Title: HELP Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Helping Educators with Learning Preparation Act or the HELP Act
This bill establishes a temporary grant program to assist schools with reopening and resuming instruction during the 2020-2021 school year in response to the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic.
Specifically, the Department of Education (ED) must award grants to states and, through them, subgrants to local educational agencies to reopen schools and resume instruction during the 2020-2021 school year. ED must also reserve funds for outlying areas and the Bureau of Indian Education.
Subgrants must be used for certain expenses, such as educational technology, facility sanitization, and staffing.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7746 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7746

   To direct the Secretary of Education to establish a formula grant 
 program to provide funds to assist educational agencies with expenses 
related to resuming educational activities during the 2020-2021 school 
    year arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 23, 2020

Mr. Hill of Arkansas (for himself and Mr. Gonzalez of Ohio) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education 
                               and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To direct the Secretary of Education to establish a formula grant 
 program to provide funds to assist educational agencies with expenses 
related to resuming educational activities during the 2020-2021 school 
    year arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Helping Educators with Learning 
Preparation Act'' or the ``HELP Act''.

SEC. 2. PROVIDING FUNDS TO AID SCHOOLS IN REOPENING AND RESUMING 
              INSTRUCTION IN RESPONSE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment 
of this section, the Secretary of Education shall establish a grant 
program (in this section referred to as the ``Program'') to provide 
funds to States to assist local educational agencies with expenses 
related to reopening and resuming instruction during school year 2020-
2021 arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
    (b) State Allocations.--From the funds made available under 
subsection (h) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall--
            (1) reserve three-quarters of 1 percent for allotments for 
        the outlying areas, to be distributed among such outlying areas 
        on the basis of their relative need, as determined by the 
        Secretary, in accordance with the purpose of the Program;
            (2) reserve one-half of 1 percent for the Secretary of the 
        Interior for schools operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian 
        Education, to be distributed among such schools on the basis of 
        their relative need, as determined by the Secretary of the 
        Interior, in accordance with the purpose of the Program; and
            (3) from the remaining funds, allocate to each eligible 
        State an amount equal to the sum of--
                    (A) an amount that bears the same relationship to 
                20 percent of such funds as the number of individuals 
                aged 5 through 17 in the State, as determined by the 
                Secretary on the basis of the most recent satisfactory 
                data, bears to the number of those individuals in all 
                such States, as so determined; and
                    (B) an amount that bears the same relationship to 
                80 percent of such funds as the number of individuals 
                aged 5 through 17 from families with incomes below the 
                poverty line in the State, as determined by the 
                Secretary on the basis of the most recent satisfactory 
                data, bears to the number of those individuals in all 
                such States, as so determined.
    (c) Use of Funds.--
            (1) State use of funds.--
                    (A) Subgrants to local educational agencies.--Each 
                State shall use not less than 90 percent of funds 
                allocated to such State under subsection (b) to make 
                subgrants to local educational agencies.
                    (B) Allocation of funds to local educational 
                agencies.--The amount of a subgrant under subparagraph 
                (A) shall be equal to the sum of--
                            (i) an amount that bears the same 
                        relationship to 20 percent of the funds to be 
                        used by a State for such subgrants as the 
                        number of individuals aged 5 through 17 in the 
                        geographic area served by the local education 
                        agency, as determined by the Secretary on the 
                        basis of the most recent satisfactory data, 
                        bears to the number of those individuals in the 
                        geographic areas served by all eligible local 
                        educational agencies in the State, as so 
                        determined; and
                            (ii) an amount that bears the same 
                        relationship to 80 percent of such funds as the 
                        number of individuals aged 5 through 17 from 
                        families with incomes below the poverty line in 
                        the geographic area served by the local 
                        educational agency, as determined by the 
                        Secretary on the basis of the most recent 
                        satisfactory data, bears to the number of those 
                        individuals in the geographic areas served by 
                        all eligible local educational agencies in the 
                        State, as so determined.
                    (C) State expenses.--From funds not otherwise 
                allocated under this paragraph, a State may reserve not 
                more than 30 percent for administrative costs 
                associated with the Program and the remainder for 
                providing technical assistance and other emergency 
                services to local educational agencies in response to 
                the COVID-19 pandemic, as the State determines 
                appropriate, including making grants or entering into 
                contracts.
            (2) Local educational agency use of funds.--A local 
        educational agency shall use funds received under the Program 
        to cover expenses related to reopening and resuming instruction 
        during school year 2020-2021, including the following:
                    (A) Educational technology (including hardware, 
                software, and connectivity) for students that aids in 
                regular and substantive educational interaction between 
                students and their classroom instructors, including 
                low-income students and students with disabilities, 
                which may include assistive technology or adaptive 
                equipment.
                    (B) Facility sanitization.
                    (C) Personal protective equipment.
                    (D) School supplies.
                    (E) Staffing.
                    (F) Student transportation.
                    (G) Other expenses necessary to maintain operations 
                and continue services.
    (d) Eligibility.--A State is eligible for funds under the Program 
if such State submits an application not later than 60 days after the 
date of enactment of this section in such form and containing such 
information and assurances (including that such State shall submit a 
report on how subgrants made in accordance with the Program were used) 
as the Secretary determines appropriate.
    (e) Reports.--
            (1) Report to congress.--Not later than 14 months after the 
        date on which each State receiving funds under the Program has 
        obligated such funds, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
        report detailing--
                    (A) the amount of funds awarded to each State, and 
                how such funds were used;
                    (B) the amount of each subgrant made by a State to 
                a local educational agency, and how such subgrant was 
                used;
                    (C) the amount of funds reserved for each of the 
                outlying areas, and how such funds were used; and
                    (D) the amount of funds reserved for the Bureau of 
                Indian Affairs, and how such funds were used, on the 
                basis of information reported by the Secretary of the 
                Interior.
            (2) Public availability of reports.--The Secretary shall 
        make the report required under this subsection publicly 
        available.
    (f) Timing Requirements for Grant Administration.--
            (1) Application review.--Not later than 30 days after the 
        receipt of an application required under subsection (d), the 
        Secretary shall make a final determination regarding the 
        acceptance or rejection of such application.
            (2) Award of funds.--Not later than 90 days after the date 
        of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall allocate, in 
        accordance with subsection (b), all funds made available under 
        subsection (h).
    (g) Limitations on Funds.--
            (1) Termination of funds availability.--A State receiving 
        funds under the Program may obligate and spend such funds until 
        1 year after the date of receipt or until September 30, 2021, 
        whichever comes last.
            (2) Supplement, not supplant.--Funds made available under 
        the Program shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, 
        other Federal, State, and local funds that would otherwise be 
        expended to carry out activities under the Program.
    (h) Program Funding.--
            (1) Authorization of appropriations.--To carry out the 
        Program, there is authorized to be appropriated $25,000,000,000 
        for fiscal year 2021.
            (2) Use of available funds.--Notwithstanding any other 
        provision of law, and in addition to amounts made available 
        pursuant to paragraph (1), the Secretary shall use all funds 
        made available to the Secretary for any program or activity 
        that remain unobligated as of September 30, 2020, to carry out 
        the Program, except that the Secretary may not use funds 
        appropriated pursuant to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and 
        Economic Security Act.
    (i) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Local educational agency.--The term ``local educational 
        agency'' has the meaning given such term in section 8101 of the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        7801), including the limitation in such section on receipt of 
        funds under special programs for elementary or secondary 
        schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Education.
            (2) Outlying area.--The term ``outlying area'' means--
                    (A) American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the 
                Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the United States 
                Virgin Islands; and
                    (B) notwithstanding section 105(f)(1)(B)(v) of the 
                Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003 (48 
                U.S.C. 1921d(f)(1)(B)(v)) and any other law, the 
                Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the 
                Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.
            (3) Poverty line.--The term ``poverty line'' has the 
        meaning given such term in such section 8101.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Education.
            (5) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the several 
        States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of 
        Puerto Rico.
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