STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1691--A 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 10, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MARCELLINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education -- reported favorably from said committee and committed to the Committee on Finance -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to computer-based assess- ment technology apportionment The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature hereby finds it an 2 essential goal to ensure that all New York students receive a high-qual- 3 ity education. The legislature supports the goals of the board of 4 regents in developing a rich educational system that provides multiple 5 pathways to graduation, so that all students are college and career 6 ready. The legislature also recognizes that ensuring our students are 7 fully prepared to compete in the global marketplace requires a signif- 8 icant investment of time and resources. As such, it is vitally important 9 to invest wisely in the development and administration of high-quality 10 assessments that not only measure the progress of students attaining 11 such standards, but also enhance the overall goal of student learning. 12 However, the financial investments associated with the development and 13 administration of high-quality assessments are not yet fully measured, 14 and have the potential to be significant. Therefore, the legislature 15 determines that the costs associated with the development, implementa- 16 tion, and administration of high-quality assessments shall not be borne 17 by local taxpayers, and shall instead be fully funded with financial 18 support from the state. 19 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 756 to read 20 as follows: 21 § 756. Computer-based assessment technology apportionment. 1. In addi- 22 tion to any other apportionments under this chapter, for aid payable EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD05013-02-7S. 1691--A 2 1 beginning in the two thousand eighteen--two thousand nineteen school 2 year, a school district and board of cooperative educational services 3 shall be eligible for an apportionment under the provisions of this 4 section for all technology purchases necessary to administer computer- 5 based state assessments. 6 2. For purposes of this subdivision, "technology purchases" shall mean 7 new purchases of, and/or upgrades of existing, computers and any compu- 8 ter-related equipment, including hardware and any necessary software, 9 needed to adequately administer required computer-based state assess- 10 ments. 11 3. The technology purchases shall be of a sufficient quality to: 12 a. properly and securely administer each required computer-based 13 assessment prescribed by the department; and 14 b. properly handle the number of students in a particular school 15 district or board of cooperative educational services taking a compu- 16 ter-based state assessment at a given time, in the time allotted by the 17 department. 18 4. No school district shall be required to purchase or otherwise 19 acquire instructional computer hardware or technology equipment, the 20 cost of which exceeds the amount of state aid provided pursuant to this 21 section. 22 5. The apportionment provided for in this section shall be paid at 23 such times as may be determined by the commissioner and approved by the 24 director of the budget, during the school year in which the expenditures 25 are reported to the department prior to such apportionment, but not 26 earlier than the school year after the school year in which expenses are 27 incurred. 28 § 3. The commissioner of education shall develop a plan to minimize 29 overall taxpayer investment in the development of, and administration 30 of, high-quality computer-based state assessments. Such plan shall iden- 31 tify the costs of implementing computer-based assessments and shall 32 focus on ways to leverage state resources in assessment development and 33 administration to minimize the impact on local school districts and 34 taxpayers. Such plan shall be presented to the governor, the temporary 35 president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, and the chairs of 36 the senate and assembly education committees prior to making any commit- 37 ment to implementing computer-based testing, but not later than December 38 1, 2017. 39 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.