Farewell Big Boss

Written by UNC MPA

The saddest news to report is that we said goodbye to the Superintendent’s Legislative Director- my boss referred to in my previous blogs as @kevin. While I am super sad about his departure, we are so excited about the opportunities ahead of him as he joins the UNC System. As a part of his farewell, he passed down a lapel pin given to him by his first boss in this field to me to have as my first North Carolina lapel pin.

Legislative Team

First Lapel Pin #official

While few education bills were considered in committee this week, multiple bills were heard on the House and Senate floors.  A total of 173 varying bills have become session laws so far this session of which 22 relate to K-12 education.

As session starts to wind down, high profile bills that draw more debate and disagreement remain unsettled. When the House and Senate do not agree on a bill, including all amendments and proposed substitutes, the bill may be sent to a conference committee in hopes of finding a compromise solution. Select members from the House and Senate that have been deemed subject-matter experts or affiliated with the bill in some manner, will be assigned to the committee. In conference, bills can be debated, altered slightly, or completely changed into new bills as long as the conference committee members agree. Conference reports are then presented to both the House and Senate for a vote; however, unlike a traditional bill, there is no opportunity for amendments to be considered.

The following K-12 education bills have been assigned to conference committees and could be completely altered from these descriptions post-conference:

  • SB 212: NC FAST/Early Child/Transformation/ACH Assess
    • Would amend qualifications for Early Childhood workforce staff, directs the establishment of expected competencies, requires collaboration to meet competencies, would require development of an incentive program, and would require a study of a pilot program.
  • SB 354: Sam’s Law
    • Would require seizure action plans for students who have seizure disorders and training for school employees and volunteers on how to assist and provide medication to these students.
  • SB 438: Excellent Public Schools Act of 2019
    • Would make various changes to the North Carolina Read to Achieve Program.
  • SB 476: Compt-Based Assess. & Mental Hlth/Teen Violence
    • Would direct SBE to recommend how to transition to a competency based assessment and teaching model for all elementary and secondary school students in the State. · Would require public school units to: adopt and implement a suicide risk referral protocol; adopt a mental health training program; and adopt a policy against teen dating and violence.
  • SB 553: Regulatory Reform Act of 2019
    • Would amend several State laws related to State and local government regulation, and agricultural, energy, environmental, and natural resources regulation.
  • SB 621: Testing Reduction Act of 2019
    • Would make the following changes to testing:
      • Eliminate the NC Final Exams (NCFEs). ·
      • Replace EOGs with a “through-grade assessment model” similar to the NC Check-Ins. ·
      • Replace EOCs with a nationally recognized assessment of high school achievement, such as the ACT or SAT. ·
      • Require reporting on and reductions in local testing. ·
      • Prohibit graduation projects as a condition of graduation. ·
      • Require a review of the third grade reading end-of-grade test to ensure alignment with the Read to Achieve alternative assessment.

Finally, while there has been no action on the House version of the stopgap budget HB 111: Supplemental Appropriations Act, the Senate stopgap budget HB 961: Ensuring Authorization of Federal Funds has been approved by both chambers and sent to the Governor.  This budget bill provides matching state funding for federal block grants.

 

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