The Week In Review and Looking Forward into Next Week
 The General Assembly’s Homestretch
The General Assembly has been active this week, working to push through final mini-budgets before the Senate departs next week. There have been several bills with movement impacting K-12 education in various capacities.
The Senate adopted and passed mini-budgets: HB 377 Teacher Step Act and HB 231 UNC & Comm. Coll. Pay/Retiree Bonus, which now must be considered and passed by the House. HB 377 would appropriate funds for principal salary increases that are consistent with the language and funding included in HB 966 2019 Appropriations Act. In addition, this bill would ensure teachers, instructional support personnel and assistant principals receive salary increases based on years of experience. Further, the bill would authorize salary supplements for highly qualified North Carolina teaching graduates. HB 231 would appropriate funds for pay increases to employees of our University of North Carolina System, Community College System, as well as one-time cost of living increases for retirees of the Teachers’ and State Employees’, Judicial and Legislative Retirement Systems. The Senate passed the mini-budget, which now must be voted on by the House.
SB 61 Community Colleges Budget/2019-2021 Biennium has now passed the Senate and is being presented to the Governor for consideration. This bill would enact a budget for the Community College System and make modifications related to the operations. The bill includes funding for the Career Coaches program, which places career coaches employed by local community colleges with partnering high schools. The board of trustees of a community college and a local board of education of a local school administrative unit within the service area of the community college jointly may apply for available funds for NC Career Coach Program funding from the State Board of Community Colleges.
HB 398 Info. Tech. Budget/2019-2021 Fiscal Biennium Proposed Committee Substitute (PCS) was passed by the House this week. To become law, it must now pass the Senate. This bill would make appropriations for the Department of Information Technology and Information Technology Projects. Specific to K-12 education, the bill would fund School Business System Modernization in the amounts included in HB 966 2019 Appropriations Act. This bill would also fund data analytics positions to provide analytic support to State agencies. Finally and among other things, the bill would provide appropriations centered around cybersecurity for the upgrade of statewide cybersecurity capabilities, as well funding for a Cybersecurity Regional Training Center. This bill was passed by the House and will now move to the Senate for their consideration.
HB 1023 Storm Recovery Act of 2019 was introduced by the House this week and SB 312 Relief to Ocracoke School/Hurricane Dorian passed the Senate and has been presented to the Governor. SB 312 would provide relief to the Ocracoke School to accommodate extraordinary circumstances due to Hurricane Dorian.
SB 690 Modifications to 2019 Appointments Bill Conference Committee Report was adopted by both the House and the Senate and has been Ordered Enrolled. This bill includes various K-12 education-related Board and Commission appointments.
The House and Senate both adjourned today and their calendars show Session to convene again on Monday of next week. The Legislative Calendar can be found here.
Relevant Bills with Action
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HB 377 Teacher Step Act was passed by the Senate and will now move to the House for consideration. This mini-budget bill would compensate qualified teachers, administrators, and staff with an increase in the salary schedules as outlined below. Pay raises for those holding advanced degrees and specializations are included in the bill, as well as Highly Qualified Graduates. The Teacher Salary Schedule varies some from the 2019 Appropriations Act HB 966 and if HB 966 becomes Session Law, the Teacher Salary Schedule in HB 966 would prevail. This bill would also create the Principal Recruitment Supplement Program, which would award additional salary supplements to qualified principals in areas that meet specific criteria (i.e. Title I). A qualifying principal who accepts a position as a principal in a qualifying school shall receive an annual salary supplement of thirty thousand dollars ($30,000), paid on a monthly basis, as long as the principal is employed as the principal of that school, up to a maximum period of 36 months, subject to conditions of employment. These increases would become effective immediately once the bill becomes law.
2019-2020 Teacher Monthly Salary Schedule
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Years of Experience
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A Teachers
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0
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$3,500
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1
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$3,600
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2
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$3,700
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3
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$3,800
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4
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$3,900
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5
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$4,000
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6
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$4,100
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7
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$4,200
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8
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$4,300
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9
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$4,400
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10
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$4,500
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11
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$4,600
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12
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$4,700
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13
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$4,800
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14
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$4,900
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15-24
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$5,000
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25+
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$5,200
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2019-2020 Principal Annual Salary Schedule
Avg. Daily Membership Base Met Growth Exceeded Growth
0-200 $68,125 $74,938 $81,750
201-400 $71,531 $78,684 $85,837
401-700 $74,938 $82,432 $89,926
701-1,000 $78,344 $86,178 $94,013
1,001-1,600 $81,750 $89,925 $98,100
1,601+ $85,156 $93,672 $102,187
SB 690 Modifications to 2019 Appointments Bill Conference Committee Report was adopted by both the House and the Senate and has been Ordered Enrolled. This bill includes the following K-12 related appointments:
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Dr. Rita C. Haire of Davidson County is appointed to the North Carolina Charter Schools Advisory Board for a term expiring June 30, 2021, to fill the unexpired term of Phyllis Gibbs.
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Tabari A. Wallace of Craven County is appointed to the North Carolina Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission for a term expiring on August 31, 2021, to fill the unexpired term of Joseph W. Childers.
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B. Freebird McKinney of Alamance County is appointed to the North Carolina Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission for a term expiring on August 31, 2021, to fill the unexpired term of Michael D. Hicks.
Mini Budgets
Mini Budgets Presented to the Governor this week:
History of Mini Budgets:
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K-12 Education Mini Budgets:
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Other Mini Budgets:
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Pending Mini Budgets:
LINK to History of Budget Resources
School Safety Grant Program Deadline
October 25, 2019 at 11:59 pm
Over 24 million dollars is provided via grants through the mini-budget, SL 2019-222 (HB 75) School Safety Funds, Programs, and Reports, for the following school safety programs:
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Grant
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FY 20 Funding
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State Funding Amount Restrictions
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School Resource Officer (SRO)
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$15,000,000*
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$33,333 per SRO
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School Equipment
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$6,100,000
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$5 per pupil
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Services for Students in Crisis
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$4,500,000
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n/a
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Training to Increase School Safety
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$4,500,000
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n/a
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*$12M in recurring funds from 2018-2019 grant program, with $3M in new funds
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The 2019-2020 School Safety Grant Program application has been released and can be found on the Comprehensive Continuous Improvement Plan (CCIP) grants management system: ccip.schools.nc.gov. To apply, log into the system with your NCID, select your school system, and select the grant application under “Safe Schools.” The grant competition closes on October 25, 2019 at 11:59 pm. Below are tips and resources for the application process.
Email schoolsafetygrants@dpi.nc.gov with any additional questions.
Policy Implications for the Social Studies Standards Revision Process
House Bill 924 became Session Law 2019-82 on July 8, 2019. Among other things, language included in this bill requires public school students entering ninth grade in 2020-2021 to complete an economics and personal finance course as a requirement for high school graduation. Furthermore, the bill provides clarifying language around requirements for high school civic literacy.
On October 15, 2019 the DPI Social Studies team presented a webinar concerning Policy Implications for the Social Studies Standards Revision process. This webinar will provide an opportunity for stakeholders to offer feedback on policy implications for the standards revision. The webinar was recorded for anyone who could not attend. NCDPI K-12 Social Studies team is deeply committed to ensuring the revision process includes the consideration of all concerns posed by educators in the schools and local districts. We strongly encourage all stakeholders to review this webinar and share your questions and concerns.
Please send your questions, comments and feedback to: amy.betsill@dpi.nc.gov.
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2019 New K-12 Education Laws
- List of New K-12 Education Laws and Chaptered Resolutions here.
- Complete List of Bills that are Session Law here.
- Complete List of Bills Vetoed by the Governor here.
For complete bill history and summaries, click on the bill link.
K-12 Education Bills - Last Movement This Week
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Passed the House - Sent to the Senate
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Passed the Senate - Sent to the House
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Conference Committee
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Bills that are filed, referred to a committee or calendared for the House or Senate Floor
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Presented to the Governor
For complete bill history and summaries, click on the bill link.
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- 2019 Long Session LINK for bills impacting K-12 education.
- LINK to K-12 Public Education Bills that made Crossover.
- NCGA Crossover List - LINK.
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October 28 - November 1: Legislative Meeting Calendar
Monday, October 28 2019
4:00 p.m.: Senate: Session Convenes Senate | Audio
7:00 p.m.: House: Session Convenes House | Audio
ONLINE RESOURCES:
This section includes details pertaining to acronyms and bill information referenced throughout the K-12 Education Legislative Update newsletters.
Biennium- A two-year term of legislative activity
Public Bill- Legislation enacted into law that applies to the public at large
Local Bill- Legislation put into law that has limited application (How many counties)- Local bills do not have to be signed by the governor
Sponsor- The legislator who presents a bill or resolution for consideration
Resolution- A document that expresses the sentiment or intent of the legislature or a chamber. Resolutions, when finalized, go to the Secretary of State
Glossary of Legislative Terms- LINK
DPI = NC Department of Public Instruction
LEA = Local Education Agency
NCGA = North Carolina General Assembly
LB/LOB = Legislative Building/Legislative Office Building
SBE = North Carolina State Board of Education
HB/SB = House Bill/Senate Bill
JR = Joint Resolution
SL = Session Law
GS = General Statute
PCS = Proposed Committee Substitute
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OFFICE OF THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION CONTACT INFORMATION:
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Cecilia Holden – Director of Government and Community Relations | 919-807-3406
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Anne Murtha – Legislative Specialist | 919-807-3403
OFFICE OF THE NC SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION CONTACT INFORMATION:
To view previous 2019 Weekly Legislative Updates click here.
The NC Department of Public instruction offers a number of topics for subscription.
- To subscribe to the Weekly Legislative Update, click here.
- To subscribe to other NC Department of Public Instruction topics, click here.
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