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Legislative Update (3-15-2019)Today is the first day of the Governor’s 10-day veto period. The 2019 General Assembly will meet only one more day, Thursday March 28. The House and Senate cannot vote on any bills UNTIL March 28. That will be the last day the two bodies can act.This is the eighth in a series of weekly legislative emails to keep you informed about relevant education bills. KASC is tracking numerous bills that have direct impact on teaching and learning for teachers, parents, principals, students, and councils. In this announcement we will share...
Positive update - withdrawal of bad floor amendment to HB 166 Good news! Last night, March 14, the Senate withdrew a Senate Floor Amendment that would have changed the SBDM law to give all superintendents the right to override a school council’s principal selection decision. This amendment had been attached to the popular International Day of Prayer Bill (HB 166). The prayer bill passed and did not have any amendments that would affect SBDM. Thank you for your calls and outreach to legislators. Senate Bill 250 passed the legislature and is heading to the Governor’s office for signature or veto. Signed into Law by the Governor SB 1 School Safety Bill Passed by House and Senate; Delivered to the Governor SB 8 Teacher Tribunal law SB 15 Hiring relatives of school board members, superintendents, and principals and criminal records checks SB 250 Principal Selection SBDM Jefferson County HB 21 Family Resource and Youth Service Centers HB 166 Student Led Day of Prayer COULD POSSIBLY GET A VOTE ON MARCH 28 HB 11 Prohibit smoking on school premises by school employees (Rep. K. Moser) This bill would prohibit smoking by persons affiliated with the school on school premises, school vehicles or while on a school related trip. On March 14 the Senate Health & Welfare committee approved of the bill unanimously and now it is heading to the full Senate for a vote. SB 175 Amend Assessment and Accountability and TSI (Sen. D. Givens) Amend the standards and assessments process review committee; revise requirements for state accountability system; amend the requirements for the targeted support and improvement designation. Currently, if a TSI school does not exit this status then the school will be identified as a Comprehensive Support and Improvement status and will lose their SBDM. This bill recognizes the overreach of the present law that identifies 30 percent of Kentucky schools as TSI but does not provide increased resources to assist the schools. Instead it sets the schools on a path to remove stakeholder voice and be labeled as a failing school. February 12 introduced; February 14 discussed in Senate Education Committee with KDE Commissioner Lewis objecting to parts of bill. On February 21 the Senate Education Committee approved a committee substitute that reduces the number of TSI schools from 30 % to 15 % of all Kentucky Schools. Currently, half of middle and high schools are in TSI status and the state does not have the resources to supply the necessary targeted intervention to this large number of schools. There is concern that the proposed changes might not receive Federal ESSA approval. On February 25 the bill with committee substitute passed the Senate and on February 27 was assigned to House Education Committee. On March 5 the bill passed the House Education Committee and is currently before the full House for a vote. DEMOCRAT AND REPUBLICAN LEADERS SAID THIS WILL NOT BE PASSED IN 2019 HB 205 Tuition Tax Credit for Private Schools (Rep. J. Carney) *similar to SB 118. Direct public spending on private schools through vouchers is prohibited by Kentucky’s constitution. This bill would give an almost 100 percent tax credit for tuition to private schools. Here is a link to a Kentucky Center for Economic Policy (KCEP) analysis on the impact of these private school tax credits: https://kypolicy.org/new-tax-break-would-subsidize-private-schools-at-the-expense-of-kentucky-public-schools/. On March 13, both Democrat and Republican legislative leaders have promised that HB 205 will not be passed this legislative session. HB 525 Teacher Retirement System Trustees (Rep. K. Upchurch) Reorganizes nomination and election procedures for trustees of the Teachers' Retirement System board. A committee substitute was filed to increase the number of Trustees from 11 up to 13 (eight educators; three Governor Appointees with investment expertise; Commissioner of Education; State Treasurer.) The Trustee nomination procedure was significantly amended. This bill provides that one trustee nomination would be selected from each of the following organizations: the Kentucky Education Association, the Kentucky School Boards Association, the Kentucky Association of School Superintendents, the Kentucky Association of Professional Educators, Jefferson County Teacher’s Association, Kentucky Association of School Administrators and a retired member from Kentucky Education Association and Kentucky Retired Teachers Association. Additionally, a trustee selected by the Governor from a list submitted by the Kentucky Society of Certified Public Accountants. February 20 filed and February 21 assigned to the State Government Committee. This bill was the reason for the teacher “sick out” movement on Thursday February 28, 2019 when several school districts cancelled school due to the inability to obtain substitutes. On February 28 the committee approved the committee substitute and the bill is heading to the full House for a vote. On March 5, the Representative who introduced this bill filed a floor amendment that would delete the original bill and require the Public Pension Oversight Board to study the Teachers' Retirement System's board composition, nomination and election process for elected trustees. On March 13, both Democrat and Republican legislative leaders have promised that HB 525 will not be passed this legislative session. STUCK IN COMMITTEE HB 504 Teacher Pension (Rep. S. Lewis) This bill applies only to teachers hired after January 1, 2020 and does not make changes to the existing benefits of current teachers and current retirees. The bill creates a two-tier benefit system for future teachers and they would contribute to a traditional defined–benefit plan and to a new supplemental account that is a hybrid between a defined-benefit plan and a 401(k) account. Future teachers would need to work until age 55 to draw a pension. This bill had input from many stakeholders including KEA, TRS, and many of the K education groups. February 20 the bill was introduced. February 21, assigned to State Government Committee. SB 3 Amending school council authority (Senator John Schickel, Boone Co.). As you’ve read from us, SB3 would drastically alter School Based Decision Making in Kentucky because it can remove the local teacher and parent voices from a school and replace with decisions by the superintendent and school board. Our SBDM system is working, and it will not benefit our schools to revert to a system where school decisions are politicized and made from the top down. This bill passed Senate Education and then the full Senate on January 11. In the House, the bill was assigned to the House Education Committee on February 6. HB 58 Return Pension Income Exclusion to $41,440 (Rep. R. Huff) Amend KRS 141.019 to increase the pension income exclusion from $31,110 to $41,110. January 8 introduced and January 10 assigned to House Appropriations and Revenue Committee. March 5 the committee voted in favor of the bill and passed unanimously in the House of March 13. The bill now heads to the Senate where it must be heard in committee and pass the full Senate. DIDN’T GET OUT OF THE HOUSE HB 508 The Educators Employment Liability Insurance Program(Rep. D. Meade) New law would provide up to $2 million in liability coverage for each certified public school employee in the state. The bill would appropriate $7 million in funding from the state Budget Reserve Trust Fund for the program over the next fiscal year. Future funding could come from the state General Fund, gifts and grants from public and private sources, and federal funds. February 20 filed and February 26 approved by Appropriations & Revenue Committee. Heading to the full House for a vote. There are several floor amendments filed and one would expand to cover Classified Employees. On February 28 a fourth floor amendment was filed that allows a certified employee to decline coverage and request a $150 annual reimbursement and requires a local school district to provide equal opportunity to professional organizations to present information on their liability insurance programs. On March 14 a fifth floor amendment was filed to maintain the same dependent care subsidy for non-Medicare eligible retirees of the Teachers' Retirement System (TRS) participating in the Kentucky Employees Health Plan for plan year 2020 as provided in plan year 2019 and would order a study of the issue. Bills previously reported but have not moved in committee in several weeks SB 27 Smoke free school premises If you would like to contact your legislator about any bills, please: |