A bill that would require school districts to provide additional public access to curriculum materials was substituted in committee then held for further stakeholder review. The same committee passed UEA-supported bills to allow Native American students to wear traditional regalia at high school graduations and to require special education directors at charter schools to hold an appropriate license.

Senate Education Committee (reported by Sara Jones): The Senate Education Committee heard several bills tracked by the UEA:

SB103: Special Education Licensing Amendments requires a director of special education at a charter school to hold an appropriate educator license. The bill had no committee discussion and no public comments and passed unanimously. The UEA supports this bill.

SB78: School Board Expansion Requirements adjusts the size of a local school board based on student population, including increasing a board to nine members if the student population exceeds 100,000 students. Currently, only Alpine School District is close to that threshold. The bill passed unanimously.

SB114 (1st sub.): Public School Curriculum Requirements establishes requirements for local boards in adopting instructional materials and requires boards adopt a policy to guide educators in the selections and use of supplemental materials in the classroom. Sen. Lincoln Fillmore, the bill sponsor, introduced the substitute bill then asked to “move the agenda” and not take action on the bill to allow stakeholders time to review the new bill. No vote was taken and the bill will return to the committee at a later date.

Two bills that were heard during the interim also passed unanimously out of committee. HB30: Student Tribal Regalia Use Amendments allows Native American students to wear tribal regalia at a high school graduation ceremony and HB43: Hospitality and Tourism Management CTE Pilot Program Sunset Extension extends the repeal date for the existing Hospitality and Tourism Management CTE pilot program. Both bills are supported by the UEA.

Upcoming Legislation to Watch

Four UEA-tracked bills are on the agenda for the House Education Committee at 2 p.m., Jan. 25:

• HB103: Student Intervention Early Warning Program converts the student intervention early warning pilot program into an ongoing program. The UEA supports this bill.
• HB0184: Teacher Professional Development Amendments amends a notice requirement for a reallocation of instructional hours or school days for teacher preparation time or teacher professional development.
• HB162: Period Products in Schools requires local school boards and charter school governing boards to provide period products in certain restrooms within all school facilities. The UEA supports this bill.

———————————

• See the 2022 UEA Legislative Tracking Sheet for the current bills tracked by UEA.
• View all legislative happenings at UEA Under the Dome.