[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1571 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1571
To award grants to local educational agencies and nonprofit
organizations to operate after school programs in certain areas with a
high rate of juvenile crime.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 1, 2025
Mrs. Blackburn (for herself and Ms. Cortez Masto) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To award grants to local educational agencies and nonprofit
organizations to operate after school programs in certain areas with a
high rate of juvenile crime.
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 ``Advancing Frequent and Tailored
Education to Rebuild Safe Communities and Help Orchestrate
Opportunities and Learning Act'' or the ``AFTER SCHOOL Act''.
SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) ESEA terms.--The terms ``local educational agency'' and
``secondary school'' have the meanings given those terms in
section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(2) Eligible applicant.--The term ``eligible applicant''
means an eligible local educational agency or an eligible
nonprofit organization.
(3) Eligible local educational agency.--The term ``eligible
local educational agency'' means a local educational agency
that serves 1 or more secondary schools that are located in a
county in which the juvenile offense rate for the most recent
fiscal year for which data is available was not less than 10
percent.
(4) Eligible nonprofit organization.--The term ``eligible
nonprofit organization'' means an organization described in
section 501(c)(3) and exempt from tax under section 501(a) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that--
(A) has experience in operating an after school
program or similar program for secondary school
students; and
(B) is located in a county in which the juvenile
offense rate for the most recent fiscal year for which
data is available was not less than 10 percent.
(5) Eligible students.--The term ``eligible students''
means students in any of grades 6 through 12.
(6) Juvenile offense rate.--The term ``juvenile offense
rate'' means the percentage of violent offenses committed by
any individual who is not more than 19 years of age as compared
to the total number of violent offenses committed by all age
groups in a given county, as published in the Uniform Crime
Reporting Program of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(b) Program Established.--The Attorney General shall award grants,
in accordance with subsection (c), to eligible applicants that have an
approved application in order to enable those eligible applicants to
provide after school programs for eligible students, as described in
subsection (f).
(c) Formula.--From the total amount made available to carry out
this section, the Attorney General shall allot to each eligible
applicant having an application approved under subsection (e), an
amount that bears the same relationship to that total amount as the
number of eligible students who will be served by such eligible
applicant under this section bears to the number of eligible students
who will be served by all eligible applicants under this section.
(d) Notice of Eligibility.--On the first day of the first fiscal
year beginning after the date of enactment of this Act, and of each
fiscal year thereafter, the Attorney General shall--
(1) determine which counties in the United States had a
juvenile offense rate of not less than 10 percent during the
most recent fiscal year for which data is available;
(2) publish the determination of the Attorney General under
paragraph (1); and
(3) publish an application that eligible applicants seeking
a grant under this section can submit.
(e) Application.--An eligible applicant seeking a grant under this
section shall submit the application described in subsection (d)(3) to
the Attorney General at such time, in such manner, and containing such
information as the Attorney General may require, including--
(1) the juvenile offense rate for the most recent fiscal
year for which data are available for--
(A) if the eligible applicant is an eligible local
educational agency, the county in which 1 or more
secondary schools served by the eligible local
educational agency are located; or
(B) if the eligible applicant is an eligible
nonprofit organization, the county in which the
eligible nonprofit organization is located;
(2) an assurance that the eligible applicant--
(A) if the eligible applicant is an eligible local
educational agency, will carry out the after school
programs or will partner only with an eligible
nonprofit organization to carry out such programs; or
(B) if the eligible applicant is an eligible
nonprofit organization, will carry out the after school
programs; and
(3) information about the activities and frequency of the
after school programs that will be carried out with grant funds
under this section.
(f) Uses of Funds.--
(1) In general.--An eligible applicant that receives a
grant under this section shall use such grant funds to operate
after school programs for eligible students, which may
include--
(A) expanding existing after school programs for
eligible students;
(B) developing and carrying out new after school
programs for eligible students; or
(C) if the eligible applicant is an eligible local
educational agency, partnering with an eligible
nonprofit organization to administer and operate after
school programs for eligible students.
(2) Comprehensive program activities.--An eligible
applicant that receives a grant under this section shall ensure
that the after school programs carried out with grant funds are
programs that--
(A) are held when school is out of session; and
(B) include activities that have an educational
purpose that aim to--
(i) expand learning opportunities,
(ii) foster foundational skill development,
(iii) provide youth leadership
opportunities; and
(iv) provide a safe and supportive
environment.
(g) Reports.--
(1) Eligible applicant reports.--Each eligible applicant
that receives a grant under this section shall submit an annual
report to the Attorney General that describes--
(A) the number of schools served by an after school
program established or maintained using funds under
this section;
(B) the number of children served at each such
school; and
(C) the general successes and vulnerabilities of
the after school programs established or maintained
using funds under this section.
(2) Attorney general report.--Not later than 90 days after
the date as of which the Attorney General has received all the
reports for a year under paragraph (1), the Attorney General
shall submit to Congress a report summarizing the reports
received under that paragraph.
(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2026, 2027, 2028, and 2029, to remain available until expended.
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