House Bill No. 7313
Public Act No. 19-179
AN ACT CONCERNING HO MELESS STUDENTS' ACC ESS TO
EDUCATION.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 10-186 of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019):
(a) Each local or regional board of education shall furnish, by
transportation or otherwise, school accommodations so that each child
five years of age and over and under twenty-one years of age who is
not a graduate of a high school or technical education and career
school may attend public school, except as provided in section 10-233c
and subsection (d) of section 10-233d. Any board of education which
denies school accommodations, including a denial based on an issue of
residency, to any such child shall inform the parent or guardian of
such child or the child, in the case of an emancipated minor, [or] a
pupil eighteen years of age or older or an unaccompanied youth, as
described in 42 USC 11434a, as amended from time to time, of his or
her right to request a hearing by the board of education in accordance
with the provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of this section.
A board of education which has denied school accommodations shall
advise the board of education under whose jurisdiction it claims such
child should be attending school of the denial. For purposes of this House Bill No. 7313
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section, (1) a "parent or guardian" shall include a surrogate parent
appointed pursuant to section 10-94g, and (2) a child residing in a
dwelling located in more than one town in this state shall be
considered a resident of each town in which the dwelling is located
and may attend school in any one of such towns. For purposes of this
subsection, "dwelling" means a single, two or three-family house or a
condominium unit.
(b) (1) If any board of education denies such accommodations, the
parent or guardian of any child who is denied schooling, or an
emancipated minor, [or] a pupil eighteen years of age or older or an
unaccompanied youth who is denied schooling, or an agent or officer
charged with the enforcement of the laws concerning attendance at
school, may, in writing, request a hearing by the board of education.
The board of education may (A) conduct the hearing, (B) designate a
subcommittee of the board composed of three board members to
conduct the hearing, or (C) establish a local impartial hearing board of
one or more persons not members of the board of education to conduct
the hearing. The board, subcommittee or local impartial hearing board
shall give such person a hearing [within] not later than ten days after
receipt of the written request, make a stenographic record or tape
recording of the hearing and make a finding [within] not later than ten
days after the hearing. Hearings shall be conducted in accordance with
the provisions of sections 4-176e to 4-180a, inclusive, and section 4-
181a. Any child, emancipated minor, [or] pupil eighteen years of age
or older or unaccompanied youth who is denied accommodations on
the basis of residency may continue in attendance in the school district
at the request of the parent or guardian of such child or emancipated
minor, [or] pupil eighteen years of age or older or unaccompanied
youth, pending a hearing pursuant to this subdivision. The party
claiming ineligibility for school accommodations shall have the burden
of proving such ineligibility by a preponderance of the evidence,
except in cases of denial of schooling based on residency, the party House Bill No. 7313
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denied schooling shall have the burden of proving residency by a
preponderance of the evidence, unless the party denied schooling is
claiming that he or she is a homeless child or youth, as defined in 42
USC 11434a, as amended from time to time, in which case, the party
claiming ineligibility based on residency shall have the burden of
proving that the party denied schooling is not a homeless child or
youth by a preponderance of the evidence in accordance with the
provisions of 42 USC 11431, et seq., as amended from time to time.
(2) Any homeless child or youth who is denied accommodations by
a board of education as the result of a determination by such board, or
a subcommittee of the board or local impartial hearing board, that the
child is not entitled to school accommodations in the district, shall
continue in attendance or be immediately enrolled in the school
selected by the child in the school district pursuant to 42 USC
11432(g)(3), as amended from time to time. The board of education for
such school district shall (A) provide, in accordance with the
provisions of 42 USC 11432(g)(3)(E)(ii), as amended from time to time,
the homeless child or youth or the parent or guardian of such homeless
child or youth with (i) a written explanation of the reasons for the
denial of accommodations that is in a manner and form
understandable to such homeless child or youth or parent or guardian,
and (ii) information regarding the right to appeal the decision of the
denial of accommodations pursuant to subdivision (3) of this
subsection, and (B) refer, in accordance with the provisions of 42 USC
11432(g)(3)(E)(iii), as amended from time to time, the homeless child or
youth or the parent or guardian of such homeless child or youth to the
liaison, designated pursuant to 42 USC 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii), as amended
from time to time, who is responsible for carrying out the duties
described in 42 USC 11432(g)(6)(A), as amended from time to time.
[(2)] (3) Any such parent, guardian, emancipated minor, pupil
eighteen years of age or older, unaccompanied youth, or agent or House Bill No. 7313
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officer, aggrieved by the finding shall, upon request, be provided with
a transcript of the hearing within thirty days after such request and
may take an appeal from the finding to the State Board of Education. A
copy of each notice of appeal shall be filed simultaneously with the
local or regional board of education and the State Board of Education.
Any child, emancipated minor or pupil eighteen years of age or older
or unaccompanied youth who is denied accommodations by a board of
education as the result of a determination by such board, or a
subcommittee of the board or local impartial hearing board, that the
child is not a resident of the school district and therefore is not entitled
to school accommodations in the district may continue in attendance in
the school district at the request of the parent or guardian of such child
or such minor or pupil, pending a determination of such appeal,
except any homeless child or youth shall be entitled to continue in
attendance in the school district during all available appeals pursuant
to 42 USC 11432(g)(2)(E). If an appeal is not taken to the State Board of
Education within twenty days of the mailing of the finding to the
aggrieved party, the decision of the board, subcommittee or local
impartial hearing board shall be final. The local or regional board of
education shall, within ten days after receipt of notice of an appeal,
forward the record of the hearing to the State Board of Education. The
State Board of Education shall, on receipt of a written request for a
hearing made in accordance with the provisions of this subsection,
establish an impartial hearing board of one or more persons to hold a
public hearing in the local or regional school district in which the cause
of the complaint arises. Members of the hearing board may be
employees of the Department of Education or may be qualified
persons from outside the department. No member of the board of
education under review nor any employee of such board of education
shall be a member of the hearing board. Members of the hearing board,
other than those employed by the Department of Education, shall be
paid reasonable fees and expenses as established by the State Board of
Education within the limits of available appropriations. Such hearing House Bill No. 7313
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board may examine witnesses and shall maintain a verbatim record of
all formal sessions of the hearing. Either party to the hearing may
request that the hearing board join all interested parties to the hearing,
or the hearing board may join any interested party on its own motion.
The hearing board shall have no authority to make a determination of
the rights and responsibilities of a board of education if such board is
not a party to the hearing. The hearing board may render a
determination of actual residence of any child, emancipated minor,
[or] pupil eighteen years of age or older or unaccompanied youth
where residency is at issue.
[(3)] (4) The hearing board shall render its decision within forty-five
days after receipt of the notice of appeal except that an extension may
be granted by the Commissioner of Education upon an application by
a party or the hearing board describing circumstances related to the
hearing which require an extension.
[(4)] (5) If, after the hearing, the hearing board finds that any child is
illegally or unreasonably denied schooling, the hearing board shall
order the board of education under whose jurisdiction it has been
found such child should be attending school to make arrangements to
enable the child to attend public school. Except in the case of a
residency determination, the finding of the local or regional board of
education, subcommittee of such board or a local impartial hearing
board shall be upheld unless it is determined by the hearing board that
the finding was arbitrary, capricious or unreasonable. If such school
officers fail to take action upon such order in any case in which such
child is currently denied schooling and no suitable provision is made
for such child within fifteen days after receipt of the order and in all
other cases, within thirty days after receipt of the order, there shall be a
forfeiture of the money appropriated by the state for the support of
schools amounting to fifty dollars for each child for each day such
child is denied schooling. If the hearing board makes a determination House Bill No. 7313
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that the child was not a resident of the school district and therefore not
entitled to school accommodations from such district, the board of
education may assess tuition against the parent or guardian of the
child or the emancipated minor or pupil eighteen years of age or older
based on the following: One one-hundred-eightieth of the town's net
current local educational expenditure, as defined in section 10-261, per
pupil multiplied by the number of days of school attendance of the
child in the district while not entitled to school accommodations
provided by that district. The local board of education may seek to
recover the amount of the assessment through available civil remedies.
(c) In the event of an appeal pursuant to section 10-187 from a
decision of a hearing board established pursuant to subsection (b) of
this section, upon request, the State Board of Education shall supply
for the fee per page specified in section 1-212, a copy of the transcript
of the formal sessions of the hearing board to the parent or guardian or
emancipated minor or a pupil eighteen years of age or older or
unaccompanied youth and to the local or regional board of education.
(d) (1) For the school year commencing July 1, 2010, if a child sixteen
years of age or older voluntarily terminates enrollment in a school
district and subsequently seeks readmission, the local or regional
board of education for the school district may de ny school
accommodations to such child for up to ninety school days from the
date of such termination, unless such child seeks readmission to such
school district not later than ten school days after such termination in
which case such board shall provide school accommodations to such
child not later than three school days after such child seeks
readmission.
(2) For the school year commencing July 1, 2011, and each school
year thereafter, if a child seventeen years of age or older voluntarily
terminates enrollment in a school district and subsequently seeks
readmission, the local or regional board of education for the school House Bill No. 7313
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district may deny school accommodations to such child for up to
ninety school days from the date of such termination, unless such child
seeks readmission to such school district not later than ten school days
after such termination in which case such board shall provide school
accommodations to such child not later than three school days after
such child seeks readmission.
(e) A local or regional board of education shall immediately enroll
any student who transfers from Unified School District #1 or Unified
School District #2. In the case of a student who transfers from Unified
School District #1 or Unified School District #2 to the school district in
which such student attended school prior to enrollment in Unified
School District #1 or Unified School District #2, such student shall be
enrolled in the school such student previously attended, provided such
school has the appropriate grade level for such student.
Sec. 2. Subsection (f) of section 10-253 of the general statutes is
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July
1, 2019):
(f) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes,
educational services shall be provided by each local and regional
board of education to homeless children and youths in accordance
with the provisions of 42 USC 11431, et seq., as amended from time to
time. If a homeless child or youth is denied school accommodations by
a local or regional board of education on the basis of residency, such
homeless child or youth shall be entitled to a hearing conducted
pursuant to section 10-186, as amended by this act. An unaccompanied
youth, as described in 42 USC 11434a, as amended from time to time,
shall be entitled to knowledge of and have access to all educational,
medical or similar records in the cumulative record of such
unaccompanied youth maintained by a local or regional board of
education. House Bill No. 7313
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