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HR 68 Universal Prekindergarten and Early Childhood Education Act of 2013
Topic Started: 14 Jun 2013, 12:19 AM (54 Views)
Heather Holson
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48 hours for debate

Quote:
 
Mr. Swisher of California and Ms. Norton of the District of Columbia (for themselves and others) offers:

A BILL

To establish a grant program to assist States to establish universal prekindergarten in public schools and public charter schools.

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 ‘Universal Prekindergarten and Early Childhood Education Act of 2013.’

SEC. 2. UNIVERSAL PREKINDERGARTEN AND EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Program Authorization- From amounts appropriated under section 3, the Secretary of Education is authorized to award grants, on a competitive basis, to States to pay the Federal share of carrying out full-day prekindergarten programs.

(b) State Application- To receive a grant under this Act, a State shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.

(c) Use of Funds- A State that receives a grant under this Act shall use such grant funds to carry out a prekindergarten program that, at a minimum--

(1) is located at a public school in the State;

(2) permits each 4-year old child in the State to be voluntarily enrolled by the child’s parent, regardless of income, in the program at a school in which the child may be enrolled for kindergarten;

(3) is a full-day program that runs the length of the regular school year;

(4) is taught by teachers who possess equivalent or similar qualifications to the qualifications of teachers of other grades in the school involved; and

(5) meets any other criteria that the Secretary may require.

(d) Federal Share- The Federal share of a grant under this Act shall be not more than 80 percent of the costs of carrying out the activities described in subsection (c).

(e) Supplement Not Supplant- Grant funds received under this Act shall be used to supplement and not supplant other Federal early childhood education funds in the State.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act such sums as are necessary for fiscal years 2014 through 2019.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:

(1) FULL-DAY- The term ‘full-day’ used with respect to a program, means a program with a minimum of a 6-hour schedule per day.

(2) SECRETARY- The term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of Education.

(3) STATE- The term ‘State’ has the meaning given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).

(4) PARENT- The term ‘parent’ has the meaning given the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).

(5) PUBLIC SCHOOL- The term ‘public school’ has the meaning given the term ‘elementary school’ or ‘secondary school’ in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801), except that the term does not include private schools.

PES:

Universal Prekindergarten and Early Childhood Education Act of 2013 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award competitive grants to states to establish full-day prekindergarten programs at public schools.
Requires those programs to:
(1) permit parents, regardless of income, to enroll their four-year old children at a school in which their children may be enrolled for kindergarten;
(2) run for the length of the regular school year; and
(3) be taught by teachers who possess qualifications similar to the qualifications of other teachers at the applicable school.
Prohibits the federal share of a prekindergarten program grant from exceeding 80% of the prekindergarten program's costs.
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peter
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Lucas for President: Take Back America!
Madam Speaker

I have a grave problem with this Bill. Actually, I have a problem with just one line of it.

Quote:
 
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act such sums as are necessary for fiscal years 2014 through 2019.


So for the next 6 years, we are going to sign a blank check, with unlimited appropriations for a program we don't know the cost of? If someone proposed this in the real world, they'd be laughed out the room. The sponsor needs to come up with a cost if this legislation is to be treated seriously.

I yield.
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Edward Kensington
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Madame Speaker,

I echo the concerns of the Congressman from Texas.
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Melissa Sanchez
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Madam Speaker,

I would like to begin by apologizing to the Gentleman from Texas, as I believe I am about to steal some of his usual lines.

Education is primarily a local matter, and secondarily a state matter. It is only from a tertiary point of view a Federal issue. Indeed, it could reasonably be argued that the primary purpose of the Federal Government should be to offset local conditions and ensure that sufficient funding is available on a per student basis.

Therefore, as respectful as I am of the idea, and given how respectful the State of Florida is as it enacted a VPK program several years ago, I truly have to question the need for this bill at such a time.

I yield the floor, but retain the balance of my time.
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Matt Urbana
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Madam Speaker,

I echo the concerns of my colleagues from Texas and Florida and I move to table this bill.

I yield.
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Brewer
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The GOP's Favorite Leech
Madame Speaker,

I second the motion to table.

I yield.
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Heather Holson
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With less than 24 hours left in debate the motion is declared dilatory.
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Heather Holson
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Debate has ended. This bill shall now be moved for a vote.
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