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support resources and services in the edu-
cational marketplace;
‘‘(4) policies at the Federal, State, and local
levels concerning technology in education must ad-
dress disparities in the availability of technology to
different groups of students, give priority to serving
students in greatest need, and recognize that edu-
cational telecommunications and technology can ad-
dress educational equalization concerns and school
restructuring needs by providing universal access to
high-quality teaching and programs, particularly in
urban and rural areas;
‘‘(5) the increasing use of new technologies and
telecommunications systems in business has in-
creased the gap between schooling and work force
preparation, and underscores the need for tech-
nology policies at the Federal, State, tribal, and
local levels that address preparation for school-to-
work transitions;
‘‘(6) technology can enhance the ongoing pro-
fessional development of teachers and administrators
by providing constant access to updated research in
teaching and learning by means of telecommuni-
cations, and, through exposure to technology ad-
vancements, keep teachers and administrators ex-
305
cited and knowledgeable about unfolding opportuni-
ties for the classroom;
‘‘(7) planned and creative uses of technology,
combined with teachers adequately trained in the
use of technology, can reshape our Nation’s tradi-
tional method of providing education and empower
teachers to create an environment in which students
are challenged through rigorous, rich classroom in-
struction provided at a pace suited to each student’s
learning style, and in which students have increased
opportunities to develop higher order thinking and
technical skills;
‘‘(8) schools need new ways of financing the ac-
quisition and maintenance of educational technology;
‘‘(9) the needs for educational technology differ
from State to State;
‘‘(10) technology can provide students, parents,
teachers, other education professionals, communities,
and industry with increased opportunities for part-
nerships and with increased access to information,
instruction, and educational services in schools and
other settings, including homes, libraries, preschool
and child-care facilities, adult and family education
programs, and postsecondary institutions;
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‘‘(11) the Department, consistent with the over-
all national technology policy established by the
President, must assume a vital leadership and co-
ordinating role in developing the national vision and
strategy to infuse advanced technology throughout
all educational programs;
‘‘(12) Federal support can ease the burden at
the State and local levels by enabling the acquisition
of advanced technology and initiating the develop-
ment of teacher training and support as well as new
educational products;
‘‘(13) leadership at the Federal level should
consider guidelines to ensure that educational tech-
nology is accessible to all users with maximum inter-
operability nationwide;
‘‘(14) the rapidly changing nature of technology
requires coordination and flexibility in Federal
leadership; and
‘‘(15) technology has the potential to assist and
support the improvement of teaching and learning in
schools and other settings.
‘‘SEC. 10112. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.
‘‘The purpose of this part is to support a comprehen-
sive system for the acquisition and use by elementary and
secondary schools in the United States of technology and
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technology-enhanced curricula, instruction, and adminis-
trative support resources and services to improve the deliv-
ery of educational services. Such system shall include—
‘‘(1) national leadership with respect to the
need for, and the provision of, appropriate tech-
nology-enhanced curriculum, instruction, and admin-
istrative programs to improve learning in the United
States, and to promote equal access for all students
to educational opportunities in order to achieve the
National Education Goals by the year 2000;
‘‘(2) funding mechanisms which will support the
development, interconnection, implementation, im-
provement, and maintenance of an effective edu-
cational technology infrastructure, including activi-
ties undertaken by State and local educational agen-
cies to promote and provide equipment, training for
teachers and school library and media personnel,
and technical support;
‘‘(3) support for technical assistance, profes-
sional development, information and resource dis-
semination, in order to help States, local educational
agencies, teachers, school library and media per-
sonnel, and administrators successfully integrate
technology into kindergarten through 12th grade
classrooms and library media centers;
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‘‘(4) support for the development of educational
and instructional programming in core subject areas,
which shall address the National Education Goals;
‘‘(5) strengthening and building upon, but not
duplicating, existing telecommunications infrastruc-
tures dedicated to educational purposes;
‘‘(6) development and evaluation of new and
emerging educational technologies, telecommuni-
cations networks, and state-of-the-art educational
technology products that promote the use of ad-
vanced technologies in the classroom and school li-
brary media center;
‘‘(7) assessment data regarding state-of-the-art
uses of technologies in United States education upon
which commercial and noncommercial telecommuni-
cations entities, and governments can rely for deci-
sionmaking about the need for, and provision of, ap-
propriate technologies for education in the United
States;
‘‘(8) ensuring that uses of educational tech-
nology are consistent with the overall national tech-
nology policy established by the President, and en-
suring that Federal technology-related policies and
programs will facilitate the use of technology in edu-
cation;
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‘‘(9) ensuring that activities supported under
this part will form the basis for sound State and
local decisions about investing in, sustaining, and ex-
panding uses of technology in education;
‘‘(10) establishing working guidelines to ensure
maximum interoperability nationwide and ease of ac-
cess for the emerging technologies so that no school
system will be excluded from the technological revo-
lution;
‘‘(11) ensuring that, as technological advances
are made, the educational uses of these advances are
considered and their applications are developed; and
‘‘(12) encouragement of collaborative relation-
ships among the State agency for higher education,
the State library administrative agency, the State
telecommunications agency, and the State edu-
cational agency, in the area of technology support to
strengthen the system of education.
‘‘SEC. 10113. DEFINITIONS.
‘‘For purposes of this title—
‘‘(1) the term ‘adult education’ has the same
meaning given such term by section 203 of the
Adult Education and Family Literacy Act;
‘‘(2) the term ‘all students’ means students
from a broad range of backgrounds and cir-
310
cumstances, including disadvantaged students, stu-
dents with diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural back-
grounds, students with disabilities, students with
limited English proficiency, students who have
dropped out of school, and academically talented
students;
‘‘(3) the term ‘information infrastructure’
means a network of communication systems de-
signed to exchange information among all citizens
and residents of the United States;
‘‘(4) the term ‘instructional programming’
means the full range of audio and video data, text,
graphics, or additional state-of-the-art communica-
tions, including multimedia based resources distrib-
uted through interactive, command and control, or
passive methods for the purpose of education and
instruction;
‘‘(5) the terms ‘interoperable’ and ‘interoper-
ability’ mean the ability to exchange easily data
with, and connect to, other hardware and software
in order to provide the greatest accessibility for all
students and other users;
‘‘(6) the term ‘Office’ means the Office of Edu-
cational Technology;
311
‘‘(7) the term ‘public telecommunications entity’
has the same meaning given to such term by section
397(12) of the Communications Act of 1934;
‘‘(8) the term ‘regional educational laboratory’
means a regional educational laboratory supported
under section 941(h) of the Educational, Research,
Development, Dissemination, and Improvement Act
of 1994;
‘‘(9) the term ‘State educational agency’ in-
cludes the Bureau of Indian Affairs for purposes of
serving schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Af-
fairs in accordance with this part;
‘‘(10) the term ‘State library administrative
agency’ has the same meaning given to such term in
section 3 of the Library Services and Construction
Act; and
‘‘(11) the term ‘technology’ means state-of-the-
art technology products and services, such as closed
circuit television systems, educational television and
radio programs and services, cable television, sat-
ellite, copper and fiber optic transmission, computer
hardware and software, video and audio laser and
CD-ROM discs, and video and audio tapes.
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‘‘SEC. 10114. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; FUND-
ING RULE.
‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—
‘‘(1) SUBPARTS 1, 2, AND 3.—There are author-
ized to be appropriated $200,000,000 for fiscal year
2001 and such sums as may be necessary for each
of the four succeeding fiscal years to carry out sub-
parts 1, 2, and 3, of which—
‘‘(A)(i) $3,000,000 shall be available to
carry out subpart 1 (National Programs for
Technology in Education) for any such year for
which the amount appropriated under this sub-
section is less than $75,000,000; and
‘‘(ii) $5,000,000 shall be available to carry
out subpart 1 for any such year for which the
amount appropriated under this subsection is
equal to or greater than $75,000,000;
‘‘(B) $10,000,000 shall be available to
carry out subpart 3 (Regional Technical Sup-
port and Professional Development) for each
such year; and
‘‘(C) the remainder shall be available to
carry out subpart 2 (State and Local Programs
for School Technology Resources) for each such
year.
313
‘‘(2) SUBPART 4.—For the purpose of carrying
out subpart 4, there are authorized to be appro-
priated $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2001 and such
sums as may be necessary for each of the four suc-
ceeding fiscal years.
‘‘(b) FUNDING RULE.—
‘‘(1) 
APPROPRIATIONS
OF
LESS
THAN
$75,000,000.—For any fiscal year for which the
amount appropriated under subsection (a)(1) is less
than $75,000,000, from the remainder of funds
made available under subsection (a)(1)(C) the Sec-
retary shall award grants for the National Challenge
Grants in accordance with section 10136.
‘‘(2) APPROPRIATIONS EQUAL TO OR GREATER
THAN $75,000,000.—For any fiscal year for which the
amount appropriated under subsection (a)(1) is
equal to or greater than $75,000,000, from the re-
mainder of funds made available under subsection
(a)(1)(C) the Secretary shall award grants to State
educational agencies from allotments under section
10131, except that the Secretary may reserve, from
such remainder, such funds as the Secretary deter-
mines necessary to meet outstanding obligations for
such fiscal year to continue the National Challenge
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Grants for Technology awarded under section
10136.
‘‘SEC. 10115. LIMITATION ON COSTS.
‘‘Not more than 5 percent of the funds under this
part that are made available to a recipient of funds under
this part for any fiscal year may be used by such recipient
for administrative costs or technical assistance.
‘‘Subpart 1—National Programs for Technology in
Education
‘‘SEC. 10121. NATIONAL LONG-RANGE TECHNOLOGY PLAN.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop and
publish not later than 12 months after the date of the
enactment of the Education Reinvestment Act, and update
when the Secretary determines appropriate, a national
long-range plan that supports the overall national tech-
nology policy and carries out the purposes of this part.
‘‘(b) PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall—
‘‘(1) develop the national long-range plan in
consultation with other Federal departments or
agencies, State and local education practitioners and
policymakers, experts in technology and the applica-
tions of technology to education, representatives of
distance learning consortia, representatives of tele-
communications partnerships receiving assistance
315
under the Star Schools Act, and providers of tech-
nology services and products;
‘‘(2) transmit such plan to the President and to
the appropriate committees of the Congress; and
‘‘(3) publish such plan in a form that is readily
accessible to the public.
‘‘(c) CONTENTS OF THE PLAN.—The national long-
range plan shall describe the Secretary’s activities to pro-
mote the purposes of this title, including—
‘‘(1) how the Secretary will encourage the effec-
tive use of technology to provide all students the op-
portunity to achieve State content standards and
State student performance standards, especially
through programs administered by the Department;
‘‘(2) joint activities in support of the overall na-
tional technology policy with other Federal depart-
ments or agencies, such as the Office of Science and
Technology Policy, the National Endowment for the
Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts,
the National Institute for Literacy, the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National
Science Foundation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs,
and the Departments of Commerce, Energy, Health
and Human Services, and Labor—
316
‘‘(A) to promote the use of technology in
education, training, and lifelong learning, in-
cluding plans for the educational uses of a na-
tional information infrastructure; and
‘‘(B) to ensure that the policies and pro-
grams of such departments or agencies facili-
tate the use of technology for educational pur-
poses, to the extent feasible;
‘‘(3) how the Secretary will work with edu-
cators, State and local educational agencies, and ap-
propriate representatives of the private sector to fa-
cilitate the effective use of technology in education;
‘‘(4) how the Secretary will promote—
‘‘(A) higher achievement of all students
through the integration of technology into the
curriculum;
‘‘(B) increased access to the benefits of
technology for teaching and learning for schools
with a high number or percentage of children
from low-income families;
‘‘(C) the use of technology to assist in the
implementation of State systemic reform strate-
gies;
‘‘(D) the application of technological ad-
vances to use in education;
317
‘‘(E) increased access to high quality adult
and family education services through the use
of technology for instruction and professional
development; and
‘‘(F) increased opportunities for the pro-
fessional development of teachers in the use of
new technologies;
‘‘(5) how the Secretary will determine, in con-
sultation with appropriate individuals, organizations,
industries, and agencies, the feasibility and desir-
ability of establishing guidelines to facilitate an easy
exchange of data and effective use of technology in
education;
‘‘(6) how the Secretary will promote the ex-
change of information among States, local edu-
cational agencies, schools, consortia, and other enti-
ties concerning the effective use of technology in
education;
‘‘(7) how the Secretary will utilize the outcomes
of the evaluation undertaken pursuant to section
10123 to promote the purposes of this part; and
‘‘(8) the Secretary’s long-range measurable
goals and objectives relating to the purposes of this
part.
318
‘‘SEC. 10122. FEDERAL LEADERSHIP.
‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—In order to provide
Federal leadership in promoting the use of technology in
education, the Secretary, in consultation with the National
Science Foundation, the Department of Commerce, the
United States National Commission on Libraries and In-
formation Sciences, and other appropriate Federal agen-
cies, may carry out activities designed to achieve the pur-
poses of this part directly or by awarding grants or con-
tracts competitively and pursuant to a peer review process
to, or entering into contracts with, State educational agen-
cies, local educational agencies, institutions of higher edu-
cation, or other public and private nonprofit or for-profit
agencies and organizations.
‘‘(b) ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide
assistance to the States to enable such States to
plan effectively for the use of technology in all
schools throughout the State in accordance with the
purpose and requirements of section 317 of the
Goals 2000: Educate America Act.
‘‘(2) OTHER
FEDERAL
AGENCIES.—For the
purpose of carrying out coordinated or joint activi-
ties consistent with the purposes of this part, the
Secretary may accept funds from, and transfer
funds to, other Federal agencies.
320
newly emerging technologies which research shall be
coordinated, when appropriate, with the Office of
Educational Research and Improvement, and other
Federal agencies;
‘‘(6) the development, demonstration, and eval-
uation of the educational aspects of high perform-
ance computing and communications technologies
and of the national information infrastructure, in
providing professional development for teachers,
school librarians, and other educators; enriching aca-
demic curricula for elementary and secondary
schools; facilitating communications among schools,
local educational agencies, libraries, parents, and
local communities and in other such areas as the
Secretary deems appropriate;
‘‘(7) the development, demonstration, and eval-
uation of applications of existing technology in pre-
school education, elementary and secondary edu-
cation, training and lifelong learning, and profes-
sional development of educational personnel;
‘‘(8) the development and evaluation of software
and other products, including multimedia television
programming, that incorporate advances in tech-
nology and help achieve the National Education
321
Goals, State content standards and State student
performance standards;
‘‘(9) the development, demonstration, and eval-
uation of model strategies for preparing teachers
and other personnel to use technology effectively to
improve teaching and learning;
‘‘(10) the development of model programs that
demonstrate the educational effectiveness of tech-
nology in urban and rural areas and economically
distressed communities;
‘‘(11) research on, and the evaluation of, the ef-
fectiveness and benefits of technology in education;
‘‘(12) a biennial assessment of, and report to
the public regarding, the uses of technology in ele-
mentary and secondary education throughout the
United States upon which private businesses and
Federal, State, tribal, and local governments may
rely for decisionmaking about the need for, and pro-
vision of, appropriate technologies in schools, which
assessment and report shall use, to the extent pos-
sible, existing information and resources;
‘‘(13) conferences on, and dissemination of in-
formation regarding, the uses of technology in edu-
cation;
322
‘‘(14) the development of model strategies to
promote gender equity concerning access to, and the
use of, technology in the classroom;
‘‘(15) encouraging collaboration between the
Department and other Federal agencies in the devel-
opment, implementation, evaluation and funding of
applications of technology for education, as appro-
priate; and
‘‘(16) such other activities as the Secretary de-
termines will meet the purposes of this subpart.
‘‘(d) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2)
and (3), the Secretary may require any recipient of
a grant or contract under this section to share in the
cost of the activities assisted under such grant or
contract, which non-Federal share shall be an-
nounced through a notice in the Federal Register
and may be in the form of cash or in-kind contribu-
tions, fairly valued.
‘‘(2) INCREASE.—The Secretary may increase
the non-Federal share that is required of a recipient
of a grant or contract under this section after the
first year such recipient receives funds under such
grant or contract.
323
‘‘(3) MAXIMUM.—The non-Federal share re-
quired under this section shall not exceed 50 percent
of the cost of the activities assisted pursuant to a
grant or contract under this section.
‘‘SEC. 10123. STUDY, EVALUATION AND REPORT OF FUND-
ING ALTERNATIVES.
‘‘The Secretary, through the Office of Educational
Technology, shall conduct a study to evaluate, and report
to the Congress on, the feasibility of several alternative
models for providing sustained and adequate funding for
schools throughout the United States so that such schools
are able to acquire and maintain technology-enhanced cur-
riculum, instruction, and administrative support resources
and services. Such report shall be submitted to the Con-
gress not later than one year after the date of enactment
of the Education Reinvestment Act.
‘‘Subpart 2—State and Local Programs for School
Technology Resources
‘‘SEC. 10131. ALLOTMENT AND REALLOTMENT.
‘‘(a) ALLOTMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), each State educational agency shall be el-
igible to receive a grant under this subpart for a fis-
cal year in an amount which bears the same rela-
tionship to the amount made available under section
324
10114(a)(1)(C) for such year as the amount such
State received under part A of title I for such year
bears to the amount received for such year under
such part by all States.
‘‘(2) MINIMUM.—No State educational agency
shall be eligible to receive a grant under paragraph
(1) in any fiscal year in an amount which is less
than one-half of one percent of the amount made
available under section 10115(a)(1)(C) for such
year.
‘‘(b) REALLOTMENT OF UNUSED FUNDS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of any State
educational agency’s allotment under subsection (a)
for any fiscal year which the Secretary determines
will not be required for such fiscal year to carry out
this subpart shall be available for reallotment from
time to time, on such dates during such year as the
Secretary may determine, to other State educational
agencies in proportion to the original allotments to
such State educational agencies under subsection (a)
for such year, but with such proportionate amount
for any of such other State educational agencies
being reduced to the extent such amount exceeds the
sum the Secretary estimates such State needs and
will be able to use for such year.
325
‘‘(2) OTHER REALLOTMENTS.—The total of re-
ductions under paragraph (1) shall be similarly real-
lotted among the State educational agencies whose
proportionate amounts were not so reduced. Any
amounts reallotted to a State educational agency
under this subsection during a year shall be deemed
a subpart of such agencies allotment under sub-
section (a) for such year.
‘‘SEC. 10132. SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY RESOURCE GRANTS.
‘‘(a) GRANTS TO STATES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail-
able under section 10131, the Secretary, through the
Office of Educational Technology, shall award
grants to State educational agencies having applica-
tions approved under section 10133.
‘‘(2) USE OF GRANTS.—(A) Each State edu-
cational agency receiving a grant under paragraph
(1) shall use such grant funds to award grants, on
a competitive basis, to local educational agencies to
enable such local educational agencies to carry out
the activities described in section 10134.
‘‘(B) In awarding grants under subparagraph
(A), each State educational agency shall ensure that
each such grant is of sufficient duration, and of suf-
530
preventing individuals from dropping out of
school;
‘‘(F) programs to increase student attend-
ance; and
‘‘(G) alternative programs for students, es-
pecially bilingual and special education stu-
dents, who have dropped out of school or are at
risk of dropping out of school;
‘‘(4) prepare urban public school students to
enter higher education, pursue careers, and exercise
their responsibilities as citizens, such as—
‘‘(A) activities designed to increase the
number and percentages of students, particu-
larly minority students, enrolling in postsec-
ondary educational institutions after graduation
from public secondary schools;
‘‘(B) in-school youth employment, voca-
tional education, and career education programs
that improve the transition from school to work;
‘‘(C) activities designed in collaboration
with colleges and universities to assist urban
public school graduates in completing higher
education;
‘‘(D) efforts to increase voter registration
among eligible public secondary school students;