HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 04-25-2017 - 1.B Information Item - 2017 Legislative Update K-12 Education Bills 2017 Legislative Update: K-12 Education Bills
As of April 17, 2017
Note:A slash between bill numbers indicates that identical legislation was filed in the House and Senate.A
semicolon between bill numbers indicates that the bills are similar, but not identical.
HB6
Summary: Creates a task force to study various weighted student formula funding models and develop a
new funding model for the elementary and secondary public schools of North Carolina based on a weighted
student formula.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB13
Summary: Provides that the average class size for kindergarten through third grade in a local school
administrative unit shall at no time exceed the funded allotment ratio of teachers to students in kindergarten
through third grade by more than three students.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB23/SB15
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to allot additional classroom teachers to schools containing
grades K-12 when consolidation is not feasible due to the geographic isolation of the school and the school
meets certain criteria for geographic isolation.
Status: HB23- In House committee; SB15—In Senate committee.
HB72/SB55
Summary: Authorizes the use of photographic or video evidence for the civil enforcement of violations for
passing a stopped school bus.
Status: HB72- In House committee; SB55—Passed Senate.
H B90
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to eliminate the use of the NC Final Exam and the analysis of
student work process and prohibits use of local final examinations or an analysis of student work process to
assess teacher performance and professional growth as part of the North Carolina Teacher Evaluation
System.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
H B97
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to modify the State graduation requirements to include one
required credit in arts education to be completed by each student at any time in grades 6-12. Effective with
students entering sixth grade in 2020.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
H B 116
Summary: Requires the State Boards of Education and local boards of education to educate those involved in
school athletic activities on sudden cardiac arrest and heat-related illnesses. Directs the State Board to
establish a database on the occurrence of injury and illnesses of student athletes participating in athletic
activities. Recodifies the statutory provisions on concussion safety and venue specific emergency action
plans.
Status: In House committee.
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H B 117
Summary: Requires local boards of education to adopt a policy requiring criminal background checks for
public school personnel employment. Requires written notice prior to suspending without pay a teacher who
is incarcerated or in custody. Provides for notification to the State Board of Education relevant criminal
history related to an educator's resignation.
Status: In House committee.
HB132
Summary: Creates the High Achieving Tuition Scholarship Program for scholarships for top-performing high
school students attending NC community colleges and appropriates funds for that purpose.
Status: In House committee.
HB 133
Summary: Amends the North Carolina Constitution to provide for the election of the State Board of
Education.
Status: In House committee.
HB136
Summary: Lowers the age when a child is compelled to begin attending school from seven years to six years.
Applies beginning with the 2017-18 school year.
Status: In House committee.
HB149
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education and local boards of education to implement a screening
program to identify students with Dyslexia and Dyscalculia prior to the start of the 2017-18 school year.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB155
Summary: Expands the activities qualifying for continuing licensure of retired teachers. Permits members of
the General Assembly to be exempt from continuing teacher education requirements.Allows local school
boards to hire retired principals and assistant principals to serve as interim principals.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB159
Summary: Extends the amount of time that a charter school has to elect to become a participating employer
in the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
H B170/SB390
Summary: Authorizes the Department of Public Instruction to use funds to conduct a pilot program on
integrated community-based adapted sports programs for students with disabilities.
Status: HB170- In House committee; SB390—In Senate committee.
HB174
Summary: Provides that a person who has a concealed handgun permit may carry a handgun on educational
property that is the location of both a school and a place of religious worship outside the operating hours of
the school.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
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HB176
Summary: Provides for changes to assist in preventing and detecting fraud,waste and abuse, and in ensuring
the fiscal integrity of the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System,the Retiree Health Benefit, and
the Local Governmental Employees' Retirement System.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
H B 183
Summary: Provides for clarifying and administrative changes to the Teachers' and State Employees'
Retirement System and the Local Government Employees' Retirement System Laws and related statutes.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB204
Summary: Directs local boards of education to establish school-justice partnerships and to provide training
in juvenile justice issues and cultural competency to school safety resource officers.
Status: In House committee.
HB233
Summary: Requires fair assessment of persons with criminal histories applying for public employment.
Provides criteria for disqualification from public employment.
Status: In House committee.
HB235
Summary: Modifies the criteria used to select teacher mentors.Applies to mentors selected for the 2017-18
school year.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB254/SB312
Summary: Allows the State Surplus Property Agency to distribute state surplus computes to nonprofit
entitles to refurbish and donate computers for the benefit of low-income students and households.
Status: HB254-In House committee; SB312—Passed Senate.
HB276, SB478
Summary: Creates the Tobacco Use Prevention Fund to prevent the use of new and emerging tobacco
products especially among youth. Creates regional tobacco use prevention programs covering all 100
counties in North Carolina to engage young people in tobacco use prevention teams in counties and school
districts across the region.
Status: HB276-In House committee; SB478—In Senate committee.
HB285/SB316
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to develop a training program on youth suicide awareness
and prevention and a risk referral protocol for school personnel.
Status: HB285—In House committee; SB316—In Senate committee.
H B304
Summary: Directs the Department of Transportation to maintain and keep in repair certain private
driveways used by public school buses for the purpose of turning the bus around.
Status: In House committee.
H B305/SB531
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Summary: Repeals the statutory authority for a local board of education to file a legal action challenging the
sufficiency of funds appropriated by the board of county commissioners.
Status: HB305 - In House committee; SB531—In Senate committee.
H B306
Summary: Requires all contractors and subcontractors doing business with the State or any political
subdivision of the State to use E-Verify.
Status: In House committee.
HB322
Summary: Increases the weight of school growth in the calculation of school performance scores.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB329
Summary: Creates an income tax credit for children who are home schooled.The credit is equal to one
thousand two hundred fifty dollars($1,250 per semester.
Status: In House committee.
HB333, HB437, SB166
Summary: These bills authorize counties to levy an additional local sales tax of up to one-half cent to raise
revenue for school construction needs or supplement teacher salaries.The additional local sales tax must be
approved by voters in the county via referendum.
Status: HB333—In House committee; HB437 -In House committee; SB166—In Senate committee.
HB336
Summary: Authorizes a holder of a limited provisional license to drive past 9:00PM when driving to or from
an extracurricular or athletic activity that the holder's high school or postsecondary school is sponsoring or
participating in.
Status: In House committee.
H B339/SB252
Summary: Reestablishes the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program. Provides that the purpose of the
Program is to recruit, prepare, and support students residing in or attending institutions of higher education
located in North Carolina for preparation as highly effective STEM or special education teachers in the State's
public schools.
Status: HB339 -In House committee; SB252—In Senate committee.
HB359
Summary: Clarifies high school student enrollment in community college career and technical education
courses.
Status: In House committee.
HB375
Summary: Provides additional flexibility to local boards of education in adopting school opening dates.
Authorizes all local boards of education to schedule school start dates as early as August 15 to align with the
start of local community colleges.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
Note: 53 local calendar flexibility bills have been filed for over 90 school districts.
SB215 Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Calendar Pilot—In Senate committee.
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HB389
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to establish a School Calendar Flexibility Pilot Program to
determine the impact of school calendar flexibility for opening and closing dates on student achievement and
summer internships and to identify and quantify the communities that can support local calendar control and
those that cannot.
School districts in the following counties are authorized to participate in the pilot program:Anson County,
Bladen County, Cabarrus County, Caldwell County,Cherokee County, Cleveland County, Davidson County,
Duplin County, Graham County, Greene County, Guilford County, Martin County, McDowell County, Mitchell
County, Northampton County, Robeson County, Rowan County,Warren County,Washington County, and
Wilson County.Any local board of education authorized to participate in the Program may elect not to
participate.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
H B 406; HB436
Summary: Repeals the legislative authority of Orange County to levy impact fees.
Status: In House committee.
HB417
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to repeal the North Carolina Standard Courses of Study
adopted to conform to the standards of the Common Core.
Status: In House committee.
H B432/SB343
Summary: Requires internet publication of legal notices and allows the governing board of counties and
cities to opt to provide for public notices to be given electronically.Allows counties to opt to post legal
advertisements and notices on the county web site for a fee with monies collected to be used for local
supplements for teach salary and other county needs.
Status: HB432—In House committee; SB343—In Senate committee.
HB450
Summary: Provides for various changes to the career and technical education statutes.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB458
Summary: Modifies school performance grades(the A-F grading system)to provide that all schools receive a
school performance grade for school achievement and a school performance grade for school growth.
Requires the State Board of Education to modify the Annual School Report Card to designate and weigh
school accountability indicators consistent with the Every Student Succeeds Act.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
H B481
Summary: Restores the statutory directive for allocation of lottery funds including the requirement that 40%
of lottery revenue go to the Public School Building Capital Fund (A provision in the 2013 budget removed all
lottery allocation guidelines from statute and made the annual distribution a decision of the General
Assembly).
Status: In House committee.
HB482
Summary: Clarifies that a local board of education's acquisition of a school site/facility is subject to the
approval of the board of county commissioners as to the amount to be spent.
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Status: In House committee.
HB532
Summary: Modifies the governance and operation of the University of North Carolina laboratory schools.
Status: Passed House; in Senate committee.
HB540
Summary: Awards a two thousand four hundred dollar pay increase to teachers and to state employees
earning less than one hundred thousand dollars and appropriates funds for those purposes.
Status: In House committee.
HB554
Summary: Directs excess receipts in the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund to be transferred to the School
Technology Fund in the same fiscal year to be used toward payment of the 2008 court judgement on civil
penalties,fines and forfeitures. Directs the Legislative Research Commission to study ways to satisfy the
remainder of the judgment.
Status: In House committee.
HB556
Summary: Establishes an Office of Early Childhood Education. Provides that the Office will be located
administratively in the Department of Public Instruction but will exercise its prescribed powers independently
of the Department.
Status: In House committee.
HB570
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to adopt a policy to be implemented by the local boards of
education to ensure academic freedom in the classroom. Provides minimum elements of what the policy
must include, such as encouraging students and educators to respect the ideological, political, religious, or
nonreligious viewpoints held by all in the classroom.
Status: In House committee.
HB600/SB511
Summary: Establishes a new mechanism for financing new school construction by authorizing school
systems in Tier 1 counties to use state education funds to enter into lease agreements with a private
developer to construct schools. Provides that the State is relieved from any responsibility for the lease
payments, even if state funds to the school system are decreased (the bills are silent as to whether any debt
is assumed by the developer or the county). Requires developers to follow statutory bidding procedures
when choosing a contractor.
Status: HB600—In House committee; SB511—In Senate committee.
H B603/SB637
Summary: Appropriates funds for the Small Farms to Healthier Schools Initiative, a partnership between
school nutrition programs and local farmers.
Status: HB603 -In House committee; SB637—In Senate committee.
HB612
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education to develop and identify a comprehensive firearm education
course that can be offered as an elective at the high school level.
Status: In House committee.
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HB638
Summary: Expands lottery advertising to generate additional lottery revenue. Provides that each school
district in Tier 1 and 2 would be eligible for up to$10 million per year in additional school construction lottery
funds through the increased revenue.
Status: In House committee.
HB641
Summary: Provides funds to allow for school bus drivers to receive a raise of up to$2.00 per hour.
Status: In House committee.
H B 643
Summary: Establishes the Joint Legislative Study Committee on Civics and Economics Education. Directs the
Committee to study such topics as improving the required civic literacy course and enhancing students'
financial literacy and understanding of the principles of economics.
Status: In House committee.
HB644, SB662
Summary: Directs the Department of Public Instruction to establish the Charter School Transportation Grant
Program to award grant funds to charter schools meeting certain requirements.
Status: HB644-In House committee; SB662—In Senate committee.
H B658/SB280
Summary: Appropriates fund for early literacy initiatives.
Status: HB658—In House committee; SB280- In Senate committee.
HB670
Summary: Provides that a threat of mass violence on educational property or at an extracurricular activity is
a felony.
Status: In House committee.
HB678
Summary: Requires that a non-public school provide evidence of accreditation in order to be eligible to
receive public funds through the state's voucher program.
Status: In House committee.
HB681
Summary: Provides procedures to decrease the burden on military spouses in obtaining NC teacher licenses.
Status: In House committee.
HB704
Summary: Creates a Joint Legislative Study Committee to look into whether legislation should be introduced
to allow for the breakup of previously merged school systems. Directs the Committee to consider how to
divide school districts and whether a local referendum or petition would be needed before a district could be
split.
Status: In House committee.
HB751
Summary: Requires all students who receive a high school diploma endorsement to demonstrate a certain
level of reading achievement.
Status: In House committee.
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HB779
Summary: Provides various changes to the statutes governing charter schools.
Status: In House committee.
HB768
Summary: Requires school districts and charter schools to report to the Department of Public Instruction the
amount of energy and water used at each building during the previous calendar year. Establishes a database
of information concerning energy and water usage by public schools,to set usage goals and to provide a
mechanism for loans to school districts for projects that will increase energy and water efficiencies.
Status: In House committee.
HB825
Summary: Requires certain public schools and child care facilities to test drinking water for the presence of
lead.
Status: In House committee.
HB826
Summary: Provides that if a "D" or"F"school/school district is meeting expected growth, it cannot be
considered "low-performing."
Status: In House committee.
HB833
Summary: Establishes an Office of Driver Education Services within the Department of Public Instruction to
strengthen the oversight and accountability of the State's Driver Education Program.
Status: In House committee.
HB839, SB318, SB321
Summary: Allows local boards of education to set a school calendar that meets the instructional needs of
school districts identified as low-performing.
Status: HB839 -In House committee; SB318—In Senate committee; SB321- In Senate committee.
HB841
Summary: Directs the State Superintendent of Public Instruction to study and make recommendations
regarding the extent to which the SAT and ACT tests align with the English language arts and mathematics
portions of the Standard Course of Study. Provides various reporting requirements for local school districts.
Status: In House committee.
HB845
Summary: Directs schools,when economically feasible,to establish a green cleaning policy and exclusively
purchase and use environmentally sensitive cleaning products.
Status: In House committee.
HB848
Summary: Provides that school systems derive sixty percent of their energy needs from renewable energy by
2030.
Status: In House committee.
HB855
Summary: Designated the first full week in May of each year as Teacher Appreciation Day in North Carolina.
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Status: In House committee.
SB146
Summary: Raises the age of juvenile jurisdiction to include sixteen-and seventeen-year-olds, except in the
case of certain felonies. Implements School-Justice Partnerships statewide to reduce school-based referrals
to the juvenile court system.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB147
Summary: Reenacts the Sales and Use Tax Holiday for school supplies.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB149
Summary: Modifies the calculation of School Performance Grades and directs the Department of Public
Instruction to study potential factors to include in the calculation of grades.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB159
Summary: Permits students who attend a public school, private school, or home school without an
interscholastic athletics program in a given sport or particular extracurricular activity to participate in that
activity in a public high school. Permits public high school students without access to a particular sport or
extracurricular to participate in that sport/activity at the closest public high school offering the sport/activity.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB254
Summary: An Act to Permit Students Who Attend a Public School or Home School Without an Interscholastic
Athletics Program in a Given Sport or a Particular Extracurricular Activity to Participate in that Activity at a
Public High School.The bills would also require that public high school students without access to a particular
sport or extracurricular be allowed to participate in that sport/activity at the closest public high school that
offers it.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB166
Summary: Provides counties greater flexibility to use local option sales tax revenues for education, per
referendum.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB169
Summary: Expands Teaching Excellence Bonuses for certain teachers who would have received a bonus.
Status: Passed Senate; In House committee.
SB184
Summary: Provides additional methods for proving that a stopped vehicle passed by another motor vehicle
is a "school bus." Requires local school districts to provide instruction in school bus safety to students and
directs the Department of Public Instruction to study how the safety of children boarding and exiting school
buses may be increased.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB234
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Summary: Appropriates a portion of lottery revenues to reform the compensation structure for school-
based administrators and for K-12 school construction based upon county need and ability to pay.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB259
Summary: Restores education-based salary supplements for all teachers and instructional support
personnel.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB291
Summary: Appropriates funds to provide equal access for both public and nonpublic North Carolina school
students to NC Virtual Public School Courses.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB296
Summary: Makes certain revisions to state law concerning requirements for road improvements adjacent to
schools. Limits city requirements for street improvements related to schools.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB365
Summary: Allows school bus to operate a blue light when transporting school students over an established
route to and from school for the regularly scheduled school day.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB380
Summary: Encourages high school students to attend their local community colleges for academic or
vocational classes.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB439
Summary: Appropriates funds to eliminate the pre-kindergarten waitlist statewide.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB442
Summary: Directs the State Board of Education and the Department of Public Instruction, in collaboration
with others to develop recommendations to further the teaching and student learning of computational
thinking and computer science in NC K-12 schools.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB443
Summary: Provides that teacher assistants receiving funds to attend an educator preparation program
continue to receive pay while student teaching. Requires school districts to provide ten percent of the award
amount to cover the coast of required books and materials for the educator preparation program.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB473
Summary: Requires the principal of each school to report noncompliance with statutory class size
requirements for K-3 to the superintendent on the first school day of each month.
Status: In Senate committee.
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SB483
Summary: Raises the standards of assessments administered to students attending a school through the
Opportunity Scholarship school voucher program. Provides that voucher schools publicize data about the
performance of their voucher students.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB518
Summary: Directs the Legislative Research Commission to study budget responsibility, accountability and
transparency in schools. Requires the study to include the expenditures of the 115 school districts for the
past five years.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB527
Summary: Requires that all students in K-5 participate in at least three, supervised,one-hour physical
education classes each school week. Directs the State Board of Education to require a one-credit course on
physical education each year in grades 6-12.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB541
Summary: Modifies class size requirements for K-3 and requires that a local school district not in compliance
with individual class size requirements compensate teachers for the increased workload until the class size is
corrected or the local board receives a waiver.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB542
Summary: Provides, subject to a state vote,for the issuance of$1.9 billion general obligation bonds for the
State to provide funds for public school facilities through grants to counties for public school capital outlay
projects.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB448
Summary: Authorizes local school boards to contract with professor at universities and community colleges
to teach core academic subjects in any grade. Provides that the professor would not have to obtain a
teaching license but would be subject to certain criteria established by the State Board of Education.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB558
Summary: Establishes the School Road Improvement Grant Program to award grand funds to local boards of
education and charter schools to be used only to make necessary improvements to State-maintained roads
due to new public school construction or the expansion of existing public school facilities.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB562
Summary: Requires boards of county commissioners to appropriate a per pupil amount of funds directly to
charter schools for each student enrolled in the charter school who resides in a school district located in the
county.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB586
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Summary: Requires the civics test identical to the civics portion of the U.S. naturalization test to be
administered in high schools.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB603
Summary: Establishes Education Savings Accounts(ESAs)for students with disabilities in North Carolina.
Provides that ESAs are school vouchers for parents to use to pay for various types of educational services for
their children.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB623
Summary: Adds nonprofits corporations to the entities that school boards may enter into agreements with
to provide for the use of school buses to provide transportation on holidays,weekends, or during any break
between school years.
Status: In Senate committee.
SB647
Summary: Directs the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee to study any minimal changes
required to the school performance grade system that may be necessary to comply with the requirements of
the Every Student Succeeds Act.
Status: In Senate committee.
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