I 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3781
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize 
local educational agencies in rural areas to obtain a limited waiver 
of certain requirements relating to the employment of highly qualified 
teachers. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 6, 2004
Mr. GIBBONS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 to authorize local educational agencies in rural 
areas to obtain a limited waiver of certain requirements 
relating to the employment of highly qualified teachers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Assisting America’s 
Rural Schools Act’’.
SEC. 2. RURAL WAIVER OF CERTAIN QUALIFICATIONS FOR 
TEACHERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1119(a) of the Elemen-
tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
6319(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(4) AVAILABILITY
OF
WAIVER
FOR
RURAL 
LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—
‘‘(A) NEW HIRES.—Upon application by a 
rural local educational agency, the Secretary 
may grant the agency the authority to defer, for 
a 1-year period beginning on the date any 
teacher who is new to the profession first begins 
employment with the agency as a middle or sec-
ondary school teacher, the application to such 
teacher 
of 
the 
requirement 
in 
section 
9101(23)(B)(ii) regarding demonstration of a 
high level of competency in each of the aca-
demic subjects in which the teacher teaches. 
During the deferral period, the teacher shall be 
considered to have satisfied such requirement if 
the teacher has demonstrated a high level of 
competency, in accordance with such section, in 
one of the academic subjects in which the 
teacher teaches. 
‘‘(B) EXISTING EMPLOYEES.—Upon appli-
cation by a rural local educational agency, the
Secretary may grant the agency the authority 
to defer, for a 1-year period beginning on the 
date any middle or secondary school teacher 
who is not new to the profession first begins 
teaching an academic subject that the teacher 
has not previously taught, the application to 
such teacher of the requirement in section 
9101(23)(C)(ii) regarding demonstration of 
competence in all of the academic subjects in 
which the teacher teaches. During the deferral 
period, the teacher shall be considered to have 
satisfied such requirement if the teacher has 
demonstrated competence, in accordance with 
such section, in one of the academic subjects in 
which the teacher teaches. 
‘‘(C) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—The Sec-
retary may, in the Secretary’s discretion, estab-
lish such terms and conditions on the authority 
granted to a rural local educational agency 
under this paragraph as the Secretary deter-
mines to be appropriate. 
‘‘(D) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this 
paragraph, the term ‘rural local educational 
agency’ means a local educational agency with 
respect to which—
‘‘(i) each county in which a school 
served by the agency is located has a total 
population density of fewer than 10 per-
sons per square mile; or 
‘‘(ii) all schools served by the agency 
are designated with a school locale code of 
7 or 8, as determined by the Secretary.’’. 
(b) REGULATIONS.—
(1) DEADLINE.—The Secretary of Education 
shall promulgate regulations to carry out the amend-
ment made by subsection (a) not later than 180 
days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(2) APPLICATION PROCEDURES.—Such regula-
tions shall specify procedures to be used by local 
educational agencies in submitting applications 
under section 1119(a)(4) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (as added by sub-
section (a)). 
(3) ELIGIBILITY.—Such regulations shall speci-
fy the criteria the Secretary will use in—
(A) determining whether to grant a waiver 
under subparagraph (A) or (B) of such section; 
and