Title: Raising Accountability to Improve School Excellence Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Raising Accountability to Improve School Excellence Act
This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to: (1) require a charter school grant application to include additional information and assurances related to oversight of authorizing activity by a public chartering agency; and (2) expand grant selection criteria and priorities to include consideration of the number of times a state entity has applied for, and been denied, such a grant.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 416 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 416

    To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to 
strengthen accountability of authorized public chartering agencies and 
             reduce charter school authorizing misconduct.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 10, 2017

Mrs. Lawrence introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to 
strengthen accountability of authorized public chartering agencies and 
             reduce charter school authorizing misconduct.

    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 ``Raising Accountability to Improve 
School Excellence Act''.

SEC. 2. CHARTER SCHOOL AUTHORIZING.

    Section 4303 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 7221b) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (f)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (A)(xii)--
                                    (I) by striking ``and'' at the end 
                                of subclause (I); and
                                    (II) by inserting at the end the 
                                following:
                                    ``(III) In the case of any State 
                                entity, a description of how the State 
                                entity will ensure that the State's 
                                system of technical assistance and 
                                oversight, as described in subclause 
                                (I), will provide oversight of 
                                authorizing activity for each 
                                authorized public chartering agency 
                                that is an institution of higher 
                                education;''; and
                            (ii) in subparagraph (C)--
                                    (I) by redesignating subclauses 
                                (III) through (VI) as subclauses (IV) 
                                through (VII), respectively; and
                                    (II) by inserting after subclause 
                                (II), the following:
                                    ``(II) a description of how the 
                                eligible applicant will, prior to 
                                entering into a contract with an 
                                authorized public chartering agency, 
                                review the agency's previous 
                                authorizing activity, including the 
                                number of approvals, renewals, and 
                                revocations of charter schools with 
                                which the agency has been involved;''; 
                                and
                    (B) in paragraph (2)(E)--
                            (i) by striking ``and'' at the end of 
                        clause (ii); and
                            (ii) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(iv) ensuring that the authorized public 
                        chartering agency carries out authorizing 
                        activity in a manner that ensures high-quality 
                        student learning, as determined according to 
                        annual performance data described in clause 
                        (i); and
                            ``(v) in the case of the poor performance 
                        of the schools authorized by an authorized 
                        public chartering agency with respect to the 
                        assessments, reviews, or requirements under 
                        clauses (i) through (iv), provisionally 
                        revoking the authorized public chartering 
                        agency's ability to approve charter schools, 
                        including a plan to revoke authorizing 
                        authority to do so, in the case of continued 
                        poor performance;''; and
            (2) in subsection (g)(1)--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph 
                (D)(iii);
                    (B) by striking the period at the end of 
                subparagraph (E); and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(G) the number of times the State entity applied 
                under subsection (f) to receive a grant under this 
                section and did not receive such grant.''.
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