S 1478 IS
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1478
To strengthen communities through English literacy and civics education for new Americans, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 21, 2009
Mrs. GILLIBRAND (for herself, Mr. ALEXANDER, and Mr. REID) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance
A BILL
To strengthen communities through English literacy and civics education for new Americans, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title- This Act may be cited as the ‘Strengthen and Unite Communities with Civics Education and English Skills Act of 2009’.
(b) Table of Contents- The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
TITLE I--EXPANDING ENGLISH LITERACY, U.S. HISTORY, AND CIVICS EDUCATION
Sec. 101. Increased investment in English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education under the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act.
Sec. 102. Definitions of English language learner.
Sec. 103. Credits for teachers of English language learners.
Sec. 104. Research in adult education.
TITLE II--SUPPORTING ENGLISH LANGUAGE ACQUISITION AND ADULT EDUCATION IN THE WORKFORCE
TITLE III--BUILDING STRONGER COMMUNITIES
Sec. 301. Office of Citizenship and New Americans.
Sec. 302. Grants to States.
Sec. 303. Authorized activities.
Sec. 304. Reporting and evaluation.
Sec. 305. New citizens award program.
Sec. 306. Rule of construction.
Sec. 307. Authorization of appropriations.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to meet the growing need for English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs for new Americans in the United States; and
(2) to encourage proactive policies to introduce new Americans into the Nation in order to maximize the benefits provided to these individuals and to the community.
TITLE I--EXPANDING ENGLISH LITERACY, U.S. HISTORY, AND CIVICS EDUCATION
SEC. 101. INCREASED INVESTMENT IN ENGLISH LITERACY, U.S. HISTORY, AND CIVICS EDUCATION UNDER THE ADULT EDUCATION AND FAMILY LITERACY ACT.
(a) Integrated English Literacy and Civics Education Program- Section 203 of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (20 U.S.C. 9202) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (12) through (18) as paragraphs (13) through (19), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (11), the following:
‘(12) INTEGRATED ENGLISH LITERACY, U.S. HISTORY, AND CIVICS EDUCATION PROGRAM- The term ‘integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education program’ means a program of instruction designed to help an English language learner achieve competence in English through contextualized instruction on the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, naturalization procedures, civic participation, and United States history and Government to help such learner acquire the skills and knowledge to become an active and informed parent, worker, and community member.’.
(b) State Leadership Activities- Section 223(a) of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (20 U.S.C. 9223(a)) is amended by inserting after paragraph (11) the following:
(c) National Institute for Literacy- Section 242(c)(1) of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (20 U.S.C. 9252(c)(1)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (G), (H), and (I), as subparagraphs (I), (J), and (K), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the following:
‘(G) to coordinate and share information with national organizations and associations that are interested in integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs;
‘(H) to study the effectiveness of distance learning or self-study programs in assisting the English language learner population achieve competence in English;’.
(d) Report- Section 242(k) of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (20 U.S.C. 9252(k)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘and’ after the semicolon;
(2) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
‘(3) a separate analysis of--
‘(A) national and State adult English instruction needs;
‘(B) data on the composition of recent immigration flows and immigration settlement patterns across the United States; and
‘(C) estimated instructional needs based on the English ability and educational attainment of English language learners under recent migration patterns; and’.
(e) National Leadership Activities- Section 243 of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (20 U.S.C. 9253) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘and integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs’ before the semicolon at the end; and
(B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘and integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs’ before ‘, based on scientific evidence’; and
(2) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘and integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs’ before the semicolon at the end;
(B) in subparagraph (D)(ii), by inserting ‘integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs,’ before ‘and workplace literacy programs’; and
(C) in subparagraph (E)--
(i) in clause (i), by inserting ‘and integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs’ before the semicolon at the end;
(ii) in clause (iii), by striking ‘and’ after the semicolon;
(iii) in clause (iv)--
(I) by striking ‘section 231’ and inserting ‘sections 231 and 244’; and
(II) by inserting ‘and’ after the semicolon; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
‘(v) the extent to which integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs carried out under section 244 lead participants in such programs to increase their civic participation and, if applicable, lead such participants to become United States citizens;’.
(f) Integrated English Literacy, U.S. History, and Civics Education- Chapter 4 of subtitle A of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (20 U.S.C. 9251 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘SEC. 244. INTEGRATED ENGLISH LITERACY, U.S. HISTORY, AND CIVICS EDUCATION PROGRAMS.
‘(a) Program Authorized- From funds appropriated to carry out this section, the Secretary shall award grants to States, from allocations under subsection (b), for integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs.
‘(b) Allocations-
‘(1) IN GENERAL- Subject to paragraph (2), from the amount appropriated under subsection (c) for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall allocate--
‘(A) 65 percent of such amount to States on the basis of a State’s need for integrated English, U.S. history, and civics education programs, as determined by calculating each State’s share of a 10-year average of the data compiled by the Office of Immigration Statistics of the Department of Homeland Security, for immigrants admitted for lawful permanent residence for the 10 most recent years; and
‘(B) 35 percent of such amount to the States on the basis of whether the State experienced growth, as measured by the average of the 3 most recent years for which data compiled by the Office of Immigration Statistics of the Department of Homeland Security are available, for immigrants admitted for lawful permanent residence.
‘(2) MINIMUM- No State shall receive an allocation under paragraph (1) in an amount that is less than $60,000.
‘(c) Authorization of Appropriation- For the purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, and $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2012.’.
SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNER.
Full Text of Legislation