ENROLLED SENATE
BILL NO. 110 By: Weaver
of the Senate
and
Lowe
(Dick) and Deck of the House
An Act relating to career and technology education; amending 70
O.S. 2021, Section 14-108, which relates to technology center school district
governing boards; directing the State Board of Career and Technology Education
to divide districts with a certain number of electors into board zones;
providing for selection of board members after certain date; providing for
filling of vacancy if certain member is no longer a resident of certain zone;
providing for promulgation of rules; and providing an effective date.
SUBJECT: Career and technology education
BE IT
ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1.
AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021,
Section 14-108, is amended to read as follows:
Section 14-108. A. The State Board of Career and Technology
Education shall prescribe criteria and procedures for the establishment and
governance of technology center school districts, as provided by Section 9B,
of Article X, of the Oklahoma Constitution, and such
districts so established shall be operated in accordance with rules of the
State Board of Career and Technology Education, except as otherwise provided in
this title.
B.
A technology center school district shall be a body corporate and shall
possess the usual powers of a corporation for public purposes. Its official name shall be designated by the
State Board of Career and Technology Education, in which name it may sue and be
sued, and be capable of contracting and being contracted with, and holding real
and personal estate.
C.
The governing board of a technology center school district shall be a
board of education consisting of not less than five (5) nor more than seven (7)
members. Except as otherwise provided
for in subsection subsections D and E of this section, all
members of the board of education shall be elected in a manner prescribed by
the State Board of Career and Technology Education. The State Board shall promulgate rules
prescribing the manner in which the elections required by this subsection are
held.
D.
In a technology center school district that serves seventy or more
public school districts, the territory of the school district shall be divided
into district zones by the State Board of Career and Technology Education. Between August 1 and December 31 of the year
following the submission by the United States Department of Commerce to the
President of the United States of the official Federal Decennial Census, the
Board shall reapportion the territory of the technology center school district
into district zones. All boundaries of
district zones shall follow clearly visible, definable, and observable physical
boundaries which are based upon criteria established and recognized by the
Bureau of the Census of the United States Department of Commerce for purposes
of defining census blocks for its decennial census and shall follow, as much as
possible, precinct boundaries. District
zones shall be compact, contiguous and shall be as equal in population as
practical with not more than a five-percent variance between the most populous
and least populous district zones. The
board of education of a technology center school district shall consist of one
member elected from each of the district zones of the school district created
pursuant to this subsection. The
electors of each district zone shall elect a person, who is a resident of the
district zone, to represent the district zone on the school board. If during the term of office to which a
person was elected, that member ceases to be a resident of the district zone
for which the person was elected, the office shall become vacant and the
vacancy shall be filled as provided in Section 13A-110 of Title 26 of the
Oklahoma Statutes. The State Board of
Career and Technology Education shall promulgate rules prescribing the manner
in which the elections required by this subsection are held.
E.
In technology center school districts having a population of more
than two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) electors, the territory of the
district shall be divided into board zones by the State Board of Career and
Technology Education. The board of
education of the technology center school district shall consist of one member
elected from each of the district zones.
Beginning July 1, 2024, the board of education shall have the option
upon approval of a board resolution, of requiring that the electors of each
district zone shall elect a person who is a resident of the district zone to
represent the district zone on the school board and to not elect all board
members at large, or the community continues to vote for the board members at
large. If during the term of office to
which a person was elected, that member ceases to be a resident of the district
zone for which the person was elected, the office shall become vacant, and the
vacancy shall be filled as provided for in Section 13A-110 of Title 26 of the
Oklahoma Statutes. The State Board of
Career and Technology Education shall promulgate rules prescribing the manner
in which the elections required by this subsection are held.
F. The board of education
of a technology center school district shall have the same powers and duties
that boards of education of independent school districts have. It may require nonresident students to pay
reasonable tuition fees, which may be paid for a student by the independent or
elementary school district in which the student resides.
F. G. An election to
vote on the question of making a levy of not to exceed five (5) mills on the
dollar valuation of the taxable property in a technology center school district
under the provisions of subsection A, of Section 9B, of
Article X, of the Oklahoma Constitution, shall be called by the
board of education and conducted by the county election board of such district
in the same manner that elections for emergency levies in school districts
under the provisions of subsection (d) of Section 9(d), of
Article X, of the Oklahoma Constitution, are called and
conducted. When such levy is approved by
a majority of the electors of the technology center school district voting on
the question at such election, the levy shall be made each fiscal year
thereafter until repealed by a majority of the electors of the district voting
on the question at an election called for such purpose. An election to vote on the question of making
a local incentive levy of not to exceed five (5) mills on the dollar valuation
of the taxable property in a technology center school district under the
provisions of subsection B of Section 9B of Article X of the Oklahoma
Constitution, may be called by the board of education; and elections on a levy
for a building fund for an area school district under the provisions of Section
10, of Article X, of the Oklahoma Constitution,
shall be called by the board of education of such district and conducted by the
county election board in the same manner that elections for similar levies are
called and conducted in independent school districts.
G. H. Annual
estimates of needs of technology center school districts shall be made and
approved in the same manner that those of independent school districts are made
and approved. Provided, that the State
Board of Career and Technology Education shall prescribe a list of
appropriation accounts by which the funds of technology center school districts
shall be budgeted, accounted for and expended.
Any such estimate of needs may include an estimate of federal funds as
probable income from sources other than ad valorem tax of the district and
other than any excise or other tax assessed by legislative enactment and
distributed in lieu of ad valorem taxes.
If a technology center school district lies in more than one county, the
district’s estimate of needs shall be filed with and approved by the county
excise board of the county designated by the school district board of
education.
H. I. Territory may
be annexed to or detached from a technology center school district, in
accordance with rules prescribed by the State Board of Career and Technology
Education. If the State Board of Career
and Technology Education requires the submission of a petition in order for an
election to be called for the purpose of annexation or deannexation of
territory to a technology center school district, such petition shall not be
required to bear a number of technology center school district electors’ signatures
which exceed fifty percent (50%) of the number of technology center school
district electors who voted in the last school board election in the territory
proposed to be annexed or deannexed.
Provided, the period of time from which the petition is initiated to its
time of filing with the State Board shall not exceed ninety (90) days.
I. J. Schools of
technology center school districts shall be subject to classification,
inspection, and accreditation by the State Board of Education.
J. K. The technology
center school board of education may designate a county treasurer to serve as
treasurer of the school district or may appoint an independent treasurer.
K. L. Within four
(4) years after the creation of a technology center school district, such
school district may, at its discretion, permit a teacher to transfer any or all
accrued benefits upon employment including credit for years of service in the
previous school district by the technology center school district, if the
teacher at the time of hiring is employed as a teacher by an independent or
elementary school district which is all or partly within the boundaries of the
technology center school district or is employed as a teacher in a skills
center within the boundaries of the school district.
L. M. The board of
education of a technology center school district may convey surplus personal
property without consideration to:
1.
A school district that is within the boundary of the technology center
school district;
2.
A public school offering secondary level education which was created and
is operated by the State of Oklahoma this state and that is
within the boundary of the technology center school district;
3.
A technology center school district; or
4.
The Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education for the
support or delivery of department initiatives.
M. N. The board of
education of a technology center school district may, without prior approval of
the State Board of Career and Technology Education, approve all plans and
specifications for technology center school buildings, additions, and major
modifications to school buildings that are designed to provide for the offering
of vocational-technical education programs and services when the cost of the
building project is to be paid with local levies or state bond monies or both
local levies and state bond monies.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2024.
Passed the Senate the 24th day of May, 2023.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the 17th day of April, 2023.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received
by the Office of the Governor this ____________________ day of
___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved
by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _________ day of
___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
_________________________________
Governor of the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received
by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________ day of
__________________, 20 _______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________