Bill Text: MS HB743 | 2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: School choice; establish statewide open enrollment for public school students.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2015-02-03 - Died In Committee [HB743 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2015-HB743-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2015 Regular Session
To: Education
By: Representative Arnold
House Bill 743
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 37-15-29 AND 37-15-31, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE FOR THE TRANSFER OF A STUDENT TO A SCHOOL OF CHOICE UPON THE PETITION OF THE PARENT OR GUARDIAN OF SUCH STUDENT; TO PROVIDE THAT TRANSPORTATION OF A STUDENT TO A TRANSFEREE SCHOOL IN A SCHOOL DISTRICT OTHER THAN THE DISTRICT IN WHICH THE STUDENT AND HIS PARENT RESIDE SHALL BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE STUDENT'S PARENT; TO AMEND SECTION 37-151-93, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT A SCHOOL DISTRICT ACCEPTING A TRANSFER STUDENT MAY NOT CHARGE THE STUDENT ANY TUITION FEES; TO AMEND SECTION 37-15-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 37-15-29, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
37-15-29. (1) Except as
provided in subsections (2) * * * through (6) of this
section, no minor child may enroll in or attend any school except in the school
district of his residence, unless such child be lawfully transferred from the
school district of his residence to a school in another school district in
accord with the statutes of this state now in effect or which may be hereafter
enacted.
(2) Those children whose
parent(s) or legal guardian(s) are instructional personnel or * * * licensed employees of a
school district may, at such employee's discretion, enroll and
attend the school or schools of their parent's or legal guardian's employment
regardless of the residence of the child.
(3) No child shall be
required to be transported in excess of thirty (30) miles on a school bus from
his or her home to school, or in excess of thirty (30) miles from school to his
or her home, if there is another school in an adjacent school district located
on a shorter school bus transportation route by the nearest traveled road.
Those children residing in such geographical situations may, at the discretion
of their parent(s) or legal guardian(s), enroll and attend the nearer school,
regardless of the residence of the child. In the event the parent or legal
guardian of such child and the school board are unable to agree on the school
bus mileage required to transport the child from his or her home to school, an
appeal shall lie to the State Board of Education, or its designee, whose
decision shall be final. The school districts involved in the appeal shall
provide the * * *
State Department of Education with any school bus route information
requested, including riding the buses as necessary, in order to measure the bus
routes in question, as needed by the State Board of Education in considering
the appeal.
(4) The brother(s) and
sister(s) of those children lawfully transferred from the school district of * * * their residence to a school in
another school district prior to July 1, 1992, * * * may * * *, at the discretion of their parent(s) or
legal guardian(s), continue to enroll and attend school in the transferee
school district.
(5) Those children whose
parent(s) or legal guardian(s) are active members of the United States Armed
Forces or civilian military personnel and reside on a military base, may, at
the discretion of their parent(s) or legal guardian(s), enroll and attend the
school district of their parent's or legal guardian's choosing, regardless of
the residence of the child, provided the school district where the student
resides * * * and the parent's or guardian's choice of
school district does not violate the provision of subsection (3) of this
section prohibiting the transportation of students in excess of thirty (30)
miles.
(6) Those children who are attending a school in a school district in this state may transfer to the school of the parent's choice if the transferee school district accepts enrollment based on available capacity in the manner provided in Section 37-15-31.
SECTION 2. Section 37-15-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
37-15-31. (1) (a) Except
as provided in subsections (2) through (5) of this section, upon the petition
in writing of a parent or guardian resident of the school district of an
individual student filed or lodged with the president or secretary of the
school board of a school district in which the pupil has been enrolled or is
qualified to be enrolled as a student under Section 37-15-9, or upon the aforesaid
petition or the initiative of the school board of a school district as to the
transfer of a grade or grades, individual students living in one school
district or a grade or grades of a school within the districts may be legally
transferred to another school district, by the * * * consent of the school * * * board of * * * the transferee school * * * district, which
consent must be given in writing and spread upon the minutes of * * * the school board of the
transferee school district, with a copy of the pertinent part of the minutes
transmitted to the transferring school district for its records.
(b) * * *
The school board of the * * *other transferee school district involved * * * shall act on such
request for transfer as soon as possible after the * * *
request for a transfer is made, and a failure of such transferee board
to act * * * no later than the next regular meeting of the transferee
board shall constitute a rejection of such request. If such a transfer is
approved by the transferee board, then such decision shall be final. If such a
transfer should be refused by the school board of * * * the transferee school district,
then such decision shall be final. The decision to consent to a student
transfer is in the sole discretion of the school board of the transferee school
district based upon available capacity; however, selection of transferring
students must be done randomly.
(c) Any legal guardianship formed for the purpose of establishing residency for school district attendance purposes shall not be recognized by the affected school board.
(d) The responsibility for transporting a student who resides with his parent in a school district and transfers under this subsection to another school district is that of the parent or guardian.
(2) (a) Upon the petition in writing of any parent or guardian who is a resident of Mississippi and is an instructional or licensed employee of a school district, but not a resident of such district, the school board of the employer school district shall consent to the transfer of such employee's dependent school-age children to its district and shall spread the same upon the minutes of the board. Upon the petition in writing of any parent or guardian who is not a resident of Mississippi and who is an instructional or licensed employee of a school district in Mississippi, the school board of the employer school district shall consent to the transfer of such employee's dependent school-age children to its district and shall spread the same upon the minutes of the board.
(b) The school board of any school district, in its discretion, may adopt a uniform policy to allow the enrollment and attendance of the dependent children of noninstructional and nonlicensed employees, who are residents of Mississippi but are not residents of their district. Such policy shall be based upon the employment needs of the district, implemented according to job classification groups and renewed each school year.
(c) The employer transferee school district shall notify in writing the school district from which the pupil or pupils are transferring, and the school board of the transferor school district shall spread the same upon its minutes.
(d) Any such agreement by school boards for the legal transfer of a student shall include a provision providing for the transportation of the student. In the absence of such a provision the responsibility for transporting the student to the transferee school district shall be that of the parent or guardian.
(e) Any school district which accepts a student under the provisions of this subsection shall not assess any tuition fees upon such transferring student in accordance with the provisions of Section 37-19-27.
* * *
( * * *3) Upon the petition in writing of any
parent or legal guardian of a school-age child who is the brother or sister
of a person who was lawfully transferred to another school district prior to
July 1, 1992, as described in Section 37-15-29(4), the school board of the
transferee school district shall consent to the * * * transfer of * * * the school-age brother and sister * * * to its district, and shall spread
the same upon the minutes of the board.
( * * *4) (a) If the board of trustees of a
municipal separate school district with added territory does not have a member
who is a resident of the added territory outside the corporate limits, upon the
petition in writing of any parent or legal guardian of a school-age child who
is a resident of the added territory outside the corporate limits, the board of
trustees of the municipal separate school district and the school board of the
school district adjacent to the added territory shall consent to the transfer
of the child from the municipal separate school district to the adjacent school
district. The agreement must be spread upon the minutes of the board of
trustees of the municipal separate school district and the school board of the
adjacent school district. The agreement must provide for the transportation of
the student. In the absence of such a provision, the parent or legal guardian
shall be responsible for transporting the student to the adjacent school
district. Any school district that accepts a student under this subsection may
not assess any tuition fees against the transferring student.
(b) Before September 1 of each year, the board of trustees of the municipal separate school district shall certify to the State Department of Education the number of students in the added territory of the municipal separate school district who are transferred to the adjacent school district under this subsection. The municipal separate school district also shall certify the total number of students in the school district residing in the added territory plus the number of those students who are transferred to the adjacent school district. Based upon these figures, the department shall calculate the percentage of the total number of students in the added territory who are transferred to the adjacent school district and shall certify this percentage to the levying authority for the municipal separate school district. The levying authority shall remit to the school board of the adjacent school district, from the proceeds of the ad valorem taxes collected for the support of the municipal separate school district from the added territory of the municipal separate school district, an amount equal to the percentage of the total number of students in the added territory who are transferred to the adjacent school district.
(5) Upon the petition in writing of any parent or legal guardian of a school-age child who is attending a school in a school district in this state, the school board of the transferee school district, in its discretion, may approve the transfer of the child, and any consent given must be recorded in the minutes of the board. If the transferee school is in the same school district, the school district superintendent, in his discretion, may approve the transfer of the child, subject to ratification of the superintendent's consent by the school board, which consent must be recorded in the minutes of the board. The selection of students desiring to transfer must be done on a random basis. The responsibility for transporting a student who resides with his parent in a school district to a school located in the transferee school district is that of the parent or guardian. If either the school board of the transferee school district or the school district superintendent objects to the transfer, the parent or legal guardian may appeal to the State Board of Education, whose decision shall be final.
SECTION 3. Section 37-151-93, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
37-151-93. (1) Legally
transferred students going from one school district to another shall be counted
for adequate education program allotments by the school district wherein the
pupils attend school, but shall be counted for transportation allotment
purposes in the school district which furnishes or provides the
transportation. The school boards of the school districts which approve the
transfer of a student under the provisions of Section 37-15-31 shall enter into
an agreement and contract for the payment or nonpayment of any portion of their
local maintenance funds which they deem fair and equitable in support of any
transferred student. Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section,
local maintenance funds shall be transferred only to the extent specified in
the agreement and contract entered into by the affected school districts. The
terms of any local maintenance fund payment transfer contract shall be spread
upon the minutes of both of the affected school district school boards. The
school district accepting any transfer students shall not be authorized
to accept tuition from such students under the provisions of Section 37-15-31(1) * * *. No school
district accepting any transfer students under the provisions of Section 37-15-31(2),
which provides for the transfer of certain school district employee dependents,
shall be authorized to charge such transfer students any tuition fees. A
school district accepting a transfer student under Section 37-15-31(5) may not
charge the transfer student any tuition fees.
(2) Local maintenance funds
shall be paid by the home school district to the transferee school district for
students granted transfers under the provisions of * * * Section 37-15-29(3) * * *,
not to exceed the "base student cost" as defined in Section 37-151-5, * * * multiplied by the
number of such legally transferred students. However, whenever a student
transfers to another school district under open enrollment, as authorized under
Sections 37-15-29(6) and 37-15-31, the home school district may not transfer
any local maintenance funds to the transferee school district.
SECTION 4. Section 37-15-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
37-15-13. When any child qualified under the requirements of Section 37-15-9 shall apply or present himself for enrollment in or admission to the public schools of any school district of this state, the school board of such school district shall have the power and authority to designate the particular school or attendance center of the district in which such child shall be enrolled and which he shall attend; no enrollment of a child in a school shall be final or permanent until such designation shall be made by said school board. No child shall be entitled to attend any school or attendance center except that to which he has been assigned by the school board; however, the principal of a school or superintendent of the district may, in proper cases, permit a child to attend a school temporarily until a permanent assignment is made by the school board. Beginning with the 2015-2016 school year, a child who is attending a school in a school district in this state may attend a school of parental choice in the manner prescribed in Section 37-15-31.
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2015.
