HOUSE FILE 2054

BY  J. TAYLOR

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to the state-designated career information and decision-making system administered by the department of education and including effective date and implementation provisions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  279.61A  State-designated career information and decision-making system —— oversight.
   1.  For the purposes of this section, “system” means the state-designated career information and decision-making system provided for in section 279.61, subsection 1, and administered by the state department of education in accordance with section 118 of the federal Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 109-270.
   2.  The department of education and the college student aid commission shall jointly submit to the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight on a quarterly basis a written report discussing in detail the effectiveness of the system in meeting the needs of school districts during the most recently completed calendar quarter.
   3.  The department of education and the college student aid commission shall seek feedback from school districts regarding the system at least forty-five days before a quarterly report is submitted. A school district or any interested person may submit information regarding the system directly to the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight information at any time to supplement the quarterly reports.
   4.  If at any time the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight determine that the system is not effectively meeting the needs of school districts, the committees shall issue a written report documenting such determination. The report shall include any deficiencies in the functionality of the system and any proposed solutions for such deficiencies. If the committees issue such a report, school districts shall not be required to participate in the system for the remainder of the school year in which the report is issued.
    Sec. 2.  IMPLEMENTATION.  The department of education and the college student aid commission shall submit the first quarterly report required by this Act to the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight within sixty days of the effective date of this Act. The first feedback period for school districts and interested persons required by this Act shall begin on the effective date of this Act.
    Sec. 3.  EFFECTIVE UPON ENACTMENT.  This Act, being deemed of immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment.
EXPLANATION
   This bill directs the department of education and the college student aid commission to jointly submit a written report on the state-designated career information and decision-making system provided for in Code section 279.61(1) and administered by the department to the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight on a quarterly basis. The report is required to discuss in detail the effectiveness of the system in meeting the needs of school districts.
   The bill directs the department of education and the college student aid commission to seek feedback from school districts regarding the system at least 45 days before a quarterly report is submitted. The bill provides that a school district or any interested person may submit information directly to the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight information at any time to supplement the reports.
   The bill provides that if at any time the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight determine that the system is not effectively meeting the needs of school districts, the committees shall issue a written report documenting such determination. The report shall include any deficiencies in the functionality of the system and any proposed solutions for such deficiencies. The bill provides that if the committees issue such a report, school districts shall not be required to participate in the system for the remainder of the school year in which the report is issued.
   The bill takes effect upon enactment. The bill directs the department of education and the college student aid commission to submit the first quarterly report required by the bill to the general assembly’s standing committees on government oversight within 60 days of the effective date of the bill. The bill provides that the first feedback period for school districts and interested persons required by the bill begins on the effective date of the bill.