Senate Completes Consideration of Education Bill

On July 16, the Senate passed, 81-17, the Every Child Achieves Act (S. 1177). The Senate began its consideration of the legislation last week (see The Source, 7/10/15); the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee approved the measure on April 16 (see The Source, 4/17/15).

The bill would reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (P.L. 107-110), also known as No Child Left Behind, and give states, local governments, and school districts increased autonomy over education standards and systems.

The House approved its version of the legislation, the Student Success Act (H.R. 5), on July 8 (see The Source, 7/10/15).

During its consideration of the bill, the Senate adopted the following amendments:

• An amendment by Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) to provide additional support for family engagement programs;
• An amendment by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) to encourage increasing the amount of funds available for parent and family engagement;
• An amendment by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) to allow states to use Pay for Success Initiatives to improve the quality and coordination of the state’s system of early learning and care services; and
• An amendment by Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) to establish a federal-state partnership to provide access to high-quality public pre-kindergarten programs from low-income and moderate-income families.