,i  #aafth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #ggh  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of   
,,representatives  ,january #bd1        
#bjai,mr4 ,meadows introduced the       
following bill2 which was referred to   
the ,committee on ,oversight and ,reform
  ,a ,,bill  ,to expand school choice in
 the ,district of ,columbia4  #a4 ,short
 title ,this ,act may be cited as the   
,educational ,freedom ,accounts ,act4   
#b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3  7#a7   
,administering entity ,the term         
administering entity means the entity   
that receives the contract under section
 #c7;a7 for a fiscal year4  7#b7 ,chief 
financial officer ,the term chief       
financial officer means the ,chief      
,financial ,officer of the ,district of 
,columbia4  7#c7 ,eligible child ,the   
term eligible child means a child-- 7,a7
 who is a resident of the ,district of  
,columbia2  7,b7 who is eligible to     
receive a free public education in the  
,district of ,columbia2  7,c7 who--  7i7
 was enrolled in a public school or     

preschool program of the ,district of   
,columbia1 including a charter school1  
during the previous school year2  7ii7  
received an education savings account   
under this ,act for the preceding school
 year2  7iii7 received an opportunity   
scholarship under section #cjjg7;a7 of  
the ,scholarships for ,opportunity and  
,results ,act for the preceding school  
year2 or  7iv7 is entering              
prekindergarten or kindergarten2  7,d7  
whose parent chooses to not enroll the  
child in a public elementary school1    
secondary school1 or prekindergarten    
program for the school year for which   
the child will receive a scholarship    
under section #d2 and  7,e7 whose parent
 does not submit a notification of home 
schooling described in section #ebjb of 
title #e1 ,code of the ,district of     
,columbia ,regulations 7or any successor
 notification7 to the ,office of the    
,state ,superintendent of ,education of 
the ,district of ,columbia for any year 
for which the parent enters into an     

agreement under section #d7;a77#b77;,b74
  7#d7 ,institution of higher education 
,the term institution of higher         
education has the meaning given the term
 in section #ajb of the ,higher         
,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 
#ajjb74  7#e7 ,parent ,the term parent  
means the guardian1 custodian1 or other 
person with the authority to act on     
behalf of a child4  7#f7 ,participating 
provider ,the term participating        
provider means an entity that-- 7,a7    
is--  7i7 a nonpublic school located in 
the ,district of ,columbia that provides
 education to prekindergarten1          
elementary school1 or secondary school  
students2  7ii7 a public school1        
including a charter school1 located in  
the ,district of ,columbia1 except only 
with respect to providing individual    
courses or extracurricular activities   
described in section #d7;c77#a77;,e7 or 
transportation described in section     
#d7;c77#a77;,i7 to such services2  7iii7
 a tutor or tutoring facility2  7iv7 a  

nonpublic provider of distance or online
 learning2  7v7 a therapy center or     
other provider of special education or  
disability services2  7vi7 an           
institution of higher education located 
in the ,district of ,columbia2 or  7vii7
 an entity that provides educational    
services or products2  7,b7 notifies the
 administering entity of the entity's   
intent to become a participating        
provider2 and  7,c7 agrees1 as a        
condition of receiving funds from an    
education savings account established   
under section #d1 to comply with the    
requirements of this ,act4  #c4         
,contract authorized  7a7 ,in general   
,beginning with the #bjai-bjbj school   
year1 the ,chief ,financial ,officer    
shall carry out this ,act for each      
school year by awarding a contract to #a
 entity described in subsection 7b7 to  
enable the administering entity to carry
 out the program under section #d for   
all eligible children in the ,district  
of ,columbia4  7b7 ,eligibility ,in     

order to be eligible for a contract     
under this section1 an entity shall be--
 7#a7 exempt from ,federal income tax   
pursuant to #eja7;c77#c7 of the         
,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf2  7#b7
 based within the ,district of          
,columbia2 and  7#c7 able to demonstrate
 an ability to meet all requirements of 
this ,act4  7c7 ,application ,an        
eligible entity desiring a contract     
under this section shall submit an      
application to the ,chief ,financial    
,officer at such time1 in such manner1  
and containing such information as the  
,chief ,financial ,officer may require4 
7d7 ,administrative expenses ,from the  
amounts made available under the        
contract described in subsection 7a71   
the administering entity may reserve an 
amount that is not greater than the sum 
of #e percent of the funds allocated    
under section #d7;a77#d7 for each       
eligible child with an education savings
 account1 to be used by the             
administering entity for the            

administrative expenses associated with 
the program under this ,act4  #d4       
,universal educational choice for       
,district of ,columbia students  7a7    
,basic elements of parental choice in   
education  7#a7 ,educational choice     
,except as provided in paragraph 7#f71  
the parent of any eligible child may    
enter into an agreement under paragraph 
7#b77;,b7 with the administering entity 
for any year during which the eligible  
child will be in a grade for which the  
,district of ,columbia provides free    
public education4  7#b7 ,provision of   
education savings accounts  7,a7 ,in    
general ,beginning with the #bjai-bjbj  
school year1 the administering entity   
shall provide1 to each eligible child   
whose parent enters into or renews an   
agreement described in subparagraph 7,b7
 with the administering entity for the  
school year1 an education savings       
account described in paragraph 7#c71    
into which scholarship amounts for the  
year shall be deposited in accordance   

with paragraph 7#d74  7,b7 ,agreement   
,the agreement required under this      
subparagraph shall be in a manner and on
 a form determined by the administering 
entity and shall provide that-- 7i7 the 
eligible child will receive an education
 savings account described in paragraph 
7#c7 and the administering entity will  
deposit a scholarship into the account  
for each year that the agreement is in  
effect1 in accordance with paragraph    
7#d72  7ii7 the eligible child may be   
educated pursuant to any of the methods 
described in subparagraphs 7,a7 through 
7,g7 of subsection 7c77#a72  7iii7 the  
parent shall direct the use of the funds
 provided in the education savings      
account for educational expenses        
described in subsection 7c71 and the    
administering entity shall distribute   
such funds in accordance with paragraph 
7#c77;,b72  7iv7 the parent agrees to   
the terms and conditions of the         
education savings account1 including any
 participation necessary for the        

accountability activities required under
 subsection 7d77#c72 and  7v7 with      
respect to an eligible child who is a   
child with a disability 7as defined in  
section #fjb of the ,individuals with   
,disabilities ,education ,act 7#bj      
,u4,s4,c4 #adja771 the parent agrees    
that participation in the program under 
this section shall have the same effect 
as parental placement of child under    
section #fab7;a77#aj77;,a7 of such ,act 
7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #adab7;a77#aj77;,a774    
7#c7 ,education savings account ,an     
education savings account described in  
this paragraph means a parent-controlled
 account1 established exclusively for   
the purpose of paying for the           
educational expenses described in       
subsection 7c7 for an eligible child who
 is the designated beneficiary of the   
account1 that meets the following       
requirements3 7,a7 ,no funds shall be   
deposited into the account unless the   
funds are--  7i7 a disbursement of an   
annual scholarship from the             

administering entity as provided under  
paragraph 7#b77;,a72 or  7ii7 a deposit 
of opportunity scholarship funds1 in    
accordance with section #cjjg7;a77#b7 of
 the ,scholarships for ,opportunity and 
,results ,act 7sec4 #ch-ahec4jg7;a77#b71
 ,d4,c4 ,official ,code74  7,b7 ,the    
funds in the account shall be           
distributed by the administering entity 
on behalf of the eligible child to #a or
 more participating providers1 upon     
direction by the parent1 at the         
appropriate time4  7,c7 ,except as      
provided in subparagraph 7,d71 any      
amount in the account that is           
attributable to a deposit provided under
 paragraph 7#b77;,a7 or a deposit of any
 opportunity scholarship funds awarded  
under section #cjjg of the ,scholarships
 for ,opportunity and ,results ,act     
7sec4 #ch-ahec4jg1 ,d4,c4 ,official     
,code7 may be paid or distributed out of
 the account only for the purpose of    
paying education expenses described in  
subsection 7c7 for the eligible child4  

7,d7 ,any balance remaining in the      
account shall be returned to the ,chief 
,financial ,officer on the last day of  
the period covered by an agreement      
described in paragraph 7#b77;,b7 if--   
7i7 such agreement is broken or ended by
 the parent during the agreement period2
  7ii7 the parent of the eligible child 
does not renew the agreement for the    
eligible child for the immediately      
succeeding academic year2  7iii7 during 
the most recent year of the agreement1  
the parents do not use any funds in the 
account for eligible expenses described 
in subsection 7c72 or  7iv7 the child no
 longer qualifies as an eligible child4 
7#d7 ,amount of scholarship and transfer
 of funds  7,a7 ,transfer of funds ,by  
not later than ,august #a of each school
 year--  7i7 the administering entity   
shall notify the ,chief ,financial      
,officer of the total amount calculated 
under subparagraph 7,b7 to be provided  
under this ,act for scholarships to     
eligible children for such school year2 

and  7ii7 the ,chief ,financial ,officer
 shall transfer such amount1 from any   
funds or revenues available to the      
,district of ,columbia1 to the          
administering entity to enable the      
administering entity to pay for the     
scholarships and the administration     
expenses for the full fiscal year1 in   
accordance with subparagraphs 7,b7 and  
7,d7 and section #c7;d74  7,b7 ,amount  
,the total amount provided under this   
section for a full-year scholarship on  
behalf of an eligible child shall       
equal-- 7i7 in the case of an eligible  
child from a family with an income of   
not more than #ahe percent of the       
poverty level described in subparagraph 
7,c7 or an eligible child who is a child
 with a disability1 as defined in       
section #fjb of the ,individuals with   
,disabilities ,education ,act 7#bj      
,u4,s4,c4 #adja71 #ij percent of the    
funds that would otherwise be allocated 
by the ,district of ,columbia ,public   
,schools for such child1 as determined  

by the uniform per student funding      
formula defined in the ,district of     
,columbia ,school ,reform ,act of #aiie 
7sec4 #ch-hjd4ja1 ,d4,c4 ,official      
,code72  7ii7 in the case of an eligible
 child from a family with an income of  
more than #ahe percent1 and not more    
than #cjj percent1 of such poverty      
level1 #he percent of the funds that    
would otherwise be allocated by the     
,district of ,columbia ,public ,schools 
for such child as determined by such    
uniform per student funding formula2 and
  7iii7 in the case of an eligible child
 from a family with an income that      
equals or exceeds #cjj percent of such  
poverty level1 #hj percent of the funds 
that would otherwise be allocated by the
 ,district of ,columbia ,public ,schools
 for such child as determined by such   
uniform per student funding formula4    
7,c7 ,calculation of poverty level ,in  
determining the poverty level for       
purposes of this paragraph1 the         
administering entity shall use the      

criteria of poverty used by the ,bureau 
of the ,census in compiling the most    
recent decennial census1 as the criteria
 have been updated by increases in the  
,consumer ,price ,index for ,all ,urban 
,consumers1 published by the ,bureau of 
,labor ,statistics4  7,d7 ,quarterly    
disbursement ,the administering entity  
shall distribute the amount of a        
scholarship provided under this section 
to an eligible child whose parent has   
entered into an agreement under         
paragraph 7#b77;,b7 into the eligible   
child's education savings account1 which
 may be through #d equal quarterly      
deposits or any other distribution      
schedule determined appropriate by the  
administering entity4  7#e7 ,ownership  
of the education savings account ,an    
education savings account established   
for an eligible child under this ,act1  
and any funds deposited within the      
education savings account1 shall belong 
to the eligible child4 ,funds available 
in the education savings account shall  

be used as directed by a parent of the  
eligible child1 on behalf of the child1 
for education expenses described in     
subsection 7c74  7#f7 ,interaction with 
opportunity scholarships                
,notwithstanding paragraph 7#b77;,a7 or 
any other provision of this ,act1 a     
child who receives an opportunity       
scholarship under section #cjjg of the  
,scholarships for ,opportunity and      
,results ,act 7sec4 #ch-ahec4jg1 ,d4,c4 
,official ,code7 for a school year shall
 not be eligible for a scholarship under
 this ,act for the same school year4    
,upon the request of any parent of an   
eligible child who receives an          
opportunity scholarship and the         
completion of an agreement described in 
paragraph 7#b77;,b71 the ,secretary     
shall establish an education savings    
account described in paragraph 7#c7 for 
the child1 in order for the parent to   
deposit any amount of an opportunity    
scholarship under section #cjjg of the  
,scholarships for ,opportunity and      

,results ,act 7sec4 #ch-ahec4jg1 ,d4,c4 
,official ,code7 into the education     
savings account4  7b7 ,continued        
availability of funds ,any balance in an
 educational savings account established
 for an eligible child under this       
section that is not used during an      
academic year shall remain available in 
the education savings account of the    
eligible child for future education     
expenses described in subsection 7c71 as
 long as an agreement described in      
subsection 7a77#b77;,b7 remains in      
effect for the eligible child4  7c7     
,eligible education expenses  7#a7 ,in  
general ,funds available in an education
 savings account established under this 
section for an eligible child shall only
 be used on behalf of such child for #a 
or more of the following educational    
purposes3  7,a7 ,the costs of tuition   
and fees at a nonpublic school1 or      
distance education1 provided through a  
participating provider4  7,b7 ,tutoring 
services offered by a participating     

provider4  7,c7 ,the costs of curricula 
or online courses1 or virtual learning  
environments1 including any supplemental
 materials1 textbooks1 or supplies      
necessary to administer the curriculum  
or to complete the course1 offered by a 
participating provider or purchased for 
self-study4  7,d7 ,fees for any special 
education or related services provided  
through a participating provider4  7,e7 
,the costs of tuition and fees required 
to complete individual courses or       
extracurricular activities at a public  
school1 including a charter school1     
within the ,district of ,columbia4  7,f7
 ,the costs of tuition and fees required
 to complete any dual credit courses1   
which are courses that qualify for both 
secondary and postsecondary education   
credit1 from a participating provider in
 the ,district of ,columbia4  7,g7 ,the 
costs of a career and technical         
education course offered by a           
participating provider4  7,h7 ,fees for 
any--  7i7 national norm-referenced     

achievement examination2  7ii7 advanced 
placement or similar examination2 or    
7iii7 standardized examination required 
for admission to an institution of      
higher education4  7,i7 ,transportation 
required for the eligible child to      
travel to and from a participating      
provider1 except that not more than     
#b1jjj per year from the education      
savings account may be used for this    
purpose4  7,j7 ,a contribution to a     
qualified tuition program 7as defined in
 section #ebi7;b7 of the ,internal      
,revenue ,code of #aihf7 with respect to
 which the eligible child is a          
designated beneficiary or a contribution
 to a ,coverdell education savings      
account 7as defined in section #ecj7;b7 
of such ,code7 with respect to which the
 eligible child is a designated         
beneficiary1 except that not more than a
 total of #b1jjj per year may be used   
for contributions under this            
subparagraph4  7,k7 ,any other education
 expenses approved and determined by the

 administering entity to be similar to  
the expenses described in subparagraphs 
7,a7 through 7,j74  7#b7 ,rule of       
construction ,nothing in this subsection
 shall be construed to require an       
eligible child to attend a nonpublic    
school or a program of distance         
education described in paragraph        
7#a77;,a7 in order to receive an        
academic scholarship under this section 
to be used for other eligible education 
expenses described in paragraph 7#a74   
7d7 ,governmental and administering     
entity responsibilities  7#a7 ,no       
extension of regulatory authority ,the  
creation of the program under this ,act 
does not expand the regulatory authority
 of the ,mayor of the ,district of      
,columbia1 the officers of the ,district
 of ,columbia1 the ,district of         
,columbia ,public ,schools1 or the      
,federal ,government to impose any      
additional regulations on nonpublic     
schools beyond the regulations necessary
 to enforce the requirements of this    

,act4  7#b7 ,annual list of             
participating providers  7,a7 ,creation 
of list ,beginning in academic year     
#bjah-bjai1 and each year thereafter1   
the administering entity shall ensure   
that all eligible children1 and their   
parents1 are informed of the schools    
participating in the program under this 
,act for the next academic year by      
providing to the ,chief ,financial      
,officer1 and making publicly available1
 a list of participating providers each 
school year4  7,b7 ,inclusion on ,,cfo's
 website ,the ,chief ,financial ,officer
 shall ensure that the annual list of   
participating providers prepared by the 
administering entity under subparagraph 
7,a7 is made publicly available on the  
website of the ,chief ,financial        
,officer4  7#c7 ,updated information    
regarding educational expenses ,the     
administering entity shall timely notify
 parents of eligible children of any    
categories that the entity has          
determined are educational expenses     

under subsection 7c77#a77,k7 by         
providing notification through the      
parent handbook1 program website1 or    
other primary method used by the        
administering entity to educate parents 
about the program4  7#d7 ,accountability
 ,the administering entity and the      
,chief ,financial ,officer shall take   
such steps as are necessary to ensure   
the proper implementation of this ,act1 
including--  7,a7 conducting periodic   
audits of education savings accounts    
established under this section2  7,b7   
ensuring that the funds disbursed from  
education savings accounts are used     
appropriately and in accordance with    
this ,act2  7,c7 freezing or revoking   
the education savings account of an     
eligible child if fraud is detected2    
7,d7 providing a process through which--
  7i7 parents whose expenses have been  
denied may ask the administering entity 
review and reverse the denial2 and  7ii7
 the administering entity shall conduct 
a review and respond to the parental    

request to reverse the denial within #cj
 days2 and  7,e7 if appropriate1        
referring parents or participating      
providers found to be using education   
savings account funds for unlawful      
purposes for criminal prosecution4  7#e7
 ,exchange of records ,upon request by  
the administering entity1 the ,district 
of ,columbia ,public ,schools shall     
provide1 to any participating provider  
that is a school and that has admitted  
an eligible child who previously        
attended a public school1 a complete    
copy of the child's school records1     
following the standard procedures       
established by the administering entity 
for purposes of the program under this  
,act4  7e7 ,participating provider      
requirements and rights  7#a7 ,refund   
and rebate limitations  7,a7 ,general   
prohibition ,a participating provider   
that receives scholarship funds provided
 under this ,act for an eligible child  
shall not-- 7i7 refund or provide a     
rebate1 of all or any portion of such   

funds1 to the eligible child or a parent
 of the eligible child2 and  7ii7 share 
such funds with such eligible child or  
parent in any manner4  7,b7 ,refund     
procedures ,any refund that is needed   
for an item that is being returned or an
 item or service that has not been      
provided shall be provided to the       
administering entity and deposited into 
the education savings account from which
 the money refunded was originally paid4
  7#b7 ,admissions ,a participating     
provider may enforce the admission      
requirements of the school or program   
offered by the provider and may accept  
the students best qualified to attend   
the school1 except that a participating 
school may not discriminate on the basis
 of race1 color1 national origin1 or    
sex1 in accordance with subsection 7f74 
7#c7 ,transfer of documents ,each       
participating provider that is a school 
shall agree1 as a condition of          
participation in the program under this 
,act1 to provide the complete academic  

records of an eligible child attending  
the school who receives an education    
savings account under this ,act to any  
other nonpublic school or public school 
to which the child transfers4  7f7      
,nondiscrimination and other provisions 
7#a7 ,in general ,a participating       
provider shall not discriminate against 
program participants or applicants on   
the basis of race1 color1 national      
origin1 or sex4  7#b7 ,applicability and
 single sex schools1 classes1 or        
activities  7,a7 ,in general            
,notwithstanding any other provision of 
law1 the prohibition of sex             
discrimination in paragraph 7#a7 shall  
not apply to a participating provider   
that is operated by1 supervised by1     
controlled by1 or connected to a        
religious organization to the extent    
that the application of such paragraph  
is inconsistent with the religious      
tenets or beliefs of the participating  
provider4  7,b7 ,single sex schools1    
classes1 or activities ,notwithstanding 

paragraph 7#a7 or any other provision of
 law1 a parent may choose and a         
participating provider may offer a      
single sex school1 class1 or activity4  
7#c7 ,religiously affiliated            
participating providers  7,a7 ,in       
general ,notwithstanding any other      
provision of law1 a participating       
provider that is operated by1 supervised
 by1 controlled by1 or connected to a   
religious organization may exercise its 
right in matters of employment          
consistent with title ,,vii of the      
,civil ,rights ,act of #aifd 7#db       
,u4,s4,c4 #bjjj;e et seq471 including   
the exemptions in such title4  7,b7     
,maintenance of purpose ,notwithstanding
 any other provision of law1 funds made 
available through education savings     
accounts established under this section 
to eligible children1 which are used for
 a participating provider as a result of
 the choice of the parents of such      
children1 shall not1 consistent with the
 first amendment of the ,constitution of

 the ,united ,states-- 7i7 necessitate  
any change in the participating         
provider's teaching mission2  7ii7      
require any participating provider to   
remove religious art1 icons1 scriptures1
 or other symbols2 or  7iii7 preclude   
any participating provider from         
retaining religious terms in its name1  
selecting its board members on a        
religious basis1 or including religious 
references in its mission statements and
 other chartering or governing          
documents4  7#d7 ,rules of construction 
7,a7 ,treatment of assistance ,for      
purposes of any ,federal law1 assistance
 provided under this section shall be   
considered assistance to the child and  
shall not be considered assistance to   
the participating provider that enrolls 
the child in a school or program4 ,the  
amount of any scholarship under this    
section shall not be treated as income  
of the child or the parents of the child
 for purposes of ,federal tax laws or   
for determining eligibility for any     

other ,federal program4  7,b7 ,no       
ability to control the curriculum       
,nothing in this section shall be       
construed to authorize any officer or   
employee of the ,federal ,government1   
through grants1 contracts1 or other     
cooperative agreements1 to mandate1     
direct1 or control the curriculum1      
program of instruction1 instructional   
content1 specific academic standards1   
assessments1 or allocation of resources1
 of the ,district of ,columbia or of any
 school in the ,district of ,columbia4  
7g7 ,transition ,the ,chief ,financial  
,officer and the administering entity   
shall take steps to ensure a smooth     
transition to the program under this    
,act1 in order to ensure that academic  
scholarships and education savings      
accounts under this section are         
available to eligible children attending
 nonpublic schools through participating
 providers beginning for the #bjai-bjbj 
school year4 ,the ,chief ,financial     
,officer shall allow nonpublic schools  

to become participating providers       
beginning on ,september #a1 #bjah4  7h7 
,conforming amendment ,section          
#cjjg7;a77#b7 of the ,scholarships for  
,opportunity and ,results ,act 7sec4    
#ch-ahec4jg7;a77#b71 ,d4,c4 ,official   
,code7 is amended by adding before the  
period at the end the following3 1 or   
deposited in an education savings       
account established under section #d of 
the ,educational ,freedom ,accounts ,act
 to be used for education expenses      
described in subsection 7c7 of such     
section4