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Arkansas Senate Bill SB570

Arkansas 2023 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SB570 Compare Versions

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11 Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
2-Act 790 of the Regular Session
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54 State of Arkansas 1
65 94th General Assembly A Bill 2
76 Regular Session, 2023 SENATE BILL 570 3
87 4
98 By: Senator J. English 5
109 By: Representative Cozart 6
1110 7
1211 For An Act To Be Entitled 8
1312 AN ACT TO AMEND PROV ISIONS OF THE ARKANS AS CODE 9
1413 CONCERNING THE ARKAN SAS OPPORTUNITY PUBL IC SCHOOL 10
1514 CHOICE ACT; TO AMEND PROVISIONS OF THE AR KANSAS CODE 11
1615 CONCERNING THE PUBLI C SCHOOL CHOICE ACT OF 2015; AND 12
1716 FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 13
1817 14
1918 15
2019 Subtitle 16
2120 TO AMEND PROVISIONS OF THE ARKANSAS CODE 17
2221 CONCERNING THE ARKANSAS OPPORTUNITY 18
2322 PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE ACT AND THE PUBLIC 19
2423 SCHOOL CHOICE ACT OF 2015. 20
2524 21
2625 22
2726 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 23
2827 24
2928 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-227(a)(2)(B)(iii), concerning the 25
3029 Arkansas Opportunity Public School Choice Act, is amended to read as follows: 26
3130 (iii) Further finds that a student should not be 27
3231 compelled against the wishes of the parent, guardian, o r the student, if the 28
3332 student is over eighteen (18) years of age or older, to remain in a public 29
3433 school district classified by the State Board of Education as a school 30
3534 district in need of Level 5 — Intensive support under § 6 -15-2913 or §6-15-31
3635 2915 or a public school that has a rating of “F” under §§ 6 -15-2105 and 6-15-32
3736 2106 and state board rules; and 33
3837 34
3938 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-227(b)(1), concerning the Arkansas 35
4039 Opportunity Public School Choice Act, is amended to read as follows: 36 SB570
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4342
4443
4544 (b)(1) Upon the request of a parent, guardian, or student, if the 1
4645 student is over eighteen (18) years of age or older, a student may transfer 2
4746 from his or her resident district or public school to another school district 3
4847 or public school under this section if, at the time of the request under this 4
4948 subdivision (b)(1): 5
5049 (A) Either: 6
5150 (i) The resident public school district has been 7
5251 classified by the state board as a public school district in need of Level 5 8
5352 — Intensive support under § 6 -15-2913 or §6-15-2915; or 9
5453 (ii) The resident public school has a rating of “F” 10
5554 under §§ 6-15-2105 and 6-15-2106 and state board rules , as allowed in 11
5655 subdivision (b)(3)(B)(i)(b) of this section ; and 12
5756 (B)(i) Except as provided in subdivision (b)(1)(B)(ii) 13
5857 subsection (m) of this section, the parent, guardian, or student, if the 14
5958 student is over eighteen (18) years of age or older, has notified both the 15
6059 sending resident and receiving nonresident school districts of the request 16
6160 for a transfer no earlier than January 1 and no later than Ma y 1 of the 17
6261 school year before the school year in which the student intends to transfer. 18
6362 (ii)(a) If a student has a parent or guardian 19
6463 who is an active-duty member of the military and who has been transferred to 20
6564 and resides on a military base, then th e student's parent or guardian may 21
6665 submit a request for transfer under this section at any time during the 22
6766 calendar year. 23
6867 (b) An application for transfer under 24
6968 subdivision (b)(1)(B)(ii)(a) of this section shall: 25
7069 (1) Be filed with the nonreside nt school 26
7170 district within fifteen (15) days of the parent's or guardian's arrival on 27
7271 the military base; 28
7372 (2) Include the parent's or guardian's 29
7473 military transfer orders; and 30
7574 (3) Include the parent's or guardian's 31
7675 proof of residency on the military base. 32
7776 33
7877 SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-227(b)(2)(A), concerning the Arkansas 34
7978 Opportunity Public School Choice Act, is amended to read as follows: 35
8079 (2)(A)(i) For the purposes of continuity of educational choice, 36 SB570
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8382
8483
8584 a transfer under this section shall operate as an irrevocable election for 1
8685 each subsequent entire school year and shall remain in force until the 2
8786 student completes high school or the parent, guardian, or student, if the 3
8887 student is over eighteen (18) years of age or older, timely makes application 4
8988 under a provision of law governing attendance in or transfer to another 5
9089 public school or school district other than the student's assigned school or 6
9190 resident district. 7
9291 (ii)(a) Except as provided in subdivision 8
9392 (b)(2)(A)(ii)(b) subsection (m) of this section, a transfer under this 9
9493 section is effective at the beginning of the next academic year. 10
9594 (b) A transfer of a student eligible under 11
9695 subsection (m) of this section for a student who has a parent or guardian who 12
9796 is an active-duty member of the military and who resides on a military base 13
9897 is effective immediately upon the nonresident district’s written notification 14
9998 of an acceptance approval of the accepting school board at its next meeting . 15
10099 16
101100 SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-227(b)(3)(A), concerning the Arkansas 17
102101 Opportunity Public School Choice Act, is amended to read as follows: 18
103102 (3)(A) For each student enrolled in or assigned to a public 19
104103 school district that is classified by the state board as a public school 20
105104 district in need of L evel 5 — Intensive support under § 6 -15-2913 or § 6-15-21
106105 2915 or a public school that has a rating of “F” under §§ 6 -15-2105 and 6-15-22
107106 2106 and state board rules, a school district shall: 23
108107 (i) Timely notify the parent, guardian, or student , 24
109108 if the student is over eighteen (18) years of age or older, as soon as 25
110109 practicable after the designation is made, of all options available under 26
111110 this section; and 27
112111 (ii)(a) Offer the parent, guardian, or 28
113112 student, if the student is over eighteen (18) years of age or older, an 29
114113 opportunity to submit an application no earlier than January 1 and no later 30
115114 than May 1 to enroll the student in the upcoming school year in any public 31
116115 school district that is not classified by the state board as a public school 32
117116 district in need of Level 5 — Intensive support under §§ 6 -15-2913 and 6-15-33
118117 2915 or a public school within the resident district that does not have a 34
119118 rating of “F” under §§ 6 -15-2105 and 6-15-2106 and state board rules. 35
120119 (b) The opportunity to continue 36 SB570
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123122
124123
125124 attending the public school or school district that the student transfers to 1
126125 under this section remains in effect until the student graduates from high 2
127126 school. 3
128127 4
129128 SECTION 5. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-227(d)(2)(A) and (B), concerning the 5
130129 Arkansas Opportunity Public School Choice Act, is amended to read as follows: 6
131130 (2)(A)(i) A school district shall not deny a student the ability 7
132131 to attend a school in the student's sc hool district of choice under this 8
133132 section unless there is a lack of capacity at the school in the student's 9
134133 school district of choice. 10
135134 (ii) A lack of capacity may be claimed by a school 11
136135 district only if: 12
137136 (a) the The school district has reached t he 13
138137 maximum student-to-teacher ratio allowed under federal law, state law, the 14
139138 rules for standards of accreditation, state rules, or other applicable 15
140139 federal regulations; and 16
141140 (b) The claim is consistent with state and 17
142141 federal law. 18
143142 (B) The race or ethnicity of a student shall not be used 19
144143 to deny a student the ability to attend a school in the student's school 20
145144 district of choice A school district receiving transfers under this section 21
146145 shall not discriminate on the basis of gender, national origin, race, 22
147146 ethnicity, religion, or disability . 23
148147 24
149148 SECTION 6. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-227(d)(4), concerning the Arkansas 25
150149 Opportunity Public School Choice Act, is amended to read as follows: 26
151150 (4) An applicant shall not request a hearing before the state 27
152151 board if his or her application for a transfer is rejected due to the 28
153152 application not being timely received by both the resident district and 29
154153 nonresident district. 30
155154 (5) The division shall promulgate rules governing the use of 31
156155 school capacity as a basis for denying admission under this section. 32
157156 33
158157 SECTION 7. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-227, concerning the Arkansas 34
159158 Opportunity Public School Choice Act, is amended to add an additional 35
160159 subsection to read as follows: 36 SB570
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163162
164163
165164 (m)(1) A student shall be eligible for enrollment i n the public school 1
166165 district of his or her choice if he or she is a dependent of a: 2
167166 (A) Uniformed service member in full -time active-duty 3
168167 status as defined by Title 10, Title 32, Title 33, or Title 42 of United 4
169168 States Code; 5
170169 (B) Surviving spouse of a uniformed service member; 6
171170 (C) Reserve component uniformed service member during the 7
172171 period six (6) months before until six (6) months after a Title 10, Title 32, 8
173172 Title 42, or state active duty mobilization and service; or 9
174173 (D) Uniformed service ve teran who is returning to civilian 10
175174 status at the conclusion of the uniformed service veteran's active duty 11
176175 status. 12
177176 (2) A student eligible for a school transfer under this 13
178177 subsection shall be permitted only one (1) school transfer per academic year. 14
179178 (3) The parent, legal guardian, or person standing in loco 15
180179 parentis to a student eligible for a school transfer under this subsection 16
181180 shall be responsible for the transportation of his or her child to and from a 17
182181 nonresident district. 18
183182 (4) If a student eli gible for transfer under this subsection 19
184183 seeks to attend a public school in a nonresident district, the student's 20
185184 parent, legal guardian, or person standing in loco parentis to the student, 21
186185 or the student if the student is eighteen (18) years of age or old er, shall 22
187186 submit an application approved by the division to the student's nonresident 23
188187 district and resident district by regular mail, email, or in person, which 24
189188 shall include a copy of the: 25
190189 (A) Identification card of the student's parent, legal 26
191190 guardian, person standing in loco parentis to the student, or the student if 27
192191 the student if eighteen (18) years of age or older, which qualifies the 28
193192 student under this section; and 29
194193 (B) Official orders, assignment notification, or notice of 30
195194 mobilization of the student's parent, legal guardian, or person standing in 31
196195 loco parentis to the student. 32
197196 (5) An application deadline required under this section shall 33
198197 not apply to a student eligible for transfer under this subsection. 34
199198 35
200199 SECTION 8. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-1903(c), concerning the Public School 36 SB570
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204203
205204 Choice Act of 2015, is amended to read as follows: 1
206205 (c)(1) This subchapter does not require a school district to add 2
207206 teachers, staff, or classrooms or in any way to exceed the requirements and 3
208207 standards established by existing law A school district shall not deny a 4
209208 student the ability to attend a school in the student’s school district of 5
210209 choice under this section unless there is a lack of capacity at the school in 6
211210 the student’s school district of choice . 7
212211 (2) A lack of capacity may be claimed by a school district only 8
213212 if: 9
214213 (A) The school district has reached the maximum student -10
215214 to-teacher ratio allowed under federal law, state law, the rules for 11
216215 standards for accreditation, state rules, or other applicable federal 12
217216 regulations; and 13
218217 (B) The claim is consistent with state and federal law. 14
219218 (3) A school district receiving transfers under this section 15
220219 shall not discriminate on the basis of gender, national origin, race, 16
221220 ethnicity, religion, or disability. 17
222221 18
223222 SECTION 9. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-1905(a), concerning an appli cation for 19
224223 a transfer under the Public School Choice Act of 2015, is amended to read as 20
225224 follows: 21
226225 (a)(1) An application under this section shall be accepted no earlier 22
227226 than January 1 and no later than May 1 each year. 23
228227 (2)(A) Each school district sha ll have a policy stating the 24
229228 method by which a parent or guardian of a student , or a student who is 25
230229 eighteen (18) years of age or older, may submit a school choice application, 26
231230 including without limitation: 27
232231 (i) Regular mail; 28
233232 (ii) Email; and 29
234233 (iii) Hand delivery. 30
235234 (B) A public school district shall not require a parent or 31
236235 guardian of a student to file in-person filing of an application in person. 32
237236 (3) If a student seeks to attend a school in a nonresident 33
238237 district, the student's parent or guardian, or a student who is eighteen (18) 34
239238 years of age or older, shall submit an application: 35
240239 (A) To the nonresident district and to the student's 36 SB570
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244243
245244 resident district; 1
246245 (B)(i) On a form approved by the Division of Elementary 2
247246 and Secondary Education . 3
248247 (ii) If a student has a parent or guardian who is an 4
249248 active-duty member of the military and who has been transferred to and 5
250249 resides on a military base, then the student's parent or guardian shall file 6
251250 an application for transfer under this section w ithin fifteen (15) days of 7
252251 the parent's or guardian's arrival on the military base, which shall include 8
253252 without limitation the parent's or guardian's: 9
254253 (a) Military transfer orders; and 10
255254 (b) Proof of residency on the military base ; 11
256255 and 12
257256 (C)(i) Postmarked or delivered no later than May 1 of the 13
258257 year in which the student seeks to begin the fall semester at the nonresident 14
259258 district, except as otherwise provided for dependents of uniformed service 15
260259 members and uniformed service veterans under this s ubchapter. 16
261260 (ii) However, if a student has a parent or guardian 17
262261 who is an active-duty member of the military, then the student's application 18
263262 for a transfer under this section is not subject to the May 1 deadline under 19
264263 subdivision (a)(3)(C)(i) of this se ction if the student's parent or legal 20
265264 guardian: 21
266265 (a) Has been transferred to and resides on a 22
267266 military base; and 23
268267 (b) Provides military transfer orders that 24
269268 confirm the date of transfer to the military base. 25
270269 26
271270 SECTION 10. Arkansas Code § 6 -18-1905, concerning an application for a 27
272271 transfer under the Public School Choice Act of 2015, is amended to add an 28
273272 additional subsection to read as follows: 29
274273 (f)(1) For each application received under this section, the 30
275274 nonresident district shall notify the applicant in writing as to whether the 31
276275 student’s application has been accepted or rejected within fifteen (15) 32
277276 calendar days of the nonresident district’s receipt of the application . 33
278277 (2) A transfer of the student is effective immediately upon the 34
279278 nonresident district’s written notification of an acceptance. 35
280-APPROVED: 4/12/23 36
279+ 36