Bill Text: NY A05385 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Provides schools the option to operate one hundred eighty days of instruction or the equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - referred to education [A05385 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-A05385-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5385 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 16, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. GALLAHAN -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to the required number of days school is in session and providing schools the option to operate one hundred eighty days of instruction or the equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative findings. The legislature finds and declares 2 that a number of schools nationwide have implemented a flexible school 3 week schedule while still maintaining the statutorily required amount of 4 instructional time. This type of flexibility has resulted in savings on 5 such items as energy, transportation and substitute teacher costs, along 6 with better attendance, less time lost to extracurricular activities, 7 more opportunities for teacher training and appointments, and longer 8 class periods for instructional time. Many of the districts in other 9 states which have already implemented flexible school schedules tend to 10 be smaller and rural with long transportation routes to and from 11 schools, and with no other option to save costs other than to close 12 schools or layoff staff. Given the fiscal crisis facing New York as well 13 as rising fuel, energy, and transportation costs, a flexible school week 14 schedule based on the equivalent hours of pupil instruction may offer 15 schools operational flexibility without jeopardizing the amount of 16 instructional time required by law. 17 New York state is without legal authority to operate less than one 18 hundred eighty days of instruction without forfeiting state aid. The 19 lack of operational flexibility in school districts, in particular 20 regard to instructional days, is a problem largely unaddressed in state 21 statute or regulation. A well-planned alternative school week schedule 22 can be cost-effective, and can provide flexibility for those school 23 districts in fiscal crisis, while maintaining a quality education. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04632-01-1A. 5385 2 1 Therefore, the legislature finds that enactment of this legislation is 2 necessary and appropriate to make certain that school boards, after 3 thorough review and public comment, have the discretion and authority to 4 provide local school districts with operational flexibility to modify 5 the number of instructional days per year, while maintaining the quality 6 of education at the particular school or schools requesting a flexible 7 school week schedule. 8 § 2. Section 551 of the education law, as added by chapter 414 of the 9 laws of 1972, is amended to read as follows: 10 § 551. Apportionment. 1. In order to meet proper health, welfare and 11 safety standards in qualifying schools for the benefit of the pupils 12 enrolled therein, there shall be apportioned health, welfare and safety 13 grants by the commissioner to each qualifying school for the school 14 years beginning on and after July first, nineteen hundred seventy-one, 15 an amount equal to the product of thirty dollars multiplied by the aver- 16 age daily or equivalent hourly attendance of pupils receiving instruc- 17 tion in such school, to be applied for costs of maintenance and repair. 18 Such apportionment shall be increased by ten dollars multiplied by the 19 average daily or equivalent hourly attendance of pupils receiving 20 instruction in a school building constructed prior to nineteen hundred 21 forty-seven. In no event shall the per pupil annual allowance computed 22 under this section exceed fifty per centum of the average per pupil cost 23 of equivalent maintenance and repair in the public schools of the state 24 on a state-wide basis, as determined by the commissioner, and in no 25 event shall the apportionment to a qualifying school exceed the amount 26 of expenditures for maintenance and repair of such school as reported 27 pursuant to section five hundred fifty-two of this article. 28 2. The apportionment pursuant to this section shall be reduced by one 29 one hundred eightieth for each day less than one hundred eighty days 30 that such school was actually in total session in the base year, or a 31 school failing to comply with the equivalent number of hours of pupil 32 instruction shall forfeit from its apportionment an amount determined by 33 applying a ratio of the number of hours the school was in noncompliance 34 in relation to the required minimum equivalent number of hours of pupil 35 instruction, except that the commissioner may disregard such reduction 36 up to five days or the equivalent number of hours if he finds that the 37 school was not in session for one hundred eighty days or the equivalent 38 number of hours of pupil instruction because of extraordinary adverse 39 weather conditions, impairment of heating facilities, insufficiency of 40 water supply, shortage of fuel or the destruction of a school building, 41 and if the commissioner further finds that such school cannot make up 42 such days or the equivalent number of hours of instruction during the 43 school year. No such reduction shall be made, however, for any day on 44 which such school was in session for the purpose of administering the 45 regents examinations or the regents scholarship examinations, or any 46 day, not to exceed three days, or the equivalent number of hours when 47 such school was not in session because of a conference of teachers 48 called by the principal of the school. 49 § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 1704 of the education law, as amended by 50 chapter 543 of the laws of 1971, is amended to read as follows: 51 2. Except as otherwise provided by law, no board of education or 52 community board in the city school district of the city of New York 53 shall provide for a school year consisting of fewer than one hundred 54 eighty days of school or the equivalent number of hours of pupil 55 instruction.A. 5385 3 1 § 4. Paragraphs a and c of subdivision 2 of section 2117 of the educa- 2 tion law, as added by chapter 744 of the laws of 1952, are amended to 3 read as follows: 4 a. The whole time school has been maintained in their district during 5 the year ending on June thirtieth previous to the date of such report, 6 and stating what portion of the time such school has been taught by 7 qualified teachers, and the whole number of days, or the equivalent 8 number of hours of pupil instruction, including holidays, in which the 9 school was taught by qualified teachers. 10 c. The number of children taught in the district during such year by 11 qualified teachers, and the aggregate days' or equivalent hours' attend- 12 ance of all such children. 13 § 5. The first undesignated paragraph of section 3107 of the education 14 law, as amended by chapter 784 of the laws of 1961, is amended to read 15 as follows: 16 In cities having a population of one million or more, employees of the 17 board of education who are members of the New York city teachers' 18 retirement system shall be granted sick leave due to personal illness. 19 Such sick leave shall be on the basis of at least ten days for each year 20 of service, cumulative to a maximum of two hundred days. Members shall 21 upon application be granted a retirement leave of absence with full pay 22 consisting of one-half of their accumulated unused sick leave, up to a 23 maximum of one school term or the equivalent number of school days or 24 the equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction. 25 § 6. Paragraph a of subdivision 4 of section 3204 of the education law 26 is amended to read as follows: 27 a. A full time day school or class, except as otherwise prescribed, 28 shall be in session for not less than one hundred ninety days each year, 29 or the equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction, inclusive of 30 legal holidays that occur during the term of said school and exclusive 31 of Saturdays. 32 § 7. Paragraphs d, k and l of subdivision 1 of section 3602 of the 33 education law, as amended by section 11 of part B of chapter 57 of the 34 laws of 2007, are amended to read as follows: 35 d. "Average daily attendance" shall mean the total number of attend- 36 ance days or the equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction of 37 pupils in a public school of a school district in kindergarten through 38 grade twelve, or equivalent ungraded programs, plus the total number of 39 instruction days or the equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction 40 for such pupils receiving homebound instruction including pupils receiv- 41 ing instruction through a two-way telephone communication system, 42 divided by the number of days or equivalent hours the district school 43 was in session as provided in this section. The attendance of pupils 44 with disabilities attending under the provisions of paragraph c of 45 subdivision two of section forty-four hundred one of this chapter shall 46 be added to average daily or equivalent hourly attendance. 47 (1) Equivalent attendance shall mean the quotient of the total number 48 of student hours of instruction in programs in a public school of a 49 school district or a board of cooperative educational services leading 50 to a high school diploma or a high school equivalency diploma as defined 51 in regulations of the commissioner for pupils under the age of twenty- 52 one not on a regular day school register of the district, divided by one 53 thousand. Average daily or equivalent hourly attendance shall include 54 the equivalent attendance of the school district. For the purposes of 55 secondary school weighting, such equivalent attendance shall be consid-A. 5385 4 1 ered as average daily or equivalent hourly attendance in grades seven 2 through twelve. 3 (2) In computing average daily or equivalent hourly attendance, school 4 districts may, with the commissioner's approval, exclude attendance for 5 those days or equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction, on which 6 school attendance was adversely affected because of an epidemic or 7 manmade or natural disaster or act of terrorism. In computing such 8 attendance, the school district shall: (i) determine the number of reli- 9 gious holidays which fall on a school day in which school is scheduled 10 to be in session within a school year according to regulations estab- 11 lished by the commissioner, such religious holidays to be duly recog- 12 nized as such for purposes of this section by duly adopted resolution of 13 the board of education; (ii) deduct the aggregate attendance on such 14 religious holidays from the total aggregate attendance, by grade level; 15 (iii) deduct such religious holidays from the total number of days or 16 equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction of session, by grade 17 level; and (iv) compute the average daily or equivalent hourly attend- 18 ance for the school year. 19 k. "Attendance ratio" shall mean the number computed to four decimals 20 without rounding when the aggregate days or equivalent hours attendance 21 is divided by the possible aggregate attendance of all pupils in attend- 22 ance in the district, as computed for each school district by the 23 commissioner by June first of the year following the attendance year. 24 l. "Average daily membership" shall mean the possible aggregate 25 attendance of all pupils in attendance in a public school of the school 26 district in kindergarten through grade twelve, or equivalent ungraded 27 programs, including possible aggregate attendance for such pupils 28 receiving homebound instruction, including pupils receiving instruction 29 through a two-way telephone communication system, with the possible 30 aggregate attendance of such pupils in one-half day kindergartens multi- 31 plied by one-half, divided by the number of days or equivalent number of 32 hours of pupil instruction the district school was in session as 33 provided in this section. The full time equivalent enrollment of pupils 34 with disabilities attending under the provisions of paragraph c of 35 subdivision two of section forty-four hundred one of this chapter shall 36 be added to average daily or equivalent hourly membership. Average 37 daily or equivalent hourly membership shall include the equivalent 38 attendance of the school district, as computed pursuant to paragraph d 39 of this subdivision. In any instance where a pupil is a resident of 40 another state or an Indian pupil is a resident of any portion of a 41 reservation located wholly or partly within the borders of the state 42 pursuant to subdivision four of section forty-one hundred one of this 43 chapter or a pupil is living on federally owned land or property, such 44 pupil's possible aggregate attendance shall be counted as part of the 45 possible aggregate attendance of the school district in which such pupil 46 is enrolled. 47 § 8. Paragraphs a and b of subdivision 2 of section 3602 of the educa- 48 tion law, as amended by section 13 of part B of chapter 57 of the laws 49 of 2007, are amended to read as follows: 50 a. Computation of resident weighted average daily or equivalent hourly 51 attendance. For purposes of this section weighted average daily or 52 equivalent hourly attendance of a school district for any school year 53 shall be computed as follows: 54 (1) Weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance shall be 55 determined by using the average daily or equivalent hourly attendance of 56 public school pupils in a full-day kindergarten and grades one throughA. 5385 5 1 six as the basic unit, with the attendance of such pupils in one-half 2 day kindergartens measured at one-half of such basic unit and the 3 attendance of such pupils in grades seven through twelve measured at one 4 and one-quarter of such basic unit. The sum of all such units of 5 attendance shall be the weighted average daily or equivalent hourly 6 attendance. 7 (2) In computing such attendance, the school district shall (i) deter- 8 mine the number of religious holidays which fall on a school day in 9 which school is scheduled to be in session within a school year accord- 10 ing to regulations established by the commissioner, such religious holi- 11 days to be duly recognized as such for purposes of this section by duly 12 adopted resolution of the board of education; (ii) deduct the aggregate 13 attendance on such religious holidays from the total aggregate attend- 14 ance, by grade level; (iii) deduct such religious holidays from the 15 total number of days or equivalent number of hours of session, by grade 16 level; (iv) compute the weighted average daily or equivalent hourly 17 attendance for the school year. 18 (3) In any instance where a pupil is a resident of another state or an 19 Indian pupil is a resident of any portion of a reservation located whol- 20 ly or partly within the borders of the state pursuant to subdivision 21 four of section forty-one hundred one of this chapter or a pupil is 22 living on federally owned land or property, such pupil's attendance 23 shall be counted as part of the weighted average daily or equivalent 24 hourly attendance of the school district in which such pupil is 25 enrolled. 26 (4) Resident weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance 27 for purposes of determining the aid ratio of a school district for any 28 school year shall be the weighted average daily or equivalent hourly 29 attendance for the school year immediately preceding the base year, less 30 the weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance of nonresi- 31 dent pupils attending public schools in the district for such school 32 year, plus the weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance of 33 pupils resident in the district but attending public schools in another 34 district or state plus the weighted average daily or equivalent hourly 35 attendance of pupils resident in the district but attending full-time a 36 school operated by a board of cooperative educational services or a 37 county vocational education and extension board for such school year. 38 The attendance of nonresident pupils attending public school in the 39 district and resident pupils attending such schools outside of the 40 district shall be determined by applying to the number of such pupils 41 registered during the school year in each case the ratio of aggregate 42 days or equivalent hours attendance to the possible aggregate days or 43 equivalent hours attendance of all pupils in attendance in the district. 44 Indian pupils of a reservation attending public school, or pupils living 45 on the United States military reservation at West Point attending public 46 school, shall be deemed to be resident pupils of the district providing 47 such school, for purposes of this paragraph. Where a school district has 48 entered into a contract with the state university pursuant to subdivi- 49 sion two of section three hundred fifty-five of this chapter under which 50 the school district makes payments in the nature of tuition for the 51 education of certain children residing in the district, such children 52 for whom such tuition payments are made shall be deemed to be resident 53 pupils of such district for the purposes of this paragraph. 54 (5) In determining the resident weighted average daily or equivalent 55 hourly attendance of a component school district of a central high 56 school district for computing the aid ratio the weighted average dailyA. 5385 6 1 or equivalent hourly attendance of high school pupils residing in such 2 component district and attending the central high school shall be 3 included. The resident weighted average daily or equivalent hourly 4 attendance of a central high school district itself shall be the sum of 5 the resident weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance of 6 each component school district computed as provided in the first 7 sentence of this paragraph. 8 (6) Notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraphs four and five of 9 this paragraph, when a school district shall experience an increase in 10 resident weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance during 11 the current year because of the closing in whole, or in part, of a non- 12 public school or a campus school, or a school previously operated by the 13 United States government on the United States military reservation at 14 West Point, the commissioner, in computing any aid ratio of such 15 district, shall permit the use of such additional resident weighted 16 average daily or equivalent hourly attendance for aid ratio purposes 17 during the current year and the next succeeding year, provided that such 18 additional resident weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attend- 19 ance attributable to such closing, or part thereof, shall be in excess 20 of one hundred students; provided, however, that such district which 21 qualifies for an increase in total wealth pupil units pursuant to para- 22 graph f of this subdivision, shall use the increase in resident weighted 23 average daily or equivalent hourly attendance, even if such increase in 24 resident weighted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance is less 25 than one hundred. 26 b. Computation of adjusted average daily or equivalent hourly attend- 27 ance. For purposes of this section adjusted average daily or equivalent 28 hourly attendance of a school district for any school year shall be 29 computed as follows: 30 (1) Adjusted average daily or equivalent hourly attendance shall be 31 determined by using the average daily or equivalent hourly attendance of 32 public school pupils in a full-day kindergarten and grades one through 33 twelve as the basic unit, with the attendance of such pupils in one-half 34 day kindergartens measured at one-half of such basic unit. The sum of 35 all such units of attendance shall be the adjusted average daily or 36 equivalent hourly attendance. 37 (2) In computing such attendance, the school district shall (i) deter- 38 mine the number of religious holidays which fall on a school day in 39 which school is scheduled to be in session within a school year accord- 40 ing to regulations established by the commissioner, such religious holi- 41 days to be duly recognized as such for purposes of this section by duly 42 adopted resolution of the board of education; (ii) deduct the aggregate 43 attendance on such religious holidays from the total aggregate attend- 44 ance, by grade level; (iii) deduct such religious holidays from the 45 total number of days or equivalent number of hours of session, by grade 46 level; (iv) compute the adjusted average daily or equivalent hourly 47 attendance for the school year. 48 (3) In any instance where a pupil is a resident of another state or an 49 Indian pupil is a resident of any portion of a reservation located whol- 50 ly or partly within the borders of the state pursuant to subdivision 51 four of section forty-one hundred one of this chapter or a pupil is 52 living on federally owned land or property, such pupil's attendance 53 shall be counted as part of the adjusted average daily attendance of the 54 school district in which such pupil is enrolled.A. 5385 7 1 § 9. Paragraph e of subdivision 1 of section 3602-c of the education 2 law, as amended by chapter 740 of the laws of 1982, is amended to read 3 as follows: 4 e. "Average daily attendance" shall mean the total number of attend- 5 ance days or the equivalent number of hours of pupils receiving services 6 divided by the number of days or equivalent hours the public school was 7 in session for each attendance period. For each such attendance period 8 the total number of attendance days or equivalent number of hours for 9 each such pupil shall be determined by multiplying the number of days or 10 equivalent hours on which each such pupil was in attendance by the ratio 11 obtained by dividing the number of class periods of each such pupil by 12 the total number of class periods, not to exceed five, operated by the 13 public school during the school day. Only pupils residing in this state 14 shall be included in such computation. 15 § 10. Paragraph m of subdivision 12 and subdivision 16 of section 16 3602-e of the education law, paragraph m of subdivision 12 as amended by 17 section 19 of part B of chapter 57 of the laws of 2007 and subdivision 18 16 as amended by section 18 of part A of chapter 57 of the laws of 2013, 19 are amended to read as follows: 20 m. a process for the waiver of the time requirements established 21 pursuant to this subdivision in order to authorize the operation of a 22 summer universal prekindergarten program limited to the months of July 23 and August, upon a finding by the commissioner that the school district 24 is unable to operate the program during the regular school session 25 because of a lack of available space pursuant to regulations of the 26 commissioner. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the 27 contrary, such process shall provide for a reduction of the aid per 28 prekindergarten pupil payable for pupils served pursuant to such waiver 29 by one one-hundred eightieth of the aid per prekindergarten pupil deter- 30 mined pursuant to paragraph a of subdivision ten [or subparagraph (i) of31paragraph b of subdivision ten-a] of this section for each day or equiv- 32 alent hour less than one hundred eighty days or the equivalent number of 33 hours that the summer program is in session. 34 16. The grant payable to a school district pursuant to this section in 35 the current year shall be reduced by one one-hundred eightieth for each 36 day less than one hundred eighty days that the universal prekindergarten 37 classes of the district were actually in session, or a district failing 38 to comply with the equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction shall 39 forfeit from its total state aid allocation an amount determined by 40 applying a ratio of the number of hours the district was in noncompli- 41 ance in relation to the required minimum equivalent number of hours of 42 pupil instruction, except that the commissioner may disregard such 43 reduction for any deficiency that may be disregarded in computing total 44 foundation aid pursuant to subdivision seven or eight of section thir- 45 ty-six hundred four of this [chapter] part and in addition may disregard 46 a reduction for any deficiency that is caused by a delay in the opening 47 of public school classes due to extraordinarily adverse weather condi- 48 tions or other cause cited in such subdivision seven of section thirty- 49 six hundred four that results in cancellation of the prekindergarten 50 program or of transportation to such program. 51 § 11. Subdivisions 7 and 8 of section 3604 of the education law, 52 subdivision 7 as amended by chapter 107 of the laws of 2020 and subdivi- 53 sion 8 as amended by chapter 605 of the laws of 2019, are amended and 54 five new subdivisions 7-c, 7-d, 7-e, 7-f and 7-g are added to read as 55 follows:A. 5385 8 1 7. No district shall be entitled to any portion of such school moneys 2 on such apportionment unless the report of the trustees or board of 3 education for the preceding school year shall show that the public 4 schools were actually in session in the district and taught by a quali- 5 fied teacher or by successive qualified teachers or by qualified teach- 6 ers for not less than one hundred eighty days or the equivalent number 7 of hours of pupil instruction. The moneys payable to a school district 8 pursuant to section thirty-six hundred nine-a of this part in the 9 current year shall be reduced by one one-hundred eightieth of the 10 district's total foundation aid for the base year for each day less than 11 one hundred eighty days that the schools of the district were actually 12 in session or a district failing to comply with the equivalent number of 13 hours of pupil instruction shall forfeit from its total state aid allo- 14 cation an amount determined by applying a ratio of the number of hours 15 the district was in noncompliance in relation to the required minimum 16 equivalent number of hours of pupil instruction, except that the commis- 17 sioner may disregard such reduction in the apportionment of public 18 money: (i) for any day or days or the equivalent number of hours on 19 which session had been previously scheduled but the superintendent was 20 required to close the school or schools due to a properly executed 21 declaration of a state or local state of emergency pursuant to article 22 two-B of the executive law; or (ii) for up to five days, or the equiv- 23 alent number of hours if he or she finds that the schools of the 24 district were not in session for one hundred eighty days or the equiv- 25 alent number of hours because of extraordinarily adverse weather condi- 26 tions, impairment of heating facilities, insufficiency of water supply, 27 shortage of fuel, lack of electricity, natural gas leakage, unacceptable 28 levels of chemical substances, a credible threat to student safety as 29 reasonably determined by a lead school official or the destruction of a 30 school building either in whole or in part, and if, further, the commis- 31 sioner finds that such district cannot make up such days or equivalent 32 hours of instruction by using for the secondary grades all scheduled 33 vacation days which occur prior to the first scheduled regents examina- 34 tion day in June, and for the elementary grades all scheduled vacation 35 days which occur prior to the last scheduled regents examination day in 36 June; or (iii) for any day or days in the two thousand nineteen -- two 37 thousand twenty school year on which session had been previously sched- 38 uled but the chancellor of the city school district of the city of New 39 York or the superintendent of a district closed the school or schools 40 due to a determination by the chancellor or superintendent that it was 41 in the best interest of public health or safety of the school district 42 to close the school or schools in response to the novel coronavirus, 43 COVID-19. For the purposes of this subdivision, "scheduled vacation 44 days" shall mean days on which the schools of the district are not in 45 session and for which no prohibition exists in subdivision eight of this 46 section for them to be in session. 47 7-c. For the purposes of this section, "one hundred eighty days" means 48 one hundred eighty days of instruction or the equivalent number of hours 49 of pupil instruction per school year based on a different number of days 50 of instruction approved by the school district governing board or char- 51 ter school governing body. 52 7-d. The local school board, in its discretion, may authorize some or 53 all of its schools to modify the number of instructional days per year 54 after thorough review and public comment. Before authorizing some or 55 all of its schools to modify the number of instructional days per year,A. 5385 9 1 the school board, shall within its review, include, but not be limited 2 to, consideration of the following: 3 a. how the school or schools will maintain a quality education; 4 b. the reason for the request; 5 c. the educational benefit to pupils; 6 d. ways to negotiate the changes with the collective bargaining unit 7 representing the employees affected by the changes; 8 e. input from employees affected by the changes but not represented by 9 a collective bargaining agreement; 10 f. the impact of an alternative school week schedule on primary grade 11 pupils; and 12 g. the impact of an alternative school week schedule on working 13 parents who may be required to find child care services for their school 14 age children due to the shortened school week. 15 7-e. After review, but not limited to the considerations set forth in 16 subdivision seven-d of this section, a school board shall conduct at 17 least one public hearing, to gather public input, and to provide at 18 least thirty days notice to the public prior to such hearing. The 19 school board may authorize some or all of its schools to modify the 20 number of instructional days per year provided the total number of hours 21 of instruction per year is no less than the minimum number of instruc- 22 tional hours per year established by the commissioner's regulations for 23 that particular group of pupils. Subject to a policy developed and 24 adopted by the board of any school district, the board may provide for a 25 school term consisting of school hours. 26 7-f. A district failing to comply with the required minimum hours of 27 pupil instruction per year as established by the commissioner's regu- 28 lations, shall forfeit from its total state aid allocation an amount 29 determined by applying a ratio of the number of hours the district was 30 in noncompliance in relation to the required minimum number of hours as 31 established by the commissioner. Not later than August first, the board 32 of each district shall certify to the department the number of hours of 33 pupil instruction in the previous school year. If the district did not 34 provide at least the required minimum number of hours of pupil instruc- 35 tion as established by the commissioner, the deduction of state aid 36 shall be made in the following fiscal year from the first payment of 37 state school aid. 38 7-g. The commissioner shall promulgate regulations establishing the 39 minimum number of hours of pupil instruction per year. 40 8. No school shall be in session on a Saturday or a legal holiday, 41 except general election day, Washington's birthday and Lincoln's birth- 42 day, and except that driver education classes may be conducted on a 43 Saturday. A deficiency not exceeding four days or the equivalent number 44 of hours during any school year caused by teachers' attendance upon 45 conferences held by superintendents of schools of city school districts 46 or other school districts employing superintendents of schools shall be 47 excused by the commissioner, notwithstanding any provision of law, rule 48 or regulation to the contrary, a school district may elect to schedule 49 such conference days or the equivalent number of hours in the last two 50 weeks of August, subject to collective bargaining requirements pursuant 51 to article fourteen of the civil service law, and such days or the 52 equivalent number of hours shall be counted towards the required one 53 hundred eighty days of session, provided however, that such scheduling 54 shall not alter the obligation of the school district to provide trans- 55 portation to students in non-public elementary and secondary schools or 56 charter schools. At least two such conference days or the equivalentA. 5385 10 1 number of hours during such school year shall be dedicated to staff 2 attendance upon conferences providing staff development relating to 3 implementation of the new high learning standards and assessments, as 4 adopted by the board of regents. Notwithstanding any other provision of 5 law, rule or regulation to the contrary, school districts may elect to 6 use one or more of such allowable conference days or the equivalent 7 number of hours in units of not less than one hour each to provide staff 8 development activities relating to implementation of the new high learn- 9 ing standards and assessments. A district making such election may 10 provide such staff development on any day during which sessions are 11 allowed and apply such units to satisfy a deficiency in the length of 12 one or more daily or equivalent hourly sessions of instruction for 13 pupils as specified in regulations of the commissioner. The commissioner 14 shall assure that such conference days or the equivalent number of hours 15 include appropriate school violence prevention and intervention train- 16 ing, and may require that up to one such conference day or the equiv- 17 alent number of hours be dedicated for such purpose. 18 § 12. Subdivision 2-a of section 3635 of the education law, as amended 19 by chapter 424 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows: 20 2-a. The superintendent of each city school district, in a city having 21 a population in excess of one million, shall prepare a public school 22 calendar and shall notify officials of nonpublic schools to which trans- 23 portation has been requested not later than the first day of June in 24 each year, of the days on which the public schools [will] are scheduled 25 to be in session in the following school year. Such school district 26 which provides transportation to nonpublic schools shall provide such 27 transportation for the same number of days as the public schools are 28 open but shall not provide transportation services for more than one 29 hundred eighty days. Officials of each nonpublic school to which trans- 30 portation is provided by a city school district of a city having a popu- 31 lation in excess of one million may notify such district, not later than 32 the first day of July of each school year, of a maximum of five days, 33 exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays or legal holidays upon which public 34 schools are required to be closed, on which the public schools are sche- 35 duled to be closed, except that in any year in which the first or last 36 day of Passover and Easter Sunday are separated by more than seven days, 37 such officials may notify the district of a maximum of ten days, but 38 such school district will be required to provide for transportation to 39 such nonpublic school provided that such five or ten additional days, 40 whichever is applicable, are limited to the following: the Tuesday, 41 Wednesday, Thursday and Friday after Labor Day, Rosh Hashanah, Yom 42 Kippur, the week in which public schools are closed for spring recess, 43 December twenty-fourth and the week between Christmas day and New Year's 44 day, the Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday after the observance of 45 Washington's birthday, and, in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens only, 46 Anniversary Day as designated in section twenty-five hundred eighty-six 47 of this chapter. 48 § 13. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding 49 the date on which it shall have become a law.
