New Hampshire School Boards Association
Legislative Bulletin
April 22, 2016
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Inclusion Of Statewide Assessment Results In A Student's Transcript Without Consent
HB 1229
seeks to amend RSA 193-E:6 by adding a provision that "results of a student or the student's school district shall not be included as part of the student's transcript unless the student, if 18 years of age or older, or the student's parent or legal guardian if the student is under 18 years of age, consents." This bill was heard by the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday April 19, 2016. The Committee took no action on the bill at that hearing. NHSBA did not testify on this bill at this hearing.
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Student Exemption from Statewide Assessment
HB 1338
provides that a student exempted from taking the statewide assessment by the student's parent or legal guardian shall not be penalized. The bill also requires a school district to provide an appropriate alternative educational activity for the time period during which the assessment is administered. This bill was heard by the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday April 19, 2016. The Committee took no action on the bill at that hearing. NHSBA did not testify before on this bill at this Committee. The NH House voted Ought to Pass (OTP) on March 23, 2016.
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Municipal Recordkeeping
HB1395
permits certain municipal electronic records to be transferred to portable document files. The bill amends RSA 33-A:5-a, Disposition of Municipal Records, which requires certain records to be retained for more than 10 years on paper or microfilm. The proposed bill will allow storage in "portable document format on a medium from which it is readily accessible." This bill was heard Wednesday April 20, 2016 by the
Senate Public and Municipal Affairs Committee
.
NHSBA did not testify on this bill, but did indicate NHSBA's support. NHSBA urges its members to share their support for this bill that aligns with NHSBA 2016 Resolution #6, calling for updated requirements in statutes that reflect current document imaging technologies.
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Senate Education Committee Recommends Pupil Assignment Bill to Interim Study
HB1637
The Senate Education Committee voted to recommend HB 1637 be referred to interim study. This bill allows a school district to assign a child to another public school in another school district or to an approved, non-religious private school if there is no public school for the child's grade in the child's resident district. The bill also allows a school board to make a contract with a non-religious private school to provide for the education of a child who resides in a district which does not have a public school at the child's grade level. The bill remains in the
Senate Education Committee
and will likely be scheduled for an executive session to vote on a recommendation next Tuesday morning, April 19.
Two weeks ago, NHSBA testified in opposition to the bill for several reasons. Two long-standing resolutions, Continuing Resolution I:A adopted in 1991 and Continuing Resolution I:B adopted in 2005, both call for public education funds to be solely used for public school purposes. The resolution also specifically opposes any effort to subsidize elementary or secondary private schools with public tax dollars.
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Upcoming Legislative Education Schedule
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Tuesday April 26, 2016
Senate EDUCATION, Room 103, LOB
9:00 a.m. EXECUTIVE SESSION ON PENDING LEGISLATION
House EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND ADMINISTRATION, Room 306, LOB
10:00 a.m. SB 421, relative to liability of governmental units.
House EDUCATION, Room 207, LOB
1:00 p.m. Full committee work session on HB 1457, establishing a code of professional ethics for New Hampshire teachers.
