Dear Educator:
This book was published by the State Department of Education for the Second Regular Session of the 61st Idaho Legislature and provides all bills, bills pending approval, appropriations resolutions, and administrative rules for fiscal year 2013 impacting K-12 education.
I encourage you to visit the Idaho Legislature and State Department of Education websites for more information about the 2012 session.
Official Website of the Idaho Legislature http://www.legislature.idaho.gov/
Official Website of the State Department of Education http://www.sde.idaho.gov/
If you have specific questions concerning appropriations, please contact my office and ask to speak with Tim Hill, Deputy Superintendent of Public School Finance at 208-332-6843. If you have questions regarding legislation or resolutions, please contact Jason Hancock, Deputy Chief of Staff at 208-332-6853. For questions regarding administrative rules, please contact Luci Willits, Chief of Staff at 208-332-6814.
Sincerely,
Tom Luna Superintendent of Public Instruction
SCHOOL LAWS 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION 1 – BILLS Bill Page Effective Subject Number Number Date
Ed, interstate agreement/personnel ...... H0394 ....001...... 7/1/2012 8 in 6 Program ...... H0426 ....011...... 7/1/2012 Bond Elections ...... H0452 ....014...... 4/3/2012 Charter schools, maximum number, cap removed...... H0481 ....016...... 7/1/2012 Student transportation support, delete audit...... H0498 ....019...... 3/12/2012 School Building Maintenance Reports ...... H0499 ....024...... 7/1/2012 Teacher expenses, deduction from taxable income ...... H0517 ....028...... 1/1/2012 Elimination of curricular materials library ...... H0521 ....031...... 7/1/2012 Teacher leadership awards, disqualification removed ...... H0534 ....033...... 7/1/2012 Teacher conduct investigations, records release ...... H0564 ....041...... 9/1/2012 Levy elections ...... H0576 ....059...... 7/1/2012 Retired teachers/administrators ...... H0579 ....061...... 7/1/2012 Charter school laws amended ...... H0590 ....064...... 7/1/2012 Educational support program, funding calculations ...... H0603 ....083...... 7/1/2012 Curriculum/online course and fee approval ...... H0604 ....093...... 7/1/2012 Classroom technology funding, online course webpage ...... H0626 ....095...... 7/1/2012 Youth athletes, concussion guidelines, requirements ...... H0632 ....100...... 7/1/2012 Public School Facilities Cooperative Funding Program ...... H0633 ....103...... 7/1/2012 Youth Challenge Program, alternative school status ...... H0662 ....108...... 7/1/2012 School building maintenance match money, other use ...... H0672 ....111...... 7/1/2012 Teacher funding, future years ...... H0698 ....113...... 7/1/2012 Arts learning in schools, support ...... HCR39 ..116...... 7/1/2012 Idaho Education Assn, 120 years of service ...... HCR48 ..118...... 7/1/2012 Resolution to Repeal No Child Left Behind ...... HJM008.120...... 7/1/2012 Timing of Parent Input in Teacher Evaluation ...... S1224 ....123...... 7/1/2012 Online Course Definition ...... S1237 ....126...... 7/1/2012 Extracurricular activities, school accreditation ...... S1301 ....129...... 7/1/2012 Teacher employment termination, unused sick leave ...... S1308 ....134...... 7/1/2012 Teacher contracts and benefits, amendments...... S1327 ....136...... 4/3/2012 School Graduation Requirements, online courses ...... S1328 ....146...... 4/3/2012 Pay-for-Performance payments, PERSI contributions ...... S1329 ....151...... 4/3/2012 Livestock proceeds...... S1346 ....160...... 7/1/2012 Idaho Digital Learning Academy, recognize effort ...... SCR124. 174...... 7/1/2012
SECTION II – APPROPRIATIONS
Educational support program, approp- ...... S1410 ....162...... 4/3/2012
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SECTION III – ADMINISTRATIVE RULES
Docket Page Topic Number Number
Summary of Rules Changes ...... 177 Open Negotiations ...... 08-0201-1101 ...... 178 Standards for Idaho School Buses and Operations ...... 08-0202-1101 ...... 181 Accreditation ...... 08-0202-1102 ...... 185 Endorsements ...... 08-0202-1103 ...... 188 Idaho Interim Certificate ...... 08-0202-1104 ...... 197 Vehicle Approval of Teacher Education Program ...... 08-0202-1105 ...... 201 Teacher Evaluation ...... 08-0202-1106 ...... 205 ISAT - Alt ...... 08-0203-1101 ...... 211 Online Courses ...... 08-0203-1102 ...... 216 Assessment ...... 08-0203-1103 ...... 229 Dual Credit ...... 08-0203-1104 ...... 237
ii STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS20854 Section 33-4104, Idaho code is the Interstate Compact on qualification of educational personnel and addresses the agreement to recognize the professional preparation and experience of educational personnel among the participating states. A review of the compact is done every five years. The review was done this past year by representatives from the participating states at a recent meeting of the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification (NASDTEC) and new language was developed for the compact. The current statute incorporates that actual language of the compact and is being updated to reflect the changes implemented by NASDTEC.
FISCAL NOTE
There will be no state general fund fiscal impact.
Contact: Name: Tracie Bent Office: Office of the State Board of Education Phone: (208) 332-1582
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0394
1 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 394
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO EDUCATION; AMENDING SECTION 33-4104, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PRO- 3 VISIONS RELATING TO THE INTERSTATE AGREEMENT ON QUALIFICATION OF EDU- 4 CATIONAL PERSONNEL, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO PURPOSE, TO PRO- 5 VIDE FOR ASSUMPTIONS, TO PROVIDE DEFINITIONS, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS 6 RELATING TO DUTIES OF MEMBER JURISDICTIONS, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RE- 7 LATING TO PROCEDURE FOR MEMBER PARTICIPATION, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS 8 RELATING TO THE DURATION OF THE INTERSTATE AGREEMENT, TO ESTABLISH PRO- 9 VISIONS RELATING TO THE ADMINISTRATION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE INTER- 10 STATE AGREEMENT, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO USE OF A JURISDIC- 11 TION-SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS INDEX, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO 12 CERTAIN LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS AND TO REMOVE LANGUAGE RELATING TO CON- 13 STRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY OF THE AGREEMENT.
14 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
15 SECTION 1. That Section 33-4104, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 16 amended to read as follows:
17 33-4104. INTERSTATEAGREEMENT ON COMPACT QUALIFICATION OF EDUCA- 18 TIONAL PERSONNEL. The interstate agreement on qualification of educational 19 personnel is hereby enacted into law and entered into with all jurisdic- 20 tions legally joiningas outlined therein, in the national association of 21 state directors of teacher education and certification (NASDTEC) interstate 22 agreement,in 2010 the - form 2015 substantially as follows:
23 ARTICLE I, PURPOSE, FINDINGS,. AND POLICY
24 (1) The states party to this agreement, desiring by common action to 25 improve their respective school systems by utilizing the teacher or other 26 professional educational person wherever educated, declare that it is the 27 policy of each of them, on the basis of cooperation with one another, to take 28 advantage of the preparation and experience of such persons wherever gained, 29 thereby serving the best interests of society, of education, and of the 30 teaching profession. It is the purpose of this agreement to provide for the 31 development and execution of such programs of cooperation as will facilitate 32 the movement of teachers and other professional educational personnel among 33 the states party to it, and to authorize specific interstate educational 34 personnel contracts to achieve that end. 35 (2) The party states find that included- in the large movement of popu 36 lation among all sections of the nation are qualified educational personnel 37 who move for family and other personal- reasons but who are hindered in us 38 ing their professional skill and experience- in their new locations. Vari 39 ations from state to state in requirements- for qualifying educational per 40 sonnel discourage such personnel from taking the steps necessary to qualify
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1 in other states. As a consequence, a significant number of professionally 2 prepared and experienced educators is lost to our school systems. Facili- 3 tating the employment of qualified educational personnel, without reference 4 to their states or origin, can increase the availability of educational man- 5 power. 6 The purpose of this interstate agreement is to provide a mechanism to 7 inform the membership and the public of jurisdiction-specific requirements 8 for educator licensure in each member jurisdiction.
9 ARTICLE II, DEFINITIONS ASSUMPTIONS.
10 As used in this agreement and contracts made pursuant to it, unless the 11 context clearly requires otherwise: 12 (1) "Educational personnel" means persons who must meet requirements 13 pursuant to state law as a condition of employment in educational programs. 14 (2) "Designated state official" means the education official of a state 15 selected by that state to negotiate and enter into, on behalf of his state, 16 contracts pursuant to this agreement. 17 (3) "Accept," or any variant thereof, means to recognize and give ef- 18 fect to one or more determinations of another state relating to the qualifi- 19 cations of educational personnel in lieu of making or requiring a like deter- 20 mination that would otherwise be required by or pursuant to the laws of a re- 21 ceiving state. 22 (4) "State" means a state, territory, or possession of the United 23 States; the District of Columbia; or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 24 (5) "Originating state" means a state (and the subdivision thereof, if 25 any) whose determination that certain educational personnel are qualified 26 to be employed for specific duties in schools is acceptable in accordance 27 with the terms of a contract made pursuant to Article III. 28 (6) "Receiving state" means a state (and the subdivision thereof) which 29 accepts education personnel in accordance with the terms of a contract made 30 pursuant to Article III. 31 (1) Education is a regulated profession. 32 (2) Each member jurisdiction has the authority to establish profes- 33 sional and ethical standards for preparation, licensure and continuing 34 development of educators. 35 (3) Each member jurisdiction has the responsibility to adhere to fed- 36 eral requirements and guidelines regarding the qualification of educators. 37 (4) Understanding licensure requirements of the different member ju- 38 risdictions facilitates professional educator mobility. 39 (5) The term "reciprocity" is often inappropriately applied to educa- 40 tor mobility between member jurisdictions. 41 (6) As licensure criteria differ from member jurisdiction to member ju- 42 risdiction, an educator's license from one (1) member jurisdiction is not 43 automatically "exchanged" for a license in another member jurisdiction. 44 (7) Minimum essential components of an approved educator preparation 45 program are completion of a: 46 (a) Bachelor's degree, either prior to admission to the program or as 47 part of the program; 48 (b) Supervised clinical practice; and
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1 (c) Planned program of study. 2 A member jurisdiction may impose additional components to meet its own stan- 3 dards. 4 (8) Recognition of national certification of educators, for example, 5 the national board for professional teaching standards, is at the discretion 6 of member jurisdictions. 7 (9) The terms defined in this interstate agreement provide a common vo- 8 cabulary, which member jurisdictions agree to use in disseminating informa- 9 tion nationally and internationally. 10 (10) The interstate agreement is not intended to alter, amend or regu- 11 late individual member jurisdiction licensure requirements.
12 ARTICLE III, INTERSTATE EDUCATIONAL PERSONNEL CONTRACTS DEFINITIONS.
13 (1) The designated state official of a party state may make one or 14 more contracts on behalf of his state with one or more other party states 15 providing for the acceptance of educational personnel. Any such contract 16 for the period of its duration shall be applicable to and binding on the 17 states whose designated state officials enter into it, and the subdivisions 18 of those states, with the same force and effect as if incorporated in this 19 agreement. A designated state official may enter into a contract pursuant 20 to this article only with states in which he finds that there are programs 21 of education, certification standards or other acceptable qualifications 22 that assure preparation or qualification of educational personnel on a basis 23 sufficiently comparable, even though not identical to that prevailing in his 24 own state. 25 (2) Any such contract shall provide for: 26 a. Its duration. 27 b. The criteria to be applied by an originating state in qualifying edu- 28 cational personnel for acceptance by a receiving state. 29 c. Such waivers, substitutions, and conditional acceptances as shall 30 aid the practical effectuation of the contract without sacrifice on ba- 31 sic educational standards. 32 d. Any other necessary matters. 33 (3) No contract made pursuant to this agreement shall be for a term 34 longer than five (5) years but any such contract may be renewed for like or 35 lesser periods. 36 (4) Any contract dealing with acceptance of educational personnel on 37 the basis of their having completed an educational program shall specify the 38 earliest date or dates on which originating state approval of the program 39 or programs involved can have occurred. No contract made pursuant to this 40 agreement shall require acceptance by a receiving state of any persons qual- 41 ified because of successful completion of a program prior to January 1, 1954. 42 (5) The certification or other acceptance of a person who has been ac- 43 cepted pursuant to the terms of a contract shall not be revoked or otherwise 44 impaired because the contract has expired or been terminated. However, any 45 certificate or other qualifying document may be revoked or suspended on any 46 ground which would be sufficient for revocation or suspension of a certifi- 47 cate or other qualifying document initially granted or approved in the re- 48 ceiving state.
4 4
1 (6) A contract committee composed of the designated state officials of 2 contracting states or their representatives shall keep the contract under 3 continuous review, study means of improving its administration, and report 4 no less frequently than once a year to the heads of the appropriate education 5 agencies of the contracting states. 6 For purposes of this interstate agreement, the following terms are defined 7 as: 8 (1) "Accredited institution" means a college or university which 9 awards a baccalaureate or higher degree and, if located within the United 10 States, is fully accredited by one (1) of the following regional accrediting 11 bodies: 12 (a) Middle states association of colleges and schools; 13 (b) New England association of schools and colleges; 14 (c) North central association of colleges and schools; 15 (d) Northwest commission on colleges and universities; 16 (e) Southern association of colleges and schools; and 17 (f) Western association of schools and colleges. 18 If the college or university does not have regional accreditation as de- 19 tailed above, consideration of the educator for licensure is at the discre- 20 tion of the member jurisdiction. 21 (2) "Administrator" means an educator whose primary duties may in- 22 clude: 23 (a) The supervision of programs or curriculum; or 24 (b) Supervision or management of a local educational agency, a school 25 building, a school program or a school system. 26 (3) "Approved program" means a planned program of study leading to li- 27 censure in the appropriate member jurisdiction. Approved programs may be 28 either traditional or nontraditional. A nontraditional program is a post- 29 baccalaureate program in which the candidate may be employed as an educator 30 prior to completion of the program, as defined by the United States depart- 31 ment of education (USDOE).
32 Teacher Traditional Program Nontraditional Program
33 Rigorous Admission Yes Yes, including a 34 Standards bachelor's degree 35 earned prior to 36 admission
37 Conferred Degree Upon Yes or No Yes or No 38 Program Completion
39 Delivered by an Yes Yes or No 40 Institution of Higher 41 Education (IHE)
42 Supervised Clinical Yes Yes, but may differ from 43 Practice a traditional program
44 May Be Employed As No Yes 45 An Educator While 46 Completing Program
5 5
1 Administrator Traditional Program Nontraditional Program
2 Rigorous Admission Yes, including a Yes, including a 3 Standards bachelor's degree or bachelor's degree or 4 higher earned prior to higher earned prior to 5 admission admission
6 Conferred Degree Upon Yes or No Yes or No 7 Program Completion
8 Delivered by an IHE Yes Yes or No
9 Supervised Clinical Yes Yes, but may differ from 10 Practice a traditional program
11 May Be Employed As Yes or No Yes 12 An Educator While 13 Completing Program
14 A program approved in one (1) member jurisdiction may not lead to licensure 15 in another member jurisdiction. 16 (4) "Educator" is categorized as a teacher, administrator or support 17 professional who may be required by the member jurisdiction to hold a li- 18 cense. A member jurisdiction may recognize additional categories of licen- 19 sure (e.g., career and technical educators) not addressed by this interstate 20 agreement. 21 (5) "Experience" means employment and licensure as required by the mem- 22 ber jurisdiction. 23 (6) "Jurisdiction-specific requirement" (JSR) means any criterion be- 24 yond the minimum essential components required by a member jurisdiction for 25 licensure. The following is a noninclusive list of JSRs: 26 (a) Grade-point average; 27 (b) Testing or other forms of assessment; 28 (c) Mentoring; 29 (d) Supervised and evaluated pre-service or professional experience; 30 (e) Course delivery methodology; 31 (f) Program approval comparability; 32 (g) Specific coursework; 33 (h) Valid license, as defined by the receiving member jurisdiction; 34 (i) Post-baccalaureate coursework or degrees; 35 (j) Continuing professional development; 36 (k) Moral fitness or character; or 37 (l) Citizenship. 38 (7) "Stages of administrator license" are described below and are gen- 39 eral categories of licensure. Member jurisdictions may or may not offer 40 these stages of licensure or require licensure to be eligible for certain 41 school administrator work assignments. 42 (a) "Stage 1 administrator license" means a license issued to an in- 43 dividual who holds a minimum of a bachelor's degree, has met approved 44 school administrator preparation program admission requirements, but 45 has not met the jurisdiction-specific requirements of the issuing mem- 46 ber jurisdiction.
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1 (b) "Stage 2 administrator license" means a license issued to an indi- 2 vidual who has completed an approved school administrator preparation 3 program, but has not met the jurisdiction-specific requirements for a 4 stage 3 license of the issuing member jurisdiction. 5 (c) "Stage 3 administrator license" means a license issued to an indi- 6 vidual who holds a minimum of a master's degree and has met all jurisdic- 7 tion-specific requirements for licensure, including endorsements when 8 applicable. 9 (8) "Stages of teacher licensure" are described below and are general 10 categories of licensure. Member jurisdictions may or may not have licenses 11 available in each stage. 12 (a) "Stage 1 teacher license" means a license issued to an individual 13 who holds a minimum of a bachelor's degree, has met approved teacher 14 preparation program admission requirements, but has not met the juris- 15 diction-specific requirements of the issuing member jurisdiction. 16 (b) "Stage 2 teacher license" means a license issued to an individual 17 who holds a minimum of a bachelor's degree, has completed an approved 18 teacher preparation program, but has not met the jurisdiction-specific 19 requirements for a stage 3 license of the issuing member jurisdiction. 20 (c) "Stage 3 teacher license" means a license issued to an individual 21 who holds a minimum of a bachelor's degree, has completed an approved 22 teacher preparation program and has met all jurisdiction-specific re- 23 quirements of the issuing member jurisdiction. 24 (d) "Stage 4 teacher license" means a license issued to an individ- 25 ual who holds a minimum of a master's degree or the equivalent, has 26 completed an approved teacher preparation program and has met any ju- 27 risdiction-specific requirements beyond those required for the stage 3 28 license of the issuing member jurisdiction. 29 (9) "License" means certificate, credential or other similar term des- 30 ignated by the member jurisdiction. 31 (10) "Member jurisdiction" means an entity which is a voting member of 32 NASDTEC. 33 (11) "School" means an institution, other than a home school, which 34 offers instruction for students of any grade, from birth through grade 12, 35 which satisfies the compulsory attendance requirements of the member juris- 36 diction in which the institution is located. 37 (12) "Support professional" means a person other than a teacher or ad- 38 ministrator who is required to hold an educator license based upon at least a 39 bachelor's degree. 40 (13) "Teacher" means a person whose primary responsibility is to in- 41 struct students or as otherwise defined by the member jurisdiction.
42 ARTICLE IV, APPROVED AND ACCEPTED PROGRAMS DUTIES OF MEMBER JURISDICTIONS.
43 (1) Nothing in this agreement shall be construed to repeal or otherwise 44 modify any law or regulation of a party state relating to the approval of pro- 45 grams of educational preparation having effect solely on the qualification 46 of educational personnel within the state. 47 (2) To the extent that contracts made pursuant to this agreement deal 48 with the educational requirements for the proper qualification of educa-
7 7
1 tional personnel, acceptance of a program of educational preparation shall 2 be in accordance with such procedures and requirements as may be provided in 3 the applicable contracts. 4 In signing this interstate agreement, member jurisdictions agree to: 5 (1) Adopt and enforce quality standards for approved programs; 6 (2) Maintain and publish a current listing of programs approved within 7 the member jurisdiction; 8 (3) Apply jurisdiction-specific requirements equitably to applicants 9 completing approved programs in any other member jurisdiction; 10 (4) Agree in principle to the "Assumptions" set forth in this inter- 11 state agreement; 12 (5) Agree in principle to the "Minimum Essential Components"; 13 (6) In addition to signing the NASDTEC "Interstate Agreement for Edu- 14 cator Licensure," each member jurisdiction signs the NASDTEC "Educator In- 15 formation Clearinghouse Agreement" agreeing to notify the NASDTEC "Educator 16 Information Clearinghouse" immediately upon denial, suspension, revocation 17 or surrender of an educator's license for reasons other than failing to meet 18 academic requirements.
19 ARTICLE V, INTERSTATE COOPERATION PROCEDURE FOR MEMBER PARTICIPATION.
20 The party states agree that: 21 (1) They will, so far as practicable, prefer the making of multi-lat- 22 eral contracts pursuant to article III of this agreement. 23 (2) They will facilitate and strengthen cooperation in interstate cer- 24 tification and other elements of educational personnel qualifications and 25 for this purpose shall cooperate with agencies, organizations, and associa- 26 tions interested in certification and other elements of educational person- 27 nel qualifications. 28 (1) Each member jurisdiction shall complete a jurisdiction-specific 29 requirement (JSR) index for each educator category in the form and time frame 30 as directed by the NASDTEC executive director. 31 (2) Each member jurisdiction shall revise the jurisdiction-specific 32 requirement (JSR) index immediately in the event that its licensure criteria 33 are amended or modified. 34 (3) The NASDTEC executive director shall compile a master index re- 35 flecting all member jurisdiction's jurisdiction-specific requirements for 36 distribution and for posting on the NASDTEC website.
37 ARTICLE VI, AGREEMENT EVALUATION DURATION OF THE INTERSTATE AGREEMENT.
38 The designated state officials of any party states may meet from time to 39 time as a group to evaluate progress under the agreement, and to formulate 40 recommendations for changes. 41 (1) This interstate agreement shall have duration until September 30 42 of each year ending in a five (5) or a zero (0), unless terminated as pro- 43 vided below. The interstate agreement shall be automatically renewed in the 44 then-current format for each subsequent five (5) year period unless written 45 notice of intent not to renew is given to the executive director of NASDTEC by 46 July 1 of the final year of an interstate agreement period.
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1 (2) A member jurisdiction may withdraw from the interstate agreement 2 upon one (1) year's written notice to the executive director of NASDTEC, who 3 shall in turn notify all other affected member jurisdictions. It shall be 4 incumbent upon the executive director to notify other member jurisdictions.
5 ARTICLE VII, OTHER ARRANGEMENTS MISCELLANEOUS TERMS.
6 Nothing in this agreement shall be construed to prevent or inhibit other 7 arrangements or practices of any party state or states to facilitate the in- 8 terchange of educational personnel. 9 (1) The NASDTEC executive board, by and through the chair of the NASDTEC 10 interstate agreement committee, shall be responsible for administration and 11 interpretation of this interstate agreement. 12 (2) NASDTEC recognizes the fluidity of educator preparation and li- 13 censure laws, regulations and policies in member jurisdictions. It is 14 NASDTEC's intent to maintain the jurisdiction-specific requirements (JSRs) 15 index as a current and accurate reflection of each member jurisdiction's 16 requirements. However, circumstances beyond the control of NASDTEC may, on 17 occasion, inhibit the accuracy of the master index. Accordingly, it is rec- 18 ommended that users of the JSR index refer to member jurisdictions' websites 19 to confirm specific requirements. Further, it is understood that this in- 20 terstate agreement and the JSR index are provided to facilitate the exchange 21 of information and are not intended to supplant or supersede individual ju- 22 risdiction's authority.
23 ARTICLE VIII, EFFECT AND WITHDRAWAL MEMBER JU- 24 RISDICTION-SPECIFIC LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS.
25 (1) This agreement shall become effective when enacted into law by two 26 (2) states. Thereafter it shall become effective as to any state upon its 27 enactment of this agreement. 28 (2) Any party state may withdraw from this agreement by enacting a 29 statute repealing the same, but no such withdrawal shall take effect until 30 one (1) year after the governor of the withdrawing state has given notice in 31 writing of the withdrawal to the governors of all other party states. 32 (3) No withdrawal shall relieve the withdrawing state of any obligation 33 imposed upon it by a contract to which it is a party. The duration of con- 34 tracts and the methods and conditions of withdrawal therefrom shall be those 35 specified in their terms. 36 Driven by the "Assumptions" identified in Article II of this document, 37 as of October 2010, NASDTEC member jurisdictions recognize the complex na- 38 ture of the interstate agreement and the public's need for clear, accurate 39 information when moving from one (1) member jurisdiction to another. Mem- 40 ber jurisdictions agree to make "Levels of Licensure" and jurisdiction-spe- 41 cific requirements (JSRs) clear to each other and the public by completing 42 and maintaining the JSR index. This index is intended to provide information 43 to anyone seeking educator licensure in a member jurisdiction, whether pre- 44 pared through a traditional or nontraditional pathway. It identifies spe- 45 cific requirements beyond the NASDTEC-identified "Minimum Essential Compo- 46 nents" for educator preparation. A member jurisdiction's laws and regula-
9 9
1 tions in place at the time of application for licensure supersede informa- 2 tion provided here.
3 ARTICLE IX, CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY.
4 This agreement shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the pur- 5 poses thereof. The provisions of this agreement shall be severable and if 6 any phrase, clause, sentence, or provision of this agreement is declared to 7 be contrary to the constitution of any state or of the United States, or the 8 application thereof to any government, agency, person, or circumstance is 9 held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this agreement and the appli- 10 cability thereof to any government, agency, person, or circumstance shall 11 not be affected thereby. If this agreement shall be held contrary to the con- 12 stitution of any state participating therein, the agreement shall remain in 13 full force and effect as to the state affected as to all severable matters.
10 REVISED REVISED REVISED REVISED REVISED REVISED
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21054 The bill sets up a program in the State Department of Education that pays for a portion of overage and summer courses for students who agree to take a full course load with the intent of earning up to two years of college credits while still in high school by reaching concurrent enrollment status by their junior year of high school.
FISCAL NOTE
For fiscal year 2013, it is estimated that 10,000 overage and summer courses will betakenby students under this plan based upon historical trends at a cost of $225 per course or $2.25 million unless IDLA is funded at or near $5 million dollars in which case for fiscal year 2013 the fiscal impact is zero.
Contact: Name: Representative Steven P. Thayn Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0426
REVISED REVISED REVISED11 REVISED REVISED REVISED LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 426, As Amended in the Senate
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO EDUCATION; TO PROVIDE A PURPOSE; AMENDING CHAPTER 16, TITLE 33, 3 IDAHO CODE, BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION 33-1628, IDAHO CODE, TO ES- 4 TABLISH THE "8 IN 6 PROGRAM," TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE 5 STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PAYING FOR CERTAIN SUMMER ONLINE AND ON- 6 LINE OVERLOAD COURSES, TO ESTABLISH CRITERIA RELATING TO PARTICIPATION 7 IN THE PROGRAM, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO ELIGIBLE COURSES, 8 TO PROVIDE FOR RULES AND TO PROVIDE DEFINITIONS.
9 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
10 SECTION 1. PURPOSE OF ACT. The purpose of this program is to identify 11 those students who are taking courses in grades 7 through 12 at an acceler- 12 ated rate and provide them with an incentive to participate in dual credit 13 for early completers pursuant to the provisions of Section 33-1626, Idaho 14 Code. The program will provide funding so that a portion of the summer online 15 courses and online overload courses taken by such students will be paid for 16 by the State Department of Education.
17 SECTION 2. That Chapter 16, Title 33, Idaho Code, be, and the same is 18 hereby amended by the addition thereto of a NEW SECTION, to be known and des- 19 ignated as Section 33-1628, Idaho Code, and to read as follows:
20 33-1628. "8 IN 6 PROGRAM." (1) A program is hereby established in the 21 state department of education to be known as the "8 in 6 Program." 22 (2) If a parent and student agree, by signing the appropriate form pro- 23 vided by the state department of education, to the conditions provided for in 24 paragraphs (2)(a) and (b) of this section, the state department of education 25 will pay for a portion of the cost of summer online courses and online over- 26 load courses as provided for in this section from the moneys appropriated for 27 this purpose. 28 (a) The student and parent agree that the student shall take and suc- 29 cessfully complete dual credit or professional-technical education 30 courses for at least a portion of the student's courses during the 11th 31 and/or 12th grade years. Funding for this requirement will not be pro- 32 vided by the "8 in 6 Program." 33 (b) The student and parent agree that the student shall take and suc- 34 cessfully complete at least one (1) summer online or online overload 35 course and a full course load of at least fourteen (14) credits per 36 school year. 37 (c) The state shall pay two hundred twenty-five dollars ($225) per one 38 (1) credit summer online course or one (1) credit online overload course 39 taken in this program. Provided however, that if the Idaho digital 40 learning academy (IDLA) receives a state guarantee or appropriation of 41 at least five million dollars ($5,000,000) for fiscal year 2013, the
12 2
1 state shall pay no moneys for the "8 in 6 Program" for that fiscal year, 2 and IDLA shall provide the online courses necessary to meet the needs of 3 the "8 in 6 Program" for that fiscal year, at a cost not to exceed sev- 4 enty-five dollars ($75.00) per course. 5 (d) The state shall pay for no more than two (2) credits of online 6 overload courses per student per school year. The state shall pay for 7 no more than two (2) credits of summer online courses per student per 8 summer. The state shall pay for no more than a combined total of four 9 (4) credits of summer online or online overload courses per student per 10 year. The state shall pay for no more than a combined total of eight (8) 11 credits of summer online and online overload courses per student during 12 such student's participation in the program. 13 (3) Participation in this program shall be limited to no more than 14 ten percent (10%) of students in each grade 7 through 12. Such limita- 15 tion shall be applied initially on a school district-by-school district, 16 grade-by-grade basis. If any grades do not fully utilize their available 17 participation slots, the school district shall reallocate said participa- 18 tion slots to those grades in which more than ten percent (10%) of the stu- 19 dents have applied for participation in the program. If any school districts 20 do not fully utilize their available participation slots by July 1, the state 21 department of education shall reallocate said participation slots to those 22 districts in which more than ten percent (10%) of the students have applied 23 for participation in the program. Students accepted into the program shall 24 remain in the program from year to year unless they sign a withdrawal form 25 developed by the state department of education. If a participating student 26 transfers from one (1) school district to another, such student shall remain 27 enrolled in the program, the ten percent (10%) participation limitation of 28 the student's new school district notwithstanding. The state department of 29 education shall maintain a list of participants. 30 (a) If the number of students applying for participation in the "8 in 31 6 Program" exceeds the number of participation slots available in the 32 school district, the school district shall establish participation 33 preference criteria. Such criteria shall include students who have 34 successfully completed at least one (1) online course prior to partici- 35 pating in the program, and may include any of the following: 36 (i) Grade point average; 37 (ii) State-mandated summative achievement test results; 38 (iii) Other school district administered student assessments. 39 (b) If a student participating in the program fails to complete with a 40 grade of "C" or better one (1) or more summer online or online overload 41 courses while in the program, the student must pay for and successfully 42 complete a summer online or online overload course with a grade of "C" or 43 better before continuing in the program. 44 (4) Procedures for participating in the "8 in 6 Program" include the 45 following: The school district shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that 46 any student who considers participating in the program considers the chal- 47 lenges and time necessary to succeed in the program. Such efforts by the dis- 48 trict shall be performed prior to a student participating in the program. 49 (5) Eligible courses. To qualify as an eligible course for the program, 50 the course must be offered by a provider accredited by the organization
13 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21041 The purpose of the legislation is to provide more transparency to existing Idaho law as it relates to bond elections. In particular, the legislation adds requirements of the taxing district to provide a statement as to the purpose for which the bonds are to be used, disclose the interest amount of the bonds, and to disclose when the bonds will be paid off or retired.
FISCAL NOTE
There is no fiscal impact.
Contact: Name: Representative Erik Simpson Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0452
14 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 452
BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO BOND ELECTIONS; REPEALING SECTION 34-439, IDAHO CODE, RELATING 3 TO DISCLOSURES IN ELECTIONS TO AUTHORIZE BONDED INDEBTEDNESS; AMENDING 4 CHAPTER 4, TITLE 34, IDAHO CODE, BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION 34-439, 5 IDAHO CODE, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO DISCLOSURES IN ELEC- 6 TIONS TO AUTHORIZE BONDED INDEBTEDNESS; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY.
7 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
8 SECTION 1. That Section 34-439, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 9 repealed.
10 SECTION 2. That Chapter 4, Title 34, Idaho Code, be, and the same is 11 hereby amended by the addition thereto of a NEW SECTION, to be known and des- 12 ignated as Section 34-439, Idaho Code, and to read as follows:
13 34-439. DISCLOSURES IN ELECTIONS TO AUTHORIZE BONDED INDEBTED- 14 NESS. (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any taxing district 15 that proposes to submit any question to the electors of the district that 16 would authorize any bonded indebtedness shall provide a brief official 17 statement setting forth in simple, understandable language information on 18 the proposal substantially as follows: 19 (a) The purpose for which the bonds are to be used including, but not 20 necessarily limited to, a description of the facility and/or project 21 that will be financed, in whole or in part, by the sale of the bonds; the 22 date of the election; and the principal amount of the bonds to be issued; 23 (b) The anticipated interest rate on the proposed bonds based upon cur- 24 rent market rates and a maximum interest rate if a maximum is specified 25 in the question to be submitted to electors; 26 (c) The total amount to be repaid over the life of the bonds based on the 27 anticipated interest. Such total shall reflect three (3) components: a 28 total of the principal to be repaid; a total of the interest to be paid; 29 and the sum of both; 30 (d) The length of time, reflected in months or years, in which the pro- 31 posed bonds will be paid off or retired; and 32 (e) The total, existing indebtedness, including interest accrued, of 33 the taxing district. 34 (2) The official statement shall be made a part of the ballot and shall 35 be included in the official notice of the election.
36 SECTION 3. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby 37 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after its 38 passage and approval.
15 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21118 This legislation would amend Idaho Code 33-5203(2)(a) to remove the growth cap of six new public charter schools per year, and to remove the cap of one new public charter school per district per year.
FISCAL NOTE
There is no anticipated impact to the State General Fund. Historical charter school growth rates, together with the extensive nature of the charter petitioning process, indicate that removal of the cap will not result in an increased rate of growth in the number of public charter schools.
Contact: Name: Representative Bob Nonini Office: Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0481
16 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 481
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS; AMENDING SECTION 33-5203, IDAHO CODE, TO 3 REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE NUMBER OF PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS THAT 4 MAY BEGIN EDUCATIONAL INSTRUCTION IN ANY ONE YEAR, TO PROVIDE A CORRECT 5 CITE REFERENCE AND TO MAKE TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.
6 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
7 SECTION 1. That Section 33-5203, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 8 amended to read as follows:
9 33-5203. AUTHORIZATION -- LIMITATIONS. (1) The creation of public 10 charter schools is hereby authorized. Public charter schools shall be part 11 of the state's program of public education. 12 (2) The number of nNew public charter schools which may begin educa- 13 tional instruction in any one (1) school year shall be limited in number in 14 accordance with subject to the following: 15 (a) Not more than six (6) new public charter schools may begin educa- 16 tional instruction in any one (1) school year, and 17 (b) Not more than one (1) new public charter school may begin educa- 18 tional instruction that is physically located within any one (1) school 19 district in any one (1) school year, and 20 (ca) No whole school district may be converted to a charter district 21 or any configuration which includes all schools as public charter 22 schools,; and 23 (d) Public virtual charter schools approved by the public charter 24 school commission are not included in paragraph (b) of this subsection, 25 and 26 (e) The transfer of a charter for a school already authorized pursuant 27 to section 33-5205A, Idaho Code, is not included in the limit on the an- 28 nual number of public charter schools approved to begin educational in- 29 struction in any given school year as set forth in paragraph (a) of this 30 subsection, and 31 (fb) A petition must be received by the initial authorized chartering 32 entity no later than September 1 to be eligible to begin instruction the 33 first complete school year following receipt of the petition,; and 34 (gc) To begin operations, a newly-chartered newly chartered public 35 school must be authorized by no later than January 1 of the previous 36 school year. 37 (3) A public charter school may be formed either by creating a new pub- 38 lic charter school, which charter may be approved by any authorized char- 39 tering entity, or by converting an existing traditional public school to a 40 public charter school, which charter may only be approved by the board of 41 trustees of the school district in which the existing public school is lo- 42 cated.
17 2
1 (4) No charter shall be approved under this chapter: 2 (a) Which provides for the conversion of any existing private or 3 parochial school to a public charter school. 4 (b) To a for-profit entity or any school which is operated by a for- 5 profit entity, provided however, nothing herein shall prevent the board 6 of directors of a public charter school from legally contracting with 7 for-profit entities for the provision of products or services that aid 8 in the operation of the school. 9 (c) By the board of trustees of a school district if the public charter 10 school's physical location is outside the boundaries of the authoriz- 11 ing school district. The limitation provided in this subsection (4)(c) 12 does not apply to a home-based public virtual school. 13 (5) A public virtual school charter may be approved by the public char- 14 ter school commission. In addition, a charter may also be approved by the 15 state board of education pursuant to section 33-5207(5)(b), Idaho Code. 16 (6) The state board of education shall adopt rules, subject to law, to 17 establish a consistent application and review process for the approval and 18 maintenance of all public charter schools. 19 (7) The state board of education shall be responsible to designate 20 those public charter schools that will be identified as a local education 21 agency (LEA) as such term is defined in 34 CFR 300.128; however, only public 22 charter schools chartered by the board of trustees of a school district may 23 be included in that district's LEA.
18 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21046 This legislation merely eliminates a section of Idaho Code that requires legislative audits to review cap increases granted by the State Board of Education. This is no longer needed due to changes in the code and legislative audits cannot supersede the power of the State Board of Education.
FISCAL NOTE
There is no fiscal impact to the State General Fund.
Contact: Name: Representative Darrell Bolz Office: Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0498
19 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 498
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO THE TRANSPORTATION SUPPORT PROGRAM; AMENDING SECTION 33-1006, 3 IDAHO CODE, TO DELETE LANGUAGE RELATING TO CERTAIN DUTIES OF THE LEG- 4 ISLATIVE AUDITS SECTION OF THE LEGISLATIVE SERVICES OFFICE AND TO MAKE 5 TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY.
6 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
7 SECTION 1. That Section 33-1006, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 8 amended to read as follows:
9 33-1006. TRANSPORTATION SUPPORT PROGRAM. (1) The state board of ed- 10 ucation shall determine what costs of transporting pupils, including main- 11 tenance, operation and depreciation of basic vehicles, insurance, payments 12 under contract with other public transportation providers whose vehicles 13 used to transport pupils comply with federal transit administration reg- 14 ulations, "bus testing," 49 C.F.R. part 665, and any revision thereto, as 15 provided in subsection (4)(d) of this section, or other state department of 16 education approved private transportation providers, salaries of drivers, 17 and any other costs, shall be allowable in computing the transportation 18 support program of school districts. Provided however, that the only miles 19 for which costs may be reimbursed, shall be those directly associated with 20 transporting students for the purposes of regular school attendance during 21 regular days and hours. 22 (2) Any costs associated with the addition of vehicle features that are 23 not part of the basic vehicle shall not be allowable in computing the trans- 24 portation support program of school districts. A basic vehicle is hereby de- 25 fined as the cost of the vehicle without optional features, plus the addition 26 of essential safety features and features necessary for the transportation 27 of pupils with disabilities. 28 (3) Each school district shall maintain records and make reports as are 29 required for the purposes of this section. 30 (4) The transportation support program of a school district shall be 31 based upon the allowable costs of: 32 (a) Transporting public school pupils one and one-half (1 1/2) miles or 33 more to school; 34 (b) Transporting pupils less than one and one-half (1 1/2) miles as pro- 35 vided in section 33-1501, Idaho Code, when approved by the state board 36 of education; 37 (c) The costs of payments when transportation is not furnished, as pro- 38 vided in section 33-1503, Idaho Code; 39 (d) The transportation program for grades six (6) through twelve (12), 40 upon the costs of payments pursuant to a contract with other public or 41 private transportation providers entered into as provided in section 42 33-1510, Idaho Code, if the school district establishes that the reim-
20 2
1 bursable costs of transportation under the contract are equal to or less 2 than the costs for school buses; 3 (e) The employer's share of contributions to the public employee re- 4 tirement system and to social security. 5 (5) The state's share of the transportation support program shall be 6 fifty percent (50%) of reimbursable transportation costs of the district 7 incurred during the immediately preceding state fiscal year, except for 8 the cost of state department of education training and fee assessments 9 and bus depreciation and maintenance, for which the state's share shall be 10 eighty-five percent (85%) of such costs. For school districts that contract 11 for pupil transportation services, the state's share shall be the average 12 state share of costs for district-run operations, based on the statewide 13 total of such costs. Provided however, that the reimbursable costs for 14 any school district shall not exceed one hundred three percent (103%) of 15 the statewide average reimbursable cost per mile or the state average re- 16 imbursable cost per student rider, whichever is more advantageous to the 17 school district. If a school district's costs exceed the one hundred three 18 percent (103%) limit when computed by the more advantageous of the two (2) 19 methods, that school district shall be reimbursed at the appropriate per- 20 centage designated by this subsection, multiplied by the maximum limit for 21 whichever method is more favorable to the school district. A school district 22 may appeal the application of the one hundred three percent (103%) limit on 23 reimbursable costs to the state board of education, which may establish for 24 that district a new percentile limit for reimbursable costs compared to the 25 statewide average, which is higher than one hundred three percent (103%). 26 In doing so, the state board of education may set a new limit that is greater 27 than one hundred three percent (103%), but is less than the percentile limit 28 requested by the school district. However, the percentage increase in the 29 one hundred three percent (103%) cap shall not exceed the percentage of the 30 district's bus runs that qualify as a hardship bus run, pursuant to this 31 subsection. Any costs above the new level established by the state board of 32 education shall not be reimbursed. Such a change shall only be granted by the 33 state board of education for hardship bus runs. To qualify as a hardship bus 34 run, such bus run shall meet at least two (2) of the following criteria: 35 (a) The number of student riders per mile is less than fifty percent 36 (50%) of the statewide average number of student riders per mile; 37 (b) Less than a majority of the miles on the bus run are by paved sur- 38 face, concrete or asphalt, road; 39 (c) Over ten percent (10%) of the miles driven on the bus run are a five 40 percent (5%) slope or greater. 41 The legislative audits section of the legislative services office shall re- 42 view cap increases granted by the state board of education pursuant to this 43 section, and shall include findings in the board's regular audit report for 44 any instances in which such increases failed to meet the standards set forth 45 in this subsection. 46 (6) Beginning on July 1, 2005, any eligible home-based public virtual 47 school may claim transportation reimbursement for the prior fiscal year's 48 cost of providing educational services to students. In order to be eligible, 49 such a school shall have at least one (1) average daily attendance divisor, 50 pursuant to section 33-1002, Idaho Code, that is greater than the median
21 3
1 divisor shown for any category of pupils, among the actual divisors listed. 2 For the purposes of paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of this subsection (6), "ed- 3 ucation provider" means the home-based public virtual school or an entity 4 that has legally contracted with the home-based public virtual school to 5 supply education services. Reimbursable costs shall be limited to the costs 6 of: 7 (a) Providing an internet connection service between the student and 8 the education provider, not including the cost of telephone service; 9 (b) Providing electronic and computer equipment used by the student 10 to transmit educational material between the student and the education 11 provider; 12 (c) Providing a toll-free telephone service for students to communi- 13 cate with the education provider; 14 (d) Providing education-related, face-to-face visits by representa- 15 tives of the home-based public virtual school, with such reimbursements 16 limited to the mileage costs set for state employee travel by the state 17 board of examiners; and 18 (e) Any actual pupil transportation costs that would be reimbursable if 19 claimed by a school district. 20 The total reimbursement for such home-based public virtual schools shall be 21 exempt from the statewide average cost per mile limitations of this section. 22 The state's share of reimbursable costs shall be eighty-five percent (85%), 23 subject to the statewide cost per student rider provisions of this section. 24 For the purposes of such home-based public virtual school, the number of stu- 25 dent riders shall be the same as the number of pupils in average daily atten- 26 dance. 27 (7) The state department of education shall calculate the amount of 28 state funds lost in fiscal year 2010 by each school district as a result 29 of the decrease in the state reimbursement from eighty-five percent (85%) 30 to fifty percent (50%) of certain eligible costs, including the reduction 31 calculated for districts that contract for pupil transportation services, 32 and excluding any reductions made due to the limitation on reimbursable 33 expenses, all pursuant to subsection (5) of this section. The amount so 34 calculated shall be distributed to each school district in fiscal year 2010. 35 For each fiscal year thereafter, the amount distributed pursuant to this 36 subsection (7) for each school district shall be determined as follows: 37 (a) Divide the amount distributed to the district pursuant to this sub- 38 section (7) in fiscal year 2010 by the district’s support units for fis- 39 cal year 2010; 40 (b) Multiply the result of the calculation found in subsection (7)(a) 41 of this section by the number of support units in the current fiscal 42 year; 43 (c) Determine the percentage change in statewide transportation reim- 44 bursements as provided for in subsection (5) of this section since fis- 45 cal year 2010; 46 (d) Determine the percentage change in statewide student enrollment 47 since fiscal year 2010; 48 (e) Subtract the result of the calculation found in subsection (7)(d) 49 of this section from the result of the calculation found in subsection 50 (7)(c) of this section;
22 4
1 (f) Adjust the result of the calculation found in subsection (7)(b) of 2 this section by the percentage result from subsection (7)(e) of this 3 section. 4 For school districts divided after fiscal year 2010, the calculation 5 in subsection (7)(a) of this section shall still be based on the fiscal year 6 2010 figures for the formerly consolidated district. For public charter 7 schools beginning operations on or after July 1, 2009, all calculations in 8 this subsection (7) that are based on fiscal year 2010 shall instead be based 9 on the public charter school's first fiscal year of operations. For the pur- 10 poses of this subsection (7), the support units used shall be the number used 11 for calculating salary-based apportionment. Funds distributed pursuant to 12 this subsection (7) shall be used to defray the cost of pupil transportation. 13 If the amount distributed is in excess of a school district's actual pupil 14 transportation costs, less any state reimbursements provided by subsection 15 (5) of this section, the excess funds may be used at the school district's 16 discretion.
17 SECTION 2. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby 18 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after its 19 passage and approval.
23 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21185 This legislation would relieve school districts and public charter schools with certain reporting burdens as it relates to school facilities. It provides districts and charters with an additional fifteen (15) to twenty-one (21) days per year to submit the required information on school facility square footage and use of maintenance funds to the State Department of Education. It also eliminates the requirement that districts and charters must submit 10-Year School Maintenance Plans to the State every year, and replaces it with a requirement that these reports be submitted every five years. In addition, instead of submitting the 10-Year Facility Maintenance Plans to the State Department of Education, they would be submitted to the Division of Building Safety. This change is being made because the Division of Building Safety conducts annual inspections of school facilities, and is in a better position to evaluate the adequacy of the plans than the State Department of Education.
FISCAL NOTE
There is no fiscal impact to the State General Fund.
Contact: Name: Jason Hancock, SDE Office: Phone: (208) 332-6853
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0499
24 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 499
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO SCHOOL BUILDING MAINTENANCE; AMENDING SECTION 33-1019, IDAHO 3 CODE, TO REVISE A PROVISION RELATING TO THE SUBMISSION BY SCHOOL DIS- 4 TRICTS OF CERTAIN INFORMATION TO THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION; AND 5 AMENDING SECTION 39-8006A, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO 6 THE SUBMISSION BY EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT OF A CERTAIN PLAN TO THE DIVISION 7 OF BUILDING SAFETY AND TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE INFORMATION 8 INCLUDED IN SUCH PLAN.
9 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
10 SECTION 1. That Section 33-1019, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 11 amended to read as follows:
12 33-1019. ALLOCATION FOR SCHOOL BUILDING MAINTENANCE REQUIRED. (1) 13 School districts shall annually allocate moneys for school building mainte- 14 nance from any source available to the district equal to at least two percent 15 (2%) of the replacement value of school buildings, less the receipt of state 16 funds as provided in this section. Any school district expending more than 17 four percent (4%) of the replacement value of school buildings for school 18 building maintenance in any single fiscal year, beginning with the expendi- 19 tures of fiscal year 2005, may apply the excess as a credit against the two 20 percent (2%) requirement of this section until such credit is depleted or 21 fifteen (15) years have expired. The state shall annually provide funds to 22 be allocated for school building maintenance as follows: 23 (a) Divide one (1) by the school district's value index for the fiscal 24 year, as calculated pursuant to section 33-906B, Idaho Code; and 25 (b) Multiply the result by one-half of one percent (0.5%) of the re- 26 placement value of school buildings. 27 (c) For purposes of the calculation in this subsection (1), public 28 charter schools shall be assigned a value index of one (1). 29 (2) State funds shall be appropriated through the educational sup- 30 port program/division of facilities and disbursed from the school district 31 building account. The order of funding sources used to meet the state fund- 32 ing requirements of this section shall be as follows: 33 (a) State lottery funds distributed pursuant to section 33-905(2), 34 Idaho Code; 35 (b) If state lottery funds are insufficient to meet the state funding 36 requirements of this section, then other state funds available pursuant 37 to section 33-905(3), Idaho Code, shall be utilized; and 38 (c) If the funds in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection (2) are in- 39 sufficient to meet the state funding requirements of this section, then 40 funds available pursuant to section 33-1018B, Idaho Code, shall be uti- 41 lized.
25 2
1 (3) Moneys allocated for school building maintenance shall be used 2 exclusively for the maintenance and repair of school buildings or any se- 3 rious or imminent safety hazard on the property of said school buildings 4 as identified pursuant to chapter 80, title 39, Idaho Code, and shall be 5 utilized, first, to abate serious or imminent safety hazards, as identified 6 pursuant to chapter 80, title 39, Idaho Code. Unexpended moneys in a school 7 district's school building maintenance allocation shall be carried over 8 from year to year and shall remain allocated for the purposes specified in 9 this subsection (3). The replacement value of school buildings shall be 10 determined by multiplying the number of square feet of building floor space 11 in school buildings by eighty-one dollars and forty-five cents ($81.45). 12 Notwithstanding the definition in subsection (8) of this section, school 13 buildings that are less than one (1) year old on the first day of school shall 14 not be used in the replacement value calculation. The joint finance-appro- 15 priations committee shall annually review the replacement value per square 16 foot when setting appropriations for the educational support program and may 17 make adjustments to this figure as necessary. 18 (4) For school buildings first occupied between July 1, 2009, through 19 September 30, 2019, regarding the replacement value calculation that school 20 districts are directed to use to determine the amount of moneys such dis- 21 tricts shall allocate for school building maintenance as directed by subsec- 22 tion (1) of this section, a portion of the square footage of school buildings 23 first occupied on or after July 1, 2009, and constructed pursuant to the pro- 24 visions of section 33-356, Idaho Code, shall not be used in the replacement 25 value calculation, based on the following schedule: 26 (a) For school buildings at least one (1) year old but less than two (2) 27 years old on the first day of school, exclude one hundred percent (100%) 28 of the square footage; 29 (b) For school buildings at least two (2) years old but less than three 30 (3) years old on the first day of school, exclude eighty percent (80%) of 31 the square footage; 32 (c) For school buildings at least three (3) years old but less than four 33 (4) years old on the first day of school, exclude sixty percent (60%) of 34 the square footage; 35 (d) For school buildings at least four (4) years old but less than five 36 (5) years old on the first day of school, exclude forty percent (40%) of 37 the square footage; and 38 (e) For school buildings at least five (5) years old but less than six 39 (6) years old on the first day of school, exclude twenty percent (20%) of 40 the square footage. 41 (5) The amount of relief provided to any school district pursuant to 42 subsection (4) of this section shall not exceed the amount that would be pro- 43 vided if the school district had a value index of one (1). 44 (6) School districts shall submit the following to the state department 45 of education by not later than the third Friday in December 1: 46 (a) The number of square feet of school building floor space; and 47 (b) The funds and fund sources allocated for school building mainte- 48 nance and any unexpended allocations carried forward from prior fiscal 49 years; and
26 3
1 (c) The projects on which moneys from the school district's school 2 building maintenance allocation were expended, and the amount and cate- 3 gories of expenditures; and 4 (d) The planned uses of the school district's school building mainte- 5 nance allocation. 6 The state department of education shall transmit a summary of such reports to 7 the legislature by not later than January 15 of the following year. 8 (7) If a school district that is participating in the relief provided 9 for in subsection (4) of this section is forgiven the requirement to allocate 10 the school district portion of the moneys for the two percent (2%) of build- 11 ing replacement value for building maintenance provided in subsection (1) 12 of this section, then once the requirements of subsection (1) of this sec- 13 tion are reinstated, the provisions of subsection (4) of this section shall 14 recommence from the time the forgiveness took effect. 15 (8) For the purposes of this section: 16 (a) "Annually" means each fiscal year. 17 (b) "School building" means buildings that are owned by the school dis- 18 trict or leased by the school district through a lease-purchase agree- 19 ment and are regularly occupied by students. 20 (c) "School district" means a school district or public charter school.
21 SECTION 2. That Section 39-8006A, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 22 amended to read as follows:
23 39-8006A. BEST PRACTICES MAINTENANCE PLAN FOR SCHOOL BUILDINGS. The 24 administrator of the division of building safety and the state department 25 of education shall consult and shall draft a best practices maintenance plan 26 for school buildings which shall be supplied to the superintendent of each 27 school district. Based on the best practices maintenance plan, each school 28 district shall develop a ten (10) year plan and submit it to the state depart- 29 ment of education division of building safety for approval. Annually there- 30 after, the school district shall submit a report to the state department of 31 education Such plan shall be submitted in all years ending in zero (0) or five 32 (5), and shall include information detailing the work completed pursuant to 33 the previous maintenance plan and any revisions to that plan.
27 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21180 This legislation removes the prohibition allowing the deduction of classroom supplies and other expenses not to exceed $250.00 of elementary and secondary teachers otherwise allowable under Section 62 (a) (2) (D) of the Internal Revenue Code.
FISCAL NOTE
It is estimated that the fiscal impact to the general fund would be approximately $275,000.
Contact: Name: Sen. Bert Brackett Rep. Mike Moyle Office: Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0517
28 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 517
BY REVENUE AND TAXATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO ADJUSTMENTS TO IDAHO TAXABLE INCOME; AMENDING SECTION 63-3022O, 3 IDAHO CODE, TO REMOVE LANGUAGE DISALLOWING DEDUCTION OF CERTAIN EX- 4 PENSES OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS AND TO MAKE TECH- 5 NICAL CORRECTIONS; DECLARING AN EMERGENCY AND PROVIDING RETROACTIVE 6 APPLICATION.
7 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
8 SECTION 1. That Section 63-3022O, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 9 amended to read as follows:
10 63-3022O. ADJUSTMENT -- PROPERTY ACQUIRED AFTER SEPTEMBER 10, 2001 -- 11 EXPENSES OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY TEACHERS -- SMALL BUSINESS EXPENSES -- 12 LIMITATIONS ON ASSESSMENTS AND REFUNDS. For taxable years commencing on and 13 after January 1, 2001, in computing Idaho taxable income: 14 (1) The adjusted basis of depreciable property, depreciation and gains 15 and losses from sale, exchange or other disposition of depreciable property 16 acquired after September 10, 2001, and before December 31, 2007, shall be 17 computed without regard to subsection (k) of section 168 of the Internal Rev- 18 enue Code and the adjusted basis of depreciable property, depreciation and 19 capital gains and losses shall be computed without regard to subsection (k) 20 of section 168 of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended by the "tax relief, 21 unemployment insurance reauthorization and job creation act of 2010" and as 22 amended by the "small business jobs act of 2010"; and 23 (2) No deduction shall be allowed relating to expenses of elementary 24 and secondary teachers otherwise allowable under section 62(a)(2)(D) of the 25 Internal Revenue Code; and 26 (3) Adjustments in computing Idaho taxable income required by subsec- 27 tion (1) of this section shall be made without regard to loss limitations im- 28 posed by sections 465, 469, 704(d) and 1366(d) of the Internal Revenue Code; 29 and 30 (43) A taxpayer's basis in an interest in a pass-through entity, amount 31 at risk, and passive activity loss carryover shall be the same amount for 32 purposes of the Idaho income tax act as the amount determined under the In- 33 ternal Revenue Code; and 34 (54) Each partner, shareholder, member or beneficiary, shall include 35 in Idaho taxable income his share of the adjustments required by this section 36 in computing Idaho taxable income of any pass-through entity; and 37 (65) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 63-3068 and 63-3072, 38 Idaho Code, the period of limitations for issuing a notice of deficiency de- 39 termination or filing a claim for refund for any year for which an adjustment 40 is required by this section shall not expire before three (3) years from the 41 later of: (a) the due date of the return for the last taxable year an adjust- 42 ment was required by this section, or (b) the date the return was filed for
29 2
1 the last taxable year an adjustment was required by this section. Upon the 2 expiration of the period of limitations as provided in subsections (a) and 3 (m) of section 63-3068, Idaho Code, and subsections (b) and (h) of section 4 63-3072, Idaho Code, only those specific items of basis, deductions, gains 5 or losses that are computed, without regard to subsection (k) of section 168 6 of the Internal Revenue Code, as required by this section shall be subject to 7 adjustment.
8 SECTION 2. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby 9 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after its 10 passage and approval, and retroactively to January 1, 2012.
30 REVISED REVISED REVISED REVISED REVISED REVISED
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21187 This legislation would remove the statutory requirement that the State Department of Education maintain a curriculum library at the Department’s office. Continued maintenance of the library is unnecessary because it is seldom utilized by the public.
FISCAL NOTE
There is no fiscal impact to the State General Fund.
Contact: Name: Jason Hancock Office: State Department of Education Phone: (208) 332-6853
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0521
REVISED REVISED REVISED31 REVISED REVISED REVISED LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 521
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO EDUCATION; AMENDING SECTION 33-118A, IDAHO CODE, TO REMOVE CER- 3 TAIN LANGUAGE RELATING TO A COMPLETE AND CATALOGED LIBRARY OF CURRICU- 4 LAR MATERIALS.
5 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
6 SECTION 1. That Section 33-118A, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 7 amended to read as follows:
8 33-118A. CURRICULAR MATERIALS -- ADOPTION PROCEDURES. All curricular 9 materials adoption committees appointed by the state board of education 10 shall contain at least two (2) persons who are not public educators or school 11 trustees. All meetings of curricular materials adoption committees shall 12 be open to the public. Any member of the public may attend such meetings 13 and file written or make oral objections to any curricular materials under 14 consideration. A complete and cataloged library of all curricular materials 15 adopted in the immediately preceding three (3) years and used in Idaho pub- 16 lic schools, and all electronically available curricular materials used in 17 Idaho public schools are to be maintained at the state department of educa- 18 tion at all times and open to the public. 19 "Curricular materials" is defined as textbook and instructional media 20 including software, audio/visual media and internet resources.
32 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21253 Section 33-1004I, Idaho Code, outlines the provisions for pay for performance, hard to fill positions, and leadership awards. This legislation amends a portion of the leadership section by eliminating the requirement that an instructor/employee must have completed three (3) years of experience before they are eligible for leadership awards. This change will allow entering professionals with expertise, such as technical instructors, to receive immediate consideration for deserving leadership awards.
FISCAL NOTE
There is no fiscal impact to the General Fund.
Contact: Name: Representative Mack G. Shirley Office: Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0534
33 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 534
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO EDUCATION; AMENDING SECTION 33-1004I, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PRO- 3 VISIONS RELATING TO CERTAIN LEADERSHIP AWARDS; AND PROVIDING A CONTIN- 4 GENT SUNSET DATE.
5 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
6 SECTION 1. That Section 33-1004I, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 7 amended to read as follows:
8 33-1004I. PAY FOR PERFORMANCE -- HARD TO FILL POSITIONS -- LEADERSHIP 9 AWARDS. (1) In addition to the moneys provided pursuant to the calculations 10 for salary-based apportionment, the following amounts shall be distributed 11 and paid, from the moneys appropriated to the educational support program, 12 subject to the criteria contained in this section: 13 (a) For fiscal year 2013, an amount equal to five hundred forty-four 14 (544) multiplied by the per statewide support unit value of salary- 15 based apportionment and discretionary funds shall be distributed pur- 16 suant to subsection (2) of this section. 17 (b) For fiscal year 2014, an amount equal to seven hundred fifty-three 18 (753) multiplied by the per statewide support unit value of salary- 19 based apportionment and discretionary funds shall be distributed pur- 20 suant to subsections (2), (3) and (4) of this section, in the following 21 proportions: 22 (i) Seventy-four and one-tenth percent (74.1%) pursuant to sub- 23 section (2) of this section; 24 (ii) Seven and four-tenths percent (7.4%) pursuant to subsection 25 (3) of this section; 26 (iii) Eighteen and one-half percent (18.5%) pursuant to subsec- 27 tion (4) of this section. 28 (c) For fiscal year 2015 and each fiscal year thereafter, an amount 29 equal to seven hundred seventy (770) multiplied by the per statewide 30 support unit value of salary-based apportionment and discretionary 31 funds shall be distributed pursuant to subsections (2), (3) and (4) 32 of this section, plus fifty percent (50%) of any moneys appropriated 33 for increased pay for certificated staff beyond the amount needed to 34 fund the base and minimum instructional salaries, pursuant to section 35 33-1004E, Idaho Code, that were in effect during fiscal year 2009. Such 36 distributions made pursuant to subsections (2), (3) and (4) of this 37 section shall be made according to the allocations established in sub- 38 section (1)(b) of this section. 39 (d) The provision in subsection (1)(c) of this section that directs 40 that fifty percent (50%) of certain moneys be distributed pursuant to 41 subsections (2), (3) and (4) of this section shall be effective until 42 such time as fifteen percent (15%) of the total moneys appropriated
34 2
1 for certificated staff salaries are being distributed pursuant to this 2 section. After this allocation is attained, fifteen percent (15%) of 3 the total moneys appropriated for certificated staff salaries shall be 4 distributed pursuant to subsections (2), (3) and (4) of this section. 5 Such distributions made pursuant to subsections (2), (3) and (4) of this 6 section shall be made according to the allocations established in sub- 7 section (1)(b) of this section. 8 (e) For the purposes of this subsection, the term "statewide support 9 units" shall mean the total number of support units calculated for the 10 purposes of distributing salary-based apportionment in the previous 11 fiscal year. 12 (f) In the event of a reduction in the moneys appropriated for certifi- 13 cated staff salaries, the calculations established pursuant to subsec- 14 tions (1)(b) through (d) of this section shall be performed in reverse. 15 (2) Share-based pay for performance bonuses for student achievement 16 growth and excellence. 17 (a) Certificated employees shall be awarded state shares based on the 18 performance of whole schools. 19 (i) Growth -- Utilizing a state longitudinal data system for 20 students, the state department of education shall develop a sys- 21 tem for measuring individual student growth. Such system shall 22 compare spring student scores on the state-mandated summative 23 achievement tests ("spring test") from one year to the next, and 24 establish percentile rankings for individual student growth by 25 comparing students with an identical spring test score in the pre- 26 vious year with each other in the current year. A separate growth 27 percentile shall be established for each student for each subject 28 in which the spring test is given in consecutive grades. The me- 29 dian student growth percentile, based on measuring all eligible 30 students, shall be the growth score for each school. All certifi- 31 cated employees at a school with a median growth score in the fol- 32 lowing ranked quartiles shall be awarded state shares as follows:
33 Instructional Administrative
34 1st Highest Quartile 1.00 shares 2.00 shares
35 2nd Highest Quartile 0.50 shares 1.00 shares
36 3rd Highest Quartile 0.25 shares 0.50 shares
37 4th Highest Quartile 0.00 shares 0.00 shares
38 (ii) Excellence -- The state department of education shall de- 39 velop a system for comparing and ranking school spring test scores 40 based on standardized scores, utilizing all grades and subjects 41 tested. Based on each school's median standardized score, all 42 certificated employees of a school in the following ranked quar- 43 tiles shall be awarded state shares as follows:
44 Instructional Administrative
45 1st Highest Quartile 0.50 shares 1.00 shares
46 2nd Highest Quartile 0.25 shares 0.50 shares
35 3
1 Instructional Administrative
2 3rd Highest Quartile 0.00 shares 0.00 shares
3 4th Highest Quartile 0.00 shares 0.00 shares
4 (iii) No certificated instructional employee shall receive more 5 than one (1.00) share, the results of the quartile award tables 6 for growth and excellence notwithstanding. No certificated ad- 7 ministrative employee shall receive more than two (2.00) shares, 8 the results of the quartile award tables for growth and excellence 9 notwithstanding. 10 (iv) Students whose spring test results are excluded from the 11 school's results for federal accountability purposes shall be ex- 12 cluded from school growth and excellence calculations. 13 (v) For schools that do not administer the spring test, or for 14 which no spring test growth calculation is possible, the school 15 and its certificated employees shall be included with the school 16 to which the students matriculate. 17 (vi) For certificated employees assigned more than one (1) 18 school, state shares shall be earned pro rata, based on the per- 19 centage of the employee's time assigned to each school at the time 20 that students take their spring tests. In addition, for part-time 21 employees, state shares shall be earned pro rata, based on such 22 employee's full-time equivalency status. 23 (vii) The number of schools in each quartile shall be based on 24 the number of certificated employees employed at the schools, with 25 as close to twenty-five percent (25%) of such employees falling 26 within each quartile as possible. 27 (viii) For certificated employees not assigned to a specific 28 school, all new employment contracts signed on or after July 1, 29 2011, shall provide that at least five percent (5%) of the total 30 available compensation be based on growth in student achievement, 31 as determined by the board of trustees. Such percentage shall 32 increase to ten percent (10%) of the total available compensation 33 for contracts signed on or after July 1, 2015, and fifteen percent 34 (15%) for contracts signed on or after July 1, 2019. 35 (b) Local shares shall be awarded to certificated employees based on 36 performance. Each board of trustees shall develop a plan for awarding 37 local pay for performance shares in consultation with certificated em- 38 ployees. Local share awards to certificated instructional employees 39 shall be based on the performance of groups of such employees, unless 40 there is only one (1) such employee in the school district. No employee 41 shall receive more than one (1.00) local share. For part-time employ- 42 ees, local shares shall be earned pro rata, based on such employee's 43 full-time equivalency status. Local share awards shall be based on one 44 (1) or more of the following measures: 45 (i) Student test scores; 46 (ii) Student graduation rate; 47 (iii) Student dropout rate; 48 (iv) Percent of graduates attending postsecondary education or 49 entering military service;
36 4
1 (v) Making federally approved adequate yearly progress; 2 (vi) Number of students successfully completing dual credit or 3 advanced placement classes; 4 (vii) Percent of students involved in extracurricular activi- 5 ties; 6 (viii) Class projects; 7 (ix) Portfolios; 8 (x) Successful completion of special student assignments; 9 (xi) Parental involvement; 10 (xii) Teacher-assigned grades; 11 (xiii) Student attendance rate; and 12 (xiv) Various other criteria determined by local districts, sub- 13 ject to approval by the state department of education. 14 For any school district in which the board of trustees fails to adopt a 15 plan for awarding local pay for performance shares by September 1, local 16 shares awarded for performance in that school year shall be identical to 17 the number of state shares awarded for each certificated employee. 18 (c) Individual pay for performance bonuses shall be calculated as fol- 19 lows: 20 (i) Divide the moneys available for pay for performance bonuses 21 by the total number of state shares earned by certificated employ- 22 ees statewide. 23 (ii) To determine the amount of pay for performance bonus funds 24 to distribute to each school district, multiply the result of 25 subparagraph (i) of this subsection by the number of state shares 26 earned by certificated employees in the school district. 27 (iii) To establish the value of a share in each school district, 28 the school district shall divide the funds distributed by the 29 state department of education pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of 30 this subsection by the total number of state and local shares 31 earned by all certificated employees who earned at least a frac- 32 tion of both a state and local share. 33 (iv) Multiply the total number of state and local shares earned 34 by each certificated employee of the school district who earned at 35 least a fraction of a state and local share by the result of sub- 36 paragraph (iii) of this subsection. Certificated employees who do 37 not earn at least a fraction of both a state and local share shall 38 not be eligible to receive a pay for performance bonus. Pay for 39 performance bonuses shall be paid by school districts to qualify- 40 ing certificated employees in a lump sum by no later than December 41 15 following the spring test of the prior school year. 42 (3) Hard to fill position bonuses. 43 (a) The state board of education shall designate certificates and en- 44 dorsements held by certificated instructional staff for hard to fill 45 position bonuses. The board shall rank the certificates or endorse- 46 ments to be so designated based on the relative difficulty of school 47 districts' ability to recruit and retain such personnel. No additional 48 certificates or endorsements may be added to the rankings beyond the 49 first such certificate or endorsement that causes the number of cer- 50 tificates or endorsements to equal or exceed one-third (1/3) of the
37 5
1 total certificates and endorsements held by certificated instructional 2 public school employees in the state. The board shall review and alter 3 such rankings and designations at least once every two (2) years based 4 on market conditions. Any changes in rankings and designations shall be 5 made by the board by no later than March 31 of the previous school year, 6 and school districts shall be promptly notified of any changes. 7 (b) School district boards of trustees may choose to designate certifi- 8 cates and endorsements held by certificated instructional employees 9 for hard to fill position bonuses, provided such certificates and en- 10 dorsements have been so designated by the state board of education 11 as provided in subsection (3)(a) of this section. School boards of 12 trustees choosing to make such designations shall rank the certificates 13 and endorsements based on the relative difficulty of recruiting and re- 14 taining such personnel. No additional certificates or endorsements may 15 be added to the rankings beyond the first such certificate or endorse- 16 ment that causes the number of the district's full-time equivalent em- 17 ployees utilizing such certificates and endorsements to equal or exceed 18 ten percent (10%) of the certificated instructional positions employed 19 by the district; provided however, the number of such employees who may 20 be designated shall not be less than one (1). The amount distributed 21 for utilization by each district shall be based on each district's share 22 of the total certificated instructional employees statewide. Funds so 23 distributed shall be paid solely to certificated instructional person- 24 nel holding the certifications and endorsements designated by the local 25 school board, in amounts that shall be determined at the discretion of 26 the local board, which may vary between, but not within, individual cer- 27 tificate and endorsement areas; provided however, no award shall exceed 28 twice the statewide average bonus paid per certificated instructional 29 employee pursuant to subsection (2) of this section. 30 (c) School districts may apply to the state board of education to waive 31 the requirement that a certificate or endorsement designated by the 32 school district for hard to fill position bonuses first be designated 33 for such by the state board of education. The state board of education 34 may grant such a waiver for good and rational cause. 35 (d) In order to receive a hard to fill position bonus, an individual 36 must actually be providing instruction or service within the designated 37 certificate or endorsement area. 38 (e) If an individual qualifies for a hard to fill position bonus in more 39 than one (1) certificate or endorsement, the individual shall be allo- 40 cated and paid on a full-time equivalency basis, based on the relative 41 time spent in each of the qualifying areas. 42 (f) School district boards of trustees choosing to utilize hard to fill 43 position bonus funds shall designate a new list of certificates and en- 44 dorsements for such bonuses for each school year by no later than June 11 45 of the previous school year. The new list may be identical to the list 46 from the previous school year, subject to the current ten percent (10%) 47 limitation requirements. 48 (g) If the board of trustees determines that it will be unable to at- 49 tract a qualified candidate to serve in a hard to fill position, even 50 with the addition of such bonus funds, the board may use such funds
38 6
1 to pay for the training and coursework needed by a currently unquali- 2 fied employee or other individual to gain such qualification. If such 3 payment is authorized, the amount paid for an individual in a fiscal 4 year shall not exceed twice the statewide average bonus paid per cer- 5 tificated instructional employee pursuant to subsection (2) of this 6 section. The individual for whom training and coursework is paid in 7 such manner must earn a passing grade for the training and coursework 8 that is paid by the school district and must work for the school district 9 at least one (1) year in the designated certificate or endorsement area 10 for each fiscal year in which the school district made payments for 11 training and coursework, or repay the funds. 12 (h) Hard to fill position bonuses shall be paid by school districts to 13 qualifying certificated instructional employees by no later than De- 14 cember 15, in a lump sum payment. 15 (4) Leadership awards. 16 (a) School district boards of trustees may designate up to twenty-five 17 percent (25%) of their certificated instructional employees for lead- 18 ership awards. Such awards shall recognize excellence, be valid only 19 for the fiscal year for which the awards are made and require one (1) or 20 more of the following additional duties: 21 (i) Teacher or other instructional staff mentoring; 22 (ii) Content leadership; 23 (iii) Lead teacher; 24 (iv) Peer teaching coach; 25 (v) Content specialist; 26 (vi) Remedial instructor; 27 (vii) Curriculum development; 28 (viii) Assessment development; 29 (ix) Data analysis; 30 (x) Grant writing; 31 (xi) Special program coordinator; 32 (xii) Research project; 33 (xiii) Teaching professional development course; 34 (xiv) Service on local/state/national education committee or 35 task force; 36 (xv) Providing leadership to a professional learning community; 37 (xvi) Earning national board certification; and 38 (xvii) Various other criteria determined by local districts, sub- 39 ject to approval by the state department of education. 40 Duties related to student activities and athletics shall not be eligi- 41 ble for leadership awards. 42 (b) Local school district boards of trustees shall require that the em- 43 ployee work additional time as a condition of the receipt of a leader- 44 ship award. 45 (c) Local school district boards of trustees may grant multiple lead- 46 ership awards with multiple additional duties. No employee, however, 47 shall receive leadership awards in excess of twice the statewide aver- 48 age bonus paid per certificated instructional employee pursuant to sub- 49 section (2) of this section.
39 7
1 (d) Leadership awards shall be paid by school districts to qualifying 2 certificated instructional employees in a lump sum payment upon comple- 3 tion of the additional duty. 4 (e) Employees with fewer than three (3) years of experience shall not be 5 eligible for leadership awards. The term "experience" shall be as used 6 for certificated instructional staff in section 33-1004A, Idaho Code. 7 (f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (4)(a) through (e) of 8 this section, employees who earned national board certification prior 9 to July 1, 2011, and who are no longer receiving payments for earning 10 such certification pursuant to section 33-1004E, Idaho Code, due to the 11 repeal of the provision providing for such payments, shall be paid two 12 thousand dollars ($2,000) per year from the moneys allocated pursuant 13 to this subsection (4) until all moneys that would have been paid un- 14 der the previous provisions of section 33-1004E, Idaho Code, have been 15 paid. 16 (5) School districts may shift moneys between the allocations for 17 subsections (3) and (4) of this section. The ten percent (10%) limitation 18 established in subsection (3) of this section and the twenty-five percent 19 (25%) limitation established in subsection (4) of this section shall be ad- 20 justed accordingly. 21 (6) All distributions of moneys to school districts shall be made as 22 part of the third payment to school districts required by section 33-1009, 23 Idaho Code. 24 (7) School districts shall not enter into any contract that discrimi- 25 nates against those receiving a bonus award pursuant to this section. 26 (8) The state department of education may require reports of informa- 27 tion as needed to implement the provisions of this section and provide re- 28 ports to the governor, the legislature and the public. 29 (9) For the purposes of this section, the term "school district" also 30 means "public charter school," and the term "board of trustees" also means 31 "board of directors."
32 SECTION 2. If Chapter 97, Laws of 2011, is rejected through voter refer- 33 endum in November 2012, the provisions of this act shall be null, void and of 34 no further force or effect.
40 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21283 To provide more transparency and open communication between Idaho's public schools and the Professional Standards Commission with regard to investigations and status of review of complaints and charges of unethical conduct which may impact upon the employment decisions and employee status of Idaho's certificated public employees.
To define for Idaho public schools the specific information to be conveyed between public schools associated with employee applicants.
To provide greater clarity relating to "provisional employment" of certificated personnel as there is no manner or mechanism currently available allowing for such a provisional retention and no manner in which to address employment decisions associated with subsequently provided performance materials once an employee has been provisionally retained.
FISCAL NOTE
This will have no negative fiscal impact upon the state.
For Idaho public schools, this will aid in lessening the financial burden of production of volumes of information and documentation that is unnecessary to meet the intentions of the statute.
Contact: Name: Representative JoAn E. Wood Office: Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0564
41 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 564, As Amended, As Amended in the Senate
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO EDUCATION; AMENDING SECTION 33-1209, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE 3 PROVISIONS RELATING TO INVESTIGATION BY THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS 4 COMMISSION, TO PROVIDE FOR INVESTIGATIONS OF UNETHICAL CONDUCT, TO 5 REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO AN ALLEGATION, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RE- 6 LATING TO NOTIFICATION, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO A HEARING 7 PANEL'S SUBMISSION, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO CERTAIN NOTI- 8 FICATION BY THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS COMMISSION AND TO MAKE A TECH- 9 NICAL CORRECTION; AND AMENDING SECTION 33-1210, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE 10 PROVISIONS RELATING TO A SIGNED STATEMENT FROM APPLICANTS, TO DEFINE 11 CERTAIN TERMS, TO PROVIDE THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL REQUEST CERTAIN 12 INFORMATION FROM AN APPLICANT'S PAST PUBLIC SCHOOL EMPLOYERS, TO REVISE 13 PROVISIONS RELATING TO A HIRING DISTRICT'S REQUEST, TO REMOVE LANGUAGE 14 RELATING TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS' EMPLOYMENT OF APPLICANTS ON A CONDITIONAL 15 BASIS, TO PROVIDE THAT SCHOOL DISTRICTS MAY EMPLOY APPLICANTS ON A NON- 16 CONTRACTED PROVISIONAL BASIS, TO PROVIDE FOR EXCEPTIONS, TO ELIMINATE A 17 REFERENCE TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT AND INDIVIDUAL EMPLOYMENT 18 CONTRACT, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE EXPUNGEMENT OF CERTAIN 19 INFORMATION FROM CERTAIN DOCUMENTS, TO REVISE A DATE, TO REVISE PROVI- 20 SIONS RELATING TO RULES AND TO MAKE A TECHNICAL CORRECTION.
21 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
22 SECTION 1. That Section 33-1209, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 23 amended to read as follows:
24 33-1209. PROCEEDINGS TO REVOKE, SUSPEND, DENY OR PLACE REASONABLE 25 CONDITIONS ON A CERTIFICATE -- LETTERS OF REPRIMAND -- COMPLAINT -- SUBPOENA 26 POWER -- HEARING. (1) The professional standards commission may conduct in- 27 vestigations on any signed allegation of unethical practice conduct of any 28 teacher brought by: 29 (a) An individual with a substantial interest in the matter, except a 30 student in an Idaho public school; or 31 (b) A local board of trustees. 32 The allegation shall state the specific ground or grounds for the allegation 33 of unethical conduct that could lead to a possible revocation, suspension, 34 placing reasonable conditions on the certificate, or issuance of a letter 35 of reprimand. Upon receipt of a written and signed allegation of unethical 36 misconduct, the chief certification officer, in conjunction with the attor- 37 ney general and the professional standards commission investigator, shall 38 conduct a review of the allegation using established guidelines to determine 39 whether to remand the issue to the school district to be resolved locally 40 or to open an investigation and forward the case to the professional stan- 41 dards commission. Within fourteen (14) days of the decision to forward the 42 case, the chief certification officer shall notify the complainant and the
42 2
1 teacher, in writing, that an investigation will be conducted and the teacher 2 shall be afforded an opportunity to respond to the allegation verbally and in 3 writing prior to the issuance of the complaint. The executive committee of 4 the professional standards commission shall review the circumstances of the 5 forwarded case at one (1) of the two (2) next regularly scheduled meetings, 6 and determine whether probable cause exists to warrant the filing of a com- 7 plaint and the requesting of a hearing. 8 (2) Proceedings to revoke or suspend any certificate issued under sec- 9 tion 33-1201, Idaho Code, or to issue a letter of reprimand or place reason- 10 able conditions on the certificate shall be commenced by a written complaint 11 against the holder thereof. Such complaint shall be made by the chief certi- 12 fication officer stating the ground or grounds for issuing a letter of rep- 13 rimand, placing reasonable conditions on the certificate, or for revocation 14 or suspension and proposing that a letter of reprimand be issued, reason- 15 able conditions be placed on the certificate, or the certificate be revoked 16 or suspended. A copy of the complaint shall be served upon the certificate 17 holder, either by personal service or by certified mail, within thirty (30) 18 days of determination by the executive committee or such other time agreed to 19 by the teacher and the chief certification officer. 20 (3) Not more than thirty (30) days after the date of service of any 21 complaint, the person complained against may request, in writing, a hearing 22 upon the complaint. Any such request shall be made and addressed to the state 23 superintendent of public instruction; and if no request for hearing is made, 24 the grounds for suspension, revocation, placing reasonable conditions on 25 the certificate, or issuing a letter of reprimand stated in the complaint 26 shall be deemed admitted. Upon a request for hearing, the chief certifi- 27 cation officer shall give notice, in writing, to the person requesting the 28 hearing, which notice shall state the time and place of the hearing and which 29 shall occur not more than ninety (90) days from the request for hearing or 30 such other time agreed to by the teacher and the chief certification officer. 31 The time of such hearing shall not be less than five (5) days from the date of 32 notice thereof. Any such hearing shall be informal and shall conform with 33 chapter 52, title 67, Idaho Code. The hearing will be held within the school 34 district in which any teacher complained of shall teach, or at such other 35 place deemed most convenient for all parties. 36 (4) Any such hearing shall be conducted by three (3) or more panel mem- 37 bers appointed by the chairman of the professional standards commission, a 38 majority of whom shall hold a position of employment the same as the person 39 complained against. One (1) of the panel members shall serve as the panel 40 chair. The panel chair shall be selected by the chairman of the professional 41 standards commission from a list of former members of the professional stan- 42 dards commission who shall be instructed in conducting administrative hear- 43 ings. No commission member who participated in the probable cause determi- 44 nation process in a given case shall serve on the hearing panel. All hear- 45 ings shall be held with the object of ascertaining the truth. Any person com- 46 plained against may appear in person and may be represented by legal counsel, 47 and may produce, examine and cross-examine witnesses, and, if he chooses to 48 do so, may submit for the consideration of the hearing panel a statement, in 49 writing, in lieu of oral testimony, but any such statement shall be under 50 oath and the affiant shall be subject to cross-examination.
43 3
1 (5) The state superintendent of public instruction, as authorized by 2 the state board of education, has the power to issue subpoenas and compel 3 the attendance of witnesses and compel the production of pertinent papers, 4 books, documents, records, accounts and testimony. The state board or its 5 authorized representative may, if a witness refuses to attend or testify or 6 to produce any papers required by such subpoena, report to the district court 7 in and for the county in which the proceeding is pending, by petition, set- 8 ting forth that a due notice has been given of the time and place of atten- 9 dance of the witnesses, or the production of the papers, that the witness has 10 been properly summoned, and that the witness has failed and refused to at- 11 tend or produce the papers required by this subpoena before the board, or its 12 representative, or has refused to answer questions propounded to him in the 13 course of the proceedings, and ask for an order of the court compelling the 14 witness to attend and testify and produce the papers before the board. The 15 court, upon the petition of the board, shall enter an order directing the 16 witness to appear before the court at a time and place to be fixed by the court 17 in the order, the time to be not more than ten (10) days from the date of the 18 order, and then and there shall show cause why he has not attended and testi- 19 fied or produced the papers before the board or its representative. A copy of 20 the order shall be served upon the witness. If it shall appear to the court 21 that the subpoena was regularly issued by the board and regularly served, the 22 court shall thereupon order that the witness appear before the board at the 23 time and place fixed in the order and testify or produce the required papers. 24 Upon failure to obey the order, the witness shall be dealt with for contempt 25 of court. The subpoenas shall be served and witness fees and mileage paid as 26 allowed in civil cases in the district courts of this state. 27 (6) Within twenty-one (21) days of the conclusion of any hearing 28 dealing with the revocation, suspension, denial of a certificate, placing 29 reasonable conditions on the certificate, or issuing a letter of reprimand, 30 the hearing panel shall submit to the chief certification officer, and to 31 the person complained against and to the chief administrative officer of the 32 public school employing the certificate holder, if any, a concise statement 33 of the proceedings, a summary of the testimony, and any documentary evidence 34 offered, together with the findings of fact and a decision. The hearing 35 panel may determine to suspend or revoke the certificate, or the panel may 36 order that reasonable conditions be placed on the certificate or a letter of 37 reprimand be sent to the certificate holder, or if there are not sufficient 38 grounds, the allegation against the certificate holder is dismissed and is 39 so recorded. 40 (7) Within three (3) days of issuance, the hearing panel's decision 41 shall be made a permanent part of the record of the certificate holder. 42 Should the final decision be to place reasonable conditions upon the cer- 43 tificate holder or a suspension or revocation of the teaching certificate, 44 the professional standards commission must notify the employing public 45 school of the hearing panel's decision and to provide notice that such may 46 negatively impact upon the employment status of the certificated employee. 47 (8) The final decision of the hearing panel shall be subject to judicial 48 review in accordance with the provisions of chapter 52, title 67, Idaho Code, 49 in the district court of the county in which the holder of a revoked certifi- 50 cate has been last employed as a teacher.
44 4
1 (9) Whenever any certificate has been revoked, suspended or has had 2 reasonable conditions placed upon it, or an application has been denied, the 3 professional standards commission may, upon a clear showing that the cause 4 constituting grounds for the listed actions no longer exists, issue a valid 5 certificate. Provided however, that no certificate shall be issued to any 6 person who has been convicted of any crime listed in subsection 2. of section 7 33-1208, Idaho Code. 8 (10) For any person certified in another state and applying for certifi- 9 cation in Idaho, and for any person previously certified in this state who is 10 applying for certification in the event their certification has lapsed or is 11 seeking renewal of a current certification, the chief certification officer 12 shall deny an application for a new certificate or for a renewal of a cer- 13 tificate, regardless of the jurisdiction where such certificate was issued, 14 if there are any unsatisfied conditions on such current or previously is- 15 sued certificate or if there is any form of pending investigation by a state 16 agency concerning the applicant's teaching license or certificate. Pro- 17 vided however, the chief certification officer shall not automatically deny 18 the application if such person authorized in writing that the chief certi- 19 fication officer and the professional standards commission shall have full 20 access to the investigative files concerning the conditions on, or investi- 21 gation concerning, such certificate in Idaho or any other state or province. 22 Upon review of the information authorized for release by the applicant, the 23 chief certification officer shall either grant or deny such application or, 24 upon denial and upon written request made by the applicant within thirty 25 (30) days of such denial, shall afford the applicant with the procedures set 26 forth in subsections (3) through (9) of this section. If the applicant does 27 not execute the written authorization discussed herein, reapplication may 28 be made once all investigations have been completed and all conditions have 29 been satisfied, resulting in a clear certificate from the issuing state or 30 province. 31 (11) For the purposes of this section, the term "teacher" shall include 32 any individual required to hold a certificate pursuant to section 33-1201, 33 Idaho Code.
34 SECTION 2. That Section 33-1210, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 35 amended to read as follows:
36 33-1210. INFORMATION ON PAST JOB PERFORMANCE. (1) As used in this sec- 37 tion: 38 (a) "Applicant" means an applicant for employment in a certificated or 39 noncertificated position who is currently or was previously employed by 40 a school district. 41 (b) "Employer" means a school district employer. 42 (2) Before hiring an applicant, a school district shall request the ap- 43 plicant to sign a statement: 44 (a) Authorizing the applicant's current and past employers, includ- 45 ing employers outside of the state of Idaho, to release to the hiring 46 school district all information relating to the job performance and/or 47 job related conduct, if any, of the applicant and making available to 48 the hiring school district copies of all documents in the previous em- 49 ployer's personnel files established pursuant to sections 33-517 or
45 5
1 33-518, Idaho Code, or investigative or other files, regardless of 2 whether or not the employee has received notice of the existence of 3 such documentation due to a voluntary separation from employment or 4 the employee's refusal to sign such documents, relating to the job per- 5 formance by the applicant; and. Upon separation of employment, all 6 documents from any other file, including an investigative file, shall 7 be moved into the personnel file. The requirement to submit investiga- 8 tive files to the personnel file shall not be construed to be a waiver of 9 the attorney client privilege. Names of any student, fellow employee 10 or complainant, other than the employee's administrative supervisor or 11 administrative author shall be redacted from investigative file doc- 12 uments prior to placement in the personnel file. The former employee 13 shall be provided a copy of the documents and written notice of the 14 inclusion of the information in the personnel file to the former em- 15 ployee's last known address. The former employee shall be permitted the 16 opportunity to file a rebuttal to the new documents placed into the per- 17 sonnel file. If an ongoing personnel investigation was taking place, 18 the contents of the district's investigative file shall be forwarded 19 to the professional standards commission when the district submits the 20 report required pursuant to section 33-1208A, Idaho Code. 21 (b) Documentation related to the job performance or job related con- 22 duct of any employee/applicant is defined as and may be limited by the 23 producing district to include: all annual evaluations, letters of 24 reprimand, letters of direction, letters of commendation or award, dis- 25 ciplinary actions and documentation of disciplinary investigations, 26 recommendations for probation, notices of probation, notices of re- 27 moval from probation, recommendations for termination or nonrenewal, 28 notices of termination or nonrenewal, notices from the professional 29 standards commission of Idaho or any other such similar state agency 30 of action taken against an individual's certificate and any rebuttal 31 documentation filed by the employee relative to any of the above docu- 32 ments. Names of any student or fellow employee complainant, other than 33 the employee's administrative evaluator or administrative author of 34 communication to the employee, shall be redacted from such provided 35 documentation. 36 (c) Releasing the applicant's current and past employers, and employ- 37 ees acting on behalf of that employer, from any liability for providing 38 information described in paragraph (a) of this subsection, as provided 39 in subsection (4) of this section. 40 (3) Before hiring an applicant, a school district shall request in 41 writing, electronic or otherwise, the applicant's current and past public 42 school employers, including out-of-state employers, to provide the infor- 43 mation described in subsection (2)(a) of this section, if any. The request 44 shall include a copy of the statement signed by the applicant under subsec- 45 tion (2) of this section. 46 (4) Not later than twenty (20) business days after receiving a request 47 under subsection (3) of this section, a school district within Idaho shall 48 provide the information requested and make available to the requesting 49 school district copies of all documents in the applicant's personnel record 50 relating to job performance. The school district, or an employee acting on
46 6
1 behalf of the school district, who in good faith discloses information under 2 this section either in writing, printed material, electronic material or 3 orally is immune from civil liability for the disclosure. An employer is 4 presumed to be acting in good faith at the time of the disclosure under this 5 section unless the evidence establishes one (1) or more of the following: 6 (a) that the employer knew the information disclosed was false or mislead- 7 ing; (b) that the employer disclosed the information with reckless disregard 8 for the truth; or (c) that the disclosure was specifically prohibited by a 9 state or federal statute. 10 (5) A hiring district shall request from the office of the superinten- 11 dent of public instruction verification of certification status, any past or 12 pending violations of the professional code of ethics, any detail as to any 13 prior or pending conditions placed upon a certificate holder's certificate, 14 any prior or pending revocation, suspension or the existence of any prior 15 letters of reprimand and information relating to job performance as estab- 16 lished by the provisions of subsection (11) of this section, if any, for ap- 17 plicants for certificated employment. 18 (6) A school district shall not hire an applicant who does not sign the 19 statement described in subsection (2) of this section. 20 (7) School districts may employ applicants on a conditional basis 21 pending the district's review of information obtained under this section 22 noncontracted provisional basis pursuant to the provisions of this section. 23 Once the prior employer personnel performance materials have arrived for 24 an individual provisionally hired, the district must review the documents 25 within thirty (30) days of receipt. A standard certificated contract shall 26 automatically be issued at the end of the thirty (30) day review period un- 27 less, prior to the expiration of the thirty (30) day period, the board artic- 28 ulates in writing the specific information received pursuant to subsection 29 (2)(a) of this section, which justifies the decision not to issue a standard 30 contract. The reason articulated in this decision must derive only from the 31 documents received in the personnel file and cannot be based upon any event 32 that has occurred during the status as a noncontracted provisional certified 33 professional employee. Prior to issuing a standard certificated contract 34 or prior to the decision not to issue a standard certificated contract, or 35 upon the expiration of the thirty (30) day period, an individual employed 36 as a noncontracted provisional certificated professional employee shall 37 be provided with the same compensation and benefits as if the employee had 38 been employed on a standard certificated contract. When requests are sent 39 to out-of-state employers under subsection (3) of this section, an applicant 40 who has signed the statement described in subsection (2) of this section 41 shall not be prevented from gaining employment in Idaho public schools if 42 the laws or policies of that other state prevent documents from being made 43 available to Idaho school districts or if the out-of-state school district 44 fails or refuses to cooperate with the request. 45 (a) If no documentation is going to be forthcoming from an out-of-state 46 employer, the Idaho district may initially employ the applicant on a 47 standard contract and not utilize the conditional basis employment. 48 (b) For new employees with no prior public school work experience or for 49 applicants whose out-of-state former employers will not release docu-
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1 mentation pursuant to this statute, the district board shall develop a 2 policy to confirm prior work experience and check references. 3 (8) Information received pursuant to this section shall be used by a 4 school district only for the purpose of evaluating an applicant's qualifica- 5 tions for employment in the position for which he or she has applied. Except 6 as otherwise provided by law, a board member or employee of a school district 7 shall not disclose the information to any person, other than the applicant, 8 who is not directly involved in the process of evaluating the applicant's 9 qualifications for employment. A person who violates the provisions of this 10 subsection may be civilly liable for damages caused by such violation. 11 (9) Beginning September 1, 2011, the board or an official of a school 12 district shall not enter into any collective bargaining agreement, individ- 13 ual employment contract, resignation agreement, severance agreement, or any 14 other contract or agreement that has the effect of suppressing information 15 about negative job performance by a present or former employee or of expung- 16 ing information about that performance or unethical misconduct from any doc- 17 uments in the previous employer's personnel, investigative or other files 18 relating to job performance by the applicant. Any provision of a contract 19 or agreement that is contrary to this subsection is void and unenforceable. 20 This subsection does not restrict the expungement from a personnel file of 21 information about alleged verbal or physical abuse or sexual misconduct that 22 has not been substantiated. 23 (10) This section does not prevent a school district from requesting or 24 requiring an applicant to provide information other than that described in 25 this section. 26 (11) By September 1, 20112, the state board of education has the author- 27 ity to and shall adopt rules defining job standards performance and "ver- 28 bal abuse," "physical abuse," and "sexual misconduct" as used in this sec- 29 tion and "unethical conduct" as defined in the code of ethics for Idaho pro- 30 fessional educators for application to all certificated and noncertificated 31 employees. The definitions of job standards performance, verbal and physi- 32 cal abuse and sexual misconduct adopted by the state board of education must 33 include the requirement that the school district has made a determination 34 that there is sufficient information to conclude that the abuse or unethical 35 misconduct occurred and that the abuse or unethical misconduct resulted in 36 the employee's leaving his or her position at the school district.
48 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 564, As Amended
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO EDUCATION; AMENDING SECTION 33-1209, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE 3 PROVISIONS RELATING TO INVESTIGATION BY THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS 4 COMMISSION, TO PROVIDE FOR INVESTIGATIONS OF UNETHICAL CONDUCT, TO 5 REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO AN ALLEGATION, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RE- 6 LATING TO NOTIFICATION, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO A HEARING 7 PANEL'S SUBMISSION, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO CERTAIN NOTI- 8 FICATION BY THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS COMMISSION AND TO MAKE A TECH- 9 NICAL CORRECTION; AND AMENDING SECTION 33-1210, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE 10 PROVISIONS RELATING TO A SIGNED STATEMENT FROM APPLICANTS, TO DEFINE 11 CERTAIN TERMS, TO PROVIDE THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL REQUEST CERTAIN 12 INFORMATION FROM AN APPLICANT'S PAST PUBLIC SCHOOL EMPLOYERS, TO REVISE 13 PROVISIONS RELATING TO A HIRING DISTRICT'S REQUEST, TO REVISE PROVI- 14 SIONS RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT ON A CONDITIONAL BASIS, TO PROVIDE FOR 15 EXCEPTIONS, TO ELIMINATE A REFERENCE TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREE- 16 MENT AND INDIVIDUAL EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING 17 TO THE EXPUNGEMENT OF CERTAIN INFORMATION FROM CERTAIN DOCUMENTS, TO 18 REVISE A DATE, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO RULES AND TO MAKE A TECH- 19 NICAL CORRECTION.
20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
21 SECTION 1. That Section 33-1209, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 22 amended to read as follows:
23 33-1209. PROCEEDINGS TO REVOKE, SUSPEND, DENY OR PLACE REASONABLE 24 CONDITIONS ON A CERTIFICATE -- LETTERS OF REPRIMAND -- COMPLAINT -- SUBPOENA 25 POWER -- HEARING. (1) The professional standards commission may conduct in- 26 vestigations on any signed allegation of unethical practice conduct of any 27 teacher brought by: 28 (a) An individual with a substantial interest in the matter, except a 29 student in an Idaho public school; or 30 (b) A local board of trustees. 31 The allegation shall state the specific ground or grounds for the allegation 32 of unethical conduct that could lead to a possible revocation, suspension, 33 placing reasonable conditions on the certificate, or issuance of a letter 34 of reprimand. Upon receipt of a written and signed allegation of unethical 35 misconduct, the chief certification officer, in conjunction with the attor- 36 ney general and the professional standards commission investigator, shall 37 conduct a review of the allegation using established guidelines to determine 38 whether to remand the issue to the school district to be resolved locally 39 or to open an investigation and forward the case to the professional stan- 40 dards commission. Within fourteen (14) days of the decision to forward the 41 case, the chief certification officer shall notify the complainant and the 42 teacher, in writing, that an investigation will be conducted and the teacher
49 2
1 shall be afforded an opportunity to respond to the allegation verbally and in 2 writing prior to the issuance of the complaint. The executive committee of 3 the professional standards commission shall review the circumstances of the 4 forwarded case at one (1) of the two (2) next regularly scheduled meetings, 5 and determine whether probable cause exists to warrant the filing of a com- 6 plaint and the requesting of a hearing. 7 (2) Proceedings to revoke or suspend any certificate issued under sec- 8 tion 33-1201, Idaho Code, or to issue a letter of reprimand or place reason- 9 able conditions on the certificate shall be commenced by a written complaint 10 against the holder thereof. Such complaint shall be made by the chief certi- 11 fication officer stating the ground or grounds for issuing a letter of rep- 12 rimand, placing reasonable conditions on the certificate, or for revocation 13 or suspension and proposing that a letter of reprimand be issued, reason- 14 able conditions be placed on the certificate, or the certificate be revoked 15 or suspended. A copy of the complaint shall be served upon the certificate 16 holder, either by personal service or by certified mail, within thirty (30) 17 days of determination by the executive committee or such other time agreed to 18 by the teacher and the chief certification officer. 19 (3) Not more than thirty (30) days after the date of service of any 20 complaint, the person complained against may request, in writing, a hearing 21 upon the complaint. Any such request shall be made and addressed to the state 22 superintendent of public instruction; and if no request for hearing is made, 23 the grounds for suspension, revocation, placing reasonable conditions on 24 the certificate, or issuing a letter of reprimand stated in the complaint 25 shall be deemed admitted. Upon a request for hearing, the chief certifi- 26 cation officer shall give notice, in writing, to the person requesting the 27 hearing, which notice shall state the time and place of the hearing and which 28 shall occur not more than ninety (90) days from the request for hearing or 29 such other time agreed to by the teacher and the chief certification officer. 30 The time of such hearing shall not be less than five (5) days from the date of 31 notice thereof. Any such hearing shall be informal and shall conform with 32 chapter 52, title 67, Idaho Code. The hearing will be held within the school 33 district in which any teacher complained of shall teach, or at such other 34 place deemed most convenient for all parties. 35 (4) Any such hearing shall be conducted by three (3) or more panel mem- 36 bers appointed by the chairman of the professional standards commission, a 37 majority of whom shall hold a position of employment the same as the person 38 complained against. One (1) of the panel members shall serve as the panel 39 chair. The panel chair shall be selected by the chairman of the professional 40 standards commission from a list of former members of the professional stan- 41 dards commission who shall be instructed in conducting administrative hear- 42 ings. No commission member who participated in the probable cause determi- 43 nation process in a given case shall serve on the hearing panel. All hear- 44 ings shall be held with the object of ascertaining the truth. Any person com- 45 plained against may appear in person and may be represented by legal counsel, 46 and may produce, examine and cross-examine witnesses, and, if he chooses to 47 do so, may submit for the consideration of the hearing panel a statement, in 48 writing, in lieu of oral testimony, but any such statement shall be under 49 oath and the affiant shall be subject to cross-examination.
50 3
1 (5) The state superintendent of public instruction, as authorized by 2 the state board of education, has the power to issue subpoenas and compel 3 the attendance of witnesses and compel the production of pertinent papers, 4 books, documents, records, accounts and testimony. The state board or its 5 authorized representative may, if a witness refuses to attend or testify or 6 to produce any papers required by such subpoena, report to the district court 7 in and for the county in which the proceeding is pending, by petition, set- 8 ting forth that a due notice has been given of the time and place of atten- 9 dance of the witnesses, or the production of the papers, that the witness has 10 been properly summoned, and that the witness has failed and refused to at- 11 tend or produce the papers required by this subpoena before the board, or its 12 representative, or has refused to answer questions propounded to him in the 13 course of the proceedings, and ask for an order of the court compelling the 14 witness to attend and testify and produce the papers before the board. The 15 court, upon the petition of the board, shall enter an order directing the 16 witness to appear before the court at a time and place to be fixed by the court 17 in the order, the time to be not more than ten (10) days from the date of the 18 order, and then and there shall show cause why he has not attended and testi- 19 fied or produced the papers before the board or its representative. A copy of 20 the order shall be served upon the witness. If it shall appear to the court 21 that the subpoena was regularly issued by the board and regularly served, the 22 court shall thereupon order that the witness appear before the board at the 23 time and place fixed in the order and testify or produce the required papers. 24 Upon failure to obey the order, the witness shall be dealt with for contempt 25 of court. The subpoenas shall be served and witness fees and mileage paid as 26 allowed in civil cases in the district courts of this state. 27 (6) Within twenty-one (21) days of the conclusion of any hearing 28 dealing with the revocation, suspension, denial of a certificate, placing 29 reasonable conditions on the certificate, or issuing a letter of reprimand, 30 the hearing panel shall submit to the chief certification officer, and to 31 the person complained against and to the chief administrative officer of the 32 public school employing the certificate holder, if any, a concise statement 33 of the proceedings, a summary of the testimony, and any documentary evidence 34 offered, together with the findings of fact and a decision. The hearing 35 panel may determine to suspend or revoke the certificate, or the panel may 36 order that reasonable conditions be placed on the certificate or a letter of 37 reprimand be sent to the certificate holder, or if there are not sufficient 38 grounds, the allegation against the certificate holder is dismissed and is 39 so recorded. 40 (7) Within three (3) days of issuance, the hearing panel's decision 41 shall be made a permanent part of the record of the certificate holder. 42 Should the final decision be to place reasonable conditions upon the cer- 43 tificate holder or a suspension or revocation of the teaching certificate, 44 the professional standards commission must notify the employing public 45 school of the hearing panel's decision and to provide notice that such may 46 negatively impact upon the employment status of the certificated employee. 47 (8) The final decision of the hearing panel shall be subject to judicial 48 review in accordance with the provisions of chapter 52, title 67, Idaho Code, 49 in the district court of the county in which the holder of a revoked certifi- 50 cate has been last employed as a teacher.
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1 (9) Whenever any certificate has been revoked, suspended or has had 2 reasonable conditions placed upon it, or an application has been denied, the 3 professional standards commission may, upon a clear showing that the cause 4 constituting grounds for the listed actions no longer exists, issue a valid 5 certificate. Provided however, that no certificate shall be issued to any 6 person who has been convicted of any crime listed in subsection 2. of section 7 33-1208, Idaho Code. 8 (10) For any person certified in another state and applying for certifi- 9 cation in Idaho, and for any person previously certified in this state who is 10 applying for certification in the event their certification has lapsed or is 11 seeking renewal of a current certification, the chief certification officer 12 shall deny an application for a new certificate or for a renewal of a cer- 13 tificate, regardless of the jurisdiction where such certificate was issued, 14 if there are any unsatisfied conditions on such current or previously is- 15 sued certificate or if there is any form of pending investigation by a state 16 agency concerning the applicant's teaching license or certificate. Pro- 17 vided however, the chief certification officer shall not automatically deny 18 the application if such person authorized in writing that the chief certi- 19 fication officer and the professional standards commission shall have full 20 access to the investigative files concerning the conditions on, or investi- 21 gation concerning, such certificate in Idaho or any other state or province. 22 Upon review of the information authorized for release by the applicant, the 23 chief certification officer shall either grant or deny such application or, 24 upon denial and upon written request made by the applicant within thirty 25 (30) days of such denial, shall afford the applicant with the procedures set 26 forth in subsections (3) through (9) of this section. If the applicant does 27 not execute the written authorization discussed herein, reapplication may 28 be made once all investigations have been completed and all conditions have 29 been satisfied, resulting in a clear certificate from the issuing state or 30 province. 31 (11) For the purposes of this section, the term "teacher" shall include 32 any individual required to hold a certificate pursuant to section 33-1201, 33 Idaho Code.
34 SECTION 2. That Section 33-1210, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 35 amended to read as follows:
36 33-1210. INFORMATION ON PAST JOB PERFORMANCE. (1) As used in this sec- 37 tion: 38 (a) "Applicant" means an applicant for employment in a certificated or 39 noncertificated position who is currently or was previously employed by 40 a school district. 41 (b) "Employer" means a school district employer. 42 (2) Before hiring an applicant, a school district shall request the ap- 43 plicant to sign a statement: 44 (a) Authorizing the applicant's current and past employers, including 45 employers outside of the state of Idaho, to release to the hiring school 46 district all information relating to the job performance and/or job re- 47 lated conduct, if any, of the applicant and making available to the hir- 48 ing school district copies of all documents in the previous employer's 49 personnel files established pursuant to sections 33-517 or 33-518,
52 5
1 Idaho Code, or investigative or other files, regardless of whether or 2 not the employee has received notice of the existence of such documen- 3 tation due to absence from the school or the employee's refusal to sign 4 such documents, relating to the job performance by the applicant; and 5 (b) Documentation related to the job performance or job related con- 6 duct of any employee/applicant is defined as and may be limited by the 7 producing district to include: all annual evaluations, letters of 8 reprimand, letters of direction, letters of commendation or award, dis- 9 ciplinary actions and documentation of disciplinary investigations, 10 recommendations for probation, notices of probation, notices of re- 11 moval from probation, recommendations for termination or nonrenewal, 12 notices of termination or nonrenewal, notices from the professional 13 standards commission of Idaho or any other such similar state agency 14 of action taken against an individual's certificate and any rebuttal 15 documentation filed by the employee relative to any of the above docu- 16 ments. Names of any student or fellow employee complainant, other than 17 the employee's administrative evaluator or administrative author of 18 communication to the employee, shall be redacted from such provided 19 documentation. 20 (c) Releasing the applicant's current and past employers, and employ- 21 ees acting on behalf of that employer, from any liability for providing 22 information described in paragraph (a) of this subsection, as provided 23 in subsection (4) of this section. 24 (3) Before hiring an applicant, a school district shall request in 25 writing, electronic or otherwise, the applicant's current and past public 26 school employers, including out-of-state employers, to provide the infor- 27 mation described in subsection (2)(a) of this section, if any. The request 28 shall include a copy of the statement signed by the applicant under subsec- 29 tion (2) of this section. 30 (4) Not later than twenty (20) business days after receiving a request 31 under subsection (3) of this section, a school district within Idaho shall 32 provide the information requested and make available to the requesting 33 school district copies of all documents in the applicant's personnel record 34 relating to job performance. The school district, or an employee acting on 35 behalf of the school district, who in good faith discloses information under 36 this section either in writing, printed material, electronic material or 37 orally is immune from civil liability for the disclosure. An employer is 38 presumed to be acting in good faith at the time of the disclosure under this 39 section unless the evidence establishes one (1) or more of the following: 40 (a) that the employer knew the information disclosed was false or mislead- 41 ing; (b) that the employer disclosed the information with reckless disregard 42 for the truth; or (c) that the disclosure was specifically prohibited by a 43 state or federal statute. 44 (5) A hiring district shall request from the office of the superinten- 45 dent of public instruction verification of certification status, any past or 46 pending violations of the professional code of ethics, any detail as to any 47 prior or pending conditions placed upon a certificate holder's certificate, 48 any prior or pending revocation, suspension or the existence of any prior 49 letters of reprimand and information relating to job performance as estab-
53 6
1 lished by the provisions of subsection (11) of this section, if any, for ap- 2 plicants for certificated employment. 3 (6) A school district shall not hire an applicant who does not sign the 4 statement described in subsection (2) of this section. 5 (7) School districts may employ applicants on a conditional basis pend- 6 ing the district's review of information obtained under this section; how- 7 ever, such employee shall not be issued a standard teacher contract in any 8 form and shall not have any due process obligations or rights to their po- 9 sition until such time as the information requested has been obtained and 10 an employment decision made by the district subsequent to review. Once the 11 prior employer personnel performance materials have arrived for an individ- 12 ual conditionally hired, the district will have a period of thirty (30) days 13 to review the materials and make a decision relating to the employment of 14 the individual. If the individual is going to be retained and is a certifi- 15 cated employee, it is at that time that a standard teacher's contract may 16 be issued. Prior to that time, the district may employ such individual as a 17 noncontracted long-term substitute teacher, with the same compensation and 18 benefits as the district would utilize for any other employed long-term sub- 19 stitute. When requests are sent to out-of-state employers under subsection 20 (3) of this section, an applicant who has signed the statement described in 21 subsection (2) of this section shall not be prevented from gaining employ- 22 ment in Idaho public schools if the laws or policies of that other state pre- 23 vent documents from being made available to Idaho school districts or if the 24 out-of-state school district fails or refuses to cooperate with the request. 25 (a) If no documentation is going to be forthcoming from an out-of-state 26 employer, the Idaho district may initially employ the applicant on a 27 standard contract and not utilize the conditional basis employment. 28 (b) For new employees with no prior public school work experience or for 29 applicants whose out-of-state former employers will not release docu- 30 mentation pursuant to this statute, the district board shall develop a 31 policy to confirm prior work experience and check references. 32 (8) Information received pursuant to this section shall be used by a 33 school district only for the purpose of evaluating an applicant's qualifica- 34 tions for employment in the position for which he or she has applied. Except 35 as otherwise provided by law, a board member or employee of a school district 36 shall not disclose the information to any person, other than the applicant, 37 who is not directly involved in the process of evaluating the applicant's 38 qualifications for employment. A person who violates the provisions of this 39 subsection may be civilly liable for damages caused by such violation. 40 (9) Beginning September 1, 2011, the board or an official of a school 41 district shall not enter into any collective bargaining agreement, individ- 42 ual employment contract, resignation agreement, severance agreement, or any 43 other contract or agreement that has the effect of suppressing information 44 about negative job performance by a present or former employee or of expung- 45 ing information about that performance or unethical misconduct from any doc- 46 uments in the previous employer's personnel, investigative or other files 47 relating to job performance by the applicant. Any provision of a contract 48 or agreement that is contrary to this subsection is void and unenforceable. 49 This subsection does not restrict the expungement from a personnel file of
54 7
1 information about alleged verbal or physical abuse or sexual misconduct that 2 has not been substantiated. 3 (10) This section does not prevent a school district from requesting or 4 requiring an applicant to provide information other than that described in 5 this section. 6 (11) By September 1, 20112, the state board of education has the author- 7 ity to and shall adopt rules defining job standards performance and "ver- 8 bal abuse," "physical abuse," and "sexual misconduct" as used in this sec- 9 tion and "unethical conduct" as defined in the code of ethics for Idaho pro- 10 fessional educators for application to all certificated and noncertificated 11 employees. The definitions of job standards performance, verbal and physi- 12 cal abuse and sexual misconduct adopted by the state board of education must 13 include the requirement that the school district has made a determination 14 that there is sufficient information to conclude that the abuse or unethical 15 misconduct occurred and that the abuse or unethical misconduct resulted in 16 the employee's leaving his or her position at the school district.
55 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
Moved by Nielsen
Seconded by Chew
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HOUSE AMENDMENT TO H.B. NO. 564
1 AMENDMENT TO SECTION 2 2 On page 7 of the printed bill, delete lines 1 and 2, and insert: "has not 3 been substantiated.".
56 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
Moved by Goedde
Seconded by Mortimer
IN THE SENATE SENATE AMENDMENT TO H.B. NO. 564, As Amended
1 AMENDMENT TO SECTION 2 2 On page 5 of the engrossed bill, delete lines 3 and 4, and insert: 3 "tation due to a voluntary separation from employment or the employee's 4 refusal to sign such documents, relating to the job performance by the 5 applicant; and. Upon separation of employment, all documents from 6 any other file, including an investigative file, shall be moved into 7 the personnel file. The requirement to submit investigative files 8 to the personnel file shall not be construed to be a waiver of the at- 9 torney client privilege. Names of any student, fellow employee or 10 complainant, other than the employee's administrative supervisor or 11 administrative author shall be redacted from investigative file doc- 12 uments prior to placement in the personnel file. The former employee 13 shall be provided a copy of the documents and written notice of the 14 inclusion of the information in the personnel file to the former em- 15 ployee's last known address. The former employee shall be permitted the 16 opportunity to file a rebuttal to the new documents placed into the per- 17 sonnel file. If an ongoing personnel investigation was taking place, 18 the contents of the district's investigative file shall be forwarded 19 to the professional standards commission when the district submits the 20 report required pursuant to section 33-1208A, Idaho Code.". 21 On page 6, delete lines 5 through 19, and insert: 22 "(7) School districts may employ applicants on a conditional basis 23 pending the district's review of information obtained under this section 24 noncontracted provisional basis pursuant to the provisions of this section. 25 Once the prior employer personnel performance materials have arrived for 26 an individual provisionally hired, the district must review the documents 27 within thirty (30) days of receipt. A standard certificated contract shall 28 automatically be issued at the end of the thirty (30) day review period 29 unless, prior to the expiration of the thirty (30) day period, the board 30 articulates in writing the specific information received pursuant to sub- 31 section (2)(a) of this section, which justifies the decision not to issue a 32 standard contract. The reason articulated in this decision must derive only 33 from the documents received in the personnel file and cannot be based upon 34 any event that has occurred during the status as a noncontracted provisional 35 certified professional employee. Prior to issuing a standard certificated 36 contract or prior to the decision not to issue a standard certificated con- 37 tract, or upon the expiration of the thirty (30) day period, an individual 38 employed as a noncontracted provisional certificated professional employee 39 shall be provided with the same compensation and benefits as if the employee 40 had been employed on a standard certificated contract. When requests are 41 sent to out-of-state employers under subsection".
57 2
1 CORRECTION TO TITLE 2 On page 1, delete lines 13 and 14, and insert: "PROVISIONS RELATING TO A 3 HIRING DISTRICT'S REQUEST, TO REMOVE LANGUAGE RELATING TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS' 4 EMPLOYMENT OF APPLICANTS ON A CONDITIONAL BASIS, TO PROVIDE THAT SCHOOL DIS- 5 TRICTS MAY EMPLOY APPLICANTS ON A NONCONTRACTED PROVISIONAL BASIS, TO PRO- 6 VIDE FOR".
58 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21197C1 The purpose of the legislation is to provide public notice and ballot requirements for levy elections.
FISCAL NOTE
There is no fiscal impact.
Contact: Name: Representative Erik Simpson Office: Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0576
59 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 576
BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO LEVY ELECTIONS; AMENDING CHAPTER 4, TITLE 34, IDAHO CODE, BY THE 3 ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION 34-439A, IDAHO CODE, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS 4 RELATING TO DISCLOSURES IN ELECTIONS IN A TAXING DISTRICT THAT PROPOSES 5 TO SUBMIT A QUESTION TO ELECTORS THAT WOULD AUTHORIZE A LEVY.
6 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
7 SECTION 1. That Chapter 4, Title 34, Idaho Code, be, and the same is 8 hereby amended by the addition thereto of a NEW SECTION, to be known and des- 9 ignated as Section 34-439A, Idaho Code, and to read as follows:
10 34-439A. DISCLOSURES IN ELECTIONS TO AUTHORIZE LEVY. (1) Notwith- 11 standing any other provision of law except for the provisions of section 12 63-802(1)(g), Idaho Code, any taxing district that proposes to submit any 13 question to the electors of the district that would authorize any levy shall 14 provide a brief official statement setting forth in simple, understandable 15 language information on the proposal substantially as follows: 16 (a) The purpose for which the levy shall be used; the date of the elec- 17 tion; and, except for the provisions found in sections 63-802(1)(g) and 18 33-802(1) and (4), Idaho Code, the dollar amount estimated to be col- 19 lected each year from the levy; and 20 (b) The length of time, reflected in months or years, in which the pro- 21 posed levy will be assessed. 22 (2) The official statement shall be made a part of the ballot and shall 23 be included in the official notice of the election.
60 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21181 The purpose of this act is to allow retired teachers or administrators to be rehired as "at will" employees without putting their PERSI benefits in jeopardy. The Act stipulates the conditions and requirements should a school district decide to hire or rehire a retired school teacher and removes the previous sunset provision. Retired teachers or administrators who qualify are those who have 1) reached the Rule of 90, 2) are not participating in the early retirement program, AND 3) who are retired on or after the age of 62.
FISCAL NOTE
No fiscal impact is expected. Funding for public schools is based on classroom unit. Retired teachers or administrators are less expensive and the district may realize those savings.
Contact: Name: Representative Scott Bedke Office: Phone: (208) 332-1000
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0579
61 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 579
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT OF RETIRED TEACHERS OR ADMINISTRATORS; REPEALING 3 SECTION 3, CHAPTER 131, LAWS OF 2007, RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT OF CERTAIN 4 RETIREES; AND AMENDING SECTION 59-1356, IDAHO CODE, TO REMOVE A SUNSET 5 PROVISION.
6 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
7 SECTION 1. That Section 3, Chapter 131, Laws of 2007, be, and the same is 8 hereby repealed.
9 SECTION 2. That Section 59-1356, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 10 amended to read as follows:
11 59-1356. REEMPLOYMENT OF RETIRED MEMBERS. (1) If an early retired mem- 12 ber is reemployed with the same employer within ninety (90) days from retir- 13 ing, or the early retired member is guaranteed reemployment with the same em- 14 ployer the member shall be considered to have continued in the status of an 15 employee and not to have separated from service. Any retirement allowance 16 payments received by the retired member shall be repaid to the system and 17 the retirement shall be negated. The month of last contribution prior to 18 the negated retirement and the month of initial contribution upon return to 19 reemployment shall be considered consecutive months of contributions in the 20 determination of an appropriate salary base period upon subsequent retire- 21 ment. A retired member is not considered to have separated from service if he 22 continues performing services for the same employer in any capacity includ- 23 ing, but not limited to, independent contractor, leased employee, or tempo- 24 rary services. 25 (2) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, when a re- 26 tired member meets the definition of an employee as defined in section 27 59-1302(14)(A)(a), Idaho Code, any benefit payable on behalf of such member 28 shall be suspended and any contributions payable by such member under sec- 29 tions 59-1331 through 59-1334, Idaho Code, shall again commence. The sus- 30 pended benefit, as adjusted pursuant to section 59-1355, Idaho Code, shall 31 resume upon subsequent retirement, along with a separate allowance computed 32 with respect to only that salary and service credited during the period of 33 reemployment. Any death benefit that becomes payable under the suspended 34 benefit shall be payable under section 59-1361(2), Idaho Code. Any death 35 benefit that becomes payable with respect to salary and service accrued dur- 36 ing the period of reemployment shall be payable under section 59-1361(3), 37 Idaho Code, if the member dies during the period of reemployment. 38 (3) If a retired member, who is receiving a benefit that is not reduced 39 under section 59-1346, Idaho Code, and who has been retired for more than six 40 (6) months, again becomes employed as defined in this section and section 41 59-1302(14)(A)(b), Idaho Code, as a result of being elected to a public of-
62 2
1 fice other than an office held prior to retirement, the retired member may 2 elect to continue receiving benefits and not accrue additional service, in 3 which event no contributions shall be made by the member or employer during 4 such reemployment and any benefit payable on behalf of such member shall con- 5 tinue. 6 (4) If a retired school teacher or administrator, who retired on or af- 7 ter age sixty-two (62) years and is receiving a benefit that is not reduced 8 under section 59-1346, Idaho Code, again becomes an employee as defined in 9 this section and section 59-1302(14), Idaho Code, as a result of returning 10 to employment with a school district as provided in section 33-1004H, Idaho 11 Code, the retired member may elect to continue receiving benefits and not ac- 12 crue additional service, in which event no contributions shall be made by 13 the member during such reemployment and any benefit payable on behalf of such 14 member shall continue. However, the school district shall pay the required 15 employer contribution for that employee to the public employee retirement 16 system. After June 30, 2012, this subsection (4) shall no longer be in force 17 and effect and the other provisions of this section shall be applicable to 18 all employment, including the employment of retirees who were employed under 19 section 33-1004H, Idaho Code, before that date. 20 (5) It is the responsibility of each employer to immediately report to 21 the retirement board the employment of any retired member so that benefit 22 payments can be suspended as provided in this section. If an employer fails 23 to properly report the employment of a retired member and it results in the 24 retirement board making benefit payments that should have been suspended, 25 the employer shall, in addition to paying delinquent employee and employer 26 contributions from the date of eligibility, also be responsible for repaying 27 to the retirement board the benefit payments made to the retired member that 28 should have been suspended, plus interest. The employer may then recoup such 29 payments from the retired member. 30 (6) For purposes of this section, "same employer" means the employer 31 for which the retired member last worked prior to retirement.
63 STATEMENT OF PURPOSE RS21365 The proposed legislation would make a number of minor amendments to Idaho Code, to establish more practical timelines for public hearings; clarify that the full record will be considered by a hearing officer in the event of an appeal regarding the denial of a charter petition; clarify theState Department of Education's role in providing technical assistance to petitioners and public charter schools; restructure the flow of information within the chapter to a more logical order; remove redundant and outdated language; and make corrections to grammar and verbiage to improve clarity and consistency.
FISCAL NOTE
There would be no impact to the state general fund.
Contact: Name: Tracie Bent Office: Office of the State Board of Education Phone: (208) 332-1582
Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Note H0590
64 LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-first Legislature Second Regular Session - 2012
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 590
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS; AMENDING SECTION 33-5205, IDAHO CODE, 3 TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO A PETITION SUBMITTED TO THE BOARD OF 4 TRUSTEES, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO PETITIONS RECEIVED BY AN 5 AUTHORIZED CHARTERING ENTITY, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO A PUBLIC 6 HEARING, TO REVISE CERTAIN TIMING PROVISIONS, TO PROVIDE FOR AN AGREE- 7 MENT, TO PROVIDE FOR A PRIMARY ATTENDANCE AREA, TO REVISE PROVISIONS 8 RELATING TO ADMISSION PROCEDURES, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO 9 TRANSPORTATION SERVICES, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS RELATING TO A CHARTER 10 FOR A PUBLIC VIRTUAL SCHOOL, TO ELIMINATE LANGUAGE RELATING TO A PUBLIC 11 CHARTER SCHOOL WORKSHOP AND TO ELIMINATE LANGUAGE RELATING TO A CHAR- 12 TER FOR A PUBLIC VIRTUAL CHARTER SCHOOL; AMENDING SECTION 33-5205A, 13 IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE TERMINOLOGY RELATING TO THE TRANSFER OF A CHARTER 14 AND TO MAKE A TECHNICAL CORRECTION; AMENDING SECTION 33-5206, IDAHO 15 CODE, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO ATTENDANCE AREA, TO ESTABLISH 16 PROVISIONS RELATING TO REVISION OF A CHARTER AND TO PROVIDE A CORRECT 17 CODE REFERENCE; AMENDING SECTION 33-5207, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PRO- 18 VISIONS RELATING TO THE REVIEW OF A CHARTER PETITION; AMENDING SECTION 19 33-5208, IDAHO CODE, TO ELIMINATE OBSOLETE LANGUAGE AND TO REMOVE A 20 CODE REFERENCE; AMENDING SECTION 33-5209, IDAHO CODE, TO ELIMINATE LAN- 21 GUAGE RELATING TO THE REVISION OF A CHARTER; AMENDING SECTION 33-5210, 22 IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE THAT CERTAIN PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE SUBJECT 23 TO RULES; AMENDING SECTION 33-5211, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PROVISIONS 24 RELATING TO ASSISTANCE PROVIDED BY THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION; 25 AMENDING SECTION 33-5213, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING 26 TO TERMS OF OFFICE AND TO MAKE TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS; AMENDING SECTION 27 33-1619, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE CORRECT CODE REFERENCES; AND AMENDING 28 SECTION 33-5202A, IDAHO CODE, TO REMOVE A CODE REFERENCE AND TO MAKE A 29 TECHNICAL CORRECTION.
30 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
31 SECTION 1. That Section 33-5205, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 32 amended to read as follows:
33 33-5205. PETITION TO ESTABLISH PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL. (1) Any group of 34 persons may petition to establish a new public charter school, or to convert 35 an existing traditional public school to a public charter school. 36 (a) A petition to establish a new public charter school, including a 37 public virtual charter school, shall be signed by not fewer than thirty 38 (30) qualified electors of the attendance area designated in the peti- 39 tion. Proof of elector qualifications shall be provided with the peti- 40 tion. 41 (b) A petition to establish a new public virtual school must be sub- 42 mitted directly to the public charter school commission. A petition to
65 2
1 establish a new public charter school, other than a new public virtual 2 school, shall first be submitted to the local board of trustees in which 3 the public charter school will be located. A petition shall be consid- 4 ered to be received by an authorized chartering entity as of the next 5 scheduled meeting of the authorized chartering entity after submission 6 of the petition. 7 (c) The board of trustees may either: (i) consider the petition and ap- 8 prove the charter; or (ii) consider the petition and deny the charter; 9 or (iii) refer the petition to the public charter school commission, but 10 such referral shall not be made until the local board has documented its 11 due diligence in considering the petition. Such documentation shall be 12 submitted with the petition to the public charter school commission. If 13 the petitioners and the local board of trustees have not reached mutual 14 agreement on the provisions of the charter, after a reasonable and good 15 faith effort, within sixty seventy-five (6075) days from the date the 16 charter petition is received, the petitioners may withdraw their peti- 17 tion from the local board of trustees and may submit their charter peti- 18 tion to the public charter school commission, provided it is signed by 19 thirty (30) qualified electors as required by subsection (1)(a) of this 20 section. Documentation of the reasonable and good faith effort between 21 the petitioners and the local board of trustees must be submitted with 22 the petition to the public charter school commission. 23 (d) The public charter school commission may either: (i) consider the 24 petition and approve the charter; or (ii) consider the petition and deny 25 the charter. 26 (e) A petition to convert an existing traditional public school shall 27 be submitted to the board of trustees of the district in which the school 28 is located for review and approval. The petition shall be signed by 29 not fewer than sixty percent (60%) of the teachers currently employed 30 by the school district at the school to be converted, and by one (1) or 31 more parents or guardians of not fewer than sixty percent (60%) of the 32 students currently attending the school to be converted. Each petition 33 submitted to convert an existing school or to establish a new charter 34 school shall contain a copy of the articles of incorporation and the 35 bylaws of the nonprofit corporation, which shall be deemed incorporated 36 into the petition. 37 (2) Not later than sixty seventy-five (6075) days after receiving a pe- 38 tition signed by thirty (30) qualified electors as required by subsection 39 (1)(a) of this section, the authorized chartering entity shall hold a public 40 hearing for the purpose of discussing the provisions of the charter, at which 41 time the authorized chartering entity shall consider the merits of the pe- 42 tition and the level of employee and parental support for the petition. In 43 the case of a petition submitted to the public charter school commission, 44 such public hearing must be not later than sixty seventy-five (6075) days af- 45 ter receipt of the petition, which may be extended to ninety (90) days for an 46 additional specified period of time if both parties agree to an extension. 47 Such agreement shall be established in writing and signed by representatives 48 of both parties. 49 In the case of a petition for a public virtual charter school, if the 50 primary attendance area described in the petition of a proposed public vir-
66 3
1 tual charter school extends within the boundaries of five (5) or fewer local 2 school districts, the public charter school commission shall provide notice 3 in writing of the public hearing no less than thirty (30) days prior to such 4 public hearing to those local school districts. Such public hearing shall 5 include any oral or written comments that an authorized representative of 6 the local school districts may provide regarding the merits of the petition 7 and any potential impacts on the school districts. 8 In the case of a petition for a non-virtual public charter school sub- 9 mitted to the public charter school commission, the board of the district in 10 which the proposed public charter school will be physically located, shall 11 be notified of the hearing in writing, by the public charter school commis- 12 sion, no less than thirty (30) days prior to the public hearing. Such public 13 hearing shall include any oral or written comments that an authorized repre- 14 sentative of the school district in which the proposed public charter school 15 would be physically located may provide regarding the merits of the petition 16 and any potential impacts on the school district. The hearing shall include 17 any oral or written comments that petitioners may provide regarding any po- 18 tential impacts on such school district. If the school district chooses not 19 to provide any oral or written comments as provided for in this subsection 20 (2), such school district shall notify the public charter school commission 21 of such decision. Following review of any petition and any public hearing 22 provided for in this section, the authorized chartering entity shall either 23 approve or deny the charter within sixty seventy-five (6075) days after the 24 date of the public hearing, provided however, that the date may be extended 25 by an additional sixty (60) days specified period of time if the petition 26 fails to contain all of the information required in this section, or if both 27 parties agree to the extension. Such agreement shall be established in writ- 28 ing and signed by representatives of both parties. This public hearing shall 29 be an opportunity for public participation and oral presentation by the pub- 30 lic. This hearing is not a contested case hearing as described in chapter 52, 31 title 67, Idaho Code. 32 (3) An authorized chartering entity may approve a charter under the 33 provisions of this chapter only if it determines that the petition contains 34 the requisite signatures, the information required by subsections (4) and 35 (5) of this section, and additional statements describing all of the follow- 36 ing: 37 (a) The proposed educational program of the public charter school, de- 38 signed among other things, to identify what it means to be an "educated 39 person" in the twenty-first century, and how learning best occurs. The 40 goals identified in the program shall include how all educational thor- 41 oughness standards as defined in section 33-1612, Idaho Code, shall be 42 fulfilled. 43 (b) The measurable student educational standards identified for use 44 by the public charter school. "Student educational standards" for the 45 purpose of this chapter means the extent to which all students of the 46 public charter school demonstrate they have attained the skills and 47 knowledge specified as goals in the school's educational program. 48 (c) The method by which student progress in meeting those student edu- 49 cational standards is to be measured.
67 4
1 (d) A provision by which students of the public charter school will be 2 tested with the same standardized tests as other Idaho public school 3 students. 4 (e) A provision which ensures that the public charter school shall be 5 state accredited as provided by rule of the state board of education. 6 (f) The governance structure of the public charter school including, 7 but not limited to, the person or entity who shall be legally account- 8 able for the operation of the public charter school, and the process to 9 be followed by the public charter school to ensure parental involve- 10 ment. 11 (g) The qualifications to be met by individuals employed by the pub- 12 lic charter school. Instructional staff shall be certified teachers as 13 provided by rule of the state board of education. 14 (h) The procedures that the public charter school will follow to ensure 15 the health and safety of students and staff. 16 (i) A plan for the requirements of section 33-205, Idaho Code, for the 17 denial of school attendance to any student who is an habitual truant, as 18 defined in section 33-206, Idaho Code, or who is incorrigible, or whose 19 conduct, in the judgment of the board of directors of the public charter 20 school, is such as to be continuously disruptive of school discipline, 21 or of the instructional effectiveness of the school, or whose presence 22 in a public charter school is detrimental to the health and safety of 23 other pupils, or who has been expelled from another school district in 24 this state or any other state. 25 (j) The primary attendance area of the charter school, which shall be 26 composed of a compact and contiguous area. For the purposes of this sec- 27 tion, if services are available to students throughout the state, the 28 state of Idaho is considered a compact and contiguous area. 29 (k) Admission procedures, including provision for overenrollment. 30 Such admission procedures shall provide that the initial admission 31 procedures for a new public charter school, including provision for ov- 32 erenrollment, will be determined by lottery or other random method, ex- 33 cept as otherwise provided herein. If initial capacity is insufficient 34 to enroll all pupils who submit a timely application, then the admission 35 procedures may provide that preference shall be given in the following 36 order: first, to children of founders, provided that this admission 37 preference shall be limited to not more than ten percent (10%) of the 38 capacity of the public charter school; second, to siblings of pupils 39 already selected by the lottery or other random method; and third, to 40 students residing within the primary attendance area of the public 41 charter school; and fourth, by an equitable selection process such as 42 by a lottery or other random method. If so stated in its petition, a new 43 public charter school may include the children of full-time employees 44 of the public charter school within the first priority group subject to 45 the limitations therein. Otherwise, such children shall be included 46 in the third highest priority group for which they would otherwise be 47 eligible. If capacity is insufficient to enroll all pupils who submit 48 a timely application for subsequent school terms, who submit a timely 49 application, then the admission procedures may provide that preference 50 shall be given in the following order: first, to pupils returning to the
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1 public charter school in the second or any subsequent year of its oper- 2 ation; second, to children of founders, provided that this admission 3 preference shall be limited to not more than ten percent (10%) of the 4 capacity of the public charter school; third, to siblings of pupils al- 5 ready enrolled in the public charter school; and fourth, to students re- 6 siding within the primary attendance area of the public charter school; 7 and fifth, by an equitable selection process such as by a lottery or 8 other random method. There shall be no carryover from year to year of 9 the list maintained to fill vacancies. A new lottery shall be conducted 10 each year to fill vacancies which become available. If so stated in its 11 petition, a public charter school may include the following children 12 within the second priority group subject to the limitations therein: 13 (i) The children of full-time employees of the public charter 14 school; 15 (ii) Children who previously attended the public charter school 16 within the previous three (3) school years, but who withdrew as a 17 result of the relocation of a parent or guardian due to an academic 18 sabbatical, employer or military transfer or reassignment. 19 Otherwise, such children shall be included in the fourth highest prior- 20 ity group for which they would otherwise be eligible. 21 (kl) The manner in which an annual audits of the financial and program- 22 matic operations of the public charter school is are to be conducted. 23 (lm) The disciplinary procedures that the public charter school will 24 utilize, including the procedure by which students may be suspended, 25 expelled and reenrolled, and the procedures required by section 33-210, 26 Idaho Code. 27 (mn) A provision which ensures that all staff members of the pub- 28 lic charter school will be covered by the public employee retirement 29 system, federal social security, unemployment insurance, worker's com- 30 pensation insurance, and health insurance. 31 (no) The public school attendance alternative for students residing 32 within the school district who choose not to attend the public charter 33 school. 34 (op) A description of the transfer rights of any employee choosing to 35 work in a public charter school that is approved by the board of trustees 36 of a school district, and the rights of such employees to return to any 37 noncharter school in the same school district after employment at such 38 charter school. 39 (pq) A provision which ensures that the staff of the public charter 40 school shall be considered a separate unit for purposes of collective 41 bargaining. 42 (qr) The manner by which special education services will be provided to 43 students with disabilities who are eligible pursuant to the federal in- 44 dividuals with disabilities education act, including disciplinary pro- 45 cedures for these students. 46 (rs) A plan for working with parents who have students who are dually 47 enrolled pursuant to section 33-203, Idaho Code. 48 (st) The process by which the citizens in the area of primary attendance 49 area shall be made aware of the enrollment opportunities of the public 50 charter school.
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1 (tu) A proposal for transportation services as required by section 2 33-5208(4), Idaho Code including estimated first year costs. 3 (uv) A plan for termination of the charter by the board of directors, to 4 include: 5 (i) Identification of who is responsible for dissolution of the 6 charter school; 7 (ii) A description of how payment to creditors will be handled; 8 (iii) A procedure for transferring all records of students with 9 notice to parents of how to request a transfer of student records 10 to a specific school; and 11 (iv) A plan for the disposal of the public charter school's as- 12 sets. 13 (4) The public charter school commission may approve a charter for a 14 public virtual school under the provisions of this chapter only if it deter- 15 mines that the petition contains the requirements of subsections (3) and (5) 16 of this section and the additional statements describing the following: 17 (a) The learning management system by which courses will be delivered; 18 (b) The role of the online teacher, including the consistent availabil- 19 ity of the teacher to provide guidance around course material, methods 20 of individualized learning in the online course and the means by which 21 student work will be assessed; 22 (c) A plan for the provision of professional development specific to 23 the public virtual school environment; 24 (d) The means by which public virtual school students will receive 25 appropriate teacher-to-student interaction, including timely and fre- 26 quent feedback about student progress; 27 (e) The means by which the public virtual school will verify student at- 28 tendance and award course credit. Attendance at public virtual schools 29 shall focus primarily on coursework and activities that are correlated 30 to the Idaho state thoroughness standards; 31 (f) A plan for the provision of technical support relevant to the deliv- 32 ery of online courses; 33 (g) The means by which the public virtual school will provide opportu- 34 nity for student-to-student interaction; and 35 (h) A plan for ensuring equal access to all students, including the pro- 36 vision of necessary hardware, software and internet connectivity re- 37 quired for participation in online coursework. 38 (5) The petitioner shall provide information regarding the proposed 39 operation and potential effects of the public charter school including, but 40 not limited to, the facilities to be utilized by the public charter school, 41 the manner in which administrative services of the public charter school 42 are to be provided and the potential civil liability effects upon the public 43 charter school and upon the authorized chartering entity. 44 (5) At least one (1) person among a group of petitioners of a prospec- 45 tive public charter school shall attend a public charter school workshop 46 offered by the state department of education. The state department of educa- 47 tion shall provide notice of dates and locations when workshops will be held, 48 and shall provide proof of attendance to workshop attendees. Such proof 49 shall be submitted by the petitioners to an authorized chartering entity 50 along with the charter petition.
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1 (6) The public charter school commission may approve a charter for a 2 public virtual school under the provisions of this chapter only if it deter- 3 mines that the petition contains the requirements of subsections (3) and (4) 4 of this section and the additional statements describing the following: 5 (a) The learning management system by which courses will be delivered; 6 (b) The role of the online teacher, including the consistent availabil- 7 ity of the teacher to provide guidance around course material, methods 8 of individualized learning in the online course and the means by which 9 student work will be assessed; 10 (c) A plan for the provision of professional development specific to 11 the public virtual school environment; 12 (d) The means by which public virtual school students will receive ap- 13 propriate teacher-to-student interaction, including timely, frequent 14 feedback about student progress; 15 (e) The means by which the public virtual school will verify student at- 16 tendance and award course credit. Attendance at public virtual schools 17 shall focus primarily on coursework and activities that are correlated 18 to the Idaho state thoroughness standards; 19 (f) A plan for the provision of technical support relevant to the deliv- 20 ery of online courses; 21 (g) The means by which the public virtual school will provide opportu- 22 nity for student-to-student interaction; and 23 (h) A plan for ensuring equal access to all students, including the pro- 24 vision of necessary hardware, software and internet connectivity re- 25 quired for participation in online coursework.
26 SECTION 2. That Section 33-5205A, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 27 amended to read as follows:
28 33-5205A. TRANSFER OF CHARTER. (1) A charter for a public charter 29 school approved by the board of trustees of a local school district may be 30 transferred to, and placed under the chartering authority of, the public 31 charter school commission if the board of trustees of such local school dis- 32 trict, the public charter school commission, and the board of directors of 33 the public charter school all agree to such transfer, including any revi- 34 sion to the charter that may be required in connection with such transfer. 35 A charter for a public charter school approved by the public charter school 36 commission may be transferred to, and placed under the chartering authority 37 of, the board of trustees of the local school district in which the public 38 charter school is located if the public charter school commission, the board 39 of trustees of such local school district, and the board of directors of the 40 public charter school all agree to such transfer, including any revisions to 41 the charter that may be required in connection with such transfer. A request 42 to transfer a charter may be initiated by the board of directors of a public 43 charter school or by the authorized chartering entity with chartering au- 44 thority over the charter of such public charter school. 45 (2) A public charter school, approved authorized by the public charter 46 school commission, which has a primary attendance area located within more 47 than one (1) school district, may transfer the physical location of its pub- 48 lic charter school within its primary attendance area to locate the facil- 49 ities within the boundaries of another school district within the approved
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1 primary attendance area if the public charter school commission, the board 2 of trustees of each of the relevant school districts and the board of direc- 3 tors of the public charter school all approve of such transfer of facilities 4 location, and if the public charter school commission approves any revisions 5 to the charter that may be required in connection with such transfer. 6 (3) If all parties fail to reach agreement in regard to the request to 7 transfer a charter, as required herein, then the matter may be appealed di- 8 rectly to the state board of education. With respect to such appeal, the 9 state board of education shall substantially follow the procedure as pro- 10 vided in section 33-5207(5)(b), Idaho Code. A transferred charter school 11 shall not be considered a new public charter school, and shall not be subject 12 to the limitations of section 33-5203(2), Idaho Code.
13 SECTION 3. That Section 33-5206, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 14 amended to read as follows:
15 33-5206. REQUIREMENTS AND PROHIBITIONS UPON APPROVAL OF A PUBLIC 16 CHARTER SCHOOL. (1) In addition to any other requirements imposed in this 17 chapter, a public charter school shall be nonsectarian in its programs, 18 affiliations, admission policies, employment practices, and all other op- 19 erations, shall not charge tuition, levy taxes or issue bonds, and shall 20 not discriminate against any student on any basis prohibited by the federal 21 or state constitutions or any federal, state or local law. Admission to 22 a public charte