Bill Text: IA SF475 | 2017-2018 | 87th General Assembly | Enrolled
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to educational programs developed or administered by the department or state board of education, school districts, or accredited nonpublic schools, and to school-age children’s health screenings, providing for or relating to fees, and including effective date provisions. (Formerly SSB 1137.) Various effective dates; see sections 19 and 21 of bill.
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Passed) 2018-04-17 - Signed by Governor. S.J. 959. [SF475 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2017-SF475-Enrolled.html
Senate File 475 - Enrolled
SENATE FILE
BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
(SUCCESSOR TO SSB
1137)
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A BILL FOR
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Senate File 475
AN ACT
RELATING TO EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS DEVELOPED OR
ADMINISTERED BY THE DEPARTMENT OR STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
SCHOOL DISTRICTS, OR ACCREDITED NONPUBLIC SCHOOLS, AND TO
SCHOOL=AGE CHILDREN'S HEALTH SCREENINGS, PROVIDING FOR OR
RELATING TO FEES, AND INCLUDING EFFECTIVE DATE PROVISIONS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
DIVISION I
ONLINE EDUCATION
Section 1. Section 256.7, subsection 32, paragraph a, Code
2018, is amended to read as follows:
a. Adopt rules for online learning in accordance with
sections 256.41, 256.42, and 256.43, and criteria for waivers
granted pursuant to section 256.42.
Sec. 2. Section 256.7, subsection 32, paragraph b, Code
2018, is amended by striking the paragraph.
Sec. 3. Section 256.7, subsection 32, paragraph c, Code
2018, is amended to read as follows:
c. Adopt rules that limit the statewide enrollment of
pupils in educational instruction and course content that are
delivered primarily over the internet to not more than eighteen
one=hundredths of one percent of the statewide enrollment of
all pupils, and that limit the number of pupils participating
in open enrollment for purposes of receiving educational
instruction and course content that are delivered primarily
over the internet to no more than one percent of a sending
district's enrollment. Such limitations shall not apply if
the limitations would prevent siblings from enrolling in the
same school district or if a sending district determines that
the educational needs of a physically or emotionally fragile
student would be best served by educational instruction and
course content that are delivered primarily over the internet.
Students who meet the requirements of section 282.18 may
participate in open enrollment under this paragraph "c" for
purposes of enrolling only in the CAM community school district
or the Clayton Ridge community school district.
(1) The department, in collaboration with the international
association for K=12 online learning, shall annually collect
data on student performance in educational instruction and
course content that are delivered primarily over the internet
pursuant to this paragraph "c". The department shall include
such data in its annual report to the general assembly pursuant
to subparagraph (4) and shall post the data on the department's
internet site.
(2) School districts Adopt rules which require that
educational instruction and course content delivered primarily
over the internet be aligned with the Iowa core standards as
applicable. Under such rules, a school district may develop
and offer to students enrolled in the district educational
instruction and course content for delivery primarily over the
internet. A school district providing educational instruction
and course content that are delivered primarily over the
internet pursuant to this paragraph "c" shall annually submit
to the department, in the manner prescribed by the department,
data that includes but is not limited to the following:
(a) Student achievement and demographic characteristics.
(b) Retention rates.
(c) The percentage of enrolled students' active
participation in extracurricular activities.
(d) Academic proficiency levels, consistent with
requirements applicable to all school districts and accredited
nonpublic schools in this state.
(e) Academic growth measures, which shall include either of
the following:
(i) Entry and exit assessments in, at a minimum, math
and English for elementary and middle school students, and
additional subjects, including science, for high school
students.
(ii) State=required assessments that track year=over=year
improvements in academic proficiency.
(f) Academic mobility. To facilitate the tracking
of academic mobility, school districts shall request the
following information from the parent or guardian of a student
enrolled in educational instruction and course content that
are delivered primarily over the internet pursuant to this
paragraph "c":
(i) For a student newly enrolling, the reasons for choosing
such enrollment.
(ii) For a student terminating enrollment, the reasons for
terminating such enrollment.
(g) Student progress toward graduation. Measurement of
such progress shall account for specific characteristics of
each enrolled student, including but not limited to age and
course credit accrued prior to enrollment in educational
instruction and course content that are delivered primarily
over the internet pursuant to this paragraph "c", and shall be
consistent with evidence=based best practices.
(3) The department shall conduct annually a survey of not
less than ten percent of the total number of students enrolled
as authorized under this paragraph "c" and section 282.18, to
determine whether students are enrolled under this paragraph
"c" and section 282.18 to receive educational instruction and
course content primarily over the internet or are students who
are receiving competent private instruction from a licensed
practitioner provided through a school district pursuant to
chapter 299A.
(4) (2) The department shall compile and review the data
collected pursuant to this paragraph "c" and shall submit its
findings and recommendations for the continued delivery of
educational instruction and course content by school districts
pursuant to this paragraph "c" delivered primarily over the
internet, in a report to the general assembly by January 15
annually.
(5) School districts providing educational instruction and
course content that are delivered primarily over the internet
pursuant to this paragraph "c" shall comply with the following
requirements relating to such instruction and content:
(a) Monitoring and verifying full=time student enrollment,
timely completion of graduation requirements, course credit
accrual, and course completion.
(b) Monitoring and verifying student progress and
performance in each course through a school=based assessment
plan that includes submission of coursework and security and
validity of testing.
(c) Conducting parent=teacher conferences.
(d) Administering assessments required by the state to all
students in a proctored setting and pursuant to state law.
Sec. 4. Section 256.9, subsection 56, Code 2018, is amended
to read as follows:
56. Develop and establish an online learning program
model in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to section
256.7, subsection 32, paragraph "a", and in accordance with
section 256.43. The director shall maintain a list of approved
online providers that meet the standards of section 256.42,
subsection 6, and provide course content through an online
learning platform taught by an Iowa licensed teacher that
has specialized training or experience in online learning.
Providers shall apply for approval annually or as determined
by the department.
Sec. 5. Section 256.41, Code 2018, is amended to read as
follows:
256.41 Online learning requirements ==== legislative findings
and declarations school districts.
1. The general assembly finds and declares the following:
a. That prior legislative enactments on the use of
telecommunications in elementary and secondary school classes
and courses did not contemplate and were not intended to
authorize participation in open enrollment under section 282.18
for purposes of attending online schools, contracts to provide
exclusively or predominantly online coursework to students, or
online coursework that does not use teachers licensed under
chapter 272 for instruction and supervision.
b. That online learning technology has moved ahead of Iowa's
statutory framework and the current administrative rules of the
state board, promulgated over twenty years ago, are inadequate
to regulate today's virtual opportunities.
A school district providing educational instruction and
course content delivered primarily over the internet shall
do all of the following with regard to such instruction and
content:
a. Monitor and verify full=time student enrollment, timely
completion of graduation requirements, course credit accrual,
and course completion.
b. Monitor and verify student progress and performance
in each course through a school=based assessment plan that
includes submission of coursework and security and validity of
testing components.
c. Conduct parent=teacher conferences.
d. Administer assessments required by the state to all
students in a proctored setting and pursuant to state law.
2. Online learning curricula shall be provided and
supervised by a teacher licensed under chapter 272.
Sec. 6. Section 256.42, subsection 7, Code 2018, is amended
by striking the subsection and inserting in lieu thereof the
following:
7. a. The provisions of section 256.11, subsection 5, which
require that specified subjects be offered and taught by a
school district or accredited nonpublic school, shall not apply
for up to two specified subjects at a school district or school
under this section if any of the following apply:
(1) The school district or school makes every reasonable and
good faith effort to employ a teacher licensed under chapter
272 for the specified subject, and is unable to employ such a
teacher.
(2) Fewer than ten students typically register for
instruction in the specified subject at the school district or
school.
b. The department may waive for one school year the
applicability of section 256.11, subsection 5, at its
discretion, to additional specified subjects for a school
district or accredited nonpublic school that proves to the
satisfaction of the department that the school district or
school has made every reasonable effort, but is unable to meet
the requirements of section 256.11, subsection 5. A school
district or accredited nonpublic school may apply for an annual
waiver each year.
c. Any specified subject course to which section 256.11,
subsection 5, does not apply under paragraph "a" or "b" shall
be provided by the initiative if the initiative offers the
course unless the course offered by the initiative lacks the
capacity to accommodate additional students. In that case,
the specified subject course may instead be provided by the
school district or accredited nonpublic school through an
online learning platform, provided the online learning platform
is taught by an Iowa licensed teacher with online learning
experience and the course content is aligned with the Iowa
content standards and satisfies the requirements of subsection
6.
d. For purposes of this subsection, "good faith effort"
means the same as defined in section 279.19A, subsection 9.
Sec. 7. Section 256.42, subsection 8, Code 2018, is amended
to read as follows:
8. The department shall establish fees payable by school
districts and accredited nonpublic schools participating in
the initiative. Fees collected pursuant to this subsection
are appropriated to the department to be used only for the
purpose of administering this section and shall be established
so as not to exceed the budgeted cost of administering this
section to the extent not covered by the moneys appropriated
in subsection 9. Providing professional development
necessary to prepare teachers to participate in the initiative
shall be considered a cost of administering this section.
Notwithstanding section 8.33, fees collected by the department
that remain unencumbered or unobligated at the close of the
fiscal year shall not revert but shall remain available for
expenditure for the purpose of expanding coursework offered
under the initiative in subsequent fiscal years.
Sec. 8. Section 256.42, subsection 9, Code 2018, is amended
by striking the subsection.
Sec. 9. Section 256.43, subsection 1, paragraph i, Code
2018, is amended to read as follows:
i. Criteria for school districts or schools to use when
choosing providers of online learning to meet the online
learning program requirements specified in rules adopted
pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 32, paragraph "a".
Sec. 10. Section 256.43, subsection 2, Code 2018, is amended
to read as follows:
2. Private providers. At the discretion of the school board
or authorities in charge of an accredited nonpublic school,
after consideration of circumstances created by necessity,
convenience, and cost=effectiveness, courses developed by
private providers may be utilized by the school district or
school in implementing a high=quality online learning program.
Courses obtained from private providers shall be taught by
teachers licensed under chapter 272. A school district may
provide courses developed by private providers and delivered
primarily over the internet to pupils who are participating in
open enrollment under section 282.18. However, if a student's
participation in open enrollment to receive educational
instruction and course content delivered primarily over the
internet results in the termination of enrollment in the
receiving district, the receiving district shall, within thirty
days of the termination, notify the district of residence of
the termination and the date of the termination.
Sec. 11. Section 256.43, Code 2018, is amended by adding the
following new subsection:
NEW SUBSECTION. 5. Prohibited activities. A rebate for
tuition or fees paid or any other dividend or bonus moneys for
enrollment of a child shall not be offered or provided directly
or indirectly by a school district, school, or private provider
to the parent or guardian of a pupil who enrolls in a school
district or school to receive educational instruction and
course content delivered primarily over the internet.
DIVISION II
CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT ==== CAREER AND TECHNICAL EXCEPTION TO
LIMITATION
Sec. 12. Section 257.11, subsection 3, Code 2018, is amended
by adding the following new paragraph:
NEW PARAGRAPH. c. Notwithstanding paragraph "b",
subparagraph (1), a school district that otherwise meets the
requirements of this subsection may enter into a sharing
agreement with a community college under which the community
college may offer, or provide a community college=employed
instructor to teach, one or more classes in only one of the
six career and technical education service areas specified in
section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph "h", and the pupils
enrolled in such a class shall be assigned additional weighting
in accordance with this subsection if the number of pupils
enrolled in such a class exceeds five and the school district's
total enrollment does not exceed six hundred pupils.
Sec. 13. Section 261E.3, subsection 3, paragraph g, Code
2018, is amended to read as follows:
g. The school district shall certify annually to the
department that the course provided to a high school student
for postsecondary credit in accordance with this chapter does
not supplant a course provided by the school district in which
the student is enrolled, except as provided under section
257.11, subsection 3, paragraph "c".
DIVISION III
STUDENT HEALTH WORKING GROUP
Sec. 14. STUDENT HEALTH WORKING GROUP.
1. The department of public health and the department
of education shall convene a student health working group to
review state=initiated student health requirements, including
but not limited to requirements relating to dental and vision
health screenings under sections 135.17 and 135.39D, blood
lead testing under section 135.105D, and immunizations under
section 139A.8, and other related requirements imposed on
public schools. The working group shall study measures
for implementing such student health screening requirements
while reducing the administrative burden such requirements
impose on public schools. The working group shall develop a
uniform enforcement framework that includes a single method
for enforcement of the current student health requirements and
related data collection.
2. Voting members of the working group shall include persons
deemed appropriate by the department of public health as well
as one representative of each of the following, appointed by
the respective entity:
a. The department of education.
b. The department of public health.
c. The area education agencies.
d. The Iowa academy of family physicians.
3. a. The working group shall elect a chairperson and vice
chairperson from the voting members appointed.
b. A majority of the voting members of the working group
shall constitute a quorum.
4. The department of public health and the department of
education shall work cooperatively to provide staffing and
administrative support to the working group.
5. The working group shall submit its uniform enforcement
framework, findings, and recommendations to the general
assembly not later than December 31, 2018.
DIVISION IV
OPEN ENROLLMENT ==== EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITY FEE
Sec. 15. Section 282.18, subsection 7, Code 2018, is amended
to read as follows:
7. a. A pupil participating in open enrollment shall be
counted, for state school foundation aid purposes, in the
pupil's district of residence. A pupil's residence, for
purposes of this section, means a residence under section
282.1.
b. (1) The board of directors of the district of residence
shall pay to the receiving district the sum of the state cost
per pupil for the previous school year plus either the teacher
leadership supplement state cost per pupil for the previous
fiscal year as provided in section 257.9 or the teacher
leadership supplement foundation aid for the previous fiscal
year as provided in section 284.13, subsection 1, paragraph "d",
if both the district of residence and the receiving district
are receiving such supplements, plus any moneys received for
the pupil as a result of the non=English speaking weighting
under section 280.4, subsection 3, for the previous school
year multiplied by the state cost per pupil for the previous
year. If the pupil participating in open enrollment is also
an eligible pupil under section 261E.6, the receiving district
shall pay the tuition reimbursement amount to an eligible
postsecondary institution as provided in section 261E.7.
(2) If a pupil participates in cocurricular or
extracurricular activities in accordance with subsection
11A, the district of residence may deduct up to two hundred
dollars per activity, for up to two activities, from the amount
calculated in subparagraph (1). For a cocurricular activity,
one semester shall equal one activity. Extracurricular
activities for which such a resident district may charge up
to two hundred dollars per activity for up to two activities
under this subparagraph include interscholastic athletics,
music, drama, and any other activity with a general fund
expenditure exceeding five thousand dollars annually. A pupil
may participate in additional extracurricular activities at the
discretion of the resident district. The school district of
residence may charge the pupil a fee for participation in such
cocurricular or extracurricular activities equivalent to the
fee charged to and paid in the same manner by other resident
pupils.
Sec. 16. Section 282.18, Code 2018, is amended by adding the
following new subsection:
NEW SUBSECTION. 11A. A pupil participating in open
enrollment for purposes of receiving educational instruction
and course content primarily over the internet in accordance
with section 256.7, subsection 32, may participate in any
cocurricular or extracurricular activities offered to children
in the pupil's grade or group and sponsored by the district
of residence under the same conditions and requirements
as the pupils enrolled in the district of residence. The
pupil may participate in not more than two cocurricular or
extracurricular activities during a school year unless the
resident district approves the student's participation in
additional activities. The student shall comply with the
eligibility, conduct, and other requirements relating to the
activity that are established by the district of residence for
any student who applies to participate or who is participating
in the activity.
DIVISION V
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ==== BILITERACY SEAL
Sec. 17. Section 256.9, Code 2018, is amended by adding the
following new subsection:
NEW SUBSECTION. 60. Develop and administer a seal of
biliteracy program to recognize students graduating from
high school who have demonstrated proficiency in two or more
world languages, one of which may be American sign language,
though one of which must be English. Participation in the
program by a school district, attendance center, or accredited
nonpublic school shall be voluntary. The department shall work
with stakeholders to identify standardized tests that may be
utilized to demonstrate proficiency. The department shall
produce a seal of biliteracy, which may include but need not
be limited to a sticker that may be affixed to a student's
high school transcript or a certificate that may be awarded to
the student. A participating school district or school shall
notify the department of the names of the students who have
qualified for the seal and the department shall provide the
school district or school with the appropriate number of seals
or other authorized endorsement. The department may charge a
nominal fee to cover printing and postage charges related to
issuance of the biliteracy seal under this subsection.
DIVISION VI
LIMITATION ON DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION GUIDANCE
Sec. 18. NEW SECTION. 256.9A Limitation on guidance and
interpretations.
1. For the purposes of this section, "guidance" means a
document or statement issued by the department, the state
board, or the director that purports to interpret a law, a
rule, or other legal authority and is designed to provide
advice or direction to a person regarding the implementation
of or compliance with the law, the rule, or the other legal
authority being interpreted.
2. The department, the state board, or the director shall
not issue guidance inconsistent with any statute, rule, or
other legal authority and shall not issue guidance that imposes
any legally binding obligations or duties upon any person
unless such legally binding obligations or duties are required
or reasonably implied by any statute, rule, or other legal
authority.
3. This section shall not apply to a rule adopted pursuant
to chapter 17A, a declaratory order issued pursuant to section
17A.9, a document or statement required by federal law or a
court, or a document or statement issued in the course of a
contested case proceeding, an administrative proceeding, or a
judicial proceeding to which the department, the state board,
or the director is a party.
4. Guidance issued by the department, the state board, or
the director in violation of subsection 2 shall not be deemed
to be legally binding.
Sec. 19. EFFECTIVE UPON ENACTMENT. This division of this
Act, being deemed of immediate importance, takes effect upon
enactment.
DIVISION VII
FINANCIAL LITERACY
Sec. 20. Section 256.11, subsection 5, Code 2018, is amended
by adding the following new paragraph:
NEW PARAGRAPH. k. One=half unit of personal finance
literacy. All students shall complete at least one=half unit
of personal finance literacy as a condition of graduation. The
curriculum shall, at a minimum, address the following:
(1) Savings, including emergency fund, purchases, and
wealth building.
(2) Understanding investments, including compound and
simple interest, liquidity, diversification, risk return
ratio, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, single
stocks, bonds, mutual funds, rental real estate, annuities,
commodities, and futures.
(3) Wealth building and college planning, including
long=term and short=term investing using tax=favored plans,
individual retirement accounts and payments from such accounts,
employer=sponsored retirement plans and investments, public and
private educational savings accounts, and uniform gifts and
transfers to minors.
(4) Credit and debt, including credit cards, payday
lending, rent=to=own transactions, debt consolidation,
automobile leasing, cosigning a loan, debt avoidance, and the
marketing of debt, especially to young people.
(5) Consumer awareness of the power of marketing on buying
decisions including zero percent interest offers; marketing
methods, including product positioning, advertising, brand
recognition, and personal selling; how to read a credit report
and correct inaccuracies; how to build a credit score; how to
develop a plan to deal with creditors and avoid bankruptcy; and
the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
(6) Financial responsibility and money management,
including creating and living on a written budget and balancing
a checkbook; basic rules of successful negotiating and
techniques; and personality or other traits regarding money.
(7) Insurance, risk management, income, and career
decisions, including career choices that fit personality styles
and occupational goals, job search strategies, cover letters,
resumes, interview techniques, payroll taxes and other income
withholdings, and revenue sources for federal, state, and local
governments.
(8) Different types of insurance coverage including
renters, homeowners, automobile, health, disability, long=term
care, identity theft, and life insurance; term life, cash
value and whole life insurance; and insurance terms such
as deductible, stop loss, elimination period, replacement
coverage, liability, and out=of=pocket.
(9) Buying, selling, and renting advantages and
disadvantages relating to real estate, including adjustable
rate, balloon, conventional, government=backed, reverse, and
seller=financed mortgages. Sec. 21. EFFECTIVE DATE. This division of this Act takes effect July 1, 2019.
CHARLES SCHNEIDE
LINDA UPMEYER
W. CHARLES SMITH
KIM REYNOLDS
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