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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7262 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7262
To authorize the Secretary of Education to make payments to State
educational agencies to provide immediate services or assistance to
local educational agencies and non-public schools that serve an area in
which a major disaster or emergency has been declared, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 27, 2026
Mr. Mannion (for himself, Mr. Carter of Louisiana, and Ms. Chu)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Education and Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize the Secretary of Education to make payments to State
educational agencies to provide immediate services or assistance to
local educational agencies and non-public schools that serve an area in
which a major disaster or emergency has been declared, 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 ``Restarting Education After Disasters
Act'' or the ``READ Act''.
SEC. 2. IMMEDIATE AID TO RESTART SCHOOL OPERATIONS.
(a) Payments Authorized.--
(1) In general.--From amounts appropriated to carry out
this section, the Secretary is authorized to make payments, on
such basis as the Secretary determines appropriate, to State
educational agencies to enable such agencies to provide
services or assistance to local educational agencies or non-
public schools serving an area in which a covered disaster or
emergency has been declared.
(2) Enrollment.--In determining the amount to be provided
in payments authorized under paragraph (1), the Secretary
shall--
(A) take into consideration the number of students
who were enrolled, during the school year immediately
preceding the school year in which a covered disaster
or emergency occurred, in elementary schools and
secondary schools that were closed as a result of such
covered disaster or emergency; and
(B) give priority to State educational agencies
serving elementary schools and secondary schools that
were not used for educational instruction for 30 or
more days.
(b) Eligibility, Consideration, and Equity.--
(1) Eligibility and consideration.--From the payment
provided by the Secretary under subsection (a), the State
educational agency shall provide services and assistance to
local educational agencies and non-public schools, consistent
with the provisions of this section. In determining the amount
to be provided for services or assistance under this section,
the State educational agency shall consider the following:
(A) The number of school-aged children served by
the local educational agency or non-public school in
the academic year preceding the academic year for which
the services or assistance are provided.
(B) The severity of the impact of the covered
disaster or emergency on the local educational agency
or nonpublic school and the extent of the needs in each
local educational agency or non-public school that is
in an area in which a covered disaster or emergency has
been declared.
(2) Equity.--Educational services and assistance provided
for eligible non-public school students under paragraph (1)
shall be equitable in comparison to the educational services
and other benefits provided for public school students under
this section, and shall be provided in a timely manner.
(c) Applications.--Each local educational agency or non-public
school desiring services or assistance under this section shall submit
an application to the State educational agency at such time, in such
manner, and accompanied by such information as the State educational
agency may reasonably require to ensure expedited and timely provision
of services or assistance to the local educational agency or non-public
school.
(d) Uses of Funds.--
(1) In general.--A local educational agency or non-public
school receiving services or assistance from the State
educational agency under this section shall use such services
or assistance for--
(A) recovery of student and personnel data, and
other electronic information;
(B) replacement of school district information
systems, including hardware and software;
(C) financial operations;
(D) reasonable transportation costs;
(E) rental of mobile educational units and leasing
of neutral sites or spaces;
(F) initial replacement of instructional materials
and equipment, including textbooks;
(G) redeveloping instructional plans, including
curriculum development;
(H) initiating and maintaining education and
support services;
(I) facility and equipment repairs and minor
renovation of schools; and
(J) such other activities related to the purpose of
this section that are approved by the Secretary.
(2) Use with other available funds.--A local educational
agency or non-public school receiving services or assistance
under this section may use such services or assistance in
coordination with other Federal, State, or local funds
available for the activities described in paragraph (1).
(3) Special rules.--
(A) Prohibition.--Services or assistance provided
under this section shall not be used for construction
or major renovation of schools.
(B) Secular, neutral, and nonideological services
or assistance.--Services or assistance provided under
this section, including equipment and materials, shall
be secular, neutral, and nonideological.
(e) Supplement Not Supplant.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2),
services or assistance made available under this section shall
be used to supplement, not supplant, any funds made available
through the Federal Emergency Management Agency or through a
State.
(2) Exception.--Paragraph (1) shall not prohibit the
provision of Federal assistance under this section to an
eligible State educational agency, local educational agency, or
nonpublic school that is or may be entitled to receive, from
another source, benefits for the same purposes as under this
section if--
(A) such State educational agency, local
educational agency, or school has not received such
other benefits by the time of application for Federal
assistance under this section; and
(B) such State educational agency, local
educational agency, or school agrees to repay all
duplicative Federal assistance received to carry out
the purposes of this section.
(f) Assistance to Non-Public Schools.--
(1) Funds availability.--
(A) In general.--From the payment provided by the
Secretary under subsection (b) to a State educational
agency, the State educational agency shall reserve an
amount of funds, to be made available to non-public
schools in the State, that is not less than an amount
that bears the same relation to the payment as the
number of students in non-public elementary schools and
secondary schools in the State bears to the total
number of students in non-public and public elementary
schools and secondary schools in the State.
(B) Number of schools.--The number of students in
schools described in subparagraph (A) shall be
determined by the National Center for Education
Statistics Common Core of Data for the most recent
school year for which data is available.
(C) Use of funds.--Except as provided in paragraph
(2), the funds reserved under subparagraph (A) shall be
used for the provision of services or assistance at
non-public schools.
(2) Special rule.--If funds reserved under paragraph (1)
remain unobligated 120 days after the date of enactment of this
section, such funds may be used to provide services or
assistance under this section to local educational agencies.
(3) Public control of funds.--The control of funds for the
services and assistance provided to a non-public school under
paragraph (1), and title to materials, equipment, and property
purchased with such funds, shall be in a public agency, and a
public agency shall administer such funds, materials,
equipment, and property and shall provide such services (or may
contract for the provision of such services with a public or
private entity).
(g) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Covered disaster or emergency.--The term ``covered
disaster or emergency'' means a major disaster or emergency
that has been declared--
(A) in accordance with section 401 or 501 of the
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170; 5190); or
(B) by the State served by such State educational
agency, in accordance with State law.
(2) ESEA terms.--The terms ``elementary school'', ``local
educational agency'', ``secondary school'', ``Secretary'', and
``State educational agency'' have the meanings given such terms
in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(3) Non-public school.--The term ``non-public school''
means a non-public elementary school or secondary school that--
(A) is accredited or licensed or otherwise operates
in accordance with State law; and
(B) was in existence on the date that is 1 week
prior to the date that the major disaster or emergency
was declared for the area.
(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $200,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2026 through 2030, to remain available until expended.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
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