I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3036 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 regarding 
environmental education, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 12, 2007 
Mr. SARBANES introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 regarding environmental education, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘No Child Left Inside Act of 2007’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings. 
Sec. 3. References. 
TITLE I—ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY PLANS 
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Sec. 101. State uses of funds. 
TITLE II—ESTABLISHMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION 
GRANT PROGRAMS 
Sec. 201. Environmental education grant program for teacher training. 
Sec. 202. Environmental education grant program to help build national capac-
ity. 
Sec. 203. Priority status for local educational agencies offering environmental 
magnet schools. 
TITLE III—ELIGIBILITY OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION 
ACTIVITIES UNDER EXISTING GRANT AND FUNDING PROGRAMS 
Sec. 301. Environmental education as an eligible activity for teacher training 
programs. 
Sec. 302. Environmental education as an authorized program in the fund for 
the improvement of education. 
TITLE IV—AMENDMENTS TO OTHER LAWS 
Sec. 401. Definitions. 
Sec. 402. Department of Education Organization Act. 
Sec. 403. National Assessment of Education Progress Act. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) Environmental education is essential for— 
(A) enhancing student learning and prob-
lem solving skills, especially in science; 
(B) creating responsible and engaged citi-
zens; and 
(C) producing graduates who are prepared 
to address the challenges, adjustments, and op-
portunities that will be present in the life and 
the workforce of the 21st century due to threats 
to human health, economical development, bio-
logical diversity, and national security arising 
from environmental stresses. 
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(2) Studies documenting the increasing indica-
tors of nature-deficit disorder show that time spent 
out of the classroom for learning during the school 
day is critical to the intellectual, emotional, and 
physical health of children and that providing stu-
dents with quality opportunities to directly experi-
ence the natural world can improve students’ overall 
academic performance, self-esteem, personal respon-
sibility, community involvement, personal health (in-
cluding child obesity issues), and understanding of 
nature. 
(3) Fewer and fewer students are becoming in-
volved 
in 
important 
environmental 
education 
courses, classwork, and field investigations as an un-
intended consequence of the No Child Left Behind 
Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.). 
SEC. 3. REFERENCES. 
Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in 
this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 
of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other 
provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to 
a section or other provision of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.). 
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TITLE I—ENVIRONMENTAL 
LITERACY PLANS 
SEC. 101. STATE USES OF FUNDS. 
Title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) is amended by add-
ing at the end the following: 
‘‘PART E—ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY PLANS 
‘‘SEC. 2501. STATE USES OF FUNDS. 
‘‘A State educational agency may use funds made 
available for State use for support for the development of 
the State Environmental Literacy Plan as described in 
section 2503. 
‘‘SEC. 2502. STATE APPLICATIONS. 
‘‘Any State that desires to receive assistance under 
sections 2601 through 2603, section 5411, or sections 
5621 through 5627, shall submit to the Secretary an ap-
plication that includes the submission, reporting and im-
plementation requirements relating to the State Environ-
mental Literacy Plan as set forth in section 2503. 
‘‘SEC. 2503. STATE PLANS TO ENSURE THAT STUDENTS ARE 
ENVIRONMENTALLY LITERATE. 
‘‘(a) SUBMISSION OF PLAN.—Not later than 1 year 
after the date of the enactment of this section, State edu-
cational agencies, in consultation with State natural re-
source agencies and with input from the public, shall sub-
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mit a K–12 plan to the United States Department of Edu-
cation for peer review and approval that will ensure that 
high school graduates are environmentally literate. States 
may satisfy this requirement by submitting for peer review 
existing State plans that have been developed by or in co-
operation with State environmental organizations provided 
they are in compliance with subsection (b) and (c). 
‘‘(b) PLAN OBJECTIVES.—The objectives of the State 
Environmental Literacy Plans are as follows: 
‘‘(1) Prepare children to understand and ad-
dress the major environmental challenges facing the 
United States, such as the relationship of the envi-
ronment to national security, clean energy, climate 
change, health risks, and natural disaster resilience. 
‘‘(2) Reduce the risk of nature-deficit disorder 
in students by restoring and increasing field experi-
ences as part of the regular school curriculum and 
create programs that contribute to healthy life styles 
through outdoor recreation and sound nutrition. 
‘‘(3) Create opportunities for enhanced and on-
going professional development of teachers that im-
proves the environmental content knowledge, skill in 
teaching about environmental issues, and field-based 
pedagogical skill base of teachers. 
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