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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2nd Session of the 59th Legislature (2024)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR ENGROSSED
HOUSE BILL 2009
By: Davis and Lowe (Dick) of the
House
and
Stephens of the Senate
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
An Act relating to schools; amen ding 70 O.S. 2021,
Section 3-104.4, which relates to standards for
accreditation; updating statutory language; updating
statutory reference; modifying submission date for
certain report on statewide class sizes ; requiring
annual submission of report ; requiring school
districts to provide certain stipend to teachers with
classes that fail to comply with class size
limitations; providing for maximum stipend amount;
exempting school districts that provide certain
stipends from certain penalties; providing for
codification; providing an effective date; and
declaring an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 3 -104.4, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 3-104.4. A. The State Board of Education shall adopt
standards for the accreditation of the public schools in this s tate
according to the requirements of Section 3 -104.3 et seq. of this
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title, to be effective as set forth in Section 3 -104.3 et seq. of
this title. The accreditation standards shall incorporate the
curricular standards e stablished pursuant to Section 11 -103.6 of
this title. The accreditation standards shall equal or exceed
nationally recognized accreditation standards to the extent that the
standards are consistent with an academic results oriented results-
oriented approach to accreditation. The accredit ation adopted by
the State Board shall encompass accreditation for elementary
schools, middle schools, junior high schools, and high schools . The
accreditation standards shall be made available for public
inspection at the offices of the State Department of Education.
B. Standards for accreditation adopted by the State Board of
Education shall include standards relating to the provision of
school counselors to the public school children of this state. The
State Board of Education shall require each local school district to
provide information regarding the number of counselors serving each
school site, the duties of all such counselors including all
administrative duties, the number of students served by each
counselor, and information regarding the number of counselors
employed per elementary school, middle school, junior high school ,
and high school.
C. Except as otherwise provided, school s shall meet the
accreditation standards as a condition of continued accreditation.
Nothing herein shall be constru ed as preventing changes to the
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adopted standards by the State Board of Education pursuant to the
Administrative Procedures Act. The accred itation standards shall
provide for warnings, probation , or nonaccredited status for schools
that fail to meet the standards. The Department shall investigate a
complaint of failure to provide educational services or failure to
comply with accreditation s tandards within thirty (30) days of
receiving the complaint. If the Department determines that a school
has failed to comply with the accreditation standards, the
Department shall report the recommended warning, probation , or
nonaccredited accreditation s tatus to the State Board of Education
within ninety (90) days. If a school does not take action to comply
with the accreditation standards within ninety (90) days after a
report is filed by the Department, the Board shall withdraw
accreditation for the sc hool. The State Board accreditation
regulations shall provide for warnings and for assistance to schools
and school districts whenever there is reason to believe a school is
in danger of losing its state accreditation.
D. If one or more school sites fail to receive accreditation as
required pursuant to this section or subsequently lo se
accreditation, the State Board of Education shall close the school
and reassign the students to accredited schools within the district
or shall annex the district to one or more other districts in which
the students can be educated in accredited schools.
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E. Standards for accreditation a dopted by the State Board of
Education shall include standards relating to the provision of
educational services provided in partial hospita lization programs,
day treatment programs, day hospital programs, residential tre atment
programs, and emergency shelter programs for persons between the
ages of three (3) and twenty -one (21) years of age. The
accreditation standards shall apply to on -site and off-site
educational services provided by public school districts or state -
accredited private schools. Each sc hool which is providing or is
required to provide educational services for students placed in a
program as described in this subsection shal l be actively monitored
by the State Department of Education. The Department sha ll
determine on an ongoing basis if the educational program and
services are in compliance with the accreditation standards.
F. The State Board shall provide assistance to di stricts in
considering the possibility of meeting accreditation requirements
through the use of nontraditional means of instruction. The State
Board shall also assist districts in forming cooperatives and making
arrangements for the use of satellite instr uction or other
instructional technologies to the extent that use of such
instructional means meets accreditation standards.
G. 1. Accreditation shall not be withdrawn from or denied nor
shall a penalty be assessed against a school or school district for
failing to meet the media materials and equipment standards, media
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program expenditure standards , and media personnel standards as set
forth in the accreditation standards adopted by the Board.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this subsection shall ce ase
to be effective during the fiscal year which begins on the July 1
immediately succeeding the legislative session during which the
measure appropriating monies to the State Board of Education for the
financial support of public schools is enacted as law and such
appropriation amount is at least Fifty Million Dollars
($50,000,000.00) greater than the amount of money a ppropriated to
the State Board of Education for the financial support of public
schools for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019, pursuant t o
Chapter 146, O.S.L. 2018. Provided, the Fifty Million Dollars
($50,000,000.00) shall not include any amount of appropriations
dedicated for support or certified employee salary increases.
Accreditation shall not be withdrawn from or denied nor shall a
penalty be assessed against a school or school district for failing
to meet the media personnel standards as set for th in accreditation
standards adopted by the Board.
H. 1. The State Board shall not assess a financial penalty
against any school district which is given a deficiency in
accreditation status during any fiscal year as pr ovided for in this
subsection.
2. Beginning with the fiscal year which begins July 1, 2021, if
the amount of money appropriated to the State Board of Education for
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the financial support of public schools , including funds apportioned
pursuant to Section 2 of this act 426 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma
Statutes, is at least One Hundred Million Dollars ($100,000,000.00)
greater than the amount of money appropriated to the State Boar d of
Education for the financial support of public schools for the fiscal
year ending June 30, 2019, pursuant to Chapter 146, O.S.L. 2018, a
financial penalty shall be assessed against any school districts
that do not comply with the class size limitations for kindergarten
as provided for in Section 18-113.2 of this title and class size
limitations for grade one as prov ided for in subsection A of Section
18-113.1 of this title. Provided, the One Hundred Million Dollars
($100,000,000.00) shall not include a ny amount of appropriations
dedicated for support or certified employee salary increases.
3. The State Department of Education shall submit a report on
statewide classroom class sizes to the President Pro Tempore of the
Oklahoma State Senate and the Speak er of the Oklahoma House of
Representatives no later than January 1, 2022 July 1, 2025, and each
July 1 thereafter.
I. Except as provided for in subsection J of this section,
beginning with the 2019 -2020 school year, evaluations of schools to
determine whether they meet the accreditation standards set forth in
accordance with this section shall occur once every four (4) years
on a schedule adopted by the State Board of Education. The Board
may interrupt the evaluation schedule provided in this subsection
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for reasons including a change in the superintendent of the school
district; determination that one or more school d istrict board
members have not met the continuing education requirements as
defined by this title; determination that the school district
falsified information submitted to any public city, county, state ,
or federal official or agency; initiation of an investigation by the
Board or a law enforcement agency; or other determination by the
Board that standards for accreditation are not being met by the
school district. The s chedule adopted by the Board shall allow for
school districts receiving no deficiencie s for two (2) consecutive
years to be reviewed for accreditation less than annually.
Provided, however, that schools shall be evaluated ann ually for the
purposes of:
1. Local, state, and federal funding;
2. Health and safety;
3. Certification requirements for teachers, principals , and
superintendents;
4. School board governance , including instructional and
continuing education requirement s for school board members; an d
5. Any other requirements under state or federal law.
J. Beginning with the 2019 -2020 school year, if a public school
receives a deficiency on its accreditation report, the public school
shall be evaluated annually to dete rmine if it meets the
accreditation standards set forth in accordance with this section.
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If the public school receives no deficiencies for two (2)
consecutive years, the public school shall be subject to the
evaluation timeline established in subsection I of this section.
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 18-113.6 of Title 70, unless
there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. Beginning with the 2025-2026 school year and each school
year thereafter, a school district shall pay a teacher a stipend of
One Thousand Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($1,250.00) per extra
student, with a maximum stipend of Three Thousand Seven Hundred
Fifty Dollars ($3,750.00) if the teacher is responsible for the
instruction of a class that fails to comply with the class size
limitations as provid ed for in subsections A of Section 18 -113.2, A
and B of Section 18-113.1, and C of Section 18-113.3 of Title 70 of
the Oklahoma Statutes.
B. School districts that pay a teacher stipend as required by
subsection A of this section shall not be assessed a financial
penalty in the State Aid formula or given a deficiency or denial of
accreditation status for exceeding the class size limitations as
provided in Sections 3 -104.4, 18-113.1, 18-113.2, and 18-113.3 of
Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effective July 1, 202 4.
SECTION 4. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
of the public peace, health , or safety, an emergency is hereby
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declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
59-2-3684 EB 4/2/2024 12:04:13 PM