Funding for the full implementation of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) will be distributed starting July 1, 2017. In order to receive these funds, each State Education Agency (SEA) is required to submit a set of assurances that outline things that must be done or put in place as a prerequisite for receiving fiscal year 2017 ESEA funds.
On March 13th the U.S. Department of Education (USED) posted a revised template for States to use when submitting their ESSA State Plans. In that updated template, it says, “each SEA must also submit a comprehensive set of assurances to the Department at a date and time established by the Secretary. In the near future, the Department will publish an information collection request that details these assurances.”
The set of assurances that had been previously posted had a due date for all SEAs of April 3rd. While USED has not made a formal statement that these assurances are no longer going to be used, it has pulled the former assurances document from its ESSA webpage. In addition, in a fact sheet that was posted along with the updated ESSA State Plan template, USED indicates that the new assurances “will be available by no later than June 2017.”
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact us at 425.977.2100, Option 3 or email at support@transact.com.