LCO No. 5830 1 of 13
General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1069
January Session, 2019
LCO No. 5830
Referred to Committee on EDUCATION
Introduced by:
(ED)
AN ACT CONCERNING VA RIOUS REVISIONS AND ADDITIONS TO
THE EDUCATION STATUT ES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 10-221d of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 2
(a) As used in this section and sections 3 and 4 of this act, "eligible 3
school operator" means a school or school district authorized to receive 4
national criminal history record information from the Federal Bureau 5
of Investigation pursuant to P.L. 92-544, and shall include local and 6
regional boards of education, the Technical Education and Career 7
System, state and local charter schools, cooperative arrangements 8
pursuant to section 10-158a and interdistrict magnet school operators 9
other than those operators who are a third-party not-for-profit 10
corporation approved by the Commissioner of Education. 11
[(a)] (b) Each [local and regional board of education, each governing 12
council of a state or local charter school, each interdistrict magnet 13
school operator and each supervisory agent of a nonpublic school] 14 Raised Bill No. 1069
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eligible school operator shall, subject to the provisions of section 31-15
51i, (1) require each applicant for a position [in a public school with 16
such board, council or operator or nonpublic school with such 17
supervisory agent] with such eligible school operator to state, in 18
writing, whether such applicant has ever been convicted of a crime or 19
whether criminal charges are pending against such applicant at the 20
time of such application and, if so, to state the charges and the court in 21
which such charges are pending, (2) require each applicant to submit 22
to a records check of the Department of Children and Families child 23
abuse and neglect registry established pursuant to section 17a-101k, 24
before such applicant may be hired by such [board, council, operator 25
or supervisory agent,] eligible school operator, and (3) on and after 26
July 1, [2017] 2019, require, subject to the provisions of subsection [(d)] 27
(e) of this section, each applicant for a position with such eligible 28
school operator to submit to state and national criminal history records 29
checks within thirty days from the date of employment and may 30
require, subject to the provisions of subsection [(d)] (e) of this section, 31
any person hired prior to said date to submit to state and national 32
criminal history records checks. [, and (4) require each worker (A) 33
placed within a school under a public assistance employment 34
program, (B) employed by a provider of supplemental services 35
pursuant to the No Child Left Behind Act, P.L. 107-110, or (C) in a 36
nonpaid, noncertified position completing preparation requirements 37
for the issuance of an educator certificate pursuant to chapter 166, who 38
performs a service involving direct student contact to submit to state 39
and national criminal history records checks within thirty days from 40
the date such worker begins to perform such service.] The criminal 41
history records checks required by this subsection shall be conducted 42
in accordance with section 29-17a. If the [local or regional board of 43
education] eligible school operator receives notice of a conviction of a 44
crime which has not previously been disclosed by such person to the 45
[board, the board] eligible school operator, the eligible school operator 46
may [(i)] (A) terminate the contract of a certified employee, in 47
accordance with the provisions of section 10-151, and [(ii)] (B) dismiss 48
a noncertified employee, provided such employee is notified of the 49 Raised Bill No. 1069
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reason for such dismissal. In addition, if the [local or regional board of 50
education] eligible school operator receives notice of a conviction of a 51
crime by a person [(I)] holding a certificate, authorization or permit 52
issued by the State Board of Education, [(II) employed by a provider of 53
supplemental services, or (III) in a nonpaid, noncertified position 54
completing preparation requirements for the issuance of an educator 55
certificate pursuant to chapter 166, the local or regional board of 56
education] the eligible school operator shall send such notice to the 57
State Board of Education. [The supervisory agent of a nonpublic school 58
shall be responsible for paying the fee charged pursuant to section 29-59
17a for a state and national criminal history records check required 60
under this section.] The provisions of this subsection shall not be 61
construed to cause an eligible school operator to disseminate the 62
results of any national criminal history records check. 63
[(b) If a local or regional board of education, governing council of a 64
state or local charter school, operator of an interdistrict magnet school, 65
endowed or incorporated academy approved by the State Board of 66
Education pursuant to section 10-34, special education facility 67
approved by the State Board of Education pursuant to section 10-76d, 68
or supervisory agent of a nonpublic school] 69
(c) If an eligible school operator requests, a regional educational 70
service center shall arrange for the fingerprinting of any person 71
required to submit to state and national criminal history records 72
checks pursuant to this section or for conducting any other method of 73
positive identification required by the State Police Bureau of 74
Identification or the Federal Bureau of Investigation and shall forward 75
such fingerprints or other positive identifying information to the State 76
Police Bureau of Identification which shall conduct criminal history 77
records checks in accordance with section 29-17a. Such regional 78
educational service center shall maintain such fingerprints or other 79
positive identifying information, which may be in an electronic format, 80
for a period of four years, at the end of which such fingerprints and 81
positive identifying information shall be destroyed. [Such regional 82
educational service centers] The State Police Bureau of Identification 83 Raised Bill No. 1069
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shall provide the results of such checks to such [local or regional board 84
of education, governing council of a state or local charter school, 85
operator of an interdistrict magnet school, endowed or incorporated 86
academy, special education facility or supervisory agent of a nonpublic 87
school and to a contractor, in the case of any employee of an applicant 88
contractor subject to such records checks. Such regional educational 89
service centers shall provide such results to any other local or regional 90
board of education or regional educational service center upon the 91
request of such person] eligible school operator. No regional 92
educational service center shall charge a fee for services under this 93
subsection that exceeds any fee that the center may charge any 94
applicant for a position with such center. 95
[(c)] (d) State and national criminal history records checks for 96
substitute teachers completed within one year prior to the date of 97
employment with [a local or regional board of education, council, 98
operator or supervisory agent] an eligible school operator and 99
submitted to the employing [board of education, council, operator or 100
supervisory agent] eligible school operator shall meet the requirements 101
of [subdivision (3) of] subsection [(a)] (b) of this section. [A local or 102
regional board of education, council, operator or supervisory agent] 103
An eligible school operator shall not require substitute teachers to 104
submit to state and national criminal history records checks pursuant 105
to [subdivision (3) of] subsection [(a)] (b) of this section if they are 106
continuously employed by such [local or regional board of education, 107
council, operator or supervisory agent] eligible school operator, 108
provided a substitute teacher is subjected to such checks at least once 109
every five years. For purposes of this section, substitute teachers shall 110
be deemed to be continuously employed by [a local or regional board 111
of education, council, operator or supervisory agent] an eligible school 112
operator if they are employed at least one day of each school year by 113
such [local or regional board of education, council or operator] eligible 114
school operator. 115
[(d)] (e) The provisions of this section shall not apply to (1) a student 116
employed by [the local or regional school district in] the eligible school 117 Raised Bill No. 1069
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operator for which the student attends school, or (2) a person 118
employed by [a local or regional board of education] an eligible school 119
operator as a teacher for a noncredit adult class or adult education 120
activity, as defined in section 10-67, who is not required to hold a 121
teaching certificate pursuant to section 10-145b for his or her position. 122
[(e) The State Board of Education shall submit, periodically, a 123
database of applicants for an initial issuance of certificate, 124
authorization or permit pursuant to sections 10-144o to 10-149, 125
inclusive, to the State Police Bureau of Identification. The State Police 126
Bureau of Identification shall conduct a state criminal history records 127
check against such database and notify the State Board of Education of 128
any such applicant who has a criminal conviction. The State Board of 129
Education shall not issue a certificate, authorization or permit until it 130
receives and evaluates the results of such check and may deny an 131
application in accordance with the provisions of subsection (i) of 132
section 10-145b. 133
(f) The State Board of Education shall submit, periodically, a 134
database of all persons who hold certificates, authorizations or permits 135
to the State Police Bureau of Identification. The State Police Bureau of 136
Identification shall conduct a state criminal history records check 137
against such database and shall notify the State Board of Education of 138
any such person who has a criminal conviction. The State Board of 139
Education may revoke the certificate, authorization or permit of such 140
person in accordance with the provisions of subsection (i) of section 10-141
145b. 142
(g) The State Board of Education shall require each applicant 143
seeking an initial issuance or renewal of a certificate, authorization or 144
permit pursuant to sections 10-144o to 10-149, inclusive, to submit to a 145
records check of the Department of Children and Families child abuse 146
and neglect registry established pursuant to section 17a-101k. If 147
notification is received that the applicant is listed as a perpetrator of 148
abuse or neglect on the Department of Children and Families child 149
abuse and neglect registry, the board shall deny an application for the 150 Raised Bill No. 1069
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certificate, authorization or permit in accordance with the provisions of 151
subsection (i) of section 10-145b, or may revoke the certificate, 152
authorization or permit in accordance with the provisions of said 153
subsection (i).] 154
[(h)] (f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (g) of section 155
31-51i, and to the extent permissible under state and federal laws 156
regarding the dissemination of criminal history records, the 157
[Department] State Board of Education shall, upon request of [a local 158
or regional board of education, governing council of a state or local 159
charter school, an interdistrict magnet school operator or the 160
supervisory agent of a nonpublic school] an eligible school operator, 161
make available to such [local or regional board of education, governing 162
council, interdistrict magnet school operator or supervisory agent of a 163
nonpublic school] eligible school operator requesting information 164
concerning an applicant for a position with such [board, council, 165
operator or supervisory agent] eligible school operator (1) any 166
information concerning the applicant's eligibility for employment in a 167
position with such [board, council, operator or supervisory agent] 168
eligible school operator requiring a certificate, authorization or permit 169
issued pursuant to chapter 166, (2) whether the department has 170
knowledge that the applicant has been disciplined for a finding of 171
abuse or neglect or sexual misconduct, as defined in section 10-222c, 172
and any information concerning such a finding, and (3) whether the 173
department has received notification that the applicant has been 174
convicted of a crime or of criminal charges pending against the 175
applicant and any information concerning such charges. The 176
provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to cause the 177
[department] state board to investigate any such request or 178
disseminate the results of any national criminal history records check. 179
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) (a) As used in this section and 180
sections 3 and 4 of this act, "nongovernmental school operator" means 181
the governing council of a state or local charter school, an operator of 182
an interdistrict magnet school that is a third-party not-for-profit 183
corporation approved by the Commissioner of Education, an endowed 184 Raised Bill No. 1069
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or incorporated academy approved by the State Board of Education 185
pursuant to section 10-34 of the general statutes, a special education 186
facility approved by the State Board of Education pursuant to section 187
10-76d of the general statutes or the supervisory agent of a nonpublic 188
school. 189
(b) Each nongovernmental school operator shall, subject to the 190
provisions of section 31-51i of the general statutes, (1) require each 191
applicant for a position with such nongovernmental school operator to 192
state, in writing, whether such applicant has ever been convicted of a 193
crime or whether criminal charges are pending against such applicant 194
at the time of such application and, if so, to state the charges and the 195
court in which such charges are pending, (2) require each applicant to 196
submit to a records check of the Department of Children and Families 197
child abuse and neglect registry established pursuant to section 17a-198
101k of the general statutes, before such applicant may be hired by 199
such nongovernmental school operator, and (3) on and after July 1, 200
2019, require, subject to the provisions of subsection (e) of this section, 201
each applicant for a position with such nongovernmental school 202
operator to submit to state and national criminal history records checks 203
within thirty days from the date of employment and may require, 204
subject to the provisions of subsection (e) of this section, any person 205
hired prior to said date to submit to state and national criminal history 206
records checks. The criminal history records checks required by this 207
subsection shall be conducted in accordance with section 29-17a of the 208
general statutes and the National Child Protection Act of 1993, P.L. 209
103-209, as amended from time to time. If the nongovernmental school 210
operator receives notice of a conviction of a crime which has not 211
previously been disclosed by such person to the nongovernmental 212
school operator, the nongovernmental school operator may (A) 213
terminate the contract of a certified employee, in accordance with the 214
provisions of section 10-151 of the general statutes, if applicable, and 215
(B) dismiss a noncertified employee, provided such employee is 216
notified of the reason for such dismissal. In addition, if the 217
nongovernmental school operator receives notice of a conviction of a 218 Raised Bill No. 1069
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crime by a person holding a certificate, authorization or permit issued 219
by the State Board of Education, the nongovernmental school operator 220
shall send such notice to the State Board of Education. The provisions 221
of this subsection shall not be construed to cause an eligible school 222
operator to disseminate the results of any national criminal history 223
records check. 224
(c) If a nongovernmental school operator requests, a regional 225
educational service center shall arrange for the fingerprinting of any 226
person required to submit to state and national criminal history 227
records checks pursuant to this section or for conducting any other 228
method of positive identification required by the State Police Bureau of 229
Identification or the Federal Bureau of Investigation and shall forward 230
such fingerprints or other positive identifying information to the State 231
Police Bureau of Identification which shall conduct criminal history 232
records checks in accordance with section 29-17a of the general statutes 233
and the National Child Protection Act of 1993, P.L. 103-209, as 234
amended from time to time. Such regional educational service center 235
shall maintain such fingerprints or other positive identifying 236
information, which may be in an electronic format, for a period of four 237
years, at the end of which such fingerprints and positive identifying 238
information shall be destroyed. The State Police Bureau of 239
Identification shall provide the results of such checks to such 240
nongovernmental school operator. No regional educational service 241
center shall charge a fee for services under this subsection that exceeds 242
any fee that the center may charge any applicant for a position with 243
such center. 244
(d) State and national criminal history records checks for substitute 245
teachers completed within one year prior to the date of employment 246
with a nongovernmental school operator and submitted to the 247
employing nongovernmental school operator shall meet the 248
requirements of subsection (b) of this section. A nongovernmental 249
school operator shall not require substitute teachers to submit to state 250
and national criminal history records checks pursuant to subsection (b) 251
of this section if they are continuously employed by such 252 Raised Bill No. 1069
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nongovernmental school operator, provided a substitute teacher is 253
subjected to such checks at least once every five years. For purposes of 254
this section, substitute teachers shall be deemed to be continuously 255
employed by a nongovernmental school operator if they are employed 256
at least one day of each school year by such nongovernmental school 257
operator. 258
(e) The provisions of this section shall not apply to (1) a student 259
employed by the nongovernmental school operator for which the 260
student attends school, or (2) a person employed by a 261
nongovernmental school operator as a teacher for a noncredit adult 262
class or adult education activity, as defined in section 10-67 of the 263
general statutes, who is not required to hold a teaching certificate 264
pursuant to section 10-145b of the general statutes for his or her 265
position. 266
(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (g) of section 31-51i 267
of the general statutes, and to the extent permissible under state and 268
federal laws regarding the dissemination of criminal history records, 269
the State Board of Education shall, upon request of a nongovernmental 270
school operator, make available to such nongovernmental school 271
operator requesting information concerning an applicant for a position 272
with such nongovernmental school operator, (1) any information 273
concerning the applicant's eligibility for employment in a position with 274
such nongovernmental school operator requiring a certificate, 275
authorization or permit issued pursuant to chapter 166 of the general 276
statutes, (2) whether the department has knowledge that the applicant 277
has been disciplined for a finding of abuse or neglect or sexual 278
misconduct, as defined in section 10-222c of the general statutes, and 279
any information concerning such a finding, and (3) whether the 280
department has received notification that the applicant has been 281
convicted of a crime or of criminal charges pending against the 282
applicant and any information concerning such charges. The 283
provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to cause the state 284
board to investigate any such request or disseminate the results of any 285
national criminal history records check. 286 Raised Bill No. 1069
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Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) (a) Each eligible school operator 287
and nongovernmental school operator shall require each student who 288
is enrolled in a teacher preparation program, as defined in section 10-289
10a of the general statutes, and completing his or her student teaching 290
experience with such eligible school operator or nongovernmental 291
school operator, to (1) state, in writing, whether such student has ever 292
been convicted of a crime or whether criminal charges are pending 293
against such applicant at the time of such application and, if so, to state 294
the charges and the court in which such charges are pending, (2) 295
submit to a records check of the Department of Children and Families 296
child abuse and neglect registry established pursuant to section 17a-297
101k of the general statutes, before such student performs such student 298
teaching experience, and (3) on and after July 1, 2019, submit to state 299
and national criminal history records checks within sixty days from the 300
date such student begins to perform such student teaching experience. 301
The criminal history records checks required by this section shall be 302
conducted in accordance with section 29-17a of the general statutes. 303
(b) The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection 304
shall waive the fee for a criminal history records check required under 305
this section. 306
Sec. 4. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) Each eligible school operator or 307
nongovernmental school operator may require any person who will 308
perform a service involving direct contact with students to (1) state, in 309
writing, whether such person has ever been convicted of a crime or 310
whether criminal charges are pending against such applicant at the 311
time of such application and, if so, to state the charges and the court in 312
which such charges are pending, (2) submit to a records check of the 313
Department of Children and Families child abuse and neglect registry 314
established pursuant to section 17a-101k of the general statutes, before 315
such person performs a service involving direct contact with students, 316
and (3) on and after July 1, 2019, submit to state and national criminal 317
history records checks in accordance with section 29-17a of the general 318
statutes and the National Child Protection Act of 1993, P.L. 103-209, as 319
amended from time to time. 320 Raised Bill No. 1069
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Sec. 5. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) (a) The State Board of Education 321
shall submit, periodically, a database of applicants for an initial 322
issuance of certificate, authorization or permit pursuant to sections 10-323
144o to 10-149, inclusive, of the general statutes, to the State Police 324
Bureau of Identification. The State Police Bureau of Identification shall 325
conduct a state criminal history records check in accordance with 326
section 29-17a of the general statutes against such database and notify 327
the State Board of Education of any such applicant who has a criminal 328
conviction. The State Board of Education shall not issue a certificate, 329
authorization or permit until it receives and evaluates the results of 330
such check and may deny an application in accordance with the 331
provisions of subsection (i) of section 10-145b of the general statutes. 332
(b) The State Board of Education shall submit, periodically, a 333
database of all persons who hold certificates, authorizations or permits 334
to the State Police Bureau of Identification. The State Police Bureau of 335
Identification shall conduct a state criminal history records check in 336
accordance with section 29-17a of the general statutes against such 337
database and shall notify the State Board of Education of any such 338
person who has a criminal conviction. The State Board of Education 339
may revoke the certificate, authorization or permit of such person in 340
accordance with the provisions of subsection (i) of section 10-145b of 341
the general statutes. 342
(c) The State Board of Education shall require each applicant seeking 343
an initial issuance or renewal of a certificate, authorization or permit 344
pursuant to sections 10-144o to 10-149, inclusive, of the general 345
statutes, to submit to a records check of the Department of Children 346
and Families child abuse and neglect registry established pursuant to 347
section 17a-101k of the general statutes. If notification is received that 348
the applicant is listed as a perpetrator of abuse or neglect on the 349
Department of Children and Families child abuse and neglect registry, 350
the board shall deny an application for the certificate, authorization or 351
permit in accordance with the provisions of subsection (i) of section 10-352
145b of the general statutes, or may revoke the certificate, 353
authorization or permit in accordance with the provisions of said 354 Raised Bill No. 1069
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subsection (i). 355
Sec. 6. (Effective from passage) Not later than January 1, 2020, the 356
Department of Education shall conduct a study concerning the 357
authorization of towns and cooperative arrangements pursuant to 358
section 10-158a of the general statutes to be considered a local 359
education agency for purposes of regional cooperation and in order to 360
maximize efficiencies and cost-savings without establishing a regional 361
school district. The department shall submit a report on its findings 362
and any recommendations for legislation to the joint standing 363
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 364
relating to education, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-365
4a of the general statutes. 366
Sec. 7. Subsection (a) of section 10-16b of the general statutes is 367
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 368
1, 2019): 369
(a) In the public schools the program of instruction offered shall 370
include at least the following subject matter, as taught by legally 371
qualified teachers, the arts; career education; consumer education; 372
health and safety, including, but not limited to, human growth and 373
development, nutrition, first aid, including cardiopulmonary 374
resuscitation training in accordance with the provisions of section 10-375
16qq, disease prevention and cancer awareness, including, but not 376
limited to, age and developmentally appropriate instruction in 377
performing self-examinations for the purposes of screening for breast 378
cancer and testicular cancer, community and consumer health, 379
physical, mental and emotional health, including youth suicide 380
prevention, sexual harassment and assault, adolescent relationship 381
abuse and intimate partner violence, human trafficking, including 382
commercial sexual exploitation, substance abuse prevention, including 383
instruction relating to opioid use and related disorders, safety, which 384
shall include the safe use of social media, as defined in section 9-601, 385
and may include the dangers of gang membership, and accident 386
prevention; language arts, including reading, writing, grammar, 387 Raised Bill No. 1069
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speaking and spelling; mathematics; physical education; science, 388
which may include the climate change curriculum described in 389
subsection (d) of this section; social studies, including, but not limited 390
to, citizenship, economics, geography, government, history and 391
Holocaust and genocide education and awareness in accordance with 392
the provisions of section 10-18f; computer programming instruction; 393
and in addition, on at least the secondary level, one or more world 394
languages and vocational education. For purposes of this subsection, 395
world languages shall include American Sign Language, provided 396
such subject matter is taught by a qualified instructor under the 397
supervision of a teacher who holds a certificate issued by the State 398
Board of Education. For purposes of this subsection, the "arts" means 399
any form of visual or performing arts, which may include, but not be 400
limited to, dance, music, art and theatre. 401
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2019 10-221d
Sec. 2 July 1, 2019 New section
Sec. 3 July 1, 2019 New section
Sec. 4 July 1, 2019 New section
Sec. 5 July 1, 2019 New section
Sec. 6 from passage New section
Sec. 7 July 1, 2019 10-16b(a)
Statement of Purpose:
To make various revisions and additions to the education statutes.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline,
except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is
not underlined.]