1| STATE OF OKLAHOMA |
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2| 1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023) |
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3|SENATE BILL 671 By: Pederson |
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6| AS INTRODUCED |
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7| An Act relating to schools; amending 70 O.S. 2021, |
| Section 1-114, which relates to free attendance of |
8| public schools; updating language regarding student |
| transfers pursuant to certain act; exempting from |
9| certain tuition fee requirement school districts that |
| enroll certain students, do not receive certain |
10| funds, and have certain per-pupil expenditure; |
| prohibiting certain students from being eligible for |
11| State Aid; prohibiting allocation or transfer of |
| certain local funding; providing an effective date; |
12| and declaring an emergency. |
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15|BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: |
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16| SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 1-114, is |
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17|amended to read as follows: |
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18| Section 1-114. A. All children between the ages of five (5) |
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19|years on or before September 1, and twenty-one (21) years on or |
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20|before September 1, shall be entitled to attend school free of |
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21|charge in the district in which they reside. |
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22| B. All children who are at least four (4) years of age but not |
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23|more than five (5) years of age on or before September 1 and who |
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24|have not attended a public school kindergarten shall be entitled to |
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1|attend half-day or full-day early childhood programs at any public |
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2|school in the state where such programs are offered; provided, no |
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3|child shall be required to attend any early childhood education |
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4|program. The following paragraphs shall govern early childhood |
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5|programs: |
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6| 1. Children who are at least four (4) years of age but not more |
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7|than five (5) years of age on or before September 1 shall be |
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8|entitled to attend either half-day or full-day early childhood |
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9|programs in their district of residence free of charge as long as |
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10|the district has the physical facilities and teaching personnel to |
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11|accommodate the child. For purposes of calculation of State Aid, |
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12|children in an early childhood education program shall be included |
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13|in the average daily membership of the district providing the |
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14|program; |
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15| 2. A child who has not reached the age of five (5) years on or |
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16|before September 1 and who resides in a district which does not |
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17|offer an early childhood program shall be eligible for transfer to a |
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18|district where an early childhood program is offered if the district |
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19|that offers the early childhood program agrees to the transfer has |
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20|the capacity to accept the child as provided for in the Education |
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21|Open Transfer Act. A district offering early childhood programs may |
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22|refuse to accept a nonresident child if the district does not have |
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23|the physical facilities or teaching personnel the capacity to |
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24|accommodate the child in an early childhood education class, as |
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1|provided for in the Education Open Transfer Act. If the child |
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2|requesting the transfer has not reached the age of four (4) years on |
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3|or before September 1, the district may refuse to accept the |
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4|nonresident child if the district determines the child is not ready |
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5|for an early childhood program. Children who are accepted in a |
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6|program outside their district of residence as provided in this |
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7|paragraph shall be included in the average daily membership of the |
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8|district providing the program for State Aid funding subject to the |
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9|State Aid formula weight limitations set forth in paragraph 1 of |
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10|this subsection; and |
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11| 3. The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules that |
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12|create exemptions relating to the maximum age at which a child may |
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13|attend half-day or full-day early childhood programs. |
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14| C. No child shall be enrolled in kindergarten unless he or she |
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15|will have reached the age of five (5) years on or before September 1 |
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16|of the school year. No child shall be enrolled in the first grade |
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17|unless he or she will have reached the age of six (6) years on or |
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18|before September 1 of the school year. |
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19| D. 1. No nonresident and nontransferred pupil shall be allowed |
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20|to attend school in any school district unless a tuition fee equal |
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21|to the per capita cost of education for a similar period in such |
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22|district during the preceding year has been paid to the receiving |
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23|district in advance yearly or by semester as determined by the |
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24|district board of education of the receiving district. If the State |
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1|Board of Education discovers that such the attendance has been |
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2|allowed without prior payment of the tuition fee in advance as |
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3|required, no further payment of any State Aid Funds funds shall be |
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4|made to the district until such the district has shown to the |
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5|satisfaction of the State Board of Education that all such tuition |
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6|fees have been paid or that such tuition the pupil will no longer be |
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7|allowed to attend school until the required tuition fee has been |
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8|paid. |
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9| 2. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this subsection shall not |
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10|apply to a school district that enrolls nonresident students from a |
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11|contiguous, out-of-state school district if the district: |
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12| a. does not receive payment of any State Aid funds, and |
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13| b. has a per-pupil expenditure, as defined by Section |
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14| 1-124 of this title, that is above the state average |
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15| per-pupil expenditure. |
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16| A nonresident student whose resident district, as determined by |
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17|Section 1-113 of this title, is not within this state shall not be |
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18|eligible for State Aid. No local funding associated with the |
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19|nonresident student's out-of-state resident district shall be |
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20|allocated or transferred to the receiving school district. |
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21| E. Any parent, guardian, person, or institution having care and |
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22|custody of a child who pays ad valorem tax on real property in any |
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23|other school district other than that in which that person resides |
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24|may, with the approval of the receiving board school district, |
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1|enroll the child in any school district in which ad valorem tax is |
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2|paid and receive a credit on the nonresident tuition fee equal to |
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3|the amount of the ad valorem tax paid for school district purposes |
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4|in the school district in which the child is enrolled. Provided, |
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5|the credit shall not exceed the total amount required for the |
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6|tuition payment. |
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7| SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2023. |
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8| SECTION 3. It being immediately necessary for the preservation |
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9|of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby |
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10|declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and |
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11|be in full force from and after its passage and approval. |
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13| 59-1-1015 EB 1/18/2023 1:23:28 PM |
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