Education

Records whose title is actually about this topic. Use a country filter if the list is still too broad.

1,051 records in US in 2015

Records

Bill· HRH.R. 475 (114th)reported

GI Bill Processing Improvement Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

GI Bill Processing Improvement Act of 2015 Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to alter the information technology system of the Veterans Benefits Administration to ensure that: (1) all claims for post-9/11 educational assistance are electronically adjudicated, to the maximum extent possible; and (2) rule-based processing is used to decide such claims with little human intervention. Changes from July 1, 2015, to July 1, 2016, the effective date of the requirement that the Secretary disapprove, for purposes of the All-Volunteer Force and the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance programs, courses of education provided by a public educational institution of higher education that charges veterans living in the state higher tuition and fees than it charges in-state residents, regardless of the veterans' state of residence. Allows individuals to elect to convert their educational assistance to the post-9/11 veterans' educational assistance program if, as of August 1, 2009, they meet specified conditions with respect to their entitlements and elections under the all-volunteer force educational assistance program or certain other educational programs for professional military, selected reserve, or reserve component members. Conditions such post-9/11 program eligibility on the individual meeting the requirements for the post-9/11 program as of the date of election. Sets forth transitional rules with respect to the transfer or revocation of entitlements from a previous assistance program after an election to convert to the post-9/11 program. Requires certain assistance to remain available to individuals under their previous program if it is not available under the post-9/11 program. Authorizes the Secretary, if an individual submits an election that the Secretary determines is against the interests of the individual, to make an alternative election on the individual's behalf. Allows such individual, during a specified period, to modify or revoke the Secretary's alternative selection. Requires individuals and educational institutions participating in the post-Vietnam era and post-9/11 veterans' educational assistance programs, in addition to those participating in the VA's other educational assistance programs, to report to the Secretary such enrollment and any updates on interruption or termination of the education (thereby making the enrollment reporting requirements for the post-Vietnam and post-9/11 programs consistent with other veterans' educational programs). Defines "educational institution" to permit the inclusion of groups, districts, or consortiums of separately accredited educational institutions in the same state that are organized in a manner facilitating the centralized reporting of enrollments. Directs the Secretary to make available to educational institutions, through an Internet website, information on the amount of educational assistance to which their students are entitled under the all-volunteer force, post-Vietnam era, post-9/11, and survivors' and dependents' educational assistance programs.

Bill· HRH.R. 495 (114th)referred

DIPLOMA Act

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

Developing Innovative Partnerships and Learning Opportunities that Motivate Achievement Act or the DIPLOMA Act Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award renewable five-year grants to states and, through them, subgrants to local consortia that include a local educational agency and other community partners to: (1) ensure the academic, physical, social, emotional, and civic development of disadvantaged youth; and (2) strengthen their families and communities. Requires each state grantee to develop and implement a state child and youth strategy that assesses children's needs and the assets within the state that can be mobilized, coordinated, and integrated to achieve quantifiable progress toward goals that include ensuring that: children are ready for school; students are engaged and achieving in school; students are physically, mentally, socially, and emotionally healthy; schools and neighborhoods are safe and provide a positive climate for learning; families and communities are supportive and engaged in their children's education as equal partners; students are ready for postsecondary education and 21st Century careers; students are contributing to their communities; and students are not chronically absent. Directs the consortia to develop and implement a local child and youth strategy that integrates multiple private and public services into a comprehensive, coordinated continuum of services directed toward achieving quantifiable progress toward such goals. Requires the Secretary to award competitive grants directly to local consortia if appropriated funds fall below a specified amount.

Bill· HRH.R. 497 (114th)referred

Supporting Emotional Learning Act

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

Supporting Emotional Learning Act Amends the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 to require: the National Center for Education Research to carry out research regarding the impact of social and emotional education; the Commissioner for Education Research to support research into social and emotional skills and habits; and comprehensive centers to provide training, professional development, and technical assistance regarding the use of scientifically valid teaching methods and assessment tools in imparting social and emotional life learning. Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require highly qualified teachers to have preparation in the understanding, use, and development of social and emotional learning programming. Defines "social and emotional learning" as the processes through which students acquire and effectively apply: self-awareness and self-management skills to achieve academic and life success; social-awareness and relationship skills to establish and maintain positive relationships; and responsible decisionmaking skills and behavior in personal, school, and community contexts. Requires Teacher Quality Partnership grants to be used in preparing prospective and new teachers and principals to understand, use, and develop social and emotional learning programming. (Teacher Quality Partnership grants are provided to partnerships between high-need local educational agencies [LEAs], their high-need schools, and institutions of higher education [IHEs].) Requires centers of excellence to design teacher training programs that promote the understanding, use, and development of social and emotional learning programming. (Centers of excellence are minority-serving IHEs or partnerships between such IHEs and other IHEs that are awarded grants to ensure that current and future teachers are highly qualified.) Requires Teach to Reach grants to be used to train general education teacher candidates to understand, use, and develop social and emotional learning programming. (Teach to Reach grants are provided to partnerships between IHEs and high-need LEAs to more effectively prepare general education teacher candidates to instruct disabled students in general education classrooms).

Bill· HRH.R. 463 (114th)referred

PRO-LIFE Act

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

Protecting Life in Funding Education Act or the PRO-LIFE Act Amends the General Education Provisions Act to prohibit the provision of federal education funding to state or local educational agencies that make health services available to students through school-based health centers, unless those centers certify that they will not provide students with abortions, abortion-related materials or referrals, or directions to abortion services.

Bill· HRH.R. 476 (114th)open

GI Bill Education Quality Enhancement Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

GI Bill Education Quality Enhancement Act of 2015 Deems specified education programs to be approved for veterans' education benefit purposes if a state approving agency determines that they qualify. Authorizes a state approving agency, or the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) acting in the role of a state approving agency, to approve other accredited programs for such purposes. Continues to allow state approving agencies to establish additional criteria (other than those set forth in current law) for the approval of nonaccredited courses, but requires VA to determine that such criteria are necessary and treat public, private, and proprietary for-profit educational institutions equitably. Prohibits VA from including flight training fees in the in-state tuition and fees at public institutions of higher education (IHEs) that are covered by post-9/11 veterans' educational assistance. Requires post-9/11 veterans' educational assistance for flight training programs at public IHEs to be determined in the same manner as such assistance for education programs pursued at non-public or foreign IHEs is determined. Directs VA to conduct an annual compliance survey of educational institutions and training establishments offering courses approved for veterans' education benefits if at least 20 individuals who are eligible for such benefits are enrolled in any such course. (Currently, an annual compliance survey of each institution offering such courses must be conducted if at least 300 beneficiaries are enrolled or if any such course does not lead to a standard college degree.) Authorizes VA to waive the annual survey for institutions or establishments that have a record of compliance. Requires VA to conduct a biennial survey of each educational institution and training establishment that offers courses approved for veterans' education benefits.

Bill· HRH.R. 520 (114th)referred

Student Job Protection Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

Student Job Protection Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude students who are employed by an institution of higher education (IHE) and carrying what the school considers a full-time academic workload at the IHE from being counted as full-time employees in calculating the IHE's shared responsibility regarding health care coverage under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Bill· HRH.R. 467 (114th)referred

STEM Opportunities Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

STEM Opportunities Act of 2015 Directs the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to provide federal science agencies with guidance on establishing specified policies to accommodate the needs of caregiver researchers who receive their research awards. Requires each federal science agency to annually collect and submit to the National Science Foundation (NSF) institution-level data on demographics, primary field, award type, review rating (as practicable), budget request, funding outcome, and awarded budget for all applications for merit-reviewed research and development grants to institutions of higher education (IHEs) and federal laboratories. Requires NSF to publish a statistical summary of that data. Directs OSTP, in collaboration with NSF, to identify and disseminate to federal science agencies information and best practices useful in educating program officers and members of standing peer review committees at federal science agencies about: (1) research on implicit gender, race, or ethnic bias; and (2) methods to minimize the effect of such bias in federal research grant reviews. Requires federal science agencies to maintain or develop and implement policies and practices to minimize the effects of implicit bias in federal research grant reviews. Directs NSF, within three years of this Act's enactment and at least every five years thereafter, to conduct a survey to collect institution-level data on the demographics of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) faculty, by broad fields of STEM, at different types of IHEs. Requires NSF to publish a statistical summary of that data. Requires NSF to develop written guidance for IHEs on the best practices for: (1) conducting periodic campus culture surveys of STEM departments; and (2) educating STEM faculty and administrators about implicit bias in recruiting, evaluating, and promoting STEM students and faculty. Directs NSF to broadly disseminate that guidance to IHEs that receive federal research funding. Directs OSTP to develop written guidance for federal laboratories to develop and implement practices and policies to: (1) conduct periodic laboratory-wide culture surveys of research personnel at all levels; and (2) educate STEM research personnel about implicit bias in recruiting, evaluating, and promoting researchers at federal laboratories. Requires federal science agencies to maintain or develop and implement such policies for their laboratories. Directs NSF to recommend a uniform policy for federal science agencies to carry out workshops to educate STEM department chairs at IHEs, senior managers at federal laboratories, and other federally funded researchers about methods of minimizing the effects of implicit bias in the career advancement of academic and federal STEM researchers. Requires NSF to award research grants and conduct dissemination activities consistent with this Act's goal of ensuring that federal science agencies and IHE research grant recipients are fully engaging their talent pool. Directs NSF to award competitive grants to IHEs to develop innovative reform efforts designed to increase the recruitment, retention, and advancement of individuals from underrepresented minority groups in academic STEM careers. Requires NSF to award competitive grants to IHEs to implement or expand research-based reforms in undergraduate STEM education to recruit and retain minority students who are underrepresented in STEM fields, with a priority focus on the natural science and engineering fields. Requires each grant to include an education research component so that reform efforts can be evaluated and, if shown to be effective, replicated to improve the participation of minority students in STEM fields at other schools.

Bill· SS. 243 (114th)referred

ACE Act

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

Allocating for Children's Education Act or the ACE Act Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to Coverdale education savings accounts, to: (1) increase from $2,000 to $5,000 the maximum allowable contribution to such accounts in a taxable year, and (2) allow distributions from such accounts for the purchase of athletic equipment at elementary and secondary schools. 

Bill· HRH.R. 509 (114th)referred

Student Loan Interest Deduction Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015

Student Loan Interest Deduction Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) increase the maximum tax deduction for interest paid on any qualified education loan to $5,000 ($10,000 for married couples filing a joint tax return), and (2) repeal the limitation on such deduction based upon modified adjusted gross income.

Bill· SS. 227 (114th)referred

Strengthening Education through Research Act

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Strengthening Education through Research Act Amends the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA) to require the Secretary of Education, in collecting information and data under that Act, to not duplicate other reporting requirements and to use information and data available from existing federal, state, and local sources to reduce the burden and cost to the Department of Education (ED), states, and local educational agencies (LEAs). TITLE I--EDUCATION SCIENCES REFORM Amends the ESRA to require: (1) the mission of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) to include providing national leadership in expanding fundamental knowledge and understanding of adult education, and (2) IES activities to be free of disability bias. Allows the IES to accept requests from the Secretary of Education to administer activities other than those assigned to it, provided they are consistent with the IES's priorities or mission. Allows a Director of the IES (Director) to be appointed to one additional six-year term in office. Adds to the Director's duties: (1) coordinating IES research activities with the education research activities of public and private entities, and (2) coordinating with the Secretary to ensure that IES results are coordinated with and utilized by ED's technical assistance providers and dissemination networks. Requires the Director to establish and maintain a peer-review system to review and evaluate applications for grants or cooperative agreements, IES reports, and other products. Requires the Director to: ensure that IES activities address significant challenges faced by practitioners and increase knowledge in the education field; ensure that the IES information, products, and publications are prepared and widely disseminated in a timely, understandable, and convenient manner; promote the utilization of IES information, products, and publications; and monitor and manage all activities authorized under the ESRA. Requires the Director to propose the IES's priorities to the National Board for Education Sciences (Board) at least once every six years. Includes among those priorities: closing the achievement gap between disabled and nondisabled students; improving access to and the quality of early childhood education; improving elementary and secondary education, particularly among low-performing students and schools; and improving access to, opportunities for, and the completion of postsecondary education and adult education. Adds to the Board's duties: providing ongoing advice and input to the Director on IES activities, providing advice to the Director on ensuring that IES activities are free of disability bias, ensuring that IES activities are relevant to education policy and practice by soliciting ongoing advice and information from those in the education field, recommending to the Director ways to enhance strategic partnerships and collaborative efforts with public and private entities, and issuing a report every five years assessing IES effectiveness. Makes the Board independent of the Director and the other offices and officers of the IES. Provides that the Executive Director of the Board is to be appointed by the Board for a term of up to six years and may be reappointed for an additional term. Provides that the Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, like the Commissioners of the other National Education Centers, is to be appointed by the Director and serve under the Director's supervision. Requires the National Center for Education Research (Research Center) to: (1) conduct research that is consistent with IES priorities, and (2) widely disseminate and promote the utilization of its work. Adds to the Research Center's duties conducting research on: (1) follow-up questions provoked by previous research, (2) the impact of technology on education, and (3) the quality of the implementation of practices and strategies determined to be effective through scientifically valid research. Authorizes the Research Commissioner to award grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, applicants that have the ability and capacity to conduct scientifically valid research. Eliminates: (1) the requirement that the Research Commissioner support at least eight national research and development centers, and (2) the list of research topics eligible for support. Requires research conducted or supported by the Research Center to be disaggregated and cross-tabulated by age, race, gender, disability status, English learner status, socioeconomic background, and other population characteristics as determined by the Research Commissioner, so long as any reported information does not reveal individually identifiable information. Directs the National Center for Education Statistics (Statistics Center) to collect, analyze, and report education information and statistics in a manner that is: (1) consistent with the ESRA's privacy protections; (2) free of disability bias; and (3) relevant, timely, and widely disseminated. Adds to the data the Statistics Center is to collect and disseminate. Requires the Statistics Center to provide technical assistance to states in developing statewide longitudinal data systems that link individual student data and protect student privacy to improve student academic achievement and close achievement gaps. Directs the Statistics Commissioner to develop and implement a plan for Statistic Center activities that is consistent with the priorities of the IES and subject to appropriate modifications. Authorizes the Statistics Commissioner to renew grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements for up to two years if the recipients demonstrate progress on the requirements of the ESRA's performance measurement system. Requires the joint statistical projects the Statistic Center carries out with nonprofit entities to adhere to the ESRA's student privacy requirements. Requires federal agencies and other parties seeking access to educational data from the Statistics Center to describe their research-related need for such data and how the data will be protected from misuse or privacy violations. Authorizes the Statistics Center to deny requests for access to its data if such data would: (1) be unnecessary for, or unrelated to, the proposed research; or (2) introduce the risk that the data would be misused or used to violate privacy rights. Renames "national cooperative education statistics systems" as "cooperative education statistics partnerships" between the Statistics Center and states that volunteer to participate and requires the partnerships to review and improve data quality standards. Prohibits the partnerships from collecting student data or establishing a national student data system. Requires the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance to evaluate the impact and implementation of federal education programs administered by the Secretary. Authorizes the Evaluation and Regional Assistance Commissioner o: (1) award grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements on a competitive basis for up to five years and renew them for up to two years if the recipients demonstrate progress on the requirements of the ESRA's performance measurement system; and (2) establish a National Library of Education within the Center. Requires the Center to: examine evaluations conducted or supported by others, with the Director's approval; review and supplement federal education program evaluations; conduct implementation evaluations that promote continuous improvement and inform policymaking; evaluate the effects and cost efficiencies of federal education programs; and synthesize the results of evaluation studies for and across federal education programs, policies, and practices. Requires the Evaluation Commissioner to enter into grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements with public or private, nonprofit or for-profit research organizations, other organizations, or institutions of higher education (IHEs) to establish a networked system of 10 regional educational laboratories that serve the needs of each region of the United States. Authorizes the Evaluation Commissioner to determine that establishing 10 regional educational laboratories is unnecessary and grant an alternative number of awards or reorganize such laboratories. Requires each regional educational laboratory to: (1) conduct applied research, development, data analysis, and evaluation activities with states, local educational agencies (LEAs), and Indian schools; (2) widely disseminate such work; and (3) develop the capacity of states, LEAs, and Indian schools to carry out such activities. Directs the Evaluation and Regional Assistance Commissioner to conduct ongoing summative and interim evaluations of each of the regional educational laboratories. Adds to the duties of the National Center for Special Education Research: examining the participation and outcomes of disabled students in secondary and postsecondary career and technical education programs; assisting the Board in the preparation and dissemination of the report evaluating the effectiveness of the IES; examining the needs of disabled children who are English learners, who are gifted and talented, or who have other unique learning needs; and examining innovations in the special education field, such as multi-tiered systems of support. Authorizes the Special Education Research Commissioner to award grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements on a competitive basis for up to five years and renew them for up to two years if the recipients demonstrate progress on the requirements of the ESRA's performance measurement system. Directs the Special Education Research Center to synthesize, disseminate, and promote the utilization of the special education research it conducts or supports. Prohibits the use of IES funding to endorse, approve, or sanction any curriculum designed to be used in early education or in an elementary school, secondary school, or IHE. Allows IES data to disclose information regarding individual schools so long as no individually identifiable information is disclosed. Subjects IES volunteers or those who provide the IES with uncompensated services to punishment for privacy violations. Requires IES data to be made available to the public through electronic means. Requires the Director to establish a performance management system to promote the continuous improvement of activities authorized under the ESRA and ensure the effective use of federal funds. Requires the Director to provide the Secretary and other relevant offices with an advance copy of IES publications before their public release. Reauthorizes appropriations for activities under the ESRA through FY2021. TITLE II--EDUCATIONAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Amends the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 (ETAA) to direct the Secretary to award up to 17 competitive grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements to establish comprehensive centers to provide states and LEAs with technical assistance, analysis, and training to build their capacity to implement federal educational laws and research-based practices. Authorizes the Secretary to determine that establishing 17 comprehensive centers is unnecessary and grant an alternative number of awards or reorganize such centers. Directs the Secretary to establish at least one comprehensive center for each of the 10 geographic regions served by the regional educational laboratories established under the Educational Research, Development, Dissemination, and Improvement Act of 1994. Allows the Secretary to establish additional comprehensive centers serving one or more of those regions or the nation as a whole. Includes in the training, professional development, and technical assistance provided by comprehensive centers the replication and adaptation of exemplary practices and innovative methods that have an evidence base of effectiveness. Requires the Secretary to provide for an interim and summative evaluation of each comprehensive center. Repeals the requirement that the Secretary establish a regional advisory committee for each region served by a regional educational laboratory. Requires the Director and the Secretary to establish priorities for the regional educational laboratories and comprehensive centers using the results of relevant regional and national surveys of educational needs. Allows states that receive competitive grants to design, develop, and implement statewide, longitudinal data systems to provide subgrants to LEAs for their role in those activities. Requires the Secretary, before awarding such grants, to establish measurable performance indicators for use in assessing the ongoing progress and performance of state grantees in designing, developing, and implementing those systems. Authorizes the Secretary to renew such grants for up to three years if the state demonstrates progress on the measurable performance indicators. Reauthorizes appropriations for activities under the ETAA through FY2021. TITLE III--NATIONAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS Amends the National Assessment of Educational Progress Authorization Act (NAEPA) to require the National Assessment Governing Board (Assessment Board) to oversee and set policies for the National Assessment of Educational Progress consistent with its duties and accepted professional standards. Directs the Secretary to fill vacancies on the Assessment Board from among individuals who are nominated by the Assessment Board. Directs the Assessment Board, in selecting the subject areas to be assessed, to select the grades or ages being assessed and the year in which such assessments will be conducted. Directs the Assessment Board to provide input to the Director on annual budget requests for the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Directs the Statistics Commissioner to carry out such Assessment in a manner consistent with accepted professional standards and the policies set forth by the Assessment Board. Adds to the Statistics Commissioner's duties determining the content of initial and subsequent National Assessment of Educational Progress reports and ensuring their validity and reliability. Requires LEAs participating in the school improvement program under part A of title I of the ESEA to participate in the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Eliminates the option allowing the Assessment Board to develop appropriate achievement levels for each age, rather than grade level, for each subject area being tested. Directs the Assessment Board to use a national consensus approach in establishing the appropriate student achievement levels. Reauthorizes appropriations for activities under the NAEPA through FY2021. TITLE IV--EVALUATION PLAN Requires the IES to be the primary entity for conducting research on and evaluations of federal education programs within ED to ensure the rigor and independence of such research and evaluations. Authorizes the Secretary to reserve and consolidate specified percentages of funds from ESEA programs to: (1) carry out high-quality evaluations of programs authorized under the ESEA, (2) increase the usefulness of those evaluations or assist ESEA program grantees in collecting and analyzing data and other activities related to the evaluations. Prohibits the Secretary from being required to evaluate each ESEA program each year. Requires the Secretary or the Director to disseminate the findings from such evaluations.

Bill· SS. 209 (114th)referred

Indian Tribal Energy Development and Self-Determination Act Amendments of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Indian Tribal Energy Development and Self-Determination Act Amendments of 2015 Amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to direct the Department of the Interior to provide Indian tribes with technical assistance in planning their energy resource development programs. Makes intertribal organizations eligible for Department of Energy (DOE) Indian energy education planning and management assistance program grants. Makes tribal energy development organizations eligible for DOE energy development loan guarantees. Allows leases and business agreements that pool, unitize, or communitize a tribe's energy resources with other energy resources. Requires an energy-related tribal lease, business agreement, or grant of a right-of-way made without Interior's approval to comply with a tribal energy resource agreement between the tribe and Interior, unless it is a lease with a tribal energy development organization that Interior has certified. Alters the process and conditions for Interior's approval of tribal energy resource agreements. Alters the process for determining whether an interested party has a valid claim to be suffering an adverse environmental impact due to a tribe's noncompliance with such agreement. Directs DOE to collaborate with the Directors of the National Laboratories in making the full array of DOE technical and scientific resources available for tribal energy activities and projects. Amends the Federal Power Act to include Indian tribes, along with states and municipalities, as having preference for the receipt of preliminary hydroelectric licenses. Amends the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 to direct Interior, for land under Bureau of Land Management jurisdiction, or the Department of Agriculture, for land under Forest Service jurisdiction, to enter into agreements with Indian tribes and Alaska Native corporations for the conduct of demonstration projects to promote biomass energy production on Indian forest land and in nearby communities by providing them with reliable supplies of woody biomass from federal lands. Amends the Energy Conservation and Production Act to prescribe requirements for direct home weatherization grants to Indian tribes upon request when low-income Indian beneficiaries would not be better served if the grant went to their state. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to allow Interior, an affected Indian tribe, or a certified third-party appraiser under contract with the Indian tribe to appraise Indian mineral or energy resources involved in a transaction requiring Interior's approval. Amends the Long-Term Leasing Act to authorize the Navajo Nation to enter into commercial or agricultural leases of up to 99 years on their restricted lands without Interior approval. Allows the Navajo Nation to enter into 25-year (renewable) mineral resource leases on its restricted lands without Interior's approval if they are executed under approved tribal regulations. Limits oil and gas leases to terms of up to 10 years if oil or gas is being produced in a paying quantity. Allows the Crow Tribe of Montana to enter into leases on its restricted land for a term of up to 99 years. Requires that any advance payments, bid deposits, or other earnest money received by Interior, subject to a certain restriction, in connection with the review and approval of a sale, lease, permit, or any other conveyance of any interest in any trust or restricted land of any Indian tribe or individual Indian, upon request by the tribe or individual Indian, to be held in the trust fund system, upon receipt and before contract or instrument approval, for the benefit of the Indian tribe and individual Indian from whose land the funds were generated.

Bill· SS. 205 (114th)referred

Trafficking Awareness Training for Health Care Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Trafficking Awareness Training for Health Care Act of 2015 Requires the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to award one medical or nursing school a grant to develop best practices for health care professionals to recognize and respond appropriately to victims of severe forms of human trafficking. Requires the grantee to: (1) develop methods or materials to train health care professionals on best practices, (2) make a subgrant to one entity in each of the 10 administrative regions of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to create a pilot program to test the best practices and training, and (3) analyze the results of the pilot programs and determine which best practices are evidence-based. Directs HHS to disseminate evidence-based best practices on their website and to health care profession schools.

Bill· HRH.R. 452 (114th)referred

Student Testing Improvement and Accountability Act

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Student Testing Improvement and Accountability Act Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to eliminate the requirement that students be tested against state academic content and achievement standards in mathematics and reading or language arts in each of grades three through eight. Requires, instead, that those tests be administered at least once during: (1) grades 3 through 5, (2) grades 6 through 9, and (3) grades 10 through 12.

Bill· HRH.R. 456 (114th)open

Reducing Barriers for Veterans Education Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Reducing Barriers for Veterans Education Act of 2015 Makes an individual who is eligible for educational assistance under the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance program eligible for assistance with the fees for applying to institutions of higher education (IHEs). Sets the amount of such assistance payable to an individual at the lesser of: (1) the total application fees charged to the individual by the IHEs, or (2) $750.

Bill· HRH.R. 444 (114th)referred

Expanding Care for Veterans Act

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Expanding Care for Veterans Act Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to develop a plan to expand the scope of VA's research and education on, and delivery and integration of, complementary and alternative medicine services. Requires the Secretary to carry out, through VA's Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation, a three-year program to: (1) assess the feasibility and advisability of integrating the delivery of complementary and alternative medicine services selected by the Secretary with other VA health care services for veterans, and (2) identify and resolve barriers to providing such services and integrating them with other VA health services. Requires such program to be conducted, at not fewer than 15 VA medical centers, by integrating the provision of complementary and alternative medicine services with other VA health care services provided to veterans who have a mental health condition, experience chronic pain, or have a chronic condition. Requires veterans' participation to be voluntary. Directs the Secretary to contract with a qualified independent entity for comprehensive studies of the barriers encountered by veterans in receiving, and by administrators and clinicians in providing, complementary and alternative medicine services through VA. Provides for the conduct of such studies through surveys of veterans and VA administrators and clinicians. Requires the Secretary to carry out a three-year program awarding grants to public or private nonprofit entities to assess the feasibility and advisability of using wellness programs to complement the provision of mental health care to veterans and family members who are eligible for readjustment counseling from VA.

Bill· HRH.R. 453 (114th)referred

Healthy Relationships Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Healthy Relationships Act of 2015 This bill authorizes the Health Resources and Services Administration to award grants for qualified sexual risk avoidance education for youth and their parents. The unambiguous message that postponing sexual activity is the optimal sexual health behavior for youth must be the primary emphasis and context for each topic covered by the education. The education must be age appropriate, medically accurate, and evidence based. The education must address specified topics, including: the benefits associated with personal responsibility, success sequencing (sequential progression through: completing school, securing a job, and marrying before bearing children), goal setting, healthy decision making, and a focus on the future; the research-based advantage of reserving sexual activity for marriage; the skills needed to resist the pervasive, sex-saturated culture; the foundational components of healthy relationships; and how to avoid sexual coercion, dating violence, and risk behaviors, such as drugs, alcohol, and the misuse of social media. Priority in awarding grants must be given to programs serving youth in middle school and high school that will promote parent-child communication regarding healthy sexual decision making.

Resolution· HCONRESH.Con.Res. 8 (114th)referred

Supporting the goals and ideals of No Name-Calling Week in bringing attention to name-calling of all kinds and providing schools with the tools and inspiration to launch an on-going dialogue about ways to eliminate name-calling and bullying in their communities.

United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015

Expresses support for the goals and ideals of No Name-Calling Week.

Bill· HRH.R. 408 (114th)referred

SMART Act

United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2015

Support Making Assessments Reliable and Timely Act or the SMART Act Amends subpart 1 (Accountability) of part A of title VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to revise the program allotting grants to states to develop and administer state academic content and achievement standards and assessments of student progress toward those standards. Requires each state to use such grant to: develop and administer such assessments and further align them with the state's academic content standards, ensure that students with limited English proficiency and disabled students are provided with appropriate accommodations to improve their inclusion in the assessments, develop state assessment systems aligned to content standards that support systems of continuous improvement, support local educational agencies (LEAs) in identifying uses of assessment data, and carry out certain other activities to improve the quality and use of state assessments. Revises the program awarding competitive grants to states to enhance assessment instruments. Requires each grantee that has not yet received a grant under such program to use the grant to: carry out audits of the state assessment system and ensure that LEAs carry out audits of local assessments; prepare and carry out a state plan, in coordination with LEAs, to improve and streamline state and local assessment systems; and award subgrants to LEAs to improve the quality and use of local assessments and their alignment with state academic content standards. Requires a state that has previously received such a grant to use a new grant to: carry out a state plan, in coordination with LEAs, to improve and streamline state and local assessment systems; and award subgrants to LEAs to improve the quality and use of local assessments and their alignment with state academic content standards. Directs the Secretary to provide technical assistance to states to improve their understanding of existing flexibility in the design and implementation of high-quality, streamlined state assessment systems to measure student progress toward state academic achievement standards. Reauthorizes appropriations for the National Assessment of Educational Progress and the revised subpart 1 grant programs.

Bill· SS. 197 (114th)referred

SMART Act

United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2015

Resolution· SRESS.Res. 30 (114th)passed

A resolution designating the week of January 25 through January 31, 2015, as "National School Choice Week".

United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2015

Designates the week of January 25-January 31, 2015, as National School Choice Week. Encourages all parents, during such Week, to learn more about the education options available to them.

Bill· SS. 195 (114th)referred

401(Kids) Education Savings Account Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2015

401(Kids) Education Savings Account Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) eliminate after 2015 the income-based reduction of contributions to Coverdell education savings accounts, (2) increase the annual contribution limit for such accounts, (3) allow the use of such an account to pay home school expenses and the acquisition costs of a first-time homebuyer, and (4) allow tax-free rollovers of amounts in a Coverdell education savings account to a Roth individual retirement account.

Bill· SS. 191 (114th)referred

Educating Tomorrow's Workforce Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2015

Educating Tomorrow's Workforce Act of 2015 Amends the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 to revise the requirements for the plan of a state seeking federal assistance for career and technical education programs. Requires the state plan to describe how the eligible state agency will ensure the quality of any program of study culminating in an industry-recognized certificate, credential, or license. Requires state agency leadership activities to support career academies which: implement a college and career ready curriculum at the secondary education level integrating rigorous academic, technical, and employability contents; include experiential or work-based learning for secondary school students, in collaboration with local and regional employers; include opportunities for secondary school students to earn postsecondary credit while in secondary school; and establish and maintain ongoing partnerships between the local educational agency, business and industry, and institutions of higher education, or postsecondary vocational institutions, including local government. Requires the local plan for career and technical education programs to describe: (1) how the eligible recipient of assistance will assess local needs related to career and technical education as part of the local plan development process, and (2) how this needs assessment will be updated annually, especially on progress toward specific elements leading to high-quality implementation of career and technical education programs of study. Authorizes the local use of funds for improving such programs to support career academies.

Bill· HRH.R. 398 (114th)referred

Trafficking Awareness Training for Health Care Act of 2015

United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2015

Bill· SS. 181 (114th)referred

Startup Act

United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2015

Startup Act Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to adjust to conditional permanent resident status up to 50,000 aliens who have earned a master's or doctorate degree in a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics field (STEM field) and permit such an alien to remain in the United States: (1) for up to one year after the expiration of the alien's student visa, if the alien is searching for STEM field employment; and (2) indefinitely if the alien remains actively engaged in a STEM field. Removes a STEM alien's conditional status after five years of maintaining eligibility during the entire five-year period. Authorizes the Secretary to issue conditional immigrant visas to up to 75,000 qualified alien entrepreneurs. Removes such conditional basis after four years of maintaining qualified entrepreneur status. Eliminates the per-country numerical limitation for employment-based visas. Increases the per country numerical limitation for family based immigrants from 7% to 15% of the total number of family-sponsored visas. Amends the Chinese Student Protection Act of 1992 to eliminate the provision requiring the reduction of annual People's Republic of China immigrant visas to offset status adjustments under such Act. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) provide a permanent full tax exclusion on gain from the sale or exchange of qualified small business stock held for more than five years, (2) repeal the minimum tax preference and the 28% capital gains rate on such stock, and (3) provide a limited tax credit for certain startup small businesses. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to use certain federal agency extramural budget funds to award grants to institutions of higher education for initiatives to improve commercialization and transfer of technology. Requires the head of any federal or independent regulatory agency, before issuing a notice of rule making in connection with the issuance of a proposed major rule, to complete a review that, among other things, analyzes the problem that the rule intends to address, and identifies and analyzes the rule's expected impact on state, local, and tribal governments, as well as on the ability of new businesses to form and expand. Requires a cost-benefit analysis before rule issuance. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to regularly compile: (1) information from each of the states and the District of Columbia on laws that affect the formation and growth of new businesses, and (2) quantitative and qualitative information on U.S. businesses that are not more than one year old.

Bill· SS. 182 (114th)referred

LOCAL Level Act

United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2015

Learning Opportunities Created At Local Level Act or the LOCAL Level Act Expresses the sense of Congress that state and local prerogatives over elementary and secondary education need to be preserved. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to prohibit any federal officer or employee from directly or indirectly, through grants, contracts, or other cooperative agreements under the ESEA: mandating, directing, or controlling a state's, local educational agency's (LEA's), or school's specific instructional content, academic standards, assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction; incentivizing such an entity's adoption of any specific instructional content, academic standards, assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction; mandating a state or any subdivision thereof to spend any funds or incur any costs not paid for under the ESEA; or conditioning the availability of financial support on a state's, LEA's, or school's adoption of any specific instructional content, academic standards, assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction, even if such conditions are specified under any other Act. Prohibits any funds provided to the Department of Education under the ESEA from being used by the Department directly or indirectly, through grants, contracts, or other cooperative agreements, to endorse, approve, develop, require, or sanction any elementary or secondary school curriculum. Prohibits conditioning any state's receipt of ESEA assistance on the approval or certification of its academic standards by the federal government. Includes in the prohibition against the use of ESEA funds on federally sponsored testing and testing materials such use on any assessment or testing materials aligned to the Common Core State Standards or any other academic standards common to a significant number of states. Prohibits the use of Race to the Top funds, provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, on such aligned assessment or testing materials.

Bill· HRH.R. 375 (114th)referred