HB 480: "An Act relating to organization of the public school system; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 480 01 "An Act relating to organization of the public school system; and providing for an 02 effective date." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 14.08.011(a) is amended to read: 05 (a) It is the purpose of this chapter to provide for public education in regional 06 educational attendance areas [THE UNORGANIZED BOROUGH] and the military 07 reservations in the state. 08 * Sec. 2. AS 14.08.031(a) is amended to read: 09 (a) The Department of Community and Economic Development in 10 consultation with the Department of Education and Early Development and local 11 communities shall establish and determine the boundaries of regional educational 12 attendance areas. A regional educational attendance area must have 1,000 or 13 more students in average daily membership [DIVIDE THE UNORGANIZED 14 BOROUGH INTO EDUCATIONAL SERVICE AREAS USING THE
01 BOUNDARIES OR SUB-BOUNDARIES OF THE REGIONAL CORPORATIONS 02 ESTABLISHED UNDER THE ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ACT, 03 UNLESS BY REFERENDUM A COMMUNITY VOTES TO MERGE WITH 04 ANOTHER COMMUNITY CONTIGUOUS TO IT BUT WITHIN THE 05 BOUNDARIES OR SUB-BOUNDARIES OF ANOTHER REGIONAL 06 CORPORATION]. 07 * Sec. 3. AS 14.08.031(b) is amended to read: 08 (b) [AN EDUCATIONAL SERVICE AREA ESTABLISHED IN THE 09 UNORGANIZED BOROUGH UNDER (a) OF THIS SECTION CONSTITUTES A 10 REGIONAL EDUCATIONAL ATTENDANCE AREA.] As far as practicable, a 11 [EACH] regional educational attendance area shall contain an integrated socio- 12 economic, linguistically, and culturally homogeneous area. In the formation of the 13 regional educational attendance areas, consideration shall be given to how the 14 transportation and communication network will [TO] facilitate the administration of 15 education [AND COMMUNICATION BETWEEN COMMUNITIES THAT 16 COMPRISE THE AREA]. Whenever possible, municipalities, other governmental or 17 regional corporate entities, drainage basins, and other identifiable geographic features 18 shall be used in describing the boundaries of the regional educational [SCHOOL] 19 attendance areas. 20 * Sec. 4. AS 14.08.071(a) is amended to read: 21 (a) In each regional educational attendance area [IN THE UNORGANIZED 22 BOROUGH], the lieutenant governor, within not less than 60 [,] nor more than 90 23 days after the establishment of the regional educational attendance area, shall provide 24 for the election of a regional school board. 25 * Sec. 5. AS 14.12.010 is repealed and reenacted to read: 26 Sec. 14.12.010. Public school districts. The public school system consists of 27 the following districts: 28 (1) an organized borough; 29 (2) a home rule or first class city in the unorganized borough with 30 1,000 or more students in average daily membership; 31 (3) a regional educational attendance area with 1,000 or more students
01 in average daily membership. 02 * Sec. 6. AS 29.35.260(b) is amended to read: 03 (b) A home rule or first class city outside a borough is a city school district if 04 the home rule or first class city qualifies under AS 14.12.010. A city school 05 district [AND] shall establish, operate, and maintain a system of public schools as 06 provided by AS 29.35.160 for boroughs. A second class city outside a borough is not 07 a school district and may not establish a system of public schools. 08 * Sec. 7. AS 14.12.025 and 14.12.110 are repealed. 09 * Sec. 8. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 10 read: 11 TRANSITION. (a) Existing home rule or first class city school districts and regional 12 educational attendance areas are not affected by this Act until the Department of Community 13 and Economic Development, in consultation with the Department of Education and Early 14 Development and the affected communities, determines that, as a result of the amendment of 15 AS 14.08.031(a) by sec. 2 of this Act and AS 14.12.010 by sec. 5 of this Act, new districts or 16 regional educational attendance areas are required to be established. 17 (b) A term of a member of a school board of a city school district or regional 18 educational attendance area serving on the effective date of this Act is not affected by this Act 19 until a new regional school board is established under AS 14.08.041. 20 * Sec. 9. This Act takes effect July 1, 2004.