Senate File 2012

                                       SENATE FILE       
                                       BY  TINSMAN


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

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act adding an Iowa history requirement to the secondary
  2    education program.
  3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  4 TLSB 5505SS 80
  5 kh/sh/8

PAG LIN

  1  1    Section 1.  Section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph b, Code
  1  2 2003, is amended to read as follows:
  1  3    b.  Five units of the social studies including instruction
  1  4 in voting statutes and procedures, voter registration
  1  5 requirements, the use of paper ballots and voting machines in
  1  6 the election process, and the method of acquiring and casting
  1  7 an absentee ballot.  All students shall complete a minimum of
  1  8 one=half unit of United States government, one=half unit of
  1  9 Iowa history, and one unit of United States history.  The one=
  1 10 half unit of United States government shall include the voting
  1 11 procedure as described in this lettered paragraph and section
  1 12 280.9A.  The government instruction shall also include a study
  1 13 of the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of
  1 14 Rights contained in the Constitution and an assessment of a
  1 15 student's knowledge of the Constitution and the Bill of
  1 16 Rights.
  1 17    Sec. 2.  STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED.  In accordance
  1 18 with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring
  1 19 compliance with any state mandate included in this Act shall
  1 20 be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid
  1 21 received by the school district under section 257.16.  This
  1 22 specification of the payment of the state cost shall be deemed
  1 23 to meet all the state funding=related requirements of section
  1 24 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional state funding shall be
  1 25 necessary for the full implementation of this Act by and
  1 26 enforcement of this Act against all affected school districts.
  1 27                           EXPLANATION
  1 28    This bill requires school districts and nonpublic schools
  1 29 to offer coursework in Iowa history at the secondary level,
  1 30 and requires all secondary students to complete a minimum of
  1 31 one=half unit of Iowa history.
  1 32    The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code
  1 33 section 25B.3.  The bill requires that the state cost of any
  1 34 state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school
  1 35 district from state school foundation aid received by the
  2  1 school district under Code section 257.16.  The specification
  2  2 is deemed to constitute state compliance with any state
  2  3 mandate funding=related requirements of Code section 25B.2.
  2  4 The inclusion of this specification is intended to reinstate
  2  5 the requirement of political subdivisions to comply with any
  2  6 state mandates included in the bill.
  2  7 LSB 5505SS 80
  2  8 kh/sh/8