2E Providing for the financing of prekindergarten through grade 12 education programs and services

ARTICLE 1 - GENERAL EDUCATION

Defining kindergarten for general education purposes; requiring school districts to reserve a certain amount of basic revenue for crime, drug abuse and violence prevention, gang resistance education and peace officer services including pay for school counselors, social workers, nurses and psychologists; reducing the formula for determination of the required area learning center reserved revenue amount; correcting the name of a certain manual used to record revenues and expenditures for extra curricular (extracurricular) activities; defining adjusted net tax capacity for debt service equalization purposes; providing for school district recognition of taconite revenue; expanding building expenditures reporting requirements, removing the exclusion of capital expenditures and pupil transportation from separate accounts maintenance requirements; changing the name of school district general fund accounts from undesignated fund balance to net unreserved general fund balance for funds transfer and operating debt calculation purposes, defining unreserved general fund balance; requiring school districts to report the salaries and fringe benefits of certain school district employees and pupil transportation expenditures; modifying the formulas for general education and transportation revenue for charter schools; modifying certain graduation incentive program enrollment verification requirements, excluding compensatory revenue from the reduction requirement for part time students; clarifying the formula for aid for alternative programs provided under contract; defining extended average daily membership for school districts and charter schools and providing for calculation; specifying certain requirements for eligibility of public schools with project based programs for general education revenue; modifying the general education revenue formula and increasing the basic revenue formula allowance; eliminating operating capital levy and aid after fiscal year 2006; updating the transportation sparsity revenue allowance; excluding referendum conversion allowance authority from referendum equity revenue, excepting districts reauthorizing the revenue at an election; eliminating equity levy and aid and transition revenue, levy and aid after fiscal year 2006, modifying the determination of transition revenue for fiscal year 2006; requiring the commissioner of education to annually establish the consolidated levy tax rate for levies payable in the following year; requiring school district consolidated levies for general education revenue eligibility purposes, imposing limits in excess levy cases; modifying the general education aid and referendum revenue allowance formulas; increasing the first tier referendum equalization allowance formula; simplifying the language on referendum revenue ballots; authorizing and providing for school districts receiving transition revenue in fiscal year 2004 to convert the transition revenue conversion allowance to additional referendum allowance for fiscal year 2007 and later; clarifying the taconite deduction from general education aid; accelerating the date for school district notice to the commissioner of certified levies; requiring the reduction of certain levies upon imposition of a tax on severed mineral values; providing for the payment of telecommunications/internet access equity and shared time aids; modifying the transportation sparsity aid formula for districts with charter schools; changing the year for calculation of abatement aid; modifying the census requirement for school districts, requiring use of the most recent federal census; clarifying the requirement for county auditors to set property tax levy amounts; modifying the distribution of excess taxes on captured net tax capacity of tax increment financing (TIF) districts to school districts; adjusting certain appropriations for general education, referendum tax base replacement and nonpublic pupil education and transportation aids; providing for calculation of prekindergarten programs and transition revenue 2004 conversion allowances; providing revenue for school district replacement of defective Carpenter school buses; providing for the calculation of pupil units for independent school district #38, Red Lake for declining pupil unit aid receipt purposes; authorizing the reporting of certain four or five year olds as kindergarten pupils; authorizing school districts receiving additional transition revenue for the four year old prekindergarten program in fiscal year 2006 to levy for the revenue in fiscal year 2007; appropriating money to the department of education for school bus loan revenue; repealing certain provisions relating to statutory operating debt, operating capital and equity levies and aids, transition revenue and aid and the safe schools levy

ARTICLE 2 - EDUCATION EXCELLENCE

Expanding required academic standards to physical and health education; providing for waiver of certain academic standards for students participating in certain rigorous courses of study; modifying high school level mathematics course requirements, specifying the number of required course credits for physical and health education and reducing the number of elective course credits required for graduation; clarifying certain school board instruction and curriculum policy adoption requirements and authorizing web site publication of annual student
achievement reports; regulating and providing for student participation in gifted and talented programs; including self protection as one of the components of violence prevention curriculum; providing for instruction on documents relating to American heritage; modifying statewide testing requirements for students in grade 8; providing for parental access to statewide tests and assessments; requiring and providing for the commissioner of education to implement a value added assessment program to assist school districts and schools in assessing and reporting growth in student academic achievement and to award grants to public school sites to increase student achievement and eliminate the achievement gap; requiring school district electronic reporting of dangerous weapons incidents and student exclusions and expulsions; requiring school board policies prohibiting intimidation and bullying; authorizing secondary students to possess and use nonprescription pain
relievers under certain conditions; providing for comprehensive family life and sexuality education programs; authorizing the board of school administrators to reimburse local school districts for the cost of teachers employed to substitute for regular teachers serving on the board; modifying certain teacher preparation reading instruction requirements for licensing purposes; providing for consecutive teaching experience for probationary teachers with consecutive employment interrupted for active military service and for probationary periods for assistant principals and an alternative teacher layoff procedure under the teacher tenure act, defining work year for teacher probationary period completion purposes; requiring substantial teacher participation in the
development of school district educational improvement plans; providing a professional compensation initiative for teachers in lieu of alternative teacher compensation aid, authorizing the reopening of collective bargaining agreements for professional compensation system and educational improvement plan purposes and providing for professional compensation pilot site aid; specifying certain requirements of staff development activities for effectiveness purposes, report requirements; eliminating the authority of school districts to waive staff development reserved revenue requirements and authorizing reservation of the revenue by districts participating in the professional compensation initiative; requiring and providing for the commissioner to establish schools mentoring schools regional sites; authorizing and providing for the commissioner to contract with the board of regents of the university of Minnesota to establish a principals leadership institute to provide professional development to school principals; authorizing school board establishment and operation of employee recognition and criminal apprehension and arrest reward programs; modifying certain provisions regulating school site decision making agreements; authorizing school boards to establish pupil transportation safety committees to review and recommend changes to pupil transportation safety policies and to develop comprehensive plans for the safe transportation of students facing hazardous transportation conditions; changing the first grade preparedness program to the all day kindergarten program; requiring or encouraging post-secondary institutions to award credit for successful completion of programs under the post-secondary enrollment options (PSEO) program certified by the national alliance of concurrent enrollment partnership; clarifying the prohibition on the receipt of aids, grants or revenue based on certain levies for charter schools; modifying eligibility for services under assurance of mastery programs relating to students failing certain tests; authorizing American Indian education programs in charter schools and eliminating the required involvement of the American Indian education advisory committee in grant and scholarship awards; requiring and providing for the commissioner to continue implementation of the no child left behind act without interruption, specifying certain review and report requirements; authorizing the board of the Perpich center for arts education to conduct meetings by telephone or other electronic means; expanding the definition of public employee under the public employment labor relations act (PELRA) to early childhood family education (ECFE) teachers employed by school districts; modifying court findings requirements for children adjudicated in need of protection or services relating to drivers licenses or permits; modifying certain prior appropriations for best practices seminars, for teacher compensation, for youth works programs, for student organizations, for the collaborative urban educator program and for all day kindergarten; requiring the higher education advisory council to convene a working group to develop college preparation standards; specifying certain duties of the commissioner relating to adopting rules to implement the Minnesota comprehensive assessments second edition (MCA-IIs) in reading, mathematics and writing, including the cost of developing an adaptive computer based assessment within the budget for statewide testing, to transmitting to school districts health and physical education model benchmarks and to amending rules for supplemental services providers to include outcome standards; requiring the commissioner to work with the Minnesota school boards association to develop a model policy prohibiting intimidation and bullying and to contract with an independent contractor to continue and complete the work done by the education funding task force of the governor; requiring the office of educational accountability to evaluate the educational impact of the federal no child left behind act and other state and federal laws requiring school districts to administer tests to kindergarten through grade twelve students; requiring school districts and department of education development of certain licensed student support services; requiring the board of teaching to prepare and submit to the legislature by a certain date proposed licensure requirements for teachers of interdisciplinary curriculum to facilitate learning in state approved innovative schools and programs; requiring the commissioner to convene a task force on professional compensation models for teachers and report to the legislature by a certain date; appropriating money to the department for an improved school finance system contract, for a staff development state match and for the professional compensation for teachers task force; repealing a certain existing provision providing for programs to prevent and reduce the risks of sexually transmitted infections and diseases and the alternative teacher compensation system and aid

ARTICLE 3 - SPECIAL PROGRAMS

Expanding aversive and deprivation procedures to positive behavioral
interventions and supports and time outs and modifying and expanding certain rule requirements of the commissioner of education; establishing a student support services advisory committee, specifying certain membership requirements and duties; expanding the definition of transportation services for pupils with disabilities for transportation aid entitlement purposes, including the costs of transporting homeless students; modifying the authority of charter schools to charge tuition to districts of residence for special education aid eligibility purposes; restoring school district career and technical levy authority; increasing aid for limited English proficiency (LEP) programs by modifying the average daily membership requirement; modifying the nonresident tuition rate and certain other costs for children with disabilities; modifying certain membership requirements for special education parent advisory councils and the date for annual submission by the state interagency coordinating council of recommendations to the governor and certain commissioners on policies for a comprehensive and coordinated special instruction system; providing transportation for homeless students; increasing the program growth factor for special education revenue and excess cost aid determination purposes and the state total special education and special education excess cost aids; creating the charter school special education reimbursement account in the general fund and transferring the amount
necessary for payment of the state share from the appropriation for special education excess cost aid to the account; requiring the commissioner to examine the tuition bills from charter schools, authorizing adjustment; authorizing school district members of the Wright technical center to levy for a certain percentage of the costs associated with leases of administrative and classroom space at the center, limit; requiring the commissioner to designate a full time state coordinator for world languages education within the department of education by a certain date, specifying duties of the coordinator; requiring adjustment of special education aid for pupils attending nonresident districts and adjusting the tuition to the resident district for certain facilities and instructional costs provided to students with disabilities; reinstating the advisory committee to the staff of the library for the blind and physically handicapped on long range plans and library services; modifying certain appropriations for special education and special education excess cost aids; establishing the native language eminence credentialing task force to support the teaching and revitalization of the Dakota and Anishinaabe languages, specifying certain membership requirements and duties; providing for the establishment of a temporary task force on the delivery of special education services to nonpublic school students by public school districts with the congressional reauthorization of the federal individuals with disabilities education act to compare and evaluate individual needs for services, requiring a report to the legislature by a certain date; appropriating money to the department of education for the nonpublic student special education task force and the native language eminence credentialing task force; repealing a certain special litigation and hearing costs payment requirement

ARTICLE 4 - TECHNOLOGY, FACILITIES AND ACCOUNTING

Requiring school districts providing electronic components of curriculum to resident students to provide access to the components to home schooled students upon request under certain incidental cost conditions; expanding certain school or school district parental notice requirements relating to the use of certain older pools for supervised competitive high school diving training and competitions; adjusting a certain debt service appropriation; encouraging school districts to include certain acoustical performance criteria in facility construction proposals; modifying the online learning program, establishing a temporary online learning advisory council; providing telecommunications/internet access equity aid to school districts or charter schools, requiring school districts to provide telecommunications/internet access services for nonpublic schools upon request; authorizing school districts to hold referenda on the same day as the district election for facility operating costs; reducing the maximum effort capital loan tax rate; authorizing and providing for administrative regions of the state high school league to contract with the state auditor or with private certified public accountants (CPA) to perform annual audits; excluding bonds issued to pay pension fund liabilities from the net debt of special school district #1, Minneapolis; authorizing school districts to appropriate unused (surplus) debt service revenue for general purposes; expanding a certain provision authorizing the payment of school district refunding bonds from taconite production tax revenues; extending the garage lease levy authority of independent school district #748, Sartell; modifying a certain appropriation for debt service equalization; authorizing independent school districts #318, Grand Rapids and #88, New Ulm to use capital expenditure health and safety revenue to construct appurtenances used exclusively to house and maintain mechanical air handling systems; extending the disabled access levy authority of independent school district #595, East Grand Forks; authorizing an administrative space lease levy in independent school district #110, Waconia; specifying a certain commissioner of education priority in offsetting levy adjustments between levy categories for independent school district #599, Fertile-Beltrami; authorizing independent school district #518, Worthington to lease facilities
provided for a certain residential program to a private business or organization to provide adult foster care or child foster care services or for other special education purposes; authorizing certain fund transfers in independent school districts #836, Butterfield, #771, Chokio-Alberta, #2888, Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley, #200, Hastings, #2071, Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial, #2180, M.A.C.C.R.A.Y., #2887, McLeod west, #418, Russell, #584, Ruthton, #177, Windom and #2609, Win-E-Mac; requiring the commissioner to submit a report to the legislature by a certain date on average school construction costs; appropriating money to the department of education for equity in telecommunication access and for emergency infrastructure damage repair aid for independent school district #38, Red Lake

ARTICLE 5 - NUTRITION

Increasing school lunch aid to school districts participating in the national school lunch program and the amount of reimbursement to public or nonpublic schools for milk served to kindergarten students; modifying certain prior appropriations for school lunch aid and for traditional school breakfast aid for milk for kindergarteners; authorizing and providing for independent school districts #11, Anoka-Hennepin and #709 Duluth to establish pilot programs to enhance milk consumption in schools, specifying certain plan and reporting requirements and appropriating money to the department of education for program grants

ARTICLE 6 - STATE AGENCIES

Modifying certain prior appropriations to the department of education, to the state academies for the deaf and blind and to the Perpich center for the arts; approving and appropriating certain federal grants and aids expenditures exceptions

ARTICLE 7 - SCHOOL EMPLOYEE HEALTH INSURANCE

Providing for a school employee health insurance plan; creating the Minnesota school employee insurance board to create and administer the Minnesota school employee insurance pool, specifying membership representation requirements and duties; providing for the design and nature of the plan, requiring a board final design report to the legislature by a certain date and subsequent periodic evaluations and reports; board to be a contributing member of the Minnesota comprehensive health association (MCHA), providing for assessments and for imposition of the gross premium tax; appropriating money to the commissioner of commerce as a start up costs loan to the board

ARTICLE 8 - TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS

Making technical and conforming amendments to certain statutory provisions relating to statistical accountability, to student suspensions, to charter school boards open meeting requirements, to youth work grants, to appropriation transfers and to the payment percentage for Indian post-secondary preparation grants
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