HF 1793

4th Engrossment - 83rd Legislature (2003 - 2004) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education; providing for kindergarten 
  1.3             through grade 12 education, including general 
  1.4             education, academic excellence, special programs, 
  1.5             facilities, technical and conforming amendments, and 
  1.6             science and social studies academic standards; 
  1.7             providing for rulemaking; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.8             2002, sections 13.321, subdivision 1; 120B.35, by 
  1.9             adding a subdivision; 121A.22, subdivision 2; 121A.34, 
  1.10            by adding subdivisions; 121A.45, subdivision 3; 
  1.11            122A.16; 122A.20, subdivision 2; 123A.442, subdivision 
  1.12            2; 123A.443, subdivision 4; 123A.55; 123B.195; 
  1.13            123B.53, subdivision 6; 123B.58, subdivision 2; 
  1.14            123B.76, by adding a subdivision; 123B.82; 124D.19, 
  1.15            subdivision 11; 124D.68, subdivision 3; 125A.023, 
  1.16            subdivision 3; 125A.03; 125A.07; 125A.46; 127A.47, 
  1.17            subdivision 3; 168.012, subdivision 10; 169.01, 
  1.18            subdivisions 6, 75; 169.442, subdivisions 1, 5; 
  1.19            169.443, subdivisions 1, 2; 169.4501, subdivisions 1, 
  1.20            2; 169.4502, subdivision 11; 169.4503, subdivisions 5, 
  1.21            14, 16, 20, by adding a subdivision; 260A.01; 
  1.22            260C.163, subdivision 11; 631.40, subdivision 4; 
  1.23            Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, sections 120B.021, 
  1.24            subdivisions 1, 3; 120B.022, subdivision 1; 120B.024; 
  1.25            120B.30, subdivision 1a; 120B.36; 122A.09, subdivision 
  1.26            4; 123B.77, subdivision 4; 123B.90, subdivision 2; 
  1.27            124D.11, subdivision 9; 124D.20, subdivision 11; 
  1.28            124D.454, subdivision 2; 125A.091, subdivision 5; 
  1.29            125A.75, subdivision 8; 126C.10, subdivision 3; 
  1.30            126C.457; 127A.41, subdivision 9; 128C.05, subdivision 
  1.31            1a; 171.321, subdivision 5; 275.065, subdivision 1; 
  1.32            475.61, subdivision 4; 626.556, subdivision 2; Laws 
  1.33            2003, chapter 130, section 12; proposing coding for 
  1.34            new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 121A; repealing 
  1.35            Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 124D.91; 124D.92; 
  1.36            126C.23; 134.47, subdivision 3; 169.447, subdivision 
  1.37            6; 169.4502, subdivisions 7, 9, 13, 14; 169.4503, 
  1.38            subdivisions 10, 10a, 21, 25. 
  1.39  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.40                             ARTICLE 1 
  1.41                         GENERAL EDUCATION 
  1.42     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 121A.34, is 
  2.1   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  2.2      Subd. 5.  [BELTS AND OTHER ACCESSORIES.] Notwithstanding 
  2.3   Minnesota Rules, part 7415.0300, vests, sashes, ponchos, and Sam 
  2.4   Browne belts worn by school safety patrol members may be 
  2.5   fluorescent yellow, fluorescent yellow-green, or blaze orange. 
  2.6      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 121A.34, is 
  2.7   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  2.8      Subd. 6.  [SCHOOL SAFETY PATROL FLAGS.] Notwithstanding any 
  2.9   rule of the commissioner of public safety, school safety patrol 
  2.10  flags may be (1) blaze orange with a yellow octagon bearing the 
  2.11  word "Stop" in black letters, or (2) fluorescent yellow or 
  2.12  fluorescent yellow-green with an octagon of sharply contrasting 
  2.13  color bearing the word "Stop" in black letters. 
  2.14     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123B.76, is 
  2.15  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  2.16     Subd. 3.  [EXPENDITURES BY BUILDING.] (a) For the purposes 
  2.17  of this section, "building" means education site as defined in 
  2.18  section 123B.04, subdivision 1.  
  2.19     (b) Each district shall maintain separate accounts to 
  2.20  identify general fund expenditures, excluding capital 
  2.21  expenditures and pupil transportation, for each building.  All 
  2.22  expenditures for regular instruction, secondary vocational 
  2.23  instruction, and school administration must be reported to the 
  2.24  department separately for each building.  All expenditures for 
  2.25  special education instruction, instructional support services, 
  2.26  and pupil support services provided within a specific building 
  2.27  must be reported to the department separately for each 
  2.28  building.  Salary expenditures reported by building must reflect 
  2.29  actual salaries for staff at the building and must not be based 
  2.30  on districtwide averages.  All other general fund expenditures 
  2.31  may be reported on a districtwide basis. 
  2.32     (c) The department must annually report information showing 
  2.33  school district general fund expenditures per pupil by program 
  2.34  category for each building and estimated school district general 
  2.35  fund revenue generated by pupils attending each building on its 
  2.36  Web site.  For purposes of this report: 
  3.1      (1) expenditures not required to be reported by building 
  3.2   shall be allocated among buildings on a uniform per pupil basis; 
  3.3      (2) basic skills revenue shall be allocated according to 
  3.4   section 126C.10, subdivision 4; 
  3.5      (3) secondary sparsity revenue and elementary sparsity 
  3.6   revenue shall be allocated according to section 126C.10, 
  3.7   subdivisions 7 and 8; 
  3.8      (4) other general education revenue shall be allocated on a 
  3.9   uniform per pupil unit basis; 
  3.10     (5) first grade preparedness aid shall be allocated 
  3.11  according to section 124D.081; 
  3.12     (6) state and federal special education aid and Title I aid 
  3.13  shall be allocated in proportion to district expenditures for 
  3.14  these programs by building; and 
  3.15     (7) other general fund revenues shall be allocated on a 
  3.16  uniform per pupil basis, except that the department may allocate 
  3.17  other revenues attributable to specific buildings directly to 
  3.18  those buildings. 
  3.19     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
  3.20  following final enactment and applies to reports for fiscal year 
  3.21  2004 and later. 
  3.22     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  3.23  123B.77, subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  3.24     Subd. 4.  [BUDGET APPROVAL.] Prior to July 1 of each year, 
  3.25  the board of each district must approve and adopt its revenue 
  3.26  and expenditure budgets for the next school year.  The budget 
  3.27  document so adopted must be considered an 
  3.28  expenditure-authorizing or appropriations document.  No funds 
  3.29  shall be expended by any board or district for any purpose in 
  3.30  any school year prior to the adoption of the budget document 
  3.31  which authorizes that expenditure, or prior to an amendment to 
  3.32  the budget document by the board to authorize the expenditure.  
  3.33  Expenditures of funds in violation of this subdivision shall be 
  3.34  considered unlawful expenditures.  Prior to the appropriation of 
  3.35  revenue for the next school year in the initial budget, the 
  3.36  board shall calculate the general education revenue, basic 
  4.1   skills revenue, and referendum revenue for that year that it 
  4.2   estimates will be generated by the pupils in attendance at each 
  4.3   site, and shall inform the principal or other responsible 
  4.4   administrative authority of each site of that estimate and 
  4.5   report this information to the amount of general education and 
  4.6   referendum revenue that the Department of Education estimates 
  4.7   will be generated by the pupils in attendance at each site.  For 
  4.8   purposes of this subdivision, a district may adjust the 
  4.9   department's estimates for school building openings, school 
  4.10  building closings, changes in attendance area boundaries, or 
  4.11  other changes in programs or student demographics not reflected 
  4.12  in the department's calculations.  A district must report to the 
  4.13  department any adjustments it makes according to this 
  4.14  subdivision in the department's estimates of compensatory 
  4.15  revenue generated by the pupils in attendance at each site, and 
  4.16  the department must use the adjusted compensatory revenue 
  4.17  estimates in preparing the report required under section 
  4.18  123B.76, subdivision 3, paragraph (c). 
  4.19     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
  4.20  following final enactment and applies to reports for fiscal year 
  4.21  2005 and later. 
  4.22     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123B.82, is 
  4.23  amended to read: 
  4.24     123B.82 [REORGANIZATION OPERATING DEBT.] 
  4.25     The "reorganization operating debt" of a school district 
  4.26  means the net negative undesignated fund balance in all school 
  4.27  district funds, other than capital expenditure, building 
  4.28  construction, debt redemption, and trust and agency, calculated 
  4.29  in accordance with the uniform financial accounting and 
  4.30  reporting standards for Minnesota school districts as of: 
  4.31     (1) June 30 of the fiscal year before the first year that a 
  4.32  district receives revenue according to section 123A.39, 
  4.33  subdivision 3; or 
  4.34     (2) June 30 of the fiscal year before the effective date of 
  4.35  reorganization according to section 123A.46 or 123A.48. 
  4.36     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
  5.1   following final enactment.  
  5.2      Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  5.3   124D.454, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  5.4      Subd. 2.  [DEFINITIONS.] For the purposes of this section, 
  5.5   the definitions in this subdivision apply. 
  5.6      (a) "Base year" means the second fiscal year preceding the 
  5.7   fiscal year for which aid will be paid. 
  5.8      (b) "Basic revenue" has the meaning given it in section 
  5.9   126C.10, subdivision 2.  For the purposes of computing basic 
  5.10  revenue pursuant to this section, each child with a disability 
  5.11  shall be counted as prescribed in section 126C.05, subdivision 1.
  5.12     (c) "Average daily membership" has the meaning given it in 
  5.13  section 126C.05. 
  5.14     (d) "Program growth factor" means 1.00 for fiscal year 1998 
  5.15  and later. 
  5.16     (e) "Aid percentage factor" means 100 percent for fiscal 
  5.17  year 2000 and later. 
  5.18     (f) "Essential personnel" means a licensed teacher, 
  5.19  licensed support services staff person, paraprofessional 
  5.20  providing direct services to students, or licensed personnel 
  5.21  under subdivision 12, paragraph (c).  This definition is not 
  5.22  intended to change or modify the definition of essential 
  5.23  employee in chapter 179A. 
  5.24     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
  5.25  following final enactment.  
  5.26     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  5.27  126C.10, subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  5.28     Subd. 3.  [COMPENSATORY EDUCATION REVENUE.] (a) The 
  5.29  compensatory education revenue for each building in the district 
  5.30  equals the formula allowance minus $415 times the compensation 
  5.31  revenue pupil units computed according to section 126C.05, 
  5.32  subdivision 3.  Revenue shall be paid to the district and must 
  5.33  be allocated according to section 126C.15, subdivision 2. 
  5.34     (b) When the district contracting with an alternative 
  5.35  program under section 124D.69 changes prior to the start of a 
  5.36  school year, the compensatory revenue generated by pupils 
  6.1   attending the program shall be paid to the district contracting 
  6.2   with the alternative program for the current school year, and 
  6.3   shall not be paid to the district contracting with the 
  6.4   alternative program for the prior school year. 
  6.5      (c) When the fiscal agent district for an area learning 
  6.6   center changes prior to the start of a school year, the 
  6.7   compensatory revenue shall be paid to the fiscal agent district 
  6.8   for the current school year, and shall not be paid to the fiscal 
  6.9   agent district for the prior school year.  
  6.10     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for revenue for 
  6.11  fiscal year 2005.  
  6.12     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 127A.47, 
  6.13  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  6.14     Subd. 3.  [REVENUE FOR CHILDREN OF DIVORCED OR LEGALLY 
  6.15  SEPARATED PARENTS OR PARENTS RESIDING SEPARATELY.] (a) In those 
  6.16  instances when the divorced or legally separated parents or 
  6.17  parents residing separately share joint physical custody of the 
  6.18  child and the divorced or legally separated parents or parents 
  6.19  residing separately reside in different school districts, for 
  6.20  all school purposes, unless otherwise specifically provided by 
  6.21  law, the child must be considered a resident of the school 
  6.22  district, as indicated by the child's parents.  
  6.23     (b) When the child of divorced or legally separated parents 
  6.24  or parents residing separately under paragraph (a) resides with 
  6.25  each parent on alternate weeks, the parents shall be responsible 
  6.26  for the transportation of the child to the border of the 
  6.27  resident school district during those weeks when the child 
  6.28  resides in the nonresident school district. 
  6.29     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective July 1, 2004. 
  6.30     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  6.31  275.065, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  6.32     Subdivision 1.  [PROPOSED LEVY.] (a) Notwithstanding any 
  6.33  law or charter to the contrary, on or before September 15, each 
  6.34  taxing authority, other than a school district, shall adopt a 
  6.35  proposed budget and shall certify to the county auditor the 
  6.36  proposed or, in the case of a town, the final property tax levy 
  7.1   for taxes payable in the following year. 
  7.2      (b) On or before September 30, each school district shall 
  7.3   certify to the county auditor the proposed property tax levy for 
  7.4   taxes payable in the following year.  The school district shall 
  7.5   certify the proposed levy as: 
  7.6      (1) the state determined school levy amount as prescribed 
  7.7   under section 126C.13, subdivision 2; a specific dollar amount 
  7.8   by school district fund, broken down between voter-approved and 
  7.9   non-voter-approved levies and between referendum market value 
  7.10  and tax capacity levies; or 
  7.11     (2) voter approved referendum and debt levies; and 
  7.12     (3) the sum of the remaining school levies, or the maximum 
  7.13  levy limitation certified by the commissioner of education 
  7.14  according to section 126C.48, subdivision 1, less the amounts 
  7.15  levied under clauses (1) and (2). 
  7.16     (c) If the board of estimate and taxation or any similar 
  7.17  board that establishes maximum tax levies for taxing 
  7.18  jurisdictions within a first class city certifies the maximum 
  7.19  property tax levies for funds under its jurisdiction by charter 
  7.20  to the county auditor by September 15, the city shall be deemed 
  7.21  to have certified its levies for those taxing jurisdictions. 
  7.22     (d) For purposes of this section, "taxing authority" 
  7.23  includes all home rule and statutory cities, towns, counties, 
  7.24  school districts, and special taxing districts as defined in 
  7.25  section 275.066.  Intermediate school districts that levy a tax 
  7.26  under chapter 124 or 136D, joint powers boards established under 
  7.27  sections 123A.44 to 123A.446, and Common School Districts No. 
  7.28  323, Franconia, and No. 815, Prinsburg, are also special taxing 
  7.29  districts for purposes of this section.  
  7.30     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective July 1, 2004. 
  7.31     Sec. 10.  [REPEALER.] 
  7.32     Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 126C.23, is repealed. 
  7.33                             ARTICLE 2 
  7.34                        ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE 
  7.35     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 13.321, 
  7.36  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  8.1      Subdivision 1.  [SCOPE.] The sections referred to in 
  8.2   subdivisions 2 to 9 10 are codified outside this chapter.  Those 
  8.3   sections classify prekindergarten to grade 12 educational data 
  8.4   as other than public, place restrictions on access to government 
  8.5   data, or involve data sharing. 
  8.6      [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
  8.7   following final enactment. 
  8.8      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  8.9   120B.021, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  8.10     Subdivision 1.  [REQUIRED ACADEMIC STANDARDS.] The 
  8.11  following subject areas are required for statewide 
  8.12  accountability: 
  8.13     (1) language arts; 
  8.14     (2) mathematics; 
  8.15     (3) science; 
  8.16     (4) social studies, including history, geography, 
  8.17  economics, and government and citizenship; and 
  8.18     (5) health and physical education, for which locally 
  8.19  developed academic standards apply; and 
  8.20     (6) the arts, for which statewide or locally developed 
  8.21  academic standards apply, as determined by the school district.  
  8.22  Public elementary and middle schools must offer at least three 
  8.23  and require at least two of the following four arts areas:  
  8.24  dance; music; theater; and visual arts.  Public high schools 
  8.25  must offer at least three and require at least one of the 
  8.26  following five arts areas:  media arts; dance; music; theater; 
  8.27  and visual arts.  
  8.28     The commissioner must submit proposed standards in science 
  8.29  and social studies to the legislature by February 1, 2004.  
  8.30  For purposes of applicable federal law, the academic standards 
  8.31  for language arts, mathematics, and science apply to all public 
  8.32  school students, except the very few students with extreme 
  8.33  cognitive or physical impairments for whom an individualized 
  8.34  education plan team has determined that the required academic 
  8.35  standards are inappropriate.  An individualized education plan 
  8.36  team that makes this determination must establish alternative 
  9.1   standards. 
  9.2      A school district, no later than the 2007-2008 school year, 
  9.3   must adopt graduation requirements that meet or exceed state 
  9.4   graduation requirements established in law or rule.  A school 
  9.5   district that incorporates these state graduation requirements 
  9.6   before the 2007-2008 school year must provide students who enter 
  9.7   the 9th grade in or before the 2003-2004 school year the 
  9.8   opportunity to earn a diploma based on existing locally 
  9.9   established graduation requirements in effect when the students 
  9.10  entered the 9th grade.  District efforts to develop, implement, 
  9.11  or improve instruction or curriculum as a result of the 
  9.12  provisions of this section must be consistent with sections 
  9.13  120B.10, 120B.11, and 120B.20.  
  9.14     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for the 
  9.15  2005-2006 school year and later.  
  9.16     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  9.17  120B.022, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  9.18     Subdivision 1.  [ELECTIVE STANDARDS.] A district must 
  9.19  establish its own standards in the following subject areas: 
  9.20     (1) health and physical education; 
  9.21     (2) vocational and technical education; and 
  9.22     (3) (2) world languages. 
  9.23     A school district must offer courses in all elective 
  9.24  subject areas. 
  9.25     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
  9.26  following final enactment. 
  9.27     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  9.28  120B.024, is amended to read: 
  9.29     120B.024 [GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS; COURSE CREDITS.] 
  9.30     Students beginning 9th grade in the 2004-2005 school year 
  9.31  and later must successfully complete the following high school 
  9.32  level course credits for graduation: 
  9.33     (1) four credits of language arts; 
  9.34     (2) three credits of mathematics, encompassing at least 
  9.35  algebra, geometry, statistics, and probability sufficient to 
  9.36  satisfy the academic standard; 
 10.1      (3) three credits of science, including at least one credit 
 10.2   in biology; 
 10.3      (4) three and one-half credits of social studies, including 
 10.4   encompassing at least one credit of United States history, one 
 10.5   credit of geography, 0.5 credits of government and citizenship, 
 10.6   0.5 credits of world history, and 0.5 credits of economics or 
 10.7   three credits of social studies encompassing at least United 
 10.8   States history, geography, government and citizenship, and world 
 10.9   history, and one-half credit of economics taught in a school's 
 10.10  social studies or business department; and 
 10.11     (5) one credit in the arts; and 
 10.12     (6) a minimum of eight seven elective course credits, 
 10.13  including at least one credit in the arts. 
 10.14     A course credit is equivalent to a student's successful 
 10.15  completion of student successfully completing an academic year 
 10.16  of study or a student's mastery of student mastering the 
 10.17  applicable subject matter, as determined by the local school 
 10.18  district. 
 10.19     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 10.20  120B.36, is amended to read: 
 10.21     120B.36 [SCHOOL ACCOUNTABILITY; APPEALS PROCESS.] 
 10.22     Subdivision 1.  [SCHOOL PERFORMANCE REPORT CARDS.] (a) The 
 10.23  commissioner shall use objective criteria based on levels of 
 10.24  student performance to identify four to six designations 
 10.25  applicable to high and low performing public schools.  The 
 10.26  objective criteria shall include at least student academic 
 10.27  performance, school safety, and staff characteristics, with a 
 10.28  value-added growth component added by the 2006-2007 school year. 
 10.29     (b) The commissioner shall develop, annually update, and 
 10.30  post on the department Web site school performance report cards. 
 10.31  A school's designation must be clearly stated on each school 
 10.32  performance report card. 
 10.33     (c) The commissioner must make available the first school 
 10.34  designations and school performance report cards by November 
 10.35  2003, and during the beginning of each school year thereafter.  
 10.36     (d) A school or district may appeal in writing a 
 11.1   designation under this section to the commissioner within 30 
 11.2   days of receiving the designation.  The commissioner's decision 
 11.3   to uphold or deny an appeal is final.  
 11.4      (e) School performance report cards are nonpublic data 
 11.5   under section 13.02, subdivision 9, until not later than ten 
 11.6   days after the appeal procedure described in paragraph (d) 
 11.7   concludes.  The department shall annually post school 
 11.8   performance report cards to its public Web site no later than 
 11.9   September 1. 
 11.10     Subd. 2.  [ADEQUATE YEARLY PROGRESS DATA.] All data the 
 11.11  department receives, collects, or creates for purposes of 
 11.12  determining adequate yearly progress designations under Public 
 11.13  Law 107-110, section 1116, are nonpublic data under section 
 11.14  13.02, subdivision 9, until not later than ten days after the 
 11.15  appeal procedure described in subdivision 1, paragraph (d), 
 11.16  concludes.  Districts must provide parents sufficiently detailed 
 11.17  summary data to permit parents to appeal under Public Law 
 11.18  107-110, section 1116(b)(2).  The department shall annually post 
 11.19  adequate yearly progress data to its public Web site no later 
 11.20  than September 1. 
 11.21     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 11.22  following final enactment. 
 11.23     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 121A.22, 
 11.24  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 11.25     Subd. 2.  [EXCLUSIONS.] In addition, this section does not 
 11.26  apply to drugs or medicine that are: 
 11.27     (1) that can be purchased without a prescription; 
 11.28     (2) that are used by a pupil who is 18 years old or older; 
 11.29     (3) that are used in connection with services for which a 
 11.30  minor may give effective consent, including section 144.343, 
 11.31  subdivision 1, and any other law; 
 11.32     (4) that are used in situations in which, in the judgment 
 11.33  of the school personnel who are present or available, the risk 
 11.34  to the pupil's life or health is of such a nature that drugs or 
 11.35  medicine should be given without delay; 
 11.36     (5) that are used off the school grounds; 
 12.1      (6) that are used in connection with athletics or extra 
 12.2   curricular activities; 
 12.3      (7) that are used in connection with activities that occur 
 12.4   before or after the regular school day; 
 12.5      (8) that are provided or administered by a public health 
 12.6   agency in order to prevent or control an illness or a disease 
 12.7   outbreak as provided for in sections 144.05 and 144.12; or 
 12.8      (9) that are prescription asthma or reactive airway disease 
 12.9   medications self-administered by a pupil with an asthma inhaler 
 12.10  if the district has received a written authorization from the 
 12.11  pupil's parent permitting the pupil to self-administer the 
 12.12  medication, the inhaler is properly labeled for that student, 
 12.13  and the parent has not requested school personnel to administer 
 12.14  the medication to the pupil.  The parent must submit written 
 12.15  authorization for the pupil to self-administer the medication 
 12.16  each school year; or 
 12.17     (10) prescription nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine, 
 12.18  consistent with section 121A.2205, if the parent and prescribing 
 12.19  medical professional annually inform the pupil's school in 
 12.20  writing that (i) the pupil may possess the epinephrine or (ii) 
 12.21  the pupil is unable to possess the epinephrine and requires 
 12.22  immediate access to nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine that the 
 12.23  parent provides properly labeled to the school for the pupil as 
 12.24  needed. 
 12.25     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for the 
 12.26  2004-2005 school year and later. 
 12.27     Sec. 7.  [121A.2205] [POSSESSION AND USE OF NONSYRINGE 
 12.28  INJECTORS OF EPINEPHRINE; MODEL POLICY.] 
 12.29     (a) At the start of each school year or at the time a 
 12.30  student enrolls in school, whichever is first, a student's 
 12.31  parent, school staff, including those responsible for student 
 12.32  health care, and the prescribing medical professional must 
 12.33  develop and implement an individualized written health plan for 
 12.34  a student who is prescribed nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine 
 12.35  that enables the student to: 
 12.36     (1) possess nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine; or 
 13.1      (2) if the parent and prescribing medical professional 
 13.2   determine the student is unable to possess the epinephrine, have 
 13.3   immediate access to nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine in close 
 13.4   proximity to the student at all times during the instructional 
 13.5   day. 
 13.6      The plan must designate the school staff responsible for 
 13.7   implementing the student's health plan, including recognizing 
 13.8   anaphylaxis and administering nonsyringe injectors of 
 13.9   epinephrine when required, consistent with section 121A.22, 
 13.10  subdivision 2, clause (10).  This health plan may be included in 
 13.11  a student's 504 plan. 
 13.12     (b) A school under this section is a public school under 
 13.13  section 120A.22, subdivision 4, or a nonpublic school, excluding 
 13.14  a home school, under section 120A.22, subdivision 4, that is 
 13.15  subject to the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.  Other 
 13.16  nonpublic schools are encouraged to develop and implement an 
 13.17  individualized written health plan for students requiring 
 13.18  nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine, consistent with this 
 13.19  section and section 121A.22, subdivision 2, clause (10). 
 13.20     (c) A school district and its agents and employees are 
 13.21  immune from liability for any act or failure to act, made in 
 13.22  good faith, in implementing this section. 
 13.23     (d) The education commissioner may develop and transmit to 
 13.24  interested schools a model policy and individualized health plan 
 13.25  form consistent with this section and federal 504 plan 
 13.26  requirements.  The policy and form may: 
 13.27     (1) assess a student's ability to safely possess nonsyringe 
 13.28  injectors of epinephrine; 
 13.29     (2) identify staff training needs related to recognizing 
 13.30  anaphylaxis and administering epinephrine when needed; 
 13.31     (3) accommodate a student's need to possess or have 
 13.32  immediate access to nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine in close 
 13.33  proximity to the student at all times during the instructional 
 13.34  day; and 
 13.35     (4) ensure that the student's parent provides properly 
 13.36  labeled nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine to the school for 
 14.1   the student as needed.  
 14.2      (e) Additional nonsyringe injectors of epinephrine may be 
 14.3   available in school first aid kits. 
 14.4      (f) The school board of the school district must define 
 14.5   instructional day for the purposes of this section. 
 14.6      [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for the 
 14.7   2004-2005 school year and later. 
 14.8      Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 121A.45, 
 14.9   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 14.10     Subd. 3.  [PARENT NOTIFICATION AND MEETING.] If a pupil's 
 14.11  total days of removal from school exceeds ten cumulative days in 
 14.12  a school year, the school district shall make reasonable 
 14.13  attempts to convene a meeting with the pupil and the pupil's 
 14.14  parent or guardian prior to before subsequently removing the 
 14.15  pupil from school and, with the permission of the parent or 
 14.16  guardian, arrange for a mental health screening for the pupil.  
 14.17  The district is not required to pay for the mental health 
 14.18  screening.  The purpose of this meeting is to attempt to 
 14.19  determine the pupil's need for assessment or other services or 
 14.20  whether the parent or guardian should have the pupil assessed or 
 14.21  diagnosed to determine whether the pupil needs treatment for a 
 14.22  mental health disorder. 
 14.23     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 14.24  122A.09, subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
 14.25     Subd. 4.  [LICENSE AND RULES.] (a) The board must adopt 
 14.26  rules to license public school teachers and interns subject to 
 14.27  chapter 14. 
 14.28     (b) The board must adopt rules requiring a person to 
 14.29  successfully complete a skills examination in reading, writing, 
 14.30  and mathematics as a requirement for initial teacher licensure.  
 14.31  Such rules must require college and universities offering a 
 14.32  board-approved teacher preparation program to provide remedial 
 14.33  assistance to persons who did not achieve a qualifying score on 
 14.34  the skills examination, including those for whom English is a 
 14.35  second language. 
 14.36     (c) The board must adopt rules to approve teacher 
 15.1   preparation programs.  The board, upon the request of a 
 15.2   postsecondary student preparing for teacher licensure or a 
 15.3   licensed graduate of a teacher preparation program, shall assist 
 15.4   in resolving a dispute between the person and a postsecondary 
 15.5   institution providing a teacher preparation program when the 
 15.6   dispute involves an institution's recommendation for licensure 
 15.7   affecting the person or the person's credentials.  At the 
 15.8   board's discretion, assistance may include the application of 
 15.9   chapter 14. 
 15.10     (d) The board must provide the leadership and shall adopt 
 15.11  rules for the redesign of teacher education programs to 
 15.12  implement a research based, results-oriented curriculum that 
 15.13  focuses on the skills teachers need in order to be effective.  
 15.14  The board shall implement new systems of teacher preparation 
 15.15  program evaluation to assure program effectiveness based on 
 15.16  proficiency of graduates in demonstrating attainment of program 
 15.17  outcomes. 
 15.18     (e) The board must adopt rules requiring successful 
 15.19  completion of an examination of general pedagogical knowledge 
 15.20  and examinations of licensure-specific teaching skills.  The 
 15.21  rules shall be effective on the dates determined by the board 
 15.22  but not later than September 1, 2001.  
 15.23     (f) The board must adopt rules requiring teacher educators 
 15.24  to work directly with elementary or secondary school teachers in 
 15.25  elementary or secondary schools to obtain periodic exposure to 
 15.26  the elementary or secondary teaching environment. 
 15.27     (g) The board must grant licenses to interns and to 
 15.28  candidates for initial licenses. 
 15.29     (h) The board must design and implement an assessment 
 15.30  system which requires a candidate for an initial license and 
 15.31  first continuing license to demonstrate the abilities necessary 
 15.32  to perform selected, representative teaching tasks at 
 15.33  appropriate levels. 
 15.34     (i) The board must receive recommendations from local 
 15.35  committees as established by the board for the renewal of 
 15.36  teaching licenses. 
 16.1      (j) The board must grant life licenses to those who qualify 
 16.2   according to requirements established by the board, and suspend 
 16.3   or revoke licenses pursuant to sections 122A.20 and 214.10.  The 
 16.4   board must not establish any expiration date for application for 
 16.5   life licenses.  
 16.6      (k) The board must adopt rules that require all licensed 
 16.7   teachers who are renewing their continuing license to include in 
 16.8   their renewal requirements further preparation in the areas of 
 16.9   using positive behavior interventions and in accommodating, 
 16.10  modifying, and adapting curricula, materials, and strategies to 
 16.11  appropriately meet the needs of individual students and ensure 
 16.12  adequate progress toward the state's graduation rule.  
 16.13     (l) In adopting rules to license public school teachers who 
 16.14  provide health-related services for disabled children, the board 
 16.15  shall adopt rules consistent with license or registration 
 16.16  requirements of the commissioner of health and the 
 16.17  health-related boards who license personnel who perform similar 
 16.18  services outside of the school. 
 16.19     (m) The board must adopt rules that require all licensed 
 16.20  teachers who are renewing their continuing license to include in 
 16.21  their renewal requirements further reading preparation, 
 16.22  consistent with section 122A.06, subdivision 4.  The rules do 
 16.23  not take effect until they are approved by law.  Teachers who do 
 16.24  not provide direct instruction including, at least, counselors, 
 16.25  school psychologists, school nurses, school social workers, 
 16.26  audiovisual directors and coordinators, and recreation personnel 
 16.27  are exempt from this section. 
 16.28     (n) The board must adopt rules that require all licensed 
 16.29  teachers who are renewing their continuing license to include in 
 16.30  their renewal requirements further preparation in understanding 
 16.31  the key warning signs of early-onset mental illness in children 
 16.32  and adolescents. 
 16.33     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 16.34  following final enactment. 
 16.35     Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 122A.16, is 
 16.36  amended to read: 
 17.1      122A.16 [HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHER DEFINED.] 
 17.2      (a) A qualified teacher is one holding a valid license, 
 17.3   under this chapter, to perform the particular service for 
 17.4   which the teacher is employed in a public school. 
 17.5      (b) For the purposes of the federal No Child Left Behind 
 17.6   Act, a highly qualified teacher is one who holds a valid license 
 17.7   under this chapter to perform the particular service for which 
 17.8   the teacher is employed in a public school or who meets the 
 17.9   requirements of a highly objective uniform state standard of 
 17.10  evaluation (HOUSSE). 
 17.11     All Minnesota teachers teaching in a core academic subject 
 17.12  area, as defined by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, in 
 17.13  which they are not fully licensed may complete the following 
 17.14  HOUSSE process in the core subject area for which the teacher is 
 17.15  requesting highly qualified status by completing an application, 
 17.16  in the form and manner described by the commissioner, that 
 17.17  includes: 
 17.18     (1) documentation of student achievement as evidenced by 
 17.19  norm-referenced test results that are objective and 
 17.20  psychometrically valid and reliable; 
 17.21     (2) evidence of local, state, or national activities, 
 17.22  recognition, or awards for professional contribution to 
 17.23  achievement; 
 17.24     (3) description of teaching experience in the teachers' 
 17.25  core subject area in a public school under a waiver, variance, 
 17.26  limited license or other exception; nonpublic school; and 
 17.27  postsecondary institution; 
 17.28     (4) test results from the Praxis II content test; 
 17.29     (5) evidence of advanced certification from the National 
 17.30  Board for Professional Teaching Standards; 
 17.31     (6) evidence of the successful completion of course work or 
 17.32  pedagogy courses; and 
 17.33     (7) evidence of the successful completion of high quality 
 17.34  professional development activities. 
 17.35     Districts must assign a school administrator to serve as a 
 17.36  HOUSSE reviewer to meet with teachers under this paragraph and, 
 18.1   where appropriate, certify the teachers' applications.  Teachers 
 18.2   satisfy the definition of highly qualified when the teachers 
 18.3   receive at least 100 of the total number of points used to 
 18.4   measure the teachers' content expertise under clauses (1) to 
 18.5   (7).  Teachers may acquire up to 50 points only in any one 
 18.6   clause (1) to (7).  Teachers may use the HOUSSE process to 
 18.7   satisfy the definition of highly qualified for more than one 
 18.8   subject area. 
 18.9      (c) Achievement of the HOUSSE criteria is not equivalent to 
 18.10  a license.  A teacher must obtain permission from the Board of 
 18.11  Teaching in order to teach in a public school. 
 18.12     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 18.13  following final enactment. 
 18.14     Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 122A.20, 
 18.15  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 18.16     Subd. 2.  [MANDATORY REPORTING.] A school board must report 
 18.17  to the Board of Teaching, the Board of School Administrators, or 
 18.18  the Board of Trustees of the Minnesota State Colleges and 
 18.19  Universities, whichever has jurisdiction over the teacher's or 
 18.20  administrator's license, when its teacher or administrator is 
 18.21  discharged or resigns from employment after a charge is filed 
 18.22  with the school board under section 122A.41, subdivisions 6, 
 18.23  clauses (1), (2), and (3), and 7, or after charges are filed 
 18.24  that are ground for discharge under section 122A.40, subdivision 
 18.25  13, paragraph (a), clauses (1) to (5), or when a teacher or 
 18.26  administrator is suspended or resigns while an investigation is 
 18.27  pending under section 122A.40, subdivision 13, paragraph (a) 
 18.28  clauses (1) to (5); 122A.41, subdivisions 6, clauses (1), (2), 
 18.29  and (3), and 7; or 626.556, or when a teacher or administrator 
 18.30  is suspended without an investigation under section 122A.41, 
 18.31  subdivisions 6, paragraph (a), clauses (1), (2), and (3), and 7; 
 18.32  or 626.556.  The report must be made to the appropriate 
 18.33  licensing board within ten days after the discharge, suspension, 
 18.34  or resignation has occurred.  The licensing board to which the 
 18.35  report is made must investigate the report for violation of 
 18.36  subdivision 1 and the reporting board must cooperate in the 
 19.1   investigation.  Notwithstanding any provision in chapter 13 or 
 19.2   any law to the contrary, upon written request from the licensing 
 19.3   board having jurisdiction over the license, a board or school 
 19.4   superintendent shall provide the licensing board with 
 19.5   information about the teacher or administrator from the 
 19.6   district's files, any termination or disciplinary proceeding, 
 19.7   any settlement or compromise, or any investigative file.  Upon 
 19.8   written request from the appropriate licensing board, a board or 
 19.9   school superintendent may, at the discretion of the board or 
 19.10  school superintendent, solicit the written consent of a student 
 19.11  and the student's parent to provide the licensing board with 
 19.12  information that may aid the licensing board in its 
 19.13  investigation and license proceedings.  The licensing board's 
 19.14  request need not identify a student or parent by name.  The 
 19.15  consent of the student and the student's parent must meet the 
 19.16  requirements of chapter 13 and Code of Federal Regulations, 
 19.17  title 34, section 99.30.  The licensing board may provide a 
 19.18  consent form to the district.  Any data transmitted to any board 
 19.19  under this section is private data under section 13.02, 
 19.20  subdivision 12, notwithstanding any other classification of the 
 19.21  data when it was in the possession of any other agency. 
 19.22     The licensing board to which a report is made must transmit 
 19.23  to the Attorney General's Office any record or data it receives 
 19.24  under this subdivision for the sole purpose of having the 
 19.25  Attorney General's Office assist that board in its 
 19.26  investigation.  When the Attorney General's Office has informed 
 19.27  an employee of the appropriate licensing board in writing that 
 19.28  grounds exist to suspend or revoke a teacher's license to teach, 
 19.29  that licensing board must consider suspending or revoking or 
 19.30  decline to suspend or revoke the teacher's or administrator's 
 19.31  license within 45 days of receiving a stipulation executed by 
 19.32  the teacher or administrator under investigation or a 
 19.33  recommendation from an administrative law judge that 
 19.34  disciplinary action be taken. 
 19.35     Sec. 12.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123B.195, is 
 19.36  amended to read: 
 20.1      123B.195 [BOARD MEMBERS' RIGHT TO EMPLOYMENT.] 
 20.2      Notwithstanding section 471.88, subdivision 5, a school 
 20.3   board member may be newly employed or may continue to be 
 20.4   employed by a school district as an employee only if there is a 
 20.5   reasonable expectation at the beginning of the fiscal year or at 
 20.6   the time the contract is entered into or extended that the 
 20.7   amount to be earned by that officer under that contract or 
 20.8   employment relationship will not exceed $5,000 $8,000 in that 
 20.9   fiscal year.  Notwithstanding section 122A.40 or 122A.41 or 
 20.10  other law, if the officer does not receive majority approval to 
 20.11  be initially employed or to continue in employment at a meeting 
 20.12  at which all board members are present, that employment is 
 20.13  immediately terminated and that officer has no further rights to 
 20.14  employment while serving as a school board member in the 
 20.15  district. 
 20.16     Sec. 13.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 20.17  123B.90, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 20.18     Subd. 2.  [STUDENT TRAINING.] (a) Each district must 
 20.19  provide public school pupils enrolled in kindergarten through 
 20.20  grade 10 with age-appropriate school bus safety training, as 
 20.21  described in this section, of the following concepts: 
 20.22     (1) transportation by school bus is a privilege and not a 
 20.23  right; 
 20.24     (2) district policies for student conduct and school bus 
 20.25  safety; 
 20.26     (3) appropriate conduct while on the school bus; 
 20.27     (4) the danger zones surrounding a school bus; 
 20.28     (5) procedures for safely boarding and leaving a school 
 20.29  bus; 
 20.30     (6) procedures for safe street or road crossing; and 
 20.31     (7) school bus evacuation. 
 20.32     (b) Each nonpublic school located within the district must 
 20.33  provide all nonpublic school pupils enrolled in kindergarten 
 20.34  through grade 10 who are transported by school bus at public 
 20.35  expense and attend school within the district's boundaries with 
 20.36  training as required in paragraph (a).  
 21.1      (c) Students enrolled in kindergarten through grade 6 who 
 21.2   are transported by school bus and are enrolled during the first 
 21.3   or second week of school must receive the school bus safety 
 21.4   training competencies by the end of the third week of school.  
 21.5   Students enrolled in grades 7 through 10 who are transported by 
 21.6   school bus and are enrolled during the first or second week of 
 21.7   school and have not previously received school bus safety 
 21.8   training in kindergarten through grade 6 must receive the 
 21.9   training or receive bus safety instructional materials by the 
 21.10  end of the sixth week of school.  Students taking driver's 
 21.11  training instructional classes and other students in grades 9 
 21.12  and 10 must receive training in the laws and proper procedures 
 21.13  when operating a motor vehicle in the vicinity of a school bus.  
 21.14  Students enrolled in kindergarten through grade 10 who enroll in 
 21.15  a school after the second week of school and are transported by 
 21.16  school bus and have not received training in their previous 
 21.17  school district shall undergo school bus safety training or 
 21.18  receive bus safety instructional materials within four weeks of 
 21.19  the first day of attendance.  The school transportation safety 
 21.20  director in each district must certify to the superintendent of 
 21.21  schools annually that all students transported by school bus 
 21.22  within the district have received the school bus safety training 
 21.23  according to this section.  The principal or other chief 
 21.24  administrator of each nonpublic school must certify annually to 
 21.25  the school transportation safety director of the district in 
 21.26  which the school is located that the school's students 
 21.27  transported by school bus at public expense have received 
 21.28  training according to this section.  
 21.29     (d) A district and a nonpublic school with students 
 21.30  transported by school bus at public expense may provide 
 21.31  kindergarten pupils with bus safety training before the first 
 21.32  day of school. 
 21.33     (e) A district and a nonpublic school with students 
 21.34  transported by school bus at public expense may also provide 
 21.35  student safety education for bicycling and pedestrian safety, 
 21.36  for students enrolled in kindergarten through grade 5. 
 22.1      (f) A district and a nonpublic school with students 
 22.2   transported by school bus at public expense must make reasonable 
 22.3   accommodations for the school bus safety training of pupils 
 22.4   known to speak English as a second language and pupils with 
 22.5   disabilities. 
 22.6      (g) The district and a nonpublic school with students 
 22.7   transported by school bus at public expense must provide 
 22.8   students enrolled in kindergarten through grade 3 school bus 
 22.9   safety training twice during the school year.  
 22.10     (h) A district and a nonpublic school with students 
 22.11  transported by school bus at public expense must conduct a 
 22.12  school bus evacuation drill at least once during the school year.
 22.13     Sec. 14.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 22.14  124D.11, subdivision 9, is amended to read: 
 22.15     Subd. 9.  [PAYMENT OF AIDS TO CHARTER SCHOOLS.] (a) 
 22.16  Notwithstanding section 127A.45, subdivision 3, aid payments for 
 22.17  the current fiscal year to a charter school not in its first 
 22.18  year of operation shall be of an equal amount on each of the 23 
 22.19  payment dates.  A charter school in its first year of operation 
 22.20  shall receive, on its first payment date, ten percent of its 
 22.21  cumulative amount guaranteed for the year and 22 payments of an 
 22.22  equal amount thereafter the sum of which shall be 90 percent of 
 22.23  the cumulative amount guaranteed. 
 22.24     (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), for a charter school 
 22.25  ceasing operation prior to the end of a school year, 80 percent 
 22.26  of the amount due for the school year may be paid to the school 
 22.27  after audit of prior fiscal year and current fiscal year pupil 
 22.28  counts. 
 22.29     (c) Notwithstanding section 127A.45, subdivision 3, and 
 22.30  paragraph (a), 80 percent of the start-up cost aid under 
 22.31  subdivision 8 shall be paid within 45 days after the first day 
 22.32  of student attendance for that school year. 
 22.33     (d) In order to receive state aid payments under this 
 22.34  subdivision, a charter school in its first three years of 
 22.35  operation must submit a school calendar in the form and manner 
 22.36  requested by the department and a quarterly report to the 
 23.1   Department of Education.  The report must list each student by 
 23.2   grade, show the student's start and end dates, if any, with the 
 23.3   charter school, and for any student participating in a learning 
 23.4   year program, the report must list the hours and times of 
 23.5   learning year activities.  The report must be submitted not more 
 23.6   than two weeks after the end of the calendar quarter to the 
 23.7   department.  The department must develop a Web-based reporting 
 23.8   form for charter schools to use when submitting enrollment 
 23.9   reports.  A charter school in its fourth and subsequent year of 
 23.10  operation must submit a school calendar and enrollment 
 23.11  information to the department in the form and manner requested 
 23.12  by the department. 
 23.13     Sec. 15.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 23.14  128C.05, subdivision 1a, is amended to read: 
 23.15     Subd. 1a.  [SUPERVISED COMPETITIVE HIGH SCHOOL DIVING.] 
 23.16  Notwithstanding Minnesota Rules, part 4717.3750, any pool built 
 23.17  before January 1, 1987, that was used for a high school diving 
 23.18  program during the 2000-2001 school year may be used for 
 23.19  supervised competitive high school diving unless a pool that 
 23.20  meets the requirements of Minnesota Rules, part 4717.3750, is 
 23.21  located within the school district.  Schools and school 
 23.22  districts are strongly encouraged to use a pool for supervised 
 23.23  competitive high school diving that meets the requirements of 
 23.24  Minnesota Rules, part 4717.3750.  A school or district using a 
 23.25  pool for supervised competitive high school diving that does not 
 23.26  meet the requirements of the rule must provide appropriate 
 23.27  notice to parents and participants. 
 23.28     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 23.29  following final enactment. 
 23.30     Sec. 16.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 168.012, 
 23.31  subdivision 10, is amended to read: 
 23.32     Subd. 10.  [EXEMPTION DETERMINED BY USE.] If a vehicle is 
 23.33  used for a purpose which would make it exempt pursuant to 
 23.34  subdivision 1 but title is held by a seller or a vendor or is 
 23.35  assigned to a third party under a lease agreement or a lease 
 23.36  purchase agreement or installment sale permitted under section 
 24.1   465.71, exemption shall be determined by the use rather than the 
 24.2   holder of the title.  
 24.3      Sec. 17.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.01, 
 24.4   subdivision 6, is amended to read: 
 24.5      Subd. 6.  [SCHOOL BUS.] "School bus" means a motor vehicle 
 24.6   used to transport pupils to or from a school defined in section 
 24.7   120A.22, or to or from school-related activities, by the school 
 24.8   or a school district, or by someone under an agreement with the 
 24.9   school or a school district.  A school bus does not include a 
 24.10  motor vehicle transporting children to or from school for which 
 24.11  parents or guardians receive direct compensation from a school 
 24.12  district, a motor coach operating under charter carrier 
 24.13  authority, a transit bus providing services as defined in 
 24.14  section 174.22, subdivision 7, a multifunction school activity 
 24.15  bus as defined by federal motor vehicle safety standards, or a 
 24.16  vehicle otherwise qualifying as a type III vehicle under 
 24.17  paragraph (5), when the vehicle is properly registered and 
 24.18  insured and being driven by an employee or agent of a school 
 24.19  district for nonscheduled or nonregular transportation.  A 
 24.20  school bus may be type A, type B, type C, or type D, or type III 
 24.21  as follows:  
 24.22     (1) A "type A school bus" is a van conversion or body bus 
 24.23  constructed upon a van-type or utilizing a cutaway front section 
 24.24  vehicle with a left-side driver's door, designed for carrying 
 24.25  more than ten persons.  The entrance door is behind the front 
 24.26  wheels.  This definition includes two classifications:  type 
 24.27  A-I, with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) over less than or 
 24.28  equal to 10,000 pounds; and type A-II, with a GVWR of greater 
 24.29  than 10,000 pounds or less. 
 24.30     (2) A "type B school bus" is a conversion or body 
 24.31  constructed and installed upon a van or front-section vehicle 
 24.32  chassis, or utilizing a stripped chassis, with a gross vehicle 
 24.33  weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds, designed for carrying 
 24.34  more than ten persons.  Part of the engine is beneath or behind 
 24.35  the windshield and beside the driver's seat.  The entrance door 
 24.36  is behind the front wheels.  This definition includes two 
 25.1   classifications:  type B-I, with a GVWR less than or equal to 
 25.2   10,000 pounds; and type B-II, with a GVWR greater than 10,000 
 25.3   pounds.  
 25.4      (3) A "type C school bus" is a body installed upon a flat 
 25.5   back cowl constructed utilizing a chassis with a gross vehicle 
 25.6   weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds, designed for carrying 
 25.7   more than ten persons.  All of the engine is in front of the 
 25.8   windshield and hood and front fender assembly.  The entrance 
 25.9   door is behind the front wheels.  A type C school bus has a 
 25.10  maximum length of 45 feet.  
 25.11     (4) A "type D school bus" is a body installed upon a 
 25.12  constructed utilizing a stripped chassis, with the engine 
 25.13  mounted in the front, midship or rear, with a gross vehicle 
 25.14  weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds, designed for carrying 
 25.15  more than ten persons.  The engine may be behind the windshield 
 25.16  and beside the driver's seat; it may be at the rear of the bus, 
 25.17  behind the rear wheels, or midship between the front and rear 
 25.18  axles.  The entrance door is ahead of the front wheels.  A type 
 25.19  D school bus has a maximum length of 45 feet.  
 25.20     (5) Type III school buses and type III Head Start buses are 
 25.21  restricted to passenger cars, station wagons, vans, and buses 
 25.22  having a maximum manufacturer's rated seating capacity of ten or 
 25.23  fewer people, including the driver, and a gross vehicle weight 
 25.24  rating of 10,000 pounds or less.  In this subdivision, "gross 
 25.25  vehicle weight rating" means the value specified by the 
 25.26  manufacturer as the loaded weight of a single vehicle.  A "type 
 25.27  III school bus" and "type III Head Start bus" must not be 
 25.28  outwardly equipped and identified as a type A, B, C, or D school 
 25.29  bus or type A, B, C, or D Head Start bus.  A van or bus 
 25.30  converted to a seating capacity of ten or fewer and placed in 
 25.31  service on or after August 1, 1999, must have been originally 
 25.32  manufactured to comply with the passenger safety standards. 
 25.33     Sec. 18.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.01, 
 25.34  subdivision 75, is amended to read: 
 25.35     Subd. 75.  [COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE.] (a) "Commercial 
 25.36  motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle or combination of motor 
 26.1   vehicles used to transport passengers or property if the motor 
 26.2   vehicle: 
 26.3      (1) has a gross vehicle weight of more than 26,000 pounds; 
 26.4      (2) has a towed unit with a gross vehicle weight of more 
 26.5   than 10,000 pounds and the combination of vehicles has a 
 26.6   combined gross vehicle weight of more than 26,000 pounds; 
 26.7      (3) is a bus; 
 26.8      (4) is of any size and is used in the transportation of 
 26.9   hazardous materials, except for those vehicles having a gross 
 26.10  vehicle weight of 26,000 pounds or less while carrying in bulk 
 26.11  tanks a total of not more than 200 gallons of petroleum products 
 26.12  and liquid fertilizer; or 
 26.13     (5) is outwardly equipped and identified as a school bus, 
 26.14  except for type A-II A-I and type III school buses as defined in 
 26.15  subdivision 6. 
 26.16     (b) For purposes of chapter 169A: 
 26.17     (1) a commercial motor vehicle does not include a farm 
 26.18  truck, fire-fighting equipment, or recreational equipment being 
 26.19  operated by a person within the scope of section 171.02, 
 26.20  subdivision 2, paragraph (b); and 
 26.21     (2) a commercial motor vehicle includes a vehicle capable 
 26.22  of or designed to meet the standards described in paragraph (a), 
 26.23  clause (2), whether or not the towed unit is attached to the 
 26.24  truck-tractor at the time of the violation or stop. 
 26.25     Sec. 19.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.442, 
 26.26  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 26.27     Subdivision 1.  [SIGNALS REQUIRED.] A type A, B, C, or D 
 26.28  school bus must be equipped with a at least one stop-signal arm, 
 26.29  prewarning flashing amber signals, and flashing red signals. 
 26.30     Sec. 20.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.442, 
 26.31  subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
 26.32     Subd. 5.  [WHITE STROBE LAMPS ON CERTAIN BUSES TRANSPORTING 
 26.33  CHILDREN.] (a) Notwithstanding sections 169.55, subdivision 1; 
 26.34  169.57, subdivision 3, paragraph (b), or other law to the 
 26.35  contrary, a school bus that is subject to and complies with the 
 26.36  equipment requirements of subdivision 1 and section 169.441, 
 27.1   subdivision 1, or a Head Start bus that is not a type III bus 
 27.2   defined in section 169.01, subdivision 6, may be equipped with a 
 27.3   360-degree, flashing strobe lamp that emits a white light with a 
 27.4   flash rate of 60 to 120 flashes a minute.  The lamp may be used 
 27.5   only as provided in this subdivision.  
 27.6      (b) The strobe lamp must be of a double flash type 
 27.7   certified to the commissioner of public safety by the 
 27.8   manufacturer as being weatherproof and having a minimum 
 27.9   effective light output of 200 candelas as measured by the 
 27.10  Blondel-Rey formula.  The lamp must be permanently mounted on 
 27.11  the longitudinal centerline of the bus roof not less than two 
 27.12  feet nor more than seven feet forward of the rear roof edge.  It 
 27.13  must operate from a separate switch containing an indicator lamp 
 27.14  to show when the strobe lamp is in use.  
 27.15     (c) The strobe lamp may be lighted only when atmospheric 
 27.16  conditions or terrain restrict the visibility of school bus 
 27.17  lamps and signals or Head Start bus lamps and signals so as to 
 27.18  require use of the bright strobe lamp to alert motorists to the 
 27.19  presence of the school bus or Head Start bus.  A strobe lamp may 
 27.20  not be lighted unless the school bus or Head Start bus is 
 27.21  actually being used as a school bus or Head Start bus. 
 27.22     Sec. 21.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.443, 
 27.23  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 27.24     Subdivision 1.  [USING BUS SIGNALS.] A driver of a school 
 27.25  bus shall activate the prewarning flashing amber signals of the 
 27.26  bus before stopping to load or unload school children.  The 
 27.27  driver shall activate and continuously operate the amber signals 
 27.28  for a distance of at least 100 feet before stopping in a speed 
 27.29  zone of 35 miles per hour or less and at least 300 feet before 
 27.30  stopping in a speed zone of more than 35 miles per hour.  On 
 27.31  stopping for this purpose, the driver shall extend the 
 27.32  stop-signal arm system and activate the flashing red signals.  
 27.33  The driver shall not retract the stop-signal arm system nor 
 27.34  extinguish the flashing red signals until loading or unloading 
 27.35  is completed, students are seated, and children who must cross 
 27.36  the roadway are safely across. 
 28.1      Sec. 22.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.443, 
 28.2   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 28.3      Subd. 2.  [USE OF STOP-SIGNAL ARM.] (a) The stop-signal arm 
 28.4   system of a school bus must be used in conjunction with the 
 28.5   flashing red signals only when the school bus is stopped on a 
 28.6   street or highway to load or unload school children. 
 28.7      (b) A local authority, including the governing body of an 
 28.8   Indian tribe, may by ordinance require that a school bus 
 28.9   activate the stop-signal arm system and flashing red signals 
 28.10  while stopped to unload school children at a location other than 
 28.11  a location on a street or highway.  The ordinance must designate 
 28.12  each location where the requirement is imposed.  The requirement 
 28.13  is effective only if the local authority has erected signs at or 
 28.14  near the location to provide adequate notice that other vehicles 
 28.15  are required to obey section 169.444, subdivision 1, when those 
 28.16  signals are activated. 
 28.17     Sec. 23.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4501, 
 28.18  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
 28.19     Subdivision 1.  [NATIONAL STANDARDS ADOPTED.] Except as 
 28.20  provided in sections 169.4502 and 169.4503, the construction, 
 28.21  design, equipment, and color of types A, B, C, and D school 
 28.22  buses used for the transportation of school children shall meet 
 28.23  the requirements of the "bus chassis standards" and "bus body 
 28.24  standards" in the 1995 revised 2000 edition of the "National 
 28.25  Standards for School Buses and School Bus 
 28.26  Operations Transportation Specifications and Procedures" adopted 
 28.27  by the Twelfth National Conference on School Transportation.  
 28.28  Except as provided in section 169.4504, the construction, 
 28.29  design, and equipment of types A, B, C, and D school buses used 
 28.30  for the transportation of students with disabilities also shall 
 28.31  meet the requirements of the "specially equipped school bus 
 28.32  standards" in the 1995 2000 National Standards for School Buses 
 28.33  and School Bus Operations Transportation Specifications and 
 28.34  Procedures.  The "bus chassis standards," "bus body standards," 
 28.35  and "specially equipped school bus standards" sections of 
 28.36  the 1995 revised 2000 edition of the "National Standards for 
 29.1   School Buses and School Bus Operations Transportation 
 29.2   Specifications and Procedures" are incorporated by reference in 
 29.3   this chapter. 
 29.4      Sec. 24.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4501, 
 29.5   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 29.6      Subd. 2.  [APPLICABILITY.] (a) The standards adopted in 
 29.7   this section and sections 169.4502 and 169.4503, govern the 
 29.8   construction, design, equipment, and color of school buses used 
 29.9   for the transportation of school children, when owned or leased 
 29.10  and operated by a school or privately owned or leased and 
 29.11  operated under a contract with a school, and these standards 
 29.12  must be made a part of that contract by reference.  Each school, 
 29.13  its officers and employees, and each person employed under the 
 29.14  contract is subject to these standards. 
 29.15     (b) The standards apply to school buses manufactured after 
 29.16  December 31, 1997 October 31, 2004.  Buses complying with these 
 29.17  the standards when manufactured need not comply with standards 
 29.18  established later except as specifically provided for by law. 
 29.19     (c) A school bus manufactured on or before December 31, 
 29.20  1997 October 31, 2004, must conform to the Minnesota standards 
 29.21  in effect on the date the vehicle was manufactured except as 
 29.22  specifically provided for in law. 
 29.23     (d) A new bus body may be remounted on a used chassis 
 29.24  provided that the remounted vehicle meets state and federal 
 29.25  standards for new buses which are current at the time of the 
 29.26  remounting.  Permission must be obtained from the commissioner 
 29.27  of public safety before the remounting is done.  A used bus body 
 29.28  may not be remounted on a new or used chassis. 
 29.29     Sec. 25.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4502, 
 29.30  subdivision 11, is amended to read: 
 29.31     Subd. 11.  [TIRE AND RIM.] The use of multipiece rims or 
 29.32  tube-type tires is not permitted on school buses manufactured 
 29.33  after October 31, 2004.  Radial and bias-ply tires shall not be 
 29.34  used on the same axle.  Front tire tread depth shall not be less 
 29.35  than 4/32 inch in any major tire tread groove.  Rear tire tread 
 29.36  shall not be less than 2/32 inch.  Tires must be measured in 
 30.1   three locations around the tire, in two adjoining grooves.  No 
 30.2   recapped tires shall be used on the front wheels.  Recapped 
 30.3   tires are permitted on the rear wheels. 
 30.4      Sec. 26.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4503, 
 30.5   subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
 30.6      Subd. 5.  [COLORS AND REFLECTIVE MATERIALS.] Fenderettes 
 30.7   may be black.  The beltline may be painted yellow over black or 
 30.8   black over yellow.  The rub rails shall be black.  The 
 30.9   reflective material on the sides of the bus body shall be at 
 30.10  least one inch but not more than two inches in width.  This 
 30.11  reflective material requirement and the requirement that "SCHOOL 
 30.12  BUS" signs have reflective material as background are effective 
 30.13  for buses manufactured after January 1, 1996. 
 30.14     Sec. 27.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4503, 
 30.15  subdivision 14, is amended to read: 
 30.16     Subd. 14.  [INSULATION.] (a) Ceilings and walls shall be 
 30.17  insulated to a minimum of 1-1/2 inch fiberglass and installed so 
 30.18  the insulation does not compact or sag.  Floor insulation must 
 30.19  be nominal 19/32 inches thick plywood, or a material of equal or 
 30.20  greater strength and insulation R value that equals or exceeds 
 30.21  properties of exterior-type softwood plywood, C-D grade as 
 30.22  specified in standard issued by the United States Department of 
 30.23  Commerce.  Type A-II buses must have a minimum of one-half inch 
 30.24  plywood.  All exposed edges on plywood shall be sealed.  Every 
 30.25  school bus shall be constructed so that the noise level taken at 
 30.26  the ear of the occupant nearest to the primary vehicle noise 
 30.27  source shall not exceed 85 dba when tested according to 
 30.28  procedures in the 1995 National Standards for School Buses and 
 30.29  School Bus Operations Thermal insulation is required.  It shall 
 30.30  be fire-resistant, UL approved, with minimum R-value of 5.5.  
 30.31  Insulation shall be installed so as to prevent sagging. 
 30.32     (b) The underside of metal floor may be undercoated with 
 30.33  polyurethane floor insulation, foamed in place.  The floor 
 30.34  insulation must be combustion resistant.  The authorization in 
 30.35  this paragraph does not replace the plywood requirement Floor 
 30.36  insulation is required.  It shall be five-ply nominal 
 31.1   five-eighths inch-thick plywood, and shall equal or exceed 
 31.2   properties of the exterior-type softwood plywood, C-D Grade, as 
 31.3   specified in the standard issued by United States Department of 
 31.4   Commerce.  All exposed edges on plywood shall be sealed.  Type 
 31.5   A-I buses shall be equipped with nominal one-half inch-thick 
 31.6   plywood or equivalent material meeting the above requirements.  
 31.7   Equivalent material may be used to replace plywood, provided it 
 31.8   has an equal or greater insulation R value, deterioration, sound 
 31.9   abatement, and moisture resistance properties. 
 31.10     Sec. 28.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4503, 
 31.11  subdivision 16, is amended to read: 
 31.12     Subd. 16.  [LAMPS AND SIGNALS.] (a) Each school bus shall 
 31.13  be equipped with a system consisting of four red signal lamps 
 31.14  designed to conform to SAE Standard J887, and four amber signal 
 31.15  lamps designed to that standard, except for color, and except 
 31.16  that their candlepower must be at least 2-1/2 times that 
 31.17  specified for red turn-signal lamps.  Both red and amber signal 
 31.18  lamps must be installed in accordance with SAE Standard J887, 
 31.19  except that each amber signal lamp must be located near each red 
 31.20  signal lamp, at the same level, but closer to the centerline of 
 31.21  the bus.  The system must be wired so that the amber signal 
 31.22  lamps are activated only by hand operation, and if activated, 
 31.23  are automatically deactivated and the red signal lamps are 
 31.24  automatically activated when the bus entrance door is opened.  
 31.25  Signal lamps must flash alternately.  Each signal lamp must 
 31.26  flash not less than 60 nor more than 120 flashes per minute.  
 31.27  The "on" period must be long enough to permit filament to come 
 31.28  up to full brightness.  There must be a pilot lamp which goes on 
 31.29  when the respective amber or red system is activated.  The pilot 
 31.30  lamp must either go out or flash at an alternate rate in the 
 31.31  event the system is not functioning normally.  The signal lamp 
 31.32  system must include a closed control box.  The box must be as 
 31.33  small as practical, and must be easily dismounted or partially 
 31.34  disassembled to provide access for maintenance purposes.  The 
 31.35  control panel box shall be arranged such that the momentary 
 31.36  activating switch for the eight-lamp warning system shall be 
 32.1   located on the left, the red (or red and amber) pilot light 
 32.2   shall be located in the middle, and the eight-way master switch 
 32.3   shall be located on the right.  The control box must be securely 
 32.4   mounted to the right of the steering wheel, within easy 
 32.5   unobstructed reach of the driver.  Switches and pilot lamp must 
 32.6   be readily visible to the driver.  The activating switch may be 
 32.7   self-illuminated.  Other warning devices or lamp controls must 
 32.8   not be placed near the lamp control.  The stop arm shall extend 
 32.9   automatically whenever the service entrance door is opened and 
 32.10  the eight-way lights are activated. 
 32.11     (b) If installed, a white flashing strobe shall be of a 
 32.12  double flash type and have minimum effective light output of 200 
 32.13  candelas.  No roof hatch can be mounted behind the strobe light. 
 32.14     (c) Type B, C, and D buses shall have an amber clearance 
 32.15  lamp with a minimum of four candlepower mounted on the right 
 32.16  side of the body at approximately seat-level rub rail height 
 32.17  just to the rear of the service door and another one at 
 32.18  approximately opposite the driver's seat on the left side.  
 32.19  These lamps are to be connected to operate only with the regular 
 32.20  turn-signal lamps. 
 32.21     (d) (b) All lamps on the exterior of the vehicle must 
 32.22  conform with and be installed as required by federal motor 
 32.23  vehicle safety standard number 108, Code of Federal Regulations, 
 32.24  title 49, part 571. 
 32.25     (e) (c) A type A, B, C, or D school bus manufactured for 
 32.26  use in Minnesota after December 31, 1994, may not be equipped 
 32.27  with red turn-signal lenses on the rear of the bus. 
 32.28     Sec. 29.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4503, 
 32.29  subdivision 20, is amended to read: 
 32.30     Subd. 20.  [SEAT AND CRASH BARRIERS.] All restraining 
 32.31  barriers and passenger seats shall be covered with a material 
 32.32  that has fire retardant or fire block characteristics.  All 
 32.33  seats must face forward.  All seat and crash barriers must be 
 32.34  installed according to and conform to federal motor vehicle 
 32.35  safety standard number 222, Code of Federal Regulations, title 
 32.36  49, part 571. 
 33.1      Sec. 30.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 169.4503, is 
 33.2   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
 33.3      Subd. 26.  [CROSSING CONTROL ARM.] If a bus is equipped 
 33.4   with a crossing control arm, an automatic recycling interrupt 
 33.5   switch may be installed for temporary disabling of the crossing 
 33.6   control arm.  
 33.7      Sec. 31.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 33.8   171.321, subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
 33.9      Subd. 5.  [ANNUAL EVALUATION AND LICENSE VERIFICATION.] (a) 
 33.10  A school district, nonpublic school, or private contractor shall 
 33.11  provide in-service training annually to each school bus driver.  
 33.12     (b) A school district, nonpublic school, or private 
 33.13  contractor shall annually verify the validity of the driver's 
 33.14  license of each person employee who regularly transports 
 33.15  students for the district in a type A school bus, a type B 
 33.16  school bus, a type C school bus, or type D school bus, or 
 33.17  regularly transports students for the district in a type III 
 33.18  vehicle with the National Driver Register or with the Department 
 33.19  of Public Safety. 
 33.20     Sec. 32.  [RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.] 
 33.21     Subdivision 1.  [SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATION SERVICE PROVIDERS.] 
 33.22  The commissioner of education shall adopt rules under Minnesota 
 33.23  Statutes, chapter 14, making permanent the supplemental 
 33.24  education service provider exempt rules authorized under Laws 
 33.25  2003, chapter 129, article 2, section 3. 
 33.26     Subd. 2.  [STATEWIDE TESTING.] The commissioner of 
 33.27  education shall adopt rules under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 
 33.28  14, for the administration of statewide accountability tests 
 33.29  under Minnesota Statutes, section 120B.30, to ensure security 
 33.30  and integrity of the tests and test results. 
 33.31     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 33.32  following final enactment. 
 33.33     Sec. 33.  [COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT STUDY.] 
 33.34     The Office of Education Accountability at the University of 
 33.35  Minnesota, in consultation with the Department of Education, 
 33.36  shall conduct a study on the cost of implementing a 
 34.1   computer-based adaptive test to replace the Minnesota 
 34.2   comprehensive assessments.  The Office of Educational 
 34.3   Accountability shall report to the education committees of the 
 34.4   legislature the results of the study by June 15, 2005. 
 34.5      [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 34.6   following final enactment. 
 34.7      Sec. 34.  [REPEALER.] 
 34.8      Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 169.447, subdivision 6; 
 34.9   169.4502, subdivisions 7, 9, 13, and 14; 169.4503, subdivisions 
 34.10  10, 10a, 21, and 25, are repealed effective October 31, 2004. 
 34.11                             ARTICLE 3 
 34.12                          SPECIAL PROGRAMS 
 34.13     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 125A.023, 
 34.14  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 34.15     Subd. 3.  [DEFINITIONS.] For purposes of this section and 
 34.16  section 125A.027, the following terms have the meanings given 
 34.17  them: 
 34.18     (a) "Health plan" means: 
 34.19     (1) a health plan under section 62Q.01, subdivision 3; 
 34.20     (2) a county-based purchasing plan under section 256B.692; 
 34.21     (3) a self-insured health plan established by a local 
 34.22  government under section 471.617; or 
 34.23     (4) self-insured health coverage provided by the state to 
 34.24  its employees or retirees. 
 34.25     (b) For purposes of this section, "health plan company" 
 34.26  means an entity that issues a health plan as defined in 
 34.27  paragraph (a). 
 34.28     (c) "Individual interagency intervention plan" means a 
 34.29  standardized written plan describing those programs or services 
 34.30  and the accompanying funding sources available to eligible 
 34.31  children with disabilities. 
 34.32     (d) "Interagency intervention service system" means a 
 34.33  system that coordinates services and programs required in state 
 34.34  and federal law to meet the needs of eligible children with 
 34.35  disabilities ages three to birth through 21, including: 
 34.36     (1) services provided under the following programs or 
 35.1   initiatives administered by state or local agencies: 
 35.2      (i) the maternal and child health program under title V of 
 35.3   the Social Security Act, United States Code, title 42, sections 
 35.4   701 to 709; 
 35.5      (ii) the Minnesota Children with Special Health Needs 
 35.6   program under sections 144.05 and 144.07; 
 35.7      (iii) the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act under 
 35.8   United States Code, title 20, chapter 33, subchapter II, 
 35.9   sections 1411 to 1420, Part B, section 619, and Part C as 
 35.10  amended; 
 35.11     (iii) (iv) medical assistance under title 42, chapter 7, of 
 35.12  the Social Security Act, United States Code, title 42, chapter 
 35.13  7, subchapter XIX, section 1396, et seq.; 
 35.14     (iv) (v) the developmental disabilities Assistance and Bill 
 35.15  of Rights Act, United States Code, title 42, chapter 75, 
 35.16  subchapter II, sections 6021 to 6030, Part B services under 
 35.17  chapter 256B; 
 35.18     (v) (vi) the Head Start Act, United States Code, title 42, 
 35.19  chapter 105, subchapter II, sections 9831 to 9852 under title 
 35.20  42, chapter 105, of the Social Security Act; 
 35.21     (vi) (vii) vocational rehabilitation services provided 
 35.22  under chapter chapters 248 and 268A and the Rehabilitation Act 
 35.23  of 1973; 
 35.24     (vii) (viii) Juvenile Court Act services provided under 
 35.25  sections 260.011 to 260.91; 260B.001 to 260B.446; and 260C.001 
 35.26  to 260C.451; 
 35.27     (viii) the children's mental health collaboratives under 
 35.28  section 245.493; 
 35.29     (ix) the family service collaboratives under section 
 35.30  124D.23; 
 35.31     (x) the family community support plan under section 
 35.32  245.4881, subdivision 4; 
 35.33     (xi) the MinnesotaCare program under chapter 256L; 
 35.34     (xii) (ix) Minnesota Comprehensive Children's Mental Health 
 35.35  Act under section 245.487; 
 35.36     (x) the community health services grants under chapter 
 36.1   145 sections 145.88 to 145.9266; 
 36.2      (xiii) the Community Social Services Act funding under the 
 36.3   Social Security Act, United States Code, title 42, sections 1397 
 36.4   to 1397f; and 
 36.5      (xiv) the community transition interagency committees under 
 36.6   section 125A.22; 
 36.7      (xi) the Local Public Health Act under chapter 145A; and 
 36.8      (xii) the Children and Community Services Act, sections 
 36.9   256M.60 to 256M.80; 
 36.10     (2) service provision and funding that can be coordinated 
 36.11  through: 
 36.12     (i) the children's mental health collaborative under 
 36.13  section 245.493; 
 36.14     (ii) the family services collaborative under section 
 36.15  124D.23; 
 36.16     (iii) the community transition interagency committees under 
 36.17  section 125A.22; and 
 36.18     (iv) the interagency early intervention committees under 
 36.19  section 125A.259; 
 36.20     (3) financial and other funding programs to be coordinated 
 36.21  including medical assistance under title 42, chapter 7, of the 
 36.22  Social Security Act, the MinnesotaCare program under chapter 
 36.23  256L, Supplemental Social Security Income, Developmental 
 36.24  Disabilities Assistance, and any other employment-related 
 36.25  activities associated with the Social Security Administration; 
 36.26  and services provided under a health plan in conformity with an 
 36.27  individual family service plan or an individual education 
 36.28  plan or an individual interagency intervention plan; and 
 36.29     (3) (4) additional appropriate services that local agencies 
 36.30  and counties provide on an individual need basis upon 
 36.31  determining eligibility and receiving a request from the 
 36.32  interagency early intervention committee and the child's parent. 
 36.33     (e) "Children with disabilities" has the meaning given in 
 36.34  section 125A.02. 
 36.35     (f) A "standardized written plan" means those individual 
 36.36  services or programs available through the interagency 
 37.1   intervention service system to an eligible child other than the 
 37.2   services or programs described in the child's individual 
 37.3   education plan or the child's individual family service plan. 
 37.4      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 125A.03, is 
 37.5   amended to read: 
 37.6      125A.03 [SPECIAL INSTRUCTION FOR CHILDREN WITH A 
 37.7   DISABILITY.] 
 37.8      (a) As defined in paragraph (b), every district must 
 37.9   provide special instruction and services, either within the 
 37.10  district or in another district, for all children with a 
 37.11  disability, including providing required services under the Code 
 37.12  of Federal Regulations, title 34, section 300.121, paragraph 
 37.13  (d), to those children suspended or expelled from school for 
 37.14  more than ten school days in that school year, who are residents 
 37.15  of the district and who are disabled as set forth in section 
 37.16  125A.02.  For purposes of state and federal special education 
 37.17  laws, the phrase "special instruction and services" in the state 
 37.18  education code means a free and appropriate public education 
 37.19  provided to an eligible child with disabilities and includes 
 37.20  special education and related services defined in the 
 37.21  Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, subpart A, section 
 37.22  300.24.  
 37.23     (b) Notwithstanding any age limits in laws to the contrary, 
 37.24  special instruction and services must be provided from birth 
 37.25  until July 1 after the child with a disability becomes 21 years 
 37.26  old but shall not extend beyond secondary school or its 
 37.27  equivalent, except as provided in section 124D.68, subdivision 
 37.28  2.  Local health, education, and social service agencies must 
 37.29  refer children under age five who are known to need or suspected 
 37.30  of needing special instruction and services to the school 
 37.31  district.  Districts with less than the minimum number of 
 37.32  eligible children with a disability as determined by the 
 37.33  commissioner must cooperate with other districts to maintain a 
 37.34  full range of programs for education and services for children 
 37.35  with a disability.  This section does not alter the compulsory 
 37.36  attendance requirements of section 120A.22. 
 38.1      [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 38.2   following final enactment. 
 38.3                              ARTICLE 4 
 38.4                              FACILITIES 
 38.5      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123B.53, 
 38.6   subdivision 6, is amended to read: 
 38.7      Subd. 6.  [DEBT SERVICE EQUALIZATION AID.] (a) A district's 
 38.8   debt service equalization aid is the sum of the district's first 
 38.9   tier debt service equalization aid and the district's second 
 38.10  tier debt service equalization aid. 
 38.11     (b) A district's first tier debt service equalization aid 
 38.12  equals the difference between the district's first tier debt 
 38.13  service equalization revenue and the district's first tier 
 38.14  equalized debt service levy. 
 38.15     (c) A district's second tier debt service equalization aid 
 38.16  equals the difference between the district's second tier debt 
 38.17  service equalization revenue and the district's second tier 
 38.18  equalized debt service levy. 
 38.19     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 38.20  475.61, subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
 38.21     Subd. 4.  [SURPLUS FUNDS.] (a) All such taxes shall be 
 38.22  collected and remitted to the municipality by the county 
 38.23  treasurer as other taxes are collected and remitted, and shall 
 38.24  be used only for payment of the obligations on account of which 
 38.25  levied or to repay advances from other funds used for such 
 38.26  payments, except that any surplus remaining in the debt service 
 38.27  fund when the obligations and interest thereon are paid may be 
 38.28  appropriated to any other general purpose by the municipality.  
 38.29  However, the amount of any surplus remaining in the debt service 
 38.30  fund of a school district when the obligations and interest 
 38.31  thereon are paid shall be used to reduce the general fund levy 
 38.32  authorized pursuant to chapters 122A, 123A, 123B, 124D, and 126C 
 38.33  and the state aids authorized pursuant to chapters 122A, 123A, 
 38.34  123B, 124D, 125A, 126C, and 127A. 
 38.35     (b) If the district qualified for second tier debt service 
 38.36  equalization aid in the last year that it qualified for debt 
 39.1   service equalization aid, the reduction to state aids equals the 
 39.2   lesser of (1) the amount of the surplus times the ratio of the 
 39.3   district's second tier debt service equalization aid to the 
 39.4   district's second tier debt service equalization revenue for the 
 39.5   last year that the district qualified for debt service 
 39.6   equalization aid; or (2) the district's cumulative amount of 
 39.7   debt service equalization aid. 
 39.8      (c) If the district did not qualify for second tier debt 
 39.9   service equalization aid in the last year that it qualified for 
 39.10  debt service equalization aid, the reduction to state aids 
 39.11  equals the lesser of (1) the amount of the surplus times the 
 39.12  ratio of the district's debt service equalization aid to the 
 39.13  district's debt service equalization revenue for the last year 
 39.14  that the district qualified for debt service equalization aid; 
 39.15  or (2) the district's cumulative amount of debt service 
 39.16  equalization aid.  
 39.17     (c) (d) The reduction to the general fund levy equals the 
 39.18  total amount of the surplus minus the reduction to state aids. 
 39.19     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for revenue for 
 39.20  fiscal year 2005. 
 39.21                             ARTICLE 5 
 39.22                TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS 
 39.23     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 39.24  120B.021, subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 39.25     Subd. 3.  [RULEMAKING.] (a) The commissioner, consistent 
 39.26  with the requirements of this section and section 120B.022, must 
 39.27  adopt statewide rules under section 14.389 for implementing 
 39.28  statewide rigorous core academic standards in language arts, 
 39.29  mathematics, and the arts.  After the rules authorized under 
 39.30  this paragraph are initially adopted, the commissioner may not 
 39.31  amend or repeal these rules nor adopt new rules on the same 
 39.32  topic without specific legislative authorization.  These 
 39.33  academic standards must be implemented for all students 
 39.34  beginning in the 2003-2004 school year. 
 39.35     (b) The rules authorized under this section are not subject 
 39.36  to section 14.127. 
 40.1      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 120B.35, is 
 40.2   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
 40.3      Subd. 5.  [IMPROVING GRADUATION RATES FOR STUDENTS WITH 
 40.4   EMOTIONAL OR BEHAVIORAL DISORDERS.] (a) A district must develop 
 40.5   strategies in conjunction with parents of students with 
 40.6   emotional or behavioral disorders and the county board 
 40.7   responsible for implementing sections 245.487 to 245.4887 to 
 40.8   keep students with emotional or behavioral disorders in school, 
 40.9   when the district has a drop-out rate for students with an 
 40.10  emotional or behavioral disorder in grades 9 through 12 
 40.11  exceeding 25 percent. 
 40.12     (b) A district must develop a plan in conjunction with 
 40.13  parents of students with emotional or behavioral disorders and 
 40.14  the local mental health authority to increase the graduation 
 40.15  rates of students with emotional or behavioral disorders.  A 
 40.16  district with a drop-out rate for children with an emotional or 
 40.17  behavioral disturbance in grades 9 through 12 that is in the top 
 40.18  25 percent of all districts shall submit a plan for review and 
 40.19  oversight to the commissioner. 
 40.20     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123A.442, 
 40.21  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 40.22     Subd. 2.  [COOPERATION AND COMBINATION.] Districts that 
 40.23  receive a cooperative secondary facilities grant after May 1, 
 40.24  1991, shall: 
 40.25     (1) submit a plan as set forth in section 123A.36 for 
 40.26  approval by the State Board of Education before December 31, 
 40.27  1999, or Department of Education after December 30, 1999; and 
 40.28     (2) hold a referendum on the question of combination no 
 40.29  later than four years after a grant is awarded under subdivision 
 40.30  1. 
 40.31     The districts are eligible for cooperation and combination 
 40.32  revenue under section 123A.39, subdivision 3.  
 40.33     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123A.443, 
 40.34  subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
 40.35     Subd. 4.  [DISTRICT PROCEDURES.] A joint powers board of a 
 40.36  secondary district established under subdivision 2 or a school 
 41.1   board of a reorganized district that intends to apply for a 
 41.2   grant must adopt a resolution stating the proposed costs of the 
 41.3   project, the purpose for which the costs are to be incurred, and 
 41.4   an estimate of the dates when the facilities for which the grant 
 41.5   is requested will be contracted for and completed.  Applications 
 41.6   for the state grants must be accompanied by (a) a copy of the 
 41.7   resolution, (b) a certificate by the clerk and treasurer of the 
 41.8   joint powers board showing the current outstanding indebtedness 
 41.9   of each member district, and (c) a certificate by the county 
 41.10  auditor of each county in which a portion of the joint powers 
 41.11  district lies showing the information in the auditor's official 
 41.12  records that is required to be used in computing the debt limit 
 41.13  of the district under section 475.53, subdivision 4.  The 
 41.14  clerk's and treasurer's certificate must show, as to each 
 41.15  outstanding bond issue of each member district, the amount 
 41.16  originally issued, the purpose for which issued, the date of 
 41.17  issue, the amount remaining unpaid as of the date of the 
 41.18  resolution, and the interest rates and due dates and amounts of 
 41.19  principal thereon.  Applications and necessary data must be in 
 41.20  the form prescribed by the commissioner and the rules of the 
 41.21  State Board of Education before December 31, 1999, and after 
 41.22  December 30, 1999, in the form prescribed by the commissioner.  
 41.23  Applications must be received by the commissioner by September 1 
 41.24  of an odd-numbered year.  When an application is received, the 
 41.25  commissioner shall obtain from the commissioner of revenue, and 
 41.26  from the public utilities commission when required, the 
 41.27  information in their official records that is required to be 
 41.28  used in computing the debt limit of the joint powers district 
 41.29  under section 475.53, subdivision 4. 
 41.30     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123A.55, is 
 41.31  amended to read: 
 41.32     123A.55 [CLASSES, NUMBER.] 
 41.33     Districts shall be classified as common, independent, or 
 41.34  special districts, each of which is a public corporation.  Each 
 41.35  district shall be known by its classification and assigned a 
 41.36  number by the commissioner so that its title will be .......... 
 42.1   School District Number No.  ..... . 
 42.2      Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 123B.58, 
 42.3   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 42.4      Subd. 2.  [FIRE SAFETY MODIFICATIONS.] If a district has 
 42.5   insufficient money in its capital expenditure fund to make 
 42.6   modifications to a school building required by a fire inspection 
 42.7   conducted according to section 123B.73 299F.47, the district may 
 42.8   submit an application to the commissioner containing information 
 42.9   required by the commissioner.  The commissioner shall approve or 
 42.10  disapprove of the application according to criteria established 
 42.11  by the commissioner.  The criteria shall take into consideration 
 42.12  the cost-effectiveness of making modifications to older 
 42.13  buildings. 
 42.14     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 124D.19, 
 42.15  subdivision 11, is amended to read: 
 42.16     Subd. 11.  [SCHOOL-AGE CARE PROGRAMS.] (a) A school board 
 42.17  may offer, as part of a community education program, a 
 42.18  school-age care program for children from kindergarten through 
 42.19  grade 6 for the purpose of expanding students' learning 
 42.20  opportunities.  If the school board chooses not to offer a 
 42.21  school-age care program, it may allow an appropriate insured 
 42.22  community group, for profit entity or nonprofit organization to 
 42.23  use available school facilities for the purpose of offering a 
 42.24  school-age care program. 
 42.25     (b) A school-age care program must include the following: 
 42.26     (1) adult supervised programs while school is not in 
 42.27  session; 
 42.28     (2) parental involvement in program design and direction; 
 42.29     (3) partnerships with the kindergarten through grade 12 
 42.30  system, and other public, private, or nonprofit entities; 
 42.31     (4) opportunities for trained secondary school pupils to 
 42.32  work with younger children in a supervised setting as part of a 
 42.33  community service program; and 
 42.34     (5) access to available school facilities, including the 
 42.35  gymnasium, sports equipment, computer labs, and media centers, 
 42.36  when not otherwise in use as part of the operation of the 
 43.1   school.  The school district may establish reasonable rules 
 43.2   relating to access to these facilities and may require that: 
 43.3      (i) the organization request access to the facilities and 
 43.4   prepare and maintain a schedule of proposed use; 
 43.5      (ii) the organization provide evidence of adequate 
 43.6   insurance to cover the activities to be conducted in the 
 43.7   facilities; and 
 43.8      (iii) the organization prepare and maintain a plan 
 43.9   demonstrating the adequacy and training of staff to supervise 
 43.10  the use of the facilities. 
 43.11     (c) The district may charge a sliding fee based upon family 
 43.12  income for school-age care programs.  The district may receive 
 43.13  money from other public or private sources for the school-age 
 43.14  care program.  The board of the district must develop standards 
 43.15  for school-age child care programs.  The State Board 
 43.16  commissioner of education may not adopt rules for school-age 
 43.17  care programs. 
 43.18     (d) The district shall maintain a separate account within 
 43.19  the community services fund for all funds related to the 
 43.20  school-age care program. 
 43.21     (e) A district is encouraged to coordinate the school-age 
 43.22  care program with its special education, vocational education, 
 43.23  adult basic education, early childhood family education 
 43.24  programs, kindergarten through grade 12 instruction and 
 43.25  curriculum services, youth development and youth service 
 43.26  agencies, and with related services provided by other 
 43.27  governmental agencies and nonprofit agencies. 
 43.28     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 43.29  124D.20, subdivision 11, is amended to read: 
 43.30     Subd. 11.  [RESERVE ACCOUNT LIMIT.] (a) Under this section, 
 43.31  the sum of the average balances during the most recent 
 43.32  three-year period in a district's community education reserve 
 43.33  account and unreserved/undesignated community service fund 
 43.34  account on June 30 of each year, adjusted for any prior 
 43.35  reductions under this subdivision, must not be greater than 25 
 43.36  percent of the sum of the district's maximum total community 
 44.1   education revenue under subdivision 1, excluding adjustments 
 44.2   under this subdivision, plus the district's additional community 
 44.3   education levy under section 124D.21, plus any fees, grants, or 
 44.4   other revenue received by the district for community education 
 44.5   programs for the prior year.  For purposes of this paragraph, 
 44.6   "community education programs" means programs according to 
 44.7   subdivisions 8, paragraph (a), and 9, and section 124D.19, 
 44.8   subdivision 12, excluding early childhood family education 
 44.9   programs under section 124D.13, school readiness programs under 
 44.10  sections section 124D.15 and 124D.17, and adult basic education 
 44.11  programs under section 124D.52. 
 44.12     (b) If the sum of the average balances during the most 
 44.13  recent three-year period in a district's community education 
 44.14  reserve account and unreserved/undesignated community service 
 44.15  fund account on June 30 of each year, adjusted for any prior 
 44.16  reductions under this subdivision, is in excess of the limit 
 44.17  under paragraph (a), the district's community education state 
 44.18  aid and levy authority for the current school year must be 
 44.19  reduced by the lesser of the current year revenue under 
 44.20  subdivision 1 or the excess reserve amount.  The aid reduction 
 44.21  equals the product of the lesser of the excess reserve amount or 
 44.22  the current year revenue under subdivision 1 times the ratio of 
 44.23  the district's aid for the current year under subdivision 7 to 
 44.24  the district's revenue for the current year under subdivision 
 44.25  1.  The levy reduction equals the excess reserve amount minus 
 44.26  the aid reduction.  For purposes of this paragraph, if a 
 44.27  district does not levy the entire amount permitted under 
 44.28  subdivision 5 or 6, the revenue under subdivision 1 must be 
 44.29  reduced in proportion to the actual amount levied. 
 44.30     (c) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), for fiscal year 2003, 
 44.31  the excess reserve amount shall be computed using the balances 
 44.32  in a district's community education reserve account and 
 44.33  unreserved/undesignated community service fund account on June 
 44.34  30, 2002.  For fiscal year 2004, the excess reserve amount shall 
 44.35  be computed using the adjusted average balances in a district's 
 44.36  community education reserve account and unreserved/undesignated 
 45.1   community service fund account on June 30, 2002, and June 30, 
 45.2   2003. 
 45.3      Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 124D.68, 
 45.4   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 45.5      Subd. 3.  [ELIGIBLE PROGRAMS.] (a) A pupil who is eligible 
 45.6   according to subdivision 2 may enroll in area learning centers 
 45.7   under sections 123A.05 to 123A.08, or according to section 
 45.8   122A.164. 
 45.9      (b) A pupil who is eligible according to subdivision 2 and 
 45.10  who is between the ages of 16 and 21 may enroll in postsecondary 
 45.11  courses under section 124D.09. 
 45.12     (c) A pupil who is eligible under subdivision 2, may enroll 
 45.13  in any public elementary or secondary education program.  
 45.14  However, a person who is eligible according to subdivision 2, 
 45.15  clause (b), may enroll only if the school board has adopted a 
 45.16  resolution approving the enrollment. 
 45.17     (d) A pupil who is eligible under subdivision 2, may enroll 
 45.18  in any nonpublic, nonsectarian school that has contracted with 
 45.19  the serving school district to provide educational services. 
 45.20     (e) A pupil who is between the ages of 16 and 21 may enroll 
 45.21  in any adult basic education programs approved under section 
 45.22  124D.52 and operated under the community education program 
 45.23  contained in section 124D.19. 
 45.24     Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 125A.07, is 
 45.25  amended to read: 
 45.26     125A.07 [RULES OF COMMISSIONER.] 
 45.27     (a) As defined in this paragraph, the commissioner must 
 45.28  adopt rules relative to qualifications of essential personnel, 
 45.29  courses of study, methods of instruction, pupil eligibility, 
 45.30  size of classes, rooms, equipment, supervision, parent 
 45.31  consultation, and other necessary rules for instruction of 
 45.32  children with a disability.  These rules must provide standards 
 45.33  and procedures appropriate for the implementation of and within 
 45.34  the limitations of sections 125A.08 and 125A.09 125A.091.  These 
 45.35  rules must also provide standards for the discipline, control, 
 45.36  management, and protection of children with a disability.  The 
 46.1   commissioner must not adopt rules for pupils served primarily in 
 46.2   the regular classroom establishing either case loads or the 
 46.3   maximum number of pupils that may be assigned to special 
 46.4   education teachers.  The commissioner, in consultation with the 
 46.5   Departments of Health and Human Services, must adopt permanent 
 46.6   rules for instruction and services for children under age five 
 46.7   and their families.  These rules are binding on state and local 
 46.8   education, health, and human services agencies.  The 
 46.9   commissioner must adopt rules to determine eligibility for 
 46.10  special education services.  The rules must include procedures 
 46.11  and standards by which to grant variances for experimental 
 46.12  eligibility criteria.  The commissioner must, according to 
 46.13  section 14.05, subdivision 4, notify a district applying for a 
 46.14  variance from the rules within 45 calendar days of receiving the 
 46.15  request whether the request for the variance has been granted or 
 46.16  denied.  If a request is denied, the commissioner must specify 
 46.17  the program standards used to evaluate the request and the 
 46.18  reasons for denying the request.  
 46.19     (b) As provided in this paragraph, the state's regulatory 
 46.20  scheme should support schools by assuring that all state special 
 46.21  education rules adopted by the commissioner result in one or 
 46.22  more of the following outcomes: 
 46.23     (1) increased time available to teachers and, where 
 46.24  appropriate, to support staff including school nurses for 
 46.25  educating students through direct and indirect instruction; 
 46.26     (2) consistent and uniform access to effective education 
 46.27  programs for students with disabilities throughout the state; 
 46.28     (3) reduced inequalities and conflict, appropriate due 
 46.29  process hearing procedures and reduced court actions related to 
 46.30  the delivery of special education instruction and services for 
 46.31  students with disabilities; 
 46.32     (4) clear expectations for service providers and for 
 46.33  students with disabilities; 
 46.34     (5) increased accountability for all individuals and 
 46.35  agencies that provide instruction and other services to students 
 46.36  with disabilities; 
 47.1      (6) greater focus for the state and local resources 
 47.2   dedicated to educating students with disabilities; and 
 47.3      (7) clearer standards for evaluating the effectiveness of 
 47.4   education and support services for students with disabilities. 
 47.5      Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 47.6   125A.091, subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
 47.7      Subd. 5.  [INITIAL ACTION; PARENT CONSENT.] (a) The 
 47.8   district must not proceed with the initial evaluation of a 
 47.9   child, the initial placement of a child in a special education 
 47.10  program, or the initial provision of special education services 
 47.11  for a child without the prior written consent of the child's 
 47.12  parent.  A district may not override the written refusal of a 
 47.13  parent to consent to an initial evaluation or reevaluation. 
 47.14     (b) A parent, after consulting with health care, education, 
 47.15  or other professional providers, may agree or disagree to 
 47.16  provide the parent's child with sympathomimetic medications 
 47.17  unless section 144.344 applies. 
 47.18     Sec. 12.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 125A.46, is 
 47.19  amended to read: 
 47.20     125A.46 [DUE PROCESS HEARINGS.] 
 47.21     The procedures for due process hearings and appeals must be 
 47.22  the same as those in section 125A.09 125A.091.  The 
 47.23  responsibility for payment of costs and conducting due process 
 47.24  hearings and appeals shall be allocated to the appropriate 
 47.25  agency in accordance with sections 125A.30, 125A.39, and 125A.42.
 47.26     Sec. 13.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 47.27  125A.75, subdivision 8, is amended to read: 
 47.28     Subd. 8.  [LITIGATION AND HEARING COSTS.] (a) For fiscal 
 47.29  year 1999 and thereafter, the commissioner of education, or the 
 47.30  commissioner's designee, shall use state funds to pay school 
 47.31  districts for the administrative costs of a due process hearing 
 47.32  incurred under section 125A.09 125A.091, subdivisions 6, 10 12, 
 47.33  13, and 11 24, including hearing officer fees, court reporter 
 47.34  fees, mileage costs, transcript costs, interpreter and 
 47.35  transliterator fees, independent evaluations ordered by the 
 47.36  hearing officer, and rental of hearing rooms, but not including 
 48.1   district attorney fees.  To receive state aid under this 
 48.2   paragraph, a school district shall submit to the commissioner by 
 48.3   August 1 an itemized list of unreimbursed actual costs for fees 
 48.4   and other expenses under this paragraph incurred after June 30, 
 48.5   1998, for hearings completed during the previous fiscal year.  
 48.6   State funds used for aid to school districts under this 
 48.7   paragraph shall be based on the unreimbursed actual costs and 
 48.8   fees submitted by a district. 
 48.9      (b) The commissioner shall provide districts with a form on 
 48.10  which to annually report litigation costs under this section and 
 48.11  shall base aid estimates on preliminary reports submitted by the 
 48.12  district during the current fiscal year. 
 48.13     Sec. 14.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 48.14  126C.457, is amended to read: 
 48.15     126C.457 [CAREER AND TECHNICAL LEVY.] 
 48.16     A school district may levy an amount equal to the greater 
 48.17  of (1) $10,000, or (2) the district's fiscal year 2001 
 48.18  entitlement for career and technical aid under Minnesota 
 48.19  Statutes 2000, section 124D.453.  The district must recognize 
 48.20  the full amount of this levy as revenue for the fiscal year in 
 48.21  which it is certified.  Revenue received under this section must 
 48.22  be reserved and used only for career and technical programs. 
 48.23     Sec. 15.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 48.24  127A.41, subdivision 9, is amended to read: 
 48.25     Subd. 9.  [APPROPRIATION TRANSFERS FOR COMMUNITY EDUCATION 
 48.26  PROGRAMS.] If a direct appropriation from the general fund to 
 48.27  the Department of Education for an education aid or grant 
 48.28  authorized under section 124D.135, 124D.16, 124D.20, 124D.21, 
 48.29  124D.22, 124D.52, 124D.531, 124D.54, 124D.55, or 124D.56 exceeds 
 48.30  the amount required, the commissioner of education may transfer 
 48.31  the excess to any education aid or grant appropriation that is 
 48.32  insufficiently funded under these sections.  Excess 
 48.33  appropriations shall be allocated proportionately among aids or 
 48.34  grants that have insufficient appropriations.  The commissioner 
 48.35  of finance shall make the necessary transfers among 
 48.36  appropriations according to the determinations of the 
 49.1   commissioner of education.  If the amount of the direct 
 49.2   appropriation for the aid or grant plus the amount transferred 
 49.3   according to this subdivision is insufficient, the commissioner 
 49.4   shall prorate the available amount among eligible districts.  
 49.5   The state is not obligated for any additional amounts. 
 49.6      [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective July 1, 2004. 
 49.7      Sec. 16.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260A.01, is 
 49.8   amended to read: 
 49.9      260A.01 [TRUANCY PROGRAMS AND SERVICES.] 
 49.10     (a) The programs in this chapter are designed to provide a 
 49.11  continuum of intervention and services to support families and 
 49.12  children in keeping children in school and combating truancy and 
 49.13  educational neglect.  School districts, county attorneys, and 
 49.14  law enforcement may establish the programs and coordinate them 
 49.15  with other community-based truancy services in order to provide 
 49.16  the necessary and most effective intervention for children and 
 49.17  their families.  This continuum of intervention and services 
 49.18  involves progressively intrusive intervention, beginning with 
 49.19  strong service-oriented efforts at the school and community 
 49.20  level and involving the court's authority only when necessary. 
 49.21     (b) Consistent with section 125A.09 125A.091, subdivision 3 
 49.22  5, a parent's refusal to provide the parent's child with 
 49.23  sympathomimetic medications does not constitute educational 
 49.24  neglect.  
 49.25     Sec. 17.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 260C.163, 
 49.26  subdivision 11, is amended to read: 
 49.27     Subd. 11.  [PRESUMPTIONS REGARDING TRUANCY OR EDUCATIONAL 
 49.28  NEGLECT.] (a) A child's absence from school is presumed to be 
 49.29  due to the parent's, guardian's, or custodian's failure to 
 49.30  comply with compulsory instruction laws if the child is under 12 
 49.31  years old and the school has made appropriate efforts to resolve 
 49.32  the child's attendance problems; this presumption may be 
 49.33  rebutted based on a showing by clear and convincing evidence 
 49.34  that the child is habitually truant.  A child's absence from 
 49.35  school without lawful excuse, when the child is 12 years old or 
 49.36  older, is presumed to be due to the child's intent to be absent 
 50.1   from school; this presumption may be rebutted based on a showing 
 50.2   by clear and convincing evidence that the child's absence is due 
 50.3   to the failure of the child's parent, guardian, or custodian to 
 50.4   comply with compulsory instruction laws, sections 120A.22 and 
 50.5   120A.24. 
 50.6      (b) Consistent with section 125A.09 125A.091, subdivision 3 
 50.7   5, a parent's refusal to provide the parent's child with 
 50.8   sympathomimetic medications does not constitute educational 
 50.9   neglect. 
 50.10     Sec. 18.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 50.11  626.556, subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
 50.12     Subd. 2.  [DEFINITIONS.] As used in this section, the 
 50.13  following terms have the meanings given them unless the specific 
 50.14  content indicates otherwise: 
 50.15     (a) "Sexual abuse" means the subjection of a child by a 
 50.16  person responsible for the child's care, by a person who has a 
 50.17  significant relationship to the child, as defined in section 
 50.18  609.341, or by a person in a position of authority, as defined 
 50.19  in section 609.341, subdivision 10, to any act which constitutes 
 50.20  a violation of section 609.342 (criminal sexual conduct in the 
 50.21  first degree), 609.343 (criminal sexual conduct in the second 
 50.22  degree), 609.344 (criminal sexual conduct in the third degree), 
 50.23  609.345 (criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree), or 
 50.24  609.3451 (criminal sexual conduct in the fifth degree).  Sexual 
 50.25  abuse also includes any act which involves a minor which 
 50.26  constitutes a violation of prostitution offenses under sections 
 50.27  609.321 to 609.324 or 617.246.  Sexual abuse includes threatened 
 50.28  sexual abuse.  
 50.29     (b) "Person responsible for the child's care" means (1) an 
 50.30  individual functioning within the family unit and having 
 50.31  responsibilities for the care of the child such as a parent, 
 50.32  guardian, or other person having similar care responsibilities, 
 50.33  or (2) an individual functioning outside the family unit and 
 50.34  having responsibilities for the care of the child such as a 
 50.35  teacher, school administrator, other school employees or agents, 
 50.36  or other lawful custodian of a child having either full-time or 
 51.1   short-term care responsibilities including, but not limited to, 
 51.2   day care, babysitting whether paid or unpaid, counseling, 
 51.3   teaching, and coaching.  
 51.4      (c) "Neglect" means: 
 51.5      (1) failure by a person responsible for a child's care to 
 51.6   supply a child with necessary food, clothing, shelter, health, 
 51.7   medical, or other care required for the child's physical or 
 51.8   mental health when reasonably able to do so; 
 51.9      (2) failure to protect a child from conditions or actions 
 51.10  that seriously endanger the child's physical or mental health 
 51.11  when reasonably able to do so; 
 51.12     (3) failure to provide for necessary supervision or child 
 51.13  care arrangements appropriate for a child after considering 
 51.14  factors as the child's age, mental ability, physical condition, 
 51.15  length of absence, or environment, when the child is unable to 
 51.16  care for the child's own basic needs or safety, or the basic 
 51.17  needs or safety of another child in their care; 
 51.18     (4) failure to ensure that the child is educated as defined 
 51.19  in sections 120A.22 and 260C.163, subdivision 11, which does not 
 51.20  include a parent's refusal to provide the parent's child with 
 51.21  sympathomimetic medications, consistent with section 
 51.22  125A.09 125A.091, subdivision 3 5; 
 51.23     (5) nothing in this section shall be construed to mean that 
 51.24  a child is neglected solely because the child's parent, 
 51.25  guardian, or other person responsible for the child's care in 
 51.26  good faith selects and depends upon spiritual means or prayer 
 51.27  for treatment or care of disease or remedial care of the child 
 51.28  in lieu of medical care; except that a parent, guardian, or 
 51.29  caretaker, or a person mandated to report pursuant to 
 51.30  subdivision 3, has a duty to report if a lack of medical care 
 51.31  may cause serious danger to the child's health.  This section 
 51.32  does not impose upon persons, not otherwise legally responsible 
 51.33  for providing a child with necessary food, clothing, shelter, 
 51.34  education, or medical care, a duty to provide that care; 
 51.35     (6) prenatal exposure to a controlled substance, as defined 
 51.36  in section 253B.02, subdivision 2, used by the mother for a 
 52.1   nonmedical purpose, as evidenced by withdrawal symptoms in the 
 52.2   child at birth, results of a toxicology test performed on the 
 52.3   mother at delivery or the child at birth, or medical effects or 
 52.4   developmental delays during the child's first year of life that 
 52.5   medically indicate prenatal exposure to a controlled substance; 
 52.6      (7) "medical neglect" as defined in section 260C.007, 
 52.7   subdivision 6, clause (5); 
 52.8      (8) chronic and severe use of alcohol or a controlled 
 52.9   substance by a parent or person responsible for the care of the 
 52.10  child that adversely affects the child's basic needs and safety; 
 52.11  or 
 52.12     (9) emotional harm from a pattern of behavior which 
 52.13  contributes to impaired emotional functioning of the child which 
 52.14  may be demonstrated by a substantial and observable effect in 
 52.15  the child's behavior, emotional response, or cognition that is 
 52.16  not within the normal range for the child's age and stage of 
 52.17  development, with due regard to the child's culture. 
 52.18     (d) "Physical abuse" means any physical injury, mental 
 52.19  injury, or threatened injury, inflicted by a person responsible 
 52.20  for the child's care on a child other than by accidental means, 
 52.21  or any physical or mental injury that cannot reasonably be 
 52.22  explained by the child's history of injuries, or any aversive or 
 52.23  deprivation procedures, or regulated interventions, that have 
 52.24  not been authorized under section 121A.67 or 245.825.  Abuse 
 52.25  does not include reasonable and moderate physical discipline of 
 52.26  a child administered by a parent or legal guardian which does 
 52.27  not result in an injury.  Abuse does not include the use of 
 52.28  reasonable force by a teacher, principal, or school employee as 
 52.29  allowed by section 121A.582.  Actions which are not reasonable 
 52.30  and moderate include, but are not limited to, any of the 
 52.31  following that are done in anger or without regard to the safety 
 52.32  of the child: 
 52.33     (1) throwing, kicking, burning, biting, or cutting a child; 
 52.34     (2) striking a child with a closed fist; 
 52.35     (3) shaking a child under age three; 
 52.36     (4) striking or other actions which result in any 
 53.1   nonaccidental injury to a child under 18 months of age; 
 53.2      (5) unreasonable interference with a child's breathing; 
 53.3      (6) threatening a child with a weapon, as defined in 
 53.4   section 609.02, subdivision 6; 
 53.5      (7) striking a child under age one on the face or head; 
 53.6      (8) purposely giving a child poison, alcohol, or dangerous, 
 53.7   harmful, or controlled substances which were not prescribed for 
 53.8   the child by a practitioner, in order to control or punish the 
 53.9   child; or other substances that substantially affect the child's 
 53.10  behavior, motor coordination, or judgment or that results in 
 53.11  sickness or internal injury, or subjects the child to medical 
 53.12  procedures that would be unnecessary if the child were not 
 53.13  exposed to the substances; 
 53.14     (9) unreasonable physical confinement or restraint not 
 53.15  permitted under section 609.379, including but not limited to 
 53.16  tying, caging, or chaining; or 
 53.17     (10) in a school facility or school zone, an act by a 
 53.18  person responsible for the child's care that is a violation 
 53.19  under section 121A.58. 
 53.20     (e) "Report" means any report received by the local welfare 
 53.21  agency, police department, county sheriff, or agency responsible 
 53.22  for assessing or investigating maltreatment pursuant to this 
 53.23  section. 
 53.24     (f) "Facility" means a licensed or unlicensed day care 
 53.25  facility, residential facility, agency, hospital, sanitarium, or 
 53.26  other facility or institution required to be licensed under 
 53.27  sections 144.50 to 144.58, 241.021, or 245A.01 to 245A.16, or 
 53.28  chapter 245B; or a school as defined in sections 120A.05, 
 53.29  subdivisions 9, 11, and 13; and 124D.10; or a nonlicensed 
 53.30  personal care provider organization as defined in sections 
 53.31  256B.04, subdivision 16, and 256B.0625, subdivision 19a. 
 53.32     (g) "Operator" means an operator or agency as defined in 
 53.33  section 245A.02.  
 53.34     (h) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of human services.
 53.35     (i) "Assessment" includes authority to interview the child, 
 53.36  the person or persons responsible for the child's care, the 
 54.1   alleged perpetrator, and any other person with knowledge of the 
 54.2   abuse or neglect for the purpose of gathering the facts, 
 54.3   assessing the risk to the child, and formulating a plan.  
 54.4      (j) "Practice of social services," for the purposes of 
 54.5   subdivision 3, includes but is not limited to employee 
 54.6   assistance counseling and the provision of guardian ad litem and 
 54.7   parenting time expeditor services.  
 54.8      (k) "Mental injury" means an injury to the psychological 
 54.9   capacity or emotional stability of a child as evidenced by an 
 54.10  observable or substantial impairment in the child's ability to 
 54.11  function within a normal range of performance and behavior with 
 54.12  due regard to the child's culture. 
 54.13     (l) "Threatened injury" means a statement, overt act, 
 54.14  condition, or status that represents a substantial risk of 
 54.15  physical or sexual abuse or mental injury.  Threatened injury 
 54.16  includes, but is not limited to, exposing a child to a person 
 54.17  responsible for the child's care, as defined in paragraph (b), 
 54.18  clause (1), who has: 
 54.19     (1) subjected a child to, or failed to protect a child 
 54.20  from, an overt act or condition that constitutes egregious harm, 
 54.21  as defined in section 260C.007, subdivision 14, or a similar law 
 54.22  of another jurisdiction; 
 54.23     (2) been found to be palpably unfit under section 260C.301, 
 54.24  paragraph (b), clause (4), or a similar law of another 
 54.25  jurisdiction; 
 54.26     (3) committed an act that has resulted in an involuntary 
 54.27  termination of parental rights under section 260C.301, or a 
 54.28  similar law of another jurisdiction; or 
 54.29     (4) committed an act that has resulted in the involuntary 
 54.30  transfer of permanent legal and physical custody of a child to a 
 54.31  relative under section 260C.201, subdivision 11, paragraph (d), 
 54.32  clause (1), or a similar law of another jurisdiction. 
 54.33     (m) Persons who conduct assessments or investigations under 
 54.34  this section shall take into account accepted child-rearing 
 54.35  practices of the culture in which a child participates and 
 54.36  accepted teacher discipline practices, which are not injurious 
 55.1   to the child's health, welfare, and safety. 
 55.2      Sec. 19.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 631.40, 
 55.3   subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
 55.4      Subd. 4.  [LICENSED TEACHERS.] When a person is convicted 
 55.5   of child abuse, as defined in section 609.185, or sexual abuse 
 55.6   under section 609.342, 609.343, 609.344, 609.345, 609.3451, 
 55.7   subdivision 3, or 617.23, subdivision 3, the court shall 
 55.8   determine whether the person is licensed to teach under chapter 
 55.9   122A.  If the offender is a licensed teacher, the court 
 55.10  administrator shall send a certified copy of the conviction to 
 55.11  the Board of Teaching or the state Board of Education School 
 55.12  Administrators, whichever has jurisdiction over the teacher's 
 55.13  license, within ten days after the conviction. 
 55.14     Sec. 20.  Laws 2003, chapter 130, section 12, is amended to 
 55.15  read: 
 55.16     Sec. 12.  [REVISOR INSTRUCTION.] 
 55.17     (a) In Minnesota Statutes, the revisor shall renumber 
 55.18  section 119A.02 119A.01, subdivision 2, as 120A.02, paragraph 
 55.19  (a), and section 120A.02 as 120A.02, paragraph (b). 
 55.20     (b) In Minnesota Statutes and Minnesota Rules, the revisor 
 55.21  shall change the term "children, families, and learning" to 
 55.22  "education." 
 55.23     Sec. 21.  [REVISOR INSTRUCTION.] 
 55.24     In the next edition of Minnesota Rules, chapter 3530, the 
 55.25  revisor shall change the term "Office of Public Libraries and 
 55.26  Interlibrary Cooperation" to "Library Development and Services" 
 55.27  and "OPLIC" to "LDS." 
 55.28     Sec. 22.  [REPEALER; REVIVAL OF STATUTE.] 
 55.29     (a) Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 124D.91 and 124D.92, 
 55.30  are repealed. 
 55.31     (b) Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 134.47, subdivision 3, 
 55.32  is repealed effective retroactive to June 30, 2003.  
 55.33  Notwithstanding Minnesota Statutes, section 645.36, Minnesota 
 55.34  Statutes 2002, section 134.47, subdivisions 1 and 2, are revived 
 55.35  effective retroactively from June 30, 2003. 
 55.36                             ARTICLE 6 
 56.1              K-12 SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES STANDARDS 
 56.2      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 56.3   120B.021, subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
 56.4      Subd. 3.  [RULEMAKING.] (a) The commissioner, consistent 
 56.5   with the requirements of this section and section 120B.022, must 
 56.6   adopt statewide rules under section 14.389 for implementing 
 56.7   statewide rigorous core academic standards in language arts, 
 56.8   mathematics, science, social studies, and the arts.  After the 
 56.9   rules authorized under this paragraph are initially adopted, the 
 56.10  commissioner may not amend or repeal these rules nor adopt new 
 56.11  rules on the same topic without specific legislative 
 56.12  authorization.  These The academic standards for language arts, 
 56.13  mathematics, and the arts must be implemented for all students 
 56.14  beginning in the 2003-2004 school year.  The academic standards 
 56.15  for science and social studies must be implemented for all 
 56.16  students beginning in the 2005-2006 school year. 
 56.17     (b) The rules authorized under this section are not subject 
 56.18  to section 14.127.  
 56.19     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 56.20  following final enactment.  
 56.21     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
 56.22  120B.30, subdivision 1a, is amended to read: 
 56.23     Subd. 1a.  [STATEWIDE AND LOCAL ASSESSMENTS; RESULTS.] (a) 
 56.24  The commissioner must develop language arts, mathematics, and 
 56.25  science assessments aligned with state academic standards that 
 56.26  districts and sites must use to monitor student growth toward 
 56.27  achieving those standards.  The commissioner must not develop 
 56.28  statewide assessments for academic standards in social studies 
 56.29  and the arts.  The commissioner must require: 
 56.30     (1) annual language arts and mathematics assessments in 
 56.31  grades 3 through 8 and at the high school level for the 
 56.32  2005-2006 school year and later; and 
 56.33     (2) annual science assessments in one grade in the grades 3 
 56.34  through 5 span, the grades 6 through 9 span, and a life sciences 
 56.35  assessment in the grades 10 through 12 span for the 2007-2008 
 56.36  school year and later. 
 57.1      (b) The commissioner must ensure that all statewide tests 
 57.2   administered to elementary and secondary students measure 
 57.3   students' academic knowledge and skills and not students' 
 57.4   values, attitudes, and beliefs. 
 57.5      (c) Reporting of assessment results must: 
 57.6      (1) provide timely, useful, and understandable information 
 57.7   on the performance of individual students, schools, school 
 57.8   districts, and the state; 
 57.9      (2) include, by the 2006-2007 school year, a value-added 
 57.10  component to measure student achievement growth over time; and 
 57.11     (3) determine whether students have met the state's basic 
 57.12  skills requirements. 
 57.13     (d) Consistent with applicable federal law and subdivision 
 57.14  1, paragraph (d), clause (1), the commissioner must include 
 57.15  alternative assessments for the very few students with 
 57.16  disabilities for whom statewide assessments are inappropriate 
 57.17  and for students with limited English proficiency. 
 57.18     (e) A school, school district, and charter school must 
 57.19  administer statewide assessments under this section, as the 
 57.20  assessments become available, to evaluate student progress in 
 57.21  achieving the academic standards.  If a state assessment is not 
 57.22  available, a school, school district, and charter school must 
 57.23  determine locally if a student has met the required academic 
 57.24  standards.  A school, school district, or charter school may use 
 57.25  a student's performance on a statewide assessment as one of 
 57.26  multiple criteria to determine grade promotion or retention.  A 
 57.27  school, school district, or charter school may use a high school 
 57.28  student's performance on a statewide assessment as a percentage 
 57.29  of the student's final grade in a course, or place a student's 
 57.30  assessment score on the student's transcript.  
 57.31     Sec. 3.  [MINNESOTA'S HIGH ACADEMIC STANDARDS.] 
 57.32     (a) The standards for science and social studies adopted by 
 57.33  the commissioner of education under Minnesota Statutes, section 
 57.34  120B.021, must be identical to: 
 57.35     (1) the K-12 standards for science contained in the 
 57.36  document labeled "Minnesota Academic Standards, Science K-12, 
 58.1   December 19, 2003, Minnesota Academic Standards Committee, 
 58.2   Minnesota Department of Education"; and 
 58.3      (2) the K-12 standards for social studies contained in the 
 58.4   document labeled "Minnesota Academic Standards in History and 
 58.5   Social Studies May 15, 2004, 9:45 p.m." 
 58.6      (b) The K-12 standards documents must be deposited with the 
 58.7   Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, the Legislative Reference 
 58.8   Library, and the Minnesota State Law Library, where the 
 58.9   documents shall be maintained until the commissioner adopts 
 58.10  rules for implementing statewide rigorous core academic 
 58.11  standards in science and social studies under Minnesota 
 58.12  Statutes, section 120B.021, subdivision 3.  The revisor must 
 58.13  determine that the rules are identical to the documents 
 58.14  deposited with the revisor under this section before the revisor 
 58.15  approves the form of the rules.  In approving the form of the 
 58.16  rules, the revisor may make any needed grammatical and form 
 58.17  changes. 
 58.18     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 58.19  following final enactment.  
 58.20     Sec. 4.  [K-12 SOCIAL STUDIES STANDARDS RULES.] 
 58.21     (a) Beginning no later than July 1, 2004, the education 
 58.22  commissioner shall adopt the K-12 academic social studies 
 58.23  standards incorporated by reference under this act using the 
 58.24  expedited process under Minnesota Statutes, section 14.389.  
 58.25     (b) In addition to technical changes, corrections, 
 58.26  clarifications, and similarly needed revisions, the revisor 
 58.27  shall modify the K-12 academic social studies standards to allow 
 58.28  school districts to place the standards in the following grade 
 58.29  bands:  K-3, 4-8, 9-12 to accommodate their particular 
 58.30  curriculum.  The standards should be mastered by the end of the 
 58.31  highest grade in the band. 
 58.32     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective the day 
 58.33  following final enactment.