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February 9, 2022 SB 22-044
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
Fiscal Note
Drafting Number:
Prime Sponsors:
LLS 22-0728
Sen. Story
Rep. Froelich; Kipp
Date:
Bill Status:
Fiscal Analyst:
February 11, 2022
Senate Education
Anna Gerstle | 303-866-4375
Anna.Gerstle@state.co.us
Bill Topic: USE OF STUDENT GROWTH IN EDUCATOR EVALUATIONS
Summary of
Fiscal Impact:
☐ State Revenue
☒ State Expenditure
☐ State Transfer
☐ TABOR Refund
☐ Local Government
☒ School District
The bill removes the requirement that student academic growth make up at least
50 percent of educator performance evaluations, and requires the State Board of
Education to promulgate rules for the state educator performance evaluation system.
The bill increases state expenditures and school district workload on a one-time basis.
Appropriation
Summary:
For FY 2022-23, the bill requires an appropriation of $20,000 to the Colorado
Department of Education.
Fiscal Note
Status:
The fiscal note reflects the introduced bill.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts Under SB 22-044
Budget Year
FY 2022-23
Out Year
FY 2023-24
Revenue - -
Expenditures General Fund $20,000 -
Transfers - -
Other Budget Impacts General Fund Reserve $3,000 -
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February 9, 2022 SB 22-044
Summary of Legislation
The bill removes the requirement that student academic growth make up at least 50 percent of licensed
educator performance evaluations, and requires the State Board of Education (SBE) to promulgate
rules to ensure that the state model performance evaluation system:
provides that student academic growth does not constitute a specific percentage of a teacher or
principal’s evaluation and, along with quality standards, is only part of a comprehensive
evaluation;
provides that student assessment results are used solely as a basis for identifying strategies to
improve instructional practice;
allows the use of collective school or grade level student scores on statewide and district
assessments to be used solely for specific purposes; and
allows the use of collective measures that are based on the performance of all students in a school
or within a grade level, but does not allow the use of collective measures that are based on students
who are not enrolled in a single school.
Rules must be in place for evaluations beginning in the 2022-23 school year. School districts and
boards of cooperative education services (BOCES) that adopt their own evaluation systems must align
with SBE rules, and in considering academic growth, may consider academic growth as measured by
a combination of indicators, such as test scores, academic work, and achievement of learning
objectives that are identified before the beginning of the evaluation cycle.
Background
Under current law, all licensed educators must be evaluated annually. Districts and BOCES may use
the state model performance evaluation system (COPMS) or develop a local evaluation system that
meets state requirements. Fifty percent of the evaluation must be based on quality standards set by
the SBE, and 50 percent of teacher and principal evaluation must be based on student academic
growth. For the 2020-21 school year, evaluation ratings for licensed personnel did not include
consideration of student academic growth or other student performance measures
State Expenditures
In FY 2022-23 only, the bill increases state expenditures from the General Fund by $20,000 in the
Colorado Department of Education. Eliminating the percentages for student academic growth
requires one-time changes to the COPMS system. Changes include modifying settings used by school
districts and BOCES, final evaluations, and summative reports.
The bill also increases workload for the SBE to adopt rules and adjust public reporting on educator
effectiveness. Legal services to support rulemaking are provided by the Department of Law. The
increased workload can be accomplished within current appropriations. Page 3
February 9, 2022 SB 22-044
Other Budget Impacts
General Fund reserve. Under current law, an amount equal to 15 percent of General Fund
appropriations must be set aside in the General Fund statutory reserve beginning in FY 2022-23. Based
on this fiscal note, the bill is expected to increase the amount of General Fund held in reserve by $3,000
in FY 2022-23, which will decrease the amount of General Fund available for other purposes.
School District
The bill increases one-time costs for school districts to adjust their performance evaluation systems to
align with the requirements in the bill, provide training to evaluators, and communicate changes to
personnel. One mid-sized school district estimated that costs may be up to $50,000; however, that
likely represents a maximum cost. Actual costs will vary by district, as some districts use the state
model performance evaluation system and others have developed their own evaluation systems.
COPMS is currently used by 148 school districts, 19 charter schools, and 13 BOCES.
Technical Note
The bill requires that new rules be in place before the 2022-23 school year; however, the rulemaking
process is anticipated to take at least five months. Depending on when the bill takes effect, rules may
not be adopted by the beginning of the 2022-23 school year.
Effective Date
The bill takes effect upon signature of the Governor, or upon becoming law without his signature.
State Appropriations
In FY 2022-23, the bill requires a General Fund appropriation of $20,000 to the Colorado Department
of Education.
State and Local Government Contacts
Education Law School Districts
The revenue and expenditure impacts in this fiscal note represent changes from current law under the bill for each
fiscal year. For additional information about fiscal notes, please visit: leg.colorado.gov/fiscalnotes.