1| STATE OF OKLAHOMA |
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2| 1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023) |
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3|HOUSE BILL 2415 By: Johns |
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6| AS INTRODUCED |
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7| An Act relating to schools; amending 70 O.S. 2021, |
| Section 1-109, which relates to the length of the |
8| school year; allowing school districts to adopt a |
| school-hours policy with specified minimum number of |
9| days beginning with certain school year; establishing |
| requirements for certain school-hours policy; |
10| requiring two public hearings prior to adoption; |
| prescribing criteria and timing of hearings; |
11| mandating hearing prior to readoption of policy every |
| three years; prohibiting eligibility of certain |
12| schools to adopt policy; providing exemptions from |
| other requirements; allowing certain schools to close |
13| for inclement weather; providing an effective date; |
| and declaring an emergency. |
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16| |
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17|BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: |
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18| SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 1-109, is |
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19|amended to read as follows: |
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20| Section 1-109. A. For all public schools in Oklahoma, school |
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21|shall actually be in session and classroom instruction offered: |
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22| 1. For not less than one hundred eighty (180) days; or |
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23| 2. For not less than one thousand eighty (1,080) hours each |
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24|school year, if a district board of education adopts a school-hours |
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1|policy and notifies the State Board of Education prior to October 15 |
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2|of the applicable school year; or |
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3| 3. Beginning with the 2021-2022 school year, for not less than |
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4|one thousand eighty (1,080) hours with a minimum of one hundred |
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5|sixty-five (165) days of instruction each school year, if a district |
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6|board of education adopts a school-hours policy and notifies the |
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7|State Board of Education prior to October 15 of the applicable |
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8|school year; or |
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9| 4. Beginning with the 2021-2022 2023-2024 school year, for not |
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10|less than one thousand eighty (1,080) hours with a minimum of one |
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11|hundred fifty-five (155) days of instruction each school year, if a |
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12|district board of education adopts a school-hours policy, notifies |
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13|the State Board of Education prior to October 15 of the applicable |
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14|school year, and meets the requirements established by the State |
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15|Board of Education pursuant to subsection H of this section. |
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16| B. A school district may not count more than thirty (30) hours |
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17|each school year that are used for attendance of professional |
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18|meetings toward the one hundred eighty (180) days or one thousand |
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19|eighty (1,080) hours of classroom instruction time required in |
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20|subsection A of this section. |
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21| C. Teachers off contract with an employing district shall not |
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22|be required by the employing school district to attend professional |
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23|meetings unless the teacher is paid additional compensation for the |
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24|additional time. Teachers may be paid additional compensation for |
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1|attending professional meetings in excess of their contract term. |
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2|Subject to district board of education policy or collective |
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3|bargaining agreement, additional paid professional days may be |
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4|granted for individual teachers to attend or participate in |
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5|professional meetings, staff development training, or National Board |
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6|certification portfolio development as provided for in Section |
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7|6-204.2 of this title. |
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8| D. A school district may authorize parent-teacher conferences |
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9|to be held during a regular school day. If authorized by the school |
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10|district, parent-teacher conferences shall be counted as classroom |
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11|instruction time for no more than six (6) hours per semester, for a |
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12|total of twelve (12) hours per school year. |
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13| E. A school district may maintain school for less than a full |
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14|school year only when conditions beyond the control of school |
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15|authorities make the maintenance of the term impossible and the |
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16|State Board of Education has been apprised and has expressed |
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17|concurrence in writing. |
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18| F. The State Board of Education shall establish criteria for an |
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19|extended-day schedule for schools subject to paragraph 1 of |
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20|subsection A of this section. The criteria shall: |
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21| 1. Prescribe a lengthened school day within limits determined |
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22|not to be detrimental to quality instruction; |
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1| 2. Ensure that the schedule is equivalent in annual hours of |
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2|instruction to the one-hundred-eighty-day school year specified in |
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3|paragraph 1 of subsection A of this section; and |
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4| 3. Be consistent with the provisions of this section and |
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5|Sections 1-111 and 1-112 of this title, but may result in fewer |
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6|annual days of instruction. |
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7| G. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection F of this |
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8|section, a school district board of education subject to paragraph 1 |
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9|of subsection A of this section may adopt and implement an |
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10|extended-day schedule subject to the following requirements: |
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11| 1. The annual number of hours of instruction shall equal or |
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12|exceed one thousand eighty (1,080) hours, which is the equivalent of |
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13|one hundred eighty (180) days of instruction as specified in |
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14|subsection A of this section for six (6) hours each day as specified |
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15|in Section 1-111 of this title; |
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16| 2. The annual number of days of instruction shall equal or |
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17|exceed one hundred eighty (180) days as specified in subsection A of |
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18|this section; |
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19| 3. The schedule adopted shall be consistent with the provisions |
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20|of Sections 1-111 and 1-112 of this title, except that for not more |
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21|than one (1) day per week, a school day shall consist of not less |
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22|than five (5) hours devoted to academic instruction in a regular |
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23|classroom setting; |
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1| 4. The district shall hold a public hearing prior to the |
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2|adoption of an extended-day schedule authorized pursuant to this |
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3|subsection; and |
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4| 5. The district shall document the impact on student |
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5|achievement as determined by the academic performance data score and |
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6|any other relevant factors that are a result of implementation of an |
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7|extended-day schedule authorized pursuant to this subsection and |
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8|provide an annual report to the State Board of Education of the |
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9|results. If improvement in student achievement cannot be documented |
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10|in the report, the district board of education shall revoke |
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11|authorization as provided by this subsection. If the district does |
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12|not revoke authorization after student achievement is not documented |
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13|in the report, the State Board of Education may deny accreditation |
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14|of any school in violation of this subsection. |
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15| H. Beginning with the 2021-2022 2023-2024 school year, a school |
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16|district board of education may adopt a school-hours policy as |
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17|provided for by paragraph 4 of subsection A of this section only ifit meets or exceeds the minimum guidelines for student performance |
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19|and school district cost savings established by the State Board of |
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20|Education. The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules, |
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21|subject to approval by the Legislature, establishing the minimum |
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22|guidelines for student performance and school district cost savings |
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23|the board holds two public hearings prior to the adoption of the |
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24|school calendar. |
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1| 1. Notice for the public hearings shall be publicly posted |
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2|twenty (20) days prior to the date of the hearings. The hearings |
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3|shall include an opportunity for public comment and shall occur more |
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4|than twenty-five (25) days apart. |
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5| 2. After adoption of a school-hours policy pursuant to this |
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6|subsection, a school district board of education shall hold a public |
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7|hearing prior to the readoption of the school-hours policy once |
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8|every three (3) years from the date the school-hours policy was |
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9|first adopted. |
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10| 3. A school district board of education that has a school site |
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11|within its district which receives an A-F rating of "D" or lower |
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12|from the State Department of Education for a period of three (3) or |
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13|more consecutive years shall not be eligible to adopt a school-hours |
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14|policy as provided in paragraph 4 of subsection A of this section. |
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15| 4. A school district board of education that adopts a |
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16|school-hours policy as provided in paragraph 4 of subsection A of |
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17|this section shall be exempt from complying with subsections F and G |
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18|of this section. |
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19| I. If subject to paragraph 2, 3, or 4 of subsection A of this |
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20|section, a district board of education or designee may elect to |
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21|close a school during the school day for inclement weather purposes. |
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22| In such an event, the number of hours incurred in classroom |
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23|instruction time prior to school closure shall be counted toward the |
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24|one thousand eighty (1,080) hours per year requirement. |
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1| J. Nothing in this section shall be construed as affecting the |
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2|right of an employing school district to require teachers as defined |
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3|in Section 6-101.3 of this title to work in excess of the one |
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4|thousand eighty (1,080) hours required for student instruction. In |
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5|addition, nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the |
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6|Fair Labor Standards Act status of any school district employee. |
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7| K. The provisions of this section shall not prohibit the |
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8|Oklahoma School for the Blind or the Oklahoma School for the Deaf |
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9|from adopting an alternative school-hours policy if the Oklahoma |
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10|School for the Blind or the Oklahoma School for the Deaf notifies |
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11|and receives approval from the State Board of Education prior to |
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12|October 15 of the applicable school year. |
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13| SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2023. |
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14| SECTION 3. It being immediately necessary for the preservation |
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15|of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby |
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16|declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and |
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17|be in full force from and after its passage and approval. |
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19| 59-1-6164 EK 01/04/23 |
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