HB 3: "An Act relating to testing public and private school students for abnormal spinal curvature."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 3 01 "An Act relating to testing public and private school students for abnormal spinal 02 curvature." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 14.07.020(a) is amended to read: 05 (a) The department shall 06 (1) exercise general supervision over the public schools of the state 07 except the University of Alaska; 08 (2) study the conditions and needs of the public schools of the state, 09 adopt or recommend plans, administer and evaluate grants to improve school 10 performance awarded under AS 14.03.125, and adopt regulations for the 11 improvement of the public schools; 12 (3) provide advisory and consultative services to all public school 13 governing bodies and personnel; 14 (4) prescribe by regulation a minimum course of study for the public
01 schools; the regulations must provide that if a course in American Sign Language is 02 given, the course shall be given credit as a course in a foreign language; 03 (5) establish, in coordination with the Department of Health and Social 04 Services, a program for the continuing education of children who are held in detention 05 facilities in the state during the period of detention; 06 (6) accredit those public schools that meet accreditation standards 07 prescribed by regulation by the department; these regulations shall be adopted by the 08 department and presented to the legislature during the first 10 days of any regular 09 session, and become effective 45 days after presentation or at the end of the session, 10 whichever is earlier, unless disapproved by a resolution concurred in by a majority of 11 the members of each house; 12 (7) prescribe by regulation, after consultation with the state fire 13 marshal and the state sanitarian, standards in addition to the requirements of 14 AS 18.15.145 that will assure healthful and safe conditions in the public and private 15 schools of the state including a requirement of physical examinations and 16 immunizations in pre-elementary schools; the standards for private schools may not be 17 more stringent than those for public schools; 18 (8) exercise general supervision over pre-elementary schools that 19 receive direct state or federal funding; 20 (9) exercise general supervision over elementary and secondary 21 correspondence study programs offered by municipal school districts or regional 22 educational attendance areas; the department may also offer and make available to any 23 Alaskan through a centralized office a correspondence study program; 24 (10) accredit private schools that request accreditation and that meet 25 accreditation standards prescribed by regulation by the department; nothing in this 26 paragraph authorizes the department to require religious or other private schools to be 27 licensed; 28 (11) review plans for construction of new public elementary and 29 secondary schools and for additions to and major rehabilitation of existing public 30 elementary and secondary schools and, in accordance with regulations adopted by the 31 department, determine and approve the extent of eligibility for state aid of a school
01 construction or major maintenance project; for the purposes of this paragraph, "plans" 02 include educational specifications, schematic designs, and final contract documents; 03 (12) provide educational opportunities in the areas of vocational 04 education and training, and basic education to individuals over 16 years of age who 05 are no longer attending school; 06 (13) administer the grants awarded under AS 14.11; 07 (14) establish, in coordination with the Department of Public Safety, a 08 school bus driver training course; 09 (15) require the reporting of information relating to school disciplinary 10 and safety programs under AS 14.33.120 and of incidents of disruptive or violent 11 behavior; 12 (16) establish a program to detect abnormal spinal curvature in 13 students; a person who provides screening services must be appropriately 14 licensed as a health care provider or must have completed a training program for 15 screening abnormal spinal curvature approved by the department. 16 * Sec. 2. AS 14.07.030 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 17 (14) train a person to administer or approve training programs for the 18 spinal screening procedure required under AS 14.07.020(a)(16). 19 * Sec. 3. AS 14.30 is amended by adding a new section to read: 20 Sec. 14.30.075. Screening program for abnormal spinal curvature. (a) A 21 student attending public or private school shall undergo screening for abnormal spinal 22 curvature during grades 6 and 10 as required by the board. A parent or guardian may 23 substitute professional examination for the screening required under this subsection. 24 (b) A student is exempt from screening required under (a) of this section if 25 screening conflicts with the tenets and practices of a recognized church or religious 26 denomination of which the student is an adherent or a member. To qualify for an 27 exemption, the student's parent or guardian shall submit an affidavit stating the 28 objections to screening to the student's principal on or before the day of the screening 29 procedure. 30 (c) The principal of each school shall ensure that each student admitted to the 31 school complies with the screening requirements set by the board or submits an
01 affidavit of exemption. 02 (d) If the screening performed under this section indicates that a student may 03 have abnormal spinal curvature, the individual performing the screening shall 04 complete a report on a form prescribed by the department. The principal of the school 05 shall retain one copy of the report and shall mail one copy to the parent or guardian of 06 the student screened. 07 (e) The Department of Health and Social Services shall adopt regulations for 08 mandatory spinal screening of students in grades six and 10 attending a public or 09 private school. A regulation adopted under this subsection may not require an 10 expenditure by a governing body, except for an incidental expense required for 11 certification training for nonhealth practitioners or for notice required under (d) of this 12 section.