Congress·In Committee·S. 1723

Equitable Access to School Facilities Act

New Bill Proposes $500 Million to Help Charter Schools Find and Fix School Buildings

May 13, 2025·View on Congress.gov·Read full text

This bill is one vehicle in a longer effort. See the full story across every version.View effort →

StalledNext up: A senate committeeNo action in 14 months

A senate committee must act next: committee consideration.

Legislative Progress

Senate

No action since May 2025

House

President

Law

How we got here

This bill’s path across every version that has carried it.

Reintroduced
Reintroduced from H.R. 9853 (118th), which died when its Congress ended.
H.R. 9853 (118th) →

Key Points

This bill creates a new grant program to help charter schools pay for their buildings. It provides $100 million each year from 2026 to 2030 to help these schools buy, rent, or renovate their facilities.
The goal is to make sure charter schools have the same access to money and buildings as traditional public schools. Currently, many charter schools have to use their classroom budgets to pay for rent, which leaves less money for teaching.
States that make it easier for charter schools to get permits or use empty public buildings will be first in line for this federal funding. The bill also encourages states to stop rules that prevent charter schools from buying old government property.
The policy allows states to set up special loan programs. These revolving loan funds would give schools low-cost loans to fix up classrooms or make sure buildings meet safety codes and are ready for students.
This plan focuses heavily on helping schools in rural areas and low-income neighborhoods. It also provides technical help to ensure new schools are planned well and can support high-quality education for their students.

Education

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works

Life & Work

Charter school students would benefit from improved school buildings and facilities. The bill authorizes $100 million per year for five years to help charter schools buy, lease, build, or renovate facilities, with a focus on schools in low-income and rural communities. Better buildings mean safer, more comfortable learning environments, which can improve educational outcomes.

ImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Disabilities

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

May 13, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.

May 13, 2025

Introduced in Senate

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

Related News

3 articles

Politico·Jan 21

House Education advances bills to bolster charter school expansion

The House Education and Workforce Committee advanced the Equitable Access to School Facilities Act (H.R. 7086) on a party-line vote. The bill aims to incentivize states to treat charter schools similarly to traditional public schools in terms of land use and facility acquisition.

Center Left

Washington Examiner·May 15, 2025

Bill Cassidy holds event on expanding access to charter schools after introducing bill to cut 'red tape'

Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) hosted a briefing on charter school innovation shortly after reintroducing the Equitable Access to School Facilities Act. The bill focuses on ensuring schools have sufficient facilities and capital, particularly in low-income and rural communities.

Center Right

Legis1·Sep 9, 2025

National Alliance for Public Charter Schools conducts in-house lobbying on federal funding bills

Lobbying efforts have intensified for S. 1723, the Equitable Access to School Facilities Act, which would create $100 million annually for charter facilities aid. The bill aims to close the funding gap that forces many charters to divert classroom money to rent.

Center

No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.