House File 143

                                       HOUSE FILE       
                                       BY  CONNORS


    Passed House,  Date               Passed Senate, Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act declaring a truant a child in need of assistance and
  2    establishing a penalty for aiding a child to be truant.
  3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  4 TLSB 2159YH 80
  5 kh/pj/5

PAG LIN

  1  1    Section 1.  Section 232.2, subsection 6, Code 2003, is
  1  2 amended by adding the following new paragraph:
  1  3    NEW PARAGRAPH.  r.  Whose parent, guardian, or custodian is
  1  4 unwilling or unable to cause the child to attend school as
  1  5 required under section 299.1.
  1  6    Sec. 2.  Section 299.8, Code 2003, is amended to read as
  1  7 follows:
  1  8    299.8  "TRUANT" TRUANT DEFINED.
  1  9    Any child of compulsory attendance age who fails to attend
  1 10 school as provided in this chapter, or as required by the
  1 11 school board's or school governing body's attendance policy,
  1 12 or who fails to attend competent private instruction under
  1 13 chapter 299A, without reasonable excuse for the absence, shall
  1 14 be deemed to be a truant.  A finding that a child is truant,
  1 15 however, shall not by itself mean that the child is a child in
  1 16 need of assistance within the meaning of chapter 232 and shall
  1 17 not be the sole basis for a child in need of assistance
  1 18 petition.
  1 19    Sec. 3.  Section 709A.1, Code 2003, is amended by adding
  1 20 the following new subsection:
  1 21    NEW SUBSECTION.  6.  For a person to knowingly encourage a
  1 22 child to be truant as defined in section 299.8, or for a
  1 23 person to allow the person's residence to be used to
  1 24 facilitate the truancy of a child.
  1 25    Sec. 4.  IMPLEMENTATION.  Section 25B.2, subsection 3,
  1 26 shall not apply to this Act.
  1 27                           EXPLANATION
  1 28    This bill defines as a "child in need of assistance" a
  1 29 child whose parent, guardian, or custodian is unwilling or
  1 30 unable to cause the child to attend school.  Also under the
  1 31 bill, a person who knowingly encourages a child to be truant
  1 32 or allows the person's residence to be used to facilitate the
  1 33 truancy of a child is guilty of a simple misdemeanor.
  1 34    The bill may include a state mandate.  However, the bill
  1 35 nullifies the state mandate funding requirement provided in
  2  1 Code section 25B.2, subsection 3.
  2  2 LSB 2159YH 80
  2  3 kh/pj/5