00 FREE CONFERENCE CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 278 01 "An Act relating to the exemption from jury service for certain teachers; relating to the 02 powers of the Department of Education and Early Development; relating to school 03 performance reports; relating to accountability standards; providing funding for 04 Internet services; relating to secondary school course credit earned through assessment; 05 relating to public school college and career readiness assessments and diplomas; relating 06 to the secondary school competency examination and related requirements; relating to 07 charter schools and student transportation; relating to residential school applications; 08 relating to school construction bond debt reimbursement; increasing the stipend for 09 boarding school students; relating to the local contribution to public school funding; 10 increasing the base student allocation used in the formula for state funding of public 11 education; relating to correspondence programs, funding, and student allotments; 12 relating to funding of and reporting by Alaska technical and vocational education 01 programs; relating to earning high school credit for completion of vocational education 02 courses offered by institutions receiving technical and vocational education program 03 funding; relating to schools operated by a federal agency; relating to education tax 04 credits; establishing an optional municipal tax exemption for privately owned real 05 property rented or leased for use as a charter school; establishing a pilot project for 06 public middle school students; requiring the Department of Administration to provide a 07 proposal for a salary and benefits schedule for school districts and for teacher tenure; 08 requiring the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee to provide for studies on public 09 education funding; requiring the Department of Education and Early Development to 10 report to the legislature on school design and construction; relating to grants to school 11 districts; and providing for an effective date." 12 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 13  * Section 1. AS 09.20.030(b) is amended to read: 14 (b) A person may claim exemption and shall be excused by the court from 15 service as a juror during the school term if it is shown that the person is a teacher in a 16 school that is designated as a low performing school under regulations adopted by  17 the state Board of Education and Early Development [FAILING TO MAKE 18 ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS UNDER P.L. 107-110]. In this subsection, 19 "teacher" means a person who serves a school district in a teaching capacity in a 20 classroom setting and is required to be certificated in order to hold the position. 21  * Sec. 2. AS 14.03 is amended by adding a new section to read: 22 Sec. 14.03.073. Secondary school course credit. (a) A school district shall 23 provide the opportunity for students enrolled in a secondary school in the district to 24 challenge a course provided by the district by demonstrating mastery in mathematics, 25 language arts, science, social studies, and world languages at the level of the course 26 challenged. A school district shall give full credit for a course to a student who 27 successfully challenges that course as provided under this section. 01 (b) A school district shall establish, within a reasonable time, an assessment 02 tool and a standard for demonstrating mastery in secondary school courses provided 03 by the district under this section. 04 (c) The board shall adopt regulations to implement this section. 05 (d) In this section, "school district" has the meaning given in AS 14.30.350. 06  * Sec. 3. AS 14.03.075 is repealed and reenacted to read: 07 Sec. 14.03.075. College and career readiness assessment. (a) A school may 08 not issue a secondary school diploma to a student unless the student takes a college 09 and career readiness assessment or receives a waiver from the governing body. 10 (b) A school shall award a certificate of achievement to a student who fails to 11 qualify for a diploma under (a) of this section by the end of the student's final semester 12 of attendance but who has met all other graduation requirements of the governing 13 body and the state. 14 (c) The department shall provide funding for the fee for a single 15 administration of a college and career readiness assessment for each secondary student 16 within two years of the student's expected graduation. 17 (d) In this section, "college and career readiness assessment" means the SAT, 18 ACT, or WorkKeys assessment. 19  * Sec. 4. AS 14.03.078 is amended to read: 20 Sec. 14.03.078. Report. The department shall provide to the legislature by 21 February 15 of each year by electronic means an annual report regarding the progress 22 of each school and school district toward high academic performance by all students. 23 The report required under this section must include 24 (1) information described under AS 14.03.120(d); 25 (2) [THE NUMBER AND PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS IN 26 EACH SCHOOL WHO PASS THE EXAMINATION REQUIRED UNDER 27 AS 14.03.075, AND THE NUMBER WHO PASS EACH SECTION OF THE 28 EXAMINATION; 29 (3)] progress of the department 30 (A) toward implementing the school accountability provisions 31 of AS 14.03.123; and 01 (B) in assisting high schools to become accredited; 02 (3) [(4)] a description of the resources provided to each school and 03 school district for coordinated school improvement activities and staff training in each 04 school and school district; 05 (4) [(5)] each school district's and each school's progress in aligning 06 curriculum with state education performance standards; 07 (5) [(6)] a description of the efforts by the department to assist a public 08 school or district that receives a low performance designation under AS 14.03.123  09 [OF DEFICIENT OR IN CRISIS]; 10 (6) [(7)] a description of intervention efforts by each school district 11 and school for students who are not meeting state performance standards; and  12 (7) [(8)] the number and percentage of turnover in certificated 13 personnel and superintendents [; 14 (9) THE NUMBER OF TEACHERS BY DISTRICT AND BY 15 SCHOOL WHO ARE TEACHING OUTSIDE THE TEACHER'S AREA OF 16 ENDORSEMENT BUT IN AREAS TESTED BY THE HIGH SCHOOL 17 COMPETENCY EXAMINATION]. 18  * Sec. 5. AS 14.03.083 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 19 (d) The department and the state Board of Education and Early Development 20 may not enter into or renew a contract or agreement, or participate, with any 21 organization, entity, group, or consortium after the effective date of this section that 22 requires the state to cede any measure of autonomy or control over education 23 standards and assessments, including the determination of passing scores. 24  * Sec. 6. AS 14.03.120(d) is amended to read: 25 (d) Annually, before the date set by the district under (e) of this section, each 26 public school shall deliver to the department for posting on the department's Internet 27 website and provide, in a public meeting of parents, students, and community 28 members, a report on the school's performance and the performance of the school's 29 students. The report shall be prepared on a form prescribed by the department and 30 must include 31 (1) information on accreditation; 01 (2) results of norm-referenced achievement tests; 02 (3) results of state standards-based assessments in language arts 03 [READING, WRITING,] and mathematics; 04 (4) a description, including quantitative and qualitative measures, of 05 student, parent, community, and business involvement in student learning; 06 (5) a description of the school's attendance, retention, dropout, and 07 graduation rates [, INCLUDING THE NUMBER AND PERCENTAGE OF 08 STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED A DIPLOMA UNDER A WAIVER FROM THE 09 COMPETENCY EXAMINATION REQUIRED UNDER AS 14.03.075(a),] as 10 specified by the state board; 11 (6) the annual percent of enrollment change, regardless of reason, and 12 the annual percent of enrollment change due to student transfers into and out of the 13 school district; 14 (7) if Native language education is provided, a summary and 15 evaluation of the curriculum described in AS 14.30.420; 16 (8) [THE NUMBER AND PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS IN 17 EACH SCHOOL WHO TAKE AND WHO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE AN 18 ALTERNATIVE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM IN READING, ENGLISH, OR 19 MATHEMATICS; AND THE NUMBER AND PERCENTAGE OF PUPILS IN 20 EACH SCHOOL WHO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE THE ALTERNATIVE 21 ASSESSMENT PROGRAM BUT WHO DO NOT REACH THE STATE 22 PERFORMANCE STANDARDS AT THE COMPETENCY EXAM LEVEL IN 23 READING, ENGLISH, OR MATHEMATICS; A SCHOOL MAY NOT REPORT 24 RESULTS UNDER THIS PARAGRAPH UNLESS THE SCHOOL COMPLIES 25 WITH THE FAMILY EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS AND PRIVACY 26 REQUIREMENTS OF 34 C.F.R. 99; 27 (9)] the performance designation assigned the school under 28 AS 14.03.123 and the methodology used to assign the performance designation, 29 including the measures used and their relative weights; 30 (9) [AND (10)] other information concerning school performance and 31 the performance of the school's students as required by the state board in regulation;  01 and 02 (10) information on the number, attendance, and performance of  03 students enrolled in the school whose parents or guardians are on active duty in  04 the armed forces of the United States, the United States Coast Guard, the Alaska  05 National Guard, the Alaska Naval Militia, or the Alaska State Defense Force. 06  * Sec. 7. AS 14.03.123(f) is amended to read: 07 (f) In the accountability system for schools and districts required by this 08 section, the department shall 09 (1) implement 20 U.S.C. 6301 - 7941 (Elementary and Secondary 10 Education Act of 1965), as amended; 11 (2) implement state criteria and priorities for accountability including 12 the use of 13 (A) measures of student performance on standards-based 14 assessments in language arts [READING, WRITING,] and mathematics [, 15 AND INCLUDING COMPETENCY TESTS REQUIRED UNDER 16 AS 14.03.075]; 17 (B) measures of student improvement; and 18 (C) other measures identified that are indicators of student 19 success and achievement; and 20 (3) to the extent practicable, minimize the administrative burden on 21 districts. 22  * Sec. 8. AS 14.03 is amended by adding a new section to read: 23 Sec. 14.03.126. Funding for Internet services. (a) Each fiscal year, a district 24 in which one or more schools qualify for a discounted rate for Internet services under 25 the federal universal services program is eligible to receive an amount for each school 26 that is equal to the amount needed to bring the applicant's share to 10 megabits of 27 download a second of the Internet services. 28 (b) If insufficient funding is appropriated to provide funding authorized under 29 this section, the state share shall be distributed pro rata to eligible school districts. 30 (c) In this section, 31 (1) "applicant's share" means the difference between the cost of 01 Internet services that are eligible for the discount under the federal universal services 02 program and the discount received for those services under the federal universal 03 services program; 04 (2) "federal universal services program" means the program established 05 in 47 U.S.C. 254 and regulations implementing that section. 06  * Sec. 9. AS 14.03.250 is repealed and reenacted to read: 07 Sec. 14.03.250. Application for charter school. (a) A local school board shall 08 prescribe an application procedure for the establishment of a charter school in that 09 school district. The application procedure must include provisions for an academic 10 policy committee consisting of parents of students attending the school, teachers, and 11 school employees and a proposed form for a contract between a charter school and the 12 local school board, setting out the contract elements required under AS 14.03.255(c). 13 (b) A decision of a local school board approving or denying an application for 14 a charter school must be in writing, must be issued within 60 days after the 15 application, and must include all relevant findings of fact and conclusions of law. 16 (c) If a local school board approves an application for a charter school, the 17 local school board shall forward the application to the state Board of Education and 18 Early Development for review and approval. 19 (d) If a local school board denies an application for a charter school, the 20 applicant may appeal the denial to the commissioner. The appeal to the commissioner 21 shall be filed not later than 60 days after the local school board issues its written 22 decision of denial. The commissioner shall review the local school board's decision to 23 determine whether the findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence and 24 whether the decision is contrary to law. A decision of the commissioner upholding the 25 denial by the local school board may be appealed within 30 days to the state Board of 26 Education and Early Development. 27 (e) If the commissioner approves a charter school application, the 28 commissioner shall forward the application to the state Board of Education and Early 29 Development for review and approval. The application shall be forwarded not later 30 than 30 days after the commissioner issues a written decision. The state Board of 31 Education and Early Development shall exercise independent judgment in evaluating 01 the application. 02 (f) A local school board that denied an application for a charter school 03 approved by the state board on appeal shall operate the charter school as provided in 04 AS 14.03.255 - 14.03.290. 05  * Sec. 10. AS 14.03 is amended by adding a new section to read: 06 Sec. 14.03.253. Charter school application appeal. (a) In an appeal to the 07 commissioner under AS 14.03.250, the commissioner shall review the record before 08 the local school board. The commissioner may request written supplementation of the 09 record from the applicant or the local school board. The commissioner may 10 (1) remand the appeal to the local school board for further review; 11 (2) approve the charter school application and forward the application 12 to the state Board of Education and Early Development with or without added 13 conditions; or 14 (3) uphold the decision denying the charter school application; if the 15 commissioner upholds a local school board's decision to deny a charter school 16 application and the applicant appeals to the State Board of Education and Early 17 Development, the commissioner shall immediately forward the application and record 18 to the state Board of Education and Early Development. 19 (b) In an appeal to the state Board of Education and Early Development of a 20 denial of a charter school application under (a)(3) of this section, the state board shall 21 determine, based on the record, whether the commissioner's findings are supported by 22 substantial evidence and whether the decision is contrary to law. The state board shall 23 issue a written decision within 90 days after an appeal. 24  * Sec. 11. AS 14.03.255(a) is amended to read: 25 (a) A charter school operates as a school in the local school district except that 26 the charter school (1) is exempt from the local school district's textbook, program, 27 curriculum, and scheduling requirements; (2) is exempt from AS 14.14.130(c); the 28 principal of the charter school shall be selected by the academic policy committee and 29 shall select, appoint, or otherwise supervise employees of the charter school; and (3) 30 operates under the charter school's annual program budget as set out in the contract 31 between the local school board and the charter school under (c) of this section. A local 01 school board may exempt a charter school from other local school district 02 requirements if the exemption is set out in the contract. A charter school is subject to 03 [SECONDARY SCHOOL COMPETENCY TESTING AS PROVIDED IN 04 AS 14.03.075 AND OTHER COMPETENCY] tests required by the department. 05  * Sec. 12. AS 14.03.255(d) is amended to read: 06 (d) A school district shall offer to a charter school the right of first refusal  07 for a lease of space [CHARTER SCHOOL MAY BE OPERATED] in an existing 08 school district facility or in a facility within the school district that is not currently 09 being used as a public school, if the chief school administrator determines the facility 10 meets requirements for health and safety applicable to public buildings or other public 11 schools in the district. If the school district requires lease payments by a charter  12 school, the school district shall negotiate a lease agreement with the charter  13 school for an amount that does not exceed the true operational costs calculated  14 on a square foot basis for space leased under this subsection. 15  * Sec. 13. AS 14.03.260(a) is amended to read: 16 (a) A local school board shall provide an approved charter school with an 17 annual program budget. The budget shall be not less than the amount generated by the 18 students enrolled in the charter school less administrative costs retained by the local 19 school district, determined by applying the indirect cost rate approved by the 20 department up to four percent. Costs directly related to charter school facilities,  21 including rent, utilities, and maintenance, may not be included in an annual  22 program budget for the purposes of calculating the four percent cap on  23 administrative costs under this subsection. A local school board shall provide a  24 charter school with a report itemizing the administrative costs retained by the  25 local school board under this section [DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND 26 EARLY DEVELOPMENT]. The "amount generated by students enrolled in the 27 charter school" is to be determined in the same manner as it would be for a student 28 enrolled in another public school in that school district and includes funds generated  29 by grants, appropriations, federal impact aid, the required local contribution, the  30 local contribution under AS 14.17.410(c), special needs under AS 14.17.420(a)(1),  31 and secondary school vocational and technical instruction under  01 AS 14.17.420(a)(3). A school district shall direct state aid under AS 14.11 for the  02 construction or major maintenance of a charter school facility to the charter  03 school that generated the state aid, subject to the same terms and conditions that  04 apply to state aid under AS 14.11 for construction or major maintenance of a  05 school facility that is not a charter school. 06  * Sec. 14. AS 14.03 is amended by adding a new section to read: 07 Sec. 14.03.263. Charter school grant program. (a) A charter school that is 08 established on or after the effective date of this section may receive a one-time grant 09 from the department equal to the amount of $500 for each student enrolled in the 10 school on October 1 of the first year in which the school applies for the grant. The 11 charter school shall use a grant received under this section to provide educational 12 services. In this subsection, "educational services" includes curriculum development, 13 program development, and special education services. 14 (b) The department shall establish by regulation procedures for the application 15 for and expenditure of grant funds under (a) of this section. 16 (c) If the amount appropriated in a fiscal year for the charter school grant 17 program is insufficient to meet the amounts authorized under (a) of this section, the 18 department shall reduce pro rata the per pupil grant amount by the necessary 19 percentage as determined by the department. If a charter school grant is reduced under 20 this subsection, the charter school may apply to the department in a subsequent fiscal 21 year for the balance of the grant amount. 22  * Sec. 15. AS 14.03 is amended by adding new sections to read: 23 Article 3. Correspondence Study Programs.  24 Sec. 14.03.300. Correspondence study programs; individual learning  25 plans. (a) A district or the department that provides a correspondence study program 26 shall annually provide an individual learning plan for each student enrolled in the 27 program developed in collaboration with the student, the parent or guardian of the 28 student, a certificated teacher assigned to the student, and other individuals involved in 29 the student's learning plan. An individual learning plan must 30 (1) be developed with the assistance and approval of the certificated 31 teacher assigned to the student by the district; 01 (2) provide for a course of study for the appropriate grade level 02 consistent with state and district standards; 03 (3) provide for an ongoing assessment plan that includes statewide 04 assessments required for public schools under AS 14.03.123(f); 05 (4) include a provision for modification of the individual learning plan 06 if the student is below proficient on a standardized assessment in a core subject; 07 (5) provide for a signed agreement between the certificated teacher 08 assigned to the student and at least one parent or the guardian of each student that 09 verifies compliance with an individual learning plan; 10 (6) provide for monitoring of each student's work and progress by the 11 certificated teacher assigned to the student. 12 (b) Notwithstanding another provision of law, the department may not impose 13 additional requirements, other than the requirements specified under (a) of this section 14 and under AS 14.03.320, on a student who is proficient or advanced on statewide 15 assessments required under AS 14.03.123(f). 16 Sec. 14.03.320. Student allotments. (a) Except as provided in (e) of this 17 section, the department or a district that provides a correspondence study program may 18 provide an annual student allotment to a parent or guardian of a student enrolled in the 19 correspondence study program for the purpose of meeting instructional expenses for 20 the student enrolled in the program as provided in this section. 21 (b) A parent or guardian may purchase nonsectarian services and materials 22 from a public, private, or religious organization with a student allotment provided 23 under (a) of this section if 24 (1) the services and materials are required for the course of study in the 25 individual learning plan developed for the student under AS 14.03.300; 26 (2) textbooks, services, and other curriculum materials and the course 27 of study 28 (A) are approved by the school district; 29 (B) are appropriate for the student; 30 (C) are aligned to state standards; and 31 (D) comply with AS 14.03.090 and AS 14.18.060; and 01 (3) otherwise support a public purpose. 02 (c) Except as provided in (d) of this section, an annual student allotment 03 provided under this section is reserved and excluded from the unreserved portion of a 04 district's year-end fund balance in the school operating fund under AS 14.17.505. 05 (d) The department or a district that provides for an annual student allotment 06 under (a) of this section shall 07 (1) account for the balance of an unexpended annual student allotment 08 during the period in which a student continues to be enrolled in the correspondence 09 program for which the annual allotment was provided; 10 (2) return the unexpended balance of a student allotment to the budget 11 of the department or district for a student who is no longer enrolled in the 12 correspondence program for which the allotment was provided; 13 (3) maintain a record of expenditures and allotments; and 14 (4) implement a routine monitoring of audits and expenditures. 15 (e) A student allotment provided under (a) of this section may not be used to 16 pay for services provided to a student by a family member. In this subsection, "family 17 member" means the student's spouse, guardian, parent, stepparent, sibling, stepsibling, 18 grandparent, stepgrandparent, child, uncle, or aunt. 19  * Sec. 16. AS 14.07.020(a)(16) is amended to read: 20 (16) establish by regulation criteria, based on low student performance, 21 under which the department may intervene in a school district to improve instructional 22 practices, as described in AS 14.07.030(14) or (15); the regulations must include 23 (A) a notice provision that alerts the district to the deficiencies 24 and the instructional practice changes proposed by the department; 25 (B) an end date for departmental intervention, as described in 26 AS 14.07.030(14)(A) and (B) and (15), after the district demonstrates three 27 consecutive years of improvement consisting of not less than two percent 28 increases in student proficiency on standards-based assessments in language  29 arts and mathematics, [READING, AND WRITING] as provided in 30 AS 14.03.123(f)(2)(A); and 31 (C) a process for districts to petition the department for 01 continuing or discontinuing the department's intervention; 02  * Sec. 17. AS 14.07.020(b) is amended to read: 03 (b) In implementing its duties under (a)(2) of this section, the department may  04 not expend any money to implement the set of educational curriculum standards  05 for grades kindergarten through 12 established by the Common Core Standards  06 Initiative and shall develop 07 (1) performance standards in language arts [READING, WRITING,] 08 and mathematics to be met at designated age levels by each student in public schools 09 in the state; and 10 (2) a comprehensive system of student assessments, composed of 11 multiple indicators of proficiency in language arts [READING, WRITING,] and 12 mathematics; this comprehensive system must 13 (A) be made available to all districts and regional educational 14 attendance areas; 15 (B) include a developmental profile for students entering 16 kindergarten or first grade; and 17 (C) include performance standards in language arts 18 [READING, WRITING,] and mathematics for students in age groups five 19 through seven, eight through 10, and 11 - 14. 20  * Sec. 18. AS 14.07.165 is amended to read: 21 Sec. 14.07.165. Duties. The board shall adopt 22 (1) statewide goals and require each governing body to adopt written 23 goals that are consistent with local needs; 24 (2) regulations regarding the application for and award of grants under 25 AS 14.03.125; 26 (3) regulations implementing provisions of AS 14.11.014(b); 27 (4) regulations requiring approval by the board before a charter school, 28 state boarding school, or a public school may provide domiciliary services; 29 (5) regulations implementing the college and career readiness  30 assessment [SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENT COMPETENCY 31 EXAMINATION] provisions of AS 14.03.075, providing for the needs of a student  01 who is a child with a disability, and setting standards for a waiver under  02 AS 14.03.075; the regulations may address the conditions, criteria, procedure,  03 and scheduling of the assessment [, INCLUDING THE CRITERIA AND 04 PROCEDURE UNDER WHICH A GOVERNING BODY USES A WAIVER TO 05 GRANT A DIPLOMA TO A STUDENT; CRITERIA REGARDING GRANTING A 06 WAIVER MUST INCLUDE PROVISIONS THAT A WAIVER MAY ONLY BE 07 GRANTED FOR STUDENTS WHO ENTER THE SYSTEM LATE OR HAVE 08 RARE OR UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES MERITING A WAIVER]. 09 * Sec. 19. AS 14.07.165 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 10 (b) In this section, "child with a disability" has the meaning given in 11 AS 14.30.350. 12  * Sec. 20. AS 14.09.010 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 13 (e) A school district that provides transportation services under this section 14 shall provide transportation services to students attending a charter school operated by 15 the district under a policy adopted by the district. The policy must 16 (1) be developed with input solicited from individuals involved with 17 the charter school, including staff, students, and parents; 18 (2) at a minimum, provide transportation services for students enrolled 19 in the charter school on a space available basis along the regular routes that the 20 students attending schools in an attendance area in the district are transported; and 21 (3) be approved by the department. 22 (f) If a school district fails to adopt a policy under (e) of this section, the 23 school district shall allocate the amount received for each student under (a) of this 24 section to each charter school operated by the district based on the number of students 25 enrolled in the charter school. 26 (g) Nothing in (e) of this section requires a school district to establish 27 dedicated transportation routes for the exclusive use of students enrolled in a charter 28 school or authorizes a charter school to opt out of a policy adopted by a school district 29 for the purpose of acquiring transportation funding. 30  * Sec. 21. AS 14.11.100(a) is amended to read: 31 (a) During each fiscal year, the state shall allocate to a municipality that is a 01 school district the following sums: 02 (1) payments made by the municipality during the fiscal year two years 03 earlier for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other 04 indebtedness incurred before July 1, 1977, to pay costs of school construction; 05 (2) 90 percent of 06 (A) payments made by the municipality during the fiscal year 07 two years earlier for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding 08 bonds, notes, or other indebtedness incurred after June 30, 1977, and before 09 July 1, 1978, to pay costs of school construction; 10 (B) cash payments made after June 30, 1976, and before July 1, 11 1978, by the municipality during the fiscal year two years earlier to pay costs 12 of school construction; 13 (3) 90 percent of 14 (A) payments made by the municipality during the fiscal year 15 two years earlier for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding 16 bonds, notes, or other indebtedness incurred after June 30, 1978, and before 17 January 1, 1982, to pay costs of school construction projects approved under 18 AS 14.07.020(a)(11); 19 (B) cash payments made after June 30, 1978, and before July 1, 20 1982, by the municipality during the fiscal year two years earlier to pay costs 21 of school construction projects approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11); 22 (4) subject to (h) and (i) of this section, up to 90 percent of 23 (A) payments made by the municipality during the current 24 fiscal year for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, 25 notes, or other indebtedness incurred after December 31, 1981, and authorized 26 by the qualified voters of the municipality before July 1, 1983, to pay costs of 27 school construction, additions to schools, and major rehabilitation projects that 28 exceed $25,000 and are approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11); 29 (B) cash payments made after June 30, 1982, and before July 1, 30 1983, by the municipality during the fiscal year two years earlier to pay costs 31 of school construction, additions to schools, and major rehabilitation projects 01 that exceed $25,000 and are approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11); and 02 (C) payments made by the municipality during the current 03 fiscal year for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, 04 notes, or other indebtedness to pay costs of school construction, additions to 05 schools, and major rehabilitation projects that exceed $25,000 and are 06 submitted to the department for approval under AS 14.07.020(a)(11) before 07 July 1, 1983, and approved by the qualified voters of the municipality before 08 October 15, 1983, not to exceed a total project cost of (i) $6,600,000 if the 09 annual growth rate of average daily membership of the municipality is more 10 than seven percent but less than 12 percent, or (ii) $20,000,000 if the annual 11 growth rate of average daily membership of the municipality is 12 percent or 12 more; payments made by a municipality under this subparagraph on total 13 project costs that exceed the amounts set out in (i) and (ii) of this subparagraph 14 are subject to (5)(A) of this subsection; 15 (5) subject to (h) - (j) of this section, 80 percent of 16 (A) payments made by the municipality during the fiscal year 17 for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or 18 other indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality 19 (i) after June 30, 1983, but before March 31, 1990, to 20 pay costs of school construction, additions to schools, and major 21 rehabilitation projects that exceed $25,000 and are approved under 22 AS 14.07.020(a)(11); or 23 (ii) before July 1, 1989, and reauthorized before 24 November 1, 1989, to pay costs of school construction, additions to 25 schools, and major rehabilitation projects that exceed $25,000 and are 26 approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11); and 27 (B) cash payments made after June 30, 1983, by the 28 municipality during the fiscal year two years earlier to pay costs of school 29 construction, additions to schools, and major rehabilitation projects that exceed 30 $25,000 and are approved by the department before July 1, 1990, under 31 AS 14.07.020(a)(11); 01 (6) subject to (h) - (j) and (m) of this section, 70 percent of payments 02 made by the municipality during the fiscal year for the retirement of principal and 03 interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other indebtedness authorized by the qualified 04 voters of the municipality on or after April 30, 1993, but before July 1, 1996, to pay 05 costs of school construction, additions to schools, and major rehabilitation projects 06 that exceed $200,000 and are approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11); 07 (7) subject to (h) - (j) and (m) of this section, 70 percent of payments 08 made by the municipality during the fiscal year for the retirement of principal and 09 interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other indebtedness authorized by the qualified 10 voters of the municipality after March 31, 1990, but before April 30, 1993, to pay 11 costs of school construction, additions to schools, and major rehabilitation projects; 12 (8) subject to (h), (i), (j)(2) - (5), and (n) of this section and after 13 projects funded by the bonds, notes, or other indebtedness have been approved by the 14 commissioner, 70 percent of payments made by the municipality during the fiscal year 15 for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other 16 indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or after July 1, 17 1995, but before July 1, 1998, to pay costs of school construction, additions to 18 schools, and major rehabilitation projects that exceed $200,000 and are approved 19 under AS 14.07.020(a)(11); 20 (9) subject to (h), (i), (j)(2) - (5), and (n) of this section and after 21 projects funded by the bonds, notes, or other indebtedness have been approved by the 22 commissioner, 70 percent of payments made by the municipality during the fiscal year 23 for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other 24 indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or after July 1, 25 1998, but before July 1, 2006, to pay costs of school construction, additions to 26 schools, and major rehabilitation projects that exceed $200,000 and are approved 27 under AS 14.07.020(a)(11); 28 (10) subject to (h), (i), (j)(2) - (5), and (o) of this section, and after 29 projects funded by the bonds, notes, or other indebtedness have been approved by the 30 commissioner, 70 percent of payments made by the municipality during the fiscal year 31 for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other 01 indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or after June 30, 02 1998, to pay costs of school construction, additions to schools, and major 03 rehabilitation projects that exceed $200,000, are approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), 04 and are not reimbursed under (n) of this section; 05 (11) subject to (h), (i), and (j)(2) - (5) of this section, and after projects 06 funded by the bonds, notes, or other indebtedness have been approved by the 07 commissioner, 70 percent of payments made by a municipality during the fiscal year 08 for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other 09 indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or after June 30, 10 1999, but before January 1, 2005, to pay costs of school construction, additions to 11 schools, and major rehabilitation projects and education-related facilities that exceed 12 $200,000, are approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), and are not reimbursed under (n) 13 or (o) of this section; 14 (12) subject to (h), (i), and (j)(2), (3), and (5) of this section, 60 percent 15 of payments made by a municipality during the fiscal year for the retirement of 16 principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other indebtedness authorized by 17 the qualified voters of the municipality on or after June 30, 1999, but before January 1, 18 2005, to pay costs of school construction, additions to schools, and major 19 rehabilitation projects and education-related facilities that exceed $200,000, are 20 reviewed under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), and are not reimbursed under (n) or (o) of this 21 section; 22 (13) subject to (h), (i), (j)(2) - (5), and (p) of this section, and after 23 projects funded by the tax exempt bonds, notes, or other indebtedness have been 24 approved by the commissioner, 70 percent of payments made by a municipality during 25 the fiscal year for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding tax exempt 26 bonds, notes, or other indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the 27 municipality on or after June 30, 1999, but before October 31, 2006, to pay costs of 28 school construction, additions to schools, and major rehabilitation projects and 29 education-related facilities that exceed $200,000, are approved under 30 AS 14.07.020(a)(11), and are not reimbursed under (n) or (o) of this section; 31 (14) subject to (h), (i), (j)(2), (3), and (5), and (p) of this section, 60 01 percent of payments made by a municipality during the fiscal year for the retirement 02 of principal and interest on outstanding tax exempt bonds, notes, or other indebtedness 03 authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or after June 30, 1999, but 04 before October 31, 2006, to pay costs of school construction, additions to schools, and 05 major rehabilitation projects and education-related facilities that exceed $200,000, are 06 reviewed under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), and are not reimbursed under (n) or (o) of this 07 section; 08 (15) subject to (h), (i), (j)(2) - (5), and (q) of this section, and after 09 projects funded by the bonds, notes, or other indebtedness have been approved by the 10 commissioner, 90 percent of payments made by a municipality during the fiscal year 11 for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding bonds, notes, or other 12 indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or after June 30, 13 1999, but before October 31, 2006, to pay costs of school construction, additions to 14 schools, and major rehabilitation projects and education-related facilities that exceed 15 $200,000, are approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), meet the 10 percent participating 16 share requirement for a municipal school district under the former participating share 17 amounts required under AS 14.11.008(b), and are not reimbursed under (n) or (o) of 18 this section; 19 (16) subject to (h), (i), and (j)(2) - (5) of this section, and after projects 20 funded by the tax exempt bonds, notes, or other indebtedness have been approved by 21 the commissioner, 70 percent of payments made by a municipality during the fiscal 22 year for the retirement of principal and interest on outstanding tax exempt bonds, 23 notes, or other indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on 24 or after October 1, 2006, to pay costs of school construction, additions to schools, and 25 major rehabilitation projects and education-related facilities that exceed $200,000, are 26 approved under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), and are not reimbursed under (o) of this section; 27 (17) subject to (h), (i), and (j)(2), (3), and (5) of this section, 60 percent 28 of payments made by a municipality during the fiscal year for the retirement of 29 principal and interest on outstanding tax exempt bonds, notes, or other indebtedness 30 authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or after October 1, 2006, but  31 before May 1, 2015, to pay costs of school construction, additions to schools, and 01 major rehabilitation projects and education-related facilities that exceed $200,000, are 02 reviewed under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), and are not reimbursed under (o) of this section; 03 (18) subject to (h), (i), and (j)(2), (3), and (5) of this section, 50  04 percent of payments made by a municipality during the fiscal year for the  05 retirement of principal and interest on outstanding tax exempt bonds, notes, or  06 other indebtedness authorized by the qualified voters of the municipality on or  07 after May 1, 2015, to pay costs of school construction, additions to schools, and  08 major rehabilitation projects and education-related facilities that exceed  09 $200,000, are reviewed under AS 14.07.020(a)(11), and are not reimbursed under  10 (o) of this section. 11  * Sec. 22. AS 14.16 is amended by adding a new section to article 2 to read: 12 Sec. 14.16.100. Application for residential school. A school district shall 13 apply to the department for approval to establish and operate a statewide or district- 14 wide residential school. The department shall accept applications during an open 15 application period conducted annually. A period of open application in itself does not 16 indicate that the department will approve the establishment of a new residential 17 school. 18  * Sec. 23. AS 14.16.200(b) is amended to read: 19 (b) Costs that may be claimed by a district for reimbursement under (a) of this 20 section are 21 (1) one round trip on the least expensive means of transportation 22 between the student's community of residence and the school during the school year if 23 the district expends money for the trip; and 24 (2) a per-pupil monthly stipend to cover room and board expenses as 25 determined by the department on a regional basis and not to exceed the following 26 amounts: 27 (A) for the Southeast Region (Region I), $1,230 [$820]; 28 (B) for the Southcentral Region (Region II), $1,200 [$800]; 29 (C) for the Interior Region (Region III), $1,452 [$968]; 30 (D) for the Southwest Region (Region IV), $1,509 [$1,006]; 31 (E) for the Northern Remote Region (Region V), $1,776 01 [$1,184]. 02  * Sec. 24. AS 14.17.410(c) is amended to read: 03 (c) In addition to the local contribution required under (b)(2) of this section, a 04 city or borough school district in a fiscal year may make a local contribution of not 05 more than the greater of 06 (1) the equivalent of a two mill tax levy on the full and true value of 07 the taxable real and personal property in the district as of January 1 of the second 08 preceding fiscal year, as determined by the Department of Commerce, Community, 09 and Economic Development under AS 14.17.510 and AS 29.45.110; or 10 (2) 23 percent of the total of the district's basic need for the fiscal year 11 under (b)(1) of this section and any additional funding distributed to the district in  12 a fiscal year according to (b) of this section. 13  * Sec. 25. AS 14.17.430 is amended to read: 14 Sec. 14.17.430. State funding for correspondence study. Except as provided 15 in AS 14.17.400(b), funding for the state centralized correspondence study program or 16 a district correspondence program, including a district that offers a statewide 17 correspondence study program, includes an allocation from the public education fund 18 in an amount calculated by multiplying the ADM of the correspondence program by 19 90 [80] percent. 20  * Sec. 26. AS 14.17.450(d) is amended to read: 21 (d) If a charter school has a student count of at least 75 [MORE THAN 120] 22 but less than 150 for the current year and is in the first three years [YEAR] of 23 operation or had a student count of at least 75 [150 OR MORE] in the previous year 24 of operation, 25 (1) the adjusted student count for the school shall be calculated by 26 multiplying the student count by [95 PERCENT OF] the student rate for a school that 27 has a student count of 150; and 28 (2) not later than February 15, the charter school shall submit for 29 approval of the governing board of the district a plan for the following school year that 30 includes a statement about whether the school will continue to operate if the student 31 count remains the same that year and, if so, a projection of the funding anticipated 01 from the state and other sources, a proposed budget, and a description of anticipated 02 changes to the school staff, program, and curriculum; if the school intends to close if 03 the student count remains the same the following year, the plan must describe transfer 04 plans for students, staff, facilities, and materials. 05  * Sec. 27. AS 14.17.470 is amended to read: 06 Sec. 14.17.470. Base student allocation. The base student allocation is 07 $5,830 [$5,680]. 08  * Sec. 28. AS 14.17.470, as amended by sec. 27 of this Act, is amended to read: 09 Sec. 14.17.470. Base student allocation. The base student allocation is 10 $5,880 [$5,830]. 11  * Sec. 29. AS 14.17.470, as amended by secs. 27 and 28 of this Act, is amended to read: 12 Sec. 14.17.470. Base student allocation. The base student allocation is 13 $5,930 [$5,880]. 14  * Sec. 30. AS 23.15.835(a) is amended to read: 15 (a) In the manner provided in AS 23.20 and for the benefit of the program, the 16 department shall collect from each employee an amount equal to .16 [.15] percent of 17 the wages, as set out in AS 23.20.175, on which the employee is required to make 18 contributions under AS 23.20.290(d). The department shall remit to the Department of 19 Revenue, in accordance with AS 37.10.050, money collected under this subsection. 20  * Sec. 31. AS 23.15.835(d) is amended to read:  21 (d) Notwithstanding AS 23.15.840(a), for the fiscal years ending June 30, 22 2015 [2009], through June 30, 2017 [2014], the money collected under this section or 23 otherwise appropriated to the Alaska Workforce Investment Board, formerly known as 24 the Alaska Human Resource Investment Council, shall be allocated directly in the 25 following percentages to the following institutions for programs consistent with 26 AS 23.15.820 - 23.15.850 and capital improvements: 27 University of Alaska 45 percent 28 [UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA SOUTHEAST 5 PERCENT] 29 Galena Interior Learning Academy [PROJECT 4 percent 30 EDUCATION VOCATIONAL TRAINING CENTER] 31 Alaska [KOTZEBUE] Technical Center 9 percent 01 Alaska Vocational Technical Center 17 percent 02 Northwestern Alaska Career and Technical Center 3 percent 03 Southwest Alaska Vocational and Education Center 3 percent 04 Yuut Elitnaurviat, Inc. People's Learning Center 9 percent 05 Partners for Progress in Delta, Inc. [DELTA CAREER 3 percent 06 ADVANCEMENT CENTER] 07 Amundsen Educational Center [NEW FRONTIER 2 percent 08 VOCATIONAL TECHNICAL CENTER] 09 Ilisagvik College 5 percent. 10  * Sec. 32. AS 23.15.835(e) is amended to read: 11 (e) The institutions receiving funding under (d) of this section shall provide an 12 expenditure and performance report to the department by November 1 of each year 13 that includes [THE] 14 (1) the percentage of former participants in the program who have jobs 15 one year after leaving the program; 16 (2) the median wage of former participants seven to 12 months after 17 leaving the program; 18 (3) the percentage of former participants who were employed after 19 leaving the program who received training under the program that was related or 20 somewhat related to the former participants' jobs seven to 12 months after leaving the 21 program; 22 (4) a description of each vocational education course funded  23 through the allocation set out in (d) of this section that permits high school  24 students to earn dual credit upon course completion, and the number of high  25 school students who earned dual credit in the past year;  26 (5) a copy of any articulation agreement established under (g) of  27 this section that either was in effect for the preceding year or is in process for the  28 next year of funding, and the number of high school students who earned dual  29 credit under each articulation agreement; and  30 (6) the performance and financial information needed to verify the  31 performance of the program as specified by the department by regulation 01 [PERCENTAGE OF FORMER PARTICIPANTS WHO INDICATE SOME LEVEL 02 OF SATISFACTION WITH THE TRAINING RECEIVED UNDER THE 03 PROGRAM; AND 04 (5) PERCENTAGE OF EMPLOYERS WHO INDICATE 05 SATISFACTION WITH THE SERVICES PROVIDED THROUGH THE 06 PROGRAM]. 07  * Sec. 33. AS 23.15.835 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 08 (g) The institutions receiving funding under (d) of this section shall establish 09 and maintain at least one articulation agreement under which dual credit may be 10 earned by high school students upon completion of a vocational education course. 11 (h) An institution's failure to comply with (e) or (g) of this section shall result 12 in a withholding penalty of 20 percent of the funding allocated under (d) of this 13 section in the following year. 14  * Sec. 34. AS 23.15.850 is amended by adding new paragraphs to read: 15 (3) "articulation agreement" means a dual-credit partnership between a 16 school district and an institution receiving funding under AS 23.15.835(d) that 17 describes vocational education courses, student eligibility, course location, academic 18 policies, student support services, credit on a student's transcript, funding, and other 19 items required by the partnering institutions; 20 (4) "dual credit" means simultaneous high school credit and credit 21 toward a career or vocational certification. 22  * Sec. 35. AS 29.45.050 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 23 (v) A municipality may by ordinance classify and exempt or partially exempt 24 from taxation all or a portion of privately owned real property rented or leased for use 25 as a charter school established under AS 14.03.250. 26  * Sec. 36. AS 43.20.014(a) is amended to read: 27 (a) A taxpayer is allowed a credit against the tax due under this chapter for 28 cash contributions accepted for 29 (1) direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 30 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 31 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 01 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  02 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 03 (2) secondary school level vocational education courses, programs, and 04 facilities by a school district in the state; 05 (3) vocational education courses, programs, equipment, and facilities 06 by a state-operated vocational technical education and training school, a nonprofit  07 regional training center recognized by the Department of Labor and Workforce  08 Development, and an apprenticeship program in the state that is registered with  09 the United States Department of Labor under 29 U.S.C. 50 - 50b (National  10 Apprenticeship Act); 11 (4) a facility [OR AN ANNUAL INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS 12 TOURNAMENT] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year or four-year 13 college accredited by a regional accreditation association or by a public or private  14 nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 15 (5) Alaska Native cultural or heritage programs and educational 16 support, including mentoring and tutoring, provided by a nonprofit agency for public 17 school staff and for students who are in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; 18 (6) education, research, rehabilitation, and facilities by an institution 19 that is located in the state and that qualifies as a coastal ecosystem learning center 20 under the Coastal America Partnership established by the federal government; [AND] 21 (7) the Alaska higher education investment fund under AS 37.14.750;  22 (8) funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization to a  23 dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the cost of  24 (A) tuition and textbooks;  25 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  26 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  27 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  28 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  29 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  30 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  31 dual-credit course; and  01 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  02 (9) constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential housing  03 facility by a residential school in the state approved by the Department of  04 Education and Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 05 (10) childhood early learning and development programs and  06 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  07 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  08 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  09 Development, or through a state grant; 10 (11) science, technology, engineering, and math programs  11 provided by a nonprofit agency or a school district for school staff and for  12 students in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; and  13 (12) the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  14 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  15 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  16 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state. 17  * Sec. 37. AS 43.20.014(a), as amended by sec. 14, ch. 92, SLA 2010, sec. 14, ch. 7, 18 FSSLA 2011, and sec. 15, ch. 74, SLA 2012, is amended to read: 19 (a) A taxpayer is allowed a credit against the tax due under this chapter for 20 cash contributions accepted 21 (1) for direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 22 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 23 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 24 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  25 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 26 (2) for secondary school level vocational education courses and 27 programs by a school district in the state; 28 (3) for vocational education courses, programs, equipment, and  29 facilities by a state-operated vocational technical education and training school, a  30 nonprofit regional training center recognized by the Department of Labor and  31 Workforce Development, and an apprenticeship program in the state that is  01 registered with the United States Department of Labor under 29 U.S.C. 50 - 50b  02 (National Apprenticeship Act); [AND] 03 (4) for the Alaska higher education investment fund under 04 AS 37.14.750;  05 (5) for funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization  06 to a dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the  07 cost of  08 (A) tuition and textbooks;  09 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  10 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  11 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  12 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  13 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  14 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  15 dual-credit course; and  16 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  17 (6) for constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential  18 housing facility by a residential school approved by the Department of Education  19 and Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 20 (7) for childhood early learning and development programs and  21 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  22 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  23 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  24 Development, or through a state grant; and  25 (8) for the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  26 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  27 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  28 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state.  29  * Sec. 38. AS 43.20.014(f) is amended by adding new paragraphs to read: 30 (3) "dual-credit student" means a secondary level student in the state 31 who simultaneously earns college and high school credit for a course; 01 (4) "nonprofit organization" means a charitable or educational 02 organization in the state that is exempt from taxation under 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) 03 (Internal Revenue Code). 04  * Sec. 39. AS 43.65.018(a) is amended to read: 05 (a) A person engaged in the business of mining in the state is allowed a credit 06 against the tax due under this chapter for cash contributions accepted for 07 (1) direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 08 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 09 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 10 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  11 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 12 (2) secondary school level vocational education courses, programs, and 13 facilities by a school district in the state; 14 (3) vocational education courses, programs, and facilities by a state- 15 operated vocational technical education and training school; 16 (4) a facility [OR AN ANNUAL INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS 17 TOURNAMENT] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year or four-year 18 college accredited by a regional accreditation association or by a public or private  19 nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 20 (5) Alaska Native cultural or heritage programs and educational 21 support, including mentoring and tutoring, provided by a nonprofit agency for public 22 school staff and for students who are in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; 23 (6) education, research, rehabilitation, and facilities by an institution 24 that is located in the state and that qualifies as a coastal ecosystem learning center 25 under the Coastal America Partnership established by the federal government; [AND] 26 (7) the Alaska higher education investment fund under AS 37.14.750;  27 (8) funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization to a  28 dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the cost of  29 (A) tuition and textbooks;  30 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  31 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  01 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  02 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  03 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  04 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  05 dual-credit course; and  06 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  07 (9) constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential housing  08 facility by a residential school approved by the Department of Education and  09 Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 10 (10) childhood early learning and development programs and  11 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  12 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  13 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  14 Development, or through a state grant;  15 (11) science, technology, engineering, and math programs  16 provided by a nonprofit agency or a school district for school staff and for  17 students in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; and  18 (12) the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  19 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  20 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  21 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state. 22  * Sec. 40. AS 43.65.018(a), as amended by sec. 35, ch. 92, SLA 2010, sec. 14, ch. 7, 23 FSSLA 2011, and sec. 21, ch. 74, SLA 2012, is amended to read: 24 (a) A person engaged in the business of mining in the state is allowed a credit 25 against the tax due under this chapter for cash contributions accepted 26 (1) for direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 27 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 28 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 29 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  30 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 31 (2) for secondary school level vocational education courses and 01 programs by a school district in the state; 02 (3) by a state-operated vocational technical education and training 03 school; [AND] 04 (4) for the Alaska higher education investment fund under 05 AS 37.14.750;  06 (5) for funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization  07 to a dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the  08 cost of  09 (A) tuition and textbooks;  10 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  11 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  12 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  13 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  14 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  15 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  16 dual-credit course; and  17 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  18 (6) for constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential  19 housing facility by a residential school approved by the Department of Education  20 and Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 21 (7) for childhood early learning and development programs and  22 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  23 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  24 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  25 Development, or through a state grant; and  26 (8) for the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  27 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  28 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  29 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state.  30  * Sec. 41. AS 43.65.018(f) is amended by adding new paragraphs to read: 31 (3) "dual-credit student" means a secondary level student in the state 01 who simultaneously earns college and high school credit for a course; 02 (4) "nonprofit organization" means a charitable or educational 03 organization in the state that is exempt from taxation under 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) 04 (Internal Revenue Code). 05  * Sec. 42. AS 43.75.018(a) is amended to read: 06 (a) A person engaged in a fisheries business is allowed a credit against the tax 07 due under this chapter for cash contributions accepted for 08 (1) direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 09 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 10 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 11 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  12 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 13 (2) secondary school level vocational education courses, programs, and 14 facilities by a school district in the state; 15 (3) vocational education courses, programs, and facilities by a state- 16 operated vocational technical education and training school; 17 (4) a facility [OR AN ANNUAL INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS 18 TOURNAMENT] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year or four-year 19 college accredited by a regional accreditation association or by a public or private  20 nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 21 (5) Alaska Native cultural or heritage programs and educational 22 support, including mentoring and tutoring, provided by a nonprofit agency for public 23 school staff and for students who are in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; 24 (6) education, research, rehabilitation, and facilities by an institution 25 that is located in the state and that qualifies as a coastal ecosystem learning center 26 under the Coastal America Partnership established by the federal government; [AND] 27 (7) the Alaska higher education investment fund under AS 37.14.750;  28 (8) funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization to a  29 dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the cost of  30 (A) tuition and textbooks;  31 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  01 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  02 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  03 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  04 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  05 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  06 dual-credit course; and  07 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  08 (9) constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential housing  09 facility by a residential school approved by the Department of Education and  10 Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 11 (10) childhood early learning and development programs and  12 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  13 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  14 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  15 Development, or through a state grant;  16 (11) science, technology, engineering, and math programs  17 provided by a nonprofit agency or a school district for school staff and for  18 students in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; and  19 (12) the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  20 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  21 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  22 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state. 23  * Sec. 43. AS 43.75.018(a), as amended by sec. 42, ch. 92, SLA 2010, sec. 14, ch. 7, 24 FSSLA 2011, and sec. 23, ch. 74, SLA 2012, is amended to read: 25 (a) A person engaged in a fisheries business is allowed a credit against the tax 26 due under this chapter for cash contributions accepted 27 (1) for direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 28 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 29 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 30 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  31 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 01 (2) for secondary school level vocational education courses and 02 programs by a school district in the state; 03 (3) by a state-operated vocational technical education and training 04 school; [AND] 05 (4) for the Alaska higher education investment fund under 06 AS 37.14.750;  07 (5) for funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization  08 to a dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the  09 cost of  10 (A) tuition and textbooks;  11 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  12 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  13 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  14 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  15 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  16 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  17 dual-credit course; and  18 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  19 (6) for constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential  20 housing facility by a residential school approved by the Department of Education  21 and Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 22 (7) for childhood early learning and development programs and  23 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  24 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  25 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  26 Development, or through a state grant; and  27 (8) for the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  28 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  29 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  30 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state.  31  * Sec. 44. AS 43.75.018(f) is amended by adding new paragraphs to read: 01 (3) "dual-credit student" means a secondary level student in the state 02 who simultaneously earns college and high school credit for a course; 03 (4) "nonprofit organization" means a charitable or educational 04 organization in the state that is exempt from taxation under 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) 05 (Internal Revenue Code). 06  * Sec. 45. AS 43.77.045(a) is amended to read: 07 (a) In addition to the credit allowed under AS 43.77.040, a person engaged in 08 a floating fisheries business is allowed a credit against the tax due under this chapter 09 for cash contributions accepted for 10 (1) direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 11 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 12 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 13 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  14 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 15 (2) secondary school level vocational education courses, programs, and 16 facilities by a school district in the state; 17 (3) vocational education courses, programs, and facilities by a state- 18 operated vocational technical education and training school; 19 (4) a facility [OR AN ANNUAL INTERCOLLEGIATE SPORTS 20 TOURNAMENT] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year or four-year 21 college accredited by a regional accreditation association or by a public or private  22 nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 23 (5) Alaska Native cultural or heritage programs and educational 24 support, including mentoring and tutoring, provided by a nonprofit agency for public 25 school staff and for students who are in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; 26 (6) education, research, rehabilitation, and facilities by an institution 27 that is located in the state and that qualifies as a coastal ecosystem learning center 28 under the Coastal America Partnership established by the federal government; [AND] 29 (7) the Alaska higher education investment fund under AS 37.14.750;  30 (8) funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization to a  31 dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the cost of  01 (A) tuition and textbooks;  02 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  03 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  04 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  05 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  06 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  07 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  08 dual-credit course; and  09 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  10 (9) constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential housing  11 facility by a residential school approved by the Department of Education and  12 Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 13 (10) childhood early learning and development programs and  14 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  15 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  16 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  17 Development, or through a state grant;  18 (11) science, technology, engineering, and math programs  19 provided by a nonprofit agency or a school district for school staff and for  20 students in grades kindergarten through 12 in the state; and  21 (12) the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  22 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  23 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  24 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state. 25  * Sec. 46. AS 43.77.045(a), as amended by sec. 49, ch. 92, SLA 2010, sec. 14, ch. 7, 26 FSSLA 2011, and sec. 25, ch. 74, SLA 2012, is amended to read: 27 (a) In addition to the credit allowed under AS 43.77.040, a person engaged in 28 a floating fisheries business is allowed a credit against the tax due under this chapter 29 for cash contributions accepted 30 (1) for direct instruction, research, and educational support purposes, 31 including library and museum acquisitions, and contributions to endowment, by an 01 Alaska university foundation, [OR] by a nonprofit, public or private, Alaska two-year 02 or four-year college accredited by a regional accreditation association, or by a public  03 or private nonprofit elementary or secondary school in the state; 04 (2) for secondary school level vocational education courses and 05 programs by a school district in the state; 06 (3) by a state-operated vocational technical education and training 07 school; [AND] 08 (4) for the Alaska higher education investment fund under 09 AS 37.14.750;  10 (5) for funding a scholarship awarded by a nonprofit organization  11 to a dual-credit student to defray the cost of a dual-credit course, including the  12 cost of  13 (A) tuition and textbooks;  14 (B) registration, course, and programmatic student fees;  15 (C) on-campus room and board at the postsecondary  16 institution in the state that provides the dual-credit course;  17 (D) transportation costs to and from a residential school  18 approved by the Department of Education and Early Development under  19 AS 14.16.200 or the postsecondary school in the state that provides the  20 dual-credit course; and  21 (E) other related educational and programmatic costs;  22 (6) for constructing, operating, or maintaining a residential  23 housing facility by a residential school approved by the Department of Education  24 and Early Development under AS 14.16.200; 25 (7) for childhood early learning and development programs and  26 educational support to childhood early learning and development programs  27 provided by a nonprofit corporation organized under AS 10.20, a tribal entity, or  28 a school district in the state, by the Department of Education and Early  29 Development; and  30 (8) for the operation of a nonprofit organization dedicated to  31 providing educational opportunities that promote the legacy of public service  01 contributions to the state and perpetuate ongoing educational programs that  02 foster public service leadership for future generations of residents of the state.  03  * Sec. 47. AS 43.77.045(f) is amended by adding new paragraphs to read: 04 (3) "dual-credit student" means a secondary level student in the state 05 who simultaneously earns college and high school credit for a course; 06 (4) "nonprofit organization" means a charitable or educational 07 organization in the state that is exempt from taxation under 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) 08 (Internal Revenue Code). 09  * Sec. 48. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 10 read: 11 PILOT PROJECT TO EXPAND MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, 12 ENGINEERING, AND MATHEMATICS EDUCATION. (a) Subject to appropriation, the 13 Department of Education and Early Development may award a grant to a nonprofit 14 organization for a pilot project for the purpose of expanding science, technology, engineering, 15 and mathematics education for underserved and unrepresented middle school students with 16 limited opportunities who are enrolled in a public school in the state. A nonprofit organization 17 may apply for the grant by submitting an application to the commissioner of education and 18 early development. A grant may be awarded only to a nonprofit organization with experience 19 in administering a similar education program. 20 (b) A nonprofit organization receiving a grant under (a) of this section shall provide 21 data on educational opportunities provided under the pilot project in an annual report to the 22 Department of Education and Early Development and the legislature. 23 (c) The pilot project established under (a) of this section terminates June 30, 2017. 24  * Sec. 49. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 25 read: 26 RETROACTIVE ISSUANCE OF A HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA. (a) At the request 27 of a student, a school district shall issue a high school diploma to a student who did not 28 receive a high school diploma because the student failed to pass all or a portion of the 29 secondary school competency examination but who received a certificate of achievement 30 under former AS 14.03.075. A school district shall mail a notice consistent with this section to 31 each student who qualifies for a diploma under this section to the student's last known 01 address. 02 (b) The Department of Education and Early Development shall post a notice 03 consistent with this section on the department's Internet website with information about how 04 to request a high school diploma. 05 (c) In this section, "school district" has the meaning given in AS 14.30.350. 06  * Sec. 50. AS 14.20.147(b) is repealed. 07  * Sec. 51. Section 3, ch. 91, SLA 2010, is repealed. 08  * Sec. 52. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 09 read: 10 DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION SALARY AND BENEFITS PROPOSAL. 11 Not later than June 15, 2015, the Department of Administration shall present to the legislature 12 a written proposal for a salary and benefits schedule for school districts, including an 13 evaluation of, and recommendations for, teacher tenure. In this section, "school district" has 14 the meaning given in AS 14.30.350. 15  * Sec. 53. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 16 read: 17 SCHOOL DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION REPORT. The Department of 18 Education and Early Development shall prepare and submit a report to the legislature not later 19 than June 15, 2015, on the benefits and disadvantages of using prototypical designs for school 20 construction in both the Railbelt and rural areas of the state. 21  * Sec. 54. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 22 read: 23 LEGISLATIVE BUDGET AND AUDIT COMMITTEE STUDIES OF PUBLIC 24 SCHOOL FUNDING. The Legislative Budget and Audit Committee shall procure two studies 25 to be completed not later than June 15, 2015, by an entity or entities with expertise in school 26 finance to evaluate the current education funding provisions, identify strengths and 27 deficiencies, and validate the current funding provisions, recommend changes to the current 28 funding provisions, or recommend alternate methods of education funding. The studies must 29 include, but are not limited to, consideration of 30 (1) for the first study, 31 (A) stable and predictable funding for basic education needs and an 01 ancillary system of providing funding above basic education needs; 02 (B) appropriate proportions and mechanisms for state and local 03 contributions to public school funding; 04 (C) methods for funding alternate public school options, including 05 charter schools, residential schools, and correspondence programs; 06 (2) for the second study, current public school funding provisions under 07 AS 14.11 - AS 14.17, with particular focus on 08 (A) the school size factor under AS 14.17.450, including a review of 09 the most recent school operating cost data and the same criteria used in the "Alaska 10 School Operating Cost Study" by the McDowell Group in 1998; 11 (B) the school district cost factor under AS 14.17.460, including a 12 review of the most recent school district operating cost data and the same criteria used 13 in the "Alaska School District Cost Study Update" by the Institute of Social and 14 Economic Research in 2005. 15  * Sec. 55. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 16 read: 17 GRANTS TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS. (a) The Department of Education and Early 18 Development shall distribute $42,953,500 as state aid to school districts according to the 19 average daily membership for each district adjusted under AS 14.17.410(b)(1)(A) - (D), for 20 the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015. 21 (b) The Department of Education and Early Development shall distribute $32,243,700 22 as state aid to school districts according to the average daily membership for each district 23 adjusted under AS 14.17.410(b)(1)(A) - (D), for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2016. 24 (c) The Department of Education and Early Development shall distribute $19,904,200 25 as state aid to school districts according to the average daily membership for each district 26 adjusted under AS 14.17.410(b)(1)(A) - (D), for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2017. 27  * Sec. 56. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 28 read: 29 TRANSITION: CHARTER SCHOOL APPLICATIONS. Sections 9 and 10 of this 30 Act apply to charter school applications filed with a local school board on or after July 1, 31 2014. 01  * Sec. 57. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 02 read: 03 TRANSITION: REGULATIONS. The Department of Education and Early 04 Development, the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, and the Department of 05 Revenue may adopt regulations necessary to implement their respective changes made by this 06 Act. The regulations take effect under AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act), but not 07 before the effective date of the relevant provision of this Act implemented by the regulation. 08  * Sec. 58. Sections 31 and 57 of this Act take effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c). 09  * Sec. 59. Sections 28 and 32 - 34 of this Act take effect July 1, 2015. 10  * Sec. 60. Section 29 of this Act takes effect July 1, 2016. 11  * Sec. 61. Sections 37, 40, 43, and 46 of this Act take effect January 1, 2021. 12  * Sec. 62. Except as provided in secs. 58 - 61 of this Act, this Act takes effect July 1, 2014.