See other bills
under the
same topic
PRINTER'S NO. 1463
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1119
Session of
2015
INTRODUCED BY PHILLIPS-HILL, DUSH, IRVIN, WARD, D. PARKER,
DIAMOND, PICKETT, KAUFFMAN, GROVE, SAYLOR, RADER, THOMAS,
LAWRENCE, BLOOM, TALLMAN AND SONNEY, MAY 6, 2015
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, MAY 6, 2015
AN ACT
Amending the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), entitled "An
act relating to the public school system, including certain
provisions applicable as well to private and parochial
schools; amending, revising, consolidating and changing the
laws relating thereto," in preliminary provisions, providing
for waiver of public school mandates.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known
as the Public School Code of 1949, is amended by adding a
section to read:
Section 124. Waiver of Public School Mandates.--(a) (1)
Except as otherwise provided in this section, the governing body
of a waiver applicant may adopt a resolution to apply to the
department for a waiver of any provision of this act, the
regulations of the State Board, the standards of the secretary
or other provisions of law permitted to be waived under this
section if the waiver will enable the waiver applicant to
improve its instructional program or operate in a more
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
effective, efficient or economical manner.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of clause (1), and except
as otherwise provided in this section, the governing bodies of
two (2) or more waiver applicants may, following the adoption of
a resolution by each governing body, apply jointly to the
department for a waiver of any provision of this act, the
regulations of the State Board, the standards of the secretary
or other provisions of law permitted to be waived under this
section if the waiver will enable the waiver applicants to
improve their instructional programs or operate in a more
effective, efficient or economical manner.
(b) (1) An application for a waiver under this section
shall be pursuant to a process and on a form developed by the
State Board. The application form developed by the State Board
shall require the waiver applicant to provide only the following
information:
(i) The provisions of law, the regulations of the State
Board or the standards of the secretary for which the waiver
applicant seeks a waiver.
(ii) The reason the waiver is needed.
(iii) Supporting data and information that explain the
benefits expected to be obtained as a result of the waiver and,
when applicable, the instructional programs that will operate
under the waiver and how the instructional programs will be
improved as a result of the waiver.
(iv) A procedure the waiver applicant will use to evaluate
the success of the waiver after the waiver is approved,
including a procedure to determine the effectiveness of a
revised instructional program, which shall include measures of
student performance, or the effectiveness of changes in the
20150HB1119PN1463 - 2 -
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
operations of the waiver applicant.
(2) In developing the application process and form provided
for in clause (1), the State Board shall ensure that a waiver
applicant may apply through a single application for waivers of
individual or multiple provisions of this act, the regulations
of the State Board, the standards of the secretary or other
provisions of law permitted to be waived pursuant to this
section.
(c) Each waiver application under this section shall be
adopted by a resolution of the governing body of the waiver
applicant at a regularly scheduled meeting of the governing
body.
(d) In considering a waiver application under this section,
the department:
(1) Shall not impose any additional requirements on the
waiver applicant beyond those provided for in this section.
(2) Shall approve any waiver application that:
(i) Complies with the application process developed by the
State Board under subsection (b)(1).
(ii) Provides all information required in the application
form developed by the State Board under subsection (b)(1).
(iii) Does not conflict with a provision of Federal law or
any other law or regulation that is not permitted to be waived
under this section.
(e) The department shall have thirty (30) days from receipt
of the waiver application to issue its written approval,
disapproval or request for modifications to the waiver
application. If the department fails to act within that time
period, the waiver application shall be deemed to be approved.
(f) (1) If the department disapproves the waiver
20150HB1119PN1463 - 3 -
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
application, the department must state in writing the specific
reason for the disapproval, including an explanation of any
provision of law that is not permitted to be waived under this
section that would be violated if the waiver application were
granted.
(2) When the department disapproves a waiver application,
the waiver applicant may revise and resubmit the waiver
application.
(3) A waiver applicant may appeal any disapproval of a
waiver application to the secretary pursuant to 2 Pa.C.S. Chs. 5
(relating to practice and procedure) and 7 (relating to judicial
review). A waiver applicant shall not be required to revise and
resubmit the waiver application prior to appealing a
disapproval.
(g) A waiver applicant must receive the department's written
approval of its waiver application prior to implementing the
waiver sought in the waiver application.
(h) (1) No later than five (5) years from the
implementation of a waiver granted under this section, the
waiver applicant shall submit to the department the evaluation
set forth in subsection (b)(1)(iv). When the evaluation
submitted under this clause indicates an improvement in student
performance, instructional program or operations, the waiver
shall be renewed by the department and shall remain in effect,
unless a governing body opts out of the continuation of the
waiver.
(2) In the case of a waiver for which multiple waiver
applicants applied jointly, each individual waiver applicant
shall separately submit to the department the evaluation set
forth in subsection (b)(1)(iv). The department shall renew the
20150HB1119PN1463 - 4 -
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
waiver of each waiver applicant on an individual basis.
(3) If a waiver applicant fails to submit to the department
the evaluation required to be submitted under clauses (1) and
(2), the waiver shall expire.
(i) The following shall not be subject to waiver pursuant to
this section:
(1) The following provisions of this act: sections 108, 110,
111, 111.1, 321, 322, 323, 324, 325, 326, 327, 431, 436, 437,
440.1, 443, 510, 513, 518, 527, 688, 691, 696, 701.1, 708, 736,
737, 738, 739, 740, 741, 752, 753, 771, 776, 777, 778, 785, 808,
809, 810, 1073, 1073.1, 1076, 1077, 1080, 1302, 1303, 1310,
1317, 1317.1, 1317.2, 1318, 1327, 1327.1, 1330, 1332, 1366,
1501, 1502, 1513, 1517, 1518, 1521, 1523, 1546, 1547 and 2104;
provisions prohibiting discrimination; Articles VI, VI-A, XI,
XI-A, XII, XIII-A, XIV and XVII-A; and this section.
(2) Section 1361, provided that the department may approve a
waiver application seeking a waiver of section 1361 to allow the
provision of transportation to a public kindergarten, elementary
school or secondary school or a nonpublic kindergarten,
elementary school or secondary school operated not for profit
located more than ten miles outside the district boundaries by
the nearest public highway, provided that the provision of
transportation is more cost effective for the district or the
Commonwealth or addresses student safety concerns.
Transportation provided under this clause shall be considered an
allowable district expense for purposes of calculating
transportation reimbursement.
(3) The following provisions of 22 Pa. Code (relating to
education):
Chapter 4 (relating to academic standards and assessment).
20150HB1119PN1463 - 5 -
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Chapter 10 (relating to safe schools).
Chapter 11 (relating to student attendance).
Chapter 12 (relating to students and student services).
Chapter 14 (relating to special education services and
programs).
Chapter 15 (relating to protected handicapped students).
Chapter 16 (relating to special education for gifted
students).
Section 32.3 (relating to assurances).
Section 121.3 (relating to discrimination prohibited).
Section 235.4 (relating to practices).
Section 235.8 (relating to civil rights).
(4) For intermediate units, Article IX-A.
(5) For area vocational-technical schools, Article XVIII.
(j) The governing body of a waiver applicant may not seek a
waiver of any Federal law or State law applicable to a public
school that is not within the provisions of this act, with the
exception of the following provisions of State law which shall
be subject to waiver pursuant to this section:
(1) The act of May 1, 1913 (P.L.155, No.104), known as the
"Separations Act."
(2) The act of August 15, 1961 (P.L.987, No.442), known as
the "Prevailing Wage Act."
(3) The act of March 3, 1978 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the
"Steel Products Procurement Act."
(k) Notwithstanding section 106 or any other provision of
this act, the following shall apply to the publication of
notices:
(1) Whenever, under the provisions of this act, notice is
required to be published in one newspaper, a school district may
20150HB1119PN1463 - 6 -
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
satisfy the notice requirement by publishing notice on the
school district's publicly accessible Internet website. Such
notice shall be published in a manner that will allow a person
to access the notice by clicking on a tab labeled "NOTICES"
located on the home page of the school district's publicly
accessible Internet website.
(2) Proof of publication of any notice published pursuant to
clause (1) shall be made by attaching a copy of the notice as it
appeared on the school district's publicly accessible Internet
website to an affidavit made by the secretary of the board of
school directors stating that the notice appeared on the school
district's publicly accessible Internet website and the time
period within which the notice appeared on such website.
(l) The department shall post all waiver applications and
department approvals, disapprovals and renewals under this
section on its publicly accessible Internet website.
(m) Nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede
or preempt any provisions of a collective bargaining agreement
in effect on the effective date of this section.
(n) As used in this section, the following terms and phrases
shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection, unless
the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Department" shall mean the Department of Education.
"Governing body" shall mean a board of school directors of a
school district, a board of trustees of a charter school, cyber
charter school or regional charter school, an area vocational-
technical board or the board of directors of an intermediate
unit.
"Secretary" shall mean the Secretary of Education.
"State Board" shall mean the State Board of Education.
20150HB1119PN1463 - 7 -
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
"Waiver applicant" shall mean a school district, charter
school, cyber charter school, regional charter school, area
vocational-technical school or intermediate unit that applies
for a waiver under this section.
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
20150HB1119PN1463 - 8 -
1
2
3
4
5