Sec. 2. Findings and sense of Congress
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Congress finds the following: Section 9527 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 7907 ), as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, prohibits the Federal Government from mandating, directing, or controlling a State, local educational agency, or school's curriculum, program of instruction, or allocation of State and local resources, and from mandating a State or any subdivision thereof to spend any funds or incur any costs not paid for under such Act.
Section 9529 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 7909 ), as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, prohibits the Federal Government from funding the development, pilot testing, field testing, implementation, administration, or distribution of any Federally sponsored national test in reading, mathematics, or any other subject, unless specifically and explicitly authorized by law. Despite these prohibitions, the Secretary of Education, through 3 separate initiatives, has created a system of waivers and grants that influence, incentivize, and coerce State educational agencies into implementing common national elementary and secondary school standards and assessments endorsed by the Secretary.
The Race to the Top Fund, as established by the Secretary of Education under sections 14005 and 14006 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–5, 123 Stat. 282), encouraged and incentivized States to adopt the Common Core State Standards developed by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and the Council of Chief State School Officers. The Race to the Top assessment grants awarded to the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) and Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SMARTER Balance) initiated the development of assessments aligned with the Common Core State Standards that will, in turn, inform and ultimately influence kindergarten through grade 12 curriculum and instructional materials.
The conditions imposed by the Secretary of Education through the flexibility waiver authority provided to the Secretary pursuant to section 9401 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 7861 ) have coerced States into accepting Common Core State Standards and assessments aligned with such Standards. It is the sense of Congress that— States and local educational agencies should maintain the rights and responsibilities of determining educational curricula, programs of instruction, and assessments for elementary and secondary education; and States are sovereign entities that deserve deep and abiding respect from the Federal Government, and State legislatures have a responsibility to their citizens to resist Federal encroachment on the constitutional autonomy of States regarding education.
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- Pub. L. 111-5
- 123 Stat. 282
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Sec. 2
Findings and sense of Congress
Pub. L.Pub. L. 111-5
Stat.123 Stat. 282
Cites 5Cited by 0 across 0 sources