Legislative Reports
Title: Legislative News from Jones Street - Aug. 13, 2009
Date: 08/13/09
Legislative News from Jones Street
August 13, 2009
Greetings from the office of the North Carolina State Board of Education.
The General Assembly officially adjourned yesterday (Tuesday, Aug. 11), and will return on May 12, 2010, to convene the second year of the biennium 2009-11 legislative session. The $19 billion spending plan included approximately $2 billion in cuts, $1 billion in stimulus money and $990 million in additional taxes and fees. About 80 percent of the $990 million will be generated by increasing the sales tax rate by one penny. Each consumer will pay 7.75 cents on each dollar they spend through mid-2011. Corporate profits will face a 3 percent surtax for two years. Cigarette taxes will rise permanently by 10 cents per pack. Individuals with taxable income of at least $60,000 and couples reporting $100,000 to $250,000 will face a surtax amounting to an extra $20 for each $1,000 in tax they owe in 2009 and 2010. Couples reporting taxable income of more than that will pay $30 extra for every $1,000 they owe.
Throughout the session, the Senate advocated modernizing the state's tax structure. Both the House and Senate have agreed to hold public hearings across the state in the coming months and plan to have recommendations to present to the 2010 legislative session for consideration. The focus is expected to be on tax structure changes that would broaden the tax base to include services as overall rates are lowered. Governor Perdue has stated her support for the modernization of the state's tax structure.
Senate Bill 202, which listed the pay schedule for principals and assistant principals, had an error and it was necessary to pass HB 1172 in order to correct the information. The link for HB 1172 (School Based Administrator Salary Schedule) is http://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2009/Bills/House/HTML/H1172v6.html. Please refer to HB 1172 rather than the salary schedule listed in the budget for information about school-based administrators' pay. Teacher's salaries were not decreased. Instead, they were maintained at their current level. Longevity pay for all state employees, including teachers, remained intact. Class size increases were not mandated in the budget that passed. Instead, a "Flexibility Reduction" provision was instituted. The budget requires school districts to "give back" $225 million in state funding, and makes it the district's responsibility to decide what cuts to institute to generate the savings. Each district will have wide latitude in deciding what programs and positions to eliminate. The North Carolina State Board of Education held a special meeting today (Wednesday, Aug. 12) to authorize emergency budget flexibility in order to assist LEAs with managing the 2009 budget reductions. Class size increases in grades K-3 are not permitted to be considered in the budget act. However, class size in grades four through 12 may be considered for pupil increases. The budget stipulated a delay in the adoption of grades 6-12 math textbooks and the 2010-11 fiscal year budget reflects a complete moratorium on new textbook adoptions. The Central Office Administration cut was $14.6 million and will be implemented on a tier approach. Those LEAs with 30,000 and more student population will receive an 18 percent cut; those with student populations between 8,000 and 30,000 will receive a 14 percent reduction and those with student populations less than 8,000 will receive a 7.5 percent reduction. The public school budget eliminates funding for most of the state-administered tests not required by federal law or as a condition of federal grants. These tests include the Chemistry EOC, Physics EOC, Reading competency, Math competency, Grade 3 math and reading pretests, and computer skills. The General Assembly directs the State Board of Education to use the fiscal year 2009-10 savings from eliminating these tests to support the development and implementation of a new Standard Course of Study for all content areas and grade levels. The ultimate goal of this initiative is to develop a new K-8 and K-12 accountability model.
Literacy Coaches were not funded per se but there is no provision that would prevent an LEA from using their discretionary funding to fund literacy coaches. The District and School Transformation efforts have received an additional $2.5 million in the budget.
The State Board of Education was directed to place a one-year moratorium on the ABCs bonuses for the 2009-10 fiscal year. The State Board is directed to develop a plan to restructure the ABCs Accountability system and report to the General Assembly by January 2010.
A portion of the More-at-Four first round cuts were restored and the General Assembly has directed that the Program Evaluation Division of the General Assembly conduct a comprehensive study of all of North Carolina's 0-K preschool programs and recommend some sort of a merger of these programs.
Learn and Earn Online, which allows high school students to enroll in college courses to qualify for college credit, was funded. The online courses shall be made available to students through the University of North Carolina and the North Carolina Community College System. Dropout Prevention Grants were funded for a total of $13 million. The grants shall be issued in varying amounts up to a maximum of $175,000 per grant. No more than three grants shall be awarded in any one county in a single fiscal year and priority for grants shall be given to programs that would serve students in local schools that have a four-year cohort graduation rate of less than 65 percent. An additional stipulation pertinent to the dropout prevention grants is that 50 percent of the available dollars for the grants shall be used by the Dropout Prevention Committee on new recipients and 50 percent shall be used to award successive grants to previous grant recipients. The policy for teachers opting to obtain the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) Certification has changed. The state shall lend teachers the participation fee and shall provide up to three days of approved paid leave to all teachers participating in the NBPTS program. The teacher shall repay the application fee to the State Education Assistance Authority within three years. The provision becomes effective with the 2010-11 school year.
Other items of interest are: the mentoring allotment was decreased 18 percent, transportation 4 percent and non-instructional support was trimmed by 2.5 percent. The law, which allowed retired teachers to return to the classroom at full pay without losing their retirement checks, will expire on September 30, 2009. Retirees will still be able to work for the school system, part-time, not more than 30 hours a week, and they will be subject to the earnings cap, which is 50 percent of their final year's pay adjusted for inflation. Teachers who exceed the cap will lose retirement pay for the remainder of that calendar year.
In addition to the provisions that have been highlighted, following is a summary of items within House Bill 945, which are pertinent to K-12 education. The Studies Bill is An Act to Provide for Studies by the Commission, Statutory Oversight Committees and Commissions, and other Agencies, Committees and Commissions. It is an important distinction to note if a legislative directive states that an item "may" or "shall." If the directive states it "may," that provides an option as to whether or not to conduct the prescribed study. If the legislative directive states it "shall," then it is a required course of action.
I. Legislative Research Commission
A. Early Childhood Programs
The Commission may study after-school child care and related programs. The Commission may conduct a study to include the following: Assessing the feasibility and desirability of consolidating the North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc., and the "More at Four" program.
B. Innovations in Education
The Commission may study the feasibility of giving to every public school student in North Carolina an incentive of one thousand dollars ($1,000) per year beginning at grade one and extending to grade 12, if the student successfully meets specific academic, disciplinary, attendance, character, and parental involvement goals and benchmarks.
C. Sports Injuries
The Commission may study issues relating to sports injuries for all sports at the middle school and high school levels, focusing on the prevention and treatment of injuries.
II. Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee Studies
A. The committee may study the consolidation of the General Statutes and administrative rules pertaining to high school programs offered at community colleges, including Huskins Bill courses, dual enrollment, Learn and Earn, Learn and Earn Online, and college transfer courses, to facilitate consistency in administration of these programs among colleges and to ensure that revenues are appropriately received by the colleges to fulfill their responsibility in providing these programs to high school students.
B. The Committee may study all aspects of the practice of school social work in North Carolina.
C. The Committee may study the impact of student mobility on academic performance.
D. The Committee may study the number of alternative schools that currently exist in North Carolina, how effective those schools are in helping at-risk students reach academic success, and any other issues that the Committee considers relevant to this topic.
E. The Committee may study the ABC Bonus Program. In the course of the study, the Committee may consider (i) the current mechanism for determining which schools' employees are entitled to bonuses, (ii) the relationship for determining which schools' employees are entitled to bonuses, (ii) the relationship of bonuses awarded to the improvement of student performance and outcomes and reduction in dropout rates, and
(iii) any equities and inequities in the current program.
F. The Committee may study how best to fund grants, loans, and scholarships made for the purpose of attending institutions of higher education both within and outside of North Carolina, including examining the availability and sustainability of existing state, federal, and private funding sources.
III. Environmental Review Commission Studies
A. The Commission may study the possibility of establishing a Green School Construction Loan Fund to provide no interest loans to local school administrative units for green construction, with priority given to projects that will have the greatest impact on reducing the use of energy and water.
B. The Commission may study the possibility of requiring all public agencies to recycle all spent fluorescent lights and mercury thermostats, requiring the removal of all fluorescent lights and mercury thermostats from buildings prior to demolition, and banning mercury-containing products from unlined landfills.
IV. Joint Legislative Utility Review Committee Studies
The Committee may study the possibility of extending the standards governing energy efficiency and water use for major facility construction and renovation projects involving state, university, and community college buildings to major facility construction and renovation projects involving buildings of entities that receive state funding.
V. Department of Health and Human Services
The Department of Health and Human Services may study the feasibility of establishing a school-based influenza vaccination pilot program.
VI. Study the Impacts of Raising the Compulsory Attendance Age for Public School Attendance
The Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina, in coordination with the Department of Public Instruction and the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities, may direct the appropriate entity to study the impacts of raising the compulsory public school attendance age prior to completion of a high school diploma from16 to 17 or 18.
VII. Legislative Taskforce on Childhood Obesity
The task force shall study issues relating to childhood obesity. The taskforce shall recommend to the General Assembly strategies for addressing the problem of childhood obesity and encouraging healthy eating and increased physical activity among children.
A list of the ratified bills pertinent to K-12 education is available under the "Legislative Report (Attachments)" link to the left. There are a few bills that have not been signed by the Governor and we will post an updated list as soon as they are available.
If you would like to view a bill, just go to the General Assembly's Web site at www.ncleg.net and type in the bill number.
Chris Minard
Legislative Liaison
North Carolina State Board of Education
Title: Legislative News from Jones Street - Aug. 13, 2009
Date: 08/13/09
Legislative News from Jones Street
August 13, 2009
Greetings from the office of the North Carolina State Board of Education.
The General Assembly officially adjourned yesterday (Tuesday, Aug. 11), and will return on May 12, 2010, to convene the second year of the biennium 2009-11 legislative session. The $19 billion spending plan included approximately $2 billion in cuts, $1 billion in stimulus money and $990 million in additional taxes and fees. About 80 percent of the $990 million will be generated by increasing the sales tax rate by one penny. Each consumer will pay 7.75 cents on each dollar they spend through mid-2011. Corporate profits will face a 3 percent surtax for two years. Cigarette taxes will rise permanently by 10 cents per pack. Individuals with taxable income of at least $60,000 and couples reporting $100,000 to $250,000 will face a surtax amounting to an extra $20 for each $1,000 in tax they owe in 2009 and 2010. Couples reporting taxable income of more than that will pay $30 extra for every $1,000 they owe.
Throughout the session, the Senate advocated modernizing the state's tax structure. Both the House and Senate have agreed to hold public hearings across the state in the coming months and plan to have recommendations to present to the 2010 legislative session for consideration. The focus is expected to be on tax structure changes that would broaden the tax base to include services as overall rates are lowered. Governor Perdue has stated her support for the modernization of the state's tax structure.
Senate Bill 202, which listed the pay schedule for principals and assistant principals, had an error and it was necessary to pass HB 1172 in order to correct the information. The link for HB 1172 (School Based Administrator Salary Schedule) is http://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2009/Bills/House/HTML/H1172v6.html. Please refer to HB 1172 rather than the salary schedule listed in the budget for information about school-based administrators' pay. Teacher's salaries were not decreased. Instead, they were maintained at their current level. Longevity pay for all state employees, including teachers, remained intact. Class size increases were not mandated in the budget that passed. Instead, a "Flexibility Reduction" provision was instituted. The budget requires school districts to "give back" $225 million in state funding, and makes it the district's responsibility to decide what cuts to institute to generate the savings. Each district will have wide latitude in deciding what programs and positions to eliminate. The North Carolina State Board of Education held a special meeting today (Wednesday, Aug. 12) to authorize emergency budget flexibility in order to assist LEAs with managing the 2009 budget reductions. Class size increases in grades K-3 are not permitted to be considered in the budget act. However, class size in grades four through 12 may be considered for pupil increases. The budget stipulated a delay in the adoption of grades 6-12 math textbooks and the 2010-11 fiscal year budget reflects a complete moratorium on new textbook adoptions. The Central Office Administration cut was $14.6 million and will be implemented on a tier approach. Those LEAs with 30,000 and more student population will receive an 18 percent cut; those with student populations between 8,000 and 30,000 will receive a 14 percent reduction and those with student populations less than 8,000 will receive a 7.5 percent reduction. The public school budget eliminates funding for most of the state-administered tests not required by federal law or as a condition of federal grants. These tests include the Chemistry EOC, Physics EOC, Reading competency, Math competency, Grade 3 math and reading pretests, and computer skills. The General Assembly directs the State Board of Education to use the fiscal year 2009-10 savings from eliminating these tests to support the development and implementation of a new Standard Course of Study for all content areas and grade levels. The ultimate goal of this initiative is to develop a new K-8 and K-12 accountability model.
Literacy Coaches were not funded per se but there is no provision that would prevent an LEA from using their discretionary funding to fund literacy coaches. The District and School Transformation efforts have received an additional $2.5 million in the budget.
The State Board of Education was directed to place a one-year moratorium on the ABCs bonuses for the 2009-10 fiscal year. The State Board is directed to develop a plan to restructure the ABCs Accountability system and report to the General Assembly by January 2010.
A portion of the More-at-Four first round cuts were restored and the General Assembly has directed that the Program Evaluation Division of the General Assembly conduct a comprehensive study of all of North Carolina's 0-K preschool programs and recommend some sort of a merger of these programs.
Learn and Earn Online, which allows high school students to enroll in college courses to qualify for college credit, was funded. The online courses shall be made available to students through the University of North Carolina and the North Carolina Community College System. Dropout Prevention Grants were funded for a total of $13 million. The grants shall be issued in varying amounts up to a maximum of $175,000 per grant. No more than three grants shall be awarded in any one county in a single fiscal year and priority for grants shall be given to programs that would serve students in local schools that have a four-year cohort graduation rate of less than 65 percent. An additional stipulation pertinent to the dropout prevention grants is that 50 percent of the available dollars for the grants shall be used by the Dropout Prevention Committee on new recipients and 50 percent shall be used to award successive grants to previous grant recipients. The policy for teachers opting to obtain the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) Certification has changed. The state shall lend teachers the participation fee and shall provide up to three days of approved paid leave to all teachers participating in the NBPTS program. The teacher shall repay the application fee to the State Education Assistance Authority within three years. The provision becomes effective with the 2010-11 school year.
Other items of interest are: the mentoring allotment was decreased 18 percent, transportation 4 percent and non-instructional support was trimmed by 2.5 percent. The law, which allowed retired teachers to return to the classroom at full pay without losing their retirement checks, will expire on September 30, 2009. Retirees will still be able to work for the school system, part-time, not more than 30 hours a week, and they will be subject to the earnings cap, which is 50 percent of their final year's pay adjusted for inflation. Teachers who exceed the cap will lose retirement pay for the remainder of that calendar year.
In addition to the provisions that have been highlighted, following is a summary of items within House Bill 945, which are pertinent to K-12 education. The Studies Bill is An Act to Provide for Studies by the Commission, Statutory Oversight Committees and Commissions, and other Agencies, Committees and Commissions. It is an important distinction to note if a legislative directive states that an item "may" or "shall." If the directive states it "may," that provides an option as to whether or not to conduct the prescribed study. If the legislative directive states it "shall," then it is a required course of action.
I. Legislative Research Commission
A. Early Childhood Programs
The Commission may study after-school child care and related programs. The Commission may conduct a study to include the following: Assessing the feasibility and desirability of consolidating the North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc., and the "More at Four" program.
B. Innovations in Education
The Commission may study the feasibility of giving to every public school student in North Carolina an incentive of one thousand dollars ($1,000) per year beginning at grade one and extending to grade 12, if the student successfully meets specific academic, disciplinary, attendance, character, and parental involvement goals and benchmarks.
C. Sports Injuries
The Commission may study issues relating to sports injuries for all sports at the middle school and high school levels, focusing on the prevention and treatment of injuries.
II. Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee Studies
A. The committee may study the consolidation of the General Statutes and administrative rules pertaining to high school programs offered at community colleges, including Huskins Bill courses, dual enrollment, Learn and Earn, Learn and Earn Online, and college transfer courses, to facilitate consistency in administration of these programs among colleges and to ensure that revenues are appropriately received by the colleges to fulfill their responsibility in providing these programs to high school students.
B. The Committee may study all aspects of the practice of school social work in North Carolina.
C. The Committee may study the impact of student mobility on academic performance.
D. The Committee may study the number of alternative schools that currently exist in North Carolina, how effective those schools are in helping at-risk students reach academic success, and any other issues that the Committee considers relevant to this topic.
E. The Committee may study the ABC Bonus Program. In the course of the study, the Committee may consider (i) the current mechanism for determining which schools' employees are entitled to bonuses, (ii) the relationship for determining which schools' employees are entitled to bonuses, (ii) the relationship of bonuses awarded to the improvement of student performance and outcomes and reduction in dropout rates, and
(iii) any equities and inequities in the current program.
F. The Committee may study how best to fund grants, loans, and scholarships made for the purpose of attending institutions of higher education both within and outside of North Carolina, including examining the availability and sustainability of existing state, federal, and private funding sources.
III. Environmental Review Commission Studies
A. The Commission may study the possibility of establishing a Green School Construction Loan Fund to provide no interest loans to local school administrative units for green construction, with priority given to projects that will have the greatest impact on reducing the use of energy and water.
B. The Commission may study the possibility of requiring all public agencies to recycle all spent fluorescent lights and mercury thermostats, requiring the removal of all fluorescent lights and mercury thermostats from buildings prior to demolition, and banning mercury-containing products from unlined landfills.
IV. Joint Legislative Utility Review Committee Studies
The Committee may study the possibility of extending the standards governing energy efficiency and water use for major facility construction and renovation projects involving state, university, and community college buildings to major facility construction and renovation projects involving buildings of entities that receive state funding.
V. Department of Health and Human Services
The Department of Health and Human Services may study the feasibility of establishing a school-based influenza vaccination pilot program.
VI. Study the Impacts of Raising the Compulsory Attendance Age for Public School Attendance
The Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina, in coordination with the Department of Public Instruction and the North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities, may direct the appropriate entity to study the impacts of raising the compulsory public school attendance age prior to completion of a high school diploma from16 to 17 or 18.
VII. Legislative Taskforce on Childhood Obesity
The task force shall study issues relating to childhood obesity. The taskforce shall recommend to the General Assembly strategies for addressing the problem of childhood obesity and encouraging healthy eating and increased physical activity among children.
A list of the ratified bills pertinent to K-12 education is available under the "Legislative Report (Attachments)" link to the left. There are a few bills that have not been signed by the Governor and we will post an updated list as soon as they are available.
If you would like to view a bill, just go to the General Assembly's Web site at www.ncleg.net and type in the bill number.
Chris Minard
Legislative Liaison
North Carolina State Board of Education