I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3021 
To direct the Secretary of Education to make grants and low-interest loans 
to local educational agencies for the construction, modernization, or re-
pair of public kindergarten, elementary, and secondary educational facili-
ties, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 12, 2007 
Mr. CHANDLER (for himself, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, and Mr. KIL-
DEE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Education to make grants and 
low-interest loans to local educational agencies for the 
construction, modernization, or repair of public kinder-
garten, elementary, and secondary educational facilities, 
and for other purposes. 
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 High- 
Performing Public School Facilities Act’’. 
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
The table of contents of this Act is as follows: 
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Sec. 1. Short title. 
Sec. 2. Table of contents. 
Sec. 3. Findings. 
Sec. 4. Definitions. 
TITLE I—21ST CENTURY HIGH-PERFORMING PUBLIC SCHOOL 
FACILITIES 
Subtitle A—Grants for Construction, Modernization, or Repair of School 
Facilities 
Sec. 101. Grants. 
Sec. 102. Allocation of funds. 
Sec. 103. Priority; criteria for awarding grants. 
Sec. 104. Authorized matching requirement. 
Sec. 105. Allowable uses of funds. 
Sec. 106. Application for grant. 
Subtitle B—Low-Interest Loans for Construction, Modernization, or Repair of 
School Facilities 
Sec. 111. Low-interest loans. 
Sec. 112. Revolving fund. 
Subtitle C—General Provisions 
Sec. 121. Impermissible uses of funds. 
Sec. 122. Supplement, not supplant. 
Sec. 123. Maintenance of effort. 
Sec. 124. Special rule. 
Sec. 125. Fair wages. 
Sec. 126. Reporting. 
Sec. 127. Authorization of appropriations. 
TITLE II—EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY FUNDING 
Sec. 201. Educational technology funding. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following: 
(1) The average public school building was built 
in the early 1960’s. 
(2) Of the Nation’s public school buildings, at 
least one-third need extensive repair or replacement 
and two-thirds have troublesome environmental con-
ditions such as the presence of asbestos or lead in 
water and paint. 
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(3) In its 2005 report card on the Nation’s 
physical infrastructure, the American Society of 
Civil Engineers gave our schools a D. 
(4) The Nation’s public schools need hundreds 
of billions of dollars in construction, modernization, 
and repair to bring them up to modern structural, 
educational (including educational technology and 
educational technology infrastructure), and health 
standards. 
(5) Improving the quality of public elementary 
and secondary school facilities to make them safe, 
healthy, high-performing, and up-to-date techno-
logically will help students improve their academic 
performance and will improve teacher retention. 
(6) Improving the quality of public elementary 
and secondary school facilities is a matter of na-
tional importance, and the Federal government must 
do more to help States and school districts fulfill 
their responsibilities in this area. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) The term ‘‘Bureau-funded school’’ has the 
meaning given to such term in section 1141 of the 
Education Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2021). 
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(2) The term ‘‘charter school’’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 5210 of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
7221i). 
(3) The term ‘‘local educational agency’’— 
(A) has the meaning given to that term in 
section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801); and 
(B) includes any public charter school that 
constitutes a local educational agency under 
State law. 
(4) The term ‘‘outlying area’’— 
(A) means the United States Virgin Is-
lands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Com-
monwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; 
and 
(B) includes the freely associated states of 
the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Fed-
erated States of Micronesia, and the Republic 
of Palau. 
(5) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 
of Education. 
(6) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the 50 
States, the District of Columbia, and the Common-
wealth of Puerto Rico. 
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TITLE I—21ST CENTURY HIGH- 
PERFORMING 
PUBLIC 
SCHOOL FACILITIES 
Subtitle A—Grants for Construc-
tion, Modernization, or Repair 
of School Facilities 
SEC. 101. GRANTS. 
Each fiscal year, the Secretary of Education shall 
make grants to local educational agencies in each State 
for the purpose of constructing, modernizing, or repairing 
public kindergarten, elementary, and secondary edu-
cational facilities that are safe, healthy, high-performing, 
and up-to-date technologically. 
SEC. 102. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS. 
(a) RESERVATION.—From the amount appropriated 
to carry out this subtitle for each fiscal year pursuant to 
section 127, the Secretary shall reserve 1 percent of such 
amount, consistent with the purpose described in section 
101— 
(1) to provide assistance to the outlying areas; 
and 
(2) for payments to the Secretary of the Inte-
rior to provide assistance to Bureau-funded schools. 
(b) ALLOCATION OF GRANTS.— 
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(1) STATE-BY-STATE ALLOCATION.—From the 
amount appropriated to carry out this subtitle for 
each fiscal year pursuant to section 127, and not re-
served under subsection (a), the Secretary shall re-
serve for grants to local educational agencies in each 
State an aggregate amount in proportion to the ag-
gregate amount received by all local educational 
agencies in the State involved under part A of title 
I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) for the previous 
fiscal year relative to the total amount received by 
all local educational agencies in every State under 
such part for such fiscal year. 
(2) WITHIN-STATE
ALLOCATION.—From the 
amount reserved for grants to local educational 
agencies in a State under paragraph (1), the Sec-
retary shall reserve for grants to local educational 
agencies in the State that are receiving assistance 
under section 1124A of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6334) an 
aggregate amount that is at least in proportion to 
the aggregate amount received by such local edu-
cational agencies under part A of title I of the Ele-
mentary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) for the previous fiscal year rel-
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ative to the total amount received by all local edu-
cational agencies in the State under such part for 
such fiscal year. 
SEC. 103. PRIORITY; CRITERIA FOR AWARDING GRANTS. 
(a) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants to local edu-
cational agencies under this subtitle, the Secretary shall 
give priority to local educational agencies with greater— 
(1)(A) numbers of children counted under sec-
tion 1124(c) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6333(c)); or 
(B) percentages of children served who are 
counted under section 1124(c) of the Elementary 
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
6333(c)); and 
(2) need for school construction, modernization, 
or repair, as demonstrated by the condition of the 
public school facilities. 
(b) CRITERIA.—In awarding grants to local edu-
cational agencies under this subtitle, the Secretary shall 
also consider the following criteria: 
(1) The fiscal capacity of a local educational 
agency to meet its needs for construction, mod-
ernization, and repair of public school facilities with-
out assistance under this subtitle, including the abil-
ity of the local educational agency to raise funds 
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through the use of local bonding capacity and other-
wise. 
(2) In the case of a local educational agency 
that proposes to fund a construction, modernization, 
or repair project for one or more public charter 
schools, the extent to which the schools have access 
to funding for the project through the financing 
methods available to other public schools or local 
educational agencies in the State. 
(3) The likelihood that the local educational 
agency will maintain, in good condition, any facility 
whose construction, modernization, or repair is as-
sisted under this subtitle. 
(4) The local educational agency’s plan to ob-
tain private business contributions described in sec-
tion 1397E(d)(2)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code 
of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 1397E(d)(2)(B)), except that an 
otherwise qualified local educational agency shall not 
be denied a grant as a result of its inability to ob-
tain such contributions despite its good faith efforts. 
SEC. 104. AUTHORIZED MATCHING REQUIREMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require a local 
educational agency to contribute matching funds toward 
the costs of the program to be carried out with a grant 
received by the agency under this subtitle. 
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(b) MATCH AMOUNT.—The Secretary shall establish 
the amount of matching funds to be provided by a local 
educational agency under this section by using a sliding 
scale that takes into account the relative poverty of the 
population served by the local educational agency. 
(c) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT CONTRIBUTED.— 
The Secretary shall allow a local educational agency to 
satisfy the requirement of this section through in-kind 
contributions. 
SEC. 105. ALLOWABLE USES OF FUNDS. 
A local educational agency receiving a grant under 
this subtitle may use the grant for the following: 
(1) Repair or modernization of public school fa-
cilities to ensure the health and safety of students 
and staff, including— 
(A) repairing, replacing, or installing roofs, 
electrical wiring, plumbing systems, sewage sys-
tems, windows, or doors; 
(B) repairing, replacing, or installing heat-
ing, ventilation, or air conditioning systems (in-
cluding insulation); and 
(C) bringing public schools into compliance 
with fire and safety codes. 
(2) Modifications necessary to make public 
school facilities accessible to comply with the Ameri-
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cans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 
et seq.) and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 
1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), except that such modifica-
tions shall not be the primary use of the grant. 
(3) Asbestos abatement or removal from public 
school facilities. 
(4) Implementation of measures designed to re-
duce or eliminate human exposure to lead-based 
paint hazards though methods including interim con-
trols, abatement, or a combination of each. 
(5) Upgrading or installation of educational 
technology and educational technology infrastructure 
to ensure that students have access to up-to-date 
educational technology. 
(6) Upgrading school facilities to make them 
energy-efficient. 
(7) Construction of new school facilities that 
ensure the health and safety of students and staff, 
are energy-efficient, and include up-to-date edu-
cational technology and educational technology infra-
structure, including where such construction is eco-
nomically or otherwise more feasible than large scale 
modernization or repair of existing facilities. 
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SEC. 106. APPLICATION FOR GRANT. 
(a) APPLICATIONS REQUIRED.—A local educational 
agency desiring to receive a grant under this subtitle shall 
submit an application to the Secretary as such time, in 
such manner, and containing such information as the Sec-
retary may reasonably require. 
(b) APPLICATION CONTENTS.—Each application de-
scribed in subsection (a) shall contain— 
(1) an assurance that the application was devel-
oped in consultation with parents, classroom teach-
ers, and principals; 
(2) a description of the overall condition of the 
local educational agency’s school facilities, including 
health and safety problems; 
(3) a description of the capacity of the local 
educational agency’s schools to house current and 
projected enrollments; 
(4) a description of the extent to which the 
local educational agency’s schools offer the physical 
infrastructure, including for educational technology, 
needed to provide all students a high-quality edu-
cation; 
(5) a description of the improvements to be 
supported with funds provided under this subtitle; 
(6) a cost estimate of the proposed improve-
ments; 
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