Current law allows only a county department of human or social services or a child placement agency to certify foster homes. The act updates statute to allow for a federally recognized Indian tribe pursuant to applicable federal law to certify its own foster homes.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The law existing before the passage of the act required school districts, charter schools, and boards of cooperative services to demonstrate that, by the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, the kindergarten-through-third-grade teachers they employ have completed evidence-based training in teaching reading. The act extends the deadline for completing the training until the beginning of the 2022-23 school year.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act clarifies that it is unlawful to operate an off-highway vehicle on the public streets, roads, or highways of the state, regardless of the state or other jurisdiction in which the off-highway vehicle is registered or titled, except under certain existing exceptions.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act specifies information and issues that public schools must teach in providing courses on civil government. The act directs the state board of education to review the state civics standards and update them as necessary to include the identified information and issues. The act encourages each school district and public school to partner with local service organizations to solicit donations to improve the quality of the civics education program. Donations may be used to pay the cost to develop a high-quality curriculum, invite speakers to interact with students, and provide students with opportunities for civics learning and engagement outside of the classroom.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
In honor and memory of Carrie Ann Lucas, the act names section 24-34-805 of the Colorado Revised Statutes the "Carrie Ann Lucas Parental Rights for People with Disabilities Act".(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act suspends the administration of state assessments, contingent on receiving a waiver of federal law from the federal department of education, for the following instructional areas and grade levels for the 2020-21 school year:Science for students enrolled in grades 5, 8, and 11; Math for students enrolled in grades 3, 5, and 7; and English language arts for students enrolled in grades 4, 6, and 8. For the 2020-21 school year, the act suspends administration of the social studies assessment for students enrolled in elementary and middle school.The act allows the parent of a student enrolled in a grade for which administration of the English language arts or math assessment is suspended to request through the local education provider in which the student is enrolled that the student participate in the English language arts assessment or the math assessment.The act prohibits a school district from using student academic growth measures or student performance measures when evaluating licensed personnel for the 2020-21 school year.The act requires a school or school district or the state charter school institute to implement the performance plan type that was assigned in the preceding school year. The act also requires the department of education (department), in determining the number of school years that a school or school district or the institute is on performance watch or subject to 2-year review, to exclude the plan types for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years and count the plan type for the 2022-23 school year as if it were consecutive to the 2019-20 school year.If required to implement a priority improvement or turnaround plan during the 2020-21 school year on the basis of its plan type for the 2019-20 school year, the act allows a school or school district or the institute to request a plan type for the 2021-22 school year that reflects its level of attainment based on an alternative body of evidence.For the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years, the act suspends the requirement that the department determine annually the level of attainment for public schools, school districts, the institute, and institute charter schools based on performance indicators.The act reduces the appropriation to the department for the 2020-21 fiscal year.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The actual funded pupil count and the actual at-risk pupil count for the 2020-21 budget year were lower than anticipated when the appropriation amount was established during the 2020 legislative session, resulting in a decrease in total program funding for the 2020-21 budget year. In addition, local property tax revenue and specific ownership tax revenue were less than anticipated, resulting in a decrease in the local share of total program funding.The act declares the general assembly's intent to maintain total program funding at the dollar amount of the original appropriation made during the 2020 legislative session, thereby reducing the budget stabilization factor.The act appropriates additional funding for the 2020-21 budget year for districts that experienced a percentage decrease in total program funding from that estimated during the 2020 legislative session that was greater than the district's percentage decrease in funded pupil count from that estimated during the 2020 legislative session. In addition, the act includes additional funding for districts that have an overall reduction in total program funding that is more than 2% below the districts' estimated total program funding during the 2020 legislative session.Charter schools in districts that qualify for additional funding receive a per-pupil share of the additional funding. If an institute charter school experiences a reduction in total program funding from that estimated during the 2020 legislative session and is in an accounting district that receives additional funding, the institute charter school receives a per-pupil amount of additional funding.Additionally, the act includes an appropriation for rural school funding pursuant to section 22-54-142.For the 2020-21 state fiscal year, the act appropriates to the department of education:$14,710,777 and $4,578,464 from the general fund for additional state funding for school districts and district charter schools; $569,849 from the general fund for additional state funding for institute charter school; and $25,000,000 from the rural schools cash fund for rural school funding.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The bill suspends the administration of state assessments, contingent on a change to federal law or a waiver of federal law from the federal department of education, for the following instructional areas for the 2020-21 school year: Science administered to students enrolled in grades 5, 8, and 11; Math administered to students enrolled in grades 3 through 8; English language arts administered to students enrolled in grades 3 through 8; and Social studies administered to students enrolled in grades 4 and 7. The bill prohibits a school district from using student academic growth measures or student performance measures when evaluating teachers and principals for the 2020-21 school year. The bill requires a school or a school district to implement the school plan type that was assigned in the preceding school year. The bill requires the department of education, in determining the number of school years that a school or school district is on performance watch, to exclude the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years, and count the 2021-22 school year as if it were consecutive to the 2018-19 school year. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
For the issuance of vehicle titles and for the registration of recreational off-highway vehicles, a surplus military vehicle is not an "off-highway vehicle" if it is owned or leased by a municipality, county, or fire protection district for the purpose of assisting with firefighting efforts, including mitigating the risk of wildfires. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
A service retiree of any division of the public employees' retirement association (PERA) is allowed to work for a PERA employer for limited periods and to receive a salary without reduction in benefits under certain circumstances. Boards of cooperative services (BOCES) provide special education services to the school districts they serve. Almost all of these school districts are in rural parts of the state and it is difficult for BOCES to find qualified people to serve as special service providers in these areas. BOCES could address this issue by hiring service retirees, but PERA's employment-after-retirement provisions, including the limitation on the number of days in a calendar year that a service retiree may work for a PERA employer without a reduction in benefits, make it difficult to do so. The act modifies the PERA employment-after-retirement provisions for certain retirees hired by a BOCES if: The BOCES hires the service retiree to provide services in 2 or more rural school districts as determined by the department of education based on the geographic size of the school district and the distance of the school district from the nearest large, urbanized area; The BOCES hires the service retiree for the purpose of providing special services to students enrolled by the districts served by the BOCES; and The BOCES determines that there is a critical shortage of special service providers and that the service retiree has specific experience, skills, or qualifications that would benefit the districts that the BOCES serves. A service retiree who is a special service provider and who is hired by a BOCES may receive salary without a reduction in benefits for any length of employment in a calendar year if the service retiree has not worked for any PERA employer during the month of the effective date of retirement. The act requires a BOCES that hires the service retiree to provide full payment of all PERA employer contributions, disbursements, and working retiree contributions. In addition, the BOCES is required to pay an additional amount equal to 2% of the retiree's salary to PERA. A service retiree may not receive salary without reduction in benefits and without limitation in a calendar year for more than 5 consecutive years, and all BOCES combined are prohibited from hiring more than a total of 40 people over 5 years pursuant to the extension in PERA's employment-after-retirement limitations. PERA is required to submit a report to the general assembly regarding specified aspects of the extension of PERA's employment-after-retirement limitations. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
