CHAPTER 241
HB 688 – FINAL VERSION
18Feb2009… 0230h
05/27/09 1718s
24Jun2009… 2339eba
2009 SESSION
04/10
HOUSE BILL 688
AN ACT relative to the chartered public school approval process and relative to open enrollment schools.
SPONSORS: Rep. Casey, Rock 11; Rep. Boyce, Belk 5; Rep. Stiles, Rock 15; Rep. Remick, Coos 2; Sen. Cilley, Dist 6
This bill separates the open enrollment provisions from the chartered public school statute and establishes a new chapter on open enrollment schools.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
18Feb2009… 0230h
05/27/09 1718s
24Jun2009… 2339eba
09-0624
04/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Nine
AN ACT relative to the chartered public school approval process and relative to open enrollment schools.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
241:1 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Chapter Heading Amended. Amend the chapter heading of RSA 194-B to read as follows:
CHARTERED PUBLIC SCHOOLS [AND OPEN ENROLLMENT ACT]
241:2 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Definitions. Amend RSA 194-B:1, IX to read as follows
IX. “Receiving district” means the school district to which a pupil is sent to attend a [charter or open enrollment] chartered public school.
241:3 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Statement of Purpose. Amend RSA 194-B:1-a, I-II to read as follows:
I. Promote and encourage the establishment and operation of [charter and open enrollment] chartered public schools in New Hampshire.
II. Encourage school districts to allow [public charter and open enrollment] chartered public schools.
241:4 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Establishment. Amend RSA 194-B:2 to read as follows:
194-B:2 [Open Enrollment and] Chartered Public Schools; Establishment; Parental Choice; Admission.
I. Any school district legislative body may vote to designate one or more of its schools as [an open enrollment] a chartered public school.
II. [Open enrollment schools which are not chartered public schools shall operate under the same laws, rules, and policies as any other public school, except as provided in this chapter.
III. No public school, except a chartered public school, shall be required to be an open enrollment school.
IV. A school district may predetermine the number of pupils residing outside an open enrollment school’s district or attendance area it deems appropriate to accept.
V. Applications may be made on behalf of eligible pupils to more than one charter or open enrollment school within the state.
VI.] Every [open enrollment or] chartered public school shall make available information about its curriculum and policies to all persons, and parents and pupils considering enrollment in that school.
[VII.] III. There shall be no application fee for pupil admission to any chartered public school [or open enrollment school].
[VIII.] IV. All chartered public schools shall accept qualified pupils from any school district. A pupil who meets the admission requirements of [an open enrollment or] a chartered public school, and who is a resident of the district where the school is located, shall be given absolute admission preference over a nonresident pupil. Once admitted and unless expelled, [open enrollment and] chartered public school pupils need not reapply for admission for subsequent years.
[IX.] V. Attendance at a chartered public school for the purposes of transportation shall not constitute assignment under the provisions of RSA 189:6 and RSA 189:8. Pupils who reside in the school district in which the [open enrollment or] chartered public school is located shall be provided transportation to that school by the district on the same terms and conditions as provided for in RSA 189:6 and RSA 189:8 and that transportation is provided to pupils attending other public schools within that district. However, any added costs for such transportation services shall be borne by the chartered public school. [For the purposes of open enrollment, neither the sending nor the receiving school district shall be obligated to provide transportation services for pupils attending an open enrollment school outside the pupil’s resident district.]
VI. Upon approval by each of the district’s legislative bodies and after a public hearing, 2 or more school districts may consolidate otherwise eligible resident pupils into one applicant pool for the purposes of an admissions lottery for designated chartered public schools.
VII. A chartered public school may be physically located outside the district establishing it, but shall be deemed within the school district for purposes of RSA 194-B.
241:5 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Approval by State Board of Education. Amend RSA 194-B:3-a, IV and V(a) to read as follows
IV. The state board of education shall either approve or deny an application using reasonable discretion in the assessment of the elements set forth in RSA 194-B:3, II, (a)-(bb) and (dd). Approval of an application constitutes the granting of charter status and the right to operate as a public chartered public school. The state board of education shall notify all applicants of its decision in writing, and shall include in any notice of denial a written statement specifying any areas deemed deficient, the reasons for the denial, and explaining that the applicant may reapply under RSA 194-B:3[, RSA 194-B:4,] or under this section in a subsequent year.
V.(a) The following provisions of law shall not apply to chartered public school applications proposed under this section, or to chartered public schools granted approval for operation under this section:
(1) RSA 194-B:3, II(cc).
(2) RSA 194-B:3, III-IV.
(3) RSA 194-B:3, XI.
(4) [RSA 194-B:4.
(5)] RSA 194-B:15, II.
241:6 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Pupil Selection and Enrollment. Amend RSA 194-B:9 to read as follows:
194-B:9 Chartered Public Schools [and Open Enrollment Schools]; Pupil Selection; Enrollment; Separation.
I. Except as provided for under RSA 194-B:8, IV:
(a) Chartered public schools may set maximum enrollment as they deem appropriate.
(b) Chartered public schools may limit enrollment to specific grade or age levels, pupil needs, or areas of academic focus including, but not limited to, at-risk pupils, vocational education pupils, mathematics, science, the arts, history, or languages.
(c)(1) Chartered public schools may select pupils on the basis of aptitude, academic achievement, or need, provided that such selection is directly related to the academic goals of the school.
(2) If the number of otherwise eligible applicants to a particular [charter or open enrollment] chartered public school exceeds that school’s maximum published enrollment, that school shall use lottery selection as a basis for admission.
(3) If the number of otherwise eligible applicants to [charter or open enrollment] chartered public schools located inside and outside the school district exceeds that district’s published maximum percentage of pupils authorized to attend such schools, the district shall use lottery selection as a basis for pupil eligibility, and in accordance with RSA 194-B:2, [VIII] IV.
II. A pupil may withdraw from a chartered public school at any time and enroll in a public school where the pupil resides, except that no pupil shall change schools more than once each school year. That pupil’s local school board may waive this limitation after a hearing.
III. A pupil may be suspended or expelled from a chartered public school based on criteria determined by the board of trustees consistent with the advice of the principal and teachers and in conformance with RSA 193:13. No public school shall be obligated to enroll an expelled pupil.
IV. For the purpose of this chapter, any resident pupil enrolled in a chartered public school is to be considered reassigned to the chartered public school for purposes of school attendance.
[V. For districts having enabled only the open enrollment provisions of this chapter, the school board shall have the authority to establish rules to implement open enrollment.]
241:7 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Funding. Amend the section heading and introductory paragraph of RSA 194-B:11, and RSA 194-B:11, I-VI to read as follows:
194-B:11 Chartered Public Schools [and Open Enrollment Schools]; Funding. Chartered public schools [and open enrollment schools] shall be funded as follows:
I.(a) There shall be no tuition charge for any pupil attending [an open enrollment or] a charter conversion school located in that pupil’s resident district. Funding limitations in this chapter shall not be applicable to charter conversion [or open enrollment] schools located in a pupil’s resident district. For a chartered public school [or open enrollment school] authorized by the school district, the pupil’s resident district shall pay to such school an amount equal to not less than 80 percent of that district’s average cost per pupil as determined by the department of education using the most recent available data as reported by the district to the department.
(b) For any chartered public school authorized by the state board of education pursuant to RSA 194-B:3-a, the state shall pay tuition pursuant to RSA 198:40-a and RSA 198:40-c directly to the chartered public school for each pupil who is a resident of this state in attendance at such chartered public school.
(c) Notwithstanding RSA 198:42, the commissioner of the department of education shall calculate and distribute chartered public school tuition payments as set forth herein. The first payment shall be 30 percent of the per pupil amount multiplied by the number of eligible pupils present on the first day of the current school year. Such payment shall be made no later than 15 days after the department of education receives the attendance report. The December 1 payment shall be 30 percent of the per pupil amount multiplied by the membership on November 1, and the March 1 payment shall be 30 percent of the per pupil amount multiplied by the membership on February 1. To calculate the final payment, the commissioner of the department of education shall multiply the per pupil amount by the average daily membership in attendance for the full school year, and subtract the total amount of the first 3 payments made. The remaining balance shall be the final payment. Eligible chartered public schools shall report membership in accordance with RSA 189:1-d. In this subparagraph, “membership” shall be as defined in RSA 189:1-d, II. Tuition amounts shall be prorated on a per diem basis for pupils attending a school for less than a full school year.
(d) The source of funds for payments under this section shall be moneys from the education trust fund established in RSA 198:39.
II. A school district lacking a meaningful basis to determine average expenditure per pupil may use statewide average figures as determined by the department of education for the purposes of this chapter.
III. In accordance with current department of education standards, the funding and educational decision-making process for children with disabilities attending a chartered public [or open enrollment] school shall be the responsibility of the school district and shall retain all current options available to the parent and to the school district.
IV. Any federal or other funding available in any year to a sending district shall, to the extent and in a manner acceptable to the funding source, be directed to a chartered public school [or open enrollment school] in a receiving district on an eligible per pupil basis. This funding shall include, but not be limited to, funding under federal Chapters I and II of Title II, and Drug-Free Schools, in whatever form the funding is available in any year.
IV-a. The commissioner of the department of education shall apply for all federal funding available to chartered public schools under the No Child Left Behind Act, Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, or other federal source of funds. The commissioner shall expend any such funds received in a manner acceptable to the funding source.
V.(a) A sending district may provide funds, services, equipment, materials or personnel to a chartered public school [or open enrollment school], in addition to the amounts specified in this section in accordance with the policies of the sending school district.
(b) A chartered public school [or open enrollment school] may accept pupils at tuition rates at less than the amounts established by this chapter.
(c) A chartered public school, other than a charter conversion school, shall accept an otherwise eligible out-of-district pupil regardless of that pupil’s sending district’s tuition amount.
VI. A chartered public school [or open enrollment school] may receive financial aid, private gifts, grants, or revenue as if it were a school district. A chartered public school shall not be compelled to accept funding from any source.
241:8 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Budgets. Amend RSA 194-B:12 to read as follows:
194-B:12 [Charter and Open Enrollment] Chartered Public Schools; Budgets. That portion of a school district’s estimated expenditures on [charter and open enrollment] chartered public school tuition shall be shown as a separate line item in a school district’s budget.
241:9 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; Charter Revocation. Amend RSA 194-B:16, VIII to read as follows:
VIII. If a school’s charter expires or is revoked, the parent of a pupil attending that school may apply to any other [charter or open enrollment] chartered public school eligible to receive tuition under the provisions of this chapter adopted by the school district. The pupil’s sending district shall not be relieved of its obligation to educate that pupil in accordance with the district’s policies.
241:10 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; State Board Duties. Amend RSA 194-B:17, IV to read as follows:
IV. The state board shall [promulgate] adopt uniform statewide annual deadlines and procedures for pupil enrollment applications and school and parental enrollment decisions for [charter and open enrollment] chartered public schools.
241:11 Chartered Public and Open Enrollment Schools; State Board Duties. Amend RSA 194-B:17, VI to read as follows:
VI. The state board shall convene one or more working committees to study and make recommendations regarding the implementation and effectiveness of [charter and open enrollment] chartered public schools. The recommendations shall be provided to the legislative oversight committee in RSA 194-B:21.
241:12 Cooperative School Districts; Modification. Amend RSA 195:31 to read as follows:
195:31 Modification. In the event that the cooperative district adopts the provisions of RSA 194-B, [and the cooperative district also adopts open enrollment percentage amounts pursuant to RSA 194-B:4,] the percentage of pupils authorized by a vote of the cooperative school district shall be permitted to attend a chartered public school which may be established in the district and approved by the voters in accordance with RSA 194-B:3.
241:13 Authorized Regional Enrollment Area Schools; Procedure. Amend RSA 195-A:3, V(p) to read as follows:
(p) Whether the districts within the area plan shall adopt the provisions of RSA 194-B, and how the adoption of such provisions [and the adoption of the open enrollment percentage limitations] will affect the districts within the area plan;
241:14 New Chapter; Open Enrollment Schools. Amend RSA by inserting after chapter 194-C the following new chapter:
CHAPTER 194-D
194-D:1 Definitions. In this chapter:
I. “Open enrollment public school” or “open enrollment school” means any public school which, in addition to providing educational services to pupils residing within its attendance area or district, chooses to accept pupils from other attendance areas within its district and from outside its district.
II. “Parent” means a parent, guardian, or other person or entity having legal custody of a child or, in the case of a child with a disability, a surrogate parent who has been appointed in accordance with state or federal law.
III. “Pupil” means any child who is eligible for attendance in public schools in New Hampshire, and who lives with a parent.
IV. “Receiving district” means the school district to which a pupil is sent to attend an open enrollment school.
V. “Resident district” means the school district in which the pupil resides.
VI. “School board” means the school district school board.
VII. “Sending district” means the school district in which the pupil resides.
VIII. “State board” means the state board of education.
IX. “Teacher” means any individual providing or capable of providing direct instructional services to pupils, and who meets requirements prescribed in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act.
194-D:2 Establishment; Parental Choice; Admission.
I. Any school district legislative body may vote to designate one or more of its schools as an open enrollment school.
II. Open enrollment schools shall operate under the same laws, rules, and policies as any other public school, except as provided in this chapter.
III. No public school, except a chartered public school, shall be required to be an open enrollment school.
IV. A school district may predetermine the number of pupils residing outside an open enrollment school’s district or attendance area it deems appropriate to accept.
V. Applications may be made on behalf of eligible pupils to more than one open enrollment school within the state.
VI. Every open enrollment school shall make available information about its curriculum and policies to all persons, and parents and pupils considering enrollment in that school.
VII. There shall be no application fee for pupil admission to any open enrollment school.
VIII. A pupil who meets the admission requirements of an open enrollment school, and who is a resident of the district where the school is located, shall be given absolute admission preference over a nonresident pupil. Once admitted and unless expelled, open enrollment school pupils need not reapply for admission for subsequent years.
IX. Attendance at an open enrollment school for the purposes of transportation shall not constitute assignment under the provisions of RSA 189:6 and RSA 189:8. Pupils who reside in the school district in which the open enrollment school is located shall be provided transportation to that school by the district on the same terms and conditions as provided for in RSA 189:6 and RSA 189:8 and that transportation is provided to pupils attending other public schools within that district. However, any added costs for such transportation services shall be borne by the open enrollment school. For the purposes of open enrollment, neither the sending nor the receiving school district shall be obligated to provide transportation services for pupils attending an open enrollment school outside the pupil’s resident district.
X. Upon approval by each of the district’s legislative bodies and after a public hearing, 2 or more school districts may consolidate otherwise eligible resident pupils into one applicant pool for the purposes of an admissions lottery for designated open enrollment schools.
194-D:3 Procedure for Adoption and Rescission; Limitations.
I. Any school district may adopt the provisions of RSA 194-D, to adopt an open enrollment school program, in the following manner:
(a) A question shall be placed on the warrant of a special or annual school district meeting which body shall have final authority to adopt the provisions of this chapter.
(b)(1) In districts without annual meetings, the legislative body of the school district shall consider and act upon the question in accordance with their current procedures. To the extent and if permitted by local ordinance, upon submission to the legislative body within 60 days of the legislative body’s vote of a petition signed by 100 or by 2 percent, whichever is less, of the registered voters, the legislative body shall place the question on the official ballot for any regular election otherwise in accordance with their current procedures for passage of referenda.
(2) The school district legislative body shall hold a public hearing on the question at least 15 days but not more than 30 days before the question is to be voted on. Notice of the hearing shall be posted in at least 2 public places in the municipality and published in a newspaper of general circulation at least 7 days before the hearing.
(3) In the event that the referendum is nonbinding, the question shall be returned for reconsideration to the legislative body which shall have final authority to adopt the provisions of this chapter.
(4) In the event that the referendum is binding, the public vote shall be the final and binding authority to adopt the provisions of this chapter.
(c)(1) In adopting the provisions of RSA 194-D, a school district shall impose limitations on the number of its resident pupils who may attend open enrollment schools located inside and outside the school district. These limitations shall be represented as any percentage between zero and 100 percent of the school district’s current pupil enrollment.
(2) In school districts with annual meetings, where no limitation question receives a majority vote, the limitations applying to the district shall be zero. Where 2 or more conflicting adoption and/or limitation questions receive a majority vote, that combination of adoption and limitation provisions receiving a majority vote granting greatest latitude of parental choice shall apply.
(d) For all limitation questions, the school board shall propose a percentage limitation number. The number may also be proposed by petition. To change limitation percentages, a district need only act upon the relevant limitation questions. Where no limitations are to be changed, no limitation questions shall be presented to the voters.
(e) Adoption and limitation actions shall become effective on July 1 immediately following the action to adopt or limit.
II.(a) A school district which has adopted any provisions of RSA 194-D may rescind its action or modify the limitations imposed in the manner described in paragraph I.
(b) If a majority of those voting vote to rescind the provisions of RSA 194-D or to reduce the percentages of pupils eligible to attend open enrollment schools, then as of July 1 next:
(1) If the percentage of pupils eligible for tuition to attend open enrollment schools in other districts is reduced, a resident pupil enrolled at a school outside the district shall continue to be eligible for tuition for the period necessary to complete the highest grade level offered by the school.
(2) If the percentage of pupils eligible for tuition to attend open enrollment schools in the resident district is reduced, the resident district shall make alternate arrangements in accordance with RSA 189:1-a for the education of any affected pupil.
(c) If a host district rescinds its vote enabling the operation of an open enrollment school located in that district, the open enrollment school may retain its physical location and may continue to receive students and tuition from other districts if any sending district agrees to assume the responsibilities of the host district within 18 months of the effective date of the rescission. The parent of a pupil attending that school may apply to any other open enrollment school eligible to receive pupils under the provisions of this chapter. The pupil’s sending district shall not be relieved of its obligation to educate that pupil in accordance with the district’s policies.
III. This section shall apply to the establishment of each individual open enrollment school.
IV. Upon approval by each of the district’s legislative bodies and after a public hearing, 2 or more school districts may consolidate otherwise eligible resident pupils into one applicant pool for the purposes of an admissions lottery for designated open enrollment schools.
194-D:4 Pupil Selection and Enrollment.
I.(a) Open enrollment schools may set maximum enrollment as they deem appropriate.
(b) Open enrollment schools may limit enrollment to specific grade or age levels, pupil needs, or areas of academic focus including, but not limited to, at-risk pupils, vocational education pupils, mathematics, science, the arts, history, or languages.
(c)(1) Open enrollment schools may select pupils on the basis of aptitude, academic achievement, or need, provided that such selection is directly related to the academic goals of the school.
(2) If the number of otherwise eligible applicants to a particular open enrollment school exceeds that school’s maximum published enrollment, that school shall use lottery selection as a basis for admission.
(3) If the number of otherwise eligible applicants to open enrollment schools located inside and outside the school district exceeds that district’s published maximum percentage of pupils authorized to attend such schools, the district shall use lottery selection as a basis for pupil eligibility, and in accordance with RSA 194-D:2, VIII.
II. A pupil may withdraw from an open enrollment school at any time and enroll in a public school where the pupil resides, except that no pupil shall change schools more than once each school year. The school board of the pupil’s resident district may waive this limitation after a hearing.
III. A pupil may be suspended or expelled from an open enrollment school based on criteria determined by the principal and teachers in the open enrollment school and in conformance with RSA 193:13. No open enrollment school shall be obligated to enroll an expelled pupil.
IV. For the purpose of this chapter, a pupil enrolled in an open enrollment school shall be considered reassigned to the school district in which the open enrollment school is located for purposes of school attendance.
V. The school board in the district in which the open enrollment school is located may establish policies to implement open enrollment schools as provided in this chapter.
194-D:5 Funding.
I. There shall be no tuition charge for any pupil attending an open enrollment school located in that pupil’s resident district. For an open enrollment school authorized by the school district, the pupil’s resident district shall pay to such school an amount equal to not less than 80 percent of that district’s average cost per pupil as determined by the department of education using the most recent available data as reported by the district to the department.
II. In accordance with current department of education standards, the funding and educational decision-making process for children with disabilities attending a chartered public or open enrollment school shall be the responsibility of the school district and shall retain all current options available to the parent and to the school district.
III. Any federal or other funding available in any year to a sending district shall, to the extent and in a manner acceptable to the funding source, be directed to an open enrollment school in a receiving district on an eligible per pupil basis.
IV. The commissioner of the department of education shall apply for all federal funding available to open enrollment schools under the No Child Left Behind Act, Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, or other federal source of funds. The commissioner shall expend any such funds received in a manner acceptable to the funding source.
V. A sending district may provide funds, services, equipment, materials, or personnel to an open enrollment school, in addition to the amounts specified in this section in accordance with the policies of the sending school district.
VI. An open enrollment school may accept pupils at tuition rates at less than the amounts established by this chapter.
VII. An open enrollment school may receive financial aid, private gifts, grants, or revenue as if it were a school district.
194-D:6 Budgets. That portion of a school district’s estimated expenditures on open enrollment school tuition shall be shown as a separate line item in a school district’s budget.
194-D:7 State Board; Duties.
I. The state board shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, consistent with the provisions of this chapter relative to the administration of open enrollment schools.
II. The state board shall convene one or more working committees to study and make recommendations regarding the implementation and effectiveness of open enrollment schools. The recommendations shall be provided to the legislative oversight committee in RSA 194-B:21.
241:15 Chartered Public Schools; Applications. Amend RSA 194-B:3, III(b) to read as follows:
(b) Proposed applications and contracts to establish a chartered public school shall be presented by July 1 of the year preceding intended operation of the chartered public school by its prospective board of trustees to the school board of the district in which the chartered public school intends to be located. The school board shall hold at least one public hearing on the application prior to September 15.
241:16 Repeal. The following are repealed:
I. RSA 194-B:4, relative to the procedure in a town for adopting charter schools.
II. RSA 194-B:3, III(a) relative to a prohibition on submission of a charter school application.
III. RSA 194-B:3, X(b), relative to local adoption of renewal of a charter.
241:17 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Approved: July 16, 2009
Effective Date: September 14, 2009