Every Child Achieves Act of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. LEE. Mr. President, parents and teachers all across America are frustrated by Washington, DC's heavyhanded, overly prescriptive approach to public education policy. I have heard from countless moms and dads in Utah who feel as though anonymous Federal Government officials, living and working 2,000 miles away, have a greater say in the education of their children than they do.

One of the most frustrating issues for parents is the amount of standardized tests that their children are required to take, particularly the tests that are designed and mandated by the Federal Government. It is not just the frequency of those tests that is frustrating. Too often parents do not know when these federally required assessments are going to take place, and they do not even find out until after the fact. It is important to recognize that this is not a partisan issue. The notion that parents should not be expected to forfeit all of their rights to the government, just because they enroll their children in the public school system, is not a Democratic idea nor is it a Republican idea. It is simply an American idea.

That is why several States, including States as distinct as California and Utah, have passed laws that allow parents to opt out of federally required tests. But there is a problem. Under current law, States with opt-out laws risk potentially losing Federal education dollars if a certain portion of parents decides opting out is best for their children, because schools are required to assess 95 percent of their students in order to--and as a condition to--receive Federal funds.

The bill before the Senate today, the Every Student Achieves Act, does not fix this problem. My amendment does. Here is how. My amendment would protect a State's Federal funding for elementary and secondary schools by removing the number of students who opt out of Federal tests from the number of non-assessed students. In other words, the number of students opting out of federally required tests could not threaten a State's eligibility to receive Federal funds.

My amendment would also give parents more information about tests mandated by the Federal Government, ensuring that parents are notified of any federally required assessment that children are scheduled to take. It would allow parents to opt out their children from such assessments. It is important to note that this amendment would have no effect on assessments that are required by the State, local education agency, school or teachers. Nor does it prohibit a State from expanding their parental opt-out laws to apply to a broader set of assessments if they choose to do so.

This amendment would not jeopardize a State law that provides parents the opportunity to opt out their children and it would allow the State to continue to use its own process that allows parents to take such action.

Whether you believe the bill before the Senate today strikes the appropriate balance between Federal and State control, I think all of my colleagues can support this amendment. I believe all of us can agree that parents should have the final say in their child's education and should have access to information about the testing that is taking place before that testing takes place, and they should be able to decide whether their child will be part of that testing.

I urge all of my colleagues to support this amendment.

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Mr. LEE. Mr. President, my amendment would clarify that parents--not the Federal Government--are the primary educators of their children. It would ensure that parents may allow their children to opt out of federally mandated tests.

Now, the Senator from Tennessee, Mr. Alexander, is right that States should be free to make their own tests mandatory if they so choose. However, that is not what this bill allows. This bill mandates that States give these tests and requires them to get the content of such tests approved by the Secretary of Education.

My amendment is silent on the question of State tests. It simply clarifies that tests mandated by this Congress are, in fact, voluntary, and that parents--not politicians or bureaucrats--will have the final say on whether individual children take Federal tests. It also ensures that the Federal Government cannot punish a State by restricting Federal funding for education should parents choose to opt out their children from these tests.

Thank you.

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