Bill Text: NY A01974 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Requires school districts to establish a language assistance program for limited English proficient parents of students; requires record keeping and annual reporting; permits districts to jointly establish such programs.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-22 - print number 1974a [A01974 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A01974-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        1974--A
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                      (PREFILED)
                                    January 9, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by M. of A. ROZIC, KAVANAGH -- read once and referred to the
         Committee on Education -- recommitted to the Committee on Education in
         accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged,  bill
         amended,  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said commit-
         tee
       AN ACT to amend the education  law,  in  relation  to  requiring  public
         school  districts  to  provide  language assistance to limited English
         proficient parents of students
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. Section 305 of the education law is amended by adding a new
    2  subdivision 44 to read as follows:
    3    44.  A.  ALL  SCHOOL DISTRICTS SHALL ESTABLISH   A LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE
    4  PROGRAM WHERE LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT PARENTS  WOULD  HAVE  EFFECTIVE
    5  ACCESS  TO COMMUNICATE WITH TEACHERS AND SCHOOL PERSONNEL.  THIS COMPRE-
    6  HENSIVE PROGRAM SHALL INCLUDE, BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO:
    7    (1) PROVIDING THAT ALL FREQUENTLY USED FORMS AND OTHER WRITTEN MATERI-
    8  ALS THAT ARE SENT HOME TO LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT  PARENTS  IN  THEIR
    9  PRIMARY LANGUAGE;
   10    (2)  PROVIDING  LANGUAGE  ASSISTANCE  TO  LIMITED  ENGLISH  PROFICIENT
   11  PARENTS IN THEIR PRIMARY LANGUAGE WHO CALL  OR  COME  INTO  SCHOOL  WITH
   12  CONCERNS RELATED TO THEIR CHILD'S SCHOOLING;
   13    (3)  PROVIDING  LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE SERVICES TO LIMITED ENGLISH PROFI-
   14  CIENT PARENTS IN THEIR PRIMARY LANGUAGE TO FACILITATE PARENT  ATTENDANCE
   15  AT  SCHOOL-SPONSORED  PROGRAMS  DESIGNED  FOR COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS
   16  INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES, WORKSHOPS AND
   17  SCHOOL FAIRS.
   18    B. A NOTICE OF THE AVAILABILITY OF THE  LANGUAGE  ASSISTANCE  PROGRAMS
   19  FOR LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT PARENTS ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH
   20  A  OF  THIS  SUBDIVISION  SHALL  BE  MAILED TO THE HOMES OF SUCH LIMITED
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD03067-03-4
       A. 1974--A                          2
    1  ENGLISH  PROFICIENT  PARENTS  IN  A  NOTICE  WRITTEN  IN  THEIR  PRIMARY
    2  LANGUAGE.
    3    C.  EACH  SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL KEEP A RECORD DOCUMENTING ITS LANGUAGE
    4  ASSISTANCE PROGRAM AND SHALL SUBMIT A SUMMARY  REPORT  ANNUALLY  TO  THE
    5  COMMISSIONER.  SUCH  RECORD AND REPORT SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED
    6  TO:
    7    (1) THE NUMBER OF LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT PARENTS WHO RECEIVE  SUCH
    8  ASSISTANCE;
    9    (2)  THE  NUMBER  OF  LIMITED  ENGLISH PROFICIENT HOUSEHOLDS WHERE ONE
   10  PARENT IS ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENT; AND
   11    (3) THE NUMBER OF  COMPLAINTS  FILED  BY  LIMITED  ENGLISH  PROFICIENT
   12  PARENTS; AND
   13    (4)  THE  NUMBER OF BILINGUAL PERSONNEL USED TO ASSIST IN THE LANGUAGE
   14  ASSISTANCE AND TRANSLATION SERVICES.
   15    D. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL PROMULGATE SUCH RULES AND REGULATIONS AS MAY
   16  BE NECESSARY AND PROPER TO IMPLEMENT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION,
   17  INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE METHODOLOGY TO BE USED BY EACH  SCHOOL
   18  DISTRICT  TO  DETERMINE  OR  ASSESS THE PRIMARY LANGUAGES, THE NUMBER OF
   19  LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT PARENTS, THE PERCENTAGE  OF  LIMITED  ENGLISH
   20  PROFICIENT  PARENTS  TO STUDENTS AND THE NATIVE LANGUAGE OF SUCH LIMITED
   21  ENGLISH PROFICIENT PARENTS, AND A COMPLAINT PROCEDURE FOR ANY PARENT WHO
   22  ALLEGES A SCHOOL'S NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF  THIS  SUBDIVI-
   23  SION.
   24    E. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION:
   25    (1)  "PRIMARY LANGUAGE" MEANS ONE OF THE FIVE MOST COMMON LANGUAGES IN
   26  A SCHOOL DISTRICT, OTHER THAN ENGLISH, (I) SPOKEN AND USED  TO  COMMUNI-
   27  CATE,  BY LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT PARENTS AND (II) NON-ENGLISH SPEAK-
   28  ING RESIDENTS OR LIMITED ENGLISH  PROFICIENT  PARENTS  CONSTITUTES  MORE
   29  THAN  FIVE  PERCENT OF THE RESIDENTS OF A SCHOOL DISTRICT, AS DETERMINED
   30  BY DATA FROM THE TWO MOST RECENT FEDERAL DECENNIAL CENSUSES.
   31    (2) "LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENT PARENTS" MEANS PARENTS OR PARENT OF  A
   32  MINOR  CHILD  WHO  ATTENDS  PUBLIC  SCHOOL AND SUCH PARENTS OR PARENT IS
   33  UNABLE TO COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY IN ENGLISH WITH  TEACHERS  AND  SCHOOL
   34  PERSONNEL AT THE SCHOOL ATTENDED BY HIS OR HER CHILD.
   35    F.  NOTHING  IN THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL PROHIBIT A SCHOOL DISTRICT FROM
   36  ENTERING INTO A COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT WITH  OTHER  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS  TO
   37  JOINTLY ESTABLISH SUCH A LANGUAGE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.
   38    S 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
   39  it  shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
   40  ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
   41  tation of this act on its effective date is authorized to  be  made  and
   42  completed on or before such effective date.