Sponsors
The bill would substantially expand access to outdoor learning, prioritize tribal and high‑poverty schools, and promote resilient, greener schoolyards, but it shifts meaningful costs, administrative burdens, and capacity demands onto local districts—creating tradeoffs between equity/benefits and local affordability, speed, and equal access.
Students in funded schools will gain on-site revitalized outdoor classrooms, hands-on STEM opportunities, and healthier play spaces that support physical activity and climate resilience.
Tribal and high-poverty schools get explicit priority (a 5% tribal set‑aside, 75% FRL prioritization, feeder‑school rules, and possible match waivers), increasing funding stability and equity for Indigenous and low-income students.
Grant design features (award caps, defined multi-year grants/cohort planning, and authority to reallocate unused planning funds) are structured to spread funds across more applicants and use appropriations efficiently.
Local school districts and taxpayers will face increased upfront and ongoing costs (maintenance, supervision, liability) and a required 20% non‑Federal match for implementation grants, which can strain local budgets and delay projects.
Under-resourced and smaller districts risk being left behind because they may lack grant-writing, planning, and maintenance capacity, producing uneven access and favoring wealthier or better-staffed districts.
Application complexity (multi-phase applications, long-term maintenance plans, consultant/grant‑writer set‑asides, feeder‑school verification) increases administrative burden and may disadvantage districts without grant expertise.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Creates a federal grant program to plan and build park-like revitalized schoolyards at K–12 schools, prioritizing tribal and high-poverty schools and creating a national clearinghouse of best practices.
Introduced March 26, 2026 by Martin Heinrich · Last progress March 26, 2026
Creates a federal grant program to help public K–12 schools design and build “revitalized schoolyards” — park-like outdoor spaces for nature-based learning, play, and community use. Grants are awarded in two-year cohort cycles: planning grants first, then implementation grants for approved plans; tribal schools get a dedicated set-aside and high-poverty schools receive competitive priority and possible match waivers. The Department of Education must run the program, set viability criteria, maintain a national clearinghouse of best practices and resources, and may authorize unspecified appropriations for fiscal years 2027–2031. Grants can cover design, construction, training, and some staffing/maintenance costs, with rules for application content, community input, accessibility, and long-term stewardship.