ACE Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 7989
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 2
- Policy Area
- Education
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2026-03-18: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- Last Updated
- 2026-07-06T15:47:07Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The All Children are Equal Act (ACE Act), H.R. 7989, aims to revise the funding formulas for Targeted Grants and Education Finance Incentive Grants under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). It seeks to better direct federal education funds to local educational agencies (LEAs)—school districts—with high concentrations of economically disadvantaged students (measured as a percentage of their total students aged 5-17), rather than favoring larger districts based on sheer student numbers.
Key Provisions
- Updated Findings (Sec. 2): Congress finds that current formulas inadequately target high-poverty schools, as the "number weighting" (based on total disadvantaged students) benefits large LEAs even with low poverty rates, shifting funds from smaller high-poverty LEAs. Data from Congressional Research Service (2021-2022) and National Center for Education Statistics (2019) support prioritizing percentage weighting.
- Targeted Grants (Sec. 3):
- Through fiscal year (FY) 2025: Uses the higher of percentage weighting or number weighting for each LEA's "weighted child count."
- From FY 2026 onward: Uses only percentage weighting.
- Education Finance Incentive Grants (Sec. 4): Applies similar changes across states based on their "equity factor" (a measure of funding disparities between high- and low-poverty LEAs):
- Through FY 2025: Higher of percentage or number weighting.
- From FY 2026 onward: Only percentage weighting, for all state categories (equity factor <0.10, 0.10–<0.20, or ≥0.20).
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Eliminates the option to use number weighting from FY 2026, forcing exclusive reliance on percentage weighting in both grant programs.
- Revises statutory findings to emphasize correcting "unintended inequity" against smaller LEAs with high poverty concentrations.
- Provides a transition period (through FY 2025) before full implementation.
Potential Impacts
- Funding Shifts: Smaller LEAs with high poverty percentages (but low total students) will likely receive more per student; large LEAs with low poverty rates will get less.
- Government Agencies: U.S. Department of Education must recalculate allocations using new weights starting FY 2026, potentially simplifying administration but requiring data updates.
- Citizens/Students: Increased resources for schools serving high concentrations of low-income students, aiming to improve equity in education funding without increasing total appropriations.
- No direct impact on international relations.
Main Stakeholders
- Local Educational Agencies (LEAs): Primary beneficiaries are smaller, high-poverty districts; large, low-poverty districts may lose funding share.
- Economically Disadvantaged Students: Targeted for better-resourced schools.
- States: Affected differently by equity factor tiers; all must adapt to new LEA-level allocations.
- U.S. Department of Education: Implements formula changes.
- Congress: Maintains oversight of fixed appropriations.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Aligns funding more closely with ESEA's original intent to prioritize poverty concentration. No new mandates or spending; operates within existing appropriations.
- Constitutional: Routine adjustment to federal spending formula; no apparent free speech, equal protection, or federalism challenges.
- Political: Addresses documented inequities (via cited reports), potentially reducing debates over formula fairness but sparking contention between large urban/suburban vs. rural/small districts. Transition period eases implementation.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Rep. Thompson, Glenn [R-PA-15]
Cosponsors (1)
Recent Actions
- 2026-03-18: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- 2026-03-18: Introduced in House
- 2026-03-18: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- All Children are Equal Act — issued 2026-03-18 — PDF (7 pages)