WASHINGTON -- When Congress created its academic support fund three years ago, lawmakers had in mind a pot of money that would increase student access to art and music, mental health and technology programs at the nation's most impoverished schools.
But back-to-back school shootings this year and inquiries from the state of Texas have prompted Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to examine whether to allow states to tap the school enrichment fund for another purpose: guns.
Such a move would reverse a long-standing position taken by the federal government that it should not pay to outfit schools with weaponry. It would also undermine efforts by Congress to restrict the use of federal funding on guns. As recently as March, Congress passed a school safety bill that allocated $50 million a year to local school districts but expressly prohibited the use of the money for firearms.
But the Every Student Succeeds Act, signed into law in 2015, is silent on weapons purchases, and that omission would allow DeVos to use her discretion to approve or deny any state or district plans to use the enrichment grants under the measure for firearms and firearm training, unless Congress clarifies the law or bans such funding through legislative action.
"The department is constantly considering and evaluating policy issues, particularly issues related to school safety," said Liz Hill, a spokesman for the Education Department.
The $1 billion student support program, known as the Student Support and Academic Enrichment grants, is intended for the country's poorest schools and calls for school districts to use the money toward three goals: providing a well-rounded education, improving school conditions for learning and improving the use of technology for digital literacy.
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., introduced legislation Thursday to block the Education Department from allowing school districts to use federal funds to purchase firearms.
The ranking Democrat on the House education committee, Rep. Robert C. Scott of Virginia, said granting state requests to use federal funds for firearms would be "openly violating the spirit of the law as well as common sense about gun safety."
"Redirecting that money to arm teachers and school staff will recklessly endanger the safety of both students and educators, while robbing underserved students of the support and opportunity they deserve," Scott said.
But it was unclear whether or when a legislative response would receive a vote. The Republicans who created the fund were hesitant to curb the flexibility that it offers local governments.
"I'm not a fan of arming teachers, but the safe schools block grant for many years has allowed states to make the decision about how to use those federal dollars to make schools safer for children," said Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., who was one of the chief architects of the new education law.
A spokesman for the House education committee said the chairman for the panel, Rep. Virginia Foxx of North Carolina, believed the grants "were intentionally designed to give states and local school districts the ability to determine and implement policies to serve their communities."
Department officials acknowledged that carrying out the proposal would be the first time that a federal agency has authorized the purchase of weapons without a congressional mandate, according to people familiar with the discussions. And while no such restrictions exist in the federal education law, it could undermine the grant program's adoption of "drug and violence prevention," which defines a safe school environment as free of weapons.
In its research, the Education Department has determined that the gun purchases could fall under improving school conditions, people familiar with the department's thinking said. Under the current guidelines for that part of the grant, the department encourages schools to increase access to mental health counseling, establish dropout prevention programs, reduce suspensions and expulsions and improve re-entry programs for students transitioning from the juvenile justice system.
Department officials confirmed Thursday that they began exploring the possibility after Texas inquired about whether it could use funding for its firearms program. Texas, known for its "school marshal" program, is one of at least nine states that allow school employees to be armed or have access to firearms on campuses.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., who helped write the education law, said the intent of Congress was clear.
"When Republicans and Democrats came together to pass the bipartisan Every Student Succeeds Act, we were clear that these grants were intended to help foster safe, healthy, and supportive environments that improve student learning -- not prop up the [National Rifle Association] and gun sales," Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate education committee, said in a statement.
A Section on 08/24/2018