HOUSE FILE 24

BY  J. TAYLOR

A BILL FOR

An Act providing for administration of a civics examination by school districts and accredited nonpublic schools as a condition of high school graduation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

   Section 1.  Section 256.9, Code 2011, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  62.  Approve alternative civics assessments pursuant to section 280.9A, subsection 1, paragraph “b”.
   Sec. 2.  Section 280.9A, subsection 1, Code 2011, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  The board of directors of each local public school district and the authorities in charge of each nonpublic school shall require that all students in grades nine through twelve successfully complete or pass, as applicable, as a condition of graduation, instruction the following:
   a.  Instruction in American history and the governments of Iowa and the United States, including instruction in voting statutes and procedures, voter registration requirements, the use of paper ballots and voting systems in the election process, and the method of acquiring and casting an absentee ballot.
   b.  A civics examination. The examination shall be the same as, and shall include all questions used in, the latest available civics examination administered by the United States citizenship and immigration services office. The proctored examination shall be completed without ancillary materials and only students who score a proficiency of seventy-five percent or higher shall be considered to have successfully passed the examination. Alternative assessment measures approved by the department of education pursuant to section 256.9, subsection 62, may be administered to children requiring special education as defined in section 256B.2, subsection 1, and to students identified as limited English proficient pursuant to section 280.4.
   Sec. 3.  STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED.  In accordance with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring compliance with any state mandate included in this Act shall be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid received by the school district under section 257.16. This specification of the payment of the state cost shall be deemed to meet all of the state funding-related requirements of section 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional state funding shall be necessary for the full implementation of this Act by and enforcement of this Act against all affected school districts.
EXPLANATION
   This bill requires students enrolled in school districts and accredited nonpublic schools to successfully pass as a condition of graduation a proctored civics examination that is the same as the latest available civics examination administered by the U.S. citizenship and immigration services office. Students are prohibited from using ancillary materials during the examination and must achieve a score of at least 75 percent to successfully pass the examination.
   The director of the department of education is tasked with approving alternative assessment measures that school districts and accredited nonpublic schools may administer to children requiring special education and to English language learners.
   This bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code section 25B.3. The bill requires that the state cost of any state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid received by the school district under Code section 257.16. The specification is deemed to constitute state compliance with any state mandate funding-related requirements of Code section 25B.2. The inclusion of this specification is intended to reinstate the requirement of political subdivisions to comply with any state mandates included in the bill.