In House Education on February 13, the committee unanimously approved HB 308 School Grading Modifications. The bill sponsored by Rep. Douglas Welton (R-Payson) eliminates the single letter grade and classification for schools based on accountability measures. It would leave in place the more robust dashboard information provided for each school.

UEA Government Relations Director Sara Jones spoke in support of the bill stating that “removing ineffective and unnecessary regulation sends a positive message of trust of professional educators and local school boards.”

Also, after having been defeated in committee on Thursday, HB 344 Local Policies for Course Content Transparency was brought back for further consideration. The bill sponsored by Rep. Jordan Teuscher (R-South Jordan) was amended to remove references to a local policy addressing pedagogy and to focus solely on class content. The chair allowed only limited public comment. The bill passed the committee 10-4.

HB 409 State Construction and Fire Code Amendments, sponsored by Rep. Tom Peterson, passed out of the House Business and Labor Committee unanimously.  This bill has one section that, if the school building is protected by fire sprinklers and an approved fire alarm system, allows special education classes to shelter in place if there is no smoke or visible fire. In addition, a regular classroom may line up and wait one minute before exiting to ensure there is no other danger or information about other threats.