(a) The Secretary may award points to an application under a competitive preference priority regarding the capacity of charter schools to offer public school choice in those communities with the greatest need for this choice based on—

(1) The extent to which the applicant would target services to geographic areas in which a large proportion or number of public schools have been identified for comprehensive support and improvement or targeted support and improvement under the ESEA;

(2) The extent to which the applicant would target services to geographic areas in which a large proportion of students perform poorly on State academic assessments; and

(3) The extent to which the applicant would target services to communities with large proportions of low-income students.

(b) The Secretary may award points to an application under a competitive preference priority for applicants that have not previously received a grant under the program.

(c) The Secretary may elect to consider the points awarded under these priorities only for proposals that exhibit sufficient quality to warrant funding under the selection criteria in § 226.12 of this part.