect to an employee, means any person who is a 

4 spouse or domestic partner of a son or daughter of 

5 the employee.’’. 

6 (b) LEAVE REQUIREMENT.—Section 102 of the Fam7 ily and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2612) is 

8 amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 

10 (A) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

11 ‘‘spouse, or a son, daughter, or parent, of the 

12 employee, if such spouse, son, daughter, or par13 ent’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse or domestic partner, 

14 or a son, daughter, parent, parent-in-law, 

15 grandparent, or sibling, of the employee, if such 

16 spouse, domestic partner, son, daughter, parent, 

17 parent-in-law, grandparent, or sibling’’; and 

18 (B) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

19 ‘‘spouse, or a son, daughter, or parent’’ and in20 serting ‘‘spouse or domestic partner, or a son, 

21 daughter, parent, parent-in-law, grandchild, or 

22 sibling,’’; 

23 (2) in subsection (a)(3), by striking ‘‘spouse, 

24 son, daughter, parent,’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse or doVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00052 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 mestic partner, son, daughter, parent, son-in-law or 

2 daughter-in-law, grandparent, sibling,’’; 

3 (3) in subsection (e)— 

4 (A) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking 

5 ‘‘spouse, parent,’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, do6 mestic partner, parent, parent-in-law, grand7 child, grandparent, sibling,’’; and 

8 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘spouse, 

9 or a son, daughter, or parent,’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘spouse or domestic partner, or a son, daugh11 ter, parent, parent-in-law, grandchild, or sib12 ling,’’; and 

13 (4) in subsection (f)— 

14 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘a hus15 band and wife’’ and inserting ‘‘2 spouses or 2 

16 domestic partners’’; and 

17 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

18 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

19 ‘‘that husband and wife’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘those spouses or those domestic part21 ners’’; and 

22 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

23 ‘‘the husband and wife’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘those spouses or those domestic part25 ners’’. 


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1 (c) CERTIFICATION.—Section 103 of the Family and 

2 Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2613) is amend3 ed— 

4 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘spouse, or 

5 parent’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, domestic partner, 

6 parent, parent-in-law, grandchild, grandparent, or 

7 sibling’’; and 

8 (2) in subsection (b)— 

9 (A) in paragraph (4)(A), by striking 

10 ‘‘spouse, or parent and an estimate of the 

11 amount of time that such employee is needed to 

12 care for the son, daughter, spouse, or parent’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘spouse, domestic partner, par14 ent, parent-in-law, grandparent, or sibling, and 

15 an estimate of the amount of time that such 

16 employee is needed to care for such son, daugh17 ter, spouse, domestic partner, parent, parent-in18 law, grandparent, or sibling’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘parent, 

20 or spouse’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, domestic 

21 partner, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, or 

22 sibling’’. 

23 (d) EMPLOYMENT AND BENEFITS PROTECTION.— 

24 Section 104(c)(3) of the Family and Medical Leave Act 

25 of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2614(c)(3)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking ‘‘spouse, 

2 or parent’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, domestic partner, 

3 parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, or sibling’’; and 

4 (2) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by striking 

5 ‘‘spouse, or parent’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, domestic 

6 partner, parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, or sib7 ling’’. 

8 SEC. 142. LEAVE FOR CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEES TO CARE 

9 FOR SAME-SEX SPOUSE, DOMESTIC PARTNER, 

10 PARTNER-IN-LAW, ADULT CHILD, SIBLING, 

11 GRANDCHILD, OR GRANDPARENT. 

12 (a) DEFINITIONS.— 

13 (1) INCLUSION OF ADULT CHILDREN AND CHIL14 DREN OF A DOMESTIC PARTNER.—Section 6381(6) 

15 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

16 (A) by inserting ‘‘a child of an individual’s 

17 domestic partner,’’ after ‘‘a legal ward,’’; and 

18 (B) by striking ‘‘who is—’’ and all that 

19 follows and inserting ‘‘and includes an adult 

20 child.’’. 

21 (2) INCLUSION OF GRANDCHILDREN, GRAND22 PARENTS, PARENTS-IN-LAW, SIBLINGS, AND DOMES23 TIC PARTNERS.—Section 6381 of such title is fur24 ther amended— 


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•S 473 IS

1 (A) in paragraph (11)(B), by striking ‘‘; 

2 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 

3 (B) in paragraph (12), by striking the pe4 riod and inserting a semicolon; and 

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

6 ‘‘(13) the term ‘domestic partner’, used with re7 spect to an employee, means— 

8 ‘‘(A) the person recognized as the domestic 

9 partner of the employee under any domestic 

10 partner registry or civil union law of the State 

11 or political subdivision of a State where the em12 ployee resides, or the person who is lawfully 

13 married to the employee under the law of the 

14 State where the employee resides and who is 

15 the same sex as the employee; or 

16 ‘‘(B) in the case of an unmarried employee 

17 who lives in a State where a person cannot 

18 marry a person of the same sex under the laws 

19 of the State, a single, unmarried adult person 

20 of the same sex as the employee who is in a 

21 committed, personal (as defined in regulations 

22 issued by the Office of Personnel Management) 

23 relationship with the employee, who is not a do24 mestic partner to any other person, and who is 


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•S 473 IS

1 designated to the employing office by such em2 ployee as that employee’s domestic partner; 

3 ‘‘(14) the term ‘grandchild’, used with respect 

4 to an employee, means any person who is a son or 

5 daughter of a son or daughter of the employee; 

6 ‘‘(15) the term ‘grandparent’, used with respect 

7 to an employee, means a parent of a parent of the 

8 employee; 

9 ‘‘(16) the term ‘parent-in-law’, used with re10 spect to an employee, means a parent of the spouse 

11 or domestic partner of the employee; 

12 ‘‘(17) the term ‘sibling’, used with respect to an 

13 employee, means any person who is a son or daugh14 ter of the employee’s parent; and 

15 ‘‘(18) the term ‘son-in-law or daughter-in-law’, 

16 used with respect to an employee, means any person 

17 who is a spouse or domestic partner of a son or 

18 daughter of the employee.’’. 

19 (b) LEAVE REQUIREMENT.—Section 6382 of title 5, 

20 United States Code, is amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 

22 (A) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

23 ‘‘spouse, or a son, daughter, or parent, of the 

24 employee, if such spouse, son, daughter, or par25 ent’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse or domestic partner, 


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1 or a son, daughter, parent, parent-in-law, 

2 grandparent, or sibling, of the employee, if such 

3 spouse, domestic partner, son, daughter, parent, 

4 parent-in-law, grandparent, or sibling’’; and 

5 (B) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

6 ‘‘spouse, or a son, daughter, or parent’’ and in7 serting ‘‘spouse or domestic partner, or a son, 

8 daughter, parent, parent-in-law, grandchild, or 

9 sibling,’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (a)(3), by striking ‘‘spouse, 

11 son, daughter, parent,’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse or do12 mestic partner, son, daughter, parent, son-in-law or 

13 daughter-in-law, grandparent, sibling,’’; and 

14 (3) in subsection (e)— 

15 (A) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking 

16 ‘‘spouse, parent,’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, do17 mestic partner, parent, parent-in-law, grand18 child, grandparent, sibling,’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘spouse, 

20 or a son, daughter, or parent,’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘spouse or domestic partner, or a son, daugh22 ter, parent, parent-in-law, grandchild, or sib23 ling,’’. 

24 (c) CERTIFICATION.—Section 6383 of title 5, United 

25 States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘spouse, or 

2 parent’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, domestic partner, 

3 parent, parent-in-law, grandchild, grandparent, or 

4 sibling’’; and 

5 (2) in subsection (b)(4)(A), by striking ‘‘spouse, 

6 or parent, and an estimate of the amount of time 

7 that such employee is needed to care for such son, 

8 daughter, spouse, or parent’’ and inserting ‘‘spouse, 

9 domestic partner, parent, parent-in-law, grand10 parent, or sibling, and an estimate of the amount of 

11 time that such employee is needed to care for such 

12 son, daughter, spouse, domestic partner, parent, 

13 parent-in-law, grandparent, or sibling’’. 

14 PART II—FAMILY INVOLVEMENT LEAVE 

15 SEC. 151. FAMILY INVOLVEMENT LEAVE. 

16 (a) ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE.—Section 102(a) of the 

17 Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 

18 2612(a)) is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

20 (A) in the first sentence, by striking 

21 ‘‘paragraphs (1) and (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘para22 graphs (1), (3), and (6)’’; and 

23 (B) in the second sentence, by striking 

24 ‘‘paragraph (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1) 

25 or (6)’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(6) ENTITLEMENT TO FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

3 LEAVE.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 

5 103(h), an eligible employee shall be entitled to 

6 a total of 24 hours of leave during any 12- 

7 month period— 

8 ‘‘(i) to participate in an academic ac9 tivity of a school of a son or daughter of 

10 the employee, such as a parent-teacher 

11 conference or an interview for a school; 

12 ‘‘(ii) to participate in an extra13 curricular activity at, or sponsored by, a 

14 school of a son or daughter of the em15 ployee; or 

16 ‘‘(iii) to transport or accompany a 

17 spouse, son or daughter, or parent, of the 

18 employee to a medical or dental appoint19 ment. 

20 ‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph, 

21 the term ‘school’ means an elementary school or 

22 secondary school (as such terms are defined in 

23 section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 

24 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)), a 

25 Head Start program assisted under the Head 


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1 Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.), and a child 

2 care facility operated by a provider who meets 

3 the applicable State or local government licens4 ing, certification, or registration requirements, 

5 if any. 

6 ‘‘(7) LIMITATION.—No employee may take 

7 more than a total of 12 workweeks of leave under 

8 paragraphs (1) and (6) during any 12-month pe9 riod.’’. 

10 (b) SCHEDULE.—Section 102(b)(1) of such Act (29 

11 U.S.C. 2612(b)(1)) is amended by inserting after the third 

12 sentence the following: ‘‘Leave under subsection (a)(6) 

13 may be taken intermittently or on a reduced leave sched14 ule.’’. 

15 (c) SUBSTITUTION OF PAID LEAVE.—Section 

16 102(d)(2)(A) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 2612(d)(2)(A)) is 

17 amended by inserting before the period the following: ‘‘, 

18 or for leave provided under subsection (a)(6) for any part 

19 of the 24-hour period of such leave under such sub20 section’’. 

21 (d) NOTICE.—Section 102(e) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

22 2612(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(4) NOTICE FOR FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

24 LEAVE.—In any case in which the necessity for leave 

25 under subsection (a)(6) is foreseeable, the employee 


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1 shall provide the employer with not less than 7 days’ 

2 notice, before the date the leave is to begin, of the 

3 employee’s intention to take leave under such sub4 section. If the necessity for the leave is not foresee5 able, the employee shall provide such notice as is 

6 practicable.’’. 

7 (e) CERTIFICATION.—Section 103 of such Act (29 

8 U.S.C. 2613) is amended by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(g) CERTIFICATION FOR FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

11 LEAVE.—An employer may require that a request for 

12 leave under section 102(a)(6) be supported by a certifi13 cation issued at such time and in such manner as the Sec14 retary may by regulation prescribe.’’. 

15 SEC. 152. FAMILY INVOLVEMENT LEAVE FOR CIVIL SERV16 ICE EMPLOYEES. 

17 (a) ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE.—Section 6382(a) of 

18 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

20 (A) in the first sentence, by striking 

21 ‘‘paragraphs (1) and (3)’’ and inserting ‘‘para22 graphs (1), (3), and (5)’’; and 

23 (B) in the second sentence, by striking 

24 ‘‘paragraph (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1) 

25 or (5)’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(5)(A) Subject to section 6383(h), an employee shall 

3 be entitled to a total of 24 hours of leave during any 12- 

4 month period— 

5 ‘‘(i) to participate in an academic activity of a 

6 school of a son or daughter of the employee, such as 

7 a parent-teacher conference or an interview for a 

8 school; 

9 ‘‘(ii) to participate in an extracurricular activity 

10 at, or sponsored by, a school of a son or daughter 

11 of the employee; or 

12 ‘‘(iii) to transport or accompany a spouse, son, 

13 or daughter, or parent, of the employee to a medical 

14 or dental appointment. 

15 ‘‘(B) In this paragraph, the term ‘school’ means an 

16 elementary school or secondary school (as such terms are 

17 defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 

18 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)), a Head Start 

19 program assisted under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

20 9831 et seq.), and a child care facility operated by a pro21 vider who meets the applicable State or local government 

22 licensing, certification, or registration requirements, if 

23 any. 


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1 ‘‘(6) No employee may take more than a total of 12 

2 workweeks of leave under paragraphs (1) and (5) during 

3 any 12-month period.’’. 

4 (b) SCHEDULE.—Section 6382(b)(1) of such title is 

5 amended by inserting after the third sentence the fol6 lowing: ‘‘Leave under subsection (a)(5) may be taken 

7 intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule.’’. 

8 (c) SUBSTITUTION OF PAID LEAVE.—Section 

9 6382(d) of such title is amended by inserting before ‘‘, 

10 except’’ the following: ‘‘, or for leave provided under sub11 section (a)(5) any of the employee’s accrued or accumu12 lated annual leave under subchapter I for any part of the 

13 24-hour period of such leave under such subsection’’. 

14 (d) NOTICE.—Section 6382(e) of such title is amend15 ed by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(4) In any case in which the necessity for leave 

17 under subsection (a)(5) is foreseeable, the employee shall 

18 provide the employing agency with not less than 7 days’ 

19 notice, before the date the leave is to begin, of the employ20 ee’s intention to take leave under such subsection. If the 

21 necessity for the leave is not foreseeable, the employee 

22 shall provide such notice as is practicable.’’. 

23 (e) CERTIFICATION.—Section 6383 of such title is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(g) An employing agency may require that a request 

2 for leave under section 6382(a)(5) be supported by a cer3 tification issued at such time and in such manner as the 

4 Office of Personnel Management may by regulation pre5 scribe.’’. 

6 PART III—LEAVE FOR ADDRESSING DOMESTIC 

7 VIOLENCE 

8 SEC. 161. LEAVE FOR ADDRESSING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE. 

9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 101 of the Family and 

10 Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611), as amended 

11 by section 141, is further amended by adding at the end 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(26) ADDRESSING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND

14 ITS EFFECTS.—The term ‘addressing domestic vio15 lence and its effects’, used with respect to an em16 ployee, means— 

17 ‘‘(A) being unable to attend or perform 

18 work due to an incident of domestic violence; 

19 ‘‘(B) recovering from, or seeking medical 

20 attention for the employee or a son, daughter, 

21 or parent (referred to in this paragraph as a 

22 ‘family member’) of the employee to recover 

23 from, injury caused by domestic violence; 

24 ‘‘(C) seeking, or assisting a family member 

25 in seeking, legal assistance or a remedy, includVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00065 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 ing communicating with the police or an attor2 ney, or participating in any legal proceeding, re3 lated to domestic violence; 

4 ‘‘(D) obtaining, or assisting a family mem5 ber in obtaining, services from a domestic vio6 lence shelter or program or rape crisis center as 

7 a result of domestic violence; 

8 ‘‘(E) obtaining, or assisting a family mem9 ber in obtaining, psychological counseling re10 lated to an experience of domestic violence; 

11 ‘‘(F) participating in safety planning and 

12 other actions, including temporary or perma13 nent relocation, to increase safety from future 

14 domestic violence; and 

15 ‘‘(G) participating in any other activity ne16 cessitated by domestic violence that must be un17 dertaken during the hours of employment in18 volved. 

19 ‘‘(27) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—The term ‘domes20 tic violence’ means domestic violence, and dating vio21 lence, as such terms are defined in section 40002 of 

22 the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 

23 13925).’’. 


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1 (b) LEAVE REQUIREMENT.—Section 102 of the Fam2 ily and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2612) is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by adding at the end 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(F) In order to care for a son, daughter, 

7 or parent of the employee, if such son, daugh8 ter, or parent is addressing domestic violence 

9 and its effects. 

10 ‘‘(G) Because the employee is addressing 

11 domestic violence and its effects, which make 

12 the employee unable to perform the functions of 

13 the position of such employee.’’; 

14 (2) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘(3) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—Leave under sub17 paragraph (F) or (G) of subsection (a)(1) may be 

18 taken by an eligible employee intermittently or on a 

19 reduced leave schedule. The taking of leave intermit20 tently or on a reduced leave schedule pursuant to 

21 this paragraph shall not result in a reduction in the 

22 total amount of leave to which the employee is enti23 tled under subsection (a) beyond the amount of leave 

24 actually taken.’’; and 


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1 (3) in subsection (d)(2)(B), in the first sen2 tence, by striking ‘‘(C) or (D)’’ and inserting ‘‘(C), 

3 (D), (F), or (G)’’. 

4 (c) CERTIFICATION.—Section 103 of the Family and 

5 Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2613), as amended 

6 by section 151(e), is further amended— 

7 (1) in the title of the section, by inserting be8 fore the period the following: ‘‘; CONFIDEN9 TIALITY’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(h) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—In determining if an 

12 employee meets the requirements of subparagraph (F) or 

13 (G) of section 102(a)(1), the employer of an employee may 

14 require the employee to provide— 

15 ‘‘(1) a written statement describing the domes16 tic violence and its effects; 

17 ‘‘(2) documentation of the domestic violence in18 volved, such as a police or court record, or docu19 mentation from a shelter worker, an employee of a 

20 domestic violence program or rape crisis center, an 

21 attorney, a member of the clergy, or a medical or 

22 other professional, from whom the employee has 

23 sought assistance in addressing domestic violence 

24 and its effects; or 


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1 ‘‘(3) other corroborating evidence, such as a 

2 statement from any other individual with knowledge 

3 of the circumstances that provide the basis for the 

4 claim of domestic violence, or physical evidence of 

5 domestic violence, such as a photograph, torn or 

6 bloody clothing, or any other damaged property. 

7 ‘‘(i) CONFIDENTIALITY.—All evidence provided to the 

8 employer under subsection (h) of domestic violence experi9 enced by an employee or the son, daughter, or parent of 

10 an employee, including a statement of an employee, any 

11 other documentation or corroborating evidence, and the 

12 fact that an employee has requested leave for the purpose 

13 of addressing, or caring for a son, daughter, or parent who 

14 is addressing, domestic violence and its effects, shall be 

15 retained in the strictest confidence by the employer, except 

16 to the extent that disclosure is requested, or consented to, 

17 by the employee for the purpose of— 

18 ‘‘(1) protecting the safety of the employee or a 

19 son, daughter, parent, or co-worker of the employee; 

20 or 

21 ‘‘(2) assisting in documenting domestic violence 

22 for a court or agency.’’. 

23 (d) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in 

24 section 1(b) of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 


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1 is amended by striking the item relating to section 103 

2 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 103. Certification; confidentiality.’’. 

3 SEC. 162. LEAVE FOR ADDRESSING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 

4 FOR CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEES. 

5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 6381 of title 5, United 

6 States Code, as amended by section 142(a), is further 

7 amended— 

8 (1) at the end of paragraph (17), by striking 

9 ‘‘and’’; 

10 (2) in paragraph (18), by striking the period 

11 and inserting a semicolon; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(19) the term ‘addressing domestic violence 

14 and its effects’ has the meaning given the term in 

15 section 101 of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 

16 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611); and 

17 ‘‘(20) the term ‘domestic violence’ means do18 mestic violence, and dating violence, as such terms 

19 are defined in section 40002 of the Violence Against 

20 Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13925).’’. 

21 (b) LEAVE REQUIREMENT.—Section 6382 of title 5, 

22 United States Code, is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by adding at the end 

24 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(F) In order to care for a son, daughter, or 

2 parent of the employee, if such son, daughter, or 

3 parent is addressing domestic violence and its ef4 fects. 

5 ‘‘(G) Because the employee is addressing do6 mestic violence and its effects, which make the em7 ployee unable to perform the functions of the posi8 tion of such employee.’’; 

9 (2) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘(3) Leave under subparagraph (F) or (G) of sub12 section (a)(1) may be taken by an employee intermittently 

13 or on a reduced leave schedule. The taking of leave inter14 mittently or on a reduced leave schedule pursuant to this 

15 paragraph shall not result in a reduction in the total 

16 amount of leave to which the employee is entitled under 

17 subsection (a) beyond the amount of leave actually 

18 taken.’’; and 

19 (3) in subsection (d), in the first sentence, by 

20 striking ‘‘(D), or (E)’’ and inserting ‘‘(D), (E), (F), 

21 or (G)’’. 

22 (c) CERTIFICATION.—Section 6383 of title 5, United 

23 States Code, as amended by section 152(e), is further 

24 amended— 


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1 (1) in the title of the section, by adding at the 

2 end the following: ‘‘; confidentiality’’; and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(h) In determining if an employee meets the require5 ments of subparagraph (F) or (G) of section 6382(a)(1), 

6 the employing agency of an employee may require the em7 ployee to provide— 

8 ‘‘(1) a written statement describing the domes9 tic violence and its effects; 

10 ‘‘(2) documentation of the domestic violence in11 volved, such as a police or court record, or docu12 mentation from a shelter worker, an employee of a 

13 domestic violence program or rape crisis center, an 

14 attorney, a member of the clergy, or a medical or 

15 other professional, from whom the employee has 

16 sought assistance in addressing domestic violence 

17 and its effects; or 

18 ‘‘(3) other corroborating evidence, such as a 

19 statement from any other individual with knowledge 

20 of the circumstances that provide the basis for the 

21 claim of domestic violence, or physical evidence of 

22 domestic violence, such as a photograph, torn or 

23 bloody clothing, or other damaged property. 

24 ‘‘(i) All evidence provided to the employing agency 

25 under subsection (h) of domestic violence experienced by 


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1 an employee or the son, daughter, or parent of an em2 ployee, including a statement of an employee, any other 

3 documentation or corroborating evidence, and the fact 

4 that an employee has requested leave for the purpose of 

5 addressing, or caring for a son, daughter, or parent who 

6 is addressing, domestic violence and its effects, shall be 

7 retained in the strictest confidence by the employing agen8 cy, except to the extent that disclosure is requested, or 

9 consented to, by the employee for the purpose of— 

10 ‘‘(1) protecting the safety of the employee or a 

11 son, daughter, parent, or co-worker of the employee; 

12 or 

13 ‘‘(2) assisting in documenting domestic violence 

14 for a court or agency.’’. 

15 (d) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections for 

16 chapter 63 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 

17 striking the item relating to section 6383 and inserting 

18 the following: 

‘‘6383. Certification; confidentiality.’’. 

19 PART IV—BEREAVEMENT LEAVE 

20 SEC. 171. BEREAVEMENT LEAVE. 

21 (a) ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE.—Section 102(a)(1) of 

22 the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 

23 2612(a)(1)), as amended by section 161(b), is further 

24 amended by adding at the end the following new subpara25 graph: 


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1 ‘‘(H) Because of the death of a son or 

2 daughter, parent, or sibling.’’. 

3 (b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO LEAVE.— 

4 (1) SCHEDULE.—Section 102(b)(1) of such Act 

5 (29 U.S.C. 2612(b)(1)), as amended by section 

6 151(b), is further amended by inserting before the 

7 last sentence the following new sentence: ‘‘Leave 

8 under subsection (a)(1)(H) shall not be taken by an 

9 employee intermittently or on a reduced leave sched10 ule unless the employee and the employer of the em11 ployee agree otherwise.’’. 

12 (2) SUBSTITUTION OF PAID LEAVE.—Section 

13 102(d)(2)(B) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

14 2612(d)(2)(B)), as amended by section 161(b), is 

15 further amended, in the first sentence, by striking 

16 ‘‘or (G)’’ and inserting ‘‘(G), or (H)’’. 

17 (3) NOTICE.—Section 102(e) of such Act (29 

18 U.S.C. 2612(e)), as amended by section 151(d), is 

19 further amended by adding at the end the following 

20 new paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(5) NOTICE FOR BEREAVEMENT LEAVE.—In 

22 any case in which the necessity for leave under sub23 section (a)(1)(H) is foreseeable, the employee shall 

24 provide such notice to the employer as is reasonable 

25 and practicable.’’. 


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1 (4) SPOUSES EMPLOYED BY SAME EM2 PLOYER.—Section 102(f)(1)(A) of such Act (29 

3 U.S.C. 2612(f)(1)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘sub4 paragraph (A) or (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph 

5 (A), (B), or (H)’’. 

6 (5) CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

7 103 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 2613), as amended by 

8 section 161(c), is further amended by adding at the 

9 end the following: 

10 ‘‘(j) CERTIFICATION RELATED TO A DEATH.—An 

11 employer may require that a request for leave under sec12 tion 102(a)(1)(H) be supported by a certification issued 

13 at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may 

14 by regulation prescribe. If the Secretary issues a regula15 tion requiring such certification, the employee shall pro16 vide, in a timely manner, a copy of such certification to 

17 the employer.’’. 

18 (6) FAILURE TO RETURN FROM LEAVE.—Sec19 tion 104(c) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 2614(c)) is 

20 amended— 

21 (A) in paragraph (2)(B)(i), by inserting 

22 before the semicolon the following: ‘‘, or a death 

23 that entitles the employee to leave under section 

24 102(a)(1)(H)’’; and 

25 (B) in paragraph (3)(A)— 


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1 (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), 

2 by inserting ‘‘, or the death,’’ before ‘‘de3 scribed’’; 

4 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 

5 the end; 

6 (iii) by redesignating clause (iii) as 

7 clause (iv); and 

8 (iv) by inserting after clause (ii) the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(iii) a certification that meets such 

11 requirements as the Secretary may by reg12 ulation prescribe, in the case of an em13 ployee unable to return to work because of 

14 a death specified in section 102(a)(1)(H); 

15 or’’. 

16 (7) EMPLOYEES OF LOCAL EDUCATIONAL

17 AGENCIES.—Section 108 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

18 2618) is amended— 

19 (A) in subsection (c)— 

20 (i) in paragraph (1)— 

21 (I) in the matter preceding sub22 paragraph (A), by inserting after 

23 ‘‘medical treatment’’ the following: ‘‘, 

24 or under section 102(a)(1)(H) that is 

25 foreseeable,’’; and 


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1 (II) in subparagraph (A), by in2 serting after ‘‘to exceed’’ the fol3 lowing: ‘‘(except in the case of leave 

4 under section 102(a)(1)(H))’’; and 

5 (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘sec6 tion 102(e)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraphs 

7 (2) and (5) of section 102(e), as applica8 ble’’; and 

9 (B) in subsection (d), in paragraphs (2) 

10 and (3), by striking ‘‘or (C)’’ each place it ap11 pears and inserting ‘‘(C), or (H)’’. 

12 SEC. 172. BEREAVEMENT LEAVE FOR CIVIL SERVICE EM13 PLOYEES. 

14 (a) ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE.—Section 6382(a)(1) 

15 of title 5, United States Code, as amended by section 

16 162(b), is further amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(H) Because of the death of a son or daugh19 ter, parent, or sibling.’’. 

20 (b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO LEAVE.— 

21 (1) SCHEDULE.—Section 6382(b)(1) of such 

22 title, as amended by section 142(b), is further 

23 amended by inserting before the last sentence the 

24 following new sentence: ‘‘Leave under subsection 

25 (a)(1)(H) shall not be taken by an employee interVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00077 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 mittently or on a reduced leave schedule unless the 

2 employee and the employing agency of the employee 

3 agree otherwise.’’. 

4 (2) SUBSTITUTION OF PAID LEAVE.—Section 

5 6382(d) of such title, as amended by section 162(b), 

6 is further amended, in the first sentence, by striking 

7 ‘‘or (G)’’ and inserting ‘‘(G), or (H)’’. 

8 (3) NOTICE.—Section 6382(e) of such title, as 

9 amended by section 152(d), is further amended by 

10 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(5) In any case in which the necessity for leave 

12 under subsection (a)(1)(H) is foreseeable, the employee 

13 shall provide such notice to the employing agency as is 

14 reasonable and practicable.’’. 

15 (4) CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

16 6383 of such title, as amended by section 162(c), is 

17 further amended by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(j) An employing agency may require that a request 

19 for leave under section 6382(a)(1)(H) be supported by a 

20 certification issued at such time and in such manner as 

21 the Office of Personnel Management may by regulation 

22 prescribe. If the Office issues a regulation requiring such 

23 certification, the employee shall provide, in a timely man24 ner, a copy of such certification to the employing office.’’. 


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1 TITLE II—HEALTH PROGRAMS 

2 Subtitle A—Ensuring Access 

3 SEC. 201. COORDINATION AND EXTENSION OF FUNDING 

4 FOR DEMONSTRATION PROJECT TO ADDRESS 

5 HEALTH PROFESSIONS WORKFORCE NEEDS 

6 AND MATERNAL, INFANT, AND EARLY CHILD7 HOOD HOME VISITING PROGRAMS. 

8 (a) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT TO ADDRESS

9 HEALTH PROFESSIONS WORKFORCE NEEDS.— 

10 (1) COORDINATION WITH MATERNAL, INFANT, 

11 AND EARLY CHILDHOOD HOME VISITING PRO12 GRAMS.—Section 2008(a)(2)(B) of the Social Secu13 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1397g(a)(2)(B)), as amended by 

14 section 512(dd)(4) of the Workforce Innovation and 

15 Opportunity Act (Public Law 113–128), is amended 

16 by inserting ‘‘, any eligible entities conducting a 

17 demonstration project awarded under section 

18 2008(a) in the State,’’ after ‘‘the State TANF pro19 gram,’’. 

20 (2) EXTENSION OF FUNDING.—Section 

21 2008(c)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

22 1397g(c)(1)) is amended— 

23 (A) by striking ‘‘the Secretary to carry 

24 out’’ and inserting ‘‘the Secretary— 

25 ‘‘(A) to carry out’’; 


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1 (B) by striking the period at the end and 

2 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(B) to carry out subsection (a), 

5 $85,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 

6 through 2020.’’. 

7 (b) MATERNAL, INFANT, AND EARLY CHILDHOOD

8 HOME VISITING PROGRAMS.— 

9 (1) COORDINATION WITH HEALTH PROFES10 SIONS WORKFORCE NEEDS DEMONSTRATION

11 PROJECT.—Section 511 of the Social Security Act 

12 (42 U.S.C. 711) is amended— 

13 (A) in subsection (e)— 

14 (i) by redesignating paragraph (10) as 

15 paragraph (11); and 

16 (ii) by inserting after paragraph (9), 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(10) A statement describing how the program 

19 will be coordinated with any demonstration project 

20 awarded under section 2008(a) that is being con21 ducted in the State (relating to health professions 

22 workforce needs).’’; and 

23 (B) in subsection (h)(1)— 

24 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

25 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 


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1 (ii) by redesignating subparagraph 

2 (B) as subparagraph (C); and 

3 (iii) by inserting after subparagraph 

4 (A), the following: 

5 ‘‘(B) coordinating the awarding and over6 sight of grants under this section with the Sec7 retary of Labor’s awarding of grants and over8 sight of demonstration projects designed to ad9 dress health professions workforce needs under 

10 section 2008(a); and’’. 

11 (2) EXTENSION OF FUNDING.—Section 

12 511(j)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

13 711(j)(1)) is amended— 

14 (A) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

15 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

16 (B) in subparagraph (F)— 

17 (i) by striking ‘‘March 31’’ and insert18 ing ‘‘September 30’’; and 

19 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

20 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

21 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(G) $400,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

23 2016 through 2020.’’. 

24 (c) YEAR-ROUND HEALTH CENTERS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 

2 Human Services shall permit school-based health 

3 centers that are funded under section 399Z–1 of the 

4 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280h–5) to 

5 provide services to students on a year-round basis. 

6 (2) SUMMER ACTIVITIES.—School-based health 

7 centers described in paragraph (1) shall provide 

8 services to students who are participating in summer 

9 camp and other appropriated programs at the school 

10 involved. Such services may include tutoring and 

11 other enrichment experiences. 

12 (d) COORDINATION OF SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY

13 HEALTH CENTERS.—The Secretary of Health and 

14 Human Services shall encourage community health cen15 ters funded under section 330 of the Public Health Service 

16 Act (42 U.S.C. 254b) to coordinate child and adolescent 

17 health care in local elementary and secondary schools 

18 through the provision of in-school health services by such 

19 centers. 

20 SEC. 202. HEALTH AND DENTAL PROVIDERS. 

21 (a) EXPAND OPPORTUNITIES FOR DENTAL PRO22 VIDERS AND NURSES.— 

23 (1) DENTAL HYGIENISTS AND NURSES AS CORP

24 MEMBERS.—Section 331(a) of the Public Health 


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1 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254d(a)) is amended by add2 ing at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘(4) In carrying out this subpart, the Secretary shall 

4 implement a program to enable dental hygienists and 

5 nurses to be Corps members if such hygienists and nurses 

6 will provide services in a health professional shortage area 

7 that is a school described in the last sentence of section 

8 332(a)(1).’’. 

9 (2) HEALTH PROFESSIONAL SHORTAGE

10 AREAS.—Section 332(a)(1) of the Public Health 

11 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254e(a)(1)) is amended by 

12 adding at the end the following: ‘‘Such term shall, 

13 with respect to dental hygienists and nurses, include 

14 elementary and secondary schools that receive assist15 ance under title I of the Elementary and Secondary 

16 Education Act of 1965.’’. 

17 (b) BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SCREENING AND SERV18 ICES.—Part Q of title III of the Public Health Service 

19 Act (42 U.S.C. 280h et seq.) is amended by adding at 

20 the end the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 399Z–2. GRANTS FOR BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SCREEN22 ING AND SERVICES. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

24 grants to eligible entities to enable such entities to provide 


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1 behavioral health screening and behavioral health services 

2 to individuals served by such entities. 

3 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

4 under this section, an entity shall— 

5 ‘‘(1) be a school-based health center that re6 ceives a grant under section 399Z–1; and 

7 ‘‘(2) submit to the Secretary an application at 

8 such time, in such manner, and containing such in9 formation as the Secretary may require. 

10 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—An entity shall use amounts 

11 received under a grant under this section to provide behav12 ioral health screening and behavioral health services to in13 dividuals served by such entity. 

14 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

15 is authorized to be appropriated, such sums as may be 

16 necessary to carry out this section.’’. 

17 (c) YEAR-ROUND HEALTH CENTERS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 

19 Human Services shall permit school-based health 

20 centers that are funded under section 399Z–1 of the 

21 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280h–5) to 

22 provide services to students on a year-round basis. 

23 (2) SUMMER ACTIVITIES.—School-based health 

24 centers described in paragraph (1) shall provide 

25 services to students who are participating in summer 


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1 camp and other appropriated programs at the school 

2 involved. Such services may include tutoring and 

3 other enrichment experiences. 

4 (d) COORDINATION OF SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY

5 HEALTH CENTERS.—The Secretary of Health and 

6 Human Services shall encourage community health cen7 ters funded under section 330 of the Public Health Service 

8 Act (42 U.S.C. 254b) to coordinate child and adolescent 

9 health care in local elementary and secondary schools 

10 through the provision of in-school health services by such 

11 centers. 

12 SEC. 203. DIRECT CERTIFICATION FOR PROGRAMS WITH 

13 OVERLAPPING ELIGIBILITY. 

14 (a) MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY.— 

15 (1) DIRECT CERTIFICATION OF SNAP-ELIGIBLE

16 CHILDREN AND HEAD START-ELIGIBLE CHILDREN IN

17 MEDICAID.—Section 1902(e) of the Social Security 

18 Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(e)) is amended— 

19 (A) by redesignating the paragraph (14) 

20 added by section 3(c)(1) of Public Law 111– 

21 255 as paragraph (16); and 

22 (B) by inserting after the paragraph (14) 

23 added by section 2002 of Public Law 111–148 

24 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(15) DIRECT CERTIFICATION FOR CHILDREN ELI2 GIBLE FOR SNAP OR HEAD START.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each State plan approved 

4 under this title must provide that a child described 

5 in subparagraph (B) shall be deemed to have applied 

6 for medical assistance and to have been found eligi7 ble for such assistance under the State plan under 

8 this title, without further application, as of the date 

9 the State agency responsible for administering the 

10 State plan under this title receives certification from 

11 a State agency conducting eligibility determinations 

12 for a program referred to in subparagraph (B) that 

13 the child has been determined eligible for that pro14 gram. A child directly certified as eligible for med15 ical assistance under this paragraph shall remain eli16 gible for such assistance for a period of one year. 

17 ‘‘(B) CHILDREN DESCRIBED.—The children de18 scribed in this subparagraph are the following: 

19 ‘‘(i) SNAP-ELIGIBLE CHILDREN.—A child 

20 who is a member of a household receiving as21 sistance under the supplemental nutrition as22 sistance program established under the Food 

23 and Nutrition Act of 2008. 

24 ‘‘(ii) HEAD START-ELIGIBLE AND EARLY

25 HEAD START-ELIGIBLE CHILDREN.—A child 


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1 who is eligible to participate in a Head Start 

2 program under section 645, or a child under 

3 age 3 who is eligible to participate in an Early 

4 Head Start program under section 645A(c), of 

5 the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9840, 

6 9840a(c)).’’. 

7 (2) REMOVAL OF SUNSET FOR EXPRESS LANE

8 ELIGIBILITY OPTION AND EXPANSION TO PREGNANT

9 WOMEN, FOSTER CHILDREN, AND CHILDREN WITH

10 SPECIAL HEALTH CARE NEEDS.—Section 

11 1902(e)(13) (42 U.S.C. 1396a(e)(13)) is amended— 

12 (A) in subparagraph (A), by adding at the 

13 end the following new clause: 

14 ‘‘(iii) STATE OPTION TO EXTEND EX15 PRESS LANE ELIGIBILITY TO PREGNANT

16 WOMEN.—At the option of the State, the 

17 State may apply the provisions of this 

18 paragraph with respect to determining eli19 gibility under this title for a pregnant 

20 woman. In applying this paragraph in the 

21 case of a State electing such an option, 

22 any reference in this paragraph to a child 

23 with respect to this title (other than a ref24 erence to child health assistance) shall be 


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1 deemed to be a reference to a pregnant 

2 woman.’’; 

3 (B) in subparagraph (G), by adding at the 

4 end the following new sentence: ‘‘Notwith5 standing the age limit specified in the preceding 

6 sentence, such term includes an individual de7 scribed in subsection (a)(10)(A)(i)(IX) and, at 

8 the option of the State, an individual described 

9 in section 2110(c)(1)(B).’’; and 

10 (C) by striking subparagraph (I). 

11 (3) INCREASED FLEXIBILITY FOR ENROLLMENT

12 AND SIMPLIFIED REVERIFICATION; BEST PRAC13 TICES.—The Secretary of Health and Human Serv14 ices shall— 

15 (A) encourage State Medicaid programs to 

16 adopt procedures that simplify and increase the 

17 options for children to apply for medical assist18 ance, and the options for children to reapply 

19 and renew their eligibility for such assistance, 

20 including by encouraging States to allow appli21 cations to be made online, in person, and over 

22 the telephone and to enter into agreements with 

23 other State agencies that administer low-income 

24 assistance programs for children under which 

25 the State Medicaid agency will not require 


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1 original documentation for renewal of a child’s 

2 eligibility for medical assistance, or for reenroll3 ment of a child in the Medicaid program, if 

4 original documents supporting the child’s eligi5 bility was provided to another State agency 

6 within the most recent 12-month period; 

7 (B) identify best practices of State Med8 icaid programs for simplified enrollment, re9 newal, and reenrollment of eligible children; and 

10 (C) make available to directors of State 

11 Medicaid agencies a description of the best 

12 practices. 

13 (b) SNAP AND SCHOOL MEALS PROGRAM ELIGI14 BILITY.— 

15 (1) DIRECT CERTIFICATION OF HEAD START16 ELIGIBLE CHILDREN IN THE SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRI17 TION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.—Section 11 of the 

18 Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2020) is 

19 amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(w) DIRECT CERTIFICATION OF HEAD START-ELI21 GIBLE CHILDREN.—Each State agency shall establish 

22 procedures that ensure that any household that contains 

23 is a child who is eligible to participate in a Head Start 

24 program under section 645, or a child under age 3 who 

25 is eligible to participate in an Early Head Start program 


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1 under section 645A(c), of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 9840, 9840a(c)), shall be certified to receive benefits 

3 under this Act without further application.’’. 

4 (2) BEST PRACTICES FOR DIRECT CERTIFI5 CATION FOR CHILDREN IN SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRI6 TION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM HOUSEHOLDS.—Section 

7 9(b)(4) of the Richard B. Russell National School 

8 Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)(4)) is amended by 

9 adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(H) BEST PRACTICES.—The Secretary 

11 shall— 

12 ‘‘(i) review the manner in which State 

13 agencies enter into agreements and estab14 lish procedures described in subparagraph 

15 (B) and local educational agencies conduct 

16 certifications under subparagraph (C); 

17 ‘‘(ii) identify best practices; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) make available to States, State 

19 agencies, and local educational agencies a 

20 description of the best practices.’’. 

21 (3) DIRECT CERTIFICATION OF MEDICAID-ELI22 GIBLE CHILDREN INTO SCHOOL MEALS PROGRAM.— 

23 Section 9(b)(15) of the Richard B. Russell National 

24 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)(15)) is 

25 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(I) DIRECT CERTIFICATION REQUIRED.— 

2 ‘‘(i) DEFINITION OF WITHOUT FUR3 THER APPLICATION.—In this subpara4 graph, the term ‘without further applica5 tion’ has the meaning given the term in 

6 paragraph (4)(G). 

7 ‘‘(ii) IN GENERAL.—For the school 

8 year beginning on July 1, 2016, and each 

9 subsequent school year, each State agency 

10 shall enter into an agreement with the 1 or 

11 more State agencies conducting eligibility 

12 determinations for the Medicaid program. 

13 ‘‘(iii) PROCEDURES.—Subject to para14 graph (6), the agreement shall establish 

15 procedures under which an eligible child 

16 shall be certified as eligible for free lunches 

17 under this Act and free breakfasts under 

18 section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 

19 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773), without further 

20 application. 

21 ‘‘(iv) CERTIFICATION.—Subject to 

22 paragraph (6), under the agreement the 

23 local educational agency conducting eligi24 bility determinations for a school lunch 

25 program under this Act and a school 


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1 breakfast program under the Child Nutri2 tion Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.) 

3 shall certify an eligible child as eligible for 

4 free lunches under this Act and free break5 fasts under section 4 of the Child Nutri6 tion Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773), with7 out further application. 

8 ‘‘(v) BEST PRACTICES.—The Sec9 retary shall— 

10 ‘‘(I) review the manner in which 

11 State agencies entered into agree12 ments and established procedures de13 scribed in subparagraph (C) and local 

14 educational agencies conducted certifi15 cations under subparagraph (D); 

16 ‘‘(II) identify best practices; and 

17 ‘‘(III) make available to States, 

18 State agencies, and local educational 

19 agencies a description of the best 

20 practices.’’. 

21 (4) INCREASED FLEXIBILITY FOR ENROLLMENT

22 OPTIONS.— 

23 (A) SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSIST24 ANCE PROGRAM.—Section 11(e)(1) of the Food 


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1 and Nutrition Assistance Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 

2 2020(e)(1)) is amended— 

3 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

4 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

5 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting 

6 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end; and 

7 (iii) by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(C) to the maximum extent practicable— 

10 ‘‘(i) increase flexibility for households 

11 applying to participate in the program, in12 cluding allowing applications to be made 

13 online, in person, and over the telephone; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(ii) simplify any subsequent 

16 verification or reapplication procedures so 

17 as to maximize flexibility for applicant 

18 households;’’. 

19 (B) SCHOOL MEALS PROGRAMS.—Section 

20 9(b)(3)(B) of the Richard B. Russell National 

21 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758(b)(32)(B)) 

22 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(iii) INCREASED FLEXIBILITY FOR

24 ENROLLMENT OPTIONS.—To the maximum 

25 extent practicable, the Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(I) increase flexibility for house2 holds applying to receive free or re3 duced price school lunches under this 

4 Act or free or reduced price school 

5 breakfasts under the Child Nutrition 

6 Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.), 

7 including allowing household applica8 tions to be made online, in person, 

9 and over the telephone; and 

10 ‘‘(II) simplify any subsequent 

11 verification or reapplication proce12 dures so as to maximize flexibility for 

13 applicant households.’’. 

14 (c) ANNUAL RANKING OF STATES.—The Secretary of 

15 Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Agri16 culture annually shall identify and rank States on the 

17 basis of their success in identifying and enrolling eligible 

18 children under the direct certification authorities and the 

19 options for increased flexibility for enrollment, renewal, 

20 and reenrollment of eligible children established under 

21 Medicaid (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.), the school lunch pro22 gram established under the Richard B. Russell National 

23 School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.), the school 

24 breakfast program established by section 4 of the Child 

25 Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773), and the suppleVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00094 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 mental nutrition assistance program established under the 

2 Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.). 

3 SEC. 204. GAO REPORT. 

4 Not later than 10 months after the date of enactment 

5 of this subtitle, the Comptroller General of the United 

6 States shall submit to Congress a report on the feasibility 

7 of providing a public health insurance pathway for chil8 dren that would— 

9 (1) be available on the American Health Benefit 

10 Exchanges (both on the State and Federal levels) to 

11 all children in the United States from birth through 

12 age 22 who do not receive health insurance coverage 

13 through an employer plan maintained by a family 

14 member; 

15 (2) be underwritten based on a single, national 

16 pediatric pool; and 

17 (3) be financed using resources available 

18 through the Medicaid program under title XIX of 

19 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.), the 

20 State Children’s Health Insurance Program under 

21 title XXI of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.), 

22 and the premium assistance subsidies under section 

23 36B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 


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1 SEC. 205. ASSURING COVERAGE CONTINUITY FOR FORMER 

2 FOSTER CARE CHILDREN UP TO AGE 26. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1902(a)(10)(A)(i)(IX) of 

4 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

5 1396a(a)(10)(A)(i)(IX)) is amended— 

6 (1) in item (bb)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘are not described in or en8 rolled under’’ and inserting ‘‘are not described 

9 in and are not enrolled under’’; and 

10 (B) by adding ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

11 (2) in item (cc)— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘responsibility of the 

13 State’’ and inserting ‘‘responsibility of a State’’; 

14 and 

15 (B) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting a pe16 riod; and 

17 (3) by striking item (dd). 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

19 this section shall take effect on the date of enactment of 

20 this subtitle. 

21 SEC. 206. DRUG TREATMENT FOR JUVENILES. 

22 (a) COMPREHENSIVE MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT

23 AND REFERRAL FOR JUVENILES IN CUSTODY.— 

24 (1) MEDICAID STATE PLAN AMENDMENT.—Sec25 tion 1902 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

26 1396a) is amended— 


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1 (A) in subsection (a)— 

2 (i) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of 

3 paragraph (80); 

4 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

5 of paragraph (81) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

6 and 

7 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (81) 

8 the following new paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(82) provide that the State shall enter into ar10 rangements with State and, as applicable, tribal, ju11 venile justice agencies to ensure that— 

12 ‘‘(A) the intake process for any individual 

13 who is under 18 years of age, without regard to 

14 whether the individual is eligible for medical as15 sistance under the State plan or under a waiver 

16 of the plan, includes, prior to any judicial deter17 mination being made with respect to the indi18 vidual, a comprehensive mental health assess19 ment of the individual; 

20 ‘‘(B) the comprehensive mental health as21 sessment of the individual is presented and con22 sidered during any hearing at a which a judicial 

23 determination is made with respect to the indi24 vidual; 


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1 ‘‘(C) not later than 5 days after such as2 sessment, the individual is referred for commu3 nity mental health and other therapeutic serv4 ices (as defined in subsection (ll)(1)(B)) on the 

5 basis of the assessment; and 

6 ‘‘(D) if the individual is an eligible juvenile 

7 (as defined in subsection (ll)(1)(A)) the indi8 vidual is provided with such community mental 

9 health and other therapeutic services without 

10 regard to whether the individual is, or may be, 

11 an inmate of a public institution (as defined in 

12 subsection (ll)(1)(C)) and without regard to 

13 whether such services are otherwise furnished 

14 as medical assistance under the State plan.’’; 

15 and 

16 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

17 subsection: 

18 ‘‘(ll) MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT AND REFERRAL

19 FOR JUVENILES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub21 section and subsection (a)(82): 

22 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE JUVENILE.—The term ‘eli23 gible juvenile’ means an individual who is under 

24 18 years of age and who is enrolled for medical 

25 assistance under the State plan or who becomes 


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1 eligible to enroll for such medical assistance 

2 while an inmate of a public institution. 

3 ‘‘(B) COMMUNITY MENTAL HEALTH AND

4 OTHER THERAPEUTIC SERVICES.—The term 

5 ‘community mental health and other thera6 peutic services’ means any or all of the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(i) Therapeutic behavioral services. 

9 ‘‘(ii) Intensive home-based mental 

10 health services. 

11 ‘‘(iii) Therapeutic foster care. 

12 ‘‘(iv) Intensive care coordination. 

13 ‘‘(v) Such services as the Secretary 

14 may specify, that would enable an eligible 

15 juvenile who is an inmate of a public insti16 tution to be released from the institution 

17 upon an order for a non-secure or commu18 nity placement. 

19 ‘‘(vi) Such services, as the Secretary 

20 may specify, that may prevent an eligible 

21 juvenile from becoming an inmate of a 

22 public institution. 

23 ‘‘(C) INMATE OF A PUBLIC INSTITU24 TION.—The term ‘inmate of a public institu25 tion’ has the meaning given such term for purVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00099 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 poses of applying the subdivision (A) following 

2 paragraph (29) of section 1905(a), taking into 

3 account the exception in such subdivision for a 

4 patient of a medical institution. 

5 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT AS MEDICAL ASSISTANCE; AP6 PLICATION OF THIRD PARTY LIABILITY.—Notwith7 standing any other provision of this title— 

8 ‘‘(A) the cost of providing individuals with 

9 a comprehensive mental health assessment and 

10 of providing eligible juveniles with community 

11 mental health and other therapeutic services in 

12 accordance with subsection (a)(82) shall be 

13 treated as medical assistance for purposes of 

14 section 1903; and 

15 ‘‘(B) with respect to the cost of providing 

16 individuals with such a comprehensive mental 

17 health assessment— 

18 ‘‘(i) the State shall make payment for 

19 such cost in accordance with the usual 

20 payment schedule under the State plan for 

21 such cost without regard to any third-party 

22 liability for payment for such cost, if, in 

23 any case where third-party liability is de24 rived through insurance or otherwise, pay25 ment has not been made by any such third 


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1 party within 90 days after the date the 

2 provider of such cost has initially sub3 mitted a claim to such third party for pay4 ment for such cost, except that the State 

5 may make such payment within 30 days 

6 after such date if the State determines 

7 doing so is cost-effective and necessary to 

8 ensure access to care; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the State shall seek reimburse10 ment from such third party in accordance 

11 with subsection (a)(25)(B).’’. 

12 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

14 subparagraph (B), the amendments made by 

15 paragraph (1) shall be effective on the date of 

16 enactment of this subtitle. 

17 (B) RULE FOR CHANGES REQUIRING

18 STATE LEGISLATION.—In the case of a State 

19 plan for medical assistance under title XIX of 

20 the Social Security Act which the Secretary of 

21 Health and Human Services determines re22 quires State legislation (other than legislation 

23 appropriating funds) in order for the plan to 

24 meet the additional requirements imposed by 

25 the amendments made by paragraph (1), the 


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1 State plan shall not be regarded as failing to 

2 comply with the requirements of such title sole3 ly on the basis of its failure to meet these addi4 tional requirements before the first day of the 

5 first calendar quarter beginning after the close 

6 of the first regular session of the State legisla7 ture that begins after the date of the enactment 

8 of this subtitle. For purposes of the previous 

9 sentence, in the case of a State that has a 2- 

10 year legislative session, each year of such ses11 sion shall be deemed to be a separate regular 

12 session of the State legislature. 

13 (b) COORDINATED GRANT PROGRAM.— 

14 (1) GAO REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

15 the date of enactment of this subtitle, the Comp16 troller General of the United States shall conduct a 

17 study, and submit a report to the Attorney General 

18 and the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and 

19 Mental Health Services Administration, to identify 

20 evidence-based intervention strategies that divert ju21 veniles from incarceration to community behavioral 

22 health assessment and treatment, including drug 

23 courts, teen courts, family-based dual diagnosis 

24 treatment for juveniles, and early intervention pro25 grams. 


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1 (2) GRANTS.—Based on the report submitted 

2 under paragraph (1), the Attorney General, in co3 ordination with the Administrator of the Substance 

4 Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 

5 shall establish a coordinated grant program to 

6 award grants to States, territories, and Native 

7 American tribes, to enable such States, territories, 

8 and tribes to implement diversion programs of the 

9 type identified in such report, and provide for the 

10 use of reimbursable medically necessary services to 

11 prevent the incarceration of youth in public institu12 tions, particularly youth with behavioral health prob13 lems. 

14 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

15 There is authorized to be appropriated, such sums 

16 as may be necessary to carry out this subsection. 

17 (c) REAUTHORIZATION OF MENTAL HEALTH

18 COURTS.—There are authorized to be appropriated to 

19 carry out part W of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control 

20 and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796ii et seq.), 

21 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 

22 2015 through 2019. 

23 (d) REAUTHORIZATION OF DRUG COURTS.—There 

24 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part V of 

25 title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act 


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1 of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797u et seq.), such sums as may 

2 be necessary for each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019. 

3 (e) JJDPA.— 

4 (1) STATE PLAN.—Section 223(a) of the Juve5 nile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 

6 (42 U.S.C. 5633(a)) is amended— 

7 (A) in paragraph (27), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

8 at the end; 

9 (B) in paragraph (28), by striking the pe10 riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

11 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(29) address juvenile detention prevention ef13 forts by providing assurances of the adequacy of the 

14 provision of mental health services that are geo15 graphically convenient and appropriate to meet the 

16 need of youth referred for mental health assessment 

17 services prior to adjudication.’’. 

18 (2) REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 299 of the 

19 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 

20 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5671) is amended by adding at the 

21 end the following: 

22 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR PART

23 B.—In addition to amounts otherwise made available, 

24 there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out part 

25 B, and authorized to remain available until expended, such 


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1 sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2015 

2 through 2019.’’. 

3 (3) BEST PRACTICES.—Section 204(b) of the 

4 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 

5 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5614(b)) is amended— 

6 (A) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

7 the end; 

8 (B) in paragraph (7), by striking the pe9 riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

10 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(8) identify best practices relating to commu12 nity-based alternatives to incarceration and provide 

13 technical assistance to States, localities and Indian 

14 tribes to create or expand such community-based al15 ternatives.’’. 

16 Subtitle B—Strengthen Children’s 

17 Health Insurance Program (CHIP) 

18 SEC. 211. REFERENCES; EFFECTIVE DATE. 

19 (a) REFERENCES.—In this subtitle: 

20 (1) CHIP.—The term ‘‘CHIP’’ means the 

21 State Children’s Health Insurance Program estab22 lished under title XXI of the Social Security Act (42 

23 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.) (whether implemented under 

24 title XIX, XXI, or both, of the Social Security Act). 


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1 (2) MEDICAID.—The term ‘‘Medicaid’’ means 

2 the program for medical assistance established under 

3 title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 

4 et seq.). 

5 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

6 the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

7 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

8 (1) GENERAL EFFECTIVE DATE.—Unless other9 wise provided in this subtitle, subject to subsections 

10 (b) and (c), this subtitle (and the amendments made 

11 by this subtitle) shall take effect as if enacted on 

12 October 1, 2014, and shall apply to medical assist13 ance and child health assistance furnished under ti14 tles XIX and XXI, respectively, of the Social Secu15 rity Act on or after that date. 

16 (2) EXCEPTION FOR STATE LEGISLATION.—In 

17 the case of a State plan under title XIX of the So18 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) or a State 

19 child health plan under title XXI of such Act (42 

20 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.), which the Secretary deter21 mines requires State legislation in order for the re22 spective plan to meet one or more additional require23 ments imposed by amendments made by this sub24 title, the respective plan shall not be regarded as 

25 failing to comply with the requirements of such title 


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1 solely on the basis of its failure to meet such an ad2 ditional requirement before the first day of the first 

3 calendar quarter beginning after the close of the 

4 first regular session of the State legislature that be5 gins after the date of enactment of this subtitle. For 

6 purposes of the previous sentence, in the case of a 

7 State that has a 2-year legislative session, each year 

8 of the session shall be considered to be a separate 

9 regular session of the State legislature. 

10 PART I—COVERAGE STABILITY AND REDUCED 

11 BUREAUCRACY 

12 SEC. 221. ASSURING CARE CONTINUITY DURING TRANSI13 TIONS AMONG CHIP, MEDICAID, AND QUALI14 FIED HEALTH PLANS. 

15 (a) CONTINUITY OF CARE.—The Secretary of Health 

16 and Human Services shall issue regulations for purposes 

17 of ensuring continuity of care for children who— 

18 (1) are undergoing an active course of treat19 ment; and 

20 (2) involuntarily change coverage under health 

21 insurance, the State plan under the Medicaid pro22 gram under title XIX of the Social Security Act, or 

23 the State child health plan under title XXI of such 

24 Act during such course of treatment for any reason, 

25 including a reason related to a change in income, 


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1 health plan termination, or a material change or 

2 changes to the plan’s health benefits coverage. 

3 (b) ENSURING COMPARABILITY OF COVERAGE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 

5 after the date of the enactment of the Saving Our 

6 Next Generation Act, the Secretary of Health and 

7 Human Services shall review, with respect to a 

8 State, the benefits (by each benefit class) offered for 

9 children and the cost-sharing imposed with respect 

10 to such benefits by qualified health plans offered 

11 through an Exchange established under title I of the 

12 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in the 

13 State. The Secretary shall make the findings of such 

14 review available on the public Internet site of the 

15 Department of Health and Human Services. 

16 (2) REGULATIONS REQUIRED.—If, following 

17 such review, the Secretary determines that benefits 

18 and cost-sharing protections referred to in para19 graph (1) are not comparable to the benefits (by 

20 each benefit class) offered and cost-sharing protec21 tions provided under the State child health plan 

22 under title XXI of the Social Security Act (42 

23 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.) in the State, the Secretary, 

24 not later than January 1, 2017, shall issue a rule, 

25 to apply with respect to plan years beginning in 


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1 2019, establishing requirements designed to ensure 

2 that such qualified health plans offer benefits and 

3 cost-sharing protections that are comparable to the 

4 benefits and cost-sharing protections provided under 

5 such State child health plan for plan year 2019. 

6 SEC. 222. STATE FLEXIBILITY TO PROVIDE FOR CONTIN7 UOUS ELIGIBILITY. 

8 Section 1902(e)(12) of the Social Security Act (42 

9 U.S.C. 1396a(e)(12)) is amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(12) CONTINUOUS ELIGIBILITY OPTION.— 

11 ‘‘(A) CHILDREN.—At the option of the 

12 State, the plan may provide that a child (as de13 fined in paragraph (13)(G)) who is determined 

14 to be eligible for benefits under a State plan ap15 proved under this title under subsection 

16 (a)(10)(A) shall remain eligible for those bene17 fits until the earlier of— 

18 ‘‘(i) the end of a period (not to exceed 

19 12 months) following the determination; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) the time that the child exceeds 

21 the age specified in such paragraph 

22 (13)(G). 

23 ‘‘(B) CERTAIN NONELDERLY ADULTS.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—At the option of 

25 the State, the plan may provide that in the 


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1 case of an eligible adult who is determined 

2 to be eligible for benefits under a State 

3 plan approved under this title (or a waiver 

4 of such plan), the eligible adult shall re5 main eligible for those benefits until the 

6 end of a period (not to exceed 12 months) 

7 following the determination. 

8 ‘‘(ii) ELIGIBLE ADULT DEFINED.—In 

9 this subparagraph, the term ‘eligible adult’ 

10 means— 

11 ‘‘(I) an individual (other than a 

12 child) whose income eligibility under 

13 the State plan or under a waiver of 

14 the plan for medical assistance is de15 termined under paragraph (14); and 

16 ‘‘(II) an individual included in 

17 any other group of individuals the 

18 Secretary determines appropriate.’’. 

19 SEC. 223. OUTREACH TO TARGETED POPULATIONS. 

20 (a) REQUIREMENT THAT MANAGED CARE ORGANI21 ZATIONS PROVIDE LANGUAGE SERVICES TO ENROLL22 EES.—Section 1932(b) of the Social Security Act (42 

23 U.S.C. 1396u–2(b)) is amended by adding at the end the 

24 following new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(9) LANGUAGE SERVICES.—Each contract 

2 with a managed care entity under section 1903(m) 

3 or under section 1905(t)(3) shall require the entity 

4 to provide and pay for language services, including 

5 oral interpretation and written translation services, 

6 for an individual and the parent or guardian of such 

7 individual who is eligible for medical assistance 

8 under the State plan under this title and is enrolled 

9 with the entity and is limited English proficient 

10 when interacting with the entity or with any pro11 vider receiving payment from the entity. Such lan12 guage services shall be provided in conjunction with 

13 all covered items and services that are available to 

14 such individuals under the contract.’’. 

15 (b) MEDICAID HEALTH CARE DISPARITIES.—Section 

16 1946 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396w–5) is 

17 amended by adding at the end the following new sub18 section: 

19 ‘‘(d) APPROPRIATION.—Out of any funds in the 

20 Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there are appro21 priated to carry out this section $20,000,000, to remain 

22 available until expended.’’. 

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

24 this section take effect on the date of enactment of this 

25 subtitle. 


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1 PART II—BENEFITS AND AFFORDABILITY 

2 SEC. 231. ENSURING COVERAGE OF PREVENTIVE HEALTH 

3 SERVICES UNDER MEDICAID AND CHIP. 

4 (a) MEDICAID.— 

5 (1) CLARIFYING PREVENTIVE COVERAGE.—Sec6 tion 1905(a)(13) of the Social Security Act (42 

7 U.S.C. 1396d(a)(13)) is amended— 

8 (A) by striking subparagraphs (A) and 

9 (B); 

10 (B) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as 

11 subparagraph (B); and 

12 (C) by inserting before subparagraph (B) 

13 (as so redesignated) the following new subpara14 graph: 

15 ‘‘(A) the items and services described in 

16 paragraphs (1) through (5) of section 2713(a) 

17 of the Public Health Service Act; and’’. 

18 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

19 1902(a)(10)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 

20 U.S.C. 1396a(a)(10)(A)) is amended in the matter 

21 preceding clause (i), by inserting ‘‘, (13)(A)’’ before 

22 ‘‘, (17)’’. 

23 (b) CHIP.—Section 2103(c)(1)(D) of the Social Se24 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 1397cc(c)(1)(D)) is amended by 

25 striking ‘‘Well-baby’’ and inserting ‘‘Items and services 


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1 described in paragraphs (1) through (5) of section 2713(a) 

2 of the Public Health Service Act, including well-baby’’. 

3 (c) COST-SHARING PROHIBITIONS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1916 of the Social 

5 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396(o)) is amended— 

6 (A) in subsection (a)(2)— 

7 (i) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

8 ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

9 (ii) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

10 ‘‘hospice care (as defined in section 

11 1905(o)); and’’ at the end and inserting 

12 ‘‘hospice care (as defined in section 

13 1905(o)), or’’; and 

14 (iii) by adding at the end the fol15 lowing new subparagraph: 

16 ‘‘(F) items and services described in sec17 tion 1905(a)(13)(A); and’’; and 

18 (B) in subsection (b)(2)— 

19 (i) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

20 ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

21 (ii) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

22 ‘‘hospice care (as defined in section 

23 1905(o)); and’’ at the end and inserting 

24 ‘‘hospice care (as defined in section 

25 1905(o)), or’’; and 


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1 (iii) by adding at the end the fol2 lowing new subparagraph: 

3 ‘‘(F) items and services described in sec4 tion 1905(a)(13)(A); and’’. 

5 (2) STATE OPTION.—Section 1916A(b)(3)(B) of 

6 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396o– 

7 1(b)(3)(B)) is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing new clause: 

9 ‘‘(xi) Items and services described in 

10 section 1905(a)(13)(A).’’. 

11 PART III—CONTINUING DELIVERY SYSTEM 

12 REFORM 

13 SEC. 241. SUPPORTING EVIDENCE-BASED CARE COORDINA14 TION IN COMMUNITIES. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 511(j)(1) of the Social Se16 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 711(j)(1)) is amended— 

17 (1) in subparagraph (D), by inserting ‘‘and’’ at 

18 the end; 

19 (2) in subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘fiscal 

20 year 2014; and’’ and inserting ‘‘each of fiscal years 

21 2014 through 2019.’’; and 

22 (3) by striking subparagraph (F). 

23 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

24 this section shall take effect on the date of enactment of 

25 this subtitle. 


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1 SEC. 242. ENSURING CARE COORDINATION FOR CHILDREN. 

2 Section 2706 of the Patient Protection and Afford3 able Care Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a note) is amended— 

4 (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ‘‘2016’’ and 

5 inserting ‘‘2019’’; and 

6 (2) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘appro7 priated’’ and all that follows through the period at 

8 the end and inserting the following: ‘‘appropriated to 

9 carry out this section— 

10 ‘‘(1) for fiscal year 2014, such sums as are nec11 essary; 

12 ‘‘(2) for each of fiscal years 2015 through 

13 2019, $100,000,000; and 

14 ‘‘(3) for the period beginning on October 1, 

15 2019, and ending on December 31, 2019, 

16 $25,000,000.’’. 

17 PART IV—MISCELLANEOUS 

18 SEC. 251. INCLUSION OF THERAPEUTIC FOSTER CARE AS 

19 MEDICAL ASSISTANCE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1905 of the Social Secu21 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1396d) is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (a)— 

23 (A) in paragraph (28), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

24 at the end; 

25 (B) by redesignating paragraph (29) as 

26 paragraph (30); and 


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1 (C) by inserting after paragraph (28) the 

2 following new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(29) therapeutic foster care services (to the 

4 extent allowed and as defined in subsection (ee)); 

5 and’’; and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub7 section: 

8 ‘‘(ee)(1) For purposes of subsection (a)(29), subject 

9 to the succeeding paragraphs of this subsection, the term 

10 ‘therapeutic foster care services’ means services provided 

11 for children who have not attained age 21, and who, as 

12 a result of mental illness, other emotional or behavioral 

13 disorders, medically fragile conditions, or developmental 

14 disabilities, need the level of care provided in an institution 

15 (including a psychiatric residential treatment facility) or 

16 nursing facility the cost of which could be reimbursed 

17 under the State plan but who can be cared for or main18 tained in a community placement, through a qualified 

19 therapeutic foster care program described in paragraph 

20 (2). 

21 ‘‘(2) A qualified therapeutic foster care program de22 scribed in this paragraph is a program that— 

23 ‘‘(A) not later than 3 years after the date of en24 actment of this subsection, is licensed by the State 

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1 tation of Healthcare Organizations, the Commission 

2 on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, the 

3 Council on Accreditation, or by another equivalent 

4 accreditation agency (or agencies) as the Secretary 

5 may recognize; 

6 ‘‘(B) provides structured daily activities, includ7 ing the development, improvement, monitoring, and 

8 reinforcement of age-appropriate social, communica9 tion and behavioral skills, trauma-informed and gen10 der-responsive services, crisis intervention and crisis 

11 support services, medication monitoring, counseling, 

12 and case management, and may furnish other inten13 sive community services; and 

14 ‘‘(C) provides biological parents, kinship care15 givers, and foster care parents with specialized train16 ing and consultation in the management of children 

17 with mental illness, other emotional or behavioral 

18 disorders, medically fragile conditions, developmental 

19 disabilities, the impact of trauma on child and care20 giver, and specific additional training on the needs 

21 of each child provided such services. 

22 ‘‘(3) In making coverage determinations in accord23 ance with paragraph (1), a State may employ medical ne24 cessity criteria that are similar to the medical necessity 


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1 criteria applied to coverage determinations for other serv2 ices and supports under this title. 

3 ‘‘(4) For purposes of subsection (a)(29) and this sub4 section, therapeutic foster care services shall not include 

5 reimbursement for any training referred to in paragraph 

6 (2)(C).’’. 

7 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

8 subsection (a) shall apply to medical assistance furnished 

9 in calendar quarters beginning on or after the date of en10 actment of this Act. 

11 Subtitle C—Promoting Account12 ability and Excellence in Child 

13 Welfare 

14 SEC. 261. CHILD WELFARE INNOVATION GRANT PROGRAM. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish a 

16 child welfare innovation grant program (referred to in this 

17 section as the ‘‘grant program’’) that provides eligible en18 tities with the necessary flexibility and financial incentives 

19 to implement comprehensive reforms to existing child wel20 fare programs under parts B and E of title IV of the So21 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 42 U.S.C. 670 

22 et seq.) in order to— 

23 (1) achieve significant results that improve the 

24 well-being of all children in the child welfare system; 

25 and 


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1 (2) incorporate higher standards of account2 ability for State and local agencies and organizations 

3 that provide child welfare services. 

4 (b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—For purposes of this sec5 tion, an eligible entity shall include any State or political 

6 subdivision of a State that submits an application pursu7 ant to the requirements described in subsection (e). 

8 (c) DURATION.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of carrying out 

10 the goals described in subsection (a), the Secretary 

11 shall award grants, as well as additional financial 

12 assistance (as determined under subsection (d)), to 

13 eligible entities that have submitted an application 

14 that has been approved by the Secretary. The 

15 amount of the grant provided to the eligible entity 

16 shall be determined by the Secretary and, subject to 

17 paragraph (2), remain available for use by the eligi18 ble entity for a period of 5 years. 

19 (2) IMPLEMENTATION REQUIREMENT.—The 

20 Secretary may terminate a grant awarded to an eli21 gible entity under paragraph (1) if, during the 3- 

22 year period following the awarding of the grant, the 

23 eligible entity has not made appropriate progress in 

24 implementing the intervention services and reforms 

25 proposed by the entity under subsection (e)(1), as 


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1 determined by the Secretary pursuant to the applica2 ble implementation standards described under sub3 section (f)(1). 

4 (3) RENEWAL OF GRANTS.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara6 graph (B), if an eligible entity has made signifi7 cant progress in achieving the child well-being 

8 results proposed by the entity under subsection 

9 (e)(1), as determined by the Secretary pursuant 

10 to the applicable implementation standards and 

11 performance measures described under sub12 section (f), the Secretary may award an addi13 tional grant to the eligible entity for a period of 

14 not greater than 5 years. 

15 (B) REAPPLICATION BY ELIGIBLE ENTI16 TY.—For purposes of receiving an additional 

17 grant under this paragraph, the eligible entity 

18 shall, not less than 6 months prior to expiration 

19 of the initial grant described in paragraph (1), 

20 submit to the Secretary an application at such 

21 time, in such manner, and containing such in22 formation as the Secretary may require. 

23 (4) MINIMUM FUNDING REQUIREMENT.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of receiv25 ing a grant under this section, the eligible entiVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00120 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 ty shall be required to annually expend non2 Federal funds for purposes of achieving the 

3 child well-being results proposed by the entity 

4 under subsection (e)(1) in an amount that is 

5 not less than— 

6 (i) for the first year in which such a 

7 grant is awarded, 25 percent of the 

8 amount of the grant; 

9 (ii) for the second year in which such 

10 a grant is awarded, 35 percent of the 

11 amount of the grant; and 

12 (iii) for the third year and any subse13 quent year in which such a grant is award14 ed (including any year for which an addi15 tional grant has been awarded under para16 graph (3)), 50 percent of the amount of 

17 the grant. 

18 (B) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—For purposes 

19 of subparagraph (A), the eligible entity may 

20 provide the non-Federal share in cash or in21 kind, as fairly evaluated by the Secretary. The 

22 eligible entity may provide the non-Federal 

23 share from State, local, or private sources. 

24 (d) ADDITIONAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—The Sec25 retary shall establish an inter-agency working group that 


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1 includes representatives from the Department of Edu2 cation, the Department of Labor, the Department of Jus3 tice, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, 

4 and other Federal agencies with responsibility for admin5 istering programs that affect the child welfare system, for 

6 the purpose of identifying existing Federal financial re7 sources that may be used to provide supplemental funding 

8 to eligible entities that have been awarded grants under 

9 this section, including— 

10 (1) establishment of flexibility within existing 

11 Federal financial resources; 

12 (2) dedicating a share of funds from existing 

13 Federal programs, or creating a preference within 

14 such programs; 

15 (3) use of existing administrative authority to 

16 waive certain State or Federal funding requirements, 

17 including waiver authority provided under subsection 

18 (i); 

19 (4) commitment of appropriated discretionary 

20 funds; 

21 (5) creation of an aggregated source of funding 

22 through bundling of existing Federal programs; and 

23 (6) establishment of partnerships with private 

24 entities, including private foundations involved in 

25 child welfare issues. 


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1 (e) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity that desires to 

2 participate in the grant program shall submit to the Sec3 retary an application at such time, in such manner, and 

4 containing such information as the Secretary may require, 

5 which shall include a detailed description of the following: 

6 (1) IMPROVED CHILD WELL-BEING RESULTS.— 

7 The proposed reforms and methods for achieving 

8 significant results that improve the well-being of all 

9 children in the child welfare system, including a de10 tailed outline of— 

11 (A) the specific populations or groups of 

12 children and families that will be targeted 

13 under the grant program; 

14 (B) the specific child well-being results 

15 that will be achieved during the periods de16 scribed in subsection (c); 

17 (C) the specific methods through which the 

18 child well-being results will be achieved under 

19 the grant program, including proposals for 

20 intervention services and strategic reforms to 

21 child welfare policy and infrastructure; and 

22 (D) the evidentiary basis or best practice 

23 models on which such intervention services and 

24 reforms are to be based. 


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1 (2) PARTNERSHIPS.—The partnerships to be 

2 established between participating State and local 

3 agencies and organizations under the grant program, 

4 including— 

5 (A) a detailed outline regarding how the 

6 partnership will establish a coordinated process 

7 for delivery of services, sharing of information 

8 and data, and division of specific responsibilities 

9 pursuant to interagency agreements; 

10 (B) the establishment of a memorandum of 

11 understanding between participating State and 

12 local agencies and organizations under the 

13 grant program to— 

14 (i) provide for shared accountability in 

15 achieving child well-being results proposed 

16 under paragraph (1) and their specific re17 sponsibilities in achieving such results; and 

18 (ii) satisfy the implementation stand19 ards established by the Secretary under 

20 subsection (f)(1); and 

21 (C) certification by the chief executive offi22 cer of the eligible entity of their commitment 

23 to— 

24 (i) achieve the child well-being results 

25 proposed under paragraph (1) and their 


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1 responsibility for achieving such results; 

2 and 

3 (ii) satisfy the implementation stand4 ards established by the Secretary under 

5 subsection (f)(1). 

6 (3) COLLABORATION WITH CHILDREN AND PAR7 ENTS.—The processes to ensure collaboration be8 tween the eligible entity, foster parents, biological 

9 parents, family members, kinship caregivers, and 

10 children in the child welfare system in the develop11 ment and implementation of intervention services 

12 and reforms under the grant program. 

13 (4) DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING.—The 

14 approaches for development of enhanced data collec15 tion and reporting, which shall include— 

16 (A) collection and reporting of relevant 

17 data (as determined appropriate by the Sec18 retary), with such data to be disaggregated by 

19 race, ethnicity, and gender in order to monitor 

20 progress in achieving child well-being results in 

21 providing services to specific populations of chil22 dren in the child welfare system; 

23 (B) development and implementation of a 

24 specific data collection plan, which shall include 

25 a description of the types of data that will be 


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1 collected by the eligible entity (including data 

2 required by the Secretary under subparagraph 

3 (A) that is not currently collected by the entity) 

4 and the methods through which such data will 

5 be obtained, such as surveys, assessments, and 

6 other forms of data collection; 

7 (C) a detailed outline regarding how data 

8 collected by the eligible entity will be incor9 porated in the development of intervention serv10 ices and reforms under the grant program; and 

11 (D) certification by the manager or chief 

12 officer for information technology for the eligi13 ble entity of their commitment and ability to 

14 collect and report relevant data under the grant 

15 program. 

16 (5) SUPPORT FROM PRIVATE ENTITIES.—Any 

17 commitments by private entities to provide addi18 tional funding for support of activities under the 

19 grant program to improve the well-being of children 

20 in the child welfare system. 

21 (f) IMPLEMENTATION STANDARDS AND PERFORM22 ANCE MEASURES.— 

23 (1) IMPLEMENTATION STANDARDS.—The Sec24 retary shall establish a set of implementation stand25 ards to annually determine, for purposes of subVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00126 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 section (c), whether an eligible entity has imple2 mented, or made appropriate progress in imple3 menting, the intervention services and reforms pro4 posed by the entity under subsection (e)(1), includ5 ing development, implementation, and maintenance 

6 of data collection systems. 

7 (2) PERFORMANCE MEASURES.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall es9 tablish a set of performance measures to annu10 ally determine, for purposes of subsection (c), 

11 whether an eligible entity has achieved, or made 

12 significant progress in achieving, the child well13 being results proposed by the entity under sub14 section (e)(1), which shall include measure15 ments to quantify— 

16 (i) improvements in the well-being of 

17 children in the child welfare system, in18 cluding— 

19 (I) the base performance meas20 ures described in subparagraph (B); 

21 and 

22 (II) any additional performance 

23 measures described in subparagraph 

24 (C) that are applicable to the child 


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1 well-being results proposed by the en2 tity; and 

3 (ii) improvements in the overall qual4 ity of life for foster parents. 

5 (B) BASE PERFORMANCE MEASURES.— 

6 The performance measures described under this 

7 paragraph include the number and percentage 

8 of children in the child welfare system who— 

9 (i) were under 5 years of age and at 

10 appropriate levels of mental, emotional, 

11 and physical development; 

12 (ii) if deemed to be in the child’s best 

13 interest, remained in his or her school of 

14 origin; and 

15 (iii) received health screenings not 

16 later than 30 days after foster care place17 ment. 

18 (C) ADDITIONAL PERFORMANCE MEAS19 URES.—Subject to subparagraph (D), the Sec20 retary shall establish additional performance 

21 measures that are specifically designed to meas22 ure progress in achieving the child well-being 

23 results proposed by the eligible entity under 

24 subsection (e)(1), which may include— 


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1 (i) the number and percentage of chil2 dren in the child welfare system who— 

3 (I) were under 5 years of age and 

4 attended preschool or early care and 

5 education programs regularly; 

6 (II) were involved in an abuse or 

7 neglect investigation; 

8 (III) achieved grade-level pro9 ficiency in reading and math; 

10 (IV) attended school regularly; 

11 (V) were involved in the juvenile 

12 justice system; 

13 (VI) were prescribed psychotropic 

14 medication; 

15 (VII) graduated from high school 

16 on time; 

17 (VIII) entered post-secondary 

18 education or training; 

19 (IX) regularly received routine 

20 medical care and examinations; 

21 (X) were reunified with family; 

22 (XI) reentered the child welfare 

23 system following family reunification; 

24 or 


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1 (XII) had attained 14 years of 

2 age before entering the child welfare 

3 system; 

4 (ii) measures to ensure proper func5 tioning of the child welfare system, such 

6 as— 

7 (I) reasonableness of caseload 

8 levels for caseworkers; and 

9 (II) adequacy and frequency of 

10 visits with children by caseworkers; 

11 and 

12 (iii) subject to approval by the Sec13 retary, any performance measures that are 

14 proposed by the entity for determination of 

15 its progress towards achievement of the 

16 child well-being results. 

17 (D) CONSULTATION WITH ELIGIBLE ENTI18 TY.—The Secretary shall consult with the eligi19 ble entity for purposes of establishing additional 

20 performance measures under subparagraph (C) 

21 that are appropriate for determination of 

22 progress in achieving the child well-being re23 sults proposed by the entity under subsection 

24 (e)(1). 


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1 (g) USE OF GRANTS BY ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—An el2 igible entity that receives a grant under this section shall 

3 use the funds made available through the grant to develop, 

4 implement, and evaluate the intervention services and re5 forms proposed by the entity under subsection (e)(1), in6 cluding development, implementation, and maintenance of 

7 data collection systems. 

8 (h) ANNUAL REPORTING.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that re10 ceives a grant under this section shall submit an an11 nual report to the Secretary on— 

12 (A) the specific intervention services and 

13 reforms implemented under the grant program; 

14 (B) progress in achieving the child well15 being results proposed by the entity under sub16 section (e)(1), including an analysis of the ef17 fectiveness of the grant funding in achieving the 

18 results; and 

19 (C) an analysis of the progress made by 

20 the eligible entity over the preceding 12-month 

21 period pursuant to the performance measures 

22 established by the Secretary under subsection 

23 (f). 

24 (2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF REPORTS AND

25 DATA.—An eligible entity shall make available to the 


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1 public, in a manner that is also accessible to children 

2 in the child welfare system, biological families, and 

3 foster parents— 

4 (A) any report submitted to the Secretary 

5 under paragraph (1); and 

6 (B) a summary of the data collected pur7 suant to subsection (e)(4)(A). 

8 (i) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may waive 

9 such requirements under parts B and E of title IV of the 

10 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 42 U.S.C. 670 

11 et seq.) as may be necessary to carry out the grant pro12 gram. 

13 (j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For pur14 poses of carrying out the grant program under this sec15 tion, there is authorized to be appropriated— 

16 (1) for fiscal year 2016, $40,000,000; 

17 (2) for fiscal year 2017, $30,000,000; 

18 (3) for fiscal year 2018, $20,000,000; and 

19 (4) for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2025, 

20 $10,000,000. 

21 (k) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

22 (1) CHILD WELL-BEING RESULT.—The term 

23 ‘‘child well-being result’’ means a desired condition 

24 of well-being for all children in the child welfare sys25 tem, including the specific populations or groups of 


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1 children that will be targeted under the grant pro2 gram. 

3 (2) SCHOOL OF ORIGIN.—The term ‘‘school of 

4 origin’’ means, with respect to a child in foster 

5 care— 

6 (A) the school in which the child was en7 rolled prior to entry into foster care; or 

8 (B) the school in which the child is en9 rolled when a change in foster care placement 

10 occurs or is proposed. 

11 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

12 the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

13 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

14 (A) any of the 50 States or the District of 

15 Columbia; 

16 (B) Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Is17 lands, or American Samoa; or 

18 (C) an Indian tribe or tribal organization 

19 (as such terms are defined in section 4 of the 

20 Indian Self-Determination and Education As21 sistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b)) or a tribal con22 sortium of Indian tribes or tribal organizations 

23 (as so defined). 


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1 (5) WELL-BEING.—The term ‘‘well-being’’ 

2 means the overall quality of life for a child in the 

3 child welfare system, which shall include— 

4 (A) the safety and health of the child; 

5 (B) the mental, emotional, educational, 

6 and physical development of the child, including 

7 the ability of the child to maximize their indi8 vidual potential; and 

9 (C) permanency and ability to transition to 

10 self-sufficiency after aging out of the child wel11 fare system. 

12 SEC. 262. ENSURING THAT CHILD WELFARE FEDERAL DIS13 CRETIONARY FUNDING IS ONLY USED FOR 

14 EVIDENCE-BASED PROGRAMS. 

15 Subpart 3 of part B of title IV of the Social Security 

16 Act (42 U.S.C. 629m et seq.) is amended by adding at 

17 the end the following: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 441. LIMITATION ON USE OF DISCRETIONARY APPRO19 PRIATED FUNDS FOR ONLY EVIDENCE-BASED 

20 PROGRAMS. 

21 ‘‘For any fiscal year beginning after September 30, 

22 2015, no Federal payment or reimbursement shall be 

23 made to a State under subpart 1 or 2 of this part from 

24 Federal funds made available through an authorization of 

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1 imbursement is for State expenditures for evidence-based 

2 child welfare programs or services provided under such 

3 programs.’’. 

4 SEC. 263. CONTINUATION OF AUTHORITY TO APPROVE 

5 DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS DESIGNED TO 

6 TEST INNOVATIVE STRATEGIES IN STATE 

7 CHILD WELFARE PROGRAMS. 

8 Section 1130 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

9 1320a–9) is amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (a)— 

11 (A) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end 

12 the following: ‘‘There shall be no limit on the 

13 number of demonstration projects authorized by 

14 the Secretary for any fiscal year after fiscal 

15 year 2014.’’; and 

16 (2) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the 

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(d) DURATION OF DEMONSTRATION.—A dem19 onstration project under this section may be conducted for 

20 not more than 5 years, unless in the judgment of the Sec21 retary, the demonstration project should be allowed to con22 tinue.’’. 

23 SEC. 264. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 

24 (a) INCOME ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR CHIL25 DREN IN FOSTER CARE.—Not later than 90 days after 


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1 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health 

2 and Human Services (referred to in this section as the 

3 ‘‘Secretary’’) shall submit to Congress a report on rec4 ommendations for legislative or administrative action nec5 essary to eliminate the requirement that a child be deemed 

6 to be a recipient of aid to families with dependent children 

7 under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (as 

8 in effect as of July 16, 1996) (referred to in this section 

9 as the ‘‘AFDC income eligibility requirements’’) for pur10 poses of foster care maintenance payments under section 

11 472 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 672), including an analysis 

12 of— 

13 (1) the effects of phasing out the AFDC income 

14 eligibility requirements for adoption assistance pay15 ments under section 473 of the Social Security Act 

16 (42 U.S.C. 673), as enacted by section 402 of the 

17 Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing 

18 Adoptions Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–351; 122 

19 Stat. 3975); 

20 (2) State administrative expenses related to the 

21 existing disparity in Federal reimbursement rates 

22 for foster care maintenance payments; 

23 (3) the level of services provided by States to 

24 children in foster care that meet AFDC income eligi25 bility requirements under section 472 of the Social 


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1 Security Act, and thereby provide States with Fed2 eral reimbursement for foster care maintenance pay3 ments under section 474 of such Act, as compared 

4 to children in foster care that do not meet the 

5 AFDC income eligibility requirements; 

6 (4) the long-term effects related to maintaining 

7 the AFDC income eligibility requirements under sec8 tion 472 of the Social Security Act for purposes of 

9 the amount of overall Federal funding that will be 

10 made available to States for foster care services and 

11 the resulting impact on the ability of States to pro12 vide adequate services to children in foster care; and 

13 (5) the feasibility of eliminating the AFDC in14 come eligibility requirements for purposes of foster 

15 care maintenance payments under section 472 of the 

16 Social Security Act in a manner that is budget neu17 tral, or at a limited cost to the Federal Government, 

18 and the effect that such an elimination would have 

19 on the ability of States to provide adequate levels of 

20 services to all children in foster care. 

21 (b) CHILD WELFARE INNOVATION GRANT PRO22 GRAM.—Not later than 180 days after completion of the 

23 child welfare innovation grant program under section 281 

24 of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re25 port analyzing the intervention services and reforms imVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00137 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 plemented by eligible entities under the grant program, 

2 the child well-being results achieved through such services 

3 and reforms, and recommendations for such legislation 

4 and administrative action as the Secretary determines ap5 propriate. 

6 TITLE III—EDUCATION 

7 SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this title: 

9 (1) ESEA DEFINITIONS.—The terms ‘‘elemen10 tary school’’, ‘‘local educational agency’’, ‘‘secondary 

11 school’’, ‘‘State’’, and ‘‘State educational agency’’ 

12 have the meanings given the terms in section 9101 

13 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

14 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

15 (2) ELIGIBLE NONPROFIT OR EDUCATIONAL

16 ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible nonprofit or edu17 cational entity’’ means a public or nonprofit institu18 tion of higher education, as defined in section 102 

19 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

20 1002), or a nonprofit organization. 

21 (3) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

22 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

23 meaning given the term in section 102 of the Higher 

24 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002). 


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1 (4) POVERTY LINE.—The term ‘‘poverty line’’ 

2 means the poverty line (as defined by the Office of 

3 Management and Budget and revised annually in ac4 cordance with section 673(2) of the Community 

5 Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2))) ap6 plicable to a family of the size involved. 

7 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

8 the Secretary of Education. 

9 Subtitle A—Presidential Task 

10 Force on K–12 Education 

11 SEC. 311. ESTABLISHING THE PRESIDENTIAL TASK FORCE 

12 ON K–12 EDUCATION. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Pres14 idential Task Force on K–12 Education (referred to in 

15 this section as the ‘‘Task Force’’). 

16 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

17 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Task Force shall be 

18 comprised of 22 members appointed by the Presi19 dent and shall include— 

20 (A) school leaders; 

21 (B) Federal, State, and local government 

22 leaders; 

23 (C) tribal experts; 

24 (D) representatives of State and local 

25 health departments; 


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1 (E) representatives of organizations that 

2 implement effective teen pregnancy prevention 

3 and school dropout prevention programs; and 

4 (F) business leaders, philanthropists, and 

5 others who are committed to improving sec6 ondary school graduation rates in the United 

7 States. 

8 (2) DATE FOR APPOINTMENT.—The appoint9 ments of the members of the Task Force shall be 

10 made by not later than 6 months after the date of 

11 enactment of this Act. 

12 (3) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.—A 

13 member of the Task Force shall be appointed for a 

14 term of 2 years, except that of the members first ap15 pointed, one-half of such members shall be appointed 

16 for terms of 1 year and the remaining members shall 

17 be appointed for terms of 2 years. Any vacancy in 

18 the Commission shall not affect its powers, but shall 

19 be filled in the same manner as the original appoint20 ment. 

21 (4) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 30 days 

22 after the date on which all members of the Task 

23 Force have been appointed, the Task Force shall 

24 hold its first meeting. 


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1 (5) MEETINGS.—The Task Force shall meet at 

2 the call of the Chairperson. 

3 (6) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

4 the Task Force shall constitute a quorum, but a 

5 lesser number of members may hold hearings. 

6 (7) CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIRMAN.—The 

7 Task Force shall select a Chairperson and Vice 

8 Chairperson from among its members. 

9 (c) DUTIES.—The Task Force shall advise the Presi10 dent regarding methods to improve graduation rates, 

11 which may include— 

12 (1) integrating the dropout risk factors identi13 fied through the high school dropout prevention pro14 gram under part H of title I of the Elementary and 

15 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6551 

16 et seq.) into other Federal grant programs that are 

17 established to increase high school graduation rates; 

18 (2) awarding grants to State educational agen19 cies and local educational agencies to reduce unin20 tended teen pregnancy and teen parenting through 

21 evidence-based programs; and 

22 (3) expanding behavioral health promotion and 

23 counseling services in elementary schools and sec24 ondary schools receiving support under part A of 


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1 title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

2 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.). 

3 (d) TERMINATION.—The Task Force shall terminate 

4 on the date that is 10 years after the date of enactment 

5 of this Act. 

6 Subtitle B—Pupils Prepared for 

7 School 

8 SEC. 321. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this subtitle: 

10 (1) ELIGIBLE CHILD.—The term ‘‘eligible 

11 child’’ means a child who— 

12 (A) is age 3 or 4, as of the first day of the 

13 prekindergarten program supported under this 

14 section; and 

15 (B) is from a family within the eligible in16 come limits. 

17 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible enti19 ty’’ means a local educational agency, a child20 hood education program provider (as deter21 mined in accordance with subparagraph (B)), 

22 or a consortium of such agencies or providers. 

23 (B) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall 

24 promulgate regulations to establish which pro25 gram providers shall be considered childhood 


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1 education program providers for purposes of 

2 this paragraph. 

3 (3) ELIGIBLE INCOME LIMITS.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible in5 come limits’’, when used with respect to a fam6 ily, means a family whose average annual in7 come, based on the most recent 3 preceding 

8 years, is at or below an amount determined by 

9 the Secretary of Education and is less than the 

10 applicable amount. 

11 (B) APPLICABLE AMOUNT.—For purposes 

12 of subparagraph (A), the applicable amount 

13 shall be— 

14 (i) for 2015, $75,000; and 

15 (ii) for a subsequent year, the amount 

16 determined under this subparagraph for 

17 the previous year increased by the percent18 age increase in the consumer price index 

19 for all urban consumers (all items; United 

20 States city average) over the previous year. 

21 (4) HIGH-QUALITY PREKINDERGARTEN PRO22 GRAM.—The term ‘‘high-quality prekindergarten 

23 program’’ means a program of education that— 


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1 (A) enrolls children who are age 3 or 4, as 

2 of the first day of the school year for the pro3 gram; 

4 (B) meets national quality standards, as 

5 determined by the Secretary; 

6 (C) is full-day and offered during the aca7 demic school year or during the entire year; 

8 (D) ensures that the teachers participating 

9 in the program are highly qualified; 

10 (E) provides meals that meet Federal nu11 trition standards to the eligible children during 

12 the school day, which may be provided through 

13 the the Richard B. Russell National School 

14 Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.); and 

15 (F) promotes active learning. 

16 (5) HIGH-RISK CHILD.—The term ‘‘high-risk 

17 child’’ means a child who— 

18 (A) receives, or whose family receives, ben19 efits under a means-tested Federal benefit pro20 gram, as defined under section 479(d) of the 

21 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

22 1087ss(d)); 

23 (B) is eligible for a Head Start or Early 

24 Head Start program under the Head Start Act 

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1 ance under the Child Care Development and 

2 Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et 

3 seq.); or 

4 (C) is a foster child. 

5 PART I—PRESCHOOL HOME LEARNING 

6 SEC. 322. PARENTAL SUPPORT FOR PRESCHOOL HOME 

7 LEARNING. 

8 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From amounts made 

9 available to carry out this section, the Secretary shall 

10 award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible nonprofit 

11 or educational entities in order to improve parental sup12 port for preschool home learning through the activities de13 scribed in subsection (c). 

14 (b) APPLICATION.—An eligible nonprofit or edu15 cational entity that desires a grant under this section shall 

16 submit an application at such time, in such manner, and 

17 containing such information as the Secretary may require. 

18 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible nonprofit or edu19 cational entity receiving a grant under this section shall 

20 use grant funds to— 

21 (1) identify best practices that contribute to 

22 early literacy; 

23 (2) create guidance and support regarding pre24 school home learning that families can implement at 

25 home; and 


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1 (3) provide technical assistance. 

2 (d) REPORTS.— 

3 (1) REPORTS BY GRANTEES.—Not later than 

4 60 days after the end of the grant period for a grant 

5 under this section, the recipient of the grant shall 

6 prepare and submit a report to the Secretary re7 garding the progress made under the grant. 

8 (2) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

9 45 days after the receipt of the report described in 

10 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prepare and sub11 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro12 gram under this section. 

13 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

15 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

16 each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years. 

17 PART II—GRANTS SUPPORTING UNIVERSAL PRE18 KINDERGARTEN FOR ALL ELIGIBLE CHIL19 DREN 

20 SEC. 323. UNIVERSAL PREKINDERGARTEN DEVELOPMENT 

21 GRANTS TO STATES. 

22 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail24 able to carry out this section and not reserved under 

25 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall award grants, on 


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1 a competitive basis, to States to enable the States to 

2 develop a plan and to build capacity to offer free 

3 high-quality prekindergarten programs to all eligible 

4 children who reside in the State. 

5 (2) RESERVATION.—For each fiscal year, the 

6 Secretary shall reserve not more than 1 percent of 

7 the amount made available to carry out this section 

8 for the Secretary of the Interior to carry out activi9 ties consistent with this section for the families of 

10 Indian children. 

11 (b) APPLICATION.—A State that desires a grant 

12 under this section shall submit an application at such 

13 time, in such manner, and containing such information as 

14 the Secretary may require. 

15 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—A State receiving a grant under 

16 this section shall use grant funds to plan and develop ca17 pacity for a high-quality prekindergarten program that— 

18 (1) will be offered free of charge to all eligible 

19 children in the State by not later than 3 years after 

20 the first day of the grant; 

21 (2) will be offered, for a fee using a sliding 

22 scale based on income, for children from families 

23 with annual income of more than $75,000; and 

24 (3) provides additional support to parents of 

25 high-risk children. 


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1 (d) REPORTS.— 

2 (1) REPORTS BY STATES.—Not later than 60 

3 days after the end of the grant period for a grant 

4 under this section, each State receiving such grant 

5 shall prepare and submit a report to the Secretary 

6 regarding the progress made under the grant. 

7 (2) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

8 60 days after the receipt of the report described in 

9 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prepare and sub10 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro11 gram under this section. 

12 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

13 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

14 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

15 each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years. 

16 SEC. 324. TWO YEARS OF VOLUNTARY, HIGH-QUALITY, 

17 FULL-DAY, UNIVERSAL PREKINDERGARTEN 

18 FOR ALL ELIGIBLE CHILDREN. 

19 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail21 able to carry out this section and not reserved under 

22 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall award grants, on 

23 a competitive basis, to States to enable the States to 

24 provide free, voluntary, high-quality prekindergarten 


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1 programs for all eligible children who reside in the 

2 State. 

3 (2) RESERVATION.—For each fiscal year, the 

4 Secretary shall reserve not more than 1 percent of 

5 the amount made available to carry out this section 

6 for the Secretary of the Interior to carry out activi7 ties consistent with this section for Indian children. 

8 (b) APPLICATION.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State that desires a grant 

10 under this section shall submit an application at 

11 such time, in such manner, and containing such in12 formation as the Secretary may require. 

13 (2) CONTENTS.—The application described in 

14 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

15 (A) A State plan describing how the State 

16 proposes to offer a high-quality prekindergarten 

17 program— 

18 (i) free of charge to all eligible chil19 dren in the State; and 

20 (ii) for a fee using a sliding scale 

21 based on family income, for children who 

22 reside in the State and who are from fami23 lies with annual incomes of more than 

24 $75,000. 


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1 (B) A description of the prekindergarten 

2 program to be implemented under the grant, 

3 and how the program meets the requirements of 

4 a high-quality prekindergarten program. 

5 (C) A demonstration that the State has 

6 the capacity to provide high-quality prekinder7 garten programs to all eligible children in the 

8 State. 

9 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—A State receiving a grant under 

10 this section shall use grant funds to provide free and re11 duced-price high-quality prekindergarten programs to chil12 dren in the State, in accordance with the State plan ap13 proved by the Secretary in the application submitted 

14 under subsection (b). 

15 (d) REPORTS.— 

16 (1) REPORTS BY GRANTEES.—Not later than 

17 45 days after the end of the grant period for a grant 

18 under this section, each State receiving such grant 

19 shall prepare and submit a report to the Secretary 

20 regarding the progress made under the grant. 

21 (2) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

22 60 days after the receipt of the report described in 

23 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prepare and sub24 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro25 gram under this section. 


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1 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

3 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

4 each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years. 

5 PART III—IMPROVING ACCESS TO PREKINDER6 GARTEN PROGRAMS FOR LOW-INCOME CHIL7 DREN 

8 SEC. 325. LOW-INCOME PREKINDERGARTEN GRANTS. 

9 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail11 able to carry out this section and not reserved under 

12 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall award grants, 

13 through allotments described in subsection (b), to 

14 States to enable the States to provide subgrants to 

15 local educational agencies to offer free or reduced16 price high-quality prekindergarten programs to low17 income children. 

18 (2) RESERVATION.—For each fiscal year, the 

19 Secretary shall reserve not more than 1 percent of 

20 the amount made available to carry out this section 

21 for the Secretary of the Interior to carry out activi22 ties consistent with this section for the families of 

23 Indian children. 

24 (b) ALLOTMENTS.—For each fiscal year, the Sec25 retary shall allot, to each State that submits an approved 


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1 application, an amount that bears the same relation to the 

2 amount available to carry out this section and not reserved 

3 under subsection (a)(2) for such fiscal year, as the number 

4 of children aged 3 or 4 in the State from families with 

5 incomes at or below 200 percent of the poverty line bears 

6 to the total number of such children in all States submit7 ting approved applications. 

8 (c) APPLICATION.—A State that desires a grant 

9 under this section shall submit an application to the Sec10 retary at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

11 information as the Secretary may require. Such applica12 tion shall include an assurance that the State shall provide 

13 matching funds toward the costs of the grant as provided 

14 under subsection (e). 

15 (d) USE OF FUNDS.— 

16 (1) SUBGRANTS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—A State receiving an al18 lotment under this section shall use not less 

19 than 98 percent of such allotment to award 

20 subgrants, on a competitive basis, to local edu21 cational agencies for the purpose of providing 

22 free or reduced-price high-quality prekinder23 garten programs for children from low-income 

24 families. 


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1 (B) APPLICATION.—A local educational 

2 agency that desires a subgrant under subpara3 graph (A) shall submit an application to the 

4 State at such time, in such manner, and con5 taining such information as the State may rea6 sonably require. 

7 (C) PRIORITY.—In awarding subgrants 

8 under this subsection, a State shall give priority 

9 to a local educational agency that works in 

10 partnership with a nonprofit community-based 

11 organization of prekindergarten program pro12 viders. 

13 (2) STATE ACTIVITIES.—A State receiving an 

14 allotment under this section may use not more than 

15 a total of 2 percent of such allotment for the admin16 istrative costs of carrying out this part and for State 

17 activities related to the purposes of improving access 

18 to prekindergarten programs for low-income chil19 dren. 

20 (3) USE AS PART OF UNIVERSAL PREKINDER21 GARTEN PROGRAM.—In the case of a State that re22 ceives an allotment under this part and a grant 

23 under section 324, the State may use the allotment 

24 to meet the goals of the grant under section 324 

25 with respect to low-income children. 


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1 (e) MATCHING FUNDS.—A State receiving an allot2 ment under this section shall provide toward the cost of 

3 the activities carried out under the grant an amount equal 

4 to the amount of the allotment. The matching funds may 

5 be in cash or in-kind, fairly evaluated. 

6 (f) REPORTS.— 

7 (1) REPORTS BY SUBGRANTEES.—Not later 

8 than 60 days after the end of the grant period for 

9 a grant under this section, each local educational 

10 agency receiving a subgrant under subsection (d) 

11 shall provide to the State the information deter12 mined necessary by the State for the report de13 scribed in paragraph (2). 

14 (2) REPORTS BY GRANTEES.—Not later than 

15 45 days after the receipt of the report described in 

16 paragraph (1), the State receiving the grant shall 

17 prepare and submit a report to the Secretary re18 garding the progress made under the grant. 

19 (3) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

20 60 days after the receipt of the report described in 

21 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall prepare and sub22 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro23 gram under this section. 

24 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

25 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 


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1 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

2 each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years. 

3 PART IV—HEAD START, EARLY HEAD START, AND 

4 EVEN START 

5 SEC. 326. EXPANDING HEAD START AND EARLY HEAD 

6 START SERVICES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

8 9831 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 640 

9 (42 U.S.C. 9835) the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 640A. HEAD START AND EARLY HEAD START SERV11 ICES FOR ADDITIONAL CHILDREN. 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, after consulta13 tion with the Secretary of Education, shall develop and 

14 implement a plan for providing Head Start services 

15 through Head Start programs, and Early Head Start serv16 ices through Early Head Start programs, under this sub17 chapter to children described in subsection (b). 

18 ‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL CHILDREN.—The plan shall speci19 fy that the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 

20 provide the Head Start and Early Head Start services to 

21 children— 

22 ‘‘(1) who are eligible for the corresponding serv23 ices under this subchapter but would not otherwise 

24 receive those services in the absence of this section; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(2) who the Secretary determines reside in 

2 States or communities that provide sustained access 

3 to high-quality prekindergarten programs (as de4 fined in section 321 of the Saving Our Next Genera5 tion Act) to children who are— 

6 ‘‘(A) age 3 or 4; and 

7 ‘‘(B) from families with a family income of 

8 not more than 200 percent of the poverty line. 

9 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

10 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

11 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

12 each subsequent fiscal year.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

14 (1) Section 639 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 9834) 

15 is amended by striking ‘‘other than section’’ and in16 serting ‘‘other than sections 640A and’’. 

17 (2) Section 640(a)(6) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

18 9835(a)(6)) is amended by striking ‘‘this sub19 chapter’’ in the first and third places it appears and 

20 inserting ‘‘section 639’’. 


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1 SEC. 327. IMPROVING READING SKILLS OF LOW-INCOME 

2 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES THROUGH REAU3 THORIZING THE WILLIAM F. GOODLING EVEN 

4 START FAMILY LITERACY PROGRAM. 

5 Section 1002(b)(3) of the Elementary and Secondary 

6 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6302(b)(3)) is amended 

7 by striking ‘‘$260,000,000 for fiscal year 2003 and such 

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

9 fiscal years’’ and inserting ‘‘$520,000,000 for fiscal year 

10 2016 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 

11 5 succeeding fiscal years’’. 

12 Subtitle C—Elementary School and 

13 Secondary School Programs 

14 PART I—EXPANDED SCHOOL CALENDARS 

15 SEC. 331. DEMONSTRATION GRANTS FOR STATES TO IM16 PLEMENT EXPANDED SCHOOL CALENDAR 

17 PROGRAM. 

18 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail20 able to carry out this section and not reserved under 

21 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall award grants, on 

22 a competitive basis, to States to enable the States to 

23 expand the school calendar for public elementary 

24 schools and secondary schools in the State. 

25 (2) RESERVATION.—For each fiscal year, the 

26 Secretary shall reserve not more than 1 percent of 


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1 the amount made available to carry out this section 

2 for the Secretary of the Interior to carry out activi3 ties consistent with this section for the families of 

4 Indian children. 

5 (b) APPLICATION; AWARD BASIS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State that desires a grant 

7 under this section shall submit an application at 

8 such time, in such manner, and containing such in9 formation as the Secretary may require. 

10 (2) STATE FLEXIBILITY.—In awarding grants 

11 under this section, the Secretary shall provide the 

12 States with flexibility in how to best expand the 

13 school year, which may include increasing the num14 ber of school days in the school year or increasing 

15 the number of hours in a school day, and in how the 

16 additional time provided by the expanded calendar 

17 shall be used. 

18 (c) USE OF FUNDS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State receiving a grant 

20 under this section shall use grant funds to pay for 

21 the costs of increasing the number of school days in 

22 the school year for the public elementary schools and 

23 secondary schools in the State. 

24 (2) FLEXIBILITY.—A State receiving a grant 

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1 cational agency and public elementary school or sec2 ondary school with as much flexibility as is prac3 ticable regarding how to use the additional school 

4 time provided through the school calendar expan5 sion, which may include providing additional time 

6 for— 

7 (A) remedial or advanced work or intensive 

8 tutoring; 

9 (B) service learning, internships, or paid 

10 work experiences; 

11 (C) specialized learning and enrichment 

12 opportunities such as— 

13 (i) preparation classes for the SAT, 

14 ACT, or other college readiness examina15 tion; 

16 (ii) career counseling; 

17 (iii) study skills instruction; and 

18 (iv) recreation; 

19 (D) intensive tutoring and enhanced learn20 ing time, provided at the school or at another 

21 location, in order to enable students to meet or 

22 exceed the student academic achievement stand23 ards for the students’ grade level; or 

24 (E) homework support. 


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1 (3) TRANSPORTATION.—Grant funds provided 

2 under this section maybe be used to provide trans3 portation to the activities supported under the ex4 panded school calendar, as approved by the Sec5 retary in the application submitted under subsection 

6 (b)(1). 

7 (d) REPORTS.— 

8 (1) REPORTS BY STATES.—Not later than 60 

9 days after the end of the grant period for a grant 

10 under this section, each State receiving such grant 

11 shall prepare and submit a report to the Secretary 

12 regarding the progress made under the grant. 

13 (2) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

14 60 days after the receipt of the report described in 

15 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prepare and sub16 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro17 gram under this section. 

18 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

19 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

20 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

21 each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years. 


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1 PART II—PREGNANT AND PARENTING STUDENTS 

2 ACCESS TO EDUCATION 

3 SEC. 335. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This part may be cited as the ‘‘Pregnant and Par5 enting Students Access to Education Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 336. PURPOSES. 

7 The purposes of this part are— 

8 (1) to ensure that each pregnant and parenting 

9 student has equal access to the same free, appro10 priate, high-quality public education that is provided 

11 to other students; 

12 (2) to improve high school graduation rates, ca13 reer-readiness, access to postsecondary educational 

14 opportunities, and outcomes for pregnant and par15 enting students and their children; and 

16 (3) to assist each State and local educational 

17 agency in improving its graduation rates and ful18 filling its responsibilities under title IX of the Edu19 cation Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et 

20 seq.) with respect to pregnant and parenting stu21 dents. 

22 SEC. 337. GRANTS FOR STATE AND LOCAL ACTIVITIES FOR 

23 THE EDUCATION OF PREGNANT AND PAR24 ENTING STUDENTS. 

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

26 make grants to States to carry out the activities described 


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1 in subsection (d). A grant made under this section shall 

2 be for a minimum of 3 years, and the Secretary shall have 

3 the discretion to renew the grant at the end of the grant 

4 period. 

5 (b) APPLICATION.—A State desiring to receive a 

6 grant under this section shall submit an application to the 

7 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing 

8 such information as the Secretary may reasonably require, 

9 including, at a minimum, the State plan described in sub10 section (f). 

11 (c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.— 

12 (1) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR NATIONAL

13 ACTIVITIES.—From the funds made available to 

14 carry out this part, the Secretary may reserve not 

15 more than 5 percent for national activities. 

16 (2) ALLOTMENT TO THE SECRETARY OF THE

17 INTERIOR.—The amount allocated for payments 

18 under this part to the Secretary of the Interior for 

19 any fiscal year shall be, as determined pursuant to 

20 criteria established by the Secretary, the amount 

21 necessary to meet the needs of— 

22 (A) Indian children on reservations served 

23 by secondary schools for Indian children oper24 ated or supported by the Department of the In25 terior; and 


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1 (B) out-of-State Indian children in elemen2 tary schools and secondary schools in local edu3 cational agencies under special contracts with 

4 the Department of the Interior. 

5 (3) FORMULA GRANTS TO STATES.—The Sec6 retary shall allocate to States having approved appli7 cations the funds remaining after the application of 

8 paragraphs (1) and (2) based on the percentage of 

9 the State’s number of teen births compared to the 

10 number of teen births nationally, except that the 

11 minimum grant for a State shall be $300,000. 

12 (4) SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.—Grant 

13 funds provided under paragraph (3) shall be used 

14 only to supplement the funds that would, in the ab15 sence of such Federal funds, be made available from 

16 non-Federal sources for the education of pupils par17 ticipating in programs assisted under this part, and 

18 not to supplant such funds. 

19 (d) USE OF FUNDS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Funds made available to a 

21 State under this part shall be used for the following: 

22 (A) To provide or enhance educational pro23 grams and related services that enable pregnant 

24 and parenting students to enroll in, attend, and 


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1 succeed in school, and that are culturally and 

2 linguistically competent. 

3 (B) To designate a Coordinator for Edu4 cation of Pregnant and Parenting Students in 

5 the State educational agency to direct and man6 age the State educational agency’s activities re7 lated to this part, in collaboration with the 

8 State’s designated employee responsible for the 

9 State’s efforts to comply with and carry out, to 

10 the fullest extent, its responsibilities under title 

11 IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 

12 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.). 

13 (C) To prepare and carry out a State plan 

14 described in subsection (f). 

15 (D) To develop and implement high-quality 

16 professional development programs for local 

17 educational agencies and school personnel. 

18 (E) To direct grants to rural and other 

19 local educational agencies without capacity to 

20 prepare an application for funds so that such 

21 local educational agencies may carry out the ac22 tivities described in subsections (e) and (f) of 

23 section 338. 

24 (F) To ensure that information about the 

25 program is disseminated to all local educational 


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1 agencies and made publicly and readily avail2 able on the State educational agency’s website, 

3 including— 

4 (i) the name and contact information 

5 for the individuals described in subpara6 graph (B); 

7 (ii) a list of subgrantees; and 

8 (iii) an explanation of the rights of 

9 students and responsibilities of schools 

10 under title IX of the Education Amend11 ments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), 

12 including investigation and complaint pro13 cedures as required under subsections (a) 

14 and (b) of section 106.8 of title 34, Code 

15 of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

16 date of the enactment of this part). 

17 (2) RESERVATION FOR STATE-LEVEL ACTIVI18 TIES.—From the funds made available to a State 

19 under this part, a State may reserve not more than 

20 10 percent for State-level activities. 

21 (3) SUBGRANTS.—The State shall distribute at 

22 least 90 percent of each State grant as subgrants to 

23 local educational agencies in accordance with section 

24 338. 


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1 (e) COORDINATOR FOR EDUCATION OF PREGNANT

2 AND PARENTING STUDENTS.—The Coordinator for Edu3 cation of Pregnant and Parenting Students in the State 

4 educational agency described in subsection (d)(1)(B) 

5 shall— 

6 (1) gather information on the nature and extent 

7 of State and local efforts to prevent teen pregnancy 

8 and the nature and extent of barriers to educational 

9 access and success facing pregnant and parenting 

10 students in the State, including information on re11 ported incidents of discrimination; 

12 (2) develop and carry out the State plan de13 scribed in subsection (f); 

14 (3) collect and report information to the Sec15 retary, such as the information described in sub16 paragraphs (A) through (G) of section 340(a)(6); 

17 (4) facilitate the coordination of services with 

18 the State agencies responsible for administering pro19 grams affecting children, youth, and families (in20 cluding for the purposes of maximizing the 

21 leveraging of resources from such agencies), includ22 ing— 

23 (A) the State temporary assistance for 

24 needy families program funded under part A of 


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1 title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 601 et seq.); 

3 (B) the Medicaid program under title XIX 

4 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et 

5 seq.); 

6 (C) the State Children’s Health Insurance 

7 Program established under title XXI of the So8 cial Security Program (42 U.S.C. 1397aa et 

9 seq.); 

10 (D) teen pregnancy prevention, family 

11 planning, and maternal and child health pro12 grams; 

13 (E) the special supplemental nutrition pro14 gram for women, infants, and children estab15 lished by section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act 

16 of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786); 

17 (F) the supplemental nutrition assistance 

18 program established under the Food and Nutri19 tion Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.); 

20 (G) child care programs; 

21 (H) early childhood education, home visita22 tion, and child welfare programs; 

23 (I) workforce investment programs and 

24 postsecondary education; 


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1 (J) housing assistance and homeless assist2 ance programs; 

3 (K) school-based health services programs; 

4 and 

5 (L) programs carried out by federally 

6 qualified health centers (as defined in sections 

7 1861(aa)(4) and 1905(a)(2)(B) of the Social 

8 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(aa)(4) and 

9 1396d(a)(2)(B))), health centers (as defined in 

10 section 330 of the Public Health Service Act 

11 (42 U.S.C. 254b)), and outpatient health pro12 grams and facilities operated by tribal organiza13 tions; 

14 (5) coordinate and collaborate with educators, 

15 service providers, and local educational agency preg16 nant and parenting student liaisons; 

17 (6) provide technical assistance and training to 

18 local educational agencies, including the dissemina19 tion of best practices regarding pregnant and par20 enting students; and 

21 (7) report to the Secretary any complaints re22 ceived by the State about discrimination based on 

23 pregnancy or parenting status and what actions 

24 were taken to address those complaints. 


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1 (f) STATE PLAN.—Pursuant to subsection (d)(1)(C), 

2 each State shall submit a plan, developed by the State 

3 educational agency in consultation with local educational 

4 agencies, teachers, principals, specialized instructional 

5 support personnel, administrators, other staff, representa6 tives of Indian tribes located in the State, and parents, 

7 to provide for the education of pregnant and parenting 

8 students. Such plan shall include the following: 

9 (1) A description of how such students will be 

10 given the opportunity to meet the challenging stu11 dent academic achievement standards under section 

12 1111(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu13 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)). 

14 (2) The policy, protocol, or procedure that each 

15 local educational agency or State implements once a 

16 pregnancy has been discovered on campus including 

17 how each local educational agency ensures the stu18 dent understands the student’s rights under title IX 

19 of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 

20 1681 et seq.). 

21 (3) A description of how the State will identify 

22 pregnant and parenting students and plan for preg23 nant and parenting students to be enrolled, attend, 

24 and succeed in school. 


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1 (4) A description of training programs to raise 

2 awareness of school personnel regarding the rights 

3 and educational needs of pregnant and parenting 

4 students. 

5 (5) A description of procedures designed to en6 sure that students eligible for Federal, State, or 

7 local food, housing, health care, or child care pro8 grams are informed of their eligibility for, assisted 

9 in enrolling in, and able to participate in such pro10 grams. 

11 (6) A description of procedures designed to en12 sure that students eligible for Federal, State, or 

13 local after-school programs or supplemental edu14 cational services are enrolled in and able to partici15 pate in such programs. 

16 (7) Strategies that respond to the problems 

17 identified under subsection (e)(1). 

18 (8) A demonstration that the State and its local 

19 educational agencies have developed, reviewed, and 

20 revised policies to remove barriers to enrollment and 

21 retention of pregnant and parenting students in 

22 schools in the State. 

23 (9) Assurances that— 

24 (A) the State educational agency and the 

25 local educational agencies in the State will not 


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1 stigmatize, discriminate against, or involun2 tarily segregate students on the basis of preg3 nancy or parenting; 

4 (B) local educational agencies will des5 ignate a pregnant and parenting student liaison 

6 to communicate with the Coordinator for Edu7 cation of Pregnant and Parenting Students in 

8 the State educational agency and oversee the 

9 provision of services at the local educational 

10 agency and school levels; and 

11 (C) the State educational agency and local 

12 educational agencies will ensure that transpor13 tation is provided for students who have an in14 ability to pay for transportation and who— 

15 (i) choose to attend programs for 

16 pregnant and parenting students located 

17 outside of their school of origin; or 

18 (ii) need transportation to and from 

19 school and the student’s child care provider 

20 for the student and the student’s child, re21 spectively. 

22 (10) Description of how the State will ensure 

23 that local educational agencies comply with require24 ments of this part. 


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1 (11) A description of technical assistance to be 

2 provided to local educational agencies to assist the 

3 local educational agencies to meet the goals of this 

4 part. 

5 (g) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND PUBLIC

6 EDUCATION.—Each State and each local educational 

7 agency shall include in professional development and pub8 lic education materials reference to, and shall ensure that 

9 school personnel, students, and family members of stu10 dents are aware of, title IX of the Education Amendments 

11 of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) and its implementing 

12 regulations, which set forth the Federal civil right to be 

13 free from discrimination on the basis of a student’s preg14 nancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of preg15 nancy, or recovery therefrom. This includes the right to 

16 be free from harassment and stigmatization on those 

17 bases, as well as the following: 

18 (1) The right to enroll in any school or program 

19 for which the student would otherwise qualify. 

20 (2) If enrolled into a special program or sepa21 rate school, the right to an education equal in qual22 ity to that offered to other students in the main23 stream or originating school. 

24 (3) The right to decline to participate in a spe25 cialized program or separate school. 


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1 (4) The right to continue the student’s edu2 cation in the school in which the student was en3 rolled, or would have been enrolled, prior to the stu4 dent’s pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termi5 nation of pregnancy, or recovery therefrom, includ6 ing elementary or secondary schools, charter schools, 

7 honors and magnet programs, Advanced Placement 

8 and International Baccalaureate programs, career 

9 and technical education programs, special education 

10 and non-public school placements, alternative options 

11 or programs, migrant education, free and reduced 

12 lunch programs, services for English language learn13 ers, physical education programs, after-school aca14 demic programs, and any others for which the stu15 dent is otherwise qualified. 

16 (5) The right to— 

17 (A) participate in school activities includ18 ing graduations and other ceremonies; 

19 (B) to receive awards or peer recognition; 

20 and 

21 (C) to participate on field trips, student 

22 clubs and councils, in after-school activities, in23 cluding cheerleading or athletics teams and in 

24 any other school-related programs, subject to 

25 providing a medical release if that is required of 


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1 all students who have physical or emotional 

2 conditions requiring the attention of medical 

3 personnel and who want to continue partici4 pating. 

5 (6) The right to the same benefits and services 

6 offered to students with other temporary disabilities. 

7 (7) The right to an excused absence for as long 

8 as the student’s physician deems it medically nec9 essary, without penalty, and automatic return to the 

10 status the student held prior to the leave of absence. 

11 (8) The right not to be retaliated against for 

12 raising awareness of, complaining about, or report13 ing discrimination. 

14 (h) COORDINATION FOR SUPPORT SERVICES.—Local 

15 educational agencies may coordinate with social services 

16 agencies, public health agencies, youth services providers, 

17 or other community-based organizations for the purposes 

18 of— 

19 (1) ensuring that pregnant and parenting stu20 dents have access to the academic support services 

21 they need to continue their education; and 

22 (2) raising awareness among agencies about 

23 pregnant and parenting students and their edu24 cational rights and opportunities. 


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1 (i) PREGNANT AND PARENTING STUDENT LIAI2 SON.—The duties of a local educational agency’s pregnant 

3 and parenting student liaison shall include— 

4 (1) identification, by consulting with school per5 sonnel, and by self-reports, of pregnant and par6 enting students in need of services to help the stu7 dents stay in school and succeed; 

8 (2) gathering information on the nature and ex9 tent of barriers to educational access and success 

10 facing pregnant and parenting students in the geo11 graphic area served by the local educational agency, 

12 including information on reported incidents of dis13 crimination; 

14 (3) ensuring and facilitating the continued en15 rollment of pregnant and parenting students in 

16 school in an academic program that best meets the 

17 educational goals of the student and his or her fam18 ily; 

19 (4) ensuring that the educational and related 

20 barriers faced by pregnant and parenting students 

21 are addressed, and that any services and referrals 

22 provided are culturally and linguistically competent; 

23 (5) informing pregnant and parenting students 

24 of educational and related services extended to preg25 nant and parenting students and of their right 


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1 under title IX of the Education Amendments of 

2 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.) to continue their edu3 cation; and 

4 (6) coordinating the provision of services in 

5 conjunction with the Coordinator for Education of 

6 Pregnant and Parenting Students in the State edu7 cational agency and with community organizations 

8 and partners. 

9 SEC. 338. LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY SUBGRANTS FOR 

10 THE EDUCATION OF PREGNANT AND PAR11 ENTING STUDENTS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency re13 ceiving a grant under section 337 shall make competitive 

14 subgrants to local educational agencies for the purpose of 

15 facilitating the enrollment, attendance, and success in 

16 school of pregnant and parenting students. Services may 

17 be provided on school grounds or at other facilities. 

18 (b) APPLICATION.—Local educational agencies seek19 ing subgrants under this section shall submit an applica20 tion to the State educational agency in time and manner 

21 required by the State. The application shall include— 

22 (1) an assessment of the educational and re23 lated needs of pregnant and parenting students in 

24 the local educational agency; 


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1 (2) a description of the local educational agen2 cy’s plan for addressing those needs, and assurance 

3 that the specific services and programs for which 

4 subgrants are being sought are culturally and lin5 guistically competent; 

6 (3) a description of how the local educational 

7 agency will plan for pregnant and parenting stu8 dents to be enrolled, attend, and succeed in school; 

9 (4) an assurance of the local educational agen10 cy’s compliance with local educational agency re11 quirements established in section 337; and 

12 (5) a description of the local educational agen13 cy’s plan for continuing specific services and pro14 grams for which subgrants are being sought in case 

15 of the loss of or absence of Federal assistance. 

16 (c) AWARDS.—Subgrants under this section shall be 

17 awarded on the basis of need and the strength of the appli18 cation in meeting the requirements and goals of this part. 

19 Priority consideration shall be given to applications from 

20 local educational agencies serving students in geographic 

21 areas with— 

22 (1) teen birth rates that are higher than the 

23 State average; or 


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1 (2) teen birth rates below the State average but 

2 having one or more racial or ethnic groups with teen 

3 birth rates higher than the State average. 

4 (d) DURATION.—Each subgrant under this section 

5 shall be for a period of not to exceed 3 years. 

6 (e) REQUIRED ACTIVITIES.—Subgrant funds shall be 

7 expended for activities that include— 

8 (1) the provision of academic support services 

9 for pregnant and parenting students, which may in10 clude academic counseling, the development of indi11 vidualized graduation plans, assistance with class 

12 scheduling, assistance with planning for and gaining 

13 access to postsecondary educational opportunities, 

14 assistance securing tutoring or other academic sup15 port services, supplemental instruction, homework 

16 assistance, tutoring, or other educational services, 

17 such as homebound instruction services to be pro18 vided during extended leaves of absence due to preg19 nancy complications, childbirth, or the illness of a 

20 student’s child, to keep the student on track to fin21 ish the student’s classes and graduate; 

22 (2) assistance to pregnant and parenting stu23 dents in gaining access to quality, affordable child 

24 care and early childhood education services; 


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1 (3) the provision of transportation services or 

2 assistance so that parenting students and their chil3 dren can get to and from school and child care, re4 spectively, and so that a pregnant student unable to 

5 walk long distances can get to school if transpor6 tation is not already provided for that student; 

7 (4) the provision of services and programs to 

8 attract, engage, and retain pregnant and parenting 

9 students in school, including informing pregnant and 

10 parenting teenagers and their family members and 

11 caring adults of their right to continue their edu12 cation, the importance of doing so, and the con13 sequences of not doing so; 

14 (5) the education of students, parents and com15 munity members about the educational rights of 

16 pregnant and parenting students; 

17 (6) the professional development of school per18 sonnel regarding the challenges facing pregnant and 

19 parenting students and their educational rights; 

20 (7) proactive outreach efforts to assist pregnant 

21 and parenting teenagers with excessive absences and 

22 to reenroll pregnant or parenting teenagers who 

23 have dropped out of school; 

24 (8) the revision of school policies and practices 

25 to remove barriers and to encourage pregnant and 


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1 parenting students to continue their education, in2 cluding— 

3 (A) the revision of attendance policies to 

4 allow for students to be excused from school, 

5 school activities, after-school activities, or 

6 school-related programs for— 

7 (i) attendance at pregnancy-related 

8 medical appointments, including expectant 

9 fathers who are students; 

10 (ii) fulfillment of the student’s par11 enting responsibilities, including arranging 

12 child care, caring for the student’s sick 

13 child or children, and attending medical 

14 appointments for the student’s child or 

15 children; and 

16 (iii) such other situations beyond the 

17 control of the student as determined by the 

18 board of education in each local edu19 cational agency, or such other cir20 cumstances which cause reasonable con21 cern to student or the student’s parent for 

22 the safety or health of the student, for ex23 ample addressing circumstances resulting 

24 from domestic or sexual violence; and 


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1 (B) the creation and implementation of a 

2 policy flexible enough to meet the individualized 

3 lactation and medical needs of student mothers, 

4 including reasonable break time from class, ac5 cess to a clean, private space, and protection 

6 from retaliation for this purpose; 

7 (9) the provision to student parents, and at a 

8 student’s request, also to a non-student parent or 

9 other family members and caring adults, of training 

10 and support in parenting skills, healthy relationship 

11 skills, strategies to prevent future unplanned preg12 nancy, and other life skills such as goal setting, 

13 budgeting, time management, financial literacy, net14 working, job interviewing, applying for postsec15 ondary education, and securing financial aid; and 

16 (10) the provision to pregnant and parenting 

17 students of educational and career mentoring serv18 ices and peer groups, whether during school hours or 

19 after school. 

20 (f) ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subgrant funds may be ex22 pended for allowable activities such as— 

23 (A) the provision of child care and early 

24 childhood education for the child of the par25 enting student, either by providing these servVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00181 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 ices directly on school grounds or by other ar2 rangement, such as by providing financial as3 sistance to obtain such services at a child care 

4 facility within a reasonable distance of the 

5 school; 

6 (B) the provision of case management 

7 services to pregnant and parenting students, 

8 such as assistance with applying for and access9 ing public benefits and Federal financial aid for 

10 postsecondary education and training; 

11 (C) the provision of, or referrals to, preg12 nancy prevention, primary health care, maternal 

13 and child health, family planning, mental 

14 health, substance abuse, housing assistance, 

15 homeless assistance, and legal aid services, in16 cluding paternity testing, establishing parental 

17 rights, child custody arrangements, and other 

18 services needed by the student; 

19 (D) the provision of emergency financial or 

20 in-kind assistance to a parenting student to ful21 fill the basic human needs of a student and the 

22 student’s child; 

23 (E) efforts to create a positive school cli24 mate for pregnant and parenting students, in25 cluding addressing discrimination against and 


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1 harassment and stigmatization of pregnant and 

2 parenting students; and 

3 (F) the provision of training practicums 

4 for graduate students in social work to carry 

5 out the purpose of the grant. 

6 (2) MEDICALLY ACCURATE AND COMPLETE IN7 FORMATION.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—With respect to infor9 mation provided under paragraph (1)(C) and 

10 subsection (e)(9), whether provided by local 

11 educational agencies or by contract or arrange12 ment as described in subsection (g), the infor13 mation shall be, where appropriate, medically 

14 accurate and complete and developmentally ap15 propriate for the intended audience. 

16 (B) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this 

17 paragraph, the term ‘‘medically accurate and 

18 complete’’ means verified or supported by the 

19 weight of research conducted in compliance with 

20 accepted scientific methods and— 

21 (i) published in peer-reviewed jour22 nals, where applicable; or 

23 (ii) comprising information that lead24 ing professional organizations and agencies 


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1 with relevant expertise in the field recog2 nize as accurate, objective, and complete. 

3 (g) ACTIVITIES OF NONPROFIT COMMUNITY ORGANI4 ZATIONS.—Local educational agencies may provide and 

5 expend subgrant funds on required activities authorized 

6 in subsection (e) or allowable activities authorized in sub7 section (f) directly or by contract or arrangement with so8 cial services agencies, public health agencies, youth serv9 ices providers, or other nonprofit community-based organi10 zations with experience effectively assisting pregnant and 

11 parenting students to stay in school by conducting the ac12 tivities described in subsections (e) and (f). 

13 SEC. 339. CONVERSION TO CATEGORICAL PROGRAM IN 

14 EVENT OF FAILURE OF STATE REGARDING 

15 EXPENDITURE OF GRANTS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, from the 

17 amounts specified in subsection (c), make grants to local 

18 educational agencies in a State described in such sub19 section for the required activities specified in section 

20 338(e) and the allowable activities specified in section 

21 338(f). 

22 (b) APPLICATION.—A local educational agency desir23 ing a grant under this section shall submit an application 

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

25 Secretary may require. 


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1 (c) SPECIFICATION OF FUNDS.—The amounts re2 ferred to in subsection (a) are any amounts that would 

3 have been allocated to a State under section 337(c)(3) 

4 that are not paid to the State as a result of— 

5 (1) the failure of the State to submit an appli6 cation under section 337(b); 

7 (2) the failure of the State, in the determina8 tion of the Secretary, to prepare the application in 

9 accordance with such section or to submit the appli10 cation within a reasonable period of time; or 

11 (3) the State informing the Secretary that the 

12 State does not intend to expend the full amount of 

13 such allocation. 

14 SEC. 340. NATIONAL ACTIVITIES. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

16 following activities: 

17 (1) Review State plans submitted under section 

18 337(f) to ensure the plans adequately address all of 

19 the elements listed in such section. 

20 (2) Provide technical assistance to State edu21 cational agencies regarding grants awarded under 

22 this part and methods to keep pregnant and par23 enting students in school until graduation from sec24 ondary school. 


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1 (3) Provide guidance to Federal programs and 

2 grantees likely to have contact with pregnant and 

3 parenting students and their family members and 

4 caring adults regarding the educational rights of 

5 pregnant and parenting students and State edu6 cational agency responsibilities, including the respon7 sibilities under this part. 

8 (4) At the end of each 3-year grant period, con9 duct a rigorous, evidence-based, comprehensive eval10 uation of the local educational agency programs 

11 funded by the grants under this section and their ef12 fectiveness in improving graduation rates and edu13 cational outcomes for pregnant and parenting stu14 dents, including acceptance and enrollment in higher 

15 education, and prepare and submit a report on the 

16 findings of such evaluations to Congress. 

17 (5) Conduct a one-time national evaluation of 

18 pregnant and parenting student access to education 

19 program service delivery models, directly or via con20 tract with an independent research institution. Iden21 tify and disseminate the findings and best practices 

22 at the State and local levels, including models of 

23 programs that are successful at, or show promise of, 

24 serving specific racial or ethnic groups or have been 

25 modified and tested with specific racial or ethnic 


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1 groups, and create an online best practices clearing2 house as a resource for other State educational 

3 agencies and local educational agencies. 

4 (6) Annually collect and disseminate nonperson5 ally identifiable data and information, in a manner 

6 protective of student privacy, and disaggregated by 

7 each school or alternative program identified pursu8 ant to subparagraph (B) and by whether services for 

9 pregnant and parenting students are offered in 

10 school or off-site, on— 

11 (A) the number of pregnant and parenting 

12 students enrolled in school; 

13 (B) rates and participation of pregnant 

14 and parenting students in mainstream or origi15 nating schools, rates and participation of preg16 nant and parenting students in alternative pro17 grams and, for each alternative program, an in18 dication as to whether it is offered in a main19 stream school or off-site; 

20 (C) pregnant and parenting students’ per21 formance on academic assessments; 

22 (D) pregnant and parenting students’ 

23 graduation rates, dropout rates and transfer 

24 rates; 


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1 (E) rates of usage by pregnant and par2 enting students of child care services or assist3 ance (if offered); 

4 (F) rates of usage by pregnant or par5 enting students of other services offered 

6 (disaggregated by type of service); and 

7 (G) such other data and information as the 

8 Secretary determines to be necessary and rel9 evant. 

10 (7) Coordinate data collection and dissemina11 tion with the agencies and entities that receive funds 

12 under this part and those that administer programs 

13 in accordance with this part. 

14 (b) REPORTING RATES.—Notwithstanding subpara15 graphs (B) through (F) of subsection (a)(6), if the number 

16 of pregnant and parenting students in a particular school 

17 or program in a State is smaller than a size determined 

18 by such State, it shall be reported by the applicable local 

19 educational agency, and if the number of pregnant and 

20 parenting students under the jurisdiction of a local edu21 cational agency in a State is smaller than a size deter22 mined by such State, it shall be reported by such State. 


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1 SEC. 341. EFFECT ON FEDERAL AND STATE NON2 DISCRIMINATION LAWS. 

3 Nothing in this part shall be construed to preempt, 

4 invalidate, or limit rights, remedies, procedures, or legal 

5 standards available to victims of discrimination or retalia6 tion under any other Federal law or a law of a State or 

7 political subdivision of a State, including title VI of the 

8 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), title 

9 IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 

10 1681 et seq.), section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

11 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), the Americans with Disabilities Act 

12 of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), section 1557 of the 

13 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 

14 18116), or section 1979 of the Revised Statutes (42 

15 U.S.C. 1983). The obligations imposed by this part are 

16 in addition to those imposed by title IX of the Education 

17 Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), title VI 

18 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), 

19 the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

20 12101 et seq.), and section 1557 of the Patient Protection 

21 and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18116). 

22 SEC. 342. ADDING PREGNANT AND PARENTING DATA TO 

23 STATE REPORT CARDS. 

24 Section 1111(h)(1)(C) of the Elementary and Sec25 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(h)(1)(C)) 

26 is amended— 


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1 (1) in clause (vii), by striking ‘‘and’’ after the 

2 semicolon; 

3 (2) in clause (viii), by striking the period and 

4 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

6 ‘‘(ix) data regarding pregnant and 

7 parenting students in the State, in the ag8 gregate and disaggregated and cross-tab9 ulated by the subgroups described in sub10 section (b)(2)(C)(v)(II) (except that such 

11 disaggregation or cross-tabulation shall not 

12 be required in a case in which the results 

13 would reveal personally identifiable infor14 mation about an individual student), in15 cluding— 

16 ‘‘(I) the number of pregnant and 

17 parenting students enrolled in sec18 ondary schools; 

19 ‘‘(II) rates, and data regarding 

20 participation, of pregnant and par21 enting students in mainstream schools 

22 or in the schools in which the students 

23 originated; 

24 ‘‘(III) rates, and data regarding 

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1 enting students in alternative pro2 grams; 

3 ‘‘(IV) the number and percentage 

4 of pregnant and parenting students 

5 who have achieved each level of 

6 achievement described in subclauses 

7 (II) and (III) of subsection 

8 (b)(1)(D)(ii), in each grade and sub9 ject assessed; and 

10 ‘‘(V) graduation rates for preg11 nant and parenting students.’’. 

12 SEC. 343. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

13 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

14 this part such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 

15 2016 through 2020. 

16 PART III—HEALTHY FOOD, NUTRITION 

17 EDUCATION, AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY 

18 SEC. 351. HEALTH EDUCATION AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION 

19 AS CORE ACADEMIC SUBJECTS. 

20 Section 9101(11) of the Elementary and Secondary 

21 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(11)) is amended 

22 by striking ‘‘and geography’’ and inserting ‘‘geography, 

23 physical education, and health education’’. 


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1 SEC. 352. ALLOWING FUNDS UNDER THE CAROL M. WHITE 

2 PHYSICAL EDUCATION PROGRAM TO BE 

3 USED FOR ADDITIONAL HEALTHY EATING AC4 TIVITIES. 

5 Section 5503(b)(5) of the Elementary and Secondary 

6 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7261b(b)(5)) is amend7 ed by inserting ‘‘, including through training healthy food 

8 chefs who serve as innovative cooks, chef trainers, and as 

9 a nutrition resource for public elementary schools and sec10 ondary schools and the communities surrounding such 

11 schools’’ before the period at the end. 

12 SEC. 353. ENHANCING SCHOOL NUTRITION. 

13 (a) NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—Section 9(f)(1) 

14 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 

15 U.S.C. 1758(f)(1)) is amended in the matter preceding 

16 subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘and breakfasts’’ and in17 serting ‘‘breakfasts, and dinners’’. 

18 (b) FAMILY MEALS PROGRAM.—The Richard B. 

19 Russell National School Lunch Act is amended by insert20 ing after section 26 (42 U.S.C. 1769g) the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 27. FAMILY MEALS PROGRAM. 

22 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

23 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en24 tity’ means— 

25 ‘‘(A) a school food authority; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) an institution (as that term is defined 

2 in section 17(a)(2)), acting through the child 

3 and adult care food program. 

4 ‘‘(2) FAMILY MEAL.—The term ‘family meal’ 

5 means a meal provided to a household at least 1 

6 member of which is a child who is— 

7 ‘‘(A) eligible to receive free or reduced 

8 price meals under this Act or the Child Nutri9 tion Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.); and 

10 ‘‘(B) enrolled in the appropriate eligible 

11 entity. 

12 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab13 lish a program under which the Secretary shall make 

14 grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities to provide 

15 family meals in accordance with this section. 

16 ‘‘(c) USES OF FUNDS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that re18 ceives a grant under this section shall use the grant 

19 funds to provide low-cost family meals during— 

20 ‘‘(A) after-school hours, weekends, and 

21 holidays during the regular school year; and 

22 ‘‘(B) summer or school vacation. 

23 ‘‘(2) FREE MEALS.—An eligible entity may use 

24 grant funds provided under this section to provide 

25 free family meals to the families of children who 


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1 meet requirements established by the Secretary re2 lating to school attendance and physical activity par3 ticipation. 

4 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro5 priated such sums as are necessary to carry out this sec6 tion.’’. 

7 SEC. 354. ALLOWING TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL TRAINING 

8 AND RECRUITMENT FUNDS TO BE USED FOR 

9 INSTRUCTION IN NUTRITION, FITNESS, AND 

10 WELLNESS. 

11 Section 2123(a) of the Elementary and Secondary 

12 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6623(a)) is amended 

13 by inserting after paragraph (8) the following: 

14 ‘‘(9) Carrying out programs that train teachers 

15 in the topics of nutrition, fitness, and wellness, in 

16 order to enable the teachers to provide and incor17 porate instruction in such topics to other teachers 

18 and to students.’’. 

19 PART IV—EDUCATION AND ACADEMIC SUPPORT 

20 SEC. 356. EVALUATION AND IDENTIFICATION OF BEST 

21 PRACTICES REGARDING EDUCATION AND 

22 ACADEMIC SUPPORT. 

23 (a) IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUATION OF SERV24 ICES.—The Secretary shall— 


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1 (1) identify and evaluate the services available 

2 for elementary school and secondary school students 

3 to meet academic expectations for grade-level work, 

4 timely graduate secondary school, and obtain em5 ployment, as appropriate; and 

6 (2) publish and disseminate best practices re7 garding the services described in paragraph (1). 

8 (b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall 

9 provide technical assistance to local educational agencies 

10 in order to increase capacity of administrative leaders to 

11 replicate the best practices described in subsection (a)(2). 

12 SEC. 357. BEST PRACTICE REPLICATION GRANTS. 

13 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From amounts made 

14 available to carry out this section, the Secretary shall 

15 award grants, on a competitive basis, to local educational 

16 agencies to enable the local educational agencies to in17 crease the academic support provided to students in the 

18 schools served by the local educational agencies by car19 rying out the activities described in subsection (c). 

20 (b) APPLICATION.—A local educational agency that 

21 desires a grant under this section shall submit an applica22 tion at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

23 information as the Secretary may require. 


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1 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—A local educational agency re2 ceiving a grant under this section shall use grant funds 

3 to— 

4 (1) increase the capacity of the public elemen5 tary schools and secondary schools served by the 

6 local educational agency to provide support for stu7 dents that enables more students to meet the aca8 demic standards for the students’ grade level and to 

9 graduate from secondary school on time and pre10 pared for employment; and 

11 (2) to implement the best practices identified by 

12 the Secretary under section 356(a)(2) in public ele13 mentary schools and secondary schools served by the 

14 local educational agency. 

15 (d) REPORTS.— 

16 (1) REPORTS BY LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN17 CIES.—Not later than 60 days after the end of the 

18 grant period for a grant under this section, a local 

19 educational agency receiving a grant under this sec20 tion shall prepare and submit a report to the Sec21 retary regarding the progress made under the grant. 

22 (2) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

23 60 days after the receipt of the report described in 

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1 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro2 gram under this section. 

3 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

5 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

6 each of the 5 succeeding fiscal years. 

7 SEC. 358. STUDY ON EXTENDED LEARNING TIME MODELS. 

8 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary shall conduct a study— 

9 (1) to evaluate extended learning time models, 

10 such as extended school week and longer school 

11 days, for elementary schools and secondary schools; 

12 and 

13 (2) to determine how extended learning time 

14 models could be used, or are being used, by local 

15 educational agencies to provide additional edu16 cational opportunities to students, such as— 

17 (A) providing bilingual education to all 

18 students in kindergarten through grade 8; 

19 (B) offering career and technical education 

20 classes to all secondary school students served 

21 by a local educational agency; and 

22 (C) providing opportunities for non-aca23 demic skill development for students. 

24 (b) REPORT.—By not later than 30 days after the 

25 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall prepare 


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1 and submit to Congress, and make available through elec2 tronic means to the public, a report regarding the findings 

3 of the study conducted under subsection (a). 

4 Subtitle D—Business Engagement 

5 in Schools 

6 SEC. 361. REAUTHORIZING THE CARL D. PERKINS CAREER 

7 AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION ACT OF 2006. 

8 (a) SCHOOL ADOPTION AND MENTORING PRO9 GRAMS.—Section 135(b) of the Carl D. Perkins Career 

10 and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2355(b)) 

11 is amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘, school 

13 adoption programs where a business works closely 

14 with a school to provide students with additional in15 formation about an industry or profession, men16 toring programs in which representatives of local 

17 businesses provide mentoring to students, or entre18 preneurship education provided through academies 

19 or integration with other programs, including by col20 laboration and agreements with small business devel21 opment centers and incubation opportunities for sec22 ondary school programs’’ before the semicolon; and 

23 (2) in paragraph (5)(C), by inserting ‘‘or men24 toring programs that connect school leaders with 

25 mentors who are representatives of local businesses’’. 


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1 (b) REAUTHORIZATION.—The Carl D. Perkins Ca2 reer and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 

3 2301 et seq.) is amended— 

4 (1) in section 9 (20 U.S.C. 2307), by striking 

5 ‘‘fiscal years 2007 through 2012’’ and inserting ‘‘fis6 cal years 2016 through 2020’’; 

7 (2) in section 114(e) (20 U.S.C. 2324(e)), by 

8 striking ‘‘fiscal years 2007 through 2012’’ and in9 serting ‘‘fiscal years 2016 through 2020’’; 

10 (3) in section 117(i) (20 U.S.C. 2327(i)), by 

11 striking ‘‘fiscal years 2007 through 2012’’ and in12 serting ‘‘fiscal years 2016 through 2020’’; 

13 (4) in section 118(g) (20 U.S.C. 2328(g)), by 

14 striking ‘‘fiscal years 2007 through 2012’’ and in15 serting ‘‘fiscal years 2016 through 2020’’; and 

16 (5) in section 206 (20 U.S.C. 2376), by striking 

17 ‘‘fiscal year 2007 and each of the 5 succeeding fiscal 

18 years’’ and inserting ‘‘each of fiscal years 2016 

19 through 2020’’. 

20 SEC. 362. INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Labor and the 

22 Secretary of Education shall jointly establish an inter23 agency committee, in order to coordinate programs, activi24 ties, and services carried out under the Workforce Innova25 tion and Opportunity Act with programs, activities, and 


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1 services carried out under the Carl D. Perkins Career and 

2 Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et 

3 seq.). 

4 (b) COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE.—The interagency 

5 committee established under subsection (a) shall consist 

6 of 10 members, 5 of whom shall be employees or officers 

7 of the Department of Education and appointed by the Sec8 retary of Education, and 5 of whom shall be employees 

9 or officers of the Department of Labor and appointed by 

10 the Secretary of Labor. 

11 (c) REPORT.—The interagency committee shall pre12 pare and submit to the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary 

13 of Education, and Congress, an annual report regarding— 

14 (1) the actions taken and improvements made 

15 during the preceding year to better coordinate pro16 grams, activities, and services carried out under the 

17 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act with pro18 grams, activities, and services carried out under the 

19 Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education 

20 Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.); and 

21 (2) recommendations for further actions or im22 provements to better the coordination of programs, 

23 activities, and services carried out under the Work24 force Innovation and Opportunity Act with pro25 grams, activities, and services carried out under the 


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1 Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education 

2 Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.). 

3 Subtitle E—Support for Parents 

4 SEC. 371. STATE AND LOCAL PARENTING GRANT PRO5 GRAMS. 

6 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail8 able to carry out this section and not reserved under 

9 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall award grants, on 

10 a competitive basis, to eligible agencies to enable the 

11 eligible agencies to support parents of children in 

12 prekindergarten programs or elementary schools 

13 through the activities described in subsection (c). 

14 (2) RESERVATION.—For each fiscal year, the 

15 Secretary shall reserve not more than 1 percent of 

16 the amount made available to carry out this section 

17 for the Secretary of the Interior to carry out activi18 ties consistent with this section for Indian children. 

19 (b) APPLICATION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible agency that de21 sires a grant under this section shall submit an ap22 plication at such time, in such manner, and con23 taining such information as the Secretary may re24 quire. 


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1 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible agency receiving a 

2 grant under this section shall use grant funds to— 

3 (1) build the capacity of parents of to evaluate 

4 and select appropriate childcare; 

5 (2) build the capacity of parents to serve as 

6 partners with school teachers and administrators; 

7 and 

8 (3) provide parents with access to job skills and 

9 training needed for successful employment. 

10 (d) REPORTS.— 

11 (1) REPORTS BY GRANTEES.—Not later than 

12 60 days after the end of the grant period for a grant 

13 under this section, each eligible agency receiving 

14 such grant shall prepare and submit a report to the 

15 Secretary regarding the progress made under the 

16 grant. 

17 (2) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

18 60 days after the receipt of the report described in 

19 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prepare and sub20 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro21 gram under this section. 

22 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the term ‘‘eligible 

23 agency’’ means a State educational agency or a local edu24 cational agency. 


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1 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

3 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

4 each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years. 

5 Subtitle F—College Affordability 

6 SEC. 376. STUDENT LOAN REFINANCING. 

7 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORITY.—Section 451(a) of the 

8 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087a(a)) is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘and (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘(2)’’; 

11 and 

12 (2) by inserting ‘‘; and (3) to make loans under 

13 section 460A and section 460B’’ after ‘‘section 

14 459A’’. 

15 (b) REFINANCING PROGRAM.—Part D of title IV of 

16 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087a et 

17 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 460A. REFINANCING FFEL AND FEDERAL DIRECT 

19 LOANS. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 180 

21 days after the date of enactment of the Saving Our Next 

22 Generation Act, the Secretary shall establish a program 

23 under which the Secretary, upon the receipt of an applica24 tion from a qualified borrower, makes a loan under this 

25 part, in accordance with the provisions of this section, in 


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1 order to permit the borrower to obtain the interest rate 

2 provided under subsection (c). 

3 ‘‘(b) REFINANCING DIRECT LOANS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL DIRECT LOANS.—Upon applica5 tion of a qualified borrower, the Secretary shall 

6 repay a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, a Federal Di7 rect Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, a Federal Direct 

8 PLUS Loan, or a Federal Direct Consolidation 

9 Loan of the qualified borrower, for which the first 

10 disbursement was made, or the application for the 

11 consolidation loan was received, before July 1, 2013, 

12 with the proceeds of a refinanced Federal Direct 

13 Stafford Loan, a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Staf14 ford Loan, a Federal Direct PLUS Loan, or a Fed15 eral Direct Consolidation Loan, respectively, issued 

16 to the borrower in an amount equal to the sum of 

17 the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and 

18 late charges of the original loan. 

19 ‘‘(2) REFINANCING FFEL PROGRAM LOANS AS

20 REFINANCED FEDERAL DIRECT LOANS.—Upon ap21 plication of a qualified borrower for any loan that 

22 was made, insured, or guaranteed under part B and 

23 for which the first disbursement was made, or the 

24 application for the consolidation loan was received, 

25 before July 1, 2010, the Secretary shall make a loan 


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1 under this part, in an amount equal to the sum of 

2 the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and 

3 late charges of the original loan to the borrower in 

4 accordance with the following: 

5 ‘‘(A) The Secretary shall pay the proceeds 

6 of such loan to the eligible lender of the loan 

7 made, insured, or guaranteed under part B, in 

8 order to discharge the borrower from any re9 maining obligation to the lender with respect to 

10 the original loan. 

11 ‘‘(B) A loan made under this section that 

12 was originally— 

13 ‘‘(i) a loan originally made, insured, 

14 or guaranteed under section 428 shall be a 

15 Federal Direct Stafford Loan; 

16 ‘‘(ii) a loan originally made, insured, 

17 or guaranteed under section 428B shall be 

18 a Federal Direct PLUS Loan; 

19 ‘‘(iii) a loan originally made, insured, 

20 or guaranteed under section 428H shall be 

21 a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford 

22 Loan; and 

23 ‘‘(iv) a loan originally made, insured, 

24 or guaranteed under section 428C shall be 

25 a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan. 


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1 ‘‘(C) The interest rate for each loan made 

2 by the Secretary under this paragraph shall be 

3 the rate provided under subsection (c). 

4 ‘‘(c) INTEREST RATES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The interest rate for the 

6 refinanced Federal Direct Stafford Loans, Federal 

7 Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans, Federal Direct 

8 PLUS Loans, and Federal Direct Consolidation 

9 Loans, shall be a rate equal to— 

10 ‘‘(A) in any case where the original loan 

11 was a loan under section 428 or 428H, a Fed12 eral Direct Stafford loan, or a Federal Direct 

13 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, that was issued to 

14 an undergraduate student, a rate equal to the 

15 rate for Federal Direct Stafford Loans and 

16 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans 

17 issued to undergraduate students for the 12- 

18 month period beginning on July 1, 2013, and 

19 ending on June 30, 2014; 

20 ‘‘(B) in any case where the original loan 

21 was a loan under section 428 or 428H, a Fed22 eral Direct Stafford Loan, or a Federal Direct 

23 Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, that was issued to 

24 a graduate or professional student, a rate equal 

25 to the rate for Federal Direct Unsubsidized 


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1 Stafford Loans issued to graduate or profes2 sional students for the 12-month period begin3 ning on July 1, 2013, and ending on June 30, 

4 2014; 

5 ‘‘(C) in any case where the original loan 

6 was a loan under section 428B or a Federal Di7 rect PLUS Loan, a rate equal to the rate for 

8 Federal Direct PLUS Loans for the 12-month 

9 period beginning on July 1, 2013, and ending 

10 on June 30, 2014; and 

11 ‘‘(D) in any case where the original loan 

12 was a loan under section 428C or a Federal Di13 rect Consolidation Loan, a rate calculated in ac14 cordance with paragraph (2). 

15 ‘‘(2) INTEREST RATES FOR CONSOLIDATION

16 LOANS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) METHOD OF CALCULATION.—In 

18 order to determine the interest rate for any re19 financed Federal Direct Consolidation Loan 

20 under paragraph (1)(D), the Secretary shall— 

21 ‘‘(i) determine each of the component 

22 loans that were originally consolidated in 

23 the loan under section 428C or the Federal 

24 Direct Consolidation Loan, and calculate 

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1 ance of the loan under section 428C or the 

2 Federal Direct Consolidation Loan that 

3 each component loan represents; 

4 ‘‘(ii) use the proportions determined 

5 in accordance with clause (i) and the inter6 est rate applicable for each component 

7 loan, as determined under subparagraph 

8 (B), to calculate the weighted average of 

9 the interest rates on the loans consolidated 

10 into the loan under section 428C or the 

11 Federal Direct Consolidation Loan; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) apply the weighted average cal13 culated under clause (ii) as the interest 

14 rate for the refinanced Federal Direct Con15 solidation Loan. 

16 ‘‘(B) INTEREST RATES FOR COMPONENT

17 LOANS.—The interest rates for the component 

18 loans of a loan made under section 428C or a 

19 Federal Direct Consolidation Loan shall be the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(i) The interest rate for any loan 

22 under section 428 or 428H, Federal Direct 

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1 graduate student shall be a rate equal to 

2 the lesser of— 

3 ‘‘(I) the rate for Federal Direct 

4 Stafford Loans and Federal Direct 

5 Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued 

6 to undergraduate students for the 12- 

7 month period beginning on July 1, 

8 2013, and ending on June 30, 2014; 

9 or 

10 ‘‘(II) the original interest rate of 

11 the component loan. 

12 ‘‘(ii) The interest rate for any loan 

13 under section 428 or 428H, Federal Direct 

14 Stafford Loan, or Federal Direct Unsub15 sidized Stafford Loan issued to a graduate 

16 or professional student shall be a rate 

17 equal to the lesser of— 

18 ‘‘(I) the rate for Federal Direct 

19 Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued 

20 to graduate or professional students 

21 for the 12-month period beginning on 

22 July 1, 2013, and ending on June 30, 

23 2014; or 

24 ‘‘(II) the original interest rate of 

25 the component loan. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) The interest rate for any loan 

2 under section 428B or Federal Direct 

3 PLUS Loan shall be a rate equal to the 

4 lesser of— 

5 ‘‘(I) the rate for Federal Direct 

6 PLUS Loans for the 12-month period 

7 beginning on July 1, 2013, and end8 ing on June 30, 2014; or 

9 ‘‘(II) the original interest rate of 

10 the component loan. 

11 ‘‘(iv) The interest rate for any compo12 nent loan that is a loan under section 

13 428C or a Federal Direct Consolidation 

14 Loan shall be the weighted average of the 

15 interest rates that would apply under this 

16 subparagraph for each loan comprising the 

17 component consolidation loan. 

18 ‘‘(v) The interest rate for any eligible 

19 loan that is a component of a loan made 

20 under section 428C or a Federal Direct 

21 Consolidation Loan and is not described in 

22 clauses (i) through (iv) shall be the inter23 est rate on the original component loan. 

24 ‘‘(3) FIXED RATE.—The applicable rate of in25 terest determined under paragraph (1) for a refiVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00210 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 nanced loan under this section shall be fixed for the 

2 period of the loan. 

3 ‘‘(d) TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF LOANS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A loan that is refinanced 

5 under this section shall have the same terms and 

6 conditions as the original loan, except as otherwise 

7 provided in this section. 

8 ‘‘(2) NO AUTOMATIC EXTENSION OF REPAY9 MENT PERIOD.—Refinancing a loan under this sec10 tion shall not result in the extension of the duration 

11 of the repayment period of the loan, and the bor12 rower shall retain the same repayment term that 

13 was in effect on the original loan. Nothing in this 

14 paragraph shall be construed to prevent a borrower 

15 from electing a different repayment plan at any time 

16 in accordance with section 455(d)(3). 

17 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION OF QUALIFIED BORROWER.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec19 tion, the term ‘qualified borrower’ means a bor20 rower— 

21 ‘‘(A) of a loan under this part or part B 

22 for which the first disbursement was made, or 

23 the application for a consolidation loan was re24 ceived, before July 1, 2013; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) who meets the eligibility requirements 

2 based on income or debt-to-income ratio estab3 lished by the Secretary. 

4 ‘‘(2) INCOME REQUIREMENTS.—Not later than 

5 180 days after the date of enactment of the Saving 

6 Our Next Generation Act, the Secretary shall estab7 lish eligibility requirements based on income or debt8 to-income ratio that take into consideration pro9 viding access to refinancing under this section for 

10 borrowers with the greatest financial need. 

11 ‘‘(f) NOTIFICATION TO BORROWERS.—The Secretary, 

12 in coordination with the Director of the Bureau of Con13 sumer Financial Protection, shall undertake a campaign 

14 to alert borrowers of loans that are eligible for refinancing 

15 under this section that the borrowers are eligible to apply 

16 for such refinancing. The campaign shall include the fol17 lowing activities: 

18 ‘‘(1) Developing consumer information mate19 rials about the availability of Federal student loan 

20 refinancing. 

21 ‘‘(2) Requiring servicers of loans under this 

22 part or part B to provide such consumer information 

23 to borrowers in a manner determined appropriate by 

24 the Secretary, in consultation with the Director of 

25 the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 460B. FEDERAL DIRECT REFINANCED PRIVATE LOAN 

2 PROGRAM. 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE PRIVATE EDUCATION LOAN.— 

5 The term ‘eligible private education loan’ means a 

6 private education loan, as defined in section 140(a) 

7 of the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)), 

8 that— 

9 ‘‘(A) was disbursed to the borrower before 

10 July 1, 2013; and 

11 ‘‘(B) was for the borrower’s own postsec12 ondary educational expenses for an eligible pro13 gram at an institution of higher education par14 ticipating in the loan program under this part, 

15 as of the date that the loan was disbursed. 

16 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL DIRECT REFINANCED PRIVATE

17 LOAN.—The term ‘Federal Direct Refinanced Pri18 vate Loan’ means a loan issued under subsection 

19 (b)(1). 

20 ‘‘(3) PRIVATE EDUCATIONAL LENDER.—The 

21 term ‘private educational lender’ has the meaning 

22 given the term in section 140(a) of the Truth in 

23 Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)). 

24 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED BORROWER.—The term ‘quali25 fied borrower’ means an individual who— 

26 ‘‘(A) has an eligible private education loan; 


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1 ‘‘(B) has been current on payments on the 

2 eligible private education loan for the 6 months 

3 prior to the date of the qualified borrower’s ap4 plication for refinancing under this section, and 

5 is in good standing on the loan at the time of 

6 such application; 

7 ‘‘(C) is not in default on the eligible pri8 vate education loan or on any loan made, in9 sured, or guaranteed under this part or part B 

10 or E; and 

11 ‘‘(D) meets the eligibility requirements de12 scribed in subsection (b)(2). 

13 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta15 tion with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall carry 

16 out a program under which the Secretary, upon ap17 plication by a qualified borrower who has an eligible 

18 private education loan, shall issue such borrower a 

19 loan under this part in accordance with the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(A) The loan issued under this program 

22 shall be in an amount equal to the sum of the 

23 unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and 

24 late charges of the private education loan. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall pay the proceeds 

2 of the loan issued under this program to the 

3 private educational lender of the private edu4 cation loan, in order to discharge the qualified 

5 borrower from any remaining obligation to the 

6 lender with respect to the original loan. 

7 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall require that the 

8 qualified borrower undergo loan counseling that 

9 provides all of the information and counseling 

10 required under clauses (i) through (viii) of sec11 tion 485(b)(1)(A) before the loan is refinanced 

12 in accordance with this section, and before the 

13 proceeds of such loan are paid to the private 

14 educational lender. 

15 ‘‘(D) The Secretary shall issue the loan as 

16 a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan, 

17 which shall have the same terms, conditions, 

18 and benefits as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized 

19 Stafford Loan, except as otherwise provided in 

20 this section. 

21 ‘‘(2) BORROWER ELIGIBILITY.—Not later than 

22 180 days after the date of enactment of the Saving 

23 Our Next Generation Act, the Secretary, in con24 sultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the 


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1 Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Pro2 tection, shall establish eligibility requirements— 

3 ‘‘(A) based on income or debt-to-income 

4 ratio that take into consideration providing ac5 cess to refinancing under this section for bor6 rowers with the greatest financial need; 

7 ‘‘(B) to ensure eligibility only for bor8 rowers in good standing; 

9 ‘‘(C) to minimize inequities between Fed10 eral Direct Refinanced Private Loans and other 

11 Federal student loans; 

12 ‘‘(D) to preclude windfall profits for pri13 vate educational lenders; and 

14 ‘‘(E) to ensure full access to the program 

15 authorized in this subsection for borrowers with 

16 private loans who otherwise meet the criteria 

17 established in accordance with subparagraphs 

18 (A) and (B). 

19 ‘‘(c) INTEREST RATE.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The interest rate for a 

21 Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan is— 

22 ‘‘(A) in the case of a Federal Direct Refi23 nanced Private Loan for a private education 

24 loan originally issued for undergraduate post25 secondary educational expenses, a rate equal to 


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1 the rate for Federal Direct Stafford Loans and 

2 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans 

3 issued to undergraduate students for the 12- 

4 month period beginning on July 1, 2013, and 

5 ending on June 30, 2014; and 

6 ‘‘(B) in the case of a Federal Direct Refi7 nanced Private Loan for a private education 

8 loan originally issued for graduate or profes9 sional degree postsecondary educational ex10 penses, a rate equal to the rate for Federal Di11 rect Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to 

12 graduate or professional students for the 12- 

13 month period beginning on July 1, 2013, and 

14 ending on June 30, 2014. 

15 ‘‘(2) COMBINED UNDERGRADUATE AND GRAD16 UATE STUDY LOANS.—If a Federal Direct Refi17 nanced Private Loan is for a private education loan 

18 originally issued for both undergraduate and grad19 uate or professional postsecondary educational ex20 penses, the interest rate shall be a rate equal to the 

21 rate for Federal Direct PLUS Loans for the 12- 

22 month period beginning on July 1, 2013, and ending 

23 on June 30, 2014. 

24 ‘‘(3) FIXED RATE.—The applicable rate of in25 terest determined under this subsection for a FedVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00217 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 eral Direct Refinanced Private Loan shall be fixed 

2 for the period of the loan. 

3 ‘‘(d) NO INCLUSION IN AGGREGATE LIMITS.—The 

4 amount of a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan, or 

5 a Federal Direct Consolidated Loan to the extent such 

6 loan was used to repay a Federal Direct Refinanced Pri7 vate Loan, shall not be included in calculating a bor8 rower’s annual or aggregate loan limits under section 428 

9 or 428H. 

10 ‘‘(e) NO ELIGIBILITY FOR SERVICE-RELATED RE11 PAYMENT.—Notwithstanding sections 428K(a)(2)(A), 

12 428L(b)(2), 455(m)(3)(A), and 460(b), a Federal Direct 

13 Refinanced Private Loan, or any Federal Direct Consoli14 dation Loan to the extent such loan was used to repay 

15 a Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loan, shall not be 

16 eligible for any loan repayment or loan forgiveness pro17 gram under section 428K, 428L, or 460 or for the repay18 ment plan for public service employees under section 

19 455(m). 

20 ‘‘(f) PRIVATE EDUCATIONAL LENDER REPORTING

21 REQUIREMENT.— 

22 ‘‘(1) REPORTING REQUIRED.—Not later than 

23 180 days after the date of enactment of the Saving 

24 Our Next Generation Act, the Secretary, in con25 sultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the 


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1 Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Pro2 tection, shall establish a requirement that private 

3 educational lenders report the data described in 

4 paragraph (2) to the Secretary, to Congress, to the 

5 Secretary of the Treasury, and to the Director of the 

6 Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, in order 

7 to allow for an assessment of the private education 

8 loan market. 

9 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF REPORTING.—The data 

10 that private educational lenders shall report in ac11 cordance with paragraph (1) shall include each of 

12 the following about private education loans (as de13 fined in section 140(a) of the Truth in Lending Act 

14 (15 U.S.C. 1650(a))): 

15 ‘‘(A) The total amount of private education 

16 loan debt the lender holds. 

17 ‘‘(B) The total number of private edu18 cation loan borrowers the lender serves. 

19 ‘‘(C) The average interest rate on the out20 standing private education loan debt held by the 

21 lender. 

22 ‘‘(D) The proportion of private education 

23 loan borrowers who are in default on a loan 

24 held by the lender. 


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1 ‘‘(E) The proportion of the outstanding 

2 private education loan volume held by the lend3 er that is in default. 

4 ‘‘(F) The proportions of outstanding pri5 vate education loan borrowers who are 30, 60, 

6 and 90 days delinquent. 

7 ‘‘(G) The proportions of outstanding pri8 vate education loan volume that is 30, 60, and 

9 90 days delinquent. 

10 ‘‘(g) NOTIFICATION TO BORROWERS.—The Sec11 retary, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury 

12 and the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial 

13 Protection, shall undertake a campaign to alert borrowers 

14 about the availability of private student loan refinancing 

15 under this section.’’. 

16 (c) AMENDMENTS TO PUBLIC SERVICE REPAYMENT

17 PLAN PROVISIONS.—Section 455(m) of the Higher Edu18 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)) is amended— 

19 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

20 paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; 

21 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULES FOR SECTION 460A

24 LOANS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) REFINANCED FEDERAL DIRECT

2 LOANS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), in de3 termining the number of monthly payments 

4 that meet the requirements of such paragraph 

5 for an eligible Federal Direct Loan refinanced 

6 under section 460A that was originally a loan 

7 under this part, the Secretary shall include all 

8 monthly payments made on the original loan 

9 that meet the requirements of such paragraph. 

10 ‘‘(B) REFINANCED FFEL LOANS.—In the 

11 case of an eligible Federal Direct Loan refi12 nanced under section 460A that was originally 

13 a loan under part B, only monthly payments 

14 made after the date on which the loan was refi15 nanced may be included for purposes of para16 graph (1).’’; and 

17 (3) in paragraph (4)(A) (as redesignated by 

18 paragraph (1)), by inserting ‘‘(including any Federal 

19 Direct Stafford Loan, Federal Direct PLUS Loan, 

20 Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, or Fed21 eral Direct Consolidation Loan refinanced under sec22 tion 460A)’’ before the period at the end. 

23 (d) INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT.—Section 493C of 

24 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1098e) is 

25 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULE FOR REFINANCED LOANS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) REFINANCED FEDERAL DIRECT AND FFEL

3 LOANS.—In calculating the period of time during 

4 which a borrower of a loan that is refinanced under 

5 section 460A has made monthly payments for pur6 poses of subsection (b)(7), the Secretary shall deem 

7 the period to include all monthly payments made for 

8 the original loan, and all monthly payments made 

9 for the refinanced loan, that otherwise meet the re10 quirements of this section. 

11 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL DIRECT REFINANCED PRIVATE

12 LOANS.—In calculating the period of time during 

13 which a borrower of a Federal Direct Refinanced 

14 Private Loan under section 460B has made monthly 

15 payments for purposes of subsection (b)(7), the Sec16 retary shall include only payments— 

17 ‘‘(A) that are made after the date of the 

18 issuance of the Federal Direct Refinanced Pri19 vate Loan; and 

20 ‘‘(B) that otherwise meet the requirements 

21 of this section.’’. 

22 SEC. 377. PUBLICITY OF THE PUBLIC LOAN REPAYMENT 

23 PLAN FOR PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYEES. 

24 The Secretary shall conduct a program to increase 

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1 ployees under section 455(m) of the Higher Education Act 

2 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(m)), including through guid3 ance counselors at secondary schools. 

4 SEC. 378. STUDENT LOANS ALLOWED TO BE DISCHARGED 

5 IN BANKRUPTCY. 

6 Section 523(a)(8) of title 11, United States Code, is 

7 amended by striking ‘‘dependents, for’’ and all that follows 

8 through the end of subparagraph (B) and inserting ‘‘de9 pendents, for a private education loan (as defined in sec10 tion 140 of the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650)) 

11 made by a private educational lender (as defined under 

12 such section 140) or an educational benefit overpayment 

13 or loan made, insured, or guaranteed by a governmental 

14 unit or made under any program funded in whole or in 

15 part by a governmental unit or an obligation to repay 

16 funds received from a governmental unit as an educational 

17 benefit, scholarship, or stipend;’’. 

18 SEC. 379. REQUIREMENTS FOR PRIVATE EDUCATIONAL 

19 LENDERS REGARDING DISCHARGE OF STU20 DENT LOANS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 140 of the Truth in Lend22 ing Act (15 U.S.C. 1650) is amended by adding at the 

23 end the following new subsection: 

24 ‘‘(g) REQUIREMENTS REGARDING DISCHARGE OF

25 PRIVATE EDUCATION LOANS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) COSIGNER REQUIREMENTS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) COSIGNER RELEASE REQUIRE3 MENTS.—If a private education loan has a co4 signer who is jointly liable for such loan, a pri5 vate educational lender shall include a process 

6 for releasing the cosigner from any obligations 

7 on the loan and in such process the lender— 

8 ‘‘(i) shall make the criteria for obtain9 ing the release clear, transparent, and eas10 ily accessible via the website of the private 

11 educational lender; 

12 ‘‘(ii) shall notify the borrower if the 

13 borrower is eligible to release a cosigner; 

14 ‘‘(iii) shall, if denying a request to re15 lease a cosigner, provide an explanation for 

16 the denial and offer the borrower an op17 portunity to correct the request; and 

18 ‘‘(iv) may not change the terms of the 

19 release to impose additional duties on the 

20 borrower or cosigner over the duration of 

21 the private education loan. 

22 ‘‘(B) COSIGNER REQUIREMENTS REGARD23 ING DEATH, DISABILITY, OR BANKRUPTCY OF

24 COSIGNER.—Notwithstanding any provision in a 

25 private education loan agreement that contains 


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1 a process for releasing a cosigner from obliga2 tions on the loan, a private educational lender 

3 shall, upon receiving notification of the death, 

4 disability, inability to engage in any substantial 

5 gainful activity, or bankruptcy of the cosigner— 

6 ‘‘(i) notify the borrower about the bor7 rower’s rights under the private education 

8 loan agreement regarding the release of 

9 the cosigner; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) if the borrower continues to 

11 make on-time payments (in the amount de12 termined prior to the death, disability, or 

13 bankruptcy of the cosigner) on the private 

14 education loan, provide a period of time of 

15 not less than 90 days for the borrower to 

16 follow the process for release of the co17 signer before deeming the borrower to be 

18 in default, changing the terms of the loan, 

19 accelerating the repayment terms of the 

20 loan, or notifying consumer reporting 

21 agencies (as defined in section 603(f)) of a 

22 change in the status of the loan. 

23 ‘‘(2) BORROWER REQUIREMENTS REGARDING

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1 ability to engage in any substantial gainful activity 

2 of a borrower of a private educational loan, neither 

3 the estate of the borrower nor any cosigner of such 

4 private educational loan shall be obligated to repay 

5 the outstanding principle and interest on the loan. 

6 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this 

7 subsection— 

8 ‘‘(A) the term ‘cosigner’— 

9 ‘‘(i) means any individual who is liable 

10 for the obligation of another without com11 pensation, regardless of how designated in 

12 the contract or instrument; 

13 ‘‘(ii) includes any person whose signa14 ture is requested as condition to grant 

15 credit or to forbear on collection; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) does not include a spouse of an 

17 individual referred to in clause (i) whose 

18 signature is needed to perfect the security 

19 interest in the loan; and 

20 ‘‘(B) with respect to a borrower or co21 signer, the term ‘death, disability, or inability to 

22 engage in any substantial gainful activity’— 

23 ‘‘(i) means any condition described in 

24 section 437(a) of the Higher Education 

25 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087(a)); and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) shall be interpreted by the Bu2 reau in such a manner as to conform with 

3 the regulations prescribed by the Secretary 

4 of Education under section 437(a) of such 

5 Act (20 U.S.C. 1087(a)) to the fullest ex6 tent practicable, including safeguards to 

7 prevent fraud and abuse.’’. 

8 (b) RULEMAKING.—Not later than the end of the 1- 

9 year period following the date of the enactment of this 

10 Act, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall 

11 issue regulations to carry out section 140(g) of the Truth 

12 in Lending Act. 

13 SEC. 380. PROHIBITIONS FOR CONSUMER REPORTING 

14 AGENCIES AND FURNISHERS OF INFORMA15 TION TO CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCIES 

16 RELATED TO PRIVATE EDUCATION LOANS. 

17 (a) PROHIBITION FOR CONSUMER REPORTING AGEN18 CIES.—Subsection (a) of section 605 of the Fair Credit 

19 Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681c(a)) is amended by adding 

20 at the end the following new paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(7) Default on a private education loan (as de22 fined in section 140(a)) resulting from accelerated 

23 repayment terms of the loan after the death, dis24 ability, inability to engage in any substantial gainful 


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1 activity, or bankruptcy of a cosigner who is jointly 

2 liable for the loan.’’. 

3 (b) PROHIBITION FOR FURNISHERS OF INFORMA4 TION TO CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCIES.—Paragraph 

5 (1) of section 623(a) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 

6 U.S.C. 1681s–2(a)(1)) is amended by adding the following 

7 new subparagraph: 

8 ‘‘(E) REPORTING INFORMATION ON PRI9 VATE EDUCATION LOANS.—A private edu10 cational lender (as defined in section 140(a)) or 

11 the servicer of a private education loan (as de12 fined in such section) shall not furnish any in13 formation relating to the loan to any consumer 

14 reporting agency if the consumer defaulted on 

15 the loan due to accelerated repayment terms of 

16 the loan after the death, disability, inability to 

17 engage in any substantial gainful activity, or 

18 bankruptcy of a cosigner who is jointly liable 

19 for the loan.’’. 

20 SEC. 381. ENTRANCE COUNSELING ASSESSMENT. 

21 Section 485(l) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

22 (20 U.S.C. 1092(l)) is amended by adding at the end the 

23 following: 

24 ‘‘(3) ASSESSMENT.—In addition to the other re25 quirements of this subsection, each eligible instituVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:34 Feb 20, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00228 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S473.IS S473

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1 tion shall, prior to certifying a Federal direct loan 

2 under part D for disbursement to a student (other 

3 than a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan or a Fed4 eral Direct PLUS loan made on behalf of a stu5 dent), ensure that the student complete an assess6 ment (which shall be completed online) dem7 onstrating the student’s understanding of the terms 

8 and conditions of the loan that the student will re9 ceive, including the terms and conditions of repay10 ment and the consequences of failing to repay the 

11 loan.’’. 

12 SEC. 382. NATIONAL GRANT TO DEVELOP AND PILOT MEAS13 URES OF ACCOUNTABILITY FOR VALUE AND 

14 COST-EFFECTIVENESS IN HIGHER EDU15 CATION. 

16 (a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From amounts made 

17 available to carry out this section, the Secretary shall 

18 award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible nonprofit 

19 or educational entities to enable the eligible nonprofit or 

20 educational entities to develop, and pilot, measures of ac21 countability for value and cost-effectiveness in higher edu22 cation. 

23 (b) APPLICATION.—An eligible nonprofit or edu24 cational entity that desires a grant under this section shall 


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1 submit an application at such time, in such manner, and 

2 containing such information as the Secretary may require. 

3 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible nonprofit or edu4 cational entity receiving a grant shall use grant funds to 

5 identify and evaluate metrics that capture the value of 

6 higher education, based on expert recommendations, and 

7 which may include— 

8 (1) graduation rates of the institution of higher 

9 education; 

10 (2) social purpose and service of the education 

11 provided by the institution of higher education; 

12 (3) affordability of the education provided by 

13 the institution of higher education; 

14 (4) student loan default rates for the institution 

15 of higher education; and 

16 (5) price of attendance at the institution of 

17 higher education. 

18 (d) REPORTS.— 

19 (1) REPORTS BY GRANTEES.—Not later than 

20 60 days after the end of the grant period for a grant 

21 under this section, the recipient of the grant shall 

22 prepare and submit a report to the Secretary re23 garding the progress made under the grant. 

24 (2) REPORTS BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

25 60 days after the receipt of the report described in 


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1 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prepare and sub2 mit to Congress a report regarding the grant pro3 gram under this section. 

4 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

6 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016 and 

7 each of the 3 succeeding fiscal years. 

Æ 


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