LRB-4848/1
FFK:amn
2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
2023 ASSEMBLY BILL 644
November 8, 2023 - Introduced by Representatives P ENTERMAN, MELOTIK,
BRANDTJEN, DITTRICH, DONOVAN, GOEBEN, S. JOHNSON, KITCHENS, MICHALSKI,
MURPHY, O'CONNOR, RETTINGER and ROZAR, cosponsored by Senator KNODL.
Referred to Committee on Education.
***AUTHORS SUBJECT TO CHANGE***
AN ACT to amend 118.51 (3) (intro.), 118.51 (3) (a) 1d., 118.51 (3m) (a), 118.51 (8),
118.51 (9), 118.51 (15) (a) and 118.51 (15) (c) 2. and 4.; and to create 118.51 (3p)
and 118.51 (5) (a) 7. of the statutes; relating to: applications for full-time open
enrollment.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Under the full-time open enrollment program (OEP), a pupil may attend a
public school in a school district other than the pupil's resident school district
(nonresident school district). Under current law, the standard OEP application
procedure requires a pupil's parent to apply to a nonresident school district during
the spring semester immediately preceding the school year in which the pupil wishes
to attend the nonresident school district. Current law also provides an alternative
application procedure that allows a pupil's parent to apply to a nonresident school
district at any time during the school year, if certain circumstances apply, such as the
pupil moved into this state, the pupil has been the victim of repeated bullying or
harassment, or the pupil's parent, the resident school board, and the nonresident
school board agree that attending school in the nonresident school district is in the
best interests of the pupil.
This bill creates an alternative OEP application procedure for pupils who have
a parent who is employed as a teacher in the nonresident school district to which the
application is made. The application procedure created in the bill is available at any
time during the school year and, if a pupil is accepted under the procedure, the pupil
may immediately begin attending public school in the nonresident school district.
1
2
3
4 - 2 -2023 - 2024 Legislature LRB-4848/1
FFK:amn
ASSEMBLY BILL 644
However, under the bill, if the pupil's parent is no longer employed by the
nonresident school board as a teacher or an administrator, the nonresident school
board may require the pupil to reapply using the standard or existing alternative
OEP application procedure.
Current law limits the criteria that a nonresident school district may use to
accept or reject applications under the OEP. One of the criteria that a nonresident
school district may use is the availability of space in the schools, programs, classes,
or grades in the nonresident school district. Current law requires each school board
to determine the availability of regular and special education spaces it has for
nonresident pupils to attend school under the OEP at the school board's regular
January meeting in the preceding school year. Under the application procedure
created in the bill, a nonresident school board may accept a pupil's application even
if the result is that the nonresident school board exceeds the number of spaces it
determined were available for nonresident pupils in a school, program, class, or
grade in the nonresident school district. In other words, the space limitations
determined by the nonresident school board do not apply to these applications. The
bill also adds whether a pupil's parent is employed as a teacher by the nonresident
school district to the criteria that a nonresident school district may use to accept or
reject OEP applications.
Finally, current law limits the number of nonresident school boards to which
a pupil may apply to attend a public school in a nonresident school district under the
OEP. Specifically, under current law, OEP applications for a pupil may be submitted
to no more than three nonresident school boards in any school year. However,
applications submitted to a nonresident school board for a pupil to attend a virtual
charter school under the OEP does not count towards this limitation. Under the bill,
applications submitted under the new application procedure also do not count
towards this limitation and may be submitted even if applications for the pupil have
already been submitted to nonresident school boards in that school year.
For further information see the local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as
an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
SECTION 1. 118.51 (3) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
118.51 (3) APPLICATION PROCEDURES. (intro.) Except as provided under sub.
subs. (3m) and (3p), the following procedures govern pupil applications to attend a
public school in a nonresident school district under this section:
SECTION 2. 118.51 (3) (a) 1d. of the statutes is amended to read:
1
2
3
4
5 - 3 -2023 - 2024 Legislature
LRB-4848/1
FFK:amn
SECTION 2
ASSEMBLY BILL 644
118.51 (3) (a) 1d. For purposes of determining whether applications have been
submitted to more than 3 nonresident school boards, the department may not count
an application submitted to a nonresident school board for a pupil to attend a virtual
charter school or an application under sub. (3p).
SECTION 3. 118.51 (3m) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
118.51 (3m) (a) Notwithstanding sub. (3), the parent of a pupil who wishes to
attend a public school in a nonresident school district under this section may, in lieu
of applying under sub. (3), submit an application under this subsection, on a form
provided by the department under sub. (15) (a), to the school board of the nonresident
school district that the pupil wants to attend if the pupil satisfies at least one of the
criteria under par. (b). Applications may be submitted to no more than 3 nonresident
school boards in any school year. For purposes of determining whether applications
have been submitted to more than 3 nonresident school boards, the department may
not count an application submitted to a nonresident school board for a pupil to attend
a virtual charter school or an application under sub. (3p).
SECTION 4. 118.51 (3p) of the statutes is created to read:
118.51 (3p) ALTERNATIVE APPLICATION; PARENT'S EMPLOYMENT STATUS. (a) If a
pupil's parent is employed as a teacher in a nonresident school district and the pupil
wishes to attend a public school in the nonresident school district under this section,
the pupil's parent may, in lieu of applying under sub. (3), submit an application under
this subsection, on a form provided by the department under sub. (15) (a), to the
school board of the nonresident school district. Notwithstanding subs. (3) (a) 1. and
(3m) (a), an application may be submitted under this subsection regardless of the
number of applications that have been submitted to nonresident school boards in a
school year.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25 - 4 -2023 - 2024 Legislature LRB-4848/1
FFK:amn
SECTION 4 ASSEMBLY BILL 644
(b) If a nonresident school board receives an application under par. (a), the
nonresident school board shall immediately forward a copy of the application to the
resident school board, and shall notify the applicant, in writing, whether it has
accepted the application no later than 20 days after receiving the application. If the
nonresident school board has accepted the application, the nonresident school board
shall identify the specific school or program that the pupil may attend. A nonresident
school board may accept an application under par. (a) even if in doing so the
nonresident school district exceeds the space available in the school, program, class,
or grade within the nonresident school district, as determined under sub. (5) (a) 1.
(c) If an application is accepted by the nonresident school board under par. (b),
the pupil may immediately begin attending the school or program in the nonresident
school district and shall begin attending the school or program no later than the 15th
day following receipt by the parent of the pupil of the notice of acceptance under par.
(b). If the pupil has not enrolled in or attended school in the nonresident school
district by the day specified in this paragraph, the nonresident school district may
notify the pupil's parent, in writing, that the pupil is no longer authorized to attend
the school or program in the nonresident school district.
(d) If an application is accepted by the nonresident school board under par. (b)
and the pupil begins attending a public school in the nonresident school district, the
pupil may continue to attend a public school in the nonresident school district in the
following school year and may continue to attend a public school in the nonresident
school district in succeeding school years without reapplying, except that the
nonresident school board may require the pupil to reapply under sub. (3) or (3m) if
the pupil's parent is no longer employed as a teacher or an administrator in the
nonresident school district.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25 - 5 -2023 - 2024 Legislature
LRB-4848/1
FFK:amn
SECTION 5
ASSEMBLY BILL 644
SECTION 5. 118.51 (5) (a) 7. of the statutes is created to read:
118.51 (5) (a) 7. Whether the pupil's parent is employed as a teacher by the
nonresident school board.
SECTION 6. 118.51 (8) of the statutes is amended to read:
118.51 (8) DISCIPLINARY RECORDS. Notwithstanding s. 118.125, for an
application submitted under sub. (3) (a), by the first Friday following the first
Monday in May, and within 10 days of receiving a copy of an application under sub.
(3m) (c) or (3p) (b), the resident school board shall provide to the nonresident school
board to which a pupil has applied under this section a copy of any expulsion findings
and orders pertaining to the pupil, a copy of records of any pending disciplinary
proceeding involving the pupil, a written explanation of the reasons for the expulsion
or pending disciplinary proceeding and the length of the term of the expulsion or the
possible outcomes of the pending disciplinary proceeding.
SECTION 7. 118.51 (9) of the statutes is amended to read:
118.51 (9) APPEAL OF REJECTION. If the nonresident school board rejects an
application under sub. (3) (a), (3p) (a), or (7), the resident school board prohibits a
pupil from attending public school in a nonresident school district under sub. (3m)
(d) or the nonresident school board prohibits a pupil from attending public school in
the nonresident school district under sub. (11), the pupil's parent may appeal the
decision to the department within 30 days after the decision. If the nonresident
school board provides notice that the special education or related service is not
available under sub. (12) (b), the pupil's parent may appeal the required transfer to
the department within 30 days after receipt of the notice. The department shall
affirm the school board's decision unless the department finds that the decision was
arbitrary or unreasonable.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25 - 6 -2023 - 2024 Legislature LRB-4848/1
FFK:amn
SECTION 8 ASSEMBLY BILL 644
SECTION 8. 118.51 (15) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
118.51 (15) (a) Application form. Prepare, distribute to school districts, and
make available to parents an application form to be used by parents under sub. (3)
(a) and, an application form to be used by parents under sub. (3m) (a), and an
application form to be used by parents under sub. (3p) (a). The form shall include
provisions that permit a parent to apply for transportation reimbursement under
sub. (14) (b). The form shall require an applicant who is applying to attend a virtual
charter school to indicate that he or she is applying to attend a virtual charter school,
the number of virtual charter schools to which he or she is applying, and whether he
or she is a sibling of a pupil currently enrolled in a virtual charter school through the
open enrollment program.
SECTION 9. 118.51 (15) (c) 2. and 4. of the statutes are amended to read:
118.51 (15) (c) 2. The number of applications received under subs. (3) (a) and
(3m) (a), and (3p) (a) and, for the applications received under sub. (3m) (a), the
number of applications received under each of the criteria listed in sub. (3m) (b).
4. The number of pupils attending public school in a nonresident school district
under this section. The department shall specify, separately, the number of pupils
attending public school in a nonresident school district whose applications were
accepted under subs. (3) (a) 3. and, (3m) (c), and (3p) (b), and, for the applications
accepted under sub. (3m) (c), the number of pupils attending under each of the
criteria listed in sub. (3m) (b).
(END)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22