Alaska 2025-2026 Regular Session

Alaska Senate Bill SB182 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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11	11	SENATE BILL NO. 182
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13	13	IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
14	14
15	15	THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION
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17	17	BY THE SENATE RULES COMMITTEE BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR
18	18
19	19	Introduced: 4/22/25
20	20	Referred: Finance
21	21
22	22
23	23	A BILL
24	24
25	25	FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
26	26
27	27	"An Act relating to education; relating to open enrollment in public schools; relating to 1
28	28	charter schools; relating to correspondence study programs; relating to the base student 2
29	29	allocation; relating to the provision of special education and related services; relating to 3
30	30	reading proficiency incentive grants; relating to wireless telecommunication devices in 4
31	31	public schools; and providing for an effective date." 5
32	32	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 6
33	33	* Section 1. AS 14.03.080(a) is amended to read: 7
34	34	(a) Subject to the provisions of AS 14.14.110 and 14.14.120, a [A] child of
35	35	8
36	36	school age is entitled to attend public school without payment of tuition during the 9
37	37	school term 10
38	38	(1) in the school district in which the child is a resident; and 11
39	39	(2) upon application to a school district, at a school selected by the 12
40	40	child's parent or guardian that is in or outside the school district in which the 13 34-GS1150\A
41	41	SB 182 -2- SB0182A
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44	44	child is a resident subject to 1
45	45	(A) capacity limitations of the selected school; and 2
46	46	(B) a school district policy that 3
47	47	(i) prioritizes placement of siblings in the same 4
48	48	school; 5
49	49	(ii) enrolls students in the order of applications 6
50	50	received; 7
51	51	(iii) guarantees enrollment upon application unless 8
52	52	the selected school does not have capacity at the requested grade 9
53	53	level; and 10
54	54	(iv) establishes a procedure for appealing a school 11
55	55	district's denial of an enrollment application [SUBJECT TO THE 12
56	56	PROVISIONS OF AS 14.14.110 AND 14.14.120]. 13
57	57	* Sec. 2. AS 14.03.080 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 14
58	58	(i) Nothing in (a)(2) of this section applies to a correspondence study program. 15
59	59	(j) Each school district shall, for each school in the district, annually publish 16
60	60	on the school district's Internet website or on the school's Internet webpage 17
61	61	information about the school's enrollment policies, enrollment application process, and 18
62	62	school-level enrollment data, including capacity and vacancies for each grade, the 19
63	63	number of applications, acceptances, denials, and reasons for denials. 20
64	64	* Sec. 3. AS 14.03.120(d) is amended to read: 21
65	65	(d) Annually, before the date set by the district under (e) of this section, each 22
66	66	public school shall deliver to the department for posting on the department's Internet 23
67	67	website and provide, in a public meeting of parents, students, and community 24
68	68	members, a report on the school's performance and the performance of the school's 25
69	69	students. The report shall be prepared on a form prescribed by the department and 26
70	70	must include 27
71	71	(1) information on accreditation; 28
72	72	(2) results of norm-referenced achievement tests that measure 29
73	73	student academic performance over time; 30
74	74	(3) results of state standards-based assessments in language arts and 31 34-GS1150\A
75	75	SB0182A -3- SB 182
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78	78	mathematics; 1
79	79	(4) a description, including quantitative and qualitative measures, of 2
80	80	student, parent, community, and business involvement in student learning; 3
81	81	(5) a description of the school's attendance, retention, dropout, and 4
82	82	graduation rates as specified by the state board; 5
83	83	(6) the annual percent of enrollment change, regardless of reason, and 6
84	84	the annual percent of enrollment change due to student transfers into and out of the 7
85	85	school district; 8
86	86	(7) if Native language education is provided, a summary and 9
87	87	evaluation of the curriculum described in AS 14.30.420; 10
88	88	(8) the performance designation assigned the school under 11
89	89	AS 14.03.123 and the methodology used to assign the performance designation, 12
90	90	including the measures used and their relative weights; 13
91	91	(9) other information concerning school performance and the 14
92	92	performance of the school's students as required by the state board in regulation; and 15
93	93	(10) information on the number, attendance, and performance of 16
94	94	students enrolled in the school whose parents or guardians are on active duty in the 17
95	95	armed forces of the United States, the United States Coast Guard, the Alaska National 18
96	96	Guard, the Alaska Naval Militia, or the Alaska State Defense Force. 19
97	97	* Sec. 4. AS 14.03.250(a) is amended to read: 20
98	98	(a) A local school board shall prescribe an application procedure for the 21
99	99	establishment of a charter school in that school district. The application procedure 22
100	100	must include provisions for an academic policy committee consisting of parents of 23
101	101	students attending the school, teachers, and school employees and a proposed form for 24
102	102	a contract between a charter school and the local school board, setting out the contract 25
103	103	elements required under AS 14.03.255(c). The application procedure must allow an 26
104	104	application to be submitted at any time during the school year for the following 27
105	105	school year. 28
106	106	* Sec. 5. AS 14.03.253(b) is amended to read: 29
107	107	(b) In an appeal to the state Board of Education and Early Development of a 30
108	108	denial of a charter school application under (a)(3) of this section, the state board shall 31 34-GS1150\A
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112	112	determine, based on the record, whether the commissioner's findings are supported by 1
113	113	substantial evidence and whether the decision is contrary to law. The state board shall 2
114	114	issue a written decision within 45 [90] days after the state board receives an appeal. 3
115	115	* Sec. 6. AS 14.03.255(c) is amended to read: 4
116	116	(c) A charter school shall operate under a contract between the charter school 5
117	117	and the local school board. A contract must contain the following provisions: 6
118	118	(1) a description of the educational program; 7
119	119	(2) specific levels of achievement for the education program; 8
120	120	(3) admission policies and procedures; 9
121	121	(4) administrative policies; 10
122	122	(5) a statement of the charter school's funding allocation from the local 11
123	123	school board and costs assignable to the charter school program budget; 12
124	124	(6) the method by which the charter school will account for receipts 13
125	125	and expenditures; 14
126	126	(7) the location and description of the facility; 15
127	127	(8) the name of the teacher, or teachers, who, by agreement between 16
128	128	the charter school and the teacher, will teach in the charter school; 17
129	129	(9) the teacher-to-student ratio; 18
130	130	(10) the number of students served; 19
131	131	(11) the term of the contract, not to exceed a term of 10 years; 20
132	132	(12) a termination clause providing that the contract may only be 21
133	133	terminated by the local school board if [FOR THE FAILURE OF] the charter school 22
134	134	fails to meet educational achievement goals or fiscal management standards, fails to 23
135	135	comply with a material term of the contract, or intentionally misrepresents a 24
136	136	material fact or circumstance on which the contract is made [OR FOR OTHER 25
137	137	GOOD CAUSE]; 26
138	138	(13) a statement that the charter school will comply with all state and 27
139	139	federal requirements for receipt and use of public money; 28
140	140	(14) other requirements or exemptions agreed upon by the charter 29
141	141	school and the local school board; and 30
142	142	(15) a renewal clause providing that the local school board will 31 34-GS1150\A
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146	146	renew the contract, as may be amended by mutual agreement, for an additional 1
147	147	term upon application by the charter school. 2
148	148	* Sec. 7. AS 14.03.255 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 3
149	149	(e) A local school board's denial of an application by a charter school to renew 4
150	150	the contract is appealable under AS 14.03.256. 5
151	151	* Sec. 8. AS 14.03 is amended by adding a new section to read: 6
152	152	Sec. 14.03.256. Charter school termination and denial of renewal 7
153	153	application; appeals. (a) Before termination or nonrenewal of a charter school 8
154	154	contract, the local school board shall give the charter school written notice, including a 9
155	155	statement of cause explaining the basis of the local school board's intent to terminate 10
156	156	or not renew the contract. The local school board shall provide the charter school with 11
157	157	a reasonable opportunity to cure any deficiency that is the basis for the termination or 12
158	158	nonrenewal. 13
159	159	(b) A decision of a local school board to terminate a charter school's contract 14
160	160	or deny a charter school's application for renewal must be in writing and provide 15
161	161	findings of fact or conclusions of law that explain the cause for the termination or 16
162	162	denial. 17
163	163	(c) A charter school whose contract is terminated or not renewed may file an 18
164	164	appeal with the commissioner. The appeal to the commissioner shall be filed not later 19
165	165	than 60 days after the local school board issues its written decision under (b) of this 20
166	166	section. The commissioner shall review the local school board's decision to determine 21
167	167	whether the findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence and whether the 22
168	168	decision is contrary to law. A decision of the commissioner upholding the termination 23
169	169	or nonrenewal may be appealed within 30 days to the state Board of Education and 24
170	170	Early Development. 25
171	171	(d) Upon receipt of an appeal, the state Board of Education and Early 26
172	172	Development may employ an independent auditor to review issues related to the 27
173	173	charter school's financial records that are raised in the appeal. 28
174	174	(e) The state Board of Education and Early Development shall exercise 29
175	175	independent judgment in evaluating the record on appeal, including any 30
176	176	recommendations or reports obtained under (d) of this section, and shall issue a 31 34-GS1150\A
177	177	SB 182 -6- SB0182A
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180	180	written decision within 45 days after receipt of the appeal. If employing an 1
181	181	independent auditor to review financial records, the state board may extend the 2
182	182	timeline required for its written decision by 90 days. 3
183	183	(f) If the commissioner or the state Board of Education and Early 4
184	184	Development overturns a local school board's decision to terminate a charter school's 5
185	185	contract or deny an application for renewal, the local school board shall operate the 6
186	186	charter school as provided in AS 14.03.255 - 14.03.290. 7
187	187	* Sec. 9. AS 14.03.260(a) is amended to read: 8
188	188	(a) A local school board shall provide an approved charter school with an 9
189	189	annual program budget. The budget shall be not less than the amount generated by the 10
190	190	students enrolled in the charter school less administrative costs retained by the local 11
191	191	school district, determined by applying the indirect cost rate approved by the 12
192	192	department up to four percent. Costs directly related to charter school facilities, 13
193	193	including rent, utilities, and maintenance, may not be included in an annual program 14
194	194	budget for the purposes of calculating the four percent cap on administrative costs 15
195	195	under this subsection. A local school board shall provide a charter school with a report 16
196	196	itemizing the administrative costs retained by the local school board under this section. 17
197	197	The "amount generated by students enrolled in the charter school" is to be determined 18
198	198	in the same manner as it would be for a student enrolled in another public school in 19
199	199	that school district and includes funds generated by grants, appropriations, federal 20
200	200	impact aid, the required local contribution, the local contribution under 21
201	201	AS 14.17.410(c), special needs under AS 14.17.420(a)(1), and secondary school 22
202	202	vocational and technical instruction under AS 14.17.420(a)(3). A school district shall 23
203	203	direct state aid under AS 14.11 for the construction or major maintenance of a charter 24
204	204	school facility to the charter school that generated the state aid, subject to the same 25
205	205	terms and conditions that apply to state aid under AS 14.11 for construction or major 26
206	206	maintenance of a school facility that is not a charter school. A school district shall 27
207	207	permit a charter school to maintain a year-end fund balance in a manner 28
208	208	consistent with AS 14.17.505(a). 29
209	209	* Sec. 10. AS 14.03.275 is amended to read: 30
210	210	Sec. 14.03.275. Contracts; duration. A contract for a charter school may be 31 34-GS1150\A
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214	214	for a term of no more than 10 years. A contract for a charter school may be 1
215	215	renewed. 2
216	216	* Sec. 11. AS 14.17.430 is amended to read: 3
217	217	Sec. 14.17.430. State funding for correspondence study. Except as provided 4
218	218	in AS 14.17.400(b), funding for the state centralized correspondence study program or 5
219	219	a district correspondence program, including a district that offers a statewide 6
220	220	correspondence study program, includes an allocation from the public education fund 7
221	221	in an amount equal to the ADM of the correspondence program [CALCULATED 8
222	222	BY MULTIPLYING THE ADM OF THE CORRESPONDENCE PROGRAM BY 90 9
223	223	PERCENT]. 10
224	224	* Sec. 12. AS 14.17.470 is amended to read: 11
225	225	Sec. 14.17.470. Base student allocation. The base student allocation is $6,520 12
226	226	[$5,960]. 13
227	227	* Sec. 13. AS 14.30.010(b) is amended to read: 14
228	228	(b) This section does not apply if a child 15
229	229	(1) is provided an academic education comparable to that offered by 16
230	230	the public schools in the area [, EITHER] by 17
231	231	(A) attendance at a private school in which the teachers are 18
232	232	certificated according to AS 14.20.020; 19
233	233	(B) tutoring by personnel certificated according to 20
234	234	AS 14.20.020; or 21
235	235	(C) attendance at an educational program operated in 22
236	236	compliance with AS 14.45.100 - 14.45.200 by a religious or other private 23
237	237	school; 24
238	238	(2) attends a school operated by the federal government; 25
239	239	(3) has a physical or mental condition that a competent medical 26
240	240	authority determines will make attendance impractical; 27
241	241	(4) is in the custody of a court or law enforcement authorities; 28
242	242	(5) is temporarily ill or injured; 29
243	243	(6) has been suspended or expelled under AS 14.03.160 or suspended 30
244	244	or denied admittance under AS 14.30.045; 31 34-GS1150\A
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248	248	(7) resides more than two miles from either a public school or a route 1
249	249	on which transportation is provided by the school authorities, except that this 2
250	250	paragraph does not apply if the child resides within two miles of a federal or private 3
251	251	school that the child is eligible and able to attend; 4
252	252	(8) is excused by action of the school board of the district at a regular 5
253	253	meeting or by the district superintendent subject to approval by the school board of the 6
254	254	district at the next regular meeting; 7
255	255	(9) has completed the 12th grade; 8
256	256	(10) is enrolled in 9
257	257	(A) a state boarding school established under AS 14.16; or 10
258	258	(B) a full-time program of correspondence study approved by 11
259	259	the department; in those school districts providing an approved correspondence 12
260	260	study program, a student may be enrolled either in the district correspondence 13
261	261	program or in the centralized correspondence study program; 14
262	262	(11) is equally well-served by an educational experience approved by 15
263	263	the school board as serving the child's educational interests despite an absence from 16
264	264	school, and the request for excuse is made in writing by the child's parents or guardian 17
265	265	and approved by the principal or administrator of the school that the child attends; 18
266	266	(12) is being educated in the child's home by a parent or legal 19
267	267	guardian; 20
268	268	(13) is enrolled in a public school in a district in which the child 21
269	269	does not reside as permitted under AS 14.03.080(a)(2). 22
270	270	* Sec. 14. AS 14.30.186(a) is amended to read: 23
271	271	(a) Special education and related services shall be provided by 24
272	272	(1) a borough or city school district for a child with a disability 25
273	273	residing within the district or attending a school in the district under 26
274	274	AS 14.03.080(a)(2); 27
275	275	(2) the board of a regional educational attendance area operating a 28
276	276	school in the area for a child with a disability residing in the area served by the school 29
277	277	or attending a school in the area under AS 14.03.080(a)(2); 30
278	278	(3) the borough, city school district, or regional educational attendance 31 34-GS1150\A
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282	282	area in which a treatment institution, as that term is defined in AS 47.14.990, juvenile 1
283	283	detention facility or juvenile treatment facility, as those terms are defined in 2
284	284	AS 47.12.990, or a correctional facility is located for a child with a disability placed at 3
285	285	the facility; 4
286	286	(4) a state boarding school established under AS 14.16 for a child with 5
287	287	a disability enrolled at a state boarding school; or 6
288	288	(5) a school district that provides a statewide correspondence study 7
289	289	program for a child with a disability who is enrolled in the program. 8
290	290	* Sec. 15. AS 14.30.186(e) is amended to read: 9
291	291	(e) If the parent of a child with a disability elects to educate the child as 10
292	292	allowed under AS 14.30.010(b)(1) - (12) [AS 14.30.010(b)], the child may not be 11
293	293	compelled to receive the special education and related services provided under 12
294	294	AS 14.30.180 - 14.30.350. 13
295	295	* Sec. 16. AS 14.30 is amended by adding a new section to read: 14
296	296	Sec. 14.30.773. Reading proficiency incentive grants. Subject to 15
297	297	appropriation, a school district is eligible to receive a reading proficiency incentive 16
298	298	grant of not less than $450 for each student in kindergarten through grade six who 17
299	299	(1) performs at grade-level reading proficiency; or 18
300	300	(2) at year-end, demonstrates improvement on the statewide screening 19
301	301	tool or a standards-based assessment in language arts approved by the department. 20
302	302	* Sec. 17. AS 14.33 is amended by adding a new section to read: 21
303	303	Article 5. Wireless Telecommunications Devices. 22
304	304	Sec. 14.33.300. Wireless telecommunications device policy. (a) Each school 23
305	305	district shall adopt a policy that regulates the possession and use of nonschool-issued 24
306	306	wireless telecommunications devices during regular school hours, including lunch and 25
307	307	passing periods. Each school district shall share this policy with parents or guardians, 26
308	308	students, volunteers, and school employees. If a school district's policy prohibits the 27
309	309	use of nonschool-issued wireless telecommunications devices, the policy must allow 28
310	310	exceptions for students to use a wireless telecommunications device for medical or 29
311	311	translation purposes, in the event of an emergency, or when a teacher or administrator 30
312	312	of the school grants permission to a student to use a wireless telecommunications 31 34-GS1150\A
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316	316	device for educational purposes. 1
317	317	(b) This section does not authorize a person to monitor, collect, or access 2
318	318	information related to a student's use of a wireless telecommunications device. 3
319	319	(c) In this section, "wireless telecommunications device" means any portable 4
320	320	wireless device that has the capability to provide voice, messaging, or other data 5
321	321	communication between two or more parties. 6
322	322	* Sec. 18. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 7
323	323	read: 8
324	324	APPLICABILITY. Sections 6 - 8 of this Act apply to a contract that is renewed or 9
325	325	becomes legally binding on or after the effective date of this Act. 10
326	326	* Sec. 19. This Act takes effect July 1, 2025. 11