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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2017 - 2018
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | January 17, 2017 01:08 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Dom Costa |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Truancy Enforcement for Charter and Cyber Charter Schools |
| In the near future, I plan to introduce legislation to provide charter and cyber charter schools with the responsibility for the enforcement of the compulsory attendance laws against their own students. Under current law, charter schools and cyber charter schools are required to report to the student’s school district when a student has accrued three or more days of unexcused absences. It is the responsibility of the school district to then enforce the penalties for violations of compulsory attendance requirements. However, unfortunately, charter and cyber charter schools oftentimes do not follow the directive to report such absences to the school district. They also offer little assistance in the enforcement actions by the school district. With this in mind, I believe that charter and cyber charter schools should have the responsibility for the enforcement of the compulsory attendance laws against their own students. Indeed, this issue is particularly relevant in light of data which strongly suggests that a significant percentage of child abuse cases involving injury or death to school age children occur in cyber charter homes. These children are not in school and are, therefore, not observed by teachers and nurses who often are the reporters of evidence of such abuse. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important legislation. |
Introduced as HB327