Federal grants to hire school nurses in under-resourced districts

What it does

This bill creates a federal grant program to help school districts hire more school nurses. The Department of Education will award competitive grants (covering up to 75% of costs) to school districts or consortia with high poverty rates, prioritizing those with the greatest need for nursing services. Districts must match the federal funds with state, local, or private money, and the federal share decreases each year to encourage long-term local funding.

Why we flagged it

The bill is a straightforward federal grant program to increase school nurse staffing in under-resourced public schools. It is a direct public-health intervention funded through education appropriations, with no hidden mechanisms or private carve-outs.

What the text implies

• The bill's effectiveness depends entirely on future appropriations (2026–2030); without funding, no grants are awarded and no nurses are hired.
• The decreasing federal share (75% year 1, declining thereafter) creates pressure on districts to sustain hiring from local budgets; districts unable to do so may lose nurses when grants expire.
• Priority is given to high-poverty districts, but eligibility requires 20% of students on free/reduced lunch; some under-resourced rural or mixed-income districts may fall below this threshold and be ineligible.
• The bill requires districts to report on academic outcomes (attendance, achievement) within 2 years, but causation between nurse hiring and academic gains is difficult to isolate and may be overstated in evaluation.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

The bill directly funds hiring of school nurses in under-resourced schools, addressing a documented gap (one-third of schools lack a nurse) and improving student health outcomes, disease prevention, and academic achievement. The program targets high-poverty districts where students are most likely to lack alternative health care access.

Named in the bill

Department of Education, Local Educational Agencies (LEAs), State Educational Agencies (SEAs), National Association of School Nurses, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Federation of Teachers, Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act

Where it stands

4 cosponsors: 4 Republicans.

• May 7, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• May 7, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce and House Committee on Education and Workforce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and…”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

2 lobbying clients named this bill on 2 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $480,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 93 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 41% of bills with at least one filing.

Dina Titus, the sponsor, reported $775,196 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• American Federation of Teachers — $410,000 on 1 filing
• National Association of Elementary School Principals (naesp) — $70,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.