For purposes of this subchapter:

(1) Armed Forces

The term “Armed Forces” means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.

(2) Average per-pupil expenditure

The term “average per-pupil expenditure” means—

(A) the aggregate current expenditures of all local educational agencies in the State; divided by

(B) the total number of children in average daily attendance for whom such agencies provided free public education.

(3) Construction

The term “construction” means—

(A) the preparation of drawings and specifications for school facilities;

(B) erecting, building, acquiring, altering, remodeling, repairing, or extending school facilities;

(C) inspecting and supervising the construction of school facilities; and

(D) debt service for such activities.

(4) Current expenditures

The term “current expenditures” means expenditures for free public education, including expenditures for administration, instruction, attendance and health services, pupil transportation services, operation and maintenance of plant, fixed charges, and net expenditures to cover deficits for food services and student body activities, but does not include expenditures for community services, capital outlay, and debt service, or any expenditures made from funds awarded under part A of subchapter I. The determination of whether an expenditure for the replacement of equipment is considered a current expenditure or a capital outlay shall be determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles as determined by the State.

(5) Federal property

(A) In general

Except as provided in subparagraphs (B) through (F), the term “Federal property” means real property that is not subject to taxation by any State or any political subdivision of a State due to Federal agreement, law, or policy, and that is—

(i) owned by the United States or leased by the United States from another entity;

(ii)(I) held in trust by the United States for individual Indians or Indian tribes;

(II) held by individual Indians or Indian tribes subject to restrictions on alienation imposed by the United States;

(III) conveyed at any time under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act [43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.] to a Native individual, Native group, or village or regional corporation (including single family occupancy properties that may have been subsequently sold or leased to a third party), except that property that is conveyed under such Act—

(aa) that is not taxed is, for the purposes of this paragraph, considered tax-exempt due to Federal law; and

(bb) is considered Federal property for the purpose of this paragraph if the property is located within a Regional Educational Attendance Area that has no taxing power;


(IV) public land owned by the United States that is designated for the sole use and benefit of individual Indians or Indian tribes; or

(V) used for low-rent housing, as described in paragraph (10), that is located on land described in subclause (I), (II), (III), or (IV) of this clause or on land that met one of those descriptions immediately before such property’s use for such housing;

(iii)(I) part of a low-rent housing project assisted under the United States Housing Act of 1937 [42 U.S.C. 1437 et seq.];

(II) used to provide housing for homeless children at closed military installations pursuant to section 11411 of title 42; or

(III) used for affordable housing assisted under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.); or

(iv) owned by a foreign government or by an international organization.

(B) Schools providing flight training to members of Air Force

The term “Federal property” includes, so long as not subject to taxation by any State or any political subdivision of a State, and whether or not that tax exemption is due to Federal agreement, law, or policy, any school providing flight training to members of the Air Force under contract with the Air Force at an airport owned by a State or political subdivision of a State.

(C) Non-Federal easements, leases, licenses, permits, improvements, and certain other real property

The term “Federal property” includes, whether or not subject to taxation by a State or a political subdivision of a State—

(i) any non-Federal easement, lease, license, permit, or other such interest in Federal property as otherwise described in this paragraph, but not including any non-Federal fee-simple interest;

(ii) any improvement on Federal property as otherwise described in this paragraph; and

(iii) real property that, immediately before its sale or transfer to a non-Federal party, was owned by the United States and otherwise qualified as Federal property described in this paragraph, but only for one year beyond the end of the fiscal year of such sale or transfer.

(D) Certain Postal Service property and pipelines and utility lines

Notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph, the term “Federal property” does not include—

(i) any real property under the jurisdiction of the United States Postal Service that is used primarily for the provision of postal services; or

(ii) pipelines and utility lines.

(E) Property with respect to which State or local tax revenues may not be expended, allocated, or available for free public education

Notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph, “Federal property” does not include any property on which children reside that is otherwise described in this paragraph if—

(i) no tax revenues of the State or of any political subdivision of the State may be expended for the free public education of children who reside on that Federal property; or

(ii) no tax revenues of the State are allocated or available for the free public education of such children.

(F) Property located in the State of Oklahoma owned by Indian housing authority for low-income housing

The term “Federal property” includes any real property located in the State of Oklahoma that—

(i) is owned by an Indian housing authority and used for low-income housing (including housing assisted under or authorized by the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 [25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.]); and

(ii) at any time—

(I) was designated by treaty as tribal land; or

(II) satisfied the definition of Federal property under section 403(1)(A) of the Act of September 30, 1950 (Public Law 874, 81st Congress) (as such Act was in effect on the day preceding October 20, 1994).

(6) Free public education

The term “free public education” means education that is provided—

(A) at public expense, under public supervision and direction, and without tuition charge; and

(B) as elementary or secondary education, as determined under State law, except that, notwithstanding State law, such term—

(i) includes preschool education; and

(ii) does not include any education provided beyond grade 12.

(7) Indian lands

The term “Indian lands” means any Federal property described in paragraph (5)(A)(ii) or (5)(F).

(8) Local contribution percentage

(A) In general

The term “local contribution percentage” means the percentage of current expenditures in the State derived from local and intermediate sources, as reported to and verified by the National Center for Education Statistics.

(B) Hawaii and District of Columbia

Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), the local contribution percentage for Hawaii and for the District of Columbia shall be the average local contribution percentage for the 50 States and the District of Columbia.

(9) Local educational agency

(A) In general

Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the term “local educational agency”—

(i) means a board of education or other legally constituted local school authority having administrative control and direction of free public education in a county, township, independent school district, or other school district; and

(ii) includes any State agency that directly operates and maintains facilities for providing free public education.

(B) Exception

The term “local educational agency” does not include any agency or school authority that the Secretary determines on a case-by-case basis—

(i) was constituted or reconstituted primarily for the purpose of receiving assistance under this subchapter or the Act of September 30, 1950 (Public Law 874, 81st Congress) (as such Act was in effect on the day preceding October 20, 1994) or increasing the amount of such assistance; or

(ii) is not constituted or reconstituted for legitimate educational purposes.

(10) Low-rent housing

The term “low-rent housing” means housing located on property that is described in paragraph (5)(A)(iii).

(11) Modernization

The term “modernization” means repair, renovation, alteration, or construction, including—

(A) the concurrent installation of equipment; and

(B) the complete or partial replacement of an existing school facility, but only if such replacement is less expensive and more cost-effective than repair, renovation, or alteration of the school facility.

(12) Revenue derived from local sources

The term “revenue derived from local sources” means—

(A) revenue produced within the boundaries of a local educational agency and available to such agency for such agency’s use; or

(B) funds collected by another governmental unit, but distributed back to a local educational agency in the same proportion as such funds were collected as a local revenue source.

(13) School facilities

The term “school facilities” includes—

(A) classrooms and related facilities; and

(B) equipment, machinery, and utilities necessary or appropriate for school purposes.

Terms Used In 20 USC 7713

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • county: includes a parish, or any other equivalent subdivision of a State or Territory of the United States. See 1 USC 2
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • individual: shall include every infant member of the species homo sapiens who is born alive at any stage of development. See 1 USC 8
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
  • State: means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any other territory or possession of the United States. See 1 USC 7