I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3705
To authorize Federal financial assistance for the urgent repair and renovation
of public elementary and secondary schools in high-need areas.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 29, 2000
Mr. CLAY (for himself, Mr. GEPHARDT, Mr. BONIOR, Mr. KILDEE, Mrs.
LOWEY, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. MARTINEZ, Mr. OWENS,
Mr. PAYNE, Mrs. MINK of Hawaii, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. SCOTT, Ms.
WOOLSEY, Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO´, Mr. FATTAH, Mr. HINOJOSA, Mr.
TIERNEY, Mr. KIND, Mr. FORD, Mr. KUCINICH, and Mr. WU) introduced
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
the Workforce
A BILL
To authorize Federal financial assistance for the urgent re-
pair and renovation of public elementary and secondary
schools in high-need areas.
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 ‘‘Public School Repair
and Renovation Act of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. PUBLIC SCHOOL REPAIR AND RENOVATION.
Title XII of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8501 et seq.) is amended
to read as follows:
‘‘TITLE XII—PUBLIC SCHOOL
REPAIR AND RENOVATION
‘‘SEC. 12001. FINDINGS.
‘‘The Congress finds as follows:
‘‘(1) The General Accounting Office estimated
in 1995 that it would cost $112,000,000,000 to
bring school facilities in the United States into good
overall condition.
‘‘(2) The General Accounting Office also found,
in that year, that 60 percent of the schools in the
United States, serving 28,000,000 students, re-
ported that one or more building features, such as
roofs or plumbing, needed to be extensively repaired,
overhauled, or replaced.
‘‘(3) The National Center for Education Statis-
tics reported that the average age for a school build-
ing in 1998 was 42 years and that local educational
agencies with relatively high rates of poverty tend to
have relatively old buildings.
‘‘(4) School condition is positively correlated
with student achievement, according to a number of
research studies.
‘‘(5) The results of a recent survey indicate
that the condition of schools with large proportions
of students living on Indian lands is particularly
poor.
‘‘(6) While school repair and renovation are pri-
marily a State and local concern, some States and
communities are not, on their own, able to meet the
burden of providing adequate school facilities for all
students, and the poorest communities have had the
greatest difficulty meeting this need. It is, therefore,
appropriate for the Federal Government to provide
assistance to high-need communities for school re-
pair and renovation.
‘‘SEC. 12002. PURPOSE.
‘‘The purpose of this title is to assist high-need local
educational agencies in making urgent repairs and renova-
tions to public school facilities in order—
‘‘(1) to reduce health and safety problems faced
by students; and
‘‘(2) to improve the ability of students to learn
in their school environment.
‘‘SEC. 12003. AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A recipient of a grant or loan
under this title shall use the grant or loan to carry out
the purpose of this title by—
‘‘(1) repairing or replacing roofs, electrical wir-
ing, or plumbing;
‘‘(2) repairing, replacing, or installing heating,
ventilation, or air conditioning systems;
‘‘(3) undertaking asbestos removal or abate-
ment;
‘‘(4) bringing schools into compliance with fire
safety codes;
‘‘(5) ensuring that repairs and renovations
under this title comply with the requirements of sec-
tion 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. 793) and the Americans with Disabilities Act
of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) relating to the
accessibility of public school programs to individuals
with disabilities; and
‘‘(6) making other types of school repairs and
renovations that the Secretary may reasonably deter-
mine are urgently needed, particularly projects to
correct facilities problems that endanger the health
and safety of students and staff.
‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall not approve
an application for a grant or loan under this title unless
the applicant demonstrates to the Secretary’s satisfaction
that it lacks sufficient funds, from other sources, to carry
out the repairs or renovations for which it is requesting
assistance.
‘‘SEC. 12004. GRANTS TO LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES
WITH HIGH CONCENTRATIONS OF STUDENTS
LIVING ON INDIAN LANDS.
‘‘(a) ELIGIBILITY.—A local educational agency is eli-
gible for a grant under this section for a fiscal year if
the number of children determined under section
8003(a)(1)(C) for such agency and year constituted at
least 50 percent of the number of children who were in
average daily attendance in the schools of such agency,
and for whom such agency provided free public education,
during the preceding school year.
‘‘(b) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall
allocate funds available to carry out this section for a fis-
cal year to eligible local educational agencies based on
their respective numbers of children who were determined
under section 8003(a)(1)(C) for purposes of the computa-
tion under section 8003(a) for such year.
‘‘(c) APPLICATIONS.—Each eligible local educational
agency that desires to receive a grant under this section
shall submit an application to the Secretary that
includes—
‘‘(1) a statement of how it would use the grant
funds;
‘‘(2) a description of the steps it will take to
adequately maintain the facilities that it repairs,
renovates, or constructs with those funds; and
‘‘(3) such other information and assurances as
the Secretary may reasonably require.
‘‘(d) CONSTRUCTION OF NEW SCHOOLS.—In addi-
tion to any other activity authorized under section 12003,
a grantee under this section may use grant funds to con-
struct a new school if it demonstrates to the Secretary’s
satisfaction that it would replace an existing school that
is in such poor condition that renovating it would not be
cost-effective.
‘‘SEC. 12005. GRANTS TO HIGH-POVERTY LOCAL EDU-
CATIONAL AGENCIES.
‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From funds available
under section 12008(c), the Secretary shall make grants,
on a competitive basis, to local educational agencies. A
local educational agency is eligible to receive a grant under
this section only if at least 25 percent of the children
under the jurisdiction of the agency are from families with
incomes below the poverty line (as defined by the Office
of Management and Budget and revised annually in ac-
cordance with section 673(2) of the Community Services
Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2))).
‘‘(b) CRITERIA FOR AWARDING GRANTS.—In making
grants under this section, the Secretary shall consider—
‘‘(1) the percentage of children from low-income
families under the jurisdiction of each applicant, the
need for school repairs and renovations, and the fis-
cal capacity of each applicant; and
‘‘(2) such other factors as the Secretary deter-
mines appropriate.
‘‘(c) APPLICATIONS.—Each eligible local educational
agency that desires to receive a grant under this section
shall submit an application to the Secretary that
includes—
‘‘(1) a description of its urgent need for school
repair and renovation and of how it would use funds
available under this title to meet those needs;
‘‘(2) information on the fiscal effort that it is
making in support of education and evidence dem-
onstrating that it lacks the capacity to meet its ur-
gent school repair and renovation needs without as-
sistance available under this title;
‘‘(3) a description of the steps it will take to
adequately maintain the facilities that it repairs or
renovates with that assistance; and
‘‘(4) such other information and assurances as
the Secretary may reasonably require.
‘‘SEC. 12006. SCHOOL RENOVATION LOANS AND GRANTS.
‘‘(a) LOANS
AND
GRANTS
AUTHORIZED.—From
funds available under section 12008(c)(2), the Secretary
shall pay the cost of loans and grants made, on a competi-
tive basis, to high-need local educational agencies that lack
the ability to fund urgent school repairs.
‘‘(b) LOAN PERIOD.—Each loan under this section
shall be for a period of seven years and shall carry an
interest rate of zero percent.
‘‘(c) CRITERIA FOR MAKING LOANS AND GRANTS.—
In making loans and grants under this section, the Sec-
retary shall consider—
‘‘(1) the percentage of children from low-income
families under the jurisdiction of each applicant, the
need for school repairs and renovations, and the fis-
cal capacity of each applicant; and
‘‘(2) such other factors as the Secretary deter-
mines appropriate.
‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.—Each eligible local educational
agency that desires to receive a loan or grant under this
section shall submit an application to the Secretary that
includes the information described in section 12005(c).
‘‘(e) CREDIT STANDARDS.—In making loans under
this section, the Secretary—
‘‘(1) shall not extend credit without finding that
there is reasonable assurance of repayment; and
‘‘(2) may use credit enhancement techniques, as
appropriate, to reduce the credit risk of loans.
‘‘(f) NUMBER OF LOANS AND GRANTS.—Subject to
section 12008(d), in carrying out this section, the Sec-
retary shall determine the number of loans and grants to
be made for a fiscal year and their relative proportions.
‘‘SEC. 12007. PROGRESS REPORTS.
‘‘The Secretary shall require recipients of grants and
loans under this title to submit progress reports and such
other information as the Secretary determines necessary
to ensure compliance with this title and to evaluate its im-
pact.
‘‘SEC. 12008. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; RES-
ERVATION OF FUNDS; LIMITATION ON LOAN
VOLUME.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—for the purpose of carrying out
this title, there are authorized to be appropriated
$1,300,000,000 for fiscal year 2001 and such sums as
may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.
‘‘(b) RESERVATION FOR GRANTS UNDER SECTION
12004.—Of the amount appropriated under subsection (a)
for any fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve
$50,000,000 for the purpose of making grants under sec-
tion 12004.
‘‘(c) GRANTS UNDER SECTION 12005 AND LOANS
AND GRANTS UNDER SECTION 12006.—Of the amount
appropriated under subsection (a) for any fiscal year and
remaining after the application of subsection (b)—
‘‘(1) 10 percent shall be available for making
grants under section 12005; and
‘‘(2) 90 percent shall be available for making
loans and grants under section 12006.
‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON LOAN VOLUME.—Within the
available resources and authority, gross obligations for the
principal amount of loans made by the Secretary under
section 12006 for fiscal year 2001 shall not exceed
$7,000,000,000, or the amount specified in an applicable
appropriations Act, whichever is greater.
‘‘SEC. 12009. DEFINITIONS; SPECIAL RULE.
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this title, the
following terms have the following meanings:
‘‘(1) INDIAN LANDS.—The term ‘Indian lands’
has the meaning given such term in section 8013.
‘‘(2) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term
‘local educational agency’ has the meaning given
such term in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section
14101(18).
‘‘(3) PUBLIC SCHOOL FACILITY.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.— The term ‘public
school facility’ means a public building whose
primary purpose is the instruction of public ele-
mentary or secondary students and minimal ini-
tial equipment, machinery, and utilities nec-
essary or appropriate for school purposes.
‘‘(B) EXCLUSION.—The term excludes ath-
letic stadiums or any other structure or facility
intended primarily for athletic exhibitions, con-
tests, games, or events for which admission is
charged to the general public.
‘‘(4) REPAIR AND RENOVATION.—The term ‘re-
pair and renovation’ means the repair or renovation
of an existing public school facility without increas-
ing its size.
‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULE.—In any of the 50 States of the
United States in which there is only one local educational
agency, the Secretary shall, for purposes of this title, con-
sider each administrative school district in the State to
be a separate local educational agency.’’.
Æ