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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - FLOOR VERSION
STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 58th Legislature (2021)
ENGROSSED SENATE
BILL NO. 13 By: Stanley of the Senate
and
Baker, Davis and Waldron of
the House
An Act relating to teachers; amending 70 O .S. 2011,
Section 6-101, as last amended by Section 2, Chapter
49, O.S.L. 2020 (70 O.S. Supp. 2020, Section 6-101),
which relates to teacher contracts; requiring that a
teacher whose certificate has been suspended to be
placed on suspension while certain p roceedings are
pending; clarifying that certain action does not
preclude initiation of certain due process
procedures; updating statutory language; providing an
effective date; and declaring an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKL AHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2011, Section 6 -101, as
last amended by Section 2, Chapter 49, O.S.L. 2020 (70 O.S. Supp.
2020, Section 6-101), is amended to read as follows:
Section 6-101. A. Except as provided in subsecti on E of this
section, no person shall be permitted to teach in any school
district of the state without a written contract, except as provided
herein for substitute teachers and except teachers of classes in
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adult education. Except as provided in subsecti on J of this
section, the board of education of each school district, wherein
school is expected to be conducted for the ensuing year, shall
employ and contract in writing with qualified teachers for and in
the name of the district. One copy of the contra ct shall be filed
with the clerk of the board of education and one copy shall be
retained by the teacher.
B. Except as otherwise provided by subsections J and K of this
section and any other law, no board of education shall have
authority to enter into an y written contract with a teacher who does
not hold an Oklahoma criminal history record check as required by
Section 6-190 of this title and who does not hold a valid
certificate issued or recognized by the State Board of Education
authorizing said the teacher to teach the grades or subject matter
for which the teacher is employed. Any board of education paying or
authorizing the payment of the salary of any teacher not holding a
certificate, as required herein, shall be adjudged to be guilty of a
fraudulent expenditure of public funds and members voting for such
payment shall be held jointly responsible for the return of the
amount of any public monies thus expended, upon suit brought by the
district attorney or by any interested citizen in the district wh ere
such funds have been expended.
C. It shall be the duty of the superintendent of schools under
whose supervision teachers have been contracted to teach to certify
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to the treasurer of the contracting district the names of the
teachers holding valid cert ificates and student teachers with whom
contracts have been made and the names of substitute teachers
employed in accordance with law. The treasurer shall not register
any warrant issued in payment of salary to any teacher whose name is
not included in such list and shall be liable on the official bond
for the treasurer for the amount of any warrant registered in
violation of the provisions of this section.
D. Whenever any person shall enter into a contract with any
school district in Oklahoma to teach in such school district the
contract shall be binding on the teacher and on the board of
education until the teacher legally has been discharged from the
teaching position or released by the board of education from the
contract. Except as provided in Sectio n 5-106A of this title, until
such teacher has been thus discharged or released, the teacher shall
not have authority to enter into a contract with any other board of
education in Oklahoma for the same time covered by the original
contract. If upon writte n complaint by the board of education in a
district any teacher is reported to have failed to obey the terms of
the contract previously made and to have entered into a contract
with another board of education without having been released from
the former contract except as provided in Section 5 -106A of this
title, the teacher, upon being found guilty of such charge at a
hearing held before the State Board of Education, shall have such
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teacher’s certificate suspended for the remainder of the term for
which the contract was made.
E. A board of education shall have authority to enter into
written contracts with teachers for the ensuing fiscal year prior to
the beginning of such year. If, prior to the first Monday in June,
a board of education has not entered i nto a written contract with a
regularly employed teacher or notified the teacher in writing by
registered or certified mail that a recommendation has been made not
to reemploy the teacher for the ensuing fiscal year, and if, by
fifteen (15) days after the first Monday in June, such teacher has
not notified the board of education in writing by registered or
certified mail that such teacher does not desire to be reemployed in
such school district for the ensuing year, such teacher shall be
considered as employed on a continuing contract basis and on the
same salary schedule used for other teachers in the school district
for the ensuing fiscal year, and such employment and continuing
contract shall be binding on the teacher and on the school district.
F. Whenever a school district is engaged in contract
negotiations with teachers employed by that school district after
the school year has begun and the teachers are employed on a
continuing contract basis, the school district shall, beginning at
the first of the school year, pay the teachers any state -mandated
salary increases and salary schedule increases to which each teacher
is otherwise entitled.
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G. No school district or any member of the board of education
of a district shall be liable for the payment of com pensation to a
teacher or administrator under the provisions of any contract for
the ensuing year, if it becomes necessary to close the school
because of insufficient attendance, disorganization, annexation,
consolidation, or by dispensing with the school according to law,
provided, such cause is known or action is taken prior to July 1 of
such ensuing year.
H. No school district or any member of a board of education
shall be liable for the payment of compensation to any teacher or
administrator for the un expired term of any contract if the school
building to which the teacher or administrator has been assigned is
destroyed by accident, storm, fire, or otherwise and it becomes
necessary to close the school because of inability to secure a
suitable building or buildings for continuation of school. Teachers
and administrators shall be entitled to pay for any time lost when
school is closed on account of epidemics or otherwise when an order
for such closing has been issued by a health officer authorized by
law to issue the order.
I. A teacher may contract with more than one school district
for the same school year as provided in Section 5 -106A of this
title.
J. A board of education shall have authority to enter into
written contracts for the ensuing fiscal ye ar prior to the beginning
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of the year with persons who are not certified to teach by the State
Board of Education as long as the person is actively in the process
of securing certification. The person shall not be allowed to teach
in a classroom until the person has met or completed all of the
requirements for certification as provided for in Section 6 -190 of
this title. If the person has not obtained valid certification by
the first day of the ensuing school year, the contract shall be
terminated.
K. A board of education of a school district shall have the
authority to enter into written contracts for employment for the
ensuing fiscal year with persons who are student teachers as defined
in Section 1-116 of this title while such persons are still student
teachers. A student teacher shall not be allowed to teach in a
classroom during the ensuing fiscal year until meeting or completing
all of the requirements for certification as provided for in Section
6-190 of this title. If the student teacher has not obtained valid
certification by the first day of the ensuing school year, the
contract shall be terminated. A board of education of a school
district shall have the authority to commit to payment of a stipend
or signing bonus to a student teacher as defin ed in Section 1-116 of
this title while that person is still a student teacher, if that
person has entered into a written contract for employment for the
ensuing fiscal year. A board of education shall make any such
student teacher stipend or signing bonu s conditional on such person
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fulfilling the first year of his or her contract for the ensuing
fiscal year. Any stipend or signing bonus paid under the terms of
this subsection shall not be considered compensation for purposes of
teacher retirement or the minimum salary schedule.
L. A teacher whose certificate was suspended by the State Board
of Education pursuant to Section 3 -104 of this title and Sections
314 and 314.1 of Title 75 of the Oklahoma Statutes shall be placed
on suspension pursuant to the pro visions of Section 6 -101.29 of this
title while proceedings for revocation or other action are pending
before the State Board of Education. The provisions of this
subsection shall not preclude the initiation of due process
procedures in accordance with Se ction 6-101.20 et. seq of this
title.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2021.
SECTION 3. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby
declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
COMMITTEE REPORT BY: COMMITTEE ON COMMON EDUCATION, dated 04/06/2021
- DO PASS, As Coauthored.