There was a great deal of activity on both the House and Senate floors this week. Several education bills moved a step further in the legislative process and some are on their way to the Governor. In addition, the Joint Education Appropriations Committee released their budget early in the week. After the release of the budget, each chamber put forth their own education appropriation bills, which expedites the process by allowing both chambers to move the appropriation bills simultaneously. The bills are HF 642 and SF 511, which are currently the same.

With a tight budget year, there were programs where funding was eliminated. Two such programs were the Area Education Agency (AEA) Support System which provides professional development and assistance for the implementation of the Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) system and the AEA Distribution, which was used in a variety ways to support districts' efforts to implement the Iowa Core.

In addition, funding specific to mentoring and induction was eliminated and districts are no longer required to provide a mentoring and induction program for all beginning teachers. The bill allows districts to use professional development funds to fund a beginning teacher mentoring and induction program. Districts may also use TLC funds to support new teacher mentoring.

The funding for Administrator Mentoring/Coaching Support, which has supported principals in implementing TLC through a partnership between the New York City Leadership Academy and the Department of Education, was also eliminated. Schools and principals will still be able to participate in this program, but there will now be a fee.  

As the end of session draws closer, there are times when policy language is included in Appropriation bills. Policy language was included in the Education Appropriations bills which eliminated the third grade retention requirement as well as the summer intensive reading requirement. With that said, this change will not weaken the Department’s resolve to ensure all Iowa students are successful readers, and we know it will not weaken the resolve of school districts.

As mentioned earlier, there were several bills that moved forward in the legislative process.  

SF 240 - Statewide Assessment – passed on the Senate floor with a vote of 39-9 and is now on its way to the Governor. The Department will issue an Request for Proposal by July 1, 2017 for the selection of a statewide assessment to be administered in the 2018-2019 school year. The assessment will align with Iowa Core academic standards and measure English language arts, including reading and writing, mathematics, and science. It also requires that students enrolled in grades 5, 8, and 10 be administered the science assessment, which was a recommendation of the Iowa Assessment Task Force. Potential vendors and assessment providers can collaborate to meet the requirements. 

HF 473 – High School Equivalency Options – passed on the Senate floor with a vote of 48-0 and is now on its way to the Governor. The bill allows a student to earn a high school equivalency diploma by passing and showing competence in the following core standard areas (reading, language, literacy, mathematics, science, and social studies). Demonstrating competence includes the existing HiSET assessment, as well as models like the Adult Diploma, offered by some of Iowa's community colleges. Community college counselors review high school transcripts for existing passing credits and award transfer credit in those areas where core competencies are met. This allows equivalency students to focus on only the core competencies they are deficient in through additional post-secondary classwork. 

HF 564, School District Funding Flexibility – passed on the Senate floor with a vote of 49-0 with amendments, which requires that it be sent back to the House. The House can do a variety of things with the bill, but will most likely file a conforming amendment. If they file a conforming amendment, the bill will be ready to be sent to the Governor. The bill provides flexibility in the use of funds for Professional Development, At-Risk and Dropout Prevention Programs, and Preschool Foundation Aid Funding. There was an amendment that struck Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) from the bill. The bill also requires the Department to give deference to school districts’ decisions in the areas of categorical funding under the teacher salary supplement, professional development supplement, and early intervention supplement.

HF 565 creates a Flexibility Fund Account - passed on the Senate floor with a vote of 49-0 with amendments, so it will be sent back to the House. The bill allows districts to transfer all or a portion of unobligated ending fund balances for programs such as Professional Development, Home School Assistance, Statewide Voluntary Preschool, and Gifted and Talented into the new Flexibility Fund Account. 

HF 633 successor bill of HF 508 - Shared Operational Functions for Purposes of Supplemental Weighting - passed out of House Appropriations and is ready to be debated on the House floor. The bill strikes the provisions limiting the number of years for which the supplemental weighting may be claimed. It also eliminates the provisions establishing the period of school budget years during which the supplementary weighting may be claimed.

HF 648 successor bill of HSB 196 – Career and Technical Education Programs and Partnerships – passed out of House Appropriations and is ready to be debated on the House floor. The bill changes the way funds are distributed to the Regional Planning Partnerships, shifting from a reimbursement process to a disbursement process. The bill also clarifies that certain consumable supplies are an allowable use of partnership funds.

The word at the Capitol is that session will be concluded by the end of next week. The official end date is Tuesday April 18, but it is unlikely they would be able to tie up the remaining loose ends by then. By the end of next week, we could hear the words sine die, which means the conclusion of the legislative session.