Title 20EducationRelease 119-73

§7824 Consolidated set-aside for Department of the Interior funds

Title 20 › Chapter CHAPTER 70— - STRENGTHENING AND IMPROVEMENT OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER VIII— - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Part Part B— - Flexibility in the Use of Administrative and Other Funds › § 7824

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary of Education must move to the Department of the Interior, as one combined amount, the money that was set aside for two programs: Indian education under part A of subchapter VI and the education for homeless children and youth under McKinney‑Vento subtitle B. The Secretary of Education and the Secretary of the Interior must make an agreement on how to distribute and use those funds. That agreement must explain the Interior’s plans and how it will measure success, and it must be developed with input from Indian tribes. The Department of the Interior may use up to 1.5% of the combined funds for its own administration. For schools run or funded by the Bureau of Indian Education, the Secretary of the Interior must, using negotiated rulemaking and by the 2017–2018 school year, set standards, tests, and an accountability system that follow section 6311 and fit the schools’ needs on a national, regional, or tribal basis. A tribal governing body or school board may partially or fully waive those requirements if it finds them inappropriate, but then must send a proposal within 60 days for alternative standards, tests, and an accountability plan that still follow section 6311 and reflect local needs. The Secretaries must approve such proposals unless they do not meet section 6311 requirements. The Secretaries must also provide technical help on request to tribes or school boards seeking a waiver.

Full Legal Text

Title 20, §7824

Education — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)The Secretary shall transfer to the Department of the Interior, as a consolidated amount for covered programs, the Indian education programs under part A of subchapter VI, and the education for homeless children and youth program under subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act [42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.], the amounts allotted to the Department of the Interior under those programs.
(2)(A)The Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior shall enter into an agreement, consistent with the requirements of the programs specified in paragraph (1), for the distribution and use of those program funds under terms that the Secretary determines best meet the purposes of those programs.
(B)The agreement shall—
(i)set forth the plans of the Secretary of the Interior for the use of the amount transferred and the achievement measures to assess program effectiveness, including program objectives; and
(ii)be developed in consultation with Indian tribes.
(b)The Department of the Interior may use not more than 1.5 percent of the funds consolidated under this section for its costs related to the administration of the funds transferred under this section.
(c)(1)For the purposes of part A of subchapter I, the Secretary of Interior, in consultation with the Secretary, if the Secretary of the Interior requests the consultation, using a negotiated rulemaking process to develop regulations for implementation no later than the 2017-2018 academic year, shall define the standards, assessments, and accountability system consistent with section 6311 of this title, for the schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Education on a national, regional, or tribal basis, as appropriate, taking into account the unique circumstances and needs of such schools and the students served by such schools.
(2)The tribal governing body or school board of a school funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs may waive, in part or in whole, the requirements established pursuant to paragraph (1) where such requirements are determined by such body or school board to be inappropriate. If such requirements are waived, the tribal governing body or school board shall, within 60 days, submit to the Secretary of Interior a proposal for alternative standards, assessments, and an accountability system, if applicable, consistent with section 6311 of this title, that takes into account the unique circumstances and needs of such school or schools and the students served. The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary shall approve such standards, assessments, and accountability system unless the Secretary determines that the standards, assessments, and accountability system do not meet the requirements of section 6311 of this title, taking into account the unique circumstances and needs of such school or schools and the students served.
(3)The Secretary of Interior and the Secretary shall, either directly or through a contract, provide technical assistance, upon request, to a tribal governing body or school board of a school funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs that seeks a waiver under paragraph (2).

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(1), is Pub. L. 100–77, July 22, 1987, 101 Stat. 482. Subtitle B of title VII of the Act is classified generally to part B (§ 11431 et seq.) of subchapter VI of chapter 119 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 11301 of Title 42 and Tables.

Amendments

2015—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 114–95, § 8007(1)(A), substituted “part A of subchapter VI” for “part A of subchapter VII”. Subsec. (a)(2)(B). Pub. L. 114–95, § 8007(1)(B), added subpar. (B) and struck out former subpar. (B). Prior to amendment, text read as follows: “The agreement shall— “(i) set forth the plans of the Secretary of the Interior for the use of the amount transferred and the achievement measures to assess program effectiveness, including measurable goals and objectives; and “(ii) be developed in consultation with Indian tribes.” Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 114–95, § 8007(2), added subsec. (c).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2015 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 114–95 effective Dec. 10, 2015, except with respect to certain noncompetitive programs and competitive programs, see section 5 of Pub. L. 114–95, set out as a note under section 6301 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

20 U.S.C. § 7824

Title 20Education

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73