[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3663 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3663
To amend the SOAR Act.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 25, 2023
Mr. Moolenaar (for himself and Mr. Sessions) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and
Accountability
_______________________________________________________________________
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 2024
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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