Education Committee- House

Well I really wanted to say is that bill. Now it's it's it's my privilege today we have some guest here from Arkansas tech Ozark it's the chancellor's loop leadership cabinet and they are seated in the front row and they would stand we could recognize them. Joe like stand. Thank you for being here. Now I can run the bill right. You're not on our agenda. All right thank you Mr chairman thank you Sir. And we thank you very much for being here today and having this group here in procedure interest and Education and all things going on at the capitol members if you would before we get started on hearing bills today one announcmenet just put a place holder on your calendar tentatively a week from Wednesday that'll be the fifteenth we will be meeting with the Senate and joint education will do that in big mac a it will be upon adjournment of the house and Senate and the purpose of the meeting will be for us to take up in here bills pertaining to the lottery scholarship there seven of those bills so we will hear each of those bills that day and then the Joint Committee will make the decision which of those bills will go forward so just put that place holder on your calendar a week from Wednesday that'll be March fifteenth jointed will meet in big mac a tentatively upon adjournment of house and Senate that afternoon. A representative berry I believe you're here to run SB two hundred four Senator English. Pylades yourself and your guests for the record and then you may present your bill. Thank you Mr chairman warned colleagues and I have to say that the eighty you Ozark is partially my in my district also half of it anyway so and Mark Perry District twenty six and before my guest inter introduced himself he was also a former state representative and my staff judge advocate for about five years when I was Najib General of Arkansas so he's got a really good bill. Jeff wood chief of staff for the department of military and a Senate bill two hundred this involves our National Guard tuition assistance program that we have that we promulgate rules for but within the law there's too hard caps that are in the statute for a hundred twenty hours and then to be able to the only drop six hours what this bill does is it sets up a process where the agency general can request an exception to that to go over those two caps and then it has to get approved by the hi read a parchment so just give us a little bit of flexibility we may have one or two individuals at most a year that would fall underneath this this need for exception but that's what we're here for this bill in again will promulgate the process for these exceptions like we did the rest of the program be happy to answer any questions. Members any questions by the committee. Seeing none I had to do we have anyone in the audience that would like to speak for or against the bill. Seeing none. President of berry ready clothes for your bill has paid his own clothes from a bill adding that the saying anything. He took all my thunder I'm close with a bill appreciated getting representative painter you're recognized. I have a motion to pass by representative painter any discussion on the motion. Seeing none all those in favor the motion say aye opposed nay regulation to pastor bill thank you Mr chairman thank colleagues. Representative Haak. H. B. fourteen seventy one. Your lotus yourself for the record and have your guests introduce herself then you may proceed with presenting your bill thank you Mr chairman thank you committees we are bringing before you I'm just I'm sorry Delia hock District seventeen in western Benton county. I'm sure she delayed I am the fiscal services coordinator for a eighty eight. We're bringing before you bill fourteen seventy one to date but it was based on ACT eleven twenty from twenty thirteen it describes a report that is given to the school board after two years of two back years of salaries and increases over five percent the three things we wanted to talk to you about this morning our redundancy of this report the resources that it's required to produce this redundant report and privacy concerns the school board approves salary schedules and indexes as well as raises for all employees they do this every year the act that was promulgated in twenty thirteen provides a list of those same employees so two years after For a year and the second year previous. At school board receives a report a spreadsheet anywhere from five hundred to over eleven hundred names of employees that have received over five percent raise the issue with this is many of them are because they've changed from a part time position to a full time position and substitute teaching position that might have been a full time substitute teaching one year and and only several days in the following year these are smart math made a paid tutoring volleyball worker and certified gatekeeper bus drive in summer buster I being and each one of these that received five percent or more individually are named and the reason for their five percent increases given this report takes about a week's worth of time for financial directors and their staff to put this together for every school district in Arkansas for the two previous years where the board has already approved the salary increases on their schedules the the records have been closed for those years and this report comes to them after they've already approved all of these figures so what we're asking is that this act be repealed the other major concern in terms of the redundancy of this information to school boards which they've already approved all of these positions all of their salaries any increases the resources that it takes for the financial directors and their staffs to put this information together in addition to whether a school board goes through this information with a fine tooth comb on up I know some do maybe some don't but the privacy concerns are if an employee is on this list because of leave without pay from a previous year that is potentially disclose. In personal information about an employee that would normally be protected so that person would appear on this because of their employment status and would not be information that would normally be given out in terms of employees employment record and we've heard from from the association of educational administrators and a number of their financial directors St this takes a lot of time looking backward rather than forward and the the number of reports that are required of them to produce for the school board it's just not a good use of their time and energy when this information has already been approved and given to school boards in the previous two years and with that I will let Amish Schickel eight respond to any questions that you might have or any information that you would like. The representative Garner I have a question I do recognise chair I'm I'm just curious to know. What what the reason was to do this in the first place. And I think the reason was to look at it making sure that any additional increase over five percent got a second look at it but there were so many contingencies about that of people changing positions changing because Get out of all kinds of reasons that really didn't give and and a good look at what they were trying to get out this whole ten years of but this report has been produced. And and like she said you know I was in a very small district made to the mid south district you've got teachers who will teach all day they'll do that after school tutoring they may do a multitude of other things that they get extra pay for that we do take to the school board for approval prior to the pay and I don't recall what the purpose might have been at that time but I can tell you that in my ten years of giving my school board the US I was never asked a question about it you know some of the things that are teachers got the bonus from the S. refines every person who got that bonus is going to be on this report because it takes just eighteen hundred dollars if your salary is thirty six thousand to put you on this report so if you have a national board certified teacher in a poverty district they get ten thousand dollars they'll automatically be on this report if it's you know if they didn't have it that prior year so it is a lot of work if you don't do the payroll yourself you're having to go back there all the records all the time sheets and try to figure out exactly what it was that person did to earn those extra funds. Members any other questions. Seeing none anyone in the audience who like to speak for or against the bill. Seeing none representative pocket chart close for your bill yes I'm proud to present this bill to the Education Committee today and thank you for all your work on this representive Beck you're recognized we have a motion do pass by representative back is there any discussion on the motion. Seeing none all those in favor say aye opposed nay graduation your bill is passed thank you Committee. Members will skip over fourteen ninety five will go to House Bill fifteen eleven representative bridge and you're ready to run your bill. Your lettuce yourself for the record and then you may present your bill I thank you Mr my name is Scott Richardson I'm state representative district thirteen bringing that to the committee house bill fifteen eleven just a little background for this particular bill in September of this school year and a student was left on the school bus in Benton county that school bus unfortunately the driver didn't notice that child at falling asleep but was left on the bus for almost four hours before someone came along and discover the child there no one wants to see an event like that occurred so this bill tries to approach that from a secondary help but you know as an additional reminder for school bus drivers to walk through the bus and take a look and make sure that that no child has been left on there this bill requires that starting immediately this next school year we're going to require any new buses to have a child alarm installed on it the warm is pretty simple it activates when you start school bus and then can only be deactivated when you go to the rear of the bus and press a button that sent back by the emergency exit this was an easy solution kit helps us reminder school bus drivers when they do take exit the bus they're busy they got other things going on maybe it's late at night and I need to get on the family but they do need to take that one more walk to the bus just to make sure no child has been left there it's a low cost initiative I think we look to costs around a hundred and seventy five dollars so basically the cost of an oil change for everyone these buses is what you're looking at to ensure that at least we had one more look one more walk through and we don't leave a child sleeping in a seat toward the back so with that I'd be happy to answer any questions from the committee. A representative Brooks you have a question thank you for services for for bringing this just a quick question on the fiscal impact statement it says this has been a requirement in rules since two thousand twelve so I just wanna clarify clarify if it's been requirement rules where are we at on it well it is a requirement rules but unfortunately no one's really implemented I know that the the the school district that I had this particular incident occur had not implemented they are beginning to implement those devices at this point but now unfortunately it's it's one of those things that it's a good idea and we put in rules but without deadlines and requirements and law it oftentimes gets overlooked. Representative Charlene Fite your question that was your question. Represent Cozart you're recognized for a question. So basically you're just asking for a mandate to do this that's correct thank you. Members any other questions for representative Richardson. C. nine there's no one signed up to speak for against anyone the audience like to speak for against the bill. Seeing none representative Richmond ready clothes for your bill I AM so I think this is a good idea to get this solidified make sure that we get these out of the school districts to ensure safety of our children so I would appreciate a good bill from a committee representative back you're recognized. I have a motion do pass by representative back House Bill fifteen eleven any discussion on the motion. The none all in favor of the motion say aye opposed nay regulations you pastor bill. Thank you chair thank you committee members were gonna pass over fifteen thirty one we will go to fifteen thirty three representative Cozart you have three in a row are you ready to run all three of those today. Let's see if we cannot come out we'll start with the first one see how you do. It's the. We'll start with fifteen thirty three. Thank you Mr chairman thank you committee for. Listening today. House Bill fifteen thirty three. Is the man the school performance reporting act. Basically what this does. Is really just gonna as a language to what's already there and and so what what the School reporting acts about it so school performance report required in the school performance reporting act will amend that to so what this does is a three year trend data that allows parents and guardians and to compare the school's performance with state and national averages in the area and is not limited to but is on the flight school safety statewide school assessment results licensed staff qualification for proof per pupil spending assessment local taxpayer investment into of the school district perfect percentage of school students eligible to receive put you up. Tongue tied today free or reduced meals average salaries staff all those things it just keeps going on what we like to add to that for the purpose of the subdivision of this next subdivision the following student shall not be counted as a drop out rate because that's very important to our schools if it shows your drop out rates and your achievement rights but we have sometimes a student who has passed the general education development or GED test and those of our counted against them so as we don't want to count that against them a student grades nine through twelve we transfer from public school to home school private school or parochial school would like to take those out because we're going somewhere else we don't want that to be a drop out counted against them and then all the rest of March or qualifications are in there but these are the qualifications would like to add so that will not count against their make a drop out rate look higher. And I'll be glad to try to take any questions on that members any questions. Seeing none anyone in the audience like to speak for against the bill. Seeing none represent Cozart you're ready clothes for your bill I am closing out like to serve represent McKenzie did I miss you. I'm so sorry yes all right west of that's all right. yeah is there a oops hard fast definition of drop out rate I know that we're working to exempt any individuals with the passage G. E. D. but is there one that you could providers or I do not have what is with me but that's what some of our after. Read because the bill represent Cozart yes or not I have do pass represent Cozart is close for fifteen thirty threes member the committee made a motion to pass any discussion on the motion. Seeing none all in favor of the motion say aye. Opposed say nay motion passes graduation to pastor bill thank you run fifteen thirty four. Fifteen thirty four maybe a little more complicated to some of you all we'll try this one it's an act to repeal requirements placed on school district I have a ten percent or greater minority population out of the total population of the purpose but this basically does this takes away the School district of. We get a right uh in a school district or sometimes have to have. Certain areas. And I'm just went blank and that's terrible so instead of having. There is that you have to have I have come in with those of and one of those called somebody for blood owns zones hi could get that out. That's what happens when you get old you know. Of. So is still having his own that we're having a lot of problems with trying to get school board people to run for school boards and will result in that it really restricts the areas that they can come from I I'm not trying to keep anyone from running for school board I think this will actually open it up or they can be from any part of that district and they can run for that school board I don't think it's going to be. I don't I don't think it will be a problem with anyone this will still allow a school to zone if they want to this doesn't keep them from doing that but they can still do it this will just make it all at large of the school I go to like Hamilton it's been like that forever I think lakeside's either way I'm I'm mostly districts around me are at large districts and I'm not sure about where you're from I know there are some across the state to do has always got at that time but I just this is what we'll do over to basically striking the language. The stones total strike so I'll be glad to try to answer questions representative makes you have a question on the bill representative Charlene Fite your question. Yes thank you Mr chair representative because right thank you so much for bringing this bill I had something very similar based on a I need and what the country schools and in my area they have problems getting people to even run for school board and they had someone who wanted to run and then they had to say no you don't live in the right zone do you believe this would solve that kind of problem yes ma'am that's exactly what we're trying to accomplish we're trying to get it for that they can run if they're in a school district they're probably concerned about the kids we want to run a play as long as a runner for the right reason don't have an agenda to try to go in and prove something we love to see it right thank you so much. Members any other questions. Seeing none anyone the audience like to speak for or against the bill. Seeing none represent Cozart ready clothes for your bill Mr chairman I am closing I let somebody else make a motion representative Charlene Fite you're recognized. Members have a motion to pass on house bill fifteen thirty four by representative Charlene Fite any discussion on the motion. C. none all those in favor say aye. Those may regulations represent Cozart your pastor bill. One run fifteen thirty five yes Sir. colleagues this is a really simple bill. Mr require reporting requirement though so but all this does is takes the concerning the meeting a school district board of directors to amend add additional subdivisions is at X. at each regular monthly meeting of the school board of directors I report or presentation regarding student activity data or performance shall be provided to the board of directors all that does is lets them know how their kids are doing how the how the school is performing and using that report and right now they're not required to do that but every so often we they would love to see it every month so this is this a school board bill they asked me to do this so. There it is. Members any questions representative you're recognized for a question. Thank you Thank you Mister chair I just had a quick question so what are they where they can get the data for the report that they're going to get is going to be from a map testing start testing is there a specific guidance on that or they get to choose themselves it will be it would be what ever they have acquired during that monthly period so they they do they continually put data into the report so they would pull that data for that month and put out a report to the school board so it's it's what they sent to the state place and that all the time and I keep up with that a I don't know how much that's not as I'm not privy to that right now since the school board anymore but I would have to ask somebody else exactly how much that is but it's just whatever there's nothing that would come in and say there's nothing to report on but they should have an improvement so they took a test if they're testing is had the results or anything like that and it could just give report on how many kids are and and what and I would think I would want to test on how we stand in our A. B. C. D. E. F.. Each month to. You're recognized for follow up thank you so it's the flexibility of the local school district to decide which how they want to do it just as long as they do something which I think it's great I just want to have some clarity on how they did it yeah this is flexibility the school board district how they do it and that and what the reports based on each month. Members any other questions. Seeing none anyone in the audience like to speak for or against the bill. Jordan you're recognized. You'll identify yourself for the record and you may speak. For the bill. Thank you Dan Jordan with Arkansas school board association we did ask a representative Cozart to consider running the bill for I got I went to work for the organization twenty eighteen and it all of our trainings all over the state that we do we always encourage school boards to always at every monthly board meeting to do something about academics some report it could be either third grade reading scores it could be that the some of the state reporting that's required it could be the winner of the spelling bee mathcounts awards and so on so forth but if school boards aren't presenting something on academics each month then there could be a perception that maybe academics wasn't their main focus so it's been something we've encouraged every to add every training that we do and this was just a follow up to two two I guess mandate if you will and that's what we S. by the US representative Cozart to run the bill thank you. Members any questions for Mister Jordan. C. nine Sir thank you for your testimony. Represent Cozart you're ready clothes for your bill yes Sir that's exactly what I need to hear of but that's what we I was kind of getting that I'm we we hear a lot at our board meetings about how the ball teams are doing you know they play one a basketball champion are we were running track tomorrow this is what's happening so we always hear those things we are ever hear about our academics are doing so I think it's a great bill and I think it's a really good keep or board members of form so they get a call they know what's going on and help them out so close from a bill to appreciate a good vote thank. Representative Barker you're recognized. I have a motion to pass by representative Barker any discussion on the motion. Seeing none all in favor of the motion say aye opposed nay. Representative Cozart you better thousand a day. Thank you Mr chairman thank you Committee. we will go to S. B. two seventy six I believe represented painter you're going to run that for senator Hammer. If you identify yourself for the record. Thank you your to have someone with you and You'll have her introduce herself for the record that you may present your bill states in painter District three Baxter County western Fulton County. Shentel McGraw system director of elections for secretary of state. You're recognized thank you Mr chair committee as B. two seventy six is really an easy bill it's just a lighting school board filing periods that we haven't even years the same is already here so right now the odd years or a little bit different we're just making them similar for each year. Other than that that's it. Take any questions. Members any questions. Representive flowers you're recognized for a question thank you Rep painter K. do you have any idea why they're different at this point at this time hello my expert okay thanks. Eight it's it was it was an accident so last session there was a bill rand that was to make them more consistent and we accidentally left out the odd year filing period for school districts will hold their election in November so this is just putting it back in place. Thank you so much. Members any other questions. Seeing none. Anyone else would like to speak for against the bill. C. nine representative payee ready clothes for your bill. Clothes make a motion to pass members got a motion to pass by representative painter on S. B. two seventy six any discussion on the motion seeing none all those in favor the motion say aye opposed nay regulation you pastor bill representative make sure recognized. Thank you Mr chairman colleagues I want to make I make a motion you may remember at the beginning of the session I ran a bill on the student exchange we had a very vigorous very good discussion and following that based on that discussion and visits with our friends over in the A. EA made some amendments to the bill those amendments have all been approved everything is out sat ready to go except it's been sitting on the calendar or waiting fiscal impact for the last three weeks we have the original fiscal impact nothing has changed on the on that so this bill is just sitting there for no reason just waiting for that so with the chairman's approval I'm gonna make a motion that we waive the requirement for an updated fiscal impact so we can either hear the bill now or we can put on the calendar to here on Thursday so we can. I move along since were getting close to the end of session. Is that your motion that is my motion I have a motion by representative Meeks to waive the requirement of a updated fiscal impact on house bill ten thirty. any discussion on the motion. Seeing none all those in favor the motion say aye opposed nay. Motion is passed you want to present house bill ten thirty as amended. Thank you colleagues figure since we have a little bit of time today we gonna knock this one off so um following our discussions I did make some changes to the bill to kind of strength in it a little bit so we added some protections for the schools so one of the concerns was is that the school districts would have to accept exchange students that maybe came from organizations that were less than reputable what this does is this gives them flexibility to only take students that come from an organization that had been certified there's a kind like it better it better business bureau if you would form these international exchange student organizations that organization is responsible for making sure that the organizations meet high standards so the school board would only be required to take students from organizations that meet those high standards if there's another organization that they want to accept them from they have that flexibility but they don't have to that way we know that when the students are here they're gonna be well cared for the quarantine all that still Is in place the other thing that we did is we said that to any new student that wants to calm has to let the school know at least two weeks prior to the semester so you don't have school students showing up you know two days before school surprise we we we've got a new student Fauria so schools can require at least two weeks notification prior to the start of the semester the other thing we did is we created the ability for student for the schools to add a limit to the number of exchange students to no fewer than one per fifty students so if a school district or a not a school district if the school has three hundred students and they can limit to six exchange students if they have five hundred students they can limit to ten exchange students so that way the schools not overwhelmed with You know if an influx of exchange student I want take more they can but that kind of system of such a minimum floor to to make sure they do allow some students but not so many that they get overwhelmed so those are the main changes as I said as far as I know everybody's in agreement with that and I'll be happy to answer any questions. Members any questions. Representative Dick you're recognized for a question thank you Mr chair I guess freshman mistake because I would have preferred her this on Thursday I didn't even know I didn't realize I need to do that in that discussion on the amendment I see not have. A lot of questions eight so you're saying the school district can put on they cannot limited under ten. No no it's one student one exchange student per fifty. So so so so if they've got five hundred students enrolled five hundred divided by fifty is ten so they would have to allow at least ten right. Follow up recognized for follow up. So many questions trying to figure out where to go So. If they have a concern about a particular. Great organization they have worked with before even if it's on the approved list that school district does not have the ability to deny their enrollment into that school district correct if that organization is on that less than yes that we have to take that student I has it close as it is right now they would have to take that student. Because as of right now that take all students. But I'll I would argue that If the organization is certified that by chances are you're not gonna have any issues and if the school district is having issues they need to report to the organization so the organization can can handle that. Follow up your follow up. So hard because you as you know I have a lot of questions on this and I really didn't see them addressed in this concert in this in your amendments that you've made to this. So I guess I'll just have to comment whatever. We have an opportunity to comment on it all right. Members any other questions. Seeing none Sir anyone who would like to speak for or against the bill. Seeing none. represent Majorie close for your bill I'm about clothes and make a motion to pass okay representative makes clothes for the passage of house bill ten thirty he discussion on the motion representative Dick you're recognized. So background on this I mean that this. Hey I come from an area that I mean I grew up with exchange students they were in our school district all the time we've been very supportive of that we had a record of a policy with that. a lady that again she was the person who brought that into our school district when I was a child has been active that organization and overseeing this for decades literally and and I share that with you and our school district are lots of concerns when when this bill was brought forward that I shared with her one of them even like the inability to cap weddings she mentions is if you don't if you don't have some abilities a school district capit if you have students are all coming from the same country then they tend to stay together or they don't kinda intermingle with all the rest the other students which is part of the experience that they need and for the experience of the students when the school district need so having that ability within the school district to be able to say putting some limits and parameters on there they've also had instances where organizations may be fine in one area but do not work as well overseeing their students in another area where they've had to step in as a school district because the host family may not have done as good a job advocating and taking care for those children and that representative did not address that either and again they're not going to have some of those abilities to address those issues with this and so there's a lot of concerns that I have the inability of the local school boards and I realize there's some that maybe have not done things well or been is open to that but the ones that have I feel like you're just really taking away their ability to do what is best for not only the exchange students there was concerns about the the area in which the oversight person for the exchange student how closely located they are are they within fifty miles are they within two hundred miles because different organizations have different standards on that and that was something that artists are trying to take into consideration is are they going to be able to check in regularly on that host family and so it I appreciate your idea I mean I love it I think exchangers rich my life insurance my of my children's lives that were around them but the inability for local school districts to be able to use discretion in here I is is. Is really troubling for me. Any other points of discussion. Representative makes sense I'm on the committee and and can and can do some points of discussion I'll off kind of follow up so as current law stand school districts have nothing they the Current law is they have to accept everybody. So the limits that your school district is placing and so I got got the list of the policy that you'd sent me from your school district so the policy that you're school district currently has about limiting the number of students is actually a violation of current law because as current law stands according to several aged payments they have to take everybody they have no discretion even though your school has policies in place that say no we're not gonna take students know we're not gonna take students. Setting limits. You're the school district can't do that right now even though they have been doing that and so what this does is I I did take those policy ideas and that's where a lot of these changes came from is from this the conversation that you and I had to try to create some of those protections but do it in a way that was as balanced as possible so I believe that. You know I. Can we stop every bad actor with any law we pass obviously the answer is now but we don't harm the good side trying to stop every little bad situation is we we just can't do that and so with that I think this is a good bill I think this is a positive step forward it provides flexibility to our school districts where they don't have flexibility right now clarifies the law where there's confusion and so I'm strongly in support of this obviously because I'm running it and uh would would ask for the committee's help in getting this past for our schools and for exchange students any other members have discussion. Seeing none promotion by representative makes on house bill ten thirty all in favor say aye. As may. Graduations your bill is passed. Members that is our agenda today we did pass over to items that may be up for Thursday were waiting on several fiscal impacts will reach out to to them today and see if we can get those and get those on agenda and so you'll receive notification or the bill's sponsors willing we'll get those on the agenda for Thursday and saying no other business we are adjourned.