House File 2547 - Reprinted HOUSE FILE 2547 BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION (SUCCESSOR TO HF 2254) (As Amended and Passed by the House March 12, 2024 ) A BILL FOR An Act relating to education, including by requiring school 1 engagement meetings and attendance cooperation proceedings 2 when children are absent from school, requiring school 3 districts to restrict student use of cellular phones and 4 smartphones, modifying provisions related to open enrollment 5 of truant students, and modifying penalties. 6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 7 HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md

H.F. 2547 DIVISION I 1 COMPULSORY EDUCATION 2 Section 1. Section 299.1, Code 2024, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 299.1 Attendance requirements —— attendance policies . 5 1. Except as provided in section 299.2 , the parent, 6 guardian, or legal or actual custodian of a child who is of 7 compulsory attendance age shall cause the child to attend some 8 public school or an accredited nonpublic school, or place 9 the child under competent private instruction or independent 10 private instruction in accordance with the provisions of 11 chapter 299A , during a school year, as defined under section 12 279.10 . 13 2. a. The board of directors of a public school district 14 or the governing body of an accredited nonpublic school shall 15 set the number of days or hours of required attendance for the 16 schools under its control. 17 b. The board of directors of a public school district or 18 the governing body of an accredited nonpublic school may, by 19 resolution, require attendance for the entire time when the 20 schools are in session in any school year and . 21 3. The board of directors of a public school district or the 22 governing board of an accredited nonpublic school shall adopt a 23 policy or rules relating to the reasons considered to be valid 24 or acceptable excuses for absence from school , in consultation 25 with the county attorney of the county in which the public 26 school district’s or accredited nonpublic school’s central 27 administrative office is located, related to absenteeism and 28 truancy . 29 4. a. The board of directors of a public school district 30 or the governing body of an accredited nonpublic school 31 shall adopt a policy or rules relating to children who 32 are chronically absent. The policy or rules must contain 33 provisions that clearly explain all of the following: 34 (1) How the board of directors or the governing body 35 -1- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 1/ 11

H.F. 2547 determines whether a child is chronically absent. 1 (2) The different interventions that the board of directors 2 or the governing body may use when a child is chronically 3 absent. 4 (3) The different penalties associated with a child being 5 chronically absent. 6 b. The policy or rules adopted by the board of directors of 7 a public school district or the governing body of an accredited 8 nonpublic school pursuant to paragraph “a” must not apply to any 9 child: 10 (1) Who has completed the requirements for graduation in a 11 public school district or an accredited school or has obtained 12 a high school equivalency diploma under chapter 259A. 13 (2) Who is excused for sufficient reason by any court of 14 record or judge. 15 (3) While attending religious services or receiving 16 religious instructions. 17 (4) Who is unable to attend school due to legitimate medical 18 reasons. 19 (5) Who has an individualized education program that 20 affects the child’s attendance. 21 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 299.1C County attorney. 22 The county attorney of the county in which the public 23 school’s or accredited nonpublic school’s central 24 administrative office is located shall be responsible 25 for the enforcement of this chapter, as described in this 26 chapter. Actions instituted by a county attorney pursuant 27 to this chapter shall be instituted in the county in which 28 the public school’s or accredited nonpublic school’s central 29 administrative office is located. 30 Sec. 3. Section 299.6, subsection 1, unnumbered paragraph 31 1, Code 2024, is amended to read as follows: 32 Any person who violates a mediation agreement under section 33 299.5A the terms of an absenteeism prevention plan or an 34 attendance cooperation agreement entered into under section 35 -2- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 2/ 11

H.F. 2547 299.12 , who is referred for prosecution under section 299.5A 1 299.12 and is convicted of a violation of any of the provisions 2 of sections 299.1 through 299.5 , who violates any of the 3 provisions of sections 299.1 through 299.5 , or who refuses 4 to participate in mediation under section 299.5A a school 5 engagement meeting or an attendance cooperation proceeding 6 under section 299.12 , commits a public offense. 7 Sec. 4. Section 299.8, Code 2024, is amended to read as 8 follows: 9 299.8 “Truant” defined. 10 Any child of compulsory attendance age , to whom the 11 exceptions described in section 299.2 do not apply, who fails 12 to attend school as provided in this chapter , or as required 13 by the school board’s or school governing body’s attendance 14 policy, or who fails to attend competent private instruction 15 or independent private instruction under chapter 299A , without 16 reasonable excuse for the absence, shall be deemed to be 17 a truant has been absent from school, for any reason, for 18 at least twenty percent of the days or hours in the school 19 calendar . A finding that a child is truant, however, shall not 20 by itself mean that the child is a child in need of assistance 21 within the meaning of chapter 232 and shall not be the sole 22 basis for a child in need of assistance petition. 23 Sec. 5. Section 299.11, subsection 2, Code 2024, is amended 24 to read as follows: 25 2. The truancy officer shall promptly institute proceedings 26 against any person violating any of the provisions of sections 27 299.1 through 299.5A 299.5 . 28 Sec. 6. Section 299.12, Code 2024, is amended by striking 29 the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following: 30 299.12 Failure to attend. 31 1. Definitions. As used in this section: 32 a. “Chronically absent” means any absence from school 33 for more than ten percent of the days or hours in the school 34 calendar established pursuant to section 279.10 by a public 35 -3- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 3/ 11

H.F. 2547 school. 1 b. “School official” means an employee of a public school 2 whose job duties involve identifying children who are at risk 3 for becoming chronically absent, creating interventions to 4 limit the rate of student absenteeism, and participating in the 5 legal process related to student absenteeism. 6 2. Chronic absenteeism. a. When a child becomes 7 chronically absent, a school official shall send a notice by 8 certified mail to the county attorney of the county in which 9 the public school’s central administrative office is located, 10 and to the child’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual 11 custodian of the child, if the child is not an emancipated 12 minor, or to the child, if the child is an emancipated minor, 13 that includes information related to the child’s absences from 14 school and the policies and disciplinary processes associated 15 with additional absences. 16 b. A school official may send the notice described in 17 paragraph “a” prior to a child at risk of becoming chronically 18 absent if all of the following requirements are satisfied: 19 (1) The county attorney of the county in which the public 20 school’s central administrative office is located and the 21 board of directors of the public school agree to the amount 22 of absences that will lead to the school official sending the 23 notice. 24 (2) The amount of absences that will lead to the school 25 official sending the notice is described in the school’s 26 student handbook. 27 3. School engagement meeting. a. (1) If a child is absent 28 from school for greater than or equal to fifteen percent, but 29 less than eighteen percent, of the days or hours in the school 30 calendar, a school official shall attempt to find the cause 31 for the child’s absences and shall initiate and participate 32 in a school engagement meeting. The purpose of the school 33 engagement meeting is to identify the child’s barriers to 34 attendance and the interventions that may be used to improve 35 -4- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 4/ 11

H.F. 2547 the child’s attendance. 1 (2) A school official may initiate and participate in a 2 school engagement meeting as provided in subparagraph (1) prior 3 to a child being absent from school for greater than or equal 4 to fifteen percent of the days or hours in a school calendar. 5 b. All of the following individuals shall participate in the 6 school engagement meeting: 7 (1) The child. 8 (2) The child’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual 9 custodian, if the child is not an emancipated minor. 10 (3) A school official. 11 c. (1) During the school engagement meeting, the 12 participants shall create and sign an agreement that shall be 13 known as an absenteeism prevention plan. Each participant 14 signing the absenteeism prevention plan shall receive a copy of 15 the plan. The absenteeism prevention plan shall identify the 16 causes of the child’s absences and the future responsibilities 17 of each participant related to the child’s attendance. 18 (2) A school official shall monitor the participants’ 19 compliance with the terms of the absenteeism prevention plan. 20 The school official shall contact the participants at least 21 once each week during the remainder of the school calendar to 22 monitor the performance of the participants under the plan. 23 d. During the school engagement meeting, the participants 24 may initiate referrals to any services or counseling that the 25 participants believe may be appropriate under the circumstances 26 to improve the child’s attendance. 27 e. If the participants in the school engagement meeting fail 28 to enter into an absenteeism prevention plan, or if the child 29 or the child’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian 30 violates a term of the absenteeism prevention plan or fails 31 to participate in the school engagement meeting, the county 32 attorney shall initiate an attendance cooperation proceeding 33 under subsection 4 and shall serve a notice of such initiation 34 on the child’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual custodian, 35 -5- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 5/ 11

H.F. 2547 if the child is not an emancipated minor, or on the child, if 1 the child is an emancipated minor, in the manner provided by 2 the rules of civil procedure for service of an original notice. 3 f. This subsection is not applicable to a child who is 4 receiving competent private instruction or independent private 5 instruction in accordance with the requirements of chapter 6 299A. 7 4. Absenteeism arbitration. a. (1) When a child becomes 8 truant, a school official shall send a notice to the county 9 attorney of the county in which the public school’s central 10 administrative office is located. Within a reasonable time 11 after receipt of the notice, the county attorney shall initiate 12 and participate in an attendance cooperation proceeding under 13 this subsection. 14 (2) A school official may send a notice to the county 15 attorney, and a county attorney may initiate and participate 16 in an attendance cooperation proceeding under subparagraph (1) 17 prior to a child becoming truant. 18 b. The county attorney of the county in which the public 19 school’s central administrative office is located shall 20 designate any of the following individuals to serve as an 21 arbitrator during the attendance cooperation proceeding: 22 (1) A judge of this state or the United States. 23 (2) A neutral, third-party attorney who is licensed to 24 practice law in this state. 25 c. All of the following individuals shall participate in 26 the attendance cooperation proceeding before the arbitrator 27 selected under paragraph “b” : 28 (1) The child. 29 (2) The child’s parent, guardian, or legal or actual 30 custodian, if the child is not an emancipated minor. 31 (3) A school official. 32 (4) The county attorney of the county in which the public 33 school’s central administrative office is located, or the 34 county attorney’s designee. 35 -6- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 6/ 11

H.F. 2547 d. During the attendance cooperation proceeding, the 1 participants shall attempt to find the cause for the child’s 2 absences, identify the child’s barriers to attendance, and 3 identify the interventions that may be used to improve the 4 child’s attendance. 5 e. (1) During the attendance cooperation proceeding, the 6 participants shall create and sign an attendance cooperation 7 agreement. The arbitrator shall receive a copy of the 8 attendance cooperation agreement, and each participant signing 9 the agreement shall also receive a copy. The attendance 10 cooperation agreement shall identify the causes of the child’s 11 absences and the future responsibilities of each participant 12 related to the child’s attendance. The arbitrator may require 13 any clause or provision to be included in the attendance 14 cooperation agreement if the arbitrator reasonably believes 15 such clause or provision will improve the child’s attendance. 16 (2) A school official shall monitor the participants’ 17 compliance with the terms of the attendance cooperation 18 agreement. The attendance cooperation agreement shall require 19 a school official to periodically contact the participants 20 to monitor the performance of the participants under the 21 agreement. 22 f. During the attendance cooperation proceeding, the 23 participants may initiate referrals to any services or 24 counseling that the participants believe may be appropriate 25 under the circumstances to improve the child’s attendance. 26 g. If the participants in the attendance cooperation 27 proceeding fail to enter into an attendance cooperation 28 agreement, or if the child or the child’s parent, guardian, or 29 legal or actual custodian violates a term of the agreement or 30 fails to participate in the proceeding, the school official may 31 refer the child to juvenile court or may refer the matter to 32 the county attorney for prosecution within the county where the 33 school’s central administrative office is located. 34 h. The public school and the child’s parent, guardian, or 35 -7- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 7/ 11

H.F. 2547 legal or actual custodian, if the child is not an emancipated 1 minor child, or the child, if the child is an emancipated 2 minor, shall equally share the costs of the attendance 3 cooperation proceeding. 4 i. This subsection is not applicable to a child who is 5 receiving competent private instruction or independent private 6 instruction in accordance with the requirements of chapter 7 299A. 8 Sec. 7. Section 299.13, Code 2024, is amended to read as 9 follows: 10 299.13 Civil enforcement. 11 A person shall not disseminate or redisseminate information 12 shared with the person pursuant to section 299.5A or 299.12 , 13 unless specifically authorized to do so by section 217.30 , 14 299.5A, or 299.12 . Unless a prohibited dissemination or 15 redissemination of information is subject to injunction 16 or sanction under other state or federal law, an action 17 for judicial enforcement may be brought in accordance with 18 this section . An aggrieved person, the attorney general, 19 or a county attorney may seek judicial enforcement of the 20 requirements of this section in an action brought against the 21 public school or accredited nonpublic school or any other 22 person who has been granted access to information pursuant to 23 section 299.5A or 299.12 . Suits to enforce this section shall 24 be brought in the district court for the county in which the 25 information was disseminated or redisseminated. Upon a finding 26 by a preponderance of the evidence that a person has violated 27 this section , the court shall issue an injunction punishable 28 by civil contempt ordering the person in violation of this 29 section to comply with the requirements of, and to refrain from 30 any violations of section 299.5A or 299.12 with respect to the 31 dissemination or redissemination of information shared with the 32 person pursuant to section 299.5A or 299.12 . 33 Sec. 8. REPEAL. Section 299.5A, Code 2024, is repealed. 34 Sec. 9. SCHOOL DISTRICTS —— POLICIES RELATED TO PORTABLE 35 -8- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 8/ 11

H.F. 2547 ELECTRONIC DEVICES. 1 1. a. On or before December 31, 2024, each school district, 2 shall develop a policy that restricts student use of cellular 3 telephones and smartphones during classroom instructional time. 4 b. The policy shall describe with specificity the 5 expectations related to student use of cellular telephones and 6 smartphones during the school day and disciplinary actions the 7 school district will take if a student violates the policy. 8 c. The policy shall apply to all attendance centers within 9 the school district; provided, however, that the policy may 10 establish different expectations and disciplinary actions for 11 different grade levels. 12 d. The policy shall describe the circumstances in which an 13 employee of the school district may temporarily waive or make 14 exceptions to the policy for a student in cases that require 15 that reasonable exceptions be made. 16 2. The school district shall make the policy available to 17 the public, including by publishing the policy on the school 18 district’s internet site. 19 Sec. 10. COUNTY ATTORNEYS —— SCHOOL HANDBOOK AND SCHOOL 20 POLICY REVISIONS. On or before December 31, 2024, each school 21 district shall, in consultation with the county attorney of the 22 county in which the school district’s central administrative 23 office is located, revise all school district handbooks and 24 policies applicable to students enrolled in prekindergarten 25 through grade eight to incorporate changes this Act has made 26 related to student absenteeism and truancy, and prekindergarten 27 through grade twelve for policies related to portable 28 electronic devices. 29 Sec. 11. STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED. In accordance 30 with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring 31 compliance with any state mandate included in this division 32 of this Act shall be paid by a school district from state 33 school foundation aid received by the school district under 34 section 257.16. This specification of the payment of the state 35 -9- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 9/ 11

H.F. 2547 cost shall be deemed to meet all of the state funding-related 1 requirements of section 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional 2 state funding shall be necessary for the full implementation of 3 this division of this Act by and enforcement of this division 4 of this Act against all affected school districts. 5 DIVISION II 6 TRUANT STUDENTS —— OPEN ENROLLMENT 7 Sec. 12. Section 282.18, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code 8 2024, is amended to read as follows: 9 b. The board of the receiving district shall enroll 10 the pupil in a school in the receiving district unless the 11 receiving district has insufficient classroom space for the 12 pupil or unless the receiving district has prohibited the 13 pupil from enrolling pursuant to subsection 11A . The board of 14 directors of a receiving district may adopt a policy granting 15 the superintendent of the school district authority to approve 16 open enrollment applications. If the request is granted, 17 the board shall transmit a copy of the form to the parent 18 or guardian and the school district of residence within five 19 days after board action. The parent or guardian may withdraw 20 the request at any time prior to the board’s action on the 21 application. A denial of a request by the board of a receiving 22 district is not subject to appeal. 23 Sec. 13. Section 282.18, Code 2024, is amended by adding the 24 following new subsection: 25 NEW SUBSECTION . 11A. a. If a pupil participating in open 26 enrollment is truant as defined in section 299.8, the receiving 27 district may prohibit the pupil from remaining enrolled in the 28 receiving district and from enrolling in the receiving district 29 in the future. A receiving district shall send notification of 30 the receiving district’s decision to prohibit the pupil from 31 remaining enrolled in the receiving district pursuant to this 32 paragraph to the pupil’s parent or guardian and to the pupil’s 33 sending district. 34 b. The sending district shall enroll the pupil who is 35 -10- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 10/ 11

H.F. 2547 prohibited from remaining enrolled in the receiving district 1 pursuant to paragraph “a” . 2 c. This subsection shall not be construed to prohibit the 3 pupil’s parent or guardian from filing a request to transfer 4 pursuant to subsection 2, paragraph “a” , subsequent to the 5 receiving district’s decision to prohibit the pupil from 6 remaining enrolled in the receiving district. 7 -11- HF 2547 (3) 90 jda/jh/md 11/ 11