Sponsors (6)
The bill secures modest, predictable annual funding for school-based health centers through FY2027–FY2031, improving planning and sustained services but locks in a fixed cap that could limit grant size and reduce flexibility to meet rising needs or emergencies.
Students and school communities receive predictable $55 million per year in grants for school-based health centers from FY2027–FY2031, helping maintain access to primary care and mental-health services at schools.
Schools and health-center providers gain budget certainty that helps with planning staffing and service delivery (including mental-health and primary-care offerings).
Students—especially low-income students—and school health centers face a fixed $55 million cap that could be lower than prior open-ended funding, risking smaller grant awards or reduced services if needs or costs grow.
Schools and students may have less federal flexibility to respond to emergent public-health needs in school settings between FY2027–FY2031 without additional appropriations.
Based on analysis of 1 section of legislative text.
Sets a fixed authorized funding level of $55,000,000 per year for the school-based health centers grant program for FY2027–FY2031 instead of an open-ended authorization.
Official title: To amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the school-based health centers grant program.
Introduced April 6, 2026 by Paul Tonko · Last progress April 6, 2026
Changes the federal funding authorization for the school-based health centers grant program so the program has a fixed annual authorized amount of $55,000,000 for each fiscal year 2027 through 2031 instead of an open-ended "such sums as may be necessary" authorization. The change affects the grant program established under the Public Health Service Act and sets predictable, specified authorization levels for five fiscal years.