HLS 15RS-1305 ORIGINAL
2015 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 653
BY REPRESENTATIVES MIKE JOHNSON, REYNOLDS, AND HENRY BURNS
Prefiled pursuant to Article III, Section 2(A)(4)(b)(i) of the Constitution of Louisiana.
SCHOOLS: Provides relative to exemptions from the requirements for school instructional
time under certain circumstances
1 AN ACT
2To amend and reenact R.S. 17:154.1(A)(3), relative to minimum requirements for
3 instructional time; to provide for applicability of such requirements to certain public
4 schools and school systems under certain circumstances; and to provide for related
5 matters.
6Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
7 Section 1. R.S. 17:154.1(A)(3) is hereby amended and reenacted to read as follows:
8 ยง154.1. Length of school day and year; requirements
9 A.
10 * * *
11 (3) Effective for the 2002-2003 school year and thereafter, the The
12 provisions of Paragraph (1) of this Subsection shall not be applicable to any city,
13 parish, or other local public school or school system which cannot meet the
14 minimum requirements for instructional time as provided in Paragraph (1) of this
15 Subsection for any given school year due to school closure, when such school
16 closure occurs within the last thirty calendar days of the school year, for reasons of
17 natural catastrophe or disaster as certified by the state superintendent of education
18 and approved by the State Board of Elementary and Education. Such certification
19 and approval shall be in accordance with criteria established pursuant to rules and
20 regulations adopted by the board for such purpose. Such rules and regulations shall
21 include but shall not be limited to a requirement that any city, parish, or other local
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions. HLS 15RS-1305 ORIGINAL
HB NO. 653
1 public school or school system not able to meet the requirements of Paragraph (1)
2 of this Subsection shall submit to the state superintendent of education in accordance
3 with time lines established by the board documented information explaining the
4 reasons why such school or school system cannot meet such requirements and any
5 efforts made by the school or school system toward meeting the requirements. which
6 result in a declaration of a state of emergency by the governor. The provisions of
7 this Paragraph shall apply to an entire school system only if every school within the
8 system is forced to close for reasons as provided in this Paragraph.
9 * * *
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HB 653 Original 2015 Regular Session Mike Johnson
Abstract: Provides relative to the minimum requirements for instructional time in schools
under certain circumstances which result in a state of emergency declared by the
governor.
Present law provides that the minimum school day for grades one through 12 in every public
school shall consist of 360 minutes of instructional time and the minimum school year shall
consist of 177 days of instruction. Authorizes school governing authorities to modify the
total number of instructional minutes per day and instructional days per year under certain
conditions, provided the same minimum total instructional minutes for the year is not
changed.
Present law provides that such provisions shall not be applicable to any city, parish, or other
local public school or school system which cannot meet the minimum requirements for any
given school year due to school closure for reasons of natural catastrophe or disaster as
certified by the state superintendent of education and approved by BESE in accordance with
criteria established by the board for such purpose. Provides for the requirement of
documented information explaining the reasons why such school or school system cannot
meet minimum requirements and efforts made by the school or school system toward
meeting the requirements. Present law applies to an entire school system only if every
school within the system is forced to close.
Proposed law provides instead that the minimum requirements for instructional time for any
given school year shall not apply to any public school or school system when such school
or system cannot meet the requirements because of a natural catastrophe or disaster that
results in a declaration of a state of emergency by the governor. Proposed law retains
present law with respect to the applicability of such requirements to an entire school system
if every school in the system is forced to close. Removes requirements for documented
explanations.
(Amends R.S. 17:154.1(A)(3))
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CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
are additions.