20 U.S.C. § 7426 — Integration of services authorized

Page 1544 TITLE 20—EDUCATION § 7426 Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6002(g)(1)(B), sub- stituted ‘‘to be responsive to’’ for ‘‘with special regard for’’. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6002(g)(2), added subsec. (b) and struck out former subsec. (b) which related to particular authorized services and activities of local educational agencies receiving grant funds. Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6001(b)(5)(B)(i), made technical amendment to reference in original act which appears in text as reference to section 7424(c)(4) of this title. Subsec. (c)(2). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6001(b)(5)(B)(ii), made technical amendment to reference in original act which appears in text as reference to section 7421 of this title. Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6002(g)(3), added par. (3). Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6002(g)(4), added subsec. (e). 2006—Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 109–270 substituted ‘‘Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006’’ for ‘‘Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Edu- cation Act of 1998’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2018 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 115–224 effective July 1, 2019, see section 4 of Pub. L. 115–224, set out as a note under section 2301 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2015 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 114–95 effective Dec. 10, 2015, except with respect to certain noncompetitive pro- grams and competitive programs, see section 5 of Pub. L. 114–95, set out as a note under section 6301 of this title. § 7426. Integration of services authorized (a) Plan An entity receiving funds under this subpart may submit a plan to the Secretary for the inte- gration of education and related services pro- vided to Indian students. (b) Consolidation of programs Upon the receipt of an acceptable plan under subsection (a), the Secretary, in cooperation with each Federal agency providing grants for the provision of education and related services to the entity, shall authorize the entity to con- solidate, in accordance with such plan, the fed- erally funded education and related services pro- grams of the entity and the Federal programs, or portions of the programs, serving Indian stu- dents in a manner that integrates the program services involved into a single, coordinated, comprehensive program and reduces administra- tive costs by consolidating administrative func- tions. (c) Programs affected The funds that may be consolidated in a dem- onstration project under any such plan referred to in subsection (a) shall include funds for any Federal program exclusively serving Indian chil- dren, or the funds reserved under any Federal program to exclusively serve Indian children, under which the entity is eligible for receipt of funds under a statutory or administrative for- mula for the purposes of providing education and related services that would be used to serve Indian students. (d) Plan requirements For a plan to be acceptable pursuant to sub- section (b), the plan shall— (1) identify the programs or funding sources to be consolidated; (2) be consistent with the objectives of this section concerning authorizing the services to be integrated in a demonstration project; (3) describe a comprehensive strategy that identifies the full range of potential edu- cational opportunities and related services to be provided to assist Indian students to achieve the objectives set forth in this sub- part; (4) describe the way in which services are to be integrated and delivered and the results ex- pected from the plan; (5) identify the projected expenditures under the plan in a single budget; (6) identify the State, tribal, or local agency or agencies to be involved in the delivery of the services integrated under the plan; (7) identify any statutory provisions, regula- tions, policies, or procedures that the entity believes need to be waived in order to imple- ment the plan; (8) set forth measures for academic content and student academic achievement goals de- signed to be met within a specific period of time; and (9) be approved by a committee formed in ac- cordance with section 7424(c)(4) of this title, if such a committee exists. (e) Plan review Upon receipt of the plan from an eligible enti- ty, the Secretary shall consult with the Sec- retary of each Federal department providing funds to be used to implement the plan, and with the entity submitting the plan. The parties so consulting shall identify any waivers of stat- utory requirements or of Federal departmental regulations, policies, or procedures necessary to enable the entity to implement the plan. Not- withstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of the affected department shall have the authority to waive any regulation, policy, or procedure promulgated by that department that has been so identified by the entity or depart- ment, unless the Secretary of the affected de- partment determines that such a waiver is in- consistent with the objectives of this subpart or those provisions of the statute from which the program involved derives authority that are spe- cifically applicable to Indian students. (f) Plan approval Within 90 days after the receipt of an entity’s plan by the Secretary, the Secretary shall in- form the entity, in writing, of the Secretary’s approval or disapproval of the plan. If the plan is disapproved, the entity shall be informed, in writing, of the reasons for the disapproval and shall be given an opportunity to amend the plan or to petition the Secretary to reconsider such disapproval. (g) Responsibilities of Department of Education Not later than 180 days after December 10, 2015, the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the head of any other Fed- eral department or agency identified by the Sec- retary of Education, shall enter into an inter- departmental memorandum of agreement pro- Page 1545 TITLE 20—EDUCATION § 7426 viding for the implementation and coordination of the demonstration projects authorized under this section. The lead agency head for a dem- onstration project under this section shall be— (1) the Secretary of the Interior, in the case of an entity meeting the definition of a con- tract or grant school under title XI of the Edu- cation Amendments of 1978 [25 U.S.C. 2001 et seq.]; or (2) the Secretary of Education, in the case of any other entity. (h) Responsibilities of lead agency The responsibilities of the lead agency shall include— (1) the use of a single report format related to the plan for the individual project, which shall be used by an eligible entity to report on the activities undertaken under the project; (2) the use of a single report format related to the projected expenditures for the indi- vidual project which shall be used by an eligi- ble entity to report on all project expendi- tures; (3) the development of a single system of Federal oversight for the project, which shall be implemented by the lead agency; and (4) the provision of technical assistance to an eligible entity appropriate to the project, except that an eligible entity shall have the authority to accept or reject the plan for pro- viding such technical assistance and the tech- nical assistance provider. (i) Report requirements A single report format shall be developed by the Secretary, consistent with the requirements of this section. Such report format shall require that reports described in subsection (h), to- gether with records maintained on the consoli- dated program at the local level, shall contain such information as will allow a determination that the eligible entity has complied with the requirements incorporated in its approved plan, including making a demonstration of student academic achievement, and will provide assur- ances to each Secretary that the eligible entity has complied with all directly applicable statu- tory requirements and with those directly appli- cable regulatory requirements that have not been waived. (j) No reduction in amounts In no case shall the amount of Federal funds available to an eligible entity involved in any demonstration project be reduced as a result of the enactment of this section. (k) Interagency fund transfers authorized The Secretary is authorized to take such ac- tion as may be necessary to provide for an inter- agency transfer of funds otherwise available to an eligible entity in order to further the objec- tives of this section. (l) Administration of funds (1) In general Program funds for the consolidated pro- grams shall be administered in such a manner as to allow for a determination that funds from a specific program are spent on allowable activities authorized under such program, ex- cept that the eligible entity shall determine the proportion of the funds granted that shall be allocated to such program. (2) Separate records not required Nothing in this section shall be construed as requiring the eligible entity to maintain sepa- rate records tracing any services or activities conducted under the approved plan to the indi- vidual programs under which funds were au- thorized for the services or activities, nor shall the eligible entity be required to allocate expenditures among such individual programs. (m) Overage The eligible entity may commingle all admin- istrative funds from the consolidated programs and shall be entitled to the full amount of such funds (under each program’s or agency’s regula- tions). The overage (defined as the difference be- tween the amount of the commingled funds and the actual administrative cost of the programs) shall be considered to be properly spent for Fed- eral audit purposes, if the overage is used for the purposes provided for under this section. (n) Fiscal accountability Nothing in this part shall be construed so as to interfere with the ability of the Secretary or the lead agency to fulfill the responsibilities for the safeguarding of Federal funds pursuant to chapter 75 of title 31. (o) Report on statutory obstacles to program in- tegration (1) Preliminary report Not later than 2 years after December 10, 2015, the Secretary of Education shall submit a preliminary report to the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the Com- mittee on Resources of the House of Rep- resentatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Com- mittee on Indian Affairs of the Senate on the status of the implementation of the dem- onstration projects authorized under this sec- tion. (2) Final report Not later than 5 years after December 10, 2015, the Secretary of Education shall submit a report to the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the Committee on Re- sources of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on Indian Af- fairs of the Senate on the results of the imple- mentation of the demonstration projects au- thorized under this section. (p) Definitions For the purposes of this section, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means— (1) the Secretary of the Interior, in the case of an entity meeting the definition of a con- tract or grant school under title XI of the Edu- cation Amendments of 1978 [25 U.S.C. 2001 et seq.]; or (2) the Secretary of Education, in the case of any other entity. (Pub. L. 89–10, title VI, § 6116, formerly title VII, § 7116, as added Pub. L. 107–110, title VII, § 701, Page 1546 TITLE 20—EDUCATION § 7427 Jan. 8, 2002, 115 Stat. 1913; renumbered title VI, § 6116, and amended Pub. L. 114–95, title VI, §§ 6001(a), (b)(1), (6), 6002(h), Dec. 10, 2015, 129 Stat. 2046, 2047, 2053.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Education Amendments of 1978, referred to in subsecs. (g)(1) and (p)(1), is Pub. L. 95–561, Nov. 1, 1978, 92 Stat. 2143. Title XI of the Act is classified principally to chapter 22 (§ 2001 et seq.) of Title 25, Indians. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title of 1978 Amendment note set out under sec- tion 6301 of this title and Tables. PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 7426, Pub. L. 89–10, title VII, § 7116, as added Pub. L. 103–382, title I, § 101, Oct. 20, 1994, 108 Stat. 3723, related to applications for grants, prior to the general amendment of former subchapter VII of this chapter by Pub. L. 107–110. AMENDMENTS 2015—Subsec. (d)(9). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6001(b)(6), made technical amendment to reference in original act which appears in text as reference to section 7424(c)(4) of this title. Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6002(h)(1), in introductory provisions, substituted ‘‘December 10, 2015’’ for ‘‘Janu- ary 8, 2002’’ and inserted ‘‘the Secretary of Health and Human Services,’’ after ‘‘the Secretary of the Inte- rior,’’ and ‘‘and coordination’’ after ‘‘providing for the implementation’’. Subsec. (o)(1). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6002(h)(2)(A), sub- stituted ‘‘December 10, 2015’’ for ‘‘January 8, 2002’’. Subsec. (o)(2). Pub. L. 114–95, § 6002(h)(2)(B), sub- stituted ‘‘December 10, 2015’’ for ‘‘January 8, 2002’’ and struck out last sentence which read as follows: ‘‘Such report shall identify statutory barriers to the ability of participants to integrate more effectively their edu- cation and related services to Indian students in a man- ner consistent with the objectives of this section.’’ Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CHANGE OF NAME Committee on Resources of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Natural Resources of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 6, One Hun- dred Tenth Congress, Jan. 5, 2007. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2015 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 114–95 effective Dec. 10, 2015, except with respect to certain noncompetitive pro- grams and competitive programs, see section 5 of Pub. L. 114–95, set out as a note under section 6301 of this title. § 7427. Student eligibility forms (a) In general The Secretary shall require that, as part of an application for a grant under this subpart, each applicant shall maintain a file, with respect to each Indian child for whom the local edu- cational agency provides a free public education, that contains a form that sets forth information establishing the status of the child as an Indian child eligible for assistance under this subpart, and that otherwise meets the requirements of subsection (b). All individual data collected shall be protected by the local educational agen- cies and only aggregated data shall be reported to the Secretary. (b) Forms The form described in subsection (a) shall in- clude— (1) either— (A)(i) the name of the tribe or band of Indi- ans (as defined in section 7491 of this title) with respect to which the child claims mem- bership; (ii) the enrollment number establishing the membership of the child (if readily avail- able); and (iii) the name and address of the organiza- tion that maintains updated and accurate membership data for such tribe or band of Indians; or (B) the name, the enrollment number (if readily available), and the name and address of the organization responsible for maintain- ing updated and accurate membership data, of any parent or grandparent of the child from whom the child claims eligibility under this subpart, if the child is not a member of the tribe or band of Indians (as so defined); (2) a statement of whether the tribe or band of Indians (as so defined), with respect to which the child, or parent or grandparent of the child, claims membership, is federally rec- ognized; (3) the name and address of the parent or legal guardian of the child; (4) a signature of the parent or legal guard- ian of the child that verifies the accuracy of the information supplied; and (5) any other information that the Secretary considers necessary to provide an accurate program profile. (c) Statutory construction Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect a definition contained in section 7491 of this title. (d) Documentation and types of proof (1) Types of proof For purposes of determining whether a child is eligible to be counted for the purpose of computing the amount of a grant award under section 7423 of this title, the membership of the child, or any parent or grandparent of the child, in a tribe or band of Indians (as so de- fined) may be established by proof other than an enrollment number, notwithstanding the availability of an enrollment number for a member of such tribe or band. Nothing in sub- section (b) shall be construed to require the furnishing of an enrollment number. (2) No new or duplicative determinations Once a child is determined to be an Indian eligible to be counted for such grant award, the local educational agency shall maintain a record of such determination and shall not re- quire a new or duplicate determination to be made for such child for a subsequent applica- tion for a grant under this subpart. (3) Previously filed forms An Indian student eligibility form that was on file as required by this section on the day before December 10, 2015, and that met the re- quirements of this section, as this section was in effect on the day before December 10, 2015, shall remain valid for such Indian student.