23 LC 49 1306
H. B. 457
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House Bill 457
By: Representatives Ballard of the 147
th
, Erwin of the 32
nd
, Wade of the 9
th
, Dubnik of the
29
th
, Corbett of the 174
th
, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Part 6 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia
1
Annotated, relating to employment under the "Quality Basic Education Act," so as to remove2
the needs development rating from the group of performance evaluation ratings which may3
adversely impact an educator's ability to obtain a renewable certificate from the Georgia4
Professional Standards Commission; to remove the needs development rating from the group5
of performance evaluation ratings which shall be reported by local school systems to the6
Georgia Professional Standards Commission; to remove the needs development rating from7
the group of performance evaluation ratings which may adversely impact an educator's8
ability to obtain a year of creditable service on the state's minimum salary schedules; to9
provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.10
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:11
SECTION 1.12
Part 6 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,13
relating to employment under the "Quality Basic Education Act," is amended in Code14
Section 20-2-200, relating to regulation of certificated professional personnel by Professional15
Standards Commission, rules and regulations, and fees, by revising subsection (c) as follows:16 23 LC 49 1306
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"(c) An individual who has received any combination of two unsatisfactory, or ineffective,17
or needs development annual summative performance evaluations in the previous five-year18
period pursuant to Code Section 20-2-210 shall not be entitled to a renewable certificate19
prior to demonstrating that such performance deficiency has been satisfactorily addressed,20
but such individual may apply to the commission for a nonrenewable certificate, as defined21
by the commission. Each local school system and charter school shall report all22
unsatisfactory, and ineffective, and needs development ratings of all performance23
evaluations as provided in Code Section 20-2-210 for certificated personnel in their employ24
in a manner, format, and frequency determined by the commission. The commission is25
authorized to release such data provided it cannot be personally identifiable to any26
currently or formerly certificated person."27
SECTION 2.28
Said part is further amended in Code Section 20-2-212, relating to salary schedules, by29
revising subsection (a) as follows:30
"(a) The State Board of Education shall establish a schedule of minimum salaries for31
services rendered which shall be on a ten-month basis and which shall be paid by local32
units of administration to the various classifications of professional personnel required to33
be certificated by the Professional Standards Commission. The minimum salary schedule34
shall provide a minimum salary base for each classification of professional personnel35
required to be certificated; shall provide for increment increases above the minimum salary36
base of each classification based upon individual experience and length of satisfactory37
service; and shall include such other uniformly applicable factors as the state board may38
find relevant to the establishment of such a schedule. The minimum salary base for39
certificated professional personnel with bachelor's degrees and no experience, when40
annualized from a ten-month basis to a 12 month basis, shall be comparable to the41
beginning salaries of the recent graduates of the University System of Georgia holding42 23 LC 49 1306
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bachelor's degrees and entering positions, excluding professional educator teaching
43
positions, in Georgia having educational entry requirements comparable to the44
requirements for entry into Georgia public school teaching. The placement of teachers on45
the salary schedule shall be based on certificate level and years of creditable experience,46
except that a teacher shall not receive credit for any year of experience in which the teacher47
received an unsatisfactory or ineffective annual summative performance evaluation or for
48
the second year in which a teacher receives two consecutive annual summative needs49
development ratings pursuant to Code Section 20-2-210. The General Assembly shall50
annually appropriate funds to implement a salary schedule for certificated professional51
personnel. For each state fiscal year, the state board shall adopt the salary schedule for52
which funding has been appropriated by the General Assembly. A local unit of53
administration shall not pay to any full-time certificated professional employee a salary less54
than that prescribed by the schedule of minimum salaries, except as required by this Code55
section; nor shall a local unit of administration pay to any part-time certificated56
professional employee less than a pro rata portion of the respective salary prescribed by the57
schedule of minimum salaries, except as required by this Code section. For purposes of58
this subsection, an educator's placement on the salary schedule shall not be based on a59
leadership degree, which shall mean a degree earned in conjunction with completion of an60
educator leadership preparation program approved by the Professional Standards61
Commission, unless the educator is employed in a leadership position as defined by the62
State Board of Education, but shall be placed on the salary schedule position attributable63
to the educator but for the leadership degree; provided, however, that this shall not apply,64
regardless of whether or not he or she is in a leadership position, to:65
(1) An educator who possessed a leadership degree prior to July 1, 2010; or66
(2) An educator who possessed:67
(A) A master's level leadership degree prior to July 1, 2012;68
(B) An education specialist level leadership degree prior to July 1, 2013; or69 23 LC 49 1306
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(C) A doctoral level leadership degree prior to July 1, 2014,
70
so long as he or she was enrolled in such leadership preparation program on or before71
April 1, 2009."72
SECTION 3.73
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.74