State and local report cards help ensure local educational agencies (LEAs), parents, families, educators, and communities have critical data and a common framework for gauging educational progress and success. Title I, Part A (Title I) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) requires States to annually share this important information. Last year, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) conducted targeted monitoring of the ESEA's public reporting requirements--specifically, the requirements for States to: (1) prepare and widely share report cards that provide information on State, LEA, and school performance and progress in an understandable, uniform format; and (2) publicly report the State's progress in ensuring that low-income and minority children in Title I schools are not served at disproportionate rates by ineffective, out-of-field, and inexperienced teachers. This letter shares what the Department learned from this effort and offers recommendations for State leaders working to strengthen their implementation of ESEA requirements.