§ 3401. — Congressional findings.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 20USC3401]
TITLE 20--EDUCATION
CHAPTER 48--DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
SUBCHAPTER I--GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 3401. Congressional findings
The Congress finds that--
(1) education is fundamental to the development of individual
citizens and the progress of the Nation;
(2) there is a continuing need to ensure equal access for all
Americans to educational opportunities of a high quality, and such
educational opportunities should not be denied because of race,
creed, color, national origin, or sex;
(3) parents have the primary responsibility for the education of
their children, and States, localities, and private institutions
have the primary responsibility for supporting that parental role;
(4) in our Federal system, the primary public responsibility for
education is reserved respectively to the States and the local
school systems and other instrumentalities of the States;
(5) the American people benefit from a diversity of educational
settings, including public and private schools, libraries, museums
and other institutions, the workplace, the community, and the home;
(6) the importance of education is increasing as new
technologies and alternative approaches to traditional education are
considered, as society becomes more complex, and as equal
opportunities in education and employment are promoted;
(7) there is a need for improvement in the management and
coordination of Federal education programs to support more
effectively State, local, and private institutions, students, and
parents in carrying out their educational responsibilities;
(8) the dispersion of education programs across a large number
of Federal agencies has led to fragmented, duplicative, and often
inconsistent Federal policies relating to education;
(9) Presidential and public consideration of issues relating to
Federal education programs is hindered by the present organizational
position of education programs in the executive branch of the
Government; and
(10) there is no single, full-time, Federal education official
directly accountable to the President, the Congress, and the people.
(Pub. L. 96-88, title I, Sec. 101, Oct. 17, 1979, 93 Stat. 669.)
Effective Date
Section 601 of Pub. L. 96-88 provided that:
``(a) The provisions of this Act [see Short Title note below] shall
take effect one hundred and eighty days after the first Secretary takes
office, or on any earlier date on or after October 1, 1979, as the
President may prescribe and publish in the Federal Register [prescribed
as May 4, 1980, by Ex. Ord. No. 12212, formerly set out below], except
that at any time on or after October 1, 1979--
``(1) any of the officers provided for in title II of this Act
[subchapter II of this chapter] may be nominated and appointed, as
provided in such title; and
``(2) the Secretary may promulgate regulations pursuant to
section 505(b)(2) of this Act [section 3505(b)(2) of this title].
``(b) Funds available to any department or agency (or any official
or component thereof), the functions or offices of which are transferred
to the Secretary or the Department by this Act [see Short Title note
below], may, with the approval of the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget, be used to pay the compensation and expenses of
any officer appointed pursuant to this title [this section and section
602 of Pub. L. 96-88 set out below] and other transitional and planning
expenses associated with the establishment of the Department or transfer
of functions or offices thereto until such time as funds for such
purposes are otherwise available.''
Short Title of 1990 Amendment
Pub. L. 101-392, title VI, Sec. 601, Sept. 25, 1990, 104 Stat. 840,
provided that: ``This title [enacting section 3423a of this title,
amending section 3424 of this title, repealing sections 1131 and 3423 of
this title, and enacting provisions set out as a note under section 2403
of this title] may be cited as the `Office of Correctional Education Act
of 1990'.''
Short Title
Section 1 of Pub. L. 96-88 provided that: ``This Act [enacting this
chapter, amending sections 928, 929, 1102, 2390, 2711, and 3012 of this
title, section 19 of Title 3, The President, sections 101, 5312, and
5314 to 5316 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, sections
2, 9, and 11 of the Inspector General Act of 1978, set out in the
Appendix to Title 5, section 1004 of Title 21, Food and Drugs, and
sections 761b, 794c, 821, 829, 873, 879, 882, 914, and 952 of Title 29,
Labor, and enacting provisions set out as notes under this section and
section 1102 of this title] may be cited as the `Department of Education
Organization Act'.''
Interim Appointments
Section 602 of Pub. L. 96-88 provided that:
``(a) In the event that one or more officers required by this Act
[see Short Title note above] to be appointed by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate shall not have entered upon office on the
effective date of this Act [May 4, 1980] and notwithstanding any other
provisions of law, the President may designate an officer in the
executive branch to act in such office for one hundred and twenty days
or until the office is filled as provided in this Act, whichever occurs
first.
``(b) Any officer acting in an office in the Department pursuant to
the provisions of subsection (a) shall receive compensation at the rate
prescribed for such office under this Act.''
Executive Order No. 12212
Ex. Ord. No. 12212, May 2, 1980, 45 F.R. 29557, which established
the effective date for the Department of Education Organization Act, was
revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 12553, Feb. 25, 1986, 51 F.R. 7237.
