Education/School Law
SS HB 134 — Equipment Grants for University of Missouri Engineering Programs. Extends from June 30, 2007, to June 30, 2017, the expiration date for a capital improvement appropriation request to include engineering equipment grants at the University of Missouri. (Signed 6/13/07)
HCS HB 181 — Electronic Video Instructional Materials. (See Media Law)
HB 264 — State Public School Fund. Currently, the State Board of Education must invest funds accruing to the State Public School Fund in bonds of not less than par value. This bill removes the par value requirement and allows the board to invest in discounted bonds. (Signed 6/13/07)
HB 554 — Discrimination Against Licensed Professional Counselors. (See Health/Hospital Law)
HCS HB 678 — School Attendance in Inclement Weather. Allows certain school districts to not make up time lost from school.
The bill contains an emergency clause. (Signed 7/13/07)
HCS HB 1055 — Sexual Education and Abortions. Changes the laws regarding sexual education instruction in public schools and abortions. In its main provisions, the bill:
(1) Revises the requirements for the presentation of information in public schools relating to contraception and sexually transmitted diseases by adding the option of presenting students with information on contraceptives and pregnancy in a manner consistent with federal abstinence laws. Currently, students must be presented with the latest medically factual information regarding sexually transmitted diseases and the side effects, health benefits, and failure rates for methods of preventing pregnancy;
(2) Prohibits school districts and charter schools from providing abortion services or allowing a person or entity who provides abortion services from offering, sponsoring, or furnishing course materials related to human sexuality and sexually transmitted diseases;
(3) Defines “medical emergency” as a condition which, on the basis of a physician’s good-faith clinical judgment, so complicates the medical condition of a pregnant woman as to necessitate the immediate abortion of her pregnancy to prevent the death of the pregnant woman or for which delay will create a serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function of the pregnant woman;
(4) Changes certain penalties relating to abortion by including penalties for those persons who knowingly induce or aid in the inducing of an abortion. Currently, there are penalties for any person who knowingly performs or aids in the performance of an abortion;
(5) Provides for an affirmative medical emergency defense for a violation of any abortion provision;
(6) Establishes the Missouri Alternatives to Abortion Services Program to provide services or counseling to pregnant women and assistance to mothers in caring for their children or placing them up for adoption. The bill also establishes the Missouri Alternatives to Abortion Public Awareness Program which requires the department or departments administering the program to develop an advertising campaign publicizing alternatives to abortion and to prioritize federal, public, and private moneys so that they are used first to fund these programs. The department or departments administering the programs may contract with public or private agencies to provide services or counseling. These programs and their funds will not be used to perform, induce, or assist in abortions. Public and private agencies providing alternatives to abortion program counseling services are not required to provide services or counseling regarding contraception or birth control or from referring persons to services for pregnancies, but are prohibited from providing an abortion referral; and
(7) Changes the definition of “ambulatory surgical center” in Section 197.200, RSMo, to include any establishment operated for the purpose of performing or inducing any second or third trimester abortion or which performs at least five or more first trimester abortions per month. (Signed 7/6/07)
SCS SB 16 — Children’s Vision Examinations. Beginning July 1, 2008, this bill requires public school students enrolling in kindergarten or first grade to receive a vision examination from a state licensed optometrist or physician. The State Board of Education in conjunction with the Department of Health and Senior Services will maintain a list of sources to which children who may need vision exams or have been found to be in need of further examination or vision correction may be referred for free or reduced-cost treatment.
Beginning July 1, 2008, and continuing through the 2011-2012 school year, all public schools are required to conduct eye screening exams for each student prior to the completion of the first grade and again before the completion of the third grade. When a student fails an eye screening, the school district must notify the parent or guardian of the results and require the student to receive a complete eye exam from an optometrist or physician. A student will be excused from the eye screening examination if his or her parent or guardian submits an objection to the exam in writing to the appropriate school administrator.
The Children’s Vision Commission is established.
Authorizes money from the Blindness Education, Screening and Treatment Program Fund to be used to pay for those additional costs incurred from eye screenings which are not covered by existing public insurance if those costs do not exceed $99,000 per year. (Signed 6/21/07)
CCS HCS SB 30 — Taxation. (See Taxation Law)
CCS#3 HCS SCS SB 64 — Elementary and Secondary Education. Changes the laws regarding elementary and secondary education. In its main provisions, the bill:
(1) Establishes a procedure for school districts to set an opening date of school earlier than 10 days before Labor Day by holding a hearing;
(2) Revises the school calendar requirements for make-up days by requiring six additional days to be scheduled for inclement weather purposes and requires school districts to make up half of the days missed in excess of six;
(3) Requires mentoring standards to be established for beginning teachers by June 30, 2008, and establishes benchmarks for quality programs; and
(4) Allows students in districts that have been provisionally accredited or unaccredited, or any combination of less than fully accredited, for two consecutive years to enroll in the state’s virtual school beginning in school year 2008-2009. The bill contains provisions regarding funding and computer equipment. (Signed 6/18/07)
HCS SS SB 112 — Education. Changes the laws regarding special education and school districts.
Establishes early intervention pilot programs in the southwest and greater St. Louis points of entry.
The pilot programs will expire September 1, 2011. (Signed 6/27/07)
CCS#2 HCS SCS SB 308 — Licensed Professionals. (See Administrative Law)
HCS SS SCS SB 320 — Large Animal Veterinary Student Loan Assistance. Transfers the administration of the Large Animal Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program to the Department of Agriculture. The maximum number of veterinarians to whom loan repayments can be granted each year is increased from five to six, the required number of years of service in an area of defined need to satisfy the loan repayment requirement is reduced from five to four, and the maximum service loan repayment amount per year is increased from $10,000 to $20,000.
The Large Animal Veterinary Student Loan Program is established to provide up to six loans yearly to veterinary students attending the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Missouri-Columbia. No student can receive more than $80,000 in loans. Veterinary students agreeing to locate their practice in department-identified, under-served areas of the state will have certain amounts of their loan principal and interest forgiven. (Signed 7/13/07)
CCS HCS SB 376 — School Attendance in Inclement Weather and Tourism Supplemental Revenue Fund. Allows school districts that cancelled classes for weather-related reasons between January 11 and January 22, 2007, to not make up the lost time. The requirement for scheduling two-thirds of the missed days into next year’s school calendar is waived for the 2007-2008 school year.
The expiration date on the Division of Tourism Supplemental Revenue Fund is extended from June 30, 2010, to June 30, 2015.
The bill contains an emergency clause. (Signed 5/3/07)
SS#6 SCS SB 389 — Higher Education. Changes the laws regarding higher education and the powers of the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA).
Lewis and Clark Discovery Initiative. MOHELA is authorized to transfer assets, as specified in the bill, to the newly created Lewis and Clark Discovery Fund. MOHELA must distribute $350 million of its assets to the fund no later than September 30, 2013, and moneys in the fund may be appropriated by the General Assembly only for capital projects at public colleges and universities and to the Missouri Technology Corporation to identify opportunities for commercializing technologies at these institutions. Any college or university that knowingly employs a registered sexual offender will be ineligible for capital projects funds.
After an initial distribution of $230 million to the fund, the Department of Economic Development will allocate a percentage, within the limits specified in the bill, of the state ceiling for private activity bonds to MOHELA for at least the next 15 years. If the total distribution of assets is not completed by MOHELA by September 30, 2013, the ceiling dollar amount received by MOHELA will be reduced by the percentage of the $350 million not yet distributed. MOHELA moneys cannot be used to pay state debts. Immunity from personal liability is granted for members of MOHELA for certain decisions. MOHELA is authorized to issue bonds to fulfill its obligations regarding the transfer of assets to the fund and may establish or invest in financial aid programs that provide student grants and scholarships.
Scholarships. The Coordinating Board for Higher Education will implement the need-based Access Missouri scholarship to replace the current Charles Gallagher Student Assistance Program and the Missouri College Guarantee Program. Applicants must be Missouri residents who are United States citizens or permanent residents enrolled as full-time students in an approved public or private institution. In order to renew assistance, the applicant must have at least a 2.5 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. The minimum and maximum amount of the award will be $300 to $1,000 for public two-year institutions; $1,000 to $2,150 for public four-year institutions; and $2,000 to $4,600 for private institutions. The award is based on the expected family contribution rather than the cost of attendance and will be adjusted every three years. Students and institutions must report any other assistance to the board. A recipient of financial assistance may transfer between approved institutions without losing eligibility, and the board will adjust the award accordingly.
The bill establishes the Missouri Teaching Fellows Program and specifies that certain qualified graduates of Missouri public higher education institutions who are hired to teach in a less than fully accredited school district may enter into a loan repayment agreement with the Department of Higher Education. Students without educational loans may receive a stipend. The $5,000 maximum loan repayment and the $1,000 stipend will be adjusted annually based on the federal Consumer Price Index. The department will establish rules including, but not limited to, applicant eligibility, selection criteria, and the content of loan repayment contracts. The department will create and maintain a coordinator position to identify, recruit, and select potential students for the program.
Bright Flight scholarships are increased from $2,000 to $3,000 beginning with Fiscal Year 2011. Currently, only students with standardized test scores in the top 3% qualify for the scholarship. Beginning with Fiscal Year 2011, students with scores between the top 3% and 5% will qualify for a $1,000 scholarship.
Any award of assistance, excluding student loans and awards based solely on academic performance, will be reduced to ensure that no student’s need-based aid will exceed the student’s cost of attendance. An institution accepting financial assistance in excess of the cost of attendance must refund the excess to the board.
Higher Education Student Funding. Beginning with the 2008-2009 academic year, each public institution must submit its percentage increase in tuition for a full-time resident undergraduate to the board by July 1. For institutions whose tuition is greater than the average tuition, the percent change in tuition cannot exceed the percent change of the federal Consumer Price Index over the past year or zero, whichever is greater. For institutions whose tuition is less than the average tuition, the dollar increase in tuition cannot exceed the product of zero or the percent change in the index, whichever is greater, times the average tuition. Limits on tuition increases do not apply to a community college unless the college’s tuition is greater than or equal to the average tuition. If the tuition increase exceeds the limit, it must remit 5% of its current state appropriation to the board for deposit into the General Revenue Fund, unless the institution asks for a waiver within 30 days. The Commissioner of Higher Education will determine if the waiver is warranted or recommend to the board that the waiver be denied. The board will make the final decision.
Two institutional performance measures negotiated by each institution and three statewide performance measures developed by the department must be established by July 1, 2008. Public higher education institutions must make pertinent course and instructor information available on their web sites.
Joint Committee on Education. The Joint Committee on Education must meet at least twice a year to monitor and analyze higher education, as well as establish the performance measures required by the bill and report its findings to the General Assembly and the Governor. The Department of Economic Development is added to the list of state agencies which are required to provide research assistance to the committee. Within three years, the committee will review the impact of the newly created higher education funding provisions and a new model for the funding of higher education institutions.
Miscellaneous Provisions. If a public higher education institution willfully disregards a board policy, the commissioner may fine the institution up to 1% of its current state appropriation. The board will hold the funds until the violation is corrected. If the violation is not corrected within a year, the fine will be deposited into the General Revenue Fund. The institution may appeal to the board, which will make the final decision. Every public higher education institution must submit to binding dispute resolution involving jurisdictional boundaries or the use of state resources. The arbitrator will be the commissioner or a designee. Any institution may appeal the decision to the board, which has the authority to make a final decision.
Currently, the board issues certificates of approval to operate to out-of-state public higher education institutions which meet certain standards. These institutions will be exempt from the certificate of approval as of July 1, 2008. The board must hold out-of-state institutions to similar requirements of public in-state institutions, and the board must establish rules for this provision by July 1, 2008.
A public college or university cannot reject an applicant for a faculty position based solely on the lack of a graduate degree if the applicant has an undergraduate degree and has served at least eight years in the General Assembly.
The curators of the University of Missouri may close certain financial, legal, and tax records of a donor or potential donor. In order to receive increases in state appropriations, two- and four-year institutions must work with the commissioner to establish agreed-upon competencies for certain entry-level courses. The board will establish policies to ensure the transferability of the courses.
The board of regents of Northwest Missouri State University is authorized to convey certain property owned in Nodaway County.
The provisions of the bill regarding the Access Missouri scholarship and the Missouri Teaching Fellows Program will expire six years from the effective date. (Signed 5/23/07)
CCS#2 HCS#2 SB 406 — Employee Benefit Plans. (See Labor/Employment Law)
SCS SB 456 — Payments to School Districts. Requires the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to pay a supplemental amount of revenue to any school district located in a county that establishes a county municipal court which causes a decrease in the amount of revenue generated from fines in the county’s circuit court that is distributed to the local school districts. (Signed 6/30/07)
SB 513 — Nursing Student Loan Program. Revises the definition of “qualified employment” as it applies to the Professional and Practical Nursing Student Loan Program to include any agency, institution, or organization located in an area of need as determined by the Department of Health and Senior Services. (Signed 7/13/07)