I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1153
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to enhance the incentive
for contributions of computer technology and equipment for elementary
or secondary school purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 20, 1997
Mr. CUNNINGHAM (for himself, Mr. LEWIS of California, Mr. HUNTER, Mr.
WELDON of Pennsylvania, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. GILLMOR, Mr. GREENWOOD,
Ms. PRYCE of Ohio, Mr. FILNER, Mr. BILBRAY, Mr. ENGLISH of Penn-
sylvania, Mr. FOLEY, Mr. FOX of Pennsylvania, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. NOR-
WOOD, Mr. WICKER, Mr. COOK, and Mr. GIBBONS) introduced the follow-
ing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to enhance
the incentive for contributions of computer technology
and equipment for elementary or secondary school pur-
poses.
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 ‘‘21st Century Class-
rooms Act for Private Technology Investment’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) The General Accounting Office reported in
1995 that ‘‘America’s schools are not designed or
equipped for the 21st Century’’;
(2) an excellent education that provides Amer-
ican children with a fighting chance at the American
Dream includes rigorous academic basic instruction,
plus technological literacy and proficiency in working
with computers;
(3) by the year 2000, 60 percent of American
jobs will require technology skills; thus, without
early training in technological literacy, many of our
future leaders will start their adult lives at a severe
economic disadvantage;
(4) while America’s classrooms are supported
by dedicated teachers, involved families, and bright
young children, many of our Nation’s classrooms
lack the important technological resources that they
need to prepare both teachers and students for a
technologically advanced present and future;
(5) advanced technology has improved Ameri-
ca’s economic competitiveness, transformed com-
merce and communications, and improved the qual-
ity of life of millions of Americans, but it has not
yet made as transforming an impact on the way
schools educate children;
(6) the Internet and the World Wide Web are
revolutionizing the way individuals and organizations
share and find information, yet only 14 percent of
our classrooms have a telephone jack, and about 1
in 50 are connected to the Internet; furthermore, the
most common computer in our Nation’s schools is
the Apple 2c, introduced over a decade ago and now
on display at the Smithsonian Institution; and while
50 percent of schools have local area computer net-
works (LANs), less than 10 percent of those net-
works connect with computers in classrooms;
(7) therefore, bringing America’s classrooms
into the 21st Century requires a major national in-
vestment in technology, including computers, soft-
ware, and interactive interconnectivity;
(8) the sums required to bring our classrooms
into the 21st Century extend into the tens of billions
of dollars;
(9) Congress has authorized and funded several
programs which invest in education technology; how-
ever, because of the immense scale of the need, and
because primary and secondary education are pri-
marily a local and State responsibility, bringing our
classrooms into the 21st Century is best done in a
manner that does not increase Federal Government
expenditures or bureaucracy and keeps control as
close as possible to the children and teachers who
will benefit; and
(10) many businesses invest their time and re-
sources into classrooms; but the tremendous need
for additional computer equipment and software in
our classrooms, plus the wave of computer upgrades
taking place among businesses in the United States,
argue persuasively for an additional financial incen-
tive to encourage businesses to invest their equip-
ment into 21st Century classrooms.
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to direct
the innovation and energy of private enterprise to the edu-
cation of our young people, expand technological literacy,
and bring the education of our young people into the 21st
Century.
SEC. 3. CONTRIBUTIONS FOR COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY
AND EQUIPMENT FOR ELEMENTARY OR SEC-
ONDARY SCHOOL PURPOSES.
(a) CONTRIBUTIONS
OF COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY
AND EQUIPMENT
FOR ELEMENTARY
OR SECONDARY
SCHOOL PURPOSES.—Subsection (e) of section 170 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at
the end the following new paragraph:
‘‘(6) SPECIAL RULE FOR CONTRIBUTIONS OF
COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT FOR ELE-
MENTARY OR SECONDARY SCHOOL PURPOSES.—
‘‘(A) LIMIT ON REDUCTION.—In the case
of a qualified elementary or secondary edu-
cational contribution, the reduction under para-
graph (1)(A) shall be no greater than the
amount determined under paragraph (3)(B).
‘‘(B) QUALIFIED
ELEMENTARY
OR
SEC-
ONDARY
EDUCATIONAL
CONTRIBUTION.—For
purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘qualified
elementary or secondary educational contribu-
tion’ means a charitable contribution by a cor-
poration of any computer technology or equip-
ment, but only if—
‘‘(i) the contribution is to—
‘‘(I) an educational organization
described in subsection (b)(1)(A)(ii),
or
‘‘(II) an entity described in sec-
tion 501(c)(3) and exempt from tax
under section 501(a) (other than an
entity described in subclause (I)) that
is organized primarily for purposes of
supporting elementary and secondary
education,
‘‘(ii) the contribution is made not
later than 2 years after the date the tax-
payer acquired the property (or in the case
of property constructed by the taxpayer,
the date the construction of the property is
substantially completed),
‘‘(iii) substantially all of the use of the
property by the donee is for use within the
United States for educational purposes in
any of the grades K–12 that are related to
the purpose or function of the organization
or entity,
‘‘(iv) the property is not transferred
by the donee in exchange for money, other
property, or services, except for shipping,
installation and transfer costs,
‘‘(v) the property will fit productively
into the entity’s education plan, and
‘‘(vi) the entity’s use and disposition
of the property will be in accordance with
the provisions of clauses (iii) and (iv).
‘‘(C) CONTRIBUTION TO PRIVATE FOUNDA-
TION.—A contribution by a corporation of any
computer technology or equipment to a private
foundation (as defined in section 509) shall be
treated as a qualified elementary or secondary
educational contribution for purposes of this
paragraph if—
‘‘(i) the contribution to the private
foundation satisfies the requirements of
clauses (ii) and (iv) of subparagraph (B),
and
‘‘(ii) within 30 days after such con-
tribution, the private foundation—
‘‘(I) contributes the property to
an entity described in clause (i) of
subparagraph (B) that satisfies the
requirements of clauses (iii) through
(vi) of subparagraph (B), and
‘‘(II) notifies the donor of such
contribution.
‘‘(D) SPECIAL RULE RELATING TO CON-
STRUCTION OF PROPERTY.—For the purposes
of this paragraph, paragraph (4)(C) shall apply.
‘‘(E) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of
this paragraph—
‘‘(i) 
COMPUTER
TECHNOLOGY
OR
EQUIPMENT.—The term ‘computer tech-
nology or equipment’ means computer soft-
ware (as defined by section 197(e)(3)(B)),
computer or peripheral equipment (as de-
fined by section 168(i)(2)(B)), and fiber
optic cable related to computer use.
‘‘(ii) CORPORATION.—The term ‘cor-
poration’ has the meaning given to such
term by paragraph (4)(D).’’
(b) CONTRIBUTIONS OF CASH FOR COMPUTER TECH-
NOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT FOR ELEMENTARY OR SECOND-
ARY SCHOOL PURPOSES.—Subsection (a) of section 170
of such Code is amended by adding at the end the follow-
ing new paragraph:
‘‘(4) In the case of a corporation, the amount
of each charitable contribution of cash to an organi-
zation or entity described in subsection (e)(6)(B)(i)
to be used by such organization or entity for the
purpose of acquiring computer technology or equip-
ment (as defined in subsection (e)(6)(E)(i)) shall be
treated for purposes of this section as being equal to
110 percent of the amount of such contribution
which (but for this sentence) would otherwise be
taken into account under this section.’’
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after
the calendar year in which this Act is enacted.
Æ