Bill Text: FL S1088 | 2016 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Education Programs for Individuals with Disabilities

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-03-08 - Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/HB 837 (Ch. 2016-137), HB 5003 (Ch. 2016-62), CS/CS/HB 7029 (Ch. 2016-237) [S1088 Detail]

Download: Florida-2016-S1088-Introduced.html

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       Florida Senate - 2016                                    SB 1088
       
       
        
       By Senator Stargel
       
       15-01073A-16                                          20161088__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the John M. McKay Scholarships for
    3         Students with Disabilities Program; amending s.
    4         1002.39, F.S.; exempting a foster child from specified
    5         eligibility provisions; providing that a student
    6         enrolled in a transition-to-work program is eligible
    7         for a John M. McKay Scholarship; creating a
    8         transition-to-work program for specific students
    9         enrolled in the John M. McKay Scholarships for
   10         Students with Disabilities Program; providing program
   11         requirements; providing participation requirements for
   12         schools, students, and businesses; exempting a John M.
   13         McKay Scholarship award from a specified funding
   14         calculation; amending s. 1011.61, F.S.; exempting a
   15         John M. McKay Scholarship award from a specified
   16         funding calculation for purposes of the Florida
   17         Education Finance Program; providing an effective
   18         date.
   19          
   20  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   21  
   22         Section 1. Subsections (10) through (13) of section
   23  1002.39, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (11)
   24  through (14), respectively, paragraph (a) of subsection (2),
   25  paragraph (h) of subsection (3), paragraph (b) of subsection
   26  (8), and paragraph (a) of present subsection (10) are amended,
   27  and a new subsection (10) is added to that section, to read:
   28         1002.39 The John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with
   29  Disabilities Program.—There is established a program that is
   30  separate and distinct from the Opportunity Scholarship Program
   31  and is named the John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with
   32  Disabilities Program.
   33         (2) JOHN M. MCKAY SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY.—The parent of a
   34  student with a disability may request and receive from the state
   35  a John M. McKay Scholarship for the child to enroll in and
   36  attend a private school in accordance with this section if:
   37         (a) The student has:
   38         1. Received specialized instructional services under the
   39  Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program pursuant to s.
   40  1002.66 during the previous school year and the student has a
   41  current individual educational plan developed by the local
   42  school board in accordance with rules of the State Board of
   43  Education for the John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with
   44  Disabilities Program or a 504 accommodation plan has been issued
   45  under s. 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; or
   46         2. Spent the prior school year in attendance at a Florida
   47  public school or the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind.
   48  For purposes of this subparagraph, prior school year in
   49  attendance means that the student was enrolled and reported by:
   50         a. A school district for funding during the preceding
   51  October and February Florida Education Finance Program surveys
   52  in kindergarten through grade 12, which includes time spent in a
   53  Department of Juvenile Justice commitment program if funded
   54  under the Florida Education Finance Program;
   55         b. The Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind during the
   56  preceding October and February student membership surveys in
   57  kindergarten through grade 12; or
   58         c. A school district for funding during the preceding
   59  October and February Florida Education Finance Program surveys,
   60  was at least 4 years of age when so enrolled and reported, and
   61  was eligible for services under s. 1003.21(1)(e).
   62  
   63  However, a foster child or a dependent child of a member of the
   64  United States Armed Forces who transfers to a school in this
   65  state from out of state or from a foreign country due to a
   66  parent’s permanent change of station orders is exempt from this
   67  paragraph but must meet all other eligibility requirements to
   68  participate in the program.
   69         (3) JOHN M. MCKAY SCHOLARSHIP PROHIBITIONS.—A student is
   70  not eligible for a John M. McKay Scholarship:
   71         (h) While he or she is not having regular and direct
   72  contact with his or her private school teachers at the school’s
   73  physical location unless he or she is enrolled in the private
   74  school’s transition-to-work program pursuant to subsection (10);
   75  or
   76         (8) PRIVATE SCHOOL ELIGIBILITY AND OBLIGATIONS.—To be
   77  eligible to participate in the John M. McKay Scholarships for
   78  Students with Disabilities Program, a private school may be
   79  sectarian or nonsectarian and must:
   80         (b) Provide to the department all documentation required
   81  for a student’s participation, including the private school’s
   82  and student’s fee schedules, at least 30 days before any
   83  quarterly scholarship payment is made for the student pursuant
   84  to paragraph (11)(e) (10)(e). A student is not eligible to
   85  receive a quarterly scholarship payment if the private school
   86  fails to meet this deadline.
   87  
   88  The inability of a private school to meet the requirements of
   89  this subsection shall constitute a basis for the ineligibility
   90  of the private school to participate in the scholarship program
   91  as determined by the department.
   92         (10) TRANSITION-TO-WORK PROGRAM.—A student participating in
   93  the John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities
   94  Program who is at least 17 years, but not older than 22 years,
   95  of age and who has not received a high school diploma or
   96  certificate of completion is eligible for enrollment in his or
   97  her private school’s transition-to-work program. A transition
   98  to-work program shall consist of academic instruction, work
   99  skills training, and a volunteer or paid work experience.
  100         (a) To offer a transition-to-work program, a participating
  101  private school must:
  102         1. Develop a transition-to-work program plan, which must
  103  include a written description of the academic instruction and
  104  work skills training students will receive and the goals for
  105  students in the program.
  106         2. Submit the transition-to-work program plan to the Office
  107  of Independent Education and Parental Choice.
  108         3. Develop a personalized transition-to-work program plan
  109  for each student enrolled in the program. The student’s parent,
  110  the student, and the school principal must sign the personalized
  111  plan. The personalized plan must be submitted to the Office of
  112  Independent Education and Parental Choice upon request by the
  113  office.
  114         4. Provide a release of liability form that must be signed
  115  by the student’s parent, the student, and a representative of
  116  the business offering the volunteer or paid work experience.
  117         5. Assign a case manager or job coach to visit the
  118  student’s job site on a weekly basis to observe the student and,
  119  if necessary, provide support and guidance to the student.
  120         6. Provide to the parent and student a quarterly report
  121  that documents and explains the student’s progress and
  122  performance in the program.
  123         7. Maintain accurate attendance and performance records for
  124  the student.
  125         (b) A student enrolled in a transition-to-work program
  126  must, at a minimum:
  127         1. Receive 15 instructional hours at the private school’s
  128  physical facility, which must include academic instruction and
  129  work skills training.
  130         2. Participate in 10 hours of work at the student’s
  131  volunteer or paid work experience.
  132         (c) To participate in a transition-to-work program, a
  133  business must:
  134         1. Maintain an accurate record of the student’s performance
  135  and hours worked and provide the information to the private
  136  school.
  137         2. Comply with all state and federal child labor laws.
  138         (11)(10) JOHN M. MCKAY SCHOLARSHIP FUNDING AND PAYMENT.—
  139         (a)1. The maximum scholarship granted for an eligible
  140  student with disabilities shall be equivalent to the base
  141  student allocation in the Florida Education Finance Program
  142  multiplied by the appropriate cost factor for the educational
  143  program that would have been provided for the student in the
  144  district school to which he or she was assigned, multiplied by
  145  the district cost differential.
  146         2. In addition, a share of the guaranteed allocation for
  147  exceptional students shall be determined and added to the amount
  148  in subparagraph 1. The calculation shall be based on the
  149  methodology and the data used to calculate the guaranteed
  150  allocation for exceptional students for each district in chapter
  151  2000-166, Laws of Florida. Except as provided in subparagraphs
  152  3. and 4., the calculation shall be based on the student’s
  153  grade, matrix level of services, and the difference between the
  154  2000-2001 basic program and the appropriate level of services
  155  cost factor, multiplied by the 2000-2001 base student allocation
  156  and the 2000-2001 district cost differential for the sending
  157  district. The calculated amount shall include the per-student
  158  share of supplemental academic instruction funds, instructional
  159  materials funds, technology funds, and other categorical funds
  160  as provided in the General Appropriations Act.
  161         3. The scholarship amount for a student who is eligible
  162  under sub-subparagraph (2)(a)2.b. shall be calculated as
  163  provided in subparagraphs 1. and 2. However, the calculation
  164  shall be based on the school district in which the parent
  165  resides at the time of the scholarship request.
  166         4. Until the school district completes the matrix required
  167  by paragraph (5)(b), the calculation shall be based on the
  168  matrix that assigns the student to support Level I of service as
  169  it existed prior to the 2000-2001 school year. When the school
  170  district completes the matrix, the amount of the payment shall
  171  be adjusted as needed.
  172         5. The scholarship amount for a student eligible under s.
  173  504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 shall be based on the
  174  program cost factor the student currently generates through the
  175  Florida Education Finance Program.
  176         6. The scholarship amount granted for an eligible student
  177  with disabilities is not subject to the maximum value for
  178  funding a student under s. 1011.61(4).
  179         Section 2. Subsection (4) of section 1011.61, Florida
  180  Statutes, is amended to read:
  181         1011.61 Definitions.—Notwithstanding the provisions of s.
  182  1000.21, the following terms are defined as follows for the
  183  purposes of the Florida Education Finance Program:
  184         (4) The maximum value for funding a student in kindergarten
  185  through grade 12 or in a prekindergarten program for exceptional
  186  children as provided in s. 1003.21(1)(e) shall be the sum of the
  187  calculations in paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) as calculated by
  188  the department.
  189         (a) The sum of the student’s full-time equivalent student
  190  membership value for the school year or the equivalent derived
  191  from paragraphs (1)(a) and (b), subparagraph (1)(c)1., sub
  192  subparagraphs (1)(c)2.b. and c., subparagraph (1)(c)3., and
  193  subsection (2). If the sum is greater than 1.0, the full-time
  194  equivalent student membership value for each program or course
  195  shall be reduced by an equal proportion so that the student’s
  196  total full-time equivalent student membership value is equal to
  197  1.0.
  198         (b) If the result in paragraph (a) is less than 1.0 full
  199  time equivalent student and the student has full-time equivalent
  200  student enrollment pursuant to sub-sub-subparagraph
  201  (1)(c)1.b.(VIII), calculate an amount that is the lesser of the
  202  value in sub-sub-subparagraph (1)(c)1.b.(VIII) or the value of
  203  1.0 less the value in paragraph (a).
  204         (c) The full-time equivalent student enrollment value in
  205  sub-subparagraph (1)(c)2.a.
  206  
  207  A scholarship award provided to a student enrolled in the John
  208  M. McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program
  209  pursuant to s. 1002.39 is not subject to the maximum value for
  210  funding a student under this subsection.
  211         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.