National School Boards Association Welcomes the Introduction of the Local School Board Governance and Flexibility Act in the U.S. Senate

ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 10, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National School Boards Association (NSBA) praises the introduction today of the Local School Board Governance and Flexibility Act (S. 2451) in the U.S. Senate by Sen. James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.). The legislation would protect local school district governance from unnecessary and counterproductive federal intrusion from the U.S. Department of Education (ED).

"We appreciate Sen. Inhofe's leadership on the Local School Board Governance and Flexibility Act, which would ensure that local school boards are able to make sound decisions based on the needs of their students and their communities," said Thomas J. Gentzel, NSBA Executive Director. "Federal regulations that fail to recognize the value of strong local governance put politics before the best interests of our nation's students."

The Local School Board Governance and Flexibility Act would:

• Establish local school boards' authority and curb overreach by ED on issues that impact local school districts unless specifically authorized in federal legislation;
• Ensure that local school board concerns and issues are solicited and addressed in the process of creating new federal regulations;
• Create procedural steps that ED would be required to take prior to initiating any regulations, rules, grant requirements, guidance documents, and other regulatory materials; and
• Ensure that ED's actions are consistent with the specific intent of federal law and are supportable at the local level.

The new Senate legislation is a companion bill to H.R. 1386 introduced last year in the U.S. House of Representatives, which has 43 bipartisan sponsors and co-sponsors. The House's version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act reauthorization, H.R. 5, approved by the full House last summer, also includes key provisions of H.R. 1386.

NSBA is encouraging school board members to contact their senators to support passage of this legislation.  

"The Local School Board Governance and Flexibility Act will give state and local school boards a voice in how the federal government issues regulations and guidelines for education," said Inhofe. "It's time for the Department of Education to be accountable to the parents, teachers, and local elected officials who work first hand with our nation's children. Education needs are unique to each community, and in order to give the next generation of Americans a better future and wealth of opportunities, my legislation will give state and local school boards the authority they need to carry out the education goals that are best suited for their children." 

Recently, Inhofe received NSBA's top Congressional honor, the Congressional Special Recognition Award, for his leadership to advance America's public education.

The National School Boards Association (NSBA) is the leading advocate for public education and supports equity and excellence in public education through school board leadership. NSBA represents state school boards associations and their more than 90,000 local school board members throughout the U.S. Learn more at: www.nsba.org.  

SOURCE National School Boards Association