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Senate passes HB 583 – Substitute Flexibility – With Additional Amendments; House Concurrence Vote Expected Next Week

By Katie Johnson posted 05-26-2022 08:35 AM

  
Yesterday, the Senate passed House Bill (HB) 583, voting along party lines. The bill provides two additional years of substitute flexibility for districts, among other provisions. The legislation underwent additional changes yesterday in the Senate Primary and Secondary Education Committee. Those amendments are in addition to last week’s amendments that addressed a number of necessary budget corrections, including the implementation of the fair school funding formula, and revisions to the dyslexia legislation. The bill returns to the House for a concurrence vote, which may occur during its June 1 session.

Click here to read the bill, click here to read the bill analysis, and click here to read the fiscal note.

Among others, the accepted amendments:
 
  • Allow for unexpended funds in Educational Savings Accounts set up by parents through a $125 million appropriation of federal funds in HB 110 to roll over from FY22-23, and remain in those parents’ accounts until expended or until the student has graduated;
  • Eliminate the proration of scholarships and income caps awarded under the EdChoice expansion program and qualifies siblings to receive the scholarship for the same school;
  • Regarding dyslexia legislation, the amendment:
    • Delays until ’23-’24 the screening of all students in grades K through 3 and serving students identified as having dyslexia or dyslexic tendencies, but allows districts to start screening students earlier;
    • Specifies that art, music, and physical education teachers are not required to receive professional development in dyslexia intervention but authorizes school districts to require their employees to go through additional professional development if so desired;
    • Designates the 18-hour required professional development for K through 3 teachers and 4 through 12 intervention specialists as “training” instead of a “course”;
    • Removes the word “multi-sensory” from the term “structured literacy program”; and
    • Clarifies that districts must only comply with provisions in the Dyslexia Guidebook that are statutorily required.
  • Prohibit the State Board of Education from limiting the subject areas for which an individual may receive an alternative resident educator license;
  • Allow students who reside in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District to attend St. Thomas More School using the Cleveland Scholarship Program;
  • Prohibit the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) from assigning an overall rating of ineffective or lower to a community school sponsor solely because the sponsor received a zero on any of the three components on the sponsor evaluation;
  • Require ODE to compile a list of tutoring programs that it determines to be of high quality through use of a request for qualifications;
  • Permit community schools, otherwise subject to Section 3314.034 of the Ohio Revised Code, to enter into a contract with a new sponsor without first having to get approval from ODE; and
  • Designate the month of October as Ohio School Safety Month.

We will continue to update our members as HB 583 returns to the House for a concurrence vote. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.

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