Todd Rokita: “I thank the gentlewoman for offering this amendment. This adds an allowable use of funds for what we are calling the…”

“I thank the gentlewoman for offering this amendment. This adds an allowable use of funds for what we are calling the local academic flexible grant to support projects that focus on school and student safety. The local academic flexible grant, again, is the product of us eliminating over 65 programs in current law and delivering the funds that supported those programs back to the States and, with the States' blessing, even further back to local school districts and so forth. We know all too well that bad things can happen in schools. This amendment will clarify that school districts can use this funding-- again, not being mandated by the Federal Government--but through this grant can use the funding to support programs aimed at making schools safer. This is in all our interests. I thank the gentlewoman for offering this amendment and urge my colleagues to support it and the underlying bill. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.”