The Obama Administration and Congress continue to grapple with high rates of unemployment despite some tentative signs of economic recovery. On December 8, 2009, President Obama outlined a series of proposals intended to accelerate job growth, focusing on incentives to small businesses, spending on various infrastructure projects, and job creation through energy efficiency and clean energy initiatives. The President also signaled support for the extension of some of the direct assistance provisions included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA, P.L. 111-5 ), including Unemployment Compensation (UC) benefits and health insurance premium subsidies under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA). On December 16, 2009, the House passed the Jobs for Main Street Act ( H.R. 2847 ), which would spend approximately $154 billion in three general areas: infrastructure investment, public service jobs, and emergency relief for families. Appropriations for infrastructure and jobs would total about $75 billion, to be offset by redirecting Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds. Emergency assistance (which are primarily entitlement or mandatory spending provisions) would total another $79 billion, as estimated by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on the date of House passage; however, this amount includes some spending for UC and COBRA provisions that were subsequently enacted into law under the FY2010 Defense Appropriations Act ( P.L. 111-118 ). Infrastructure investments would include such projects as highways, public transit, Amtrak, airports, clean water, energy innovation, school renovation, and housing. Spending for public service jobs would be intended to stabilize the jobs of teachers, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and parks and forestry workers, as well as to provide training for youth, help college students stay in school through work-study jobs, and provide training in high-growth industries. Emergency assistance would provide extended UC and COBRA subsidies. Among other provisions, the bill would also extend enhanced Medicaid matching provisions established under ARRA, temporarily expand the child tax credit, and freeze federal poverty guidelines at 2009 levels to prevent a reduction in eligibility for certain means-tested programs. As passed by the House in December, H.R. 2847 would also extend surface transportation authorizations through FY2010. On February 24, 2010, the Senate passed an amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 2847 ( S.Amdt. 3310 ). This substitute would provide tax credits for hiring and retaining unemployed workers, extend a tax provision in ARRA related to expensing for small businesses, and reauthorize certain transportation authorities. The Senate version of H.R. 2847 contains none of the education, training, or direct assistance provisions of the House-passed bill that are discussed in this report, with the single exception of provisions for school construction bonds. Meanwhile, on February 25, 2010, the House passed the Temporary Extension Act of 2010 ( H.R. 4691 ), which would provide a shorter extension of some of the direct assistance provisions also included in the House-passed version of H.R. 2847 , including UC benefits and COBRA subsidies. This report focuses specifically on provisions in the House-passed bill that would support education and training or that would provide direct support to unemployed workers or low-income individuals. Unless noted otherwise, the Senate version of H.R. 2847 contains no comparable provisions. Certain overarching provisions included in the House bill are discussed at the end of the report. The House-passed Jobs for Main Street Act includes several provisions related to programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education (ED). First, it would create an Education Jobs Fund that would be based on the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund created under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA, P.L. 111-5 ). Second, H.R. 2847 would provide additional funding for Federal Work-Study (FWS) programs authorized under Title IV, Part C of the Higher Education Act (HEA). Finally, H.R. 2847 (and the Senate amendment to H.R. 2847 ) would modify provisions related to Qualified Zone Academy Bonds and Qualified School Construction Bonds. Each of these provisions is discussed below. H.R. 2847 would provide $23 billion for an Education Jobs Fund. These funds would be provided in an attempt to offset potential job loss that may occur as a result of state budget shortfalls in the current economic climate. The Education Jobs Fund would be based on the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund created by ARRA. The first part of this discussion provides an overview of the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund, followed by an analysis of the proposed Education Jobs Fund and how it differs from the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund. Some emphasis is placed on issues related to the ways federal funds may be used to supplant state funds, because such issues have arisen with regard to the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund under ARRA and are already arising with regard to the proposed Education Jobs Fund. The section concludes with a discussion of estimates of state grants that would be provided under the Education Jobs Fund. The State Fiscal Stabilization Fund provided general state fiscal stabilization grants to support education at the elementary, secondary, and postsecondary levels, as well as for "public safety and other government services." It was funded at $53.6 billion in supplemental FY2009 appropriations. After set asides and reservations, about $48.6 billion was available for grants to states. ED is required to allocate these funds to states according to a formula that incorporates two population measures: 61% of each state's grant is based on the state's relative share of the population of individuals ages 5 to 24, and 39% of each state's grant is based on the state's relative share of the total population. State Fiscal Stabilization Funds are being provided to states in two phases. Under the first phase, about two-thirds of the available funds were awarded to states beginning in April 2009. About $11.5 billion will be awarded to states in the second phase of state grants. States were required to apply for these funds by January 11, 2010. Once funds are received at the state level, the state's governor must use 81.8% of the state's allocation to support elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education, and, as applicable, early childhood education programs and services. With these funds, the governor must provide, through the state's principal elementary and secondary education funding formula, the amount needed to restore state funding for elementary and secondary education in FY2009, FY2010, and FY2011 to the greater of the FY2008 or FY2009 levels. The governor is required to use the remaining 18.2% of the state allocation for "public safety and other government services," which may include assistance for elementary and secondary education and public institutions of higher education (IHEs), and for modernization, renovation, and repair of public school facilities and IHEs' facilities. The State Fiscal Stabilization Fund includes specific provisions related to the use of funds by local educational agencies (LEAs) and IHEs. Funds for elementary and secondary education can be used for any activity authorized under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the Adult and Family Literacy Act, or the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins Act), or for the modernization, renovation, and repair of school facilities, including modernization, renovation, and repairs that are consistent with a recognized green building system. Public IHEs that receive State Fiscal Stabilization Funds must use the funds for (1) education and general expenditures, and in such a way as "to mitigate the need to raise tuition and fees for in-State students," or (2) modernization, renovation, or repair of IHE facilities that are primarily used for instruction, research, or student housing, including modernization, renovation, or repairs that are consistent with a recognized green building rating system. In applying for funds for Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund grants, states were required to submit applications to the Secretary that provided information required by the Secretary and provided five assurances focused on maintenance of effort requirements, equity in teacher distribution, data collection, standards and assessments, and support for struggling schools. In addition, states were required to provide baseline data demonstrating states' current status with respect to each of the five assurances and a discussion of how the State Fiscal Stabilization Funds will be used, including whether the state will use funds to meet ESEA and IDEA maintenance of effort requirements. The application for the Phase 2 grants also required states to address the five assurances, but it required substantially more information, including detailed information about data collection and public reporting of data. States receiving funds under the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund are required to submit a report to the Secretary based on a timetable established by the Secretary that discusses how funds were used, how funds were distributed, the estimated number of jobs saved or created using the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund, tax increases that were averted, the state's progress in meeting the aforementioned assurances, increases in tuition and fees at public IHEs, changes in enrollment in public IHEs, and each modernization, renovation, and repair project funded. A longstanding principle of federal aid to elementary and secondary education is that federal funding should add to, and not substitute for, state and local education funding. That is, federal funds are awarded to provide a net increase in financial resources for specific types of educational services (such as the education of disadvantaged student or students with disabilities), rather than effectively providing general subsidies to state and local governments.