exempt

                             

 

Assembly Bill No. 671–Committee on Ways and Means

 

June 3, 2001

____________

 

Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

 

SUMMARY—Makes appropriations to state distributive school account for class-size reduction. (BDR S-1574)

 

FISCAL NOTE:                     Effect on Local Government: No.

                                 Effect on the State: Contains Appropriation included in Executive Budget.

 

~

 

EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.

 

AN ACT relating to education; making appropriations to the state distributive school account for purposes relating to class-size reduction; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

1-1     Whereas, The intended goal of the Legislature is to achieve a pupil-

1-2  teacher ratio of not more than 15 pupils per teacher or 30 pupils per two

1-3  teachers in kindergarten and grades 1, 2 and 3 where core curriculum is

1-4  taught; and

1-5     Whereas, Available money is estimated to provide a sufficient number

1-6  of teachers to achieve in each school district pupil-teacher ratios of 16

1-7  pupils per teacher in selected kindergarten classrooms in which pupils are

1-8  most at risk of failure and in grades 1 and 2 in fiscal years 2001-2002 and

1-9  2002-2003, and to achieve a pupil-teacher ratio in grade 3 of 19 pupils per

1-10  teacher in fiscal years 2001-2002 and 2002-2003; and

1-11     Whereas, Certain school districts do not have a sufficient number of

1-12  classrooms available to permit an average class size of 19 pupils per

1-13  teacher in grade 3; and

1-14     Whereas, It is unreasonable to assign two teachers to classrooms of 38

1-15  pupils to attain a district-wide pupil-teacher ratio of 19 pupils per teacher in

1-16  grade 3; and

1-17     Whereas, School districts may, instead, attain the desired pupil-teacher

1-18  ratio in classes where core curriculum is taught by using alternative

1-19  methods of reducing the ratio, such as employing teachers to provide

1-20  remedial instruction; and

1-21     Whereas, School districts may wish to use money for class-size

1-22  reduction to carry out programs that have been found to be effective in

1-23  improving academic achievement; and

2-1     Whereas, The Legislature has specifically designed the laws relating to

2-2  class-size reduction to allow the local school districts the necessary

2-3  discretion to effectuate the reduction in the manner appropriate in their

2-4  respective districts; and

2-5     Whereas, School districts are encouraged, to the extent possible, to

2-6  reduce the pupil-teacher ratio in each classroom in the district in the grades

2-7  for which additional funding is provided; and

2-8     Whereas, With this act, the Legislature intends to continue the reduced

2-9  pupil-teacher ratio for selected kindergarten classrooms in which pupils are

2-10  most at risk of failure and for grades 1 and 2 throughout the state and to

2-11  continue reducing the pupil-teacher ratio in grade 3; and

2-12     Whereas, Thereafter, the intended goal of the Legislature is to reduce

2-13  the pupil-teacher ratio per class in grade 3 to not more than 15 pupils per

2-14  class, thereafter to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio per class in grades 4, 5

2-15  and 6 to not more than 22 pupils per class and thereafter to reduce the

2-16  pupil-teacher ratio per class in grades 7 to 12, inclusive, to not more than

2-17  25 pupils per class; now, therefore,

 

2-18  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

2-19  SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

2-20    Section 1.  1.  There is hereby appropriated from the state general

2-21  fund to the state distributive school account the sum of $91,822,619 for

2-22  distribution by the Superintendent of Public Instruction to the county

2-23  school districts for fiscal year 2001-2002 which must, except as otherwise

2-24  provided in sections 4 and 5 of this act, be used to employ teachers to

2-25  comply with the required ratio of pupils to teachers, as set forth in NRS

2-26  388.700, in grades 1 and 2 and in selected kindergartens with pupils who

2-27  are considered at risk of failure by the Superintendent of Public Instruction

2-28  and to maintain the current ratio of pupils per teacher in grade 3.

2-29  Expenditures for the class-size reduction program must be accounted for in

2-30  a separate category of expenditure in the state distributive school account.

2-31    2.  Except as otherwise provided in sections 4 and 5 of this act, the

2-32  money appropriated by subsection 1 must be used to pay the salaries and

2-33  benefits of not less than 1,866 teachers employed by school districts to

2-34  meet the required pupil-teacher ratios in the 2001-2002 school year.

2-35    3.  Any remaining balance of the sum appropriated by subsection 1

2-36  must not be committed for expenditure after June 30, 2002, and must be

2-37  transferred and added to the money appropriated to the state distributive

2-38  school account pursuant to section 2 of this act for the 2002-2003 fiscal

2-39  year, and may be expended as that money is expended.

2-40    Sec. 2.  1.  There is hereby appropriated from the state general fund

2-41  to the state distributive school account the sum of $99,730,291 for

2-42  distribution by the Superintendent of Public Instruction to the county

2-43  school districts for fiscal year 2002-2003 which must, except as otherwise

2-44  provided in sections 4 and 5 of this act, be used to employ teachers to

2-45  comply with the required ratio of pupils to teachers, as set forth in NRS

2-46  388.700, in grades 1 and 2 and in selected kindergartens with pupils who

2-47  are considered at risk of failure by the Superintendent of Public Instruction

3-1  and to maintain the current ratio of pupils per teacher in grade 3.

3-2  Expenditures for the class-size reduction program must be accounted for in

3-3  a separate category of expenditure in the state distributive school account.

3-4    2.  Except as otherwise provided in sections 4 and 5 of this act, the

3-5  money appropriated by subsection 1 must be used to pay the salaries and

3-6  benefits of not less than 1,949 teachers employed by school districts to

3-7  meet the required pupil-teacher ratios in the 2002-2003 school year.

3-8    3.  Any remaining balance of the sum appropriated by subsection 1,

3-9  including any money added thereto pursuant to section 1 of this act, must

3-10  not be committed for expenditure after June 30, 2003, and reverts to the

3-11  state general fund as soon as all payments of money committed have been

3-12  made.

3-13    Sec. 3.  The board of trustees of each county school district:

3-14    1.  Shall file a plan with the Superintendent of Public Instruction

3-15  describing how the money appropriated by sections 1 and 2 of this act will

3-16  be used to comply with the required ratio of pupils to teachers in

3-17  kindergarten and grades 1, 2 and 3; or

3-18    2.  May, after receiving approval of the plan from the Superintendent of

3-19  Public Instruction, use the money appropriated by sections 1 and 2 of this

3-20  act to carry out an alternative program for reducing the ratio of pupils per

3-21  teacher or to carry out programs of remedial education that have been

3-22  found to be effective in improving pupil achievement in grades 1, 2 and 3,

3-23  so long as the combined ratio of pupils per teacher in the aggregate of

3-24  kindergarten and grades 1, 2 and 3 of the school district does not exceed

3-25  the combined ratio of pupils per teacher in the aggregate of kindergarten

3-26  and grades 1, 2 and 3 of the school district in the 1998-1999 school year.

3-27  The plan approved by the Superintendent of Public Instruction must

3-28  describe the method to be used by the school district to evaluate the

3-29  effectiveness of the alternative program or remedial programs in improving

3-30  pupil achievement.

3-31    Sec. 4.  1.  The money appropriated for class-size reduction pursuant

3-32  to sections 1 and 2 of this act:

3-33    (a) May be applied first to pupils considered most at risk of failure.

3-34    (b) Must not be used to settle or arbitrate disputes between a recognized

3-35  organization representing employees of a school district and the school

3-36  district, or to settle any negotiations.

3-37    (c) Must not be used to adjust the district-wide schedules of salaries and

3-38  benefits of the employees of a school district.

3-39    2.  The money appropriated for class-size reduction pursuant to

3-40  sections 1 and 2 of this act must not be distributed to a school district

3-41  unless that school district has:

3-42    (a) Filed with the Department of Education a plan for achieving the

3-43  required ratio set forth in NRS 388.700; and

3-44    (b) Demonstrated that, from resources of the school district other than

3-45  allocations received from the state distributive school account for class-size

3-46  reduction, a sufficient number of classroom teachers have been employed

3-47  to maintain the average pupil-teacher ratio that existed for each grade in

3-48  that school district for the 3 school years immediately preceding the start of

3-49  the class-size reduction program in the 1990-1991 school year.

4-1    Sec. 5.  1.  The Elko County School District is hereby authorized to

4-2  use the money appropriated by sections 1 and 2 of this act to continue in

4-3  school years 2001-2002 and 2002-2003 the demonstration project carried

4-4  out by the school district pursuant to section 9 of chapter 543, Statutes of

4-5  Nevada 1999, at page 2841. The Elko County School District may expand

4-6  the demonstration project to include grade 6.

4-7    2.  If the Elko County School District continues the demonstration

4-8  project, the school district shall:

4-9    (a) Be deemed in compliance with the pupil-teacher ratios set forth in

4-10  NRS 388.700 for the 2001-2002 school year and the 2002-2003 school

4-11  year;

4-12    (b) Evaluate the effectiveness of the demonstration project in improving

4-13  pupil achievement; and

4-14    (c) Report its findings in an interim report to the Legislative Committee

4-15  on Education on or before February 15, 2002.

4-16    3.  On or before February 1, 2003, the Elko County School District

4-17  shall submit a written report of the results of the evaluation to the

4-18  Legislative Bureau of Educational Accountability and Program Evaluation.

4-19  On or before February 19, 2003, the Legislative Bureau of Educational

4-20  Accountability and Program Evaluation shall submit a copy of the written

4-21  evaluation, including any recommendation for legislation, to the Director

4-22  of the Legislative Counsel Bureau for transmission to the 72nd session of

4-23  the Nevada Legislature.

4-24    Sec. 6.  1.  This section and sections 1, 3, 4 and 5 of this act become

4-25  effective on July 1, 2001.

4-26    2.  Section 2 of this act becomes effective on July 1, 2002.

 

4-27  H