1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to education; making certain policy and technical changes for early learning 
1.3 	provisions;amending Minnesota Statutes 2018, sections 120A.20, by adding a 
1.4 	subdivision; 124D.141, subdivision 2; 124D.165, subdivisions 3, 4; 125A.30; 
1.5 	proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 121A.
1.6 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.7 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 120A.20, is amended by adding a subdivision 
1.8 	to read:
1.9 		Subd. 4.Verification of age for admission to public school. (a) Public schools may 
1.10 	request documentation that verifies a pupil falls within the school's minimum and maximum 
1.11 	age requirements for admission to publicly funded prekindergarten, preschool, kindergarten, 
1.12 	or grades 1 to 12. Documentation may include a passport, a hospital birth record or 
1.13 	physician's certificate, a baptismal or religious certificate, an adoption record, health records, 
1.14 	immunization records, immigration records, previously verified school records, early 
1.15 	childhood screening records, Minnesota Immunization Information Connection records, or 
1.16 	an affidavit from a parent.
1.17 	(b) The school district or charter school must not deny a child from public school 
1.18 	enrollment solely because the child's parent or guardian is unable to provide a birth certificate 
1.19 	record.

1.20 	Sec. 2. [121A.425] FULL AND EQUITABLE PARTICIPATION IN PRESCHOOL 
1.21 	AND PREKINDERGARTEN.
1.22 		Subdivision 1.Disciplinary dismissals prohibited. A school district or charter school 
1.23 	must prohibit the disciplinary dismissal of a child enrolled in a preschool or prekindergarten 
2.1 	program, including a child participating in early childhood family education, school readiness, 
2.2 	school readiness plus, voluntary prekindergarten, Head Start, or other school-based preschool 
2.3 	or prekindergarten program.
2.4 		Subd. 2.Nonexclusionary discipline. School district or charter school staff must ensure 
2.5 	that a child fully participates in a preschool or prekindergarten program described in 
2.6 	subdivision 1 by providing one or more of the following services:
2.7 	(1) collaborating with the child's family or guardian, child mental health consultant or 
2.8 	provider, education specialist, or other community-based support;
2.9 	(2) creating a plan, written with the parent or guardian, that details the action and support 
2.10 	needed for the child to fully participate in a preschool or prekindergarten program;
2.11 	(3) providing a referral for needed support services, including parenting education, home 
2.12 	visits, or other supportive educational interventions; or
2.13 	(4) determining if a referral for special education is appropriate for the child.

2.14 	Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 124D.141, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
2.15 		Subd. 2.Additional duties. The following duties are added to those assigned to the 
2.16 	council under federal law:
2.17 	(1) make recommendations on the most efficient and effective way to leverage state and 
2.18 	federal funding streams for early childhood and child care programs;
2.19 	~~(2) make recommendations on how to coordinate or colocate early childhood and child~~ 
2.20 	~~care programs in one state Office of Early Learning. The council shall establish a task force~~ 
2.21 	~~to develop these recommendations. The task force shall include two nonexecutive branch~~ 
2.22 	~~or nonlegislative branch representatives from the council; six representatives from the early~~ 
2.23 	~~childhood caucus; two representatives each from the Departments of Education, Human~~ 
2.24 	~~Services, and Health; one representative each from a local public health agency, a local~~ 
2.25 	~~county human services agency, and a school district; and two representatives from the~~ 
2.26 	~~private nonprofit organizations that support early childhood programs in Minnesota. In~~ 
2.27 	~~developing recommendations in coordination with existing efforts of the council, the task~~ 
2.28 	~~force shall consider how to:~~
2.29 	~~(i) consolidate and coordinate resources and public funding streams for early childhood~~ 
2.30 	~~education and child care, and ensure the accountability and coordinated development of all~~ 
2.31 	~~early childhood education and child care services to children from birth to kindergarten~~ 
2.32 	~~entrance;~~
3.1 	~~(ii) create a seamless transition from early childhood programs to kindergarten;~~
3.2 	~~(iii) encourage family choice by ensuring a mixed system of high-quality public and~~ 
3.3 	~~private programs, with local points of entry, staffed by well-qualified professionals;~~
3.4 	~~(iv) ensure parents a decisive role in the planning, operation, and evaluation of programs~~ 
3.5 	~~that aid families in the care of children;~~
3.6 	~~(v) provide consumer education and accessibility to early childhood education and child~~ 
3.7 	~~care resources;~~
3.8 	~~(vi) advance the quality of early childhood education and child care programs in order~~ 
3.9 	~~to support the healthy development of children and preparation for their success in school;~~
3.10 	~~(vii) develop a seamless service delivery system with local points of entry for early~~ 
3.11 	~~childhood education and child care programs administered by local, state, and federal~~ 
3.12 	~~agencies;~~
3.13 	~~(viii) ensure effective collaboration between state and local child welfare programs and~~ 
3.14 	~~early childhood mental health programs and the Office of Early Learning;~~
3.15 	~~(ix) develop and manage an effective data collection system to support the necessary~~ 
3.16 	~~functions of a coordinated system of early childhood education and child care in order to~~ 
3.17 	~~enable accurate evaluation of its impact;~~
3.18 	~~(x) respect and be sensitive to family values and cultural heritage; and~~
3.19 	~~(xi) establish the administrative framework for and promote the development of early~~ 
3.20 	~~childhood education and child care services in order to provide that these services, staffed~~ 
3.21 	~~by well-qualified professionals, are available in every community for all families that express~~ 
3.22 	~~a need for them.~~
3.23 	~~In addition, the task force must consider the following responsibilities for transfer to the~~ 
3.24 	~~Office of Early Learning:~~
3.25 	~~(A) responsibilities of the commissioner of education for early childhood education~~ 
3.26 	~~programs and financing under sections 119A.50 to 119A.535, 121A.16 to 121A.19, and~~ 
3.27 	~~124D.129 to 124D.2211;~~
3.28 	~~(B) responsibilities of the commissioner of human services for child care assistance,~~ 
3.29 	~~child care development, and early childhood learning and child protection facilities programs~~ 
3.30 	~~and financing under chapter 119B and section 256E.37; and~~
3.31 	~~(C) responsibilities of the commissioner of health for family home visiting programs~~ 
3.32 	~~and financing under section 145A.17.~~
4.1 	~~Any costs incurred by the council in making these recommendations must be paid from~~ 
4.2 	~~private funds. If no private funds are received, the council must not proceed in making these~~ 
4.3 	~~recommendations. The council must report its recommendations to the governor and the~~ 
4.4 	~~legislature by January 15, 2011;~~
4.5 	~~(3)~~ (2) review program evaluations regarding high-quality early childhood programs;
4.6 	and
4.7 	~~(4)~~ (3) make recommendations to the governor and legislature, including proposed 
4.8 	legislation on how to most effectively create a high-quality early childhood system in 
4.9 	Minnesota in order to improve the educational outcomes of children so that all children are 
4.10 	school-ready by 2020~~;~~.
4.11 	~~(5) make recommendations to the governor and the legislature by March 1, 2011, on the~~ 
4.12 	~~creation and implementation of a statewide school readiness report card to monitor progress~~ 
4.13 	~~toward the goal of having all children ready for kindergarten by the year 2020. The~~ 
4.14 	~~recommendations shall include what should be measured including both children and system~~ 
4.15 	~~indicators, what benchmarks should be established to measure state progress toward the~~ 
4.16 	~~goal, and how frequently the report card should be published. In making their~~ 
4.17 	~~recommendations, the council shall consider the indicators and strategies for Minnesota's~~ 
4.18 	~~early childhood system report, the Minnesota school readiness study, developmental~~ 
4.19 	~~assessment at kindergarten entrance, and the work of the council's accountability committee.~~ 
4.20 	~~Any costs incurred by the council in making these recommendations must be paid from~~ 
4.21 	~~private funds. If no private funds are received, the council must not proceed in making these~~ 
4.22 	~~recommendations; and~~
4.23 	~~(6) make recommendations to the governor and the legislature on how to screen earlier~~ 
4.24 	~~and comprehensively assess children for school readiness in order to provide increased early~~ 
4.25 	~~interventions and increase the number of children ready for kindergarten. In formulating~~ 
4.26 	~~their recommendations, the council shall consider (i) ways to interface with parents of~~ 
4.27 	~~children who are not participating in early childhood education or care programs, (ii) ways~~ 
4.28 	~~to interface with family child care providers, child care centers, and school-based early~~ 
4.29 	~~childhood and Head Start programs, (iii) if there are age-appropriate and culturally sensitive~~ 
4.30 	~~screening and assessment tools for three-, four-, and five-year-olds, (iv) the role of the~~ 
4.31 	~~medical community in screening, (v) incentives for parents to have children screened at an~~ 
4.32 	~~earlier age, (vi) incentives for early education and care providers to comprehensively assess~~ 
4.33 	~~children in order to improve instructional practice, (vii) how to phase in increases in screening~~ 
4.34 	~~and assessment over time, (viii) how the screening and assessment data will be collected~~ 
4.35 	~~and used and who will have access to the data, (ix) how to monitor progress toward the goal~~ 
5.1 	~~of having 50 percent of three-year-old children screened and 50 percent of entering~~ 
5.2 	~~kindergarteners assessed for school readiness by 2015 and 100 percent of three-year-old~~ 
5.3 	~~children screened and entering kindergarteners assessed for school readiness by 2020, and~~ 
5.4 	~~(x) costs to meet these benchmarks. The council shall consider the screening instruments~~ 
5.5 	~~and comprehensive assessment tools used in Minnesota early childhood education and care~~ 
5.6 	~~programs and kindergarten. The council may survey early childhood education and care~~ 
5.7 	~~programs in the state to determine the screening and assessment tools being used or rely on~~ 
5.8 	~~previously collected survey data, if available. For purposes of this subdivision, "school~~ 
5.9 	~~readiness" is defined as the child's skills, knowledge, and behaviors at kindergarten entrance~~ 
5.10 	~~in these areas of child development: social; self-regulation; cognitive, including language,~~ 
5.11 	~~literacy, and mathematical thinking; and physical. For purposes of this subdivision,~~ 
5.12 	~~"screening" is defined as the activities used to identify a child who may need further~~ 
5.13 	~~evaluation to determine delay in development or disability. For purposes of this subdivision,~~ 
5.14 	~~"assessment" is defined as the activities used to determine a child's level of performance in~~ 
5.15 	~~order to promote the child's learning and development. Work on this duty will begin in~~ 
5.16 	~~fiscal year 2012. Any costs incurred by the council in making these recommendations must~~ 
5.17 	~~be paid from private funds. If no private funds are received, the council must not proceed~~ 
5.18 	~~in making these recommendations. The council must report its recommendations to the~~ 
5.19 	~~governor and legislature by January 15, 2013, with an interim report on February 15, 2011.~~

5.20 	Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 124D.165, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
5.21 		Subd. 3.Administration. (a) The commissioner shall establish application timelines 
5.22 	and determine the schedule for awarding scholarships that meets operational needs of eligible 
5.23 	families and programs. The commissioner must give highest priority to applications from 
5.24 	children who:
5.25 	(1) have a parent under age 21 who is pursuing a high school diploma or a course of 
5.26 	study for a high school equivalency test;
5.27 	(2) are in foster care or otherwise in need of protection or services; or
5.28 	(3) have experienced homelessness in the last 24 months, as defined under the federal 
5.29 	McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, United States Code, title 42, section 11434a.
5.30 	The commissioner may prioritize applications on additional factors including family 
5.31 	income, geographic location, and whether the child's family is on a waiting list for a publicly 
5.32 	funded program providing early education or child care services.
6.1 	(b) The commissioner shall establish a target for the average scholarship amount per 
6.2 	child based on the results of the rate survey conducted under section 119B.02.
6.3 	(c) A four-star rated program that has children eligible for a scholarship enrolled in or 
6.4 	on a waiting list for a program beginning in July, August, or September may notify the 
6.5 	commissioner, in the form and manner prescribed by the commissioner, each year of the 
6.6 	program's desire to enhance program services or to serve more children than current funding 
6.7 	provides. The commissioner may designate a predetermined number of scholarship slots 
6.8 	for that program and notify the program of that number. For fiscal year 2018 and later, the 
6.9 	statewide amount of funding directly designated by the commissioner must not exceed the 
6.10 	funding directly designated for fiscal year 2017. Beginning July 1, 2016, a school district 
6.11 	or Head Start program qualifying under this paragraph may use its established registration 
6.12 	process to enroll scholarship recipients and may verify a scholarship recipient's family 
6.13 	income in the same manner as for other program participants.
6.14 	(d) A scholarship is awarded for a 12-month period. If the scholarship recipient has not 
6.15 	been accepted and subsequently enrolled in a rated program within ten months of the 
6.16 	awarding of the scholarship, the scholarship cancels and the recipient must reapply in order 
6.17 	to be eligible for another scholarship. A child may not be awarded more than one scholarship 
6.18 	in a 12-month period.
6.19 	(e) A child who receives a scholarship who has not completed development screening 
6.20 	under sections 121A.16 to 121A.19 must complete that screening within 90 days of first 
6.21 	attending an eligible program or within 90 days after the child's third birthday if awarded 
6.22 	a scholarship under the age of three.
6.23 	(f) For fiscal year 2017 and later, a school district or Head Start program enrolling 
6.24 	scholarship recipients under paragraph (c) may apply to the commissioner, in the form and 
6.25 	manner prescribed by the commissioner, for direct payment of state aid. Upon receipt of 
6.26 	the application, the commissioner must pay each program directly for each approved 
6.27 	scholarship recipient enrolled under paragraph (c) according to the metered payment system 
6.28 	or another schedule established by the commissioner.

6.29 	Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 124D.165, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
6.30 		Subd. 4.Early childhood program eligibility. (a) In order to be eligible to accept an 
6.31 	early learning scholarship, a program must:
6.32 	(1) participate in the quality rating and improvement system under section 124D.142; 
6.33 	and
7.1 	(2) beginning July 1, 2020, have a three- or four-star rating in the quality rating and 
7.2 	improvement system.
7.3 	(b) Any program accepting scholarships must use the revenue to supplement and not 
7.4 	supplant federal funding.
7.5 	~~(c) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), all Minnesota early learning foundation scholarship~~ 
7.6 	~~program pilot sites are eligible to accept an early learning scholarship under this section.~~

7.7 	Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 125A.30, is amended to read:
7.8 	125A.30 INTERAGENCY EARLY INTERVENTION COMMITTEES.
7.9 	(a) A group of school districts or special education cooperatives, in cooperation with 
7.10 	the county and tribal health and human service agencies located in the county or counties 
7.11 	in which the districts or cooperatives are located, must establish an Interagency Early 
7.12 	Intervention Committee for children with disabilities under age five and their families under 
7.13 	this section, and for children with disabilities ages three to 22 consistent with the requirements 
7.14 	under sections 125A.023 and 125A.027. Committees must include representatives of local 
7.15 	health, education, and county and tribal human service agencies, early childhood family 
7.16 	education programs, Head Start, parents of young children with disabilities under age 12, 
7.17 	child care resource and referral agencies, school readiness programs, current service 
7.18 	providers, and agencies that serve families experiencing homelessness, and may also include 
7.19 	representatives from other private or public agencies and school nurses. The committee 
7.20 	must elect a chair from among its members and must meet at least quarterly.
7.21 	(b) The committee must develop and implement interagency policies and procedures 
7.22 	concerning the following ongoing duties:
7.23 	(1) develop public awareness systems designed to inform potential recipient families, 
7.24 	especially parents with premature infants, or infants with other physical risk factors associated 
7.25 	with learning or development complications, of available programs and services;
7.26 	(2) to reduce families' need for future services, and especially parents with premature 
7.27 	infants, or infants with other physical risk factors associated with learning or development 
7.28 	complications, implement interagency child find systems designed to actively seek out, 
7.29 	identify, and refer infants and young children with, or at risk of, disabilities, including a 
7.30 	child under the age of three who: (i) is the subject of a substantiated case of abuse or neglect 
7.31 	or (ii) is identified as directly affected by illegal substance abuse, or withdrawal symptoms 
7.32 	resulting from prenatal drug exposure;
8.1 	(3) implement a process for assuring that services involve cooperating agencies at all 
8.2 	steps leading to individualized programs;
8.3 	(4) identify the current services and funding being provided within the community for 
8.4 	children with disabilities under age five and their families; and
8.5 	(5) develop a plan for the allocation and expenditure of federal early intervention funds 
8.6 	under United States Code, title 20, section 1471 et seq. (Part C, Public Law 108-446) and 
8.7 	United States Code, title 20, section 631, et seq. (Chapter I, Public Law 89-313).
8.8 	(c) The local committee shall also participate in needs assessments and program planning 
8.9 	activities conducted by local social service, health and education agencies for young children 
8.10 	with disabilities and their families.