I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4945 
To direct the Secretary of Education to award grants for new agricultural 
education programs in secondary schools. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
AUGUST 8, 2025 
Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mr. ALFORD, Mr. CUELLAR, and 
Mr. PANETTA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and Workforce 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Education to award grants for 
new agricultural education programs in secondary schools. 
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 ‘‘Growing Opportunities 
in Agriculture Act’’ or the ‘‘GO Ag Act’’. 
SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR NEW AGRICULTURAL EDU-
CATION PROGRAMS. 
(a) GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award, 
on a competitive basis, grants to eligible entities to 
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support the creation of new agricultural education 
programs in secondary schools. 
(2) GRANT DURATION.—A grant awarded under 
this section may not exceed a 5-year grant period. 
(b) APPLICATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—To receive a grant under 
this section, an eligible entity shall submit an appli-
cation to the Secretary at such time, in such man-
ner, and containing such information as the Sec-
retary may require, including— 
(A) an identification and the role with re-
spect to each program to be funded under the 
grant of any eligible partners of the eligible en-
tity, including an assurance the grant under 
this section will not be used to prepare students 
for employment with solely one or more of such 
eligible partners; 
(B) an assurance that each program that 
will receive assistance under the grant is not 
yet in operation and such grant will be used to 
start such program; 
(C) a description of the grant budget, how 
each program will fund necessary expenses for 
the program not covered by the grant (such as 
any funds to be provided by State, local, or pri-
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vate entities), and how the eligible entity will 
continue each such program after the grant is 
exhausted; 
(D) a description of how grant will directly 
benefit students, including special populations, 
served by the eligible entity; 
(E) a description of how each such pro-
gram will be coordinated with the activities car-
ried out under section 124 or 135 of the Carl 
D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act 
of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2344; 2355); 
(F) a description of how each such pro-
gram reflects the needs of regional, State, or 
local employers, as demonstrated by the com-
prehensive needs assessment under section 
134(c) of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Tech-
nical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 
2354(c)) carried out by the eligible entity; and 
(G) an assurance that the eligible entity 
will— 
(i) provide information to the Sec-
retary, as requested, for the evaluation 
under subsection (d) and any evaluations 
that the Secretary may carry out; and 
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(ii) make data available to third par-
ties for validation, in accordance with ap-
plicable data privacy laws, including sec-
tion 444 of the General Education Provi-
sions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g, commonly 
known as the ‘‘Family Educational Rights 
and Privacy Act of 1974’’). 
(2) PROCESS.—The Secretary shall create a 
process for evaluating applications submitted under 
paragraph (1) and determining the amount of each 
grant for successful applications, except that in no 
case may an eligible entity receive a grant exceeding 
$100,000. 
(c) USES OF FUNDS.—Each eligible entity receiving 
a grant under this section shall use such grant for the 
creation of new agricultural education programs in sec-
ondary schools, which may include— 
(1) curriculum development and delivery, in-
cluding classroom or laboratory instruction, work- 
based learning, and leadership education delivered 
through career and technical student organizations; 
(2) the purchase of equipment, technology, and 
course materials; and 
(3) other costs the Secretary may determine to 
be eligible. 
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(d) EVALUATION AND ANNUAL REPORT.—Each eligi-
ble entity receiving a grant under this section shall provide 
for an independent evaluation of the activities carried out 
using such grant and submit to the Secretary an annual 
report that includes— 
(1) a description of how the grant was used; 
(2) the performance of each program assistance 
with such grant with respect to, at a minimum, the 
performance indicators described under section 113 
of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Edu-
cation Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2323), as applicable, 
and disaggregated— 
(A) by subgroups of students described in 
section 1111(c)(2)(B) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
6311(c)(2)(B)); and 
(B) by each special population; and 
(3) a quantitative analysis of the effectiveness 
of each such program. 
(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) AGRICULTURAL
EDUCATION.—The term 
‘‘agricultural education’’ means career and technical 
education that is focused on agriculture, including 
classroom or laboratory instruction, work-based 
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learning, and leadership education delivered through 
career and technical student organizations. 
(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti-
ty’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘eligible recipi-
ent’’ in section 3(21)(A) of the Carl D. Perkins Ca-
reer and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 
U.S.C. 2302(21)(A)). 
(3) ELIGIBLE
PARTNER.—The term ‘‘eligible 
partner’’ means— 
(A) an institution of higher education or a 
consortium of such institutions; or 
(B) a community stakeholder relevant to a 
program to be funded under this section, in-
cluding a labor organization, a local or regional 
business or industry, or a local workforce devel-
opment board. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$5,000,000, to remain available through fiscal year 2028. 
Æ 
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