Today U.S. Senator Mike Enzi praised the passage of a bipartisan bill out of the Senate education committee designed to reform the No Child Left Behind Act. Aimed at returning responsibility to state and local governments, the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 would fix the problems with “No Child Left Behind,” while keeping successful provisions.

Enzi said the bill would end the emphasis on standardized tests, allowing states to determine how to use federally required tests for accountability purposes. The bill would also reaffirm the states’ role in defining education standards by making it clear that the federal government may not mandate or incentivize states to adopt any particular set of education standards, including Common Core.

“State officials, educators and parents are in the best position to determine what is best for our schools, not Washington,” said Enzi. “This bipartisan bill would strengthen state and local control, returning the responsibility of improving student achievements where it belongs, the local level. By getting Washington out of the business of deciding whether schools are succeeding or failing we are allowing these education programs to innovate and become stronger.”

Passed out of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee unanimously, the bill is a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The most recent reauthorization of ESEA was the “No Child Left Behind Act,” which was enacted in 2001 and expired in 2007. Since then, many have complained about some of the law’s most unworkable requirements.

The Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 would also:

·         End federal mandates on teacher evaluations.

·         Update and strengthen charter school programs.

·         Support rural schools.

·         Help states improve low-performing schools.

·         Prohibit the federal government from imposing additional requirements on states seeking waivers.

·         Maintain important protections for federal taxpayer dollars.