CSHB 69(RLS): "An Act relating to education; relating to open enrollment in public schools; relating to charter schools; relating to an annual report for correspondence study programs; relating to the base student allocation; relating to reading proficiency incentive grants; relating to wireless telecommunications devices in public schools; establishing the Task Force on Education Funding; relating to a report on regulation of school districts; and providing for an effective date."
00 CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 69(RLS) 01 "An Act relating to education; relating to open enrollment in public schools; relating to 02 charter schools; relating to an annual report for correspondence study programs; 03 relating to the base student allocation; relating to reading proficiency incentive grants; 04 relating to wireless telecommunications devices in public schools; establishing the Task 05 Force on Education Funding; relating to a report on regulation of school districts; and 06 providing for an effective date." 07 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 08 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 09 to read: 10 LEGISLATIVE INTENT. It is the intent of the legislature that, consistent with art. 11 VII, sec. 1, Constitution of the State of Alaska, nothing in this Act may be construed to allow 12 a voucher system for education. 13 * Sec. 2. AS 14.03.080(a) is amended to read:
01 (a) Subject to AS 14.14.110 and 14.14.120, a [A] child of school age is 02 entitled to attend public school without payment of tuition during the school term 03 (1) at [IN] the school in a school district that is assigned to the child 04 based on the child's residence within the school district's boundary area; or 05 (2) at a school selected by a parent of the child under 06 AS 14.03.080(i) [DISTRICT IN WHICH THE CHILD IS A RESIDENT SUBJECT 07 TO THE PROVISIONS OF AS 14.14.110 AND 14.14.120]. 08 * Sec. 3. AS 14.03.080(a), as amended by sec. 2 of this Act, is amended to read: 09 (a) A [SUBJECT TO AS 14.14.110 AND 14.14.120, A] child of school age is 10 entitled to attend public school without payment of tuition during the school term in 11 [(1) AT] the school district in which the child is a resident subject 12 to the provisions of AS 14.14.110 and 14.14.120 [IN A SCHOOL DISTRICT THAT 13 IS ASSIGNED TO THE CHILD BASED ON THE CHILD'S RESIDENCE WITHIN 14 THE SCHOOL DISTRICT'S BOUNDARY AREA; OR 15 (2) AT A SCHOOL SELECTED BY A PARENT OF THE CHILD 16 UNDER AS 14.03.080(i)]. 17 * Sec. 4. AS 14.03.080 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 18 (i) Each school district shall, upon application by a parent of a child of school 19 age and subject to other provisions of this title governing enrollment of students in 20 public schools and the enrollment capacity limitations of a selected school, allow the 21 child to attend the school in the district selected by the parent instead of the school that 22 is assigned to the child based on the child's residence within the district's boundary 23 area. The district shall enroll the children selected by lottery throughout the school 24 year, except that the district shall prioritize the enrollment of siblings in the same 25 school. Each district shall establish a lottery for enrollment of children under this 26 subsection and a process for conducting the lottery. The local school board of the 27 district shall determine the capacity limitations of a school in the district. 28 (j) Each school district shall annually report to the department and publish on 29 the district's publicly available Internet website student enrollment data for each 30 school in the district, including enrollment capacity and vacancies for each grade in 31 the school, the number of enrollment applications the district received under (i) of this
01 section, the number of those applications the district approved, the number of those 02 applications the district denied, and an explanation of the reason for each denial. 03 (k) The department shall establish by regulation a process for appealing a 04 school district's denial of an enrollment application submitted to the district under (i) 05 of this section. 06 * Sec. 5. AS 14.03.253(b) is amended to read: 07 (b) In an appeal to the state Board of Education and Early Development of a 08 denial of a charter school application under (a)(3) of this section, the state board shall 09 determine, based on the record, whether the commissioner's findings are supported by 10 substantial evidence and whether the decision is contrary to law. The state board shall 11 issue a written decision within 45 [90] days after the state board receives an appeal. 12 * Sec. 6. AS 14.03.255(c) is amended to read: 13 (c) A charter school shall operate under a contract between the charter school 14 and the local school board. A contract must contain the following provisions: 15 (1) a description of the educational program; 16 (2) specific levels of achievement for the education program; 17 (3) admission policies and procedures; 18 (4) administrative policies; 19 (5) a statement of the charter school's funding allocation from the local 20 school board and costs assignable to the charter school program budget; 21 (6) the method by which the charter school will account for receipts 22 and expenditures; 23 (7) the location and description of the facility; 24 (8) the name of the teacher, or teachers, who, by agreement between 25 the charter school and the teacher, will teach in the charter school; 26 (9) the teacher-to-student ratio; 27 (10) the number of students served; 28 (11) the term of the contract, not to exceed a term of 10 years; 29 (12) a termination clause providing that the contract may be terminated 30 by the local school board for the failure of the charter school to meet educational 31 achievement goals or fiscal management standards, or for other good cause;
01 (13) a clause providing that, before a local school board terminates 02 a contract, the local school board must provide the charter school with written 03 notice and a reasonable opportunity, as determined by the local school board, to 04 cure the problem; 05 (14) a statement that the charter school will comply with all state and 06 federal requirements for receipt and use of public money; 07 (15) [(14)] other requirements or exemptions agreed on [UPON] by the 08 charter school and the local school board. 09 * Sec. 7. AS 14.03.255 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 10 (e) A charter school may carry forward to the next fiscal year not more than 11 10 percent of the unreserved portion of the charter school's year-end program budget 12 balance. Money carried forward under this subsection is reserved and excluded from 13 the unreserved portion of a school district's year-end fund balance in the school 14 operating fund under AS 14.17.505. The local school board shall review the charter 15 school's program budget for the preceding fiscal year to ascertain the charter school's 16 year-end program budget balance. 17 (f) A local school board shall establish procedures and standards for renewal 18 of a contract between the local school board and a charter school. The renewal process 19 must be as simple as possible. 20 * Sec. 8. AS 14.03.260(a) is amended to read: 21 (a) A local school board shall provide an approved charter school with an 22 annual program budget. The budget shall be not less than the amount generated by the 23 students enrolled in the charter school less administrative costs retained by the local 24 school district, determined by applying the indirect cost rate approved by the 25 department up to eight [FOUR] percent. Costs directly related to charter school 26 facilities, including rent, utilities, and maintenance, may not be included in an annual 27 program budget for the purposes of calculating the eight [FOUR] percent cap on 28 administrative costs under this subsection. A local school board shall provide a charter 29 school with a report itemizing the administrative costs retained by the local school 30 board under this section. The "amount generated by students enrolled in the charter 31 school" is to be determined in the same manner as it would be for a student enrolled in
01 another public school in that school district and includes funds generated by grants, 02 appropriations, federal impact aid, the required local contribution, the local 03 contribution under AS 14.17.410(c), special needs under AS 14.17.420(a)(1), and 04 secondary school vocational and technical instruction under AS 14.17.420(a)(3). A 05 school district shall direct state aid under AS 14.11 for the construction or major 06 maintenance of a charter school facility to the charter school that generated the state 07 aid, subject to the same terms and conditions that apply to state aid under AS 14.11 for 08 construction or major maintenance of a school facility that is not a charter school. 09 * Sec. 9. AS 14.03.275 is amended to read: 10 Sec. 14.03.275. Contracts; duration; renewal. A contract for a charter school 11 may be for a term of not [NO] more than 10 years. A local school board may renew 12 the contract for successive terms. 13 * Sec. 10. AS 14.03.300 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 14 (c) Each district that provides a correspondence study program, and the 15 department if the department provides a correspondence study program, shall prepare 16 an annual report that includes 17 (1) the number of students enrolled in the program; 18 (2) the demographic information of the students enrolled in the 19 program; 20 (3) an accounting of student allotment funds that have been disbursed; 21 (4) assessment and proficiency scores of the students enrolled in the 22 program; and 23 (5) a review of curricula that have been provided by the program or 24 purchased using allotment funds. 25 (d) A district shall submit a report required under (c) of this section to the 26 department, and the department shall provide the report to the state Board of 27 Education and Early Development. If the department provides a correspondence study 28 program, the department shall also submit to the state board the department's report 29 required under (c) of this section. 30 * Sec. 11. AS 14.07.168 is amended to read: 31 Sec. 14.07.168. Report to the legislature. Not later than the 30th legislative
01 day of each regular session of the legislature, the board shall prepare and present in 02 person to the legislative committees having jurisdiction over education an annual 03 report that describes the efforts of the board to develop, maintain, and continuously 04 improve a comprehensive quality public education system, as provided for under the 05 bylaws of the board. The report must include 06 (1) a summary of the resolves and rationales provided in support of 07 policy decisions made under AS 14.03.015; 08 (2) program and curriculum changes made, discussed, or 09 recommended in meetings held under AS 14.07.125; 10 (3) additional information relevant to efforts made to improve and 11 maintain the public education system; 12 (4) a summary of implementation and utilization of the consortium 13 established under AS 14.30.800, including a review of consortium effectiveness and 14 the participation rates of districts, teachers, and students; 15 (5) the information reported to the board under AS 14.03.300(d). 16 * Sec. 12. AS 14.07.168, as amended by sec. 23, ch. 40, SLA 2022, is amended to read: 17 Sec. 14.07.168. Report to the legislature. Not later than the 30th legislative 18 day of each regular session of the legislature, the board shall prepare and present in 19 person to the legislative committees having jurisdiction over education an annual 20 report that describes the efforts of the board to develop, maintain, and continuously 21 improve a comprehensive quality public education system, as provided for under the 22 bylaws of the board. The report must include 23 (1) a summary of the resolves and rationales provided in support of 24 policy decisions made under AS 14.03.015; 25 (2) program and curriculum changes made, discussed, or 26 recommended in meetings held under AS 14.07.125; 27 (3) additional information relevant to efforts made to improve and 28 maintain the public education system; 29 (4) the information reported to the board under AS 14.03.300(d). 30 * Sec. 13. AS 14.17.470 is amended to read: 31 Sec. 14.17.470. Base student allocation. The base student allocation is $6,960
01 [$5,960]. 02 * Sec. 14. AS 14.30 is amended by adding a new section to read: 03 Sec. 14.30.773. Reading proficiency incentive grants. (a) Subject to 04 appropriation, a school district is eligible to receive a reading proficiency incentive 05 grant of $450 for each student in 06 (1) kindergarten through grade three who performs at grade level or 07 demonstrates improvement on expected grade-level skills on the statewide screening 08 tool adopted by the department under AS 14.30.760; and 09 (2) grades four through six who performs at grade level or 10 demonstrates a measure of increased proficiency on a standards-based assessment in 11 language arts. 12 (b) The department shall adopt regulations to implement this section. 13 * Sec. 15. AS 14.30.773(a), enacted by sec. 14 of this Act, is amended to read: 14 (a) Subject to appropriation, a school district is eligible to receive a reading 15 proficiency incentive grant of $450 for each student in 16 [(1)] kindergarten through grade [THREE WHO PERFORMS AT 17 GRADE LEVEL OR DEMONSTRATES IMPROVEMENT ON EXPECTED 18 GRADE-LEVEL SKILLS ON THE STATEWIDE SCREENING TOOL ADOPTED 19 BY THE DEPARTMENT UNDER AS 14.30.760; AND 20 (2) GRADES FOUR THROUGH] six who performs at grade level or 21 demonstrates a measure of increased proficiency on a standards-based assessment in 22 language arts. 23 * Sec. 16. AS 14.33 is amended by adding a new section to read: 24 Article 5. Wireless Telecommunications Devices. 25 Sec. 14.33.300. Wireless telecommunications device policy. (a) The 26 department shall develop and adopt a model policy that regulates the use of 27 nonschool-issued wireless telecommunications devices in public schools during 28 regular school hours, including lunch and passing periods. If the model policy 29 prohibits the use of nonschool-issued wireless telecommunications devices, the policy 30 must allow exceptions for students to use a wireless telecommunications device for 31 medical or translation purposes, in the event of an emergency, or when a teacher or
01 administrator of the school grants permission to a student to use a wireless 02 telecommunications device for educational purposes. 03 (b) Each school district shall adopt a policy that regulates the possession and 04 use of nonschool-issued wireless telecommunications devices during regular school 05 hours, including lunch and passing periods. Each school district shall share this policy 06 with parents or guardians, students, volunteers, and school employees. If a school 07 district's policy prohibits the use of nonschool-issued wireless telecommunications 08 devices, the policy must allow exceptions for students to use a wireless 09 telecommunications device for medical or translation purposes, in the event of an 10 emergency, or when a teacher or administrator of the school grants permission to a 11 student to use a wireless telecommunications device for educational purposes. A 12 school district may either develop and adopt its own policy or adopt the model policy 13 developed under (a) of this section. 14 (c) This section does not authorize a person to monitor, collect, or access 15 information related to a student's use of a wireless telecommunications device. 16 (d) In this section, "wireless telecommunications device" means any portable 17 wireless device that has the capability to provide voice, messaging, or other data 18 communication between two or more parties. 19 * Sec. 17. AS 14.03.080(i), 14.03.080(j), and 14.03.080(k) are repealed. 20 * Sec. 18. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 21 read: 22 TASK FORCE ON EDUCATION FUNDING. (a) The Task Force on Education 23 Funding is established as a joint task force of the Alaska State Legislature. 24 (b) The task force shall 25 (1) analyze the state of public education funding and the current accountability 26 provisions for schools and districts in the state; 27 (2) make recommendations relating to public education funding and 28 accountability provisions for schools and districts in the state; and 29 (3) submit a report of findings and recommendations of the task force to the 30 senate secretary and the chief clerk of the house of representatives not later than the first day 31 of the Second Regular Session of the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature and notify the
01 members of the legislature that the report is available. 02 (c) The task force consists of six members as follows: 03 (1) three members of the senate, at least one of whom is a member of the 04 minority, appointed by the president of the senate; the president of the senate shall select one 05 of the members to serve as co-chair of the task force; 06 (2) three members of the house of representatives, at least one of whom is a 07 member of the minority, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives; the speaker 08 of the house of representatives shall select one of the members to serve as co-chair of the task 09 force. 10 (d) A vacancy on the task force shall be filled in the same manner as the original 11 selection or appointment. 12 (e) The task force shall meet at the call of the co-chairs. The task force may meet 13 between and during legislative sessions. A majority of the members of the task force 14 constitute a quorum. The task force may conduct meetings in person, telephonically, or by 15 electronic means, as directed by the co-chairs. 16 (f) The task force may request data and other information from the Department of 17 Education and Early Development. 18 (g) The legislative staff of the members of the task force shall serve as staff for the 19 task force. The task force may hire staff and contract for services necessary to carry out the 20 duties of the task force under the procedures adopted by the legislative council governing 21 procurement of services, subject to the approval of the legislative council and the legislative 22 council making funds available for that purpose. 23 (h) The task force expires on January 31, 2026. 24 * Sec. 19. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 25 read: 26 REPORT ON REGULATION OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS. The Department of 27 Education and Early Development shall prepare a report recommending regulatory and 28 statutory changes to reduce the regulatory burden on school districts. The department shall 29 submit the report to the senate secretary and the chief clerk of the house of representatives not 30 later than the first day of the Second Regular Session of the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State 31 Legislature and notify the members of the legislature that the report is available.
01 * Sec. 20. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 02 read: 03 APPLICABILITY. Sections 5 - 9 of this Act apply to a contract that becomes legally 04 binding on or after the effective date of secs. 5 - 9 of this Act. 05 * Sec. 21. Sections 3 and 17 of this Act take effect July 1, 2028. 06 * Sec. 22. Section 12 of this Act takes effect on the effective date of sec. 23, ch. 40, SLA 07 2022. 08 * Sec. 23. Section 15 of this Act takes effect June 30, 2034. 09 * Sec. 24. Except as provided in secs. 21 - 23 of this Act, this Act takes effect July 1, 2025.