On January 5, 2007, Adrian Fenty, the mayor of the District Columbia, released a detailed legislative proposal that would transfer administrative, policy making, and budgetary authority for the District of Columbia's public schools from the District of Columbia Board of Education to the mayor. transfer the authority to set the budget for the District of Columbia schools to the mayor. The Home Rule Act gave District voters the right to elect a mayor, a city council, and an independent Board of Education. To the extent that Congress sought to legislate beyond the two issues contemplated in the proposed Education Reform Act, it could pass legislation implementing any or all other aspects of the proposed act itself.
On January 5, 2007, the newly elected mayor of the District of Columbia, Adrian Fenty, released his legislative proposal to transfer administrative and budgetary control of the District's public schools from the Board of Education to the Office of the Mayor. Under the proposed Education Reform Act, the city council would reorganize the city's authority over the schools, while calling on Congress to amend provisions of the Home Rule Act relating to the District of Columbia School Board structure and to restrictions on the school budget authority. To the extent that Congress sought to legislate beyond these two issues, it could pass legislation implementing any or all other aspects of the proposed act itself. This report will examine that option.