IB 
Union Calendar No. 117 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2218 
[Report No. 112–178] 
To amend the charter school program under the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 16, 2011 
Mr. HUNTER (for himself and Mr. KLINE) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 
JULY 22, 2011 
Additional sponsors: Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. PETRI, Mr. 
MCKEON, Mr. BUCSHON, Mr. ROE of Tennessee, Mr. KELLY, Mr. POLIS, 
Mr. DESJARLAIS, Mr. WALBERG, Mr. GOWDY, Mr. ROKITA, and Mr. 
CRENSHAW 
JULY 22, 2011 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on June 16, 2011] 
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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 ‘‘Empowering Parents 
through Quality Charter Schools Act’’. 
SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 
Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in 
this Act a section or other provision is amended or repealed, 
such amendment or repeal shall be considered to be made 
to that section or other provision of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.). 
SEC. 3. PURPOSE. 
Section 5201 (20 U.S.C. 7221) is amended to read as 
follows: 
‘‘SEC. 5201. PURPOSE. 
‘‘It is the purpose of this subpart to— 
‘‘(1) provide financial assistance for the plan-
ning, program design, and initial implementation of 
charter schools; 
‘‘(2) expand the number of high-quality charter 
schools available to students across the Nation; 
‘‘(3) evaluate the impact of such schools on stu-
dent achievement, families, and communities, and 
share best practices between charter schools and other 
public schools; 
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‘‘(4) encourage States to provide support to char-
ter schools for facilities financing in an amount more 
nearly commensurate to the amount the States have 
typically provided for traditional public schools; 
‘‘(5) improve student services to increase oppor-
tunities for students with disabilities, English lan-
guage learners, and other traditionally underserved 
students to attend charter schools and meet chal-
lenging State academic achievement standards; and 
‘‘(6) support efforts to strengthen the charter 
school authorizing process to improve performance 
management, including transparency, monitoring, 
and evaluation of such schools.’’. 
SEC. 4. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 
Section 5202 (20 U.S.C. 7221a) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 5202. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—This subpart authorizes the Sec-
retary to carry out a charter school program that supports 
charter schools that serve elementary school and secondary 
school students by— 
‘‘(1) supporting the startup, replication, and ex-
pansion of charter schools; 
‘‘(2) assisting charter schools in accessing credit 
to acquire and renovate facilities for school use; and 
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‘‘(3) carrying out national activities to sup-
port— 
‘‘(A) charter school development; 
‘‘(B) the dissemination of best practices of 
charter schools for all schools; and 
‘‘(C) the evaluation of the impact of the pro-
gram on schools participating in the program. 
‘‘(b) FUNDING ALLOTMENT.—From the amount made 
available under section 5211 for a fiscal year, the Secretary 
shall— 
‘‘(1) reserve 15 percent to support charter school 
facilities assistance under section 5204; 
‘‘(2) reserve not more than 5 percent to carry out 
national activities under section 5205; and 
‘‘(3) use the remaining amount after the Sec-
retary reserves funds under paragraphs (1) and (2) to 
carry out section 5203. 
‘‘(c) PRIOR GRANTS AND SUBGRANTS.—The recipient 
of a grant or subgrant under this subpart, as such subpart 
was in effect on the day before the date of enactment of 
the Empowering Parents through Quality Charter Schools 
Act, shall continue to receive funds in accordance with the 
terms and conditions of such grant or subgrant.’’. 
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SEC. 5. GRANTS TO SUPPORT HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER 
SCHOOLS. 
Section 5203 (20 U.S.C. 7221b) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 5203. GRANTS TO SUPPORT HIGH-QUALITY CHARTER 
SCHOOLS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—From the amount reserved under 
section 5202(b)(3), the Secretary shall award grants to 
State entities having applications approved pursuant to 
subsection (f) to enable such entities to— 
‘‘(1) award subgrants to eligible applicants for— 
‘‘(A) opening new charter schools; 
‘‘(B) opening replicable, high-quality char-
ter school models; or 
‘‘(C) expanding high-quality charter schools; 
and 
‘‘(2) provide technical assistance to eligible ap-
plicants and authorized public chartering agencies in 
carrying out the activities described in paragraph (1) 
and work with authorized public chartering agencies 
in the State to improve authorizing quality. 
‘‘(b) STATE USES OF FUNDS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State entity receiving a 
grant under this section shall— 
‘‘(A) use 90 percent of the grant funds to 
award subgrants to eligible applicants, in ac-
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cordance with the quality charter school program 
described in the entity’s application approved 
pursuant to subsection (f), for the purposes de-
scribed in subparagraphs (A) through (C) of sub-
section (a)(1); and 
‘‘(B) reserve 10 percent of such funds to 
carry out the activities described in subsection 
(a)(2), of which not more than 30 percent may 
be used for administrative costs which may in-
clude technical assistance. 
‘‘(2) CONTRACTS AND GRANTS.—A State entity 
may use a grant received under this section to carry 
out the activities described in subparagraphs (A) and 
(B) of paragraph (1) directly or through grants, con-
tracts, or cooperative agreements. 
‘‘(c) PROGRAM PERIODS; PEER REVIEW; DIVERSITY 
OF PROJECTS.— 
‘‘(1) PROGRAM PERIODS.— 
‘‘(A) GRANTS.—A grant awarded by the 
Secretary to a State entity under this section 
shall be for a period of not more than 5 years. 
‘‘(B) SUBGRANTS.—A subgrant awarded by 
a State entity under this section shall be for a 
period of not more than 5 years, of which an eli-
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gible applicant may use not more than 18 
months for planning and program design. 
‘‘(2) PEER REVIEW.—The Secretary, and each 
State entity receiving a grant under this section, shall 
use a peer review process to review applications for 
assistance under this section. 
‘‘(3) DIVERSITY OF PROJECTS.—Each State enti-
ty receiving a grant under this section shall award 
subgrants under this section in a manner that, to the 
extent possible, ensures that such subgrants— 
‘‘(A) are distributed throughout different 
areas, including urban, suburban, and rural 
areas; and 
‘‘(B) will assist charter schools representing 
a variety of educational approaches. 
‘‘(d) LIMITATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) GRANTS.—A State entity may not receive 
more than 1 grant under this section for a 5-year pe-
riod. 
‘‘(2) SUBGRANTS.—An eligible applicant may 
not receive more than 1 subgrant under this section 
per charter school for a 5-year period. 
‘‘(e) APPLICATIONS.—A State entity desiring to receive 
a grant under this section shall submit an application to 
the Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Sec-
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‘‘(vii) will work with charter schools to 
promote inclusion of all students and sup-
port all students once they are enrolled to 
promote retention; 
‘‘(viii) will work with charter schools 
on recruitment practices, including efforts 
to engage groups that may otherwise have 
limited opportunities to participate in 
charter schools; 
‘‘(ix) will share best and promising 
practices between charter schools and other 
public schools; 
‘‘(x) will ensure the charter schools 
they support can meet the educational needs 
of their students, including students with 
disabilities and English language learners; 
and 
‘‘(xi) will support efforts to increase 
quality initiatives, including meeting the 
quality authorizing elements described in 
paragraph (2)(E); 
‘‘(B) of the extent to which the entity— 
‘‘(i) is able to meet and carry out the 
priorities listed in subsection (f)(2); and 
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‘‘(ii) is working to develop or strength-
en a cohesive statewide system to support 
the opening of new charter schools and 
replicable, high-quality charter school mod-
els, and expanding high-quality charter 
schools; 
‘‘(C) how the entity will carry out the 
subgrant competition, including— 
‘‘(i) a description of the application 
each eligible applicant desiring to receive a 
subgrant will submit, including— 
‘‘(I) a description of the roles and 
responsibilities of eligible applicants, 
partner organizations, and manage-
ment organizations, including the ad-
ministrative and contractual roles and 
responsibilities; and 
‘‘(II) a description of the quality 
controls agreed to between the eligible 
applicant and the authorized public 
chartering agency involved, such as a 
contract or performance agreement, 
and how a school’s performance on the 
State’s academic accountability system 
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will be a primary factor for renewal; 
and 
‘‘(ii) a description of how the entity 
will review applications; and 
‘‘(D) in the case of an entity that partners 
with an outside organization to carry out the en-
tity’s quality charter school program, in whole or 
in part, of the roles and responsibilities of this 
partner. 
‘‘(2) ASSURANCES.—Assurances, including a de-
scription of how the assurances will be met, that— 
‘‘(A) each charter school receiving funds 
under the entity’s program will have a high de-
gree of autonomy over budget and operations; 
‘‘(B) the entity will support charter schools 
in meeting the educational needs of their stu-
dents as described in paragraph (1)(A)(x); 
‘‘(C) the entity will ensure that the author-
ized public chartering agency of any charter 
school that receives funds under the entity’s pro-
gram— 
‘‘(i) ensures that the charter school is 
meeting the obligations under this Act, part 
B of the Individuals with Disabilities Edu-
cation Act, title VI of the Civil Rights Act 
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of 1964, and section 504 of the Rehabilita-
tion Act of 1973; and 
‘‘(ii) adequately monitors and helps the 
schools in recruiting, enrolling, and meeting 
the needs of all students, including students 
with disabilities and English language 
learners; 
‘‘(D) the entity will provide adequate tech-
nical assistance to eligible applicants to— 
‘‘(i) meet the objectives described in 
clauses (vii) and (viii) of paragraph (1)(A) 
and paragraph (2)(B); and 
‘‘(ii) enroll traditionally underserved 
students, including students with disabil-
ities and English language learners, to pro-
mote an inclusive education environment; 
‘‘(E) the entity will promote quality author-
izing, such as through providing technical assist-
ance, to support all authorized public chartering 
agencies in the State to improve the monitoring 
of their charter schools, including by— 
‘‘(i) using annual performance data, 
which may include graduation rates and 
student growth data, as appropriate, to 
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measure the progress of their schools toward 
becoming high-quality charter schools; and 
‘‘(ii) 
reviewing 
the 
schools’ 
inde-
pendent, annual audits of financial state-
ments conducted in accordance with gen-
erally accepted accounting principles, and 
ensuring any such audits are publically re-
ported; and 
‘‘(F) the entity will work to ensure that 
charter schools are included with the traditional 
public school system in decision-making about 
the public school system in the State. 
‘‘(3) REQUESTS FOR WAIVERS.—A request and 
justification for waivers of any Federal statutory or 
regulatory provisions that the entity believes are nec-
essary for the successful operation of the charter 
schools that will receive funds under the entity’s pro-
gram under this section, and a description of any 
State or local rules, generally applicable to public 
schools, that will be waived, or otherwise not apply to 
such schools. 
‘‘(f) SELECTION CRITERIA; PRIORITY.— 
‘‘(1) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The Secretary shall 
award grants to State entities under this section on 
the basis of the quality of the applications submitted 
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under subsection (e), after taking into consider-
ation— 
‘‘(A) the degree of flexibility afforded by the 
State’s public charter school law and how the en-
tity will work to maximize the flexibility pro-
vided to charter schools under the law; 
‘‘(B) the ambitiousness of the entity’s objec-
tives for the quality charter school program car-
ried out under this section; 
‘‘(C) the quality of the strategy for assessing 
achievement of those objectives; 
‘‘(D) the likelihood that the eligible appli-
cants receiving subgrants under the program will 
meet those objectives and improve educational re-
sults for students; 
‘‘(E) the proposed number of new charter 
schools to be opened, and the number of high- 
quality charter schools to be replicated or ex-
panded under the program; 
‘‘(F) the entity’s plan to— 
‘‘(i) adequately monitor the eligible ap-
plicants receiving subgrants under the enti-
ty’s program; and 
‘‘(ii) work with the authorized public 
chartering agencies involved to avoid dupli-
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cation of work for the charter schools and 
authorized public chartering agencies; 
‘‘(G) the entity’s plan to provide adequate 
technical assistance, as described in the entity’s 
application under subsection (e), for the eligible 
applicants receiving subgrants under the entity’s 
program under this section; and 
‘‘(H) the entity’s plan to support quality 
authorizing efforts in the State, consistent with 
the objectives described in subparagraph (B). 
‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 
section, the Secretary shall give priority to State enti-
ties to the extent that they meet the following criteria: 
‘‘(A) In the case in which a State entity is 
located in a State that allows an entity other 
than the State educational agency to be an au-
thorized public chartering agency or a State in 
which only a local educational agency may be an 
authorized public chartering agency, the State 
has an appeals process for the denial of an ap-
plication for a charter school. 
‘‘(B) The State entity is located in a State 
that does not impose any limitation on the num-
ber or percentage of charter schools that may 
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exist or the number or percentage of students 
that may attend charter schools in the State. 
‘‘(C) The State entity is located in a State 
that ensures equitable financing, as compared to 
traditional public schools, for charter schools and 
students in a prompt manner. 
‘‘(D) The State entity supports full-, blend-
ed-, or hybrid-online charter school models. 
‘‘(E) The State entity is located in a State 
that uses charter schools and best practices from 
charter schools to help improve struggling schools 
and local educational agencies. 
‘‘(F) The State entity partners with an or-
ganization that has a demonstrated record of 
success in developing management organizations 
to support the development of charter schools in 
the State. 
‘‘(G) The State entity demonstrates quality 
policies and practices to support and monitor 
charter schools through factors, including— 
‘‘(i) the proportion of high-quality 
charter schools in the State; and 
‘‘(ii) the proportion of charter schools 
enrolling, at a rate similar to traditional 
public schools, traditionally underserved 
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students, including students with disabil-
ities and English language learners. 
‘‘(g) LOCAL USES OF FUNDS.—An eligible applicant 
receiving a subgrant under this section shall use such funds 
to open new charter schools or replicable, high-quality char-
ter school models, or expand existing high-quality charter 
schools. 
‘‘(h) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Each State entity 
receiving a grant under this section shall submit to the Sec-
retary, at the end of the third year of the 5-year grant pe-
riod and at the end of such grant period, a report on— 
‘‘(1) the number of students served and, if appli-
cable, how many new students were served during 
each year of the grant period; 
‘‘(2) the number of subgrants awarded under this 
section to carry out each of the following— 
‘‘(A) the opening of new charter schools; 
‘‘(B) the opening of replicable, high-quality 
charter school models; and 
‘‘(C) the expansion of high-quality charter 
schools; 
‘‘(3) the progress the entity made toward meeting 
the priorities described in subsection (f)(2), as appli-
cable; 
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‘‘(4) how the entity met the objectives of the qual-
ity charter school program described in the entity’s 
application under subsection (e); 
‘‘(5) how the entity complied with, and ensured 
that eligible applicants complied with, the assurances 
described in the entity’s application; and 
‘‘(6) how the entity worked with authorized pub-
lic chartering agencies, including how the agencies 
worked with the management company or leadership 
of the schools in which the subgrants were awarded. 
‘‘(i) STATE ENTITY DEFINED.—For purposes of this 
section, the term ‘State entity’ means— 
‘‘(1) a State educational agency; 
‘‘(2) a State charter school board; or 
‘‘(3) a Governor of a State.’’. 
SEC. 6. FACILITIES FINANCING ASSISTANCE. 
Section 5204 (20 U.S.C. 7221c) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 5204. FACILITIES FINANCING ASSISTANCE. 
‘‘(a) GRANTS TO ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From the amount reserved 
under section 5202(b)(1), the Secretary shall award 
not less than 3 grants to eligible entities that have ap-
plications approved under subsection (d) to dem-
onstrate innovative methods of assisting charter 
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schools to address the cost of acquiring, constructing, 
and renovating facilities by enhancing the avail-
ability of loans or bond financing. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—For purposes 
of this section, the term ‘eligible entity’ means— 
‘‘(A) a public entity, such as a State or 
local governmental entity; 
‘‘(B) a private nonprofit entity; or 
‘‘(C) a consortium of entities described in 
subparagraphs (A) and (B). 
‘‘(b) GRANTEE SELECTION.— 
‘‘(1) EVALUATION
OF
APPLICATION.—The Sec-
retary shall evaluate each application submitted 
under subsection (d), and shall determine whether the 
application is sufficient to merit approval. 
‘‘(2) DISTRIBUTION OF GRANTS.—The Secretary 
shall award at least one grant to an eligible entity de-
scribed in subsection (a)(2)(A), at least one grant to 
an eligible entity described in subsection (a)(2)(B), 
and at least one grant to an eligible entity described 
in subsection (a)(2)(C), if applications are submitted 
that permit the Secretary to do so without approving 
an application that is not of sufficient quality to 
merit approval. 
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‘‘(c) GRANT CHARACTERISTICS.—Grants under sub-
section (a) shall be of a sufficient size, scope, and quality 
so as to ensure an effective demonstration of an innovative 
means of enhancing credit for the financing of charter 
school acquisition, construction, or renovation. 
‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—To receive a grant under 
subsection (a), an eligible entity shall submit to the 
Secretary an application in such form as the Sec-
retary may reasonably require. 
‘‘(2) 
CONTENTS.—An 
application 
submitted 
under paragraph (1) shall contain— 
‘‘(A) a statement identifying the activities 
proposed to be undertaken with funds received 
under subsection (a), including how the eligible 
entity will determine which charter schools will 
receive assistance, and how much and what types 
of assistance charter schools will receive; 
‘‘(B) a description of the involvement of 
charter schools in the application’s development 
and the design of the proposed activities; 
‘‘(C) a description of the eligible entity’s ex-
pertise in capital market financing; 
‘‘(D) a description of how the proposed ac-
tivities will leverage the maximum amount of 
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