Title: SOAR Permanent Authorization Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
SOAR Permanent Authorization Act
This bill permanently reauthorizes and amends the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Program, which provides education funding for the District of Columbia, including for private school vouchers, public schools, and public charter schools.
The bill requires participating private schools to be fully accredited by (1) an accrediting body with jurisdiction in the District that is recognized by the Student and Visitor Exchange English Language Program administered by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or (2) any international accrediting body designated by the Department of Education (ED).
The bill revises the manner in which tutoring services provided under the program are funded.
The bill revises several requirements concerning SOAR evaluations, including concerning (1) frequency; (2) ED's and the Institute of Education Sciences' duties; and (3) the issues to be evaluated, including high school and college performance measurements.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 114 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 114

                         To amend the SOAR Act.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 28, 2021

Mr. Johnson (for himself, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Scott of South Carolina, 
and Mr. Braun) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
                         To amend the SOAR Act.

    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 ``SOAR Permanent Authorization Act''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE SOAR ACT.

    The Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act (division C of 
Public Law 112-10) is amended--
            (1) in section 3007 (sec. 38-1853.07 D.C. Official Code)--
                    (A) in subsection (a)(5)(A)(i), by striking 
                subclause (I) and inserting the following:
                                    ``(I) is fully accredited by an 
                                accrediting body with jurisdiction in 
                                the District of Columbia or that is 
                                recognized by the Student and Visitor 
                                Exchange English Language Program 
                                administered by U.S. Immigration and 
                                Customs Enforcement; or'';
                    (B) by striking subsection (c) and redesignating 
                subsection (d) as subsection (c);
                    (C) in subsection (b)--
                            (i) in the subsection heading, by striking 
                        ``and Parental Assistance'' and inserting ``, 
                        Parental Assistance, and Student Academic 
                        Assistance'';
                            (ii) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 
                        by striking ``$2,000,000'' and inserting 
                        ``$2,200,000''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) The expenses of providing tutoring service to 
        participating eligible students that need additional academic 
        assistance. If there are insufficient funds to provide tutoring 
        services to all such students in a year, the eligible entity 
        shall give priority in such year to students who previously 
        attended an elementary school or secondary school identified as 
        one of the lowest-performing schools under the District of 
        Columbia's accountability system.''; and
                    (D) in subsection (c), as redesignated by 
                subparagraph (B)--
                            (i) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking 
                        ``subsections (b) and (c)'' and inserting 
                        ``subsection (b)''; and
                            (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking 
                        ``subsections (b) and (c)'' and inserting 
                        ``subsection (b)'';
            (2) in section 3008(h) (sec. 38-1853.08(h) D.C. Official 
        Code)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``section 
                3009(a)(2)(A)(i)'' and inserting ``section 3009(a)'';
                    (B) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 
                following:
            ``(2) Administration of tests.--The Institute of Education 
        Sciences may administer assessments to students participating 
        in the evaluation under section 3009(a) for the purpose of 
        conducting the evaluation under such section.''; and
                    (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ``the nationally 
                norm-referenced standardized test described in 
                paragraph (2)'' and inserting ``a nationally norm-
                referenced standardized test'';
            (3) in section 3009(a) (sec. 38-1853.09(a) D.C. Official 
        Code)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``annually'' 
                and inserting ``regularly'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking clause 
                        (i) and inserting the following:
                            ``(i) is rigorous; and''; and
                            (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
                        ``impact of the program'' and all that follows 
                        through the end of the subparagraph and 
                        inserting ``impact of the program on academic 
                        progress and educational attainment.'';
                    (C) in paragraph (3)--
                            (i) in the paragraph heading, by striking 
                        ``on education'' and inserting ``of 
                        education'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (A)--
                                    (I) by inserting ``the academic 
                                progress of'' after ``assess''; and
                                    (II) by striking ``in each of 
                                grades 3'' and all that follows through 
                                the end of the subparagraph and 
                                inserting ``; and'';
                            (iii) by striking subparagraph (B); and
                            (iv) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as 
                        subparagraph (B); and
                    (D) in paragraph (4)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (A)--
                                    (I) by striking ``A comparison of 
                                the academic achievement of 
                                participating eligible students who use 
                                an opportunity scholarship on the 
                                measurements described in paragraph 
                                (3)(B) to the academic achievement'' 
                                and inserting ``The academic progress 
                                of participating eligible students who 
                                use an opportunity scholarship compared 
                                to the academic progress''; and
                                    (II) by inserting ``, which may 
                                include students'' after ``students 
                                with similar backgrounds'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
                        ``increasing the satisfaction of such parents 
                        and students with their choice'' and inserting 
                        ``those parents' and students' satisfaction 
                        with the program'';
                            (iii) by striking subparagraph (D) through 
                        (F) and inserting the following:
                    ``(D) The high school graduation rates, college 
                enrollment rates, college persistence rates, and 
                college graduation rates of participating eligible 
                students who use an opportunity scholarship compared 
                with the rates of public school students described in 
                subparagraph (A), to the extent practicable.
                    ``(E) The college enrollment rates, college 
                persistence rates, and college graduation rates of 
                students who participated in the program as the result 
                of winning the Opportunity Scholarship Program lottery 
                compared to the enrollment, persistence, and graduation 
                rates for students who entered but did not win such 
                lottery and who, as a result, served as the control 
                group for previous evaluations of the program under 
                this division. Nothing in this subparagraph may be 
                construed to waive section 3004(a)(3)(A)(iii) with 
                respect to any such student.
                    ``(F) The safety of the schools attended by 
                participating eligible students who use an opportunity 
                scholarship compared with the schools attended by 
                public school students described in subparagraph (A), 
                to the extent practicable.''; and
                            (iv) in subparagraph (G), by striking 
                        ``achievement'' and inserting ``progress''; and
            (4) in section 3014 (sec. 38-1853.14, D.C. Official Code)--
                    (A) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 
                paragraph (1), by striking ``$60,000,000 for fiscal 
                year 2012 and for each fiscal year through fiscal year 
                2023'' and inserting ``$75,000,000 for fiscal year 2022 
                and for each succeeding fiscal year''; and
                    (B) in subsection (b), by striking ``$60,000,000'' 
                and inserting ``$75,000,000''.
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