,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hdi ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,january #bi1 #bjai,mr4 ,hastings 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,woodall1 ,mr4 ,nadler1 ,mr4 ,cohen1 ,mr4 ,green of ,texas1 ,ms4 ,jackson ,lee1 ,mr4 ,thompson of ,mississippi1 ,ms4 ,omar1 ,ms4 ,wilson of ,florida1 ,mr4 ,soto1 ,mr4 ,harder of ,california1 ,ms4 ,norton1 ,mr4 ,meeks1 ,ms4 ,wild1 ,mrs4 ,hayes1 and ,ms4 ,clarke of ,new ,york7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,education and ,labor ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife to increase civics education programs1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,civics ,learning ,act of #bjai4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the dearth of civics lessons available to students across the ,united ,states has helped to foster a political climate that is deeply partisan and divided4 7#b7 ,polarized party politics in the ,united ,states has fractured public morale in our institutions and has created an environment in which people are less likely to be well-informed on the current state of affairs and to participate in the political process4 7#c7 ,according to the ,annenberg ,constitution ,day ,civics ,survey conducted by the ,annenberg ,public ,policy ,center of the ,university of ,pennsylvania-- 7,a7 in #bjah1 only #cb percent of people in the ,united ,states surveyed were capable of naming all #c branches of ,government1 while #cc percent of ,americans were not able to name any of the branches of government2 7,b7 in #bjah1 #cj percent of people in the ,united ,states surveyed knew that the ,senate is in charge of ,supreme ,court nominee confirmations2 and 7,c7 in #bjag1 #cg percent could not name any of the rights guaranteed under the ,first ,amendment4 7#d7 ,in #bjad1 only #bc percent of eighth graders were found to have performed at or above the proficient level on the ,national ,assessment of ,educational ,progress civics exam conducted by the ,national ,center of ,education ,studies4 7#e7 ,a lack of knowledge on the basics of the structure of our democratic republic creates an increasingly ill-prepared electorate which overtime has1 and will continue to1 contribute to a weakened democracy4 #c4 ,amendments to the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife ,section #bbcc of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #fffc7 is amended-- 7#a7 in subsection 7a7-- 7,a7 by inserting and prioritize innovative civics learning and teaching1 including by encouraging after to encourage2 and 7,b7 by inserting 7including students and teachers at high-need schools 7as defined in section #bbba77 before the period2 7#b7 in subsection 7b7-- 7,a7 by inserting and appropriated under subsection 7h7 of this section after #bbca7;b77#b72 and 7,b7 by striking paragraph 7#b7 and inserting the following3 7#b7 may include-- 7,a7 hands-on civic engagement activities for teachers and students2 7,b7 activities about the history and principles of the ,constitution of the ,united ,states1 including the ,bill of ,rights2 7,c7 before-school1 during-school1 after-school1 and extracurricular activities2 7,d7 activities that include service learning and community service projects that are linked to school curriculum2 7,e7 activities that encourage and support student participation in school governance2 and 7,f7 online and video game based learning4 2 7#c7 in subsection 7c71 by striking paragraph 7#c7 and inserting the following3 7#c7 ,diversity of projects 7,a7 ,diversity of grants ,in awarding grants under this section1 the ,secretary shall ensure that1 to the extent practicable1 grants are distributed among eligible entities that will serve geographically diverse areas1 including urban1 suburban1 and rural areas1 and public elementary schools4 7,b7 ,allocation of grant funding ,to the extent practicable based on the applications received under subsection 7d71 the ,secretary shall ensure that-- 7i7 not less than #cj percent of the grant funds under this section are awarded to eligible entities that serve elementary school students and teachers2 7ii7 not less than #cj percent of the grant funds under this section are awarded to eligible entities that serve middle school students and teachers2 and 7iii7 not more than #dj percent of the grant funds under this section are awarded to eligible entities that serve high school students and teachers4 2 7#d7 in subsection 7d71 by inserting 1 and containing such information1 after manner2 and 7#e7 by adding at the end the following3 7f7 ,grant award preference ,in awarding grants under this section1 the ,secretary shall give preference to applications for programs that carry out the activities listed in subsection 7b77#b7 for the purpose of strengthening civics education and learning4 7g7 ,annual report ,not later than #ij days after the end of each fiscal year1 the ,secretary shall submit to the ,committee on ,education and ,labor of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions of the ,senate a report containing-- 7#a7 a description of each eligible entity awarded a grant under this section during the preceding fiscal year2 7#b7 a description of whether each such eligible entity was able to met each of the purposes under subsection 7a71 and if so1 how such eligible entity was able to meet such purposes2 and 7#c7 any recommendations for continuation of the grant program under this section4 7h7 ,authorization of appropriations ,in addition to the amounts reserved under section #bbca7;b77#b71 there are authorized to be appropriated #cj1jjj1jjj to carry out this section for fiscal year #bjbj4 4