House File 779 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE
BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
(SUCCESSOR TO HF 6)
Passed House, Date Passed Senate, Date
Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays
Approved
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to the compulsory school attendance age and
2 providing effective dates.
3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
4 TLSB 1326HV 82
5 kh/gg/14
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. Section 299.1A, Code 2007, is amended to read
1 2 as follows:
1 3 299.1A COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE AGE.
1 4 A Except as provided in section 299.2, a child who has
1 5 reached the age of six and is under sixteen eighteen years of
1 6 age by September 15 is of compulsory attendance age. However,
1 7 if a child who is receiving competent private instruction and
1 8 who is under sixteen years of age by September 15 or who
1 9 reaches the age of sixteen on or after September 15 is of
1 10 compulsory attendance age. If a child enrolled in a school
1 11 district or accredited nonpublic school reaches the age of
1 12 sixteen eighteen on or after September 15, the child remains
1 13 of compulsory age until the end of the regular school
1 14 calendar.
1 15 Sec. 2. Section 299.2, unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2007,
1 16 is amended to read as follows:
1 17 Section Sections 299.1 and 299.1A shall not apply to any
1 18 child:
1 19 Sec. 3. Section 299A.8, Code 2007, is amended to read as
1 20 follows:
1 21 299A.8 DUAL ENROLLMENT.
1 22 If a parent, guardian, or legal custodian of a child who is
1 23 receiving competent private instruction under this chapter or
1 24 a child over compulsory age who is receiving private
1 25 instruction submits a request, the child shall also be
1 26 registered in a public school for dual enrollment purposes.
1 27 If the child is enrolled in a public school district for dual
1 28 enrollment purposes, the child shall be permitted to
1 29 participate in any academic activities in the district and
1 30 shall also be permitted to participate on the same basis as
1 31 public school children in any extracurricular activities
1 32 available to children in the child's grade or group, and the
1 33 parent, guardian, or legal custodian shall not be required to
1 34 pay the costs of any annual evaluation under this chapter. If
1 35 the child is enrolled for dual enrollment purposes, the child
2 1 shall be included in the public school's basic enrollment
2 2 under section 257.6. A pupil who is participating only in
2 3 extracurricular activities shall be counted under section
2 4 257.6, subsection 1, paragraph "f". A pupil enrolled in
2 5 grades nine through twelve under this section shall be counted
2 6 in the same manner as a shared=time pupil under section 257.6,
2 7 subsection 1, paragraph "c".
2 8 Sec. 4. COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE WORKING GROUP. The
2 9 department of education shall convene a working group
2 10 comprised of the director of the department of education, or
2 11 the director's designee, and other education stakeholders
2 12 appointed by the department to review supports for students
2 13 affected by an increase in the compulsory attendance age from
2 14 sixteen to eighteen years of age. The working group shall
2 15 consider, at a minimum, the necessity of expansion of support
2 16 programs and services for such students, online at=risk
2 17 academy courses, career academies, and current at=risk
2 18 allowable growth provisions, and full funding of the
2 19 instructional support levy. The working group shall submit
2 20 its findings and recommendations, including any proposed
2 21 changes in policy or statute, to the state board of education
2 22 and the general assembly by January 14, 2008.
2 23 Sec. 5. STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED. In accordance
2 24 with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring
2 25 compliance with any state mandate included in this Act shall
2 26 be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid
2 27 received by the school district under section 257.16. This
2 28 specification of the payment of the state cost shall be deemed
2 29 to meet all the state funding=related requirements of section
2 30 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional state funding shall be
2 31 necessary for the full implementation of this Act by and
2 32 enforcement of this Act against all affected school districts.
2 33 Sec. 6. EFFECTIVE DATES. The section of this Act
2 34 providing for a compulsory attendance working group takes
2 35 effect July 1, 2007, and the remainder of the Act takes effect
3 1 July 1, 2008.
3 2 EXPLANATION
3 3 This bill raises the compulsory school attendance age from
3 4 16 to 18 years of age for students other than those receiving
3 5 competent private instruction. The bill includes technical
3 6 amendments to eliminate a reference to the compulsory
3 7 attendance age for purposes of dual enrollment and to exempt
3 8 children who meet conditions existing in Code section 299.2.
3 9 The bill also directs the department of education to convene a
3 10 compulsory attendance working group.
3 11 The working group is to review supports for affected
3 12 students and to consider the necessity of expanding support
3 13 programs and services, online at=risk academy courses, career
3 14 academies, current at=risk allowable growth provisions, and
3 15 full funding of the instructional support levy. The working
3 16 group must submit a report to the general assembly and the
3 17 department of education by January 15, 2008.
3 18 The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code
3 19 section 25B.3. The bill requires that the state cost of any
3 20 state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school
3 21 district from state school foundation aid received by the
3 22 school district under Code section 257.16. The specification
3 23 is deemed to constitute state compliance with any state
3 24 mandate funding=related requirements of Code section 25B.2.
3 25 The inclusion of this specification is intended to reinstate
3 26 the requirement of political subdivisions to comply with any
3 27 state mandates included in the bill.
3 28 The provision relating to the working group takes effect
3 29 July 1, 2007, while the remainder of the bill takes effect
3 30 July 1, 2008.
3 31 LSB 1326HV 82
3 32 kh:nh/gg/14