SF 2525

as introduced - 83rd Legislature (2003 - 2004) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education finance; restoring the former 
  1.3             method of determining class size ratios and allocating 
  1.4             class size reduction revenue; amending Minnesota 
  1.5             Statutes 2002, section 126C.12, subdivisions 2, 3, 4.  
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 126C.12, 
  1.8   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 2.  [DEFINITIONS.] (a) "Classroom teacher "Primary 
  1.10  instructor" means a public employee licensed by the board of 
  1.11  teaching who is authorized to teach all subjects to children in 
  1.12  any grade in kindergarten through grade 6 and whose duties are 
  1.13  full-time regular classroom instruction, excluding a teacher for 
  1.14  whom federal aids are received or for whom categorical aids are 
  1.15  received under section 125A.76 or who is an itinerant teacher or 
  1.16  provides instruction outside of the regular classroom.  Except 
  1.17  as provided in section 122A.68, subdivision 6, classroom teacher 
  1.18  instructor does not include supervisory and support personnel, 
  1.19  except school social workers as defined in section 122A.15.  A 
  1.20  classroom teacher An instructor whose duties are less than 
  1.21  full-time instruction must be included as an equivalent only for 
  1.22  the number of hours of instruction in kindergarten through grade 
  1.23  3.  
  1.24     (b) "Class size" means the districtwide ratio at each grade 
  1.25  level of the number of full-time students in kindergarten 
  2.1   through grade 3 served at least 40 percent of the time in 
  2.2   regular classrooms to the number of full-time classroom teachers 
  2.3   in kindergarten through grade 3, determined as of October 1 of 
  2.4   each school year. 
  2.5      [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for revenue for 
  2.6   fiscal year 2005.  
  2.7      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 126C.12, 
  2.8   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  2.9      Subd. 3.  [INSTRUCTION CONTACT TIME.] Instruction may be 
  2.10  provided by a classroom teacher primary instructor or by a team 
  2.11  of classroom teachers instructors, or by a teacher resident 
  2.12  supervised by a classroom teacher primary instructor.  The 
  2.13  district must maximize classroom teacher instructor to learner 
  2.14  average instructional contact time in the core subjects of 
  2.15  reading and mathematics. 
  2.16     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for revenue for 
  2.17  fiscal year 2005.  
  2.18     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 126C.12, 
  2.19  subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  2.20     Subd. 4.  [REVENUE USE.] (a) Revenue must be used to reduce 
  2.21  and maintain the district's average class size student to 
  2.22  instructor ratios in kindergarten through grade 3 to a level of 
  2.23  17 to 1 on average in each of the respective grades.  
  2.24     (b) A district must not increase the districtwide class 
  2.25  sizes in other grades as a result of reducing class sizes in 
  2.26  kindergarten through grade 3.  Revenue may not be used to 
  2.27  provide instructor preparation.  A district may use a portion of 
  2.28  the revenue reserved under this section to employ up to the same 
  2.29  number of full-time equivalent education assistants or aides as 
  2.30  the district employed during the 1992-1993 school year under 
  2.31  Minnesota Statutes 1992, section 124.331, subdivision 2, through 
  2.32  fiscal year 2002.  Beginning in fiscal year 2003, class size 
  2.33  reduction revenue may only be reserved to employ classroom 
  2.34  teachers contributing to lower class sizes in kindergarten 
  2.35  through grade 3. 
  2.36     [EFFECTIVE DATE.] This section is effective for revenue for 
  3.1   fiscal year 2005.