00 HOUSE BILL NO. 168 01 "An Act relating to civics education, civics assessments, and secondary school 02 graduation requirements; and providing for an effective date." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04  * Section 1. AS 14.03 is amended by adding a new section to read: 05 Sec. 14.03.076. Comparative government and civics curriculum and  06 assessments requirement. (a) The board shall develop and periodically review a 07 statewide comparative government and civics education curriculum, civics 08 assessment, and civics project-based assessment. The civics assessment must be 09 composed of 100 questions drawn from those set out in the civics portion of the 10 naturalization examination used by the United States Citizenship and Immigration 11 Services of the Department of Homeland Security. A school district may use the 12 curriculum developed by the board to educate students in comparative government and 13 civics. 14 (b) The curriculum developed under (a) of this section must include 01 instruction on 02 (1) the founding history of the United States, including foundational 03 documents and the principles of government of the United States; 04 (2) federalism, including the role and operations of local, state, and 05 national governments; 06 (3) the institutions of the United States government, including the 07 responsibilities of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches; 08 (4) the rights and responsibilities of United States citizenship; 09 (5) civil liberties and civil rights; 10 (6) the Constitution of the State of Alaska and the Constitution of the 11 United States; 12 (7) political parties and interest groups; 13 (8) campaigns and elections; 14 (9) the United States Congress; 15 (10) domestic policy; 16 (11) foreign policy; 17 (12) comparative systems of governments used globally and by Alaska 18 Natives; 19 (13) international relations; and 20 (14) major issues facing local, state, and the United States 21 governments. 22 (c) A school may not issue a secondary school diploma to a student unless the 23 student 24 (1) has completed one semester of a comparative government and 25 civics education course that includes instruction on the topics listed in (b) of this 26 section; 27 (2) has achieved a passing score on the civics assessment developed 28 under (a) of this section; 29 (3) provides the governing body with evidence that the student has 30 achieved a passing score on a test similar to the civics assessment developed under (a) 31 of this section within the previous five years; 01 (4) has achieved a passing score on a civics project-based assessment 02 developed under (a) of this section; 03 (5) provides the governing body with evidence that the student has 04 achieved a passing score on a civics project-based assessment similar to the civics 05 project-based assessment developed under (a) of this section while in high school; or 06 (6) is a student with a disability who receives a waiver from the 07 governing body. 08 (d) Notwithstanding (c) of this section, a school may issue a secondary school 09 diploma to a student who has not met the requirements of (c) of this section if the 10 student transferred into a state public school after completing grade 10 or has already 11 successfully completed a high school state history course from another state. 12 (e) If a student has achieved a passing score on the civics assessment 13 developed under (a) of this section, the school shall document on the student's 14 transcript that the student achieved a passing score. A student may retake the 15 assessment as needed to achieve a passing score. 16 (f) The department shall adopt regulations to recognize a student who has 17 attained a high level of proficiency in civic knowledge, civic skills, a civic mindset, 18 and civic experiences by affixing a seal of civic readiness on the student's school 19 transcript and diploma. 20 (g) A school district shall allow a student to fulfill the requirements of (c) of 21 this section by taking a comparative government and civics education course that 22 includes instruction on the topics listed in (b) of this section. A school district may 23 allow a student to fulfill the requirements of (c) of this section by achieving a passing 24 score on a civics assessment or civics project-based assessment. 25 (h) In this section, "passing score" means a student correctly answers 70 26 percent or more of the questions on a civics assessment or receives a score of 70 27 percent or higher on a civics project-based assessment. 28  * Sec. 2. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 29 read: 30 TRANSITION: GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS. The requirement that a school 31 only issue a secondary school diploma to a student who has met the requirements set out in 01 AS 14.03.076(c), enacted by sec. 1 of this Act, applies to students who enter grade nine on or 02 after July 1, 2026. 03  * Sec. 3. This Act takes effect July 1, 2026.