CHAPTER 182
SB 8-FN - FINAL VERSION
1Jun2017... 1786h
06/08/2017 2375EBA
2017 SESSION
17-0885
04/06
SENATE BILL 8-FN
AN ACT relative to school attendance in towns with no public schools.
SPONSORS: Sen. Ward, Dist 8; Sen. Morse, Dist 22; Sen. Bradley, Dist 3; Sen. Sanborn, Dist 9; Sen. Giuda, Dist 2; Sen. Gray, Dist 6; Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Reagan, Dist 17; Sen. Birdsell, Dist 19; Sen. Gannon, Dist 23; Sen. Innis, Dist 24; Rep. T. Wolf, Hills. 7; Rep. Cordelli, Carr. 4; Rep. Pitre, Straf. 2; Rep. Grenier, Sull. 7
COMMITTEE: Education
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This bill establishes a procedure for the approval of a nonsectarian private school as a school tuition program in a town where there is no public school for the pupil's grade level and authorizes the school board to enter into a contract with an approved nonsectarian private school and appropriate money for the education of pupils in such towns.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
1Jun2017... 1786h
06/08/2017 2375EBA 17-0885
04/06
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Seventeen
AN ACT relative to school attendance in towns with no public schools.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
182:1 New Paragraph; School Board; Duty to Provide Education. Amend RSA 189:1-a by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:
IV. Pursuant to RSA 193:3, VI, a school board may execute a contract with any approved nonsectarian private school approved by the school board as a school tuition program as defined in RSA 193:3, VII to provide for the education of a child who resides in the school district, and may raise and appropriate money for the purposes of the contract, if the school district does not have a public school at the pupil's grade level and the school board decides it is in the best interest of the pupil.
182:2 School Attendance; Compulsory Attendance by Pupil. Amend RSA 193:1, I(d) to read as follows:
(d) The child is attending a public or private school located in another state which has been approved by the state education agency of the state in which the school is located, or is attending a nonsectarian private school located in New Hampshire that is approved as a school tuition program by the school board pursuant to RSA 193:3, VII;
182:3 New Paragraphs; School Attendance; Change of School or Assignment. Amend RSA 193:3 by inserting after paragraph V the following new paragraphs:
VI. If there is no public school for the child's grade in the resident district, the school board may assign the child to another public school in another school district or to any nonsectarian private school that has been approved as a school tuition program by the school board. The school board may execute a contract with an approved nonsectarian private school to provide for the education of a child who resides in the school district, and may raise and appropriate money for the purposes of the contract, if the school district does not have a public school at the pupil's grade level and the school board decides it is in the best interest of the pupil.
VII. In this section, "approved as a school tuition program” means a school that has been approved and contracted by the school board to provide students with the opportunity to acquire an adequate education as defined in RSA 193-E:2. Upon approval by the school board, the school shall receive status as an approved school tuition program, shall be deemed in compliance with the provisions of RSA 193-E:3-b, I(a) and (b), and shall qualify as a school approved to provide the opportunity for an adequate education. The school shall be required to submit to the school board an annual student performance progress report in a format selected by the school board, which may include reporting of aggregate achievement data to protect student privacy, and that demonstrates that students are afforded educational opportunities that are substantially equal in quality to state performance standards for determining an adequate education. A private school that receives tuition program students shall:
(a) Comply with statutes and regulations relating to agency approvals such as health, fire safety, and sanitation;
(b) Be a nonsectarian school;
(c) Be incorporated under the laws of New Hampshire or the United States; and
(d) Administer an annual assessment in reading and language arts, mathematics, and science as defined in RSA 193-C:6 to tuition program students. The assessment may be any nationally recognized standardized assessment used to measure student academic achievement, shall be aligned to the school's academic standards, and shall satisfy the requirements of RSA 193-C:6 for school tuition program students. The school’s annual assessment results for tuition program students shall be submitted to the commissioner and school board. If the school enrolls 10 or more publicly-funded tuition program students and if the school’s group assessment percentile score for tuition program students is less than the 40th percentile, the commissioner may require a site visit to determine if the school provides the opportunity for an adequate education in accordance with RSA 193-E:3-b. After the third consecutive year of a tuition program school being unable to demonstrate that it provides an opportunity for an adequate education, the school may be subject to revocation of tuition program status.
182:4 District Liability for Elementary or Junior High School Tuition. Amend RSA 193:4 to read as follows:
193:4 District Liability for Elementary or Junior High School Tuition. Any district shall pay for the tuition of any pupil who, as a resident of the district, has been assigned to attend a public elementary or junior high school or school of corresponding grade in another district or a nonsectarian private school approved as a school tuition program by the school board pursuant to RSA 193:3, VII, and any district not maintaining an elementary or junior high school or school of corresponding grade shall pay for the tuition of any pupil who, as a resident of the district, [after full investigation by the state board of education] is determined to be entitled to have such tuition paid by the district where the pupil resides, and who attends an approved public elementary or junior high school or public school of corresponding grade in another district, or a nonsectarian private school approved as a school tuition program by the school board pursuant to RSA 193:3, VII. Except under contract, the liability of any school district under this section for the tuition of any pupil shall be the current expenses of operation of the receiving district for its elementary or junior high school or public school of corresponding grade, as estimated by the state board of education for the preceding school year. This current expense of operation shall include all costs except costs of transportation of pupils.
182:5 High Schools; Tuition. Amend RSA 194:27 to read as follows:
194:27 Tuition. Any district not maintaining a high school or school of corresponding grade shall pay for the tuition of any pupil who with parents or guardian resides in said district or who, as a resident of said district, [after full investigation by the state board of education] is determined to be entitled to have his or her tuition paid by the district where the pupil resides, and who attends an approved public high school or public school of corresponding grade in another district [or], an approved public academy, or a nonsectarian private school approved as a school tuition program by the school board pursuant to RSA 193:3, VII. Except under contract as provided in RSA 194:22, the liability of any school district hereunder for the tuition of any pupil shall be the current expenses of operation of the receiving district for its high school, as estimated by the state board of education for the preceding school year. This current expense of operation shall include all costs except costs of transportation of pupils.
182:6 District Taxes; Estimates. Amend RSA 198:4 to read as follows:
198:4 Estimates. The school board of each district in its annual report shall state in detail the additional sums of money, if any, which will be required during the ensuing fiscal year for the support of the public schools, for the purchase of textbooks, scholars' supplies, flags and appurtenances, for the payment of the tuition of the pupils in the district in high schools [and], academies, and any nonsectarian private school approved as a school tuition program by the school board in accordance with law, and for the payment of all other statutory obligations of the district.
182:7 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Approved: June 29, 2017
Effective Date: August 28, 2017
| Date | Body | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Jan. 31, 2017 | Senate | Hearing |
| Feb. 23, 2017 | Senate | Floor Vote |
| March 15, 2017 | House | Hearing |
| May 2, 2017 | House | Exec Session |
| May 16, 2017 | House | Exec Session |
| June 1, 2017 | House | Floor Vote |
Aug. 28, 2017: Signed by the Governor on 06/29/2017; Chapter 0182; Effective 08/28/2017
June 22, 2017: Enrolled (In recess 06/22/2017); SJ 20
June 22, 2017: Enrolled 06/22/2017 HJ 19 P. 25
June 8, 2017: Enrolled Bill Amendment # 2017-2375e Adopted, VV, (In recess of 06/08/2017); SJ 20
June 8, 2017: Enrolled Bill Amendment # 2017-2375e: AA VV 06/08/2017 HJ 18 P. 10
June 8, 2017: Sen. Reagan Moved to Concur with the House Amendment, RC 14Y-9N, MA; 06/08/2017; SJ 19
June 1, 2017: Ought to Pass with Amendment 1786h: MA RC 210-147 06/01/2017 HJ 17 P. 93
June 1, 2017: Amendment # 2017-1786h: AA VV 06/01/2017 HJ 17 P. 93
: Minority Committee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate
June 1, 2017: Majority Committee Report: Ought to Pass with Amendment # 2017-1786h for 06/01/2017 (Vote 13-6; RC) HC 26 P. 12
May 16, 2017: ==CONTINUED== Executive Session: 05/16/2017 10:30 AM LOB 207
May 2, 2017: ==RECESSED== Executive Session: 05/02/2017 10:00 AM LOB 207
March 15, 2017: Public Hearing: 03/15/2017 03:00 PM LOB 207
Feb. 16, 2017: Introduced 02/16/2017 and referred to Education HJ 8 P. 44
Feb. 23, 2017: Ought to Pass: RC 14Y-9N, MA; OT3rdg; 02/23/2017; SJ 7
Feb. 23, 2017: Committee Report: Ought to Pass, 02/23/2017; SC 11
Jan. 31, 2017: Hearing: 01/31/2017, Room 103, LOB, 10:30 am; SC 8
Jan. 19, 2017: Introduced 01/19/2017 and Referred to Education; SJ 5