,,ii #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #ajif ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #d1 #bjac ,mr4 ,baucus 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,rockefeller1 and ,ms4 ,collins7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to establish an ,office of ,rural ,education ,policy in the ,department of ,education4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,office of ,rural ,education ,policy ,act4 #b4 ,findings and purposes 7a7 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,secretary of ,education has recognized that rural schools have unique challenges and benefits1 but a recent report by the ,rural ,school and ,community ,trust refers to the paucity of rural education research in the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,rural education is becoming an increasingly large and important part of the ,united ,states public school system4 ,according to the ,digest of ,education ,statistics reported annually by the ,national ,center for ,education ,statistics1 the number of students attending rural schools increased by more than #aa percent1 from #aj1ejj1jjj to nearly #aa1gjj1jjj1 between the #bjjd-bjje and #bjjh-bjji school years4 ,the share of the ,nation's public school enrollment attending rural schools increased from #ba4f percent to #bc4h percent4 ,in school year #bjjh-bjji1 these students attended #ca1fce rural schools1 nearly one-third of all schools in the ,united ,states4 7#c7 ,despite the overall growth of rural education1 rural students represent a demographic minority in all but #c ,states1 according to the ,national ,center for ,education ,statistics4 7#d7 ,rural education is becoming increasingly diverse4 ,according to the ,national ,center for ,education ,statistics1 the increase in rural enrollment between the #bjjd-bjje and #bjjh-bjji school years was disproportionally among students of color4 ,enrollment of children of color in rural schools increased by #ca percent1 and the proportion of students enrolled in rural schools who are children of color increased from #bc4j to #bf4e percent4 ,more than one-third of rural students in #ab ,states are children of color1 according to research by the ,rural ,school and ,community ,trust 7,why ,rural ,matters #bjji74 7#e7 ,rural education is varied and diverse across the ,nation4 ,in school year #bjjg-bjjh1 the national average rate of student poverty in rural school districts1 as measured by the rate of participation in federally subsidized meals programs1 was #ci4a percent1 but ranged from #i4g percent in ,connecticut to #ga4i percent in ,new ,mexico1 according to the ,national ,center for ,education ,statistics4 7#f7 ,even policy measures intended to help rural schools can have unintended consequences4 ,in awarding competitive grants under the ,investing in ,innovation ,fund program under section #adjjg of the ,american ,recovery and ,reinvestment ,act of #bjji 7,public ,law #aaa-e71 the ,secretary of ,education attempted to encourage and support rural applicants by providing additional points for proposals to serve at least #a rural local educational agency4 ,but according to research by the ,rural ,school and ,community ,trust 7,taking ,advantage1 #bjaj71 this rural preference mainly had the effect of inducing urban applicants to include rural participation merely in order to gain additional scoring points for primarily urban projects4 7#g7 ,rural schools generally utilize distance education more often for both students and teachers4 ,a fall #bjjh survey of public schools by the ,national ,center for ,education ,statistics found that rural schools were #a times more likely to provide students access for online distance learning than schools in cities4 ,a ,september #bjjd study from the ,government ,accountability ,office reported that rural school districts used distance learning for teacher training more often than non-rural school districts4 7#h7 ,the ,national ,center for ,education ,statistics reports that base salaries of both the lowest and highest paid teachers are lower in rural schools than any other community type4 7b7 ,purposes ,the purposes of this ,act are-- 7#a7 to establish an ,office of ,rural ,education ,policy in the ,department of ,education2 and 7#b7 to provide input to the ,secretary of ,education regarding the impact of proposed changes in law1 regulations1 policies1 rules1 and budgets on rural schools and communities4 #c4 ,establishment of ,office of ,rural ,education ,policy 7a7 ,in general ,title ,,ii of the ,department of ,education ,organization ,act 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #cdaa et seq47 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #bba4 ,office of ,rural ,education ,policy 7a7 ,in general ,there shall be1 in the ,office of ,elementary and ,secondary ,education of the ,department1 an ,office of ,rural ,education ,policy 7referred to in this section as the ,office74 7b7 ,director2 duties 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,office shall be headed by a ,director1 who shall advise the ,secretary on the characteristics and needs of rural schools and the effects of current policies and proposed statutory1 regulatory1 administrative1 and budgetary changes on ,state educational agencies1 and local educational agencies1 that serve schools with a locale code of #cb1 #cc1 #da1 #db1 or #dc1 as determined by the ,secretary4 7#b7 ,additional duties of the ,director ,in addition to advising the ,secretary with respect to the matters described in paragraph 7#a71 the ,director of the ,office of ,rural ,education ,policy 7referred to in this section as the ,director71 through the ,office1 shall-- 7,a7 establish and maintain a clearinghouse for collecting and disseminating information on-- 7i7 teacher and principal recruitment and retention at rural elementary schools and rural secondary schools2 7ii7 access to1 and implementation and use of1 technology and distance learning at such schools2 7iii7 rigorous coursework delivery through distance learning at such schools2 7iv7 student achievement at such schools1 including the achievement of low-income and minority students2 7v7 innovative approaches in rural education to increase student achievement2 7vi7 higher education and career readiness and secondary school completion of students enrolled in such schools2 7vii7 access to1 and quality of1 early childhood development for children located in rural areas2 7viii7 access to1 or partnerships with1 community-based organizations in rural areas2 7ix7 the availability of professional development opportunities for rural teachers and principals2 7x7 the availability of ,federal and other grants and assistance that are specifically geared or applicable to rural schools2 and 7xi7 the financing of such schools2 7,b7 identify innovative research and demonstration projects on topics of importance to rural elementary schools and rural secondary schools1 including gaps in such research1 and recommend such topics for study by the ,institute of ,education ,sciences and other research agencies2 7,c7 coordinate the activities within the ,department that relate to rural education2 7,d7 provide information to the ,secretary and others in the ,department with respect to the activities of other ,federal departments and agencies that relate to rural education1 including activities relating to rural housing1 rural agricultural services1 rural transportation1 rural economic development1 rural career and technical training1 rural health care1 rural disability services1 and rural mental health2 7,e7 coordinate with the ,bureau of ,indian ,education1 the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs1 the ,department of the ,interior1 and the schools administered by such agencies regarding rural education2 7,f7 provide1 directly or through grants1 cooperative agreements1 or contracts1 technical assistance and other activities as necessary to support activities related to improving education in rural areas2 and 7,g7 produce an annual report on the condition of rural education that is delivered to the members of the ,education and the ,workforce ,committee of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,committee of the ,senate and published on the ,department's ,web site4 7c7 ,impact analyses of rules and regulations on rural schools 7#a7 ,proposed rulemaking ,whenever the ,secretary publishes a general notice of proposed rulemaking for any rule or regulation that may have a significant impact on ,state educational agencies or local educational agencies serving schools with a locale code of #cb1 #cc1 #da1 #db1 or #dc1 as determined by the ,secretary1 the ,secretary 7acting through the ,director7 shall prepare and make available for public comment an initial regulatory impact analysis4 ,such analysis shall describe the impact of the proposed rule or regulation on such ,state educational agencies and local educational agencies and shall set forth1 with respect to such agencies1 the matters required under section #fjc of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 to be set forth with respect to small entities4 ,the initial regulatory impact analysis 7or a summary7 shall be published in the ,federal ,register at the time of the publication of general notice of proposed rulemaking for the rule or regulation4 7#b7 ,final rule ,whenever the ,secretary promulgates a final version of a rule or regulation with respect to which an initial regulatory impact analysis is required by paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary 7acting through the ,director7 shall prepare a final regulatory impact analysis with respect to the final version of such rule or regulation4 ,such analysis shall set forth1 with respect to ,state educational agencies and local educational agencies serving schools with a locale code of #cb1 #cc1 #da1 #db1 or #dc1 as determined by the ,secretary1 the matters required under section #fjd of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 to be set forth with respect to small entities4 ,the ,secretary shall make copies of the final regulatory impact analysis available to the public and shall publish1 in the ,federal ,register at the time of publication of the final version of the rule or regulation1 a statement describing how a member of the public may obtain a copy of such analysis4 7#c7 ,regulatory flexibility analysis ,if a regulatory flexibility analysis is required by chapter #f of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 for a rule or regulation to which this subsection applies1 such analysis shall specifically address the impact of the rule or regulation on ,state educational agencies and local educational agencies serving schools with a locale code of #cb1 #cc1 #da1 #db1 or #dc1 as determined by the ,secretary4 4 7b7 ,effective date ,section #bba7;c7 of the ,department of ,education ,organization ,act1 as added by subsection 7a71 shall apply to regulations proposed more than #cj days after the date of enactment of this ,act4