On March 1, the Governor signed into law Senate Bill 640 as Act 212, which is a school choice “clean up” bill that:
- Makes changes in the new civics exam graduation requirement. The civics exam is only required of private schools in a choice program. The new law added clarification about handling the exam for children with special needs, who are required to sit for the exam but do not have to pass it. A student’s IEP must note if its appropriate for a student to take the test and if any accommodations are needed. If an IEP says its not appropriate to take the exam, it may not be a graduation requirement. The new law adds parentally placed students with disabilities to the list of students required to sit for the exam but not required to pass it. Previously, they were required to pass.
- Repealed a number of changes to the school accountability report that were passed in the 2015-17 budget bill a few months ago. The Budget Bill required the DPI to weight pupil test scores to account for the length of time pupils are enrolled in a school before taking a test for the report, and to exclude information about certain pupils who change schools for ninth grade. Act 212 eliminates these requirements.
- Makes changes to the requirements for independent financial audits of private schools participating in parental choice programs. It requires auditors to test and confirm costs. It changes the process for notifying schools if they have satisfied audit requirements. It requires private schools to maintain a cash balance equal to its reserve balance. If a school ceases to participate in the program or is barred from the program, it shall refund the reserve balance to the DPI.
You can read Act 212 and a Legislative Reference Bureau summary of SB 640 here.
