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By
Otto Fajen
MNEA Legislative Director
Number
11
March 26, 2009
BILLS MOVING AT MID-SESSION
Both the House and Senate resumed session on Mar. 23
after a one-week break. With 10 weeks completed, only
eight weeks remain in the session and only seven weeks
remain until the budget must be completed on May 8.
While both chambers are still hearing some of their
own bills in committee, it is generally too late in
the session for those bills to pass on their own. Now
legislators will rely on amending those ideas onto the
bills that have made significant progress through the
process. As noted below, the Senate loaded up S.B. 291
(Charlie Shields) as an omnibus education bill.
In
bills that affect education and related topics such
as state revenues and funding, the following House Bills
have passed the House and moved to the Senate:
H.B.
96 (Maynard Wallace) relating to school safety
H.B. 191 (Tim Flook) relating to various business tax
credits
H.B. 242 (Gayle Kingery) authorizing a four-day school
week
House Joint Resolution 23 (Allen Icet) enacts a TABOR-style
appropriations limit
Consent
Bills that have passed the House:
H.B.
289 (Maynard Wallace) regarding special education due
process
H.B. 488 (Rodney Schad) regarding unaccredited school
districts
H.B. 490 (Rodney Schad) regarding the A+ schools program
H.B. 506 (Doug Funderburk) regarding Math, Engineering,
Science and Technology Week
H.B. 682 (Terry Swinger) regarding school make-up days
H.B. 689 (Rachel Bringer) regarding school personnel
background checks
House
Consent Bills that will be heard in rules committee
on Mar. 24 and are likely to pass the House:
H.B.
922 (Joe Smith) regarding school policies on allegy
prevention and response
H.B. 659 (Gary Dusenberg) regarding special administrative
boards for lapsed school districts
H.B. 304 (Rodney Schad) regarding transportation hardship
and school boundary changes
Senate
bills that have passed the Senate and moved to the House:
S.B.
104 (Jolie Justus) regarding information and immunizations
for HPV
S.B. 255 (David Pearce) regarding the University of
Missouri Board of Curators
S.B. 313 (Gary Nodler) regarding federal stimulus and
stabilization funds
Consent
Bills that have passed the Senate:
S.B.
55 (Rita Days) allows schools to maintain permanent
records digitally
S.B. 79 (Yvonne Wilson) includes cyberbullying in school
anti-bullying policies
S.B. 96 (Jolie Justus) regarding education of students
in foster care
S.B. 157 (Eric Schmitt) regarding regional autism projects
S.B. 232 (Jane Cunningham) regarding employment discrimination
on the basis of high school program
Bills
that pass one chamber as a Consent Bill may not remain
in that status in the other chamber. If they remain
Consent Bills, they can only be amended in committee.
If they are “knocked off” of Consent status,
but pass out of committee, they are subject to floor
amendment and substitute just like other regular bills.
OMNIBUS
SENATE EDUCATION BILL—LONG DEBATE WITH 33 AMENDMENTS
On Mar. 24, Sen. Charlie Shields offered a floor substitute
for his Senate Bill 291. The original bill allows school
districts to offer virtual courses to resident students
and count the courses for formula aid purposes. In addition
to some technical improvements to the virtual schools
language, the floor substitute (Senate Substitute for
S.B. 291) expanded the bill’s title to the very
broad topic of “education” and added several
provisions:
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Language similar to S.B. 453 (Rob Mayer) and S.B.
24 (Victor Callahan) revises the use of the Proposition
A gambling revenues. The Senate Substitute moves
the funding out of the “state adequacy target,”
the per pupil amount in the formula, and uses it
to fund removing the five percent per year revenue
growth cap on “performance district”
revenues and also adds in a 25 percent pupil weight
in the formula for gifted students. The bill runs
all gambling funds through the existing Classroom
Trust Fund while ensuring that any increases over
next school year’s CTF amount will go to school
operating funds, not capital projects.
-
Language similar to S.B. 344 (Brad Lager) allows
the governor to establish the P-20 Council.
-
Revisions to the School Building Revolving Fund
to turn the program into a matching grant program.
Several
amendments were adopted on Mar. 24, and the bill was
laid over and then taken up again on Mar. 25. The bill
was debated for many more hours and numerous additional
amendments were offered before the bill was finally
perfected. Among the Senate Amendments adopted were:
S.A.
2 (Tim Green) adds a version of his Senate Bill 117
to recalculate formula aid for Riverview Gardens school
district.
S.A.
3 (Chuck Purgason) allows certain school districts in
his district to consolidate while retaining the old
districts as subdistricts which retain veto power over
closing schools within subdistrict boundaries.
S.A.
4 (Rita Days) allows the State Board of Education to
reestablish local control of lapsed school districts.
S.A.
5 (Jolie Justus) adds her S.B. 253 requiring KCMSD school
board vacancies to be filled by special election.
S.A.
6 (Jeff Smith) adds his S.B. 314 regarding the Missouri
Preschool Plus program for early childhood education.
S.A.
7 (Charlie Shields) adds a requirement that local school
districts enact teaching standards. This amendment was
added after Sen. Yvonne Wilson had offered and then
withdrawn an amendment to add her S.B. 60 to enact state
teaching standards.
S.B.
8 (Tom Dempsey) clarifies that private and home school
students can enroll in school district virtual education
courses.
S.A.
10 (Rita Days) adds a version of her S.B. 55 to allow
districts to maintain permanent school records in digital
or electronic form.
S.A.
11 (Scott Rupp) establishes standards for the use of
“seclusion rooms” for special education
students by public schools.
S.A.
12 (Joan Bray) adds her S.B. 116 establishing the Persistence
to Graduation Program within the Department of Elementary
and Secondary Education.
S.A.
13 (Rita Days) provides that supplemental and educational
services providers may allow students to retain instructional
equipment and computers after completion of services.
S.A.
14 (Scott Rupp) adds the standards for charter school
sponsors from his S.B. 64, along with expanding the
required study of the impact and effect of charter schools.
S.A.
16 (Scott Rupp) adds a requirement that local school
districts give notice required under No Child Left Behind
regarding failure to meet Adequate Yearly Progress at
least 14 days prior to the start of the school term.
Senate
Substitute Amendment 1 for S.A. 1/S.A. 17 (Jane Cunningham)
allows open enrollment in public schools for foster
students and tasks the Joint Committee on Education
to study issues regarding open enrollment in public
schools.
S.A.
18 (Luann Ridgeway) adds her S.B. 325 allowing school
districts to enter into agreements with political subdivisions
for educational facilities.
S.A.
19 (Eric Schmitt) requires sending districts to reimburse
the educational costs incurred by receiving districts
providing educational services to students at childrens’
hospitals outside of their district of residence.
S.A.
20 (Eric Schmitt) adds his Senate Committee Substitute
for S.B. 175 enacting a Parents Bill of Rights to require
an additional, plain language document explaining the
rights of students with disabilities.
S.A.
21 (Jane Cunningham) allows bankers to teach personal
finance courses in public schools.
S.A.
22 (Luann Ridgeway) adds S.B. 96 (Jolie Justus) enacting
the Foster Students Bill of Rights.
S.A.
23 (Jane Cunningham) allows special school districts
to count students in virtual instruction on the same
basis as other instruction.
S.A.
24 (Wright-Jones) adds physical education mandates similar
to H.B. 506 (Rick Stream) in grades K-5.
S.A.
27 (Luann Ridgeway) provides that school districts and
charter schools may contract with multiple providers
of virtual courses.
S.A.
28 ( Luann Ridgeway) requires that home school students
be permitted to compete in music contests and debate
contests in the same manner as students of a school
district.
S.A.
29 (Jane Cunningham) enacts her Teacher Choice Compensation
Package, a performance pay scheme, only in St. Louis
City.
S.A.
30 (Yvonne Wilson) establishes the Volunteer and Parents
Incentive Program.
S.A.
31 (Yvonne Wilson) establishes the Missouri Senior Cadets
Program.
SS.A.
1/S.A. 32 (Kevin Engler) distributes any school renovation
or construction funds from the new School Building Repair
Fund on a per pupil basis to all school districts.
S.A.
33 (Luann Ridgeway) adds additional reporting requirements
regarding the conduct of business by the State Board
of Education and the Department of Elementary and Secondary
Education.
Notable
amendments that did not pass include:
S.A.
9 (Brad Lager) would have added his S.B. 345 allowing
a four-day school week. The amendment was defeated on
a 13-16 standing division vote.
S.A.
15 (Matt Bartle) would have prevented school boards
from agreeing to collective bargaining contracts that
don't allow the option of merit pay or performance pay.
Sen. Tim Green’s substitute to allow school boards
to agree to merit pay or performance pay in a collective
bargaining agreement was ruled out of order. Sen. Bartle
withdrew the amendment apparently, in part, due to the
Missouri NEA’s strong objections.
BUDGET
The House began floor debate on the fiscal year 2010
budget on Mar. 24. The floor debate concluded late on
Mar. 25 with final passage on Mar. 26.
In
the originally filed bills, House Budget Chair Allen
Icet inserted federal stimulus and stabilization funds
into the elementary and secondary education budget bill
(House Bill 2) and withheld a total of roughly $900
million in general revenue from the budget process.
Committee members were not allowed to consider this
revenue in the budget process and, similarly, all floor
amendments to increase must be accompanied by a like
decrease. Many vital programs across the budget and
in education in particular are already so underfunded
that further cuts are nearly unconscionable in most
cases.
Several
amendments were offered to restore funding to the Fine
Arts Academy and the Scholars Academy, professional
development funding, but all were defeated. Rep. Mike
Thomson’s amendment to take $2 million from pupil
transportation and put that back into professional development
was the only amendment adopted to increase professional
development. The transportation funding was reinstated
by a later amendment. The other amendment that was adopted
was a transfer of A+ Schools scholarship funds back
from H.B. 3 (higher education) to H.B. 2 (elementary
and secondary education) following the recent rejection
of Gov. Nixon’s proposed transfer of the program
from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
to the Department of Higher Education.
The
Missouri NEA believes that the current House budget
process is fundamentally flawed. Proper decisions for
budgeting and balancing priorities cannot be properly
made without having all the available funding on the
table for consideration.
SENATE
DEBATES MORE BUSINESS TAX CREDITS
The Senate continued floor debate on Senate Committee
Substitute for S.B.s 45 et al. (David Pearce) relating
to business tax credits on Mar. 25. This bill lifts
or raises the cap on several business tax credits and
reinstates some that have expired. The exact impact
of these tax credit changes is unknown since some currently
capped programs, such as the Quality Jobs Program, would
no longer have any limit on the amount of tax credits.
Sen.
Brad Lager offered a Senate Substitute version of the
bill which will limit all tax credits to the amount
of credits annually allocated to the program through
the appropriation’s process. The MNEA strongly
supports this measure to maintain limits on all tax
credits and to ensure that all tax credit programs are
transparent, properly documented and accountable for
meaningful results in return for the public investment
of the tax expenditures given.
HOUSE
ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
The House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee
will meet on Mar. 25 to hear House Bill 596 (Chris Molendorp).
The bill authorizes school districts to enter into design-build
contracts for construction projects costing more than
$1 million.
In
addition to hearing H.B. 596, the House Elementary and
Secondary Education Committee voted out the following
House Bills on Mar. 25:
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House Committee Substitute for H.B. 387 (Wayne Cooper)
establishes a Quality Rating System for early childhood
education providers. The MNEA supports the bill.
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H.B. 542 (Gina Walsh) recalculates school formula
aid for Riverview Gardens school districts based
on erroneous placement of capital projects tax levy.
The committee approved amendments from Rep. Cole
McNary requiring a state audit in 2010-11 and appraisals
of any school property prior to sale. The MNEA supports
the bill.
SENATE
EDUCATION COMMITTEE
The Senate Education Committee will meet on Mar. 25
to hear Senate Bill 373 (Rob Mayer). This bill creates
procedures for open enrollment of public school students
across school district boundary lines. Missouri NEA
believes the bill may undermine local accountability
for ensuring equitable access to at-risk students and
special needs students and may create opportunities
for student athletics and activities recruitment. The
bill does not fund the true costs to both the sending
and receiving districts, including the cost of facilities
in the receiving district, and has not been demonstrated
to serve the best interests of all students and schools.
In
addition to hearing the scheduled bills, the Senate
Education Committee also voted out several Senate Bills
on Mar. 25:
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Senate Committee Substitute for S.B. 558 (Rob Mayer)
establishes the Missouri Promise Program as an extension
to the current A+ Schools Programs.
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S.B. 344 (Brad Lager) allows the governor to establish
the “P-20 Council” as a private-not-for
profit corporation that will work to create a more
efficient and effective education system to more
adequately prepare students for entering the workforce.
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Senate Committee Substitute for S.B.s 453 and 24
(Mayer and Callahan) revises the use of the Proposition
A gambling revenues. The bill moves the funding
out of the “state adequacy target,”
the per pupil amount in the formula and uses it
to fund removing the five percent per year revenue
growth cap on “performance district”
revenues and also adds in a 25 percent pupil weight
in the formula for gifted students. The MNEA supports
this measure to better use the Proposition A revenues
to support adequacy and equity of funding through
the school formula.
TAKE
ACTION NOW: RESTORE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FUNDING
The House Budget Committee has eliminated state investment
in professional development programs for teachers in
House Bill 2 (Allen Icet). As recently as last year,
the state invested $20 million per year in professional
development. This funding supports many vital programs,
including the Regional Professional Development Centers
that provide in-district training and improvement support
throughout the state. Funding for the current year was
cut to $15 million, and services have been adversely
affected already.
At
a time when teachers are expected to know and do more
and more, it is critical that the state play a leadership
role in providing resources to help teachers improve
their teaching. Our students need qualified, professional
teachers who are supported by quality professional development
programs that reinforce successful methods and help
improve teaching practice. Professional development
is how districts are able to implement successful programs
across the district and ensure every child has access
to a great public school.
The
governor’s budget for fiscal year 2010 only included
$10 million for professional development and now the
House Budget Committee has cut that funding to zero.
This will directly affect the instruction our students
receive, and the impact will only grow in magnitude
over time.
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Action
Needed: The following link will
connect you to the MNEA Legislative Action Center
Action Alert on state professional development
in House Bill 2. The action alert e-mail contains
a basic, editable message to help you send an
e-mail to your state representative on the issue.
Please add your own perspective and experiences
in professional development and the impact that
has for students. This will help legislators understand
how important investing in professional development
is for students in their district.
http://capwiz.com/nea/mo/issues/alert/?alertid=12875006&type=ST
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STANDARDS
FOR PETITION CIRCULATORS
The Senate Financial, Governmental Organizations and
Elections Committee heard Senate Bill 115 (Joan Bray)
on Mar. 23. The bill contains additional standards for
petition circulators, prohibits paying signature gatherers
by the signature, requires signature collectors to be
Missouri residents, prohibits a person who has committed
forgery from collecting signatures and increases penalties
for signing false names on petitions.
H.B.
228 (Mike Parson) is similar to S.B. 115 and was heard
on Mar. 24 in the House General Laws Committee. In addition
to the provisions of S.B. 115, the bill requires signature
gatherers to register in advance with the Secretary
of State and swear by affidavit that they will comply
with all requirements regarding petition signature gathering.
The bill provides that signatures gathered by unregistered
gatherers will not be counted. Missouri NEA supports
both bills.
CAPITOL
ACTION DAYS
MNEA Capitol Action Days allow planned, face-to-face
contact with legislators throughout the legislative
session. The next Capitol Action Day will be April 1,
when members from Governance District 6 visit the Capitol.
Capitol Action Days will generally be on Wednesdays
starting in February and continuing through the first
week of May. Your MNEA calendar includes the dates MNEA
Board members selected for your governance district.
If you are not able to attend on these designated days,
feel free to contact MNEA Legislative Director Otto
Fajen at otto.fajen@mnea.org
to let him know when you can attend on another Capitol
Action Day.
Typical
Capitol Action Day agenda:
10:00
a.m. Meet for briefing, 2nd floor Capitol rotunda, Senate
side alcove under the grand staircase
10:15 a.m. Visit with your legislator/watch floor debate
12:00 noon Invite legislator to lunch
1:00-4:30 p.m. Committee hearings, floor debate, visiting
legislators
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