Bill Text: CT HB05422 | 2010 | General Assembly | Comm Sub
Bill Title: An Act Concerning Minor Revisions To The Education Statutes.
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-04-14 - Tabled for the Calendar, House [HB05422 Detail]
Download: Connecticut-2010-HB05422-Comm_Sub.html
General Assembly |
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February Session, 2010 |
*_____HB05422PH____041410____* |
AN ACT CONCERNING MINOR REVISIONS TO THE EDUCATION STATUTES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 10-264o of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, interdistrict magnet schools that begin operations on or after July 1, 2008, pursuant to the 2008 stipulation and order for Milo Sheff, et al. v. William A. O'Neill, et al., as determined by the Commissioner of Education, may operate without district participation agreements and enroll students from any district through a lottery designated by the commissioner. For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2009, any tuition charged to a local or regional board of education by a regional educational service center operating such an interdistrict magnet school shall be in an amount equal to at least seventy-five per cent of the difference between the estimated per pupil cost less the state magnet grant pursuant to subsection (c) of section 10-264l and any revenue from other sources as determined by the interdistrict magnet school operator. For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, any tuition charged to a local or regional board of education by a regional educational service center operating an interdistrict magnet school for any student enrolled in such interdistrict magnet school shall be in an amount equal to at least ninety per cent of the difference between (1) the average per pupil expenditure of the magnet school for the prior fiscal year, and (2) the amount of any per pupil state subsidy calculated under subsection (c) of [this] section 10-264l plus any revenue from other sources calculated on a per pupil basis. For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2011, and each fiscal year thereafter, any tuition charged to a local or regional board of education by a regional educational service center operating an interdistrict magnet school for any student enrolled in such interdistrict magnet school shall be in an amount equal to the difference between (A) the average per pupil expenditure of the magnet school for the prior fiscal year, and (B) the amount of any per pupil state subsidy calculated under subsection (c) of [this] section 10-264l plus any revenue from other sources calculated on a per pupil basis. If any such board of education fails to pay such tuition, the commissioner may withhold from such board's town or towns a sum payable under section 10-262i in an amount not to exceed the amount of the unpaid tuition to the magnet school and pay such money to the fiscal agent for the magnet school as a supplementary grant for the operation of the interdistrict magnet school program. In no case shall the sum of such tuitions exceed the difference between (i) the total expenditures of the magnet school for the prior fiscal year, and (ii) the total per pupil state subsidy calculated under subsection (c) of [this] section 10-264l plus any revenue from other sources. The commissioner may conduct a comprehensive review of the operating budget of a magnet school to verify such tuition rate.
Sec. 2. Subsection (c) of section 10-151 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2010):
(c) The contract of employment of a teacher who has not attained tenure may be terminated at any time for any of the reasons enumerated in subdivisions (1) to (6), inclusive, of subsection (d) of this section; otherwise the contract of such teacher shall be continued into the next school year unless such teacher receives written notice by [April] May first in one school year that such contract will not be renewed for the following year. Upon the teacher's written request, a notice of nonrenewal or termination shall be supplemented within seven days after receipt of the request by a statement of the reason or reasons for such nonrenewal or termination. Such teacher, upon written request filed with the board of education within twenty days after the receipt of notice of termination, or nonrenewal shall be entitled to a hearing, except as provided in this subsection, [(A)] (1) before the board, [(B)] (2) if indicated in such request and if designated by the board, before an impartial hearing panel established and conducted in accordance with the provisions of subsection (d) of this section, or [(C)] (3) if the parties mutually agree before a single impartial hearing officer chosen by the teacher and the superintendent in accordance with the provisions of subsection (d) of this section. Such hearing shall commence within fifteen days after receipt of such request unless the parties mutually agree to an extension not to exceed fifteen days. The impartial hearing panel or officer or a subcommittee of the board of education, if the board of education designates a subcommittee of three or more board members to conduct hearings, shall submit written findings and recommendations to the board for final disposition. The teacher shall have the right to appear with counsel of the teacher's choice at the hearing. A teacher who has not attained tenure shall not be entitled to a hearing concerning nonrenewal if the reason for such nonrenewal is either elimination of position or loss of position to another teacher. The board of education shall rescind a nonrenewal decision only if the board finds such decision to be arbitrary and capricious. Any such teacher whose contract is terminated for the reasons enumerated in subdivisions (3) and (4) of subsection (d) of this section shall have the right to appeal in accordance with the provisions of subsection (e) of this section.
Sec. 3. Section 10-66gg of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
[Within] Not later than January 1, 2011, and biennially thereafter, within available appropriations, the Commissioner of Education shall [annually,] review and report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, on the operation of such charter schools as may be established pursuant to sections 10-66aa to 10-66ff, inclusive, as amended by this act, to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education. Such report shall include: (1) Recommendations for any statutory changes that would facilitate expansion in the number of charter schools; (2) a compilation of school profiles pursuant to section 10-66cc; (3) an assessment of the adequacy of funding pursuant to section 10-66ee; [,] and (4) the adequacy and availability of suitable facilities for such schools.
Sec. 4. Subsection (d) of section 10-266w of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
(d) Each local and regional board of education participating in the grant program shall prepare a financial statement of expenditures [which] that shall be submitted to the department [on or before September first of the fiscal year immediately following each fiscal year in which the school district participates in the grant program] annually at such time and in such manner as the Commissioner of Education prescribes. If the commissioner finds that any school breakfast grant recipient uses such grant for purposes which are not in conformity with the purposes of this section, the commissioner [may] shall require repayment of the grant to the state.
Sec. 5. Subsection (c) of section 10-19m of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2010):
(c) The Commissioner of Education shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, establishing minimum standards for such youth service bureaus and the criteria for qualifying for state cost-sharing grants, including, but not limited to, allowable sources of funds covering the local share of the costs of operating such bureaus, acceptable in-kind contributions and application procedures. Said commissioner shall, on December 1, [1979] 2010, and [annually] biennially thereafter, report to the General Assembly on the referral or diversion of children under the age of seventeen years from the juvenile justice system and on the referral or diversion of children aged seventeen and eighteen years from the court system. Such report shall include, but not be limited to, the number of times any child is so diverted, the number of children diverted, the type of service provided to any such child, by whom such child was diverted, the ages of the children diverted and such other information and statistics as the General Assembly may request from time to time. Any such report shall contain no identifying information about any particular child.
Sec. 6. Subsection (c) of section 10-19m of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes, as amended by section 89 of public act 09-7 of the September special session, is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2012):
(c) The Commissioner of Education shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, establishing minimum standards for such youth service bureaus and the criteria for qualifying for state cost-sharing grants, including, but not limited to, allowable sources of funds covering the local share of the costs of operating such bureaus, acceptable in-kind contributions and application procedures. Said commissioner shall, on December 1, [1979] 2010, and [annually] biennially thereafter, report to the General Assembly on the referral or diversion of children under the age of eighteen years from the juvenile justice system and the court system. Such report shall include, but not be limited to, the number of times any child is so diverted, the number of children diverted, the type of service provided to any such child, by whom such child was diverted, the ages of the children diverted and such other information and statistics as the General Assembly may request from time to time. Any such report shall contain no identifying information about any particular child.
Sec. 7. (Effective from passage) (a) There is established a task force to conduct an investigational study of the efficacy of postural screenings for each pupil in grades five to nine, inclusive, pursuant to subsection (c) of section 10-214 of the general statutes. The task force shall consider whether legislative changes to section 10-214 of the general statutes are necessary and whether to eliminate the requirement that such postural screenings be conducted on an annual basis.
(b) The task force shall consist of the following members:
(1) The chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education, or their designees;
(2) The chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to public health, or their designees;
(3) A member of the Association of School Nurses of Connecticut appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives;
(4) A member of the American Academy of Pediatrics appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate;
(5) A representative of school medical advisors appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives;
(6) An orthopedic physician appointed by the majority leader of the Senate;
(7) A representative of school nurse supervisors appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives;
(8) A parent of a child diagnosed with scoliosis appointed by the minority leader of the Senate;
(9) The Commissioner of Education, or the commissioner's designee; and
(10) The Commissioner of Public Health, or the commissioner's designee.
(c) All appointments to the task force shall be made not later than thirty days after the effective date of this section. Any vacancy shall be filled by the appointing authority.
(d) The chairperson of the task force shall be appointed by its members. Such chairpersons shall schedule the first meeting of the task force, which shall be held not later than sixty days after the effective date of this section.
(e) The administrative staff of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education shall serve as administrative staff of the task force.
(f) Not later than January 1, 2011, the task force shall submit a report on its findings and recommendations to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education and public health, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. The task force shall terminate on the date that it submits such report or January 1, 2011, whichever is later.
Sec. 8. Subdivision (2) of subsection (j) of section 10-145b of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
(2) When the Commissioner of Education is notified, pursuant to section 10-149a or 17a-101i, that a person holding a certificate, authorization or permit issued by the State Board of Education under the provisions of sections 10-144o to 10-149, inclusive, has been convicted of (A) a capital felony, pursuant to section 53a-54b, (B) arson murder, pursuant to section 53a-54d, (C) a class A felony, (D) a class B felony, except a violation of section 53a-122, 53a-252 or 53a-291, (E) a crime involving an act of child abuse or neglect as described in section 46b-120, or (F) a violation of section 53-21, 53-37a, [53a-49,] 53a-60b, 53a-60c, 53a-71, 53a-72a, 53a-72b, 53a-73a, 53a-88, 53a-90a, 53a-99, 53a-103a, 53a-181c, 53a-191, 53a-196, 53a-196c, 53a-216, 53a-217b or 21a-278 or subsection (a) of section 21a-277, any certificate, permit or authorization issued by the State Board of Education and held by such person shall be deemed revoked and the commissioner shall notify such person of such revocation, provided such person may request reconsideration pursuant to regulations adopted by the State Board of Education, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. As part of such reconsideration process, the board shall make the initial determination as to whether to uphold or overturn the revocation. The commissioner shall make the final determination as to whether to uphold or overturn the revocation.
Sec. 9. Section 10-145i of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 10-144o to 10-146b, inclusive, and 10-149, the State Board of Education shall not issue or reissue any certificate, authorization or permit pursuant to said sections if (1) the applicant for such certificate, authorization or permit has been convicted of any of the following: (A) A capital felony, as defined in section 53a-54b; (B) arson murder, as defined in section 53a-54d; (C) any class A felony; (D) any class B felony except a violation of section 53a-122, 53a-252 or 53a-291; (E) a crime involving an act of child abuse or neglect as described in section 46b-120; or (F) a violation of section 53-21, 53-37a, [53a-49,] 53a-60b, 53a-60c, 53a-71, 53a-72a, 53a-72b, 53a-73a, 53a-88, 53a-90a, 53a-99, 53a-103a, 53a-181c, 53a-191, 53a-196, 53a-196c, 53a-216, 53a-217b or 21a-278 or a violation of subsection (a) of section 21a-277, and (2) the applicant completed serving the sentence for such conviction within the five years immediately preceding the date of the application.
Sec. 10. Section 10-16z of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2010):
(a) There is established the Early Childhood Education Cabinet. The cabinet shall consist of: (1) The Commissioner of Education, or the commissioner's designee, (2) one representative from the Department of Education who is responsible for programs required under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 USC 1400 et seq., as amended from time to time, appointed by the Commissioner of Education, (3) the Commissioner of Social Services, or the commissioner's designee, (4) a representative from an institution of higher education in this state appointed by the Commissioner of Higher Education, (5) the Commissioner of Public Health, or the commissioner's designee, (6) the Commissioner of Developmental Services, or the commissioner's designee, (7) the Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services, or the commissioner's designee, (8) the executive director of the Commission on Children, or the executive director's designee, (9) the project director of the Connecticut Head Start State Collaboration Office, (10) a representative from [a Head Start program] the Connecticut Head Start Association appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, (11) a representative of a local provider of early childhood education appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, (12) two appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one of whom is a member of the House of Representatives and one of whom is a parent who has a child attending a school in a priority school district, (13) two appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one of whom is a member of the Senate and one of whom is a representative of a public elementary school with a prekindergarten program, (14) a representative of the business or philanthropic community in this state appointed by the Governor, and (15) the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management, or the secretary's designee. The chairperson of the council shall be appointed from among its members by the Governor. The initial terms for the members appointed pursuant to subdivisions (10) to (14), inclusive, of this subsection shall terminate on March 1, 2011. Terms of members appointed pursuant to said subdivisions (10) to (14), inclusive, following the initial terms shall be for two years.
(b) Within available appropriations and such private funding as may be available, the Early Childhood Education Cabinet shall (1) coordinate among state agencies, as well as public and private partnerships, the development of services that enhance the health, safety and learning of children from birth to nine years of age, inclusive, (2) not later than December 1, 2009, and annually thereafter, develop an annual plan of action that assigns the appropriate state agency to complete the tasks specified in the federal Head Start Act of 2007, P.L. 110-134, as amended from time to time, and (3) not later than March 1, 2010, and annually thereafter, submit an annual state-wide strategic report, pursuant to said federal Head Start Act, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, addressing the progress such agencies have made toward the completion of such tasks outlined under said federal Head Start Act and this subsection to the Governor and the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education and human services.
(c) The Early Childhood Education Cabinet shall be within the Department of Education for administrative purposes only.
Sec. 11. Section 10-10a of the 2010 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2010):
(a) The Department of Education shall develop and implement a state-wide public school information system. The system shall be designed for the purpose of establishing a standardized electronic data collection and reporting protocol that will facilitate compliance with state and federal reporting requirements, improve school-to-school and district-to-district information exchanges, and maintain the confidentiality of individual student and staff data. The initial design shall focus on student information, provided the system shall be created to allow for future compatibility with financial, facility and staff data. The system shall provide for the tracking of the performance of individual students on each of the state-wide mastery examinations under section 10-14n in order to allow the department to compare the progress of the same cohort of students who take each examination and to better analyze school performance. The department shall assign a unique student identifier to each student prior to tracking the performance of a student in the public school information system.
(b) The system database of student information shall not be considered a public record for the purposes of section 1-210. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ability of a full-time permanent employee of a nonprofit organization that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as from time to time amended, and that is organized and operated for educational purposes, to obtain information in accordance with the provisions of subsection (e) of this section.
(c) All school districts shall participate in the system, provided the department provides for technical assistance and training of school staff in the use of the system.
(d) Local and regional boards of education and preschool programs which receive state or federal funding shall participate, in a manner prescribed by the Commissioner of Education, in the state-wide public school information system described in subsection (a) of this section. Participation for purposes of this subsection shall include, but not be limited to, reporting on (1) student experiences in preschool by program type and by numbers of months in each such program, and (2) the readiness of students entering kindergarten and student progress in kindergarten. Such reporting shall be done by October 1, 2007, and annually thereafter.
(e) On and after August 1, 2009, upon receipt of a written request to access data maintained under this section by a full-time permanent employee of a nonprofit organization that is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as from time to time amended, and that is organized and operated for educational purposes, the Department of Education shall provide such data to such requesting party not later than sixty days after such request, provided such requesting party shall be responsible for the reasonable cost of such request. The Department of Information Technology shall monitor the calculation of such fees charged for access to or copies of such records to ensure that such fees are reasonable and consistent with those charged by other state agencies. The Department of Education shall respond to written requests under this section in the order in which they are received.
(f) The Commissioner of Education shall authorize the superintendent of schools of a school district, or his or her designee, to access information in the state-wide public school information system regarding the state-wide mastery examination under section 10-14n. Such access shall be for the limited purpose of determining examination dates, examination scores and levels of student achievement on such examinations.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: | ||
Section 1 |
from passage |
10-264o |
Sec. 2 |
July 1, 2010 |
10-151(c) |
Sec. 3 |
from passage |
10-66gg |
Sec. 4 |
from passage |
10-266w(d) |
Sec. 5 |
July 1, 2010 |
10-19m(c) |
Sec. 6 |
July 1, 2012 |
10-19m(c) |
Sec. 7 |
from passage |
New section |
Sec. 8 |
from passage |
10-145b(j)(2) |
Sec. 9 |
from passage |
10-145i |
Sec. 10 |
July 1, 2010 |
10-16z |
Sec. 11 |
July 1, 2010 |
10-10a |
ED |
Joint Favorable Subst. |
|
PH |
Joint Favorable |