ZZZ’s to A’s Act
Bill: H.R.8787 | Sponsor: Rep. Lofgren, Zoe (D-CA)
Policy area: Education

Summary:
ZZZ's to A's Act
This bill directs the Department of Education (ED) to conduct a study that
ED shall report its findings and recommendations to Congress.

To direct the Secretary of Education to conduct a study to determine 
  the relationship between school start times and adolescent health, 
                      well-being, and performance.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``ZZZ's to A's Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Secretary of Education has not formally issued 
        policy guidance on school start times.
            (2) The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 8 to 
        10 hours of sleep per day for teenagers aged 13 to 18 years, 
        but early school start times are contributing to lack of sleep 
        among adolescents.
            (3) Despite the shift in biological rhythms during puberty, 
        which causes adolescents to sleep later at night and wake later 
        in the morning, 82 percent of public high schools and 79 
        percent of public middle schools in the United States started 
        before 8:30 a.m. in the 2017-2018 school year.
            (4) The State of California became the first State to enact 
        a law to move back school start times beginning in the 2022-
        2023 school year.
            (5) Numerous local educational agencies across 46 States 
        have also recently changed or are considering changing school 
        start times in an effort to improve adolescent health, well-
        being, and performance.
            (6) The American Academy of Pediatrics has strongly 
        supported efforts to optimize sleep in students by delaying 
        school start times since 2014.
            (7) Later school start times are associated with--
                    (A) improvements in academic performance, including 
                attendance rates, grade point averages, and test 
                scores;
                    (B) improvements in mental and physical health, 
                including reduced risk of depression and obesity; and
                    (C) improvements in public safety, including 
                reduced risk of automobile accidents.
            (8) A universal delay in school start times would be a 
        cost-effective policy measure.
            (9) The mission of the Department of Education is to 
        promote student achievement and preparation for global 
        competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and 
        ensuring equal access.

SEC. 3. STUDY AND REPORT.

    Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Education shall--
            (1) conduct a study, directly or through the award of a 
        grant or contract, to examine the relationship between school 
        start times and adolescent health, well-being, and performance 
        that--
                    (A) provides a comprehensive review of the 
                scientific evidence relating to school start times and 
                adolescent health, well-being, and performance;
                    (B) compares adolescent health, well-being, and 
                performance among local educational agencies with 
                different school start times; and
                    (C) evaluates factors that contribute to or affect 
                school start times; and
            (2) submit to Congress a report that describes--
                    (A) the findings of the study; and
                    (B) any recommendations of the Secretary based on 
                such findings.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Local educational agency.--The term ``local educational 
        agency'' has the meaning given the term in section 8101 of the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        7801).
            (2) Performance.--The term ``performance'' means a 
        measurement of how well an individual achieves a desired task, 
        and may include academic performance and cognitive performance.
                                 <all>