To amend part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to provide full Federal funding of such part, to provide an exception to the local maintenance of effort requirements, and for other purposes.

April 29, 2003

Mr. HAGEL (for himself, Mr. HARKIN, Mr. WARNER, Mr. CHAFEE, Ms. COLLINS, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. COLEMAN, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. JEFFORDS, Mr. DODD, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mrs. CLINTON, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. BINGAMAN, and Mr. REED) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

To amend part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to provide full Federal funding of such part, to provide an exception to the local maintenance of effort requirements, and for other purposes.

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 `IDEA Full-Funding Act of 2003'.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO IDEA.

(a) FUNDING- Section 611(j) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1411(j)) is amended to read as follows:

`(j) FUNDING- For the purpose of carrying out this part, other than section 619, there are authorized to be appropriated--

`(1) $10,874,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, and, there are hereby appropriated $2,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2004, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2004 and shall remain available through September 30, 2005;

`(2) $12,874,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, and, there are hereby appropriated $4,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2005 and shall remain available through September 30, 2006;

`(3) $14,874,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, and, there are hereby appropriated $6,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2006, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2006 and shall remain available through September 30, 2007;

`(4) $16,874,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, and, there are hereby appropriated $8,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2007, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2007 and shall remain available through September 30, 2008;

`(5) $18,874,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, and, there are hereby appropriated $10,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2008 and shall remain available through September 30, 2009;

`(6) $20,874,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, and, there are hereby appropriated $12,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2009, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2009 and shall remain available through September 30, 2010;

`(7) $22,874,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, and, there are hereby appropriated $14,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2010 and shall remain available through September 30, 2011;

`(8) $24,635,000,000 or the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2), whichever is lower, for fiscal year 2011, and, there are hereby appropriated $15,761,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2011 and shall remain available through September 30, 2012, except that if the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2) is less than $24,635,000,000, then the amount appropriated in this paragraph shall be reduced by the difference between $24,635,000,000 and the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2);

`(9) $25,329,000,000 or the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2), whichever is lower, for fiscal year 2012, and, there are hereby appropriated $16,455,000,000 for fiscal year 2012, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2012 and shall remain available through September 30, 2013, except that if the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2) is less than $25,329,000,000, then the amount appropriated in this paragraph shall be reduced by the difference between $25,329,000,000 and the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2);

`(10) $26,005,000,000 or the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2), whichever is lower, for fiscal year 2013, and, there are hereby appropriated $17,131,000,000 for fiscal year 2013, which shall become available for obligation on July 1, 2013 and shall remain available through September 30, 2014, except that if the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2) is less than $26,005,000,000, then the amount appropriated in this paragraph shall be reduced by the difference between $26,005,000,000 and the sum of the maximum amounts that all States may receive under subsection (a)(2); and

`(11) such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2014 and each succeeding fiscal year.'.

(b) EXCEPTION TO THE LOCAL MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT REQUIREMENTS- Section 613(a)(2)(B) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1413(a)(2)(B)) is amended to read as follows:

`(B) EXCEPTION- Notwithstanding the restriction in subparagraph (A)(iii), a local educational agency may reduce the level of expenditures, for 1 fiscal year at a time, if--

`(i) the State educational agency determines, and the Secretary agrees, that the local educational agency is in compliance with the requirements of this part during that fiscal year (or, if appropriate, the preceding fiscal year); and

`(ii) such reduction is--

`(I) attributable to the voluntary departure, by retirement or otherwise, or departure for just cause, of special education personnel;

`(II) attributable to a decrease in the enrollment of children with disabilities;

`(III) attributable to the termination of the obligation of the agency, consistent with this part, to provide a program of special education to a particular child with a disability that is an exceptionally costly program, as determined by the State educational agency, because the child--

`(aa) has left the jurisdiction of the agency;

`(bb) has reached the age at which the obligation of the agency to provide a free appropriate public education to the child has terminated; or

`(cc) no longer needs such program of special education;

`(IV) attributable to the termination of costly expenditures for long-term purchases, such as the acquisition of equipment or the construction of school facilities; or

`(V) equivalent to the amount of Federal funding the local educational agency receives under this part for a fiscal year that exceeds the amount the agency received under this part for the preceding fiscal year, but only if these reduced funds are used for any activity that may be funded under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.).'.

(c) REPEAL- Section 613(a)(2) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1413(a)(2)) is further amended--

(1) by striking subparagraph (C);

(2) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as subparagraph (C); and

(3) in subparagraph (A)(iii), by striking `paragraphs (B) and (C)' and inserting `paragraph (B)'.

END