SF 699

as introduced - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 02/09/2010 02:15am

A bill for an act
relating to education; modifying provisions related to children with disabilities;
requiring the safe schools levy to pay for costs of mental health crisis intervention
team training for peace officers; amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections
120A.22, subdivision 12; 125A.15; 125A.51; 126C.44.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 120A.22, subdivision 12, is amended to
read:

Subd. 12.

Legitimate exemptions.

A parent, guardian, or other person having
control of a child may apply to a school district to have the child excused from attendance
for the whole or any part of the time school is in session during any school year.
Application may be made to any member of the board, a truant officer, a principal, or the
superintendent. The school district may state in its school attendance policy that it may ask
the student's parent or legal guardian to verify in writing the reason for the child's absence
from school. new text begin A note from a physician or a licensed mental health professional stating that
the child cannot attend school is a valid excuse. new text end The board of the district in which the
child resides may approve the application upon the following being demonstrated to the
satisfaction of that board:

(1) that the child's deleted text begin bodily deleted text end new text begin physical new text end or mental deleted text begin condition deleted text end new text begin health new text end is such as to prevent
attendance at school or application to study for the period required, which includes:

(i) child illness, medical, dental, orthodontic, or counseling appointments;

(ii) family emergencies;

(iii) the death or serious illness or funeral of an immediate family member;

(iv) active duty in any military branch of the United States; deleted text begin or
deleted text end

(v) new text begin the child has a condition that requires ongoing treatment for a mental health
diagnosis; or
new text end

new text begin (vi) new text end other exemptions included in the district's school attendance policy;

(2) that the child has already completed state and district standards required for
graduation from high school; or

(3) that it is the wish of the parent, guardian, or other person having control of the
child, that the child attend for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate three
hours in any week, a school for religious instruction conducted and maintained by some
church, or association of churches, or any Sunday school association incorporated under
the laws of this state, or any auxiliary thereof. This school for religious instruction must
be conducted and maintained in a place other than a public school building, and it must
not, in whole or in part, be conducted and maintained at public expense. However, a child
may be absent from school on such days as the child attends upon instruction according to
the ordinances of some church.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 125A.15, is amended to read:

125A.15 PLACEMENT IN ANOTHER DISTRICT; RESPONSIBILITY.

The responsibility for special instruction and services for a child with a disability
temporarily placed in another district for care and treatment shall be determined in the
following manner:

(a) The district of residence of a child shall be the district in which the child's parent
resides, if living, or the child's guardian, or the district designated by the commissioner if
neither parent nor guardian is living within the state.

(b) When a child is temporarily placed for care and treatment in a day program
located in another district and the child continues to live within the district of residence
during the care and treatment, the district of residence is responsible for providing
transportation to and from the care and treatment facility and an appropriate educational
program for the child. Transportation shall only be provided by the district during regular
operating hours of the district. The district may provide the educational program at a
school within the district of residence, at the child's residence, or in the district in which
the day treatment center is located by paying tuition to that district.

(c) When a child is temporarily placed in a residential program for care and
treatment, the nonresident district in which the child is placed is responsible for providing
an appropriate educational program for the child and necessary transportation while the
child is attending the educational program; and must bill the district of the child's residence
for the actual cost of providing the program, as outlined in section 125A.11, except as
provided in paragraph (d). However, the board, lodging, and treatment costs incurred in
behalf of a child with a disability placed outside of the school district of residence by the
commissioner of human services or the commissioner of corrections or their agents, for
reasons other than providing for the child's special educational needs must not become the
responsibility of either the district providing the instruction or the district of the child's
residence. For the purposes of this section, the state correctional facilities operated on a
fee-for-service basis are considered to be residential programs for care and treatment.

(d) A privately owned and operated residential facility may enter into a contract
to obtain appropriate educational programs for special education children and services
with a joint powers entity. The entity with which the private facility contracts for special
education services shall be the district responsible for providing students placed in that
facility an appropriate educational program in place of the district in which the facility is
located. If a privately owned and operated residential facility does not enter into a contract
under this paragraph, then paragraph (c) applies.

(e) new text begin A child with a disability who is in day treatment or a residential facility during
the summer must be automatically eligible for a summer school program under section
123B.02, subdivision 10.
new text end

new text begin (f) new text end The district of residence shall pay tuition and other program costs, not including
transportation costs, to the district providing the instruction and services. The district of
residence may claim general education aid for the child as provided by law. Transportation
costs must be paid by the district responsible for providing the transportation and the state
must pay transportation aid to that district.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 125A.51, is amended to read:

125A.51 PLACEMENT OF CHILDREN WITHOUT DISABILITIES;
EDUCATION AND TRANSPORTATION.

The responsibility for providing instruction and transportation for a pupil without a
disability who has a short-term or temporary physical or emotional illness or disability, as
determined by the standards of the commissioner, and who is temporarily placed for care
and treatment for that illness or disability, must be determined as provided in this section.

(a) The school district of residence of the pupil is the district in which the pupil's
parent or guardian resides.

(b) When parental rights have been terminated by court order, the legal residence
of a child placed in a residential or foster facility for care and treatment is the district in
which the child resides.

(c) Before the placement of a pupil for care and treatment, the district of residence
must be notified and provided an opportunity to participate in the placement decision.
When an immediate emergency placement is necessary and time does not permit
resident district participation in the placement decision, the district in which the pupil is
temporarily placed, if different from the district of residence, must notify the district of
residence of the emergency placement within 15 days of the placement.

(d) When a pupil without a disability is temporarily placed for care and treatment
in a day program and the pupil continues to live within the district of residence during
the care and treatment, the district of residence must provide instruction and necessary
transportation to and from the treatment facility for the pupil. Transportation shall only
be provided by the district during regular operating hours of the district. The district
may provide the instruction at a school within the district of residence, at the pupil's
residence, or in the case of a placement outside of the resident district, in the district in
which the day treatment program is located by paying tuition to that district. The district
of placement may contract with a facility to provide instruction by teachers licensed
by the state Board of Teaching.

(e) When a pupil without a disability is temporarily placed in a residential program
for care and treatment, the district in which the pupil is placed must provide instruction
for the pupil and necessary transportation while the pupil is receiving instruction, and in
the case of a placement outside of the district of residence, the nonresident district must
bill the district of residence for the actual cost of providing the instruction for the regular
school year and for summer school, excluding transportation costs.

(f) new text begin A child who is in day treatment or a residential facility during the summer
must be automatically eligible for a summer school program under section 123B.02,
subdivision 10.
new text end

new text begin (g) new text end Notwithstanding paragraph (e), if the pupil is homeless and placed in a public or
private homeless shelter, then the district that enrolls the pupil under section 127A.47,
subdivision 2, shall provide the transportation, unless the district that enrolls the pupil
and the district in which the pupil is temporarily placed agree that the district in which
the pupil is temporarily placed shall provide transportation. When a pupil without a
disability is temporarily placed in a residential program outside the district of residence,
the administrator of the court placing the pupil must send timely written notice of the
placement to the district of residence. The district of placement may contract with a
residential facility to provide instruction by teachers licensed by the state Board of
Teaching. For purposes of this section, the state correctional facilities operated on a
fee-for-service basis are considered to be residential programs for care and treatment.

deleted text begin (g) deleted text end new text begin (h) new text end The district of residence must include the pupil in its residence count of
pupil units and pay tuition as provided in section 123A.488 to the district providing the
instruction. Transportation costs must be paid by the district providing the transportation
and the state must pay transportation aid to that district. For purposes of computing state
transportation aid, pupils governed by this subdivision must be included in the disabled
transportation category if the pupils cannot be transported on a regular school bus route
without special accommodations.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 126C.44, is amended to read:

126C.44 SAFE SCHOOLS LEVY.

(a) Each district may make a levy on all taxable property located within the district
for the purposes specified in this section. The maximum amount which may be levied
for all costs under this section shall be equal to $30 multiplied by the district's adjusted
marginal cost pupil units for the school year. The proceeds of the levy must be reserved
and used for directly funding the following purposes or for reimbursing the cities and
counties who contract with the district for the following purposes: (1) to pay the costs
incurred for the salaries, benefits, and transportation costs of peace officers and sheriffs for
liaison in services in the district's schools; (2) to pay the costs for a drug abuse prevention
program as defined in section 609.101, subdivision 3, paragraph (e), in the elementary
schools; (3) to pay the costs for a gang resistance education training curriculum in the
district's schools; (4) to pay the costs for security in the district's schools and on school
property; (5) to pay the costs for other crime prevention, drug abuse, student and staff
safety, voluntary opt-in suicide prevention tools, and violence prevention measures taken
by the school district; deleted text begin or deleted text end (6) to pay costs for licensed school counselors, licensed school
nurses, licensed school social workers, licensed school psychologists, and licensed alcohol
and chemical dependency counselors to help provide early responses to problems new text begin ; or (7)
to pay for the costs of mental health crisis intervention team training for peace officers
and sheriffs who serve as liaisons under clause (1) new text end . For expenditures under clause (1), the
district must initially attempt to contract for services to be provided by peace officers or
sheriffs with the police department of each city or the sheriff's department of the county
within the district containing the school receiving the services. If a local police department
or a county sheriff's department does not wish to provide the necessary services, the
district may contract for these services with any other police or sheriff's department
located entirely or partially within the school district's boundaries.

(b) A school district that is a member of an intermediate school district may
include in its authority under this section the costs associated with safe schools activities
authorized under paragraph (a) for intermediate school district programs. This authority
must not exceed $10 times the adjusted marginal cost pupil units of the member districts.
This authority is in addition to any other authority authorized under this section. Revenue
raised under this paragraph must be transferred to the intermediate school district.

(c) A school district must set aside at least $3 per adjusted marginal cost pupil unit
of the safe schools levy proceeds for the purposes authorized under paragraph (a), clause
(6). The district must annually certify that its total spending on services provided by the
employees listed in paragraph (a), clause (6), is not less than the sum of its expenditures
for these purposes, excluding amounts spent under this section, in the previous year plus
the amount spent under this section.