2020 General Assembly Update
Key Education-Related Subjects
Week ending Friday, January 10, 2020

Fairfax County Public Schools, Office of Government Relations

Additional information regarding the education-related legislation described below, as well as for all other bills related to education can be found in the thirteen subject categories located on the web pages of the FCPS Office of Government Relations at https://www.fcps.edu/about-fcps/departments-and-offices/government-relations/virginia-general-assembly.  Bills in these categories are linked to the Virginia Division of Legislative Services web pages, which provide up-to-date summary, fiscal impact and bill status information.

The 2020 Session of the Virginia General Assembly convened on Wednesday, January 8.  As of this report almost 2,700 pieces of legislation, including the biennial budget, have been introduced for consideration during the 60-day session. A substantial number of these bills are directly related to public K-12 education.  These numbers will increase as the final day for filing bills and joint resolutions is not until Friday, January 17th

Fairfax Delegation Education Related Committee Assignments

There are two members of the Fairfax County House of Delegates delegation on the House Education Committee: Delegates David Bulova, and Mark Keam.  Subcommittee assignments should be announced during the Committee’s first meeting scheduled for Monday, January 13th.  The Fairfax Delegation will have four of its members serving on the House Appropriations Committee, Delegates Mark Sickles (Vice Chair), Ken Plum, David Bulova, and Paul Krizek.

Four members of the Fairfax Delegation continue to serve on the Senate Education and Health Committee:  Richard Saslaw, Janet Howell, George Barker and Chap Petersen.  Senator Howell also serves on the Ed and Health Public Education subcommittee.  The Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee now includes six members from the Fairfax delegation:  Senators Janet Howell (chair), Richard Saslaw, George Barker, Chap Petersen, David Marsden and Adam Ebbin.  Senator Saslaw chairs the Finance K-12 Education subcommittee and Senator Howell is also a member.

Governor’s Introduced Budget for K-12 Education

Prior to the start of this year’s session, the Governor released his education-related budget proposals for consideration by the General Assembly.  The bulk of the new proposed education funding outlined below, $808.5 million is for “rebenchmarking,” a required and periodic recalibration of the state’s funding contribution to local school divisions.

•             Teacher Salaries – would add raising teacher salaries (SOQ-supported positions) by an additional 3 percent in the second year of his two -year ($145.1 million);

•             At-Risk Students’ Programs – would increase payments for at-risk students’ programs ($140.4 million), partially funded with new money, but partially funded by shifting some money from existing per-pupil lottery allocations;

•             School Counselors – would increase the number of schools counselors in both years of the biennium, with a 250/1 ratio required in 2022 ($99.3 million);

•             Teachers for English as a Second Language Students – would increase the number of teachers of English as a second language from 17 per 1,000 English learners to 20 per 1,000 ($27.6 million);

•             Flexible Per-Pupil Funds (“Games of Skill”) – would distribute additional funding to school districts on a per-pupil basis, contingent on passage of legislation to tax “games of skill” ($125 million);

•             Pre-K  -- increases Virginia Preschool Initiative per-pupil allocations by 10 percent in each year of the biennium ($29m); and

•             School Breakfasts and Lunches – would help to fund school breakfast and lunches for low-income students above what federal funding already provides ($10.6 million).

The House and Senate will both propose amendments to the Governor’s Introduced Budget over the next few weeks.

K-12 Bills – FCSB Priorities or Initiatives

Diploma Requirements - Dual Enrollment HB 516 (Bulova) would permit high school students to fulfill the existing high school graduation requirement for advanced coursework by completing a dual enrollment course in lieu of the currently required Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or honors course or Board of Education-approved career and technical education credential.  HB 112 (McNamara) and SB 112 (Sutterlein) would similarly add dual-enrollment courses as eligible to fulfill the requirement as well as allowing for the additional option for students to complete a high-quality work-based learning experience.

School boards; written school crisis, emergency management, and medical emergency response plans; annual review  HB 501 (Krizek) would permit local school boards to designate another entity or individual to participate on its behalf in the required annual review of its written school crisis, emergency management, and medical emergency response plan.

Common Statewide Definition; "Students With Limited or Interrupted Formal Education” HB 522 (Kory) would require the Department of Education to develop and adopt a common statewide definition for the term "students with limited or interrupted formal education" and would require school boards to report on the number of students who fall under such definition as part of the required data collection and reporting on average daily membership for the purposes of documenting any changes in such numbers over time and allowing for comparisons of such numbers across local school divisions.

Certain English Language Learner Students; Removal from Certain Non-Academic School Performance Indicator Calculations HB 1294 (Kory) would require the Board of Education to permit any English language learner student who enters high school with an English language proficiency level of 1 or 2, has been enrolled in public schools in the Commonwealth for fewer than four semesters, and has a final four-year cohort status of dropout or unconfirmed to be removed from the calculation of the dropout rate and graduation and completion index non-academic school performance indicators for English language learner students under the Standards of Accreditation.

Electric school buses HB 75 (Kory) would authorize Dominion Energy to implement a pilot program under which it will deploy electric school buses in participating school divisions in its service territory. The initial phase of the pilot program would be limited to the deployment of 50 electric school buses at a cost of up to $13.5 million. In each of the five years thereafter, the pilot program may be expanded by up to 200 additional electric school buses at a cost of up to $54 million per year. The pilot program would provide that the utility may use vehicle-to-grid technology to access electricity in the storage batteries of the electric school buses when they are not in use. The duration of the pilot program would not exceed 10 years, though the utility may petition the State Corporation Commission to make it permanent. Program costs, including the incremental cost of the electric school buses, are recoverable through the utility's base rates.  HB 1140 (Keam) would create the Clean School Bus Grant Fund and requires the Department of Education to establish the Clean School Bus Grant Program for the purpose of (i) awarding grants from the Fund on a competitive basis to school boards for (a) the complete replacement of existing diesel school buses with electric school buses no later than 2030, (b) the implementation of recharging infrastructure or other infrastructure needed to charge or maintain such electric school buses, and (c) workforce development and training to support the maintenance, charging, and operation of such electric school buses and (ii) developing education outreach to promote the Program. The bill contains provisions relating to grant applications, priority, awards, and uses. The bill would require the Department of Education to make available to the public and annually report to the General Assembly certain information relating to the Program. The bill has an expiration date of July 1, 2030.

Bills Related to Local Taxing Authority

Local Taxing Authority Equalization HB 785 (Watts) would equalize city taxing authority and county taxing authority by granting a county the same authority to impose taxes on cigarettes, admissions, transient room rentals, meals, and travel campgrounds without limitation on the rate that may be imposed. The bill would eliminate the limit of four percent on a county food and beverage tax (commonly referred to as the meals tax). The bill would also remove the requirement that a county hold a referendum before imposing a meals tax. SB 484 (Favola) would contain similar provisions as HB 785.  However, the bill would retain a restriction that applies to counties under current law and requires that any transient occupancy tax revenue attributable to a rate of between two and five percent must be used for tourism marketing. SB 588 (Hanger) would similarly equalize city taxing authority and county taxing authority by granting a county the same authority available to a city through the uniform charter powers. The bill would direct the Division of Legislative Services to convene a work group to develop recommendations as to any additional legislative changes that may be needed to effectuate the provisions of the bill.

County food and beverage tax. HB 977 (Krizek), SB 682 (Mason), and SB 799 (Lewis) would eliminate the limit that restricts a county from imposing a food and beverage tax (commonly referred to as the meals tax) at a rate greater than four percent. The bill also would remove the requirement that a county hold a referendum before imposing a meals tax. Under current law, the tax limit and referendum requirement apply to counties but not cities.

Taxes on tobacco products HB 1120 (Hope) would provide that tobacco products, defined in the bill, would be subject to tax at rates of $1.80 per pack of cigarettes or 39 percent of the wholesale price for all other tobacco products. Current law imposes taxes of $0.30 per pack of cigarettes, 10 percent of the wholesale price of certain tobacco products, and various weight-based rates that apply to moist snuff and loose leaf tobacco. The bill would broaden the definition of "tobacco product" to include electronic smoking devices, which are not taxed under current law.  The bill would also authorize all localities to tax all tobacco products with no restriction on the tax rate. Under current law, cities may tax only cigarettes, and the Counties of Arlington and Fairfax may tax cigarettes at a rate no higher than the state rate.

Bills Related to English Learners

English Language Learner Students; Guidance, Information, Programs, and Policies HB 1139 (Keam) would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to develop guidance for school boards to improve the process for the identification of English language learner students for eligibility for gifted and talented programs and address the underrepresentation of such students in such programs that includes methods for recognizing and addressing potential challenges in such process and facilitating professional development for and collaboration among the teachers involved in such process, including teachers in English language learner programs and teachers in gifted and talented programs; encourage any school board of a local school division in which English language learner students struggle to achieve at a high level to prioritize the utilization of the state funds available to the school board to improve such levels of achievement; and in consultation with experts who possess knowledge and experience in assessing the language proficiency and academic performance of English language learner students, annually collect and report data on the English proficiency level, program placement, and academic language development, including oral academic language, of each English language learner student and appropriate and effective measures for improving assessments for and the English proficiency of English language learner students. The bill would require the school board in any school division in which 20 or more English language learner students in one language classification are enrolled at any grade level in kindergarten through grade five, to provide a one-way or two-way dual language immersion program or early exit or late exit transitional bilingual program for such students, as such programs are defined by the Board of Education pursuant to regulation. The bill would require each school board to provide a content-based or pull-out English as a second language program, as such programs are defined by the Board of Education pursuant to regulation, for all other enrolled English language learner students. The bill would require each school board to adopt policies to support oral and written communication between school board employees and the parents of each enrolled student in such parents' native language; pursue community support to accelerate the literacy and achievement of English language learner students; conduct school satisfaction surveys in the native language of each surveyed individual, when practicable; and ensure that literacy strategies sent to the parents of enrolled English language learner students who read below grade level are tailored to promote reading proficiency in English and the student's native language. The bill would also require any Head Start program offered in the Commonwealth to provide the parents of English language learner students with oral and written information to monitor the program's impact on their children's English and native language proficiency and development.

Graduation Requirements; English As a Second Language Courses HB 1400 (Willet) would require the Board of Education, in establishing high school graduation requirements, to permit English as a second language (ESL) courses to satisfy credit requirements for graduation.

Student Assessments; Language Translation HB 527 (Kory) would require each school board to establish a process for the translation of certain statutorily required student assessments and any accompanying assessment instructions into the native language of each student who will participate in such assessments.

Bills Related to School Resource Officers

School Resource Officers and School Security Officers HB 271 (Van Valkenburg) and SB 170 (Locke) would require the Department of Criminal Justice Services, in coordination with the Department of Education and the Department of Juvenile Justice, to annually collect, report, and publish data related to incidents involving students and school resource officers or school security officers. The bill would also require the Virginia Center for School and Campus Safety to analyze and disseminate submitted data. 

School boards and local law-enforcement agencies; memorandums of understanding; frequency of review and public input. HB 292 (VanValkenburg) and SB 221 (Locke) would shorten from every five years to every two years the frequency of the review period for memorandums of understanding between school boards and local law-enforcement agencies. The bill also would require local school boards to conspicuously publish the current division memorandum of understanding on its division website and provide notice and opportunity for public input and discussion during each memorandum of understanding review period.

School Resource Officers; Memorandums of Understanding HB 897 (Guzman) and HB 1135 (Lopez) would require that the required memorandum of understanding entered into by a local school board and local law-enforcement agency be consistent with the model memorandum of understanding developed by the Virginia Center for School and Campus Safety. The bill would require that the model memorandum contain provisions that prohibit school resource officers from conducting a search of a student's person or property while on school property unless such resource officer has probable cause to conduct such a search and either has a judicial warrant authorizing the search or has identified exigent circumstances necessitating a warrantless search;  participating in any request for assistance from a federal agency without a subpoena or warrant; inquiring as to whether a student was born in a country other than the United States or is a citizen of a country other than the United States, unless such inquiry is in connection with an kidnapping or extortion investigation; and absent exigent circumstances, questioning any student without prior notification to the parent or guardian of such student's right to refuse to be questioned or searched. The bill would also provides that the model memorandum of understanding shall contain provisions regarding the use of translators or appropriate guardians to assist students in responding to questions from a school resource officer. The bill would require each such school board and local law-enforcement agency to review the memorandum of understanding every four years or at any time upon request of either party. The bill would provide that such memorandum shall be made available for public review and comment at least 30 days prior to its adoption. The bill would also redefine school resource officer to specifically prohibit a school resource officer from investigating or enforcing violations of school board policies, including student conduct codes.

Training for School Resource Officers and School Security Officers HB 1419 (Jones) and SB 171 (Locke) would require school resource officers and school security officers to receive training specific to the role and responsibility of a law-enforcement officer working with students in a school environment that includes training on relevant state and federal laws; school and personal liability issues; security awareness in the school environment; (iv) mediation and conflict resolution, including de-escalation techniques;  disaster and emergency response; awareness of cultural diversity and implicit bias; working with students with disabilities, mental health needs, substance abuse disorders, or past traumatic experiences; and student behavioral dynamics, including current child and adolescent development and brain research. 

School resource officers; custodial interrogation; parental consent HB 718 (Reid) would prohibit each school resource officer from conducting a custodial interrogation, which the bill defines as any interview of a public elementary or secondary school student conducted by a school resource officer in such circumstances that would lead a reasonable person to consider himself to be in custody associated with arrest and during which the school resource officer takes actions or asks questions that are reasonably likely to elicit responses from the student that could incriminate him, without the written consent of the student's parent.

School Resource Officers; required in every school HB 424 (McGuire) would require each local school board to place a school resource officer in each public elementary and secondary school. The bill would provide that 44 percent of revenues from taxes on alcohol licenses, distilled spirits, and beer and wine coolers shall accrue to the School Resource Officer Supplementary Fund, created by the bill, which would be used to fund the costs of the school resource officer requirement.

Bills Related to Contracting, Licensure, and Required Training

Probationary Term of Service; Performance Evaluation  HB 365 (Carroll-Foy) and SB 98 (Locke) would remove the option for local school boards to extend the three-year probationary term of service for teachers by up to two additional years and the prohibition against school boards reemploying any teacher whose performance evaluation during the probationary term of service is unsatisfactory.  HB 1169 (Wampler) would provide that a probationary term of service of at least three years shall be required before a public elementary or secondary school teacher is issued a continuing contract.

Dismissal of Teachers; Grounds; Incompetency HB 570 (Guzman) and SB 167 (Favola) would remove receipt of one or more unsatisfactory performance evaluations from the list of factors that "incompetency" may be construed to include for the purpose of establishing grounds for the dismissal of public school teachers.

Teachers; Probation and Dismissal HB 1326 (Kory) would specify that a teacher may be placed on probation for incompetency, immorality, noncompliance with school laws and regulations, disability as shown by competent medical evidence when in compliance with federal law, conviction of a felony or a crime of moral turpitude, or other good and just cause. The bill would replace the current condition constituting incompetency, for the purposes of teacher employment, of one or more unsatisfactory performance evaluations with the condition of more than one unsatisfactory performance evaluation or one unsatisfactory performance evaluation coupled with a finding by the division superintendent that the teacher exhibited a pattern of poor performance or failed to respond to efforts to improve his performance. The bill would extend from 10 business days to 15 business days the deadline for a teacher to request a hearing after receiving written notice of a recommendation of dismissal. The bill would also stagger by 10 days the opportunity for a teacher recommended for dismissal to inspect and copy his personnel file and all other documents relied upon in reaching the decision to recommend dismissal and the opportunity for the division superintendent to inspect and copy the documents to be offered in rebuttal to the decision to recommend dismissal. The bill would also extend from 15 business days to 30 business days the deadline for the school board or hearing officer to set a hearing after a request for a hearing by a teacher recommended for dismissal.

Teacher licensure; written reprimand; suspension. HB 1344 (Askew) would provide that when adopting regulations regarding the issuance of written reprimands of teachers and other school personnel required to hold a license, the Board of Education shall establish in such regulations the grounds for such written reprimands and provides that for a teacher who breaches his contract, the local board of education or division superintendent, in addition to a written reprimand or revocation of the teacher's license as in current law, may issue a suspension of the teacher's license.

Teacher grievance procedures; hearing; three-member fact-finding panel. SB 377 (Bell) would permit a school board to conduct a teacher grievance hearing before a three-member fact-finding panel consisting of one member selected by the teacher, one member selected by the division superintendent, and an impartial hearing officer selected by the other two panel members, to serve as the chairman of the panel. Under current law, the school board has the option of appointing a hearing officer or conducting such hearing itself. The bill also would remove the requirement that a teacher grievance hearing be set within 15 days of the request for such hearing and would extend from five days to 10 days the minimum period of advanced written notice to the teacher of the time and place of such hearing.

Collective Bargaining by Public Employees HB 327 (Levine) would authorize state and local government officers, agents, and governing bodies to recognize any labor union or other employee association as a bargaining agent of any public officers or employees and to collectively bargain with any such union or association.  HB 582 (Guzman) would repeal the existing prohibition on collective bargaining by public employees. The bill would create the Public Employee Relations Board, which would determine appropriate bargaining units and provide for certification and decertification elections for exclusive bargaining representatives of state employees and local government employees. The measure would require public employers and employee organizations that are exclusive bargaining representatives to meet at reasonable times to negotiate in good faith with respect to wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. The measure would repeal a provision enacted in 2013 that declares that, in any procedure providing for the designation, selection, or authorization of a labor organization to represent employees, the right of an individual employee to vote by secret ballot is a fundamental right that shall be guaranteed from infringement.

Strikes by Government Employees HB 67 (Carter) would limit to law-enforcement officers the scope of the existing provision that deems any public employee who strikes to have terminated his employment and bars him from further public employment.

Right to Work. HB 153 (Carter) would repeal the provisions of the Code of Virginia that, among other things, prohibit any agreement or combination between an employer and a labor union or labor organization whereby (i) nonmembers of the union or organization are denied the right to work for the employer, (ii) membership in the union or organization is made a condition of employment or continuation of employment by such employer, or (iii) the union or organization acquires an employment monopoly in any such enterprise.

Education Preparation Programs; Teacher Licensure; Positive Behavior Intervention Training or Instruction HB 894 (Levine) would require education preparation programs offered by public institutions of higher education and private institutions of higher education to require, as condition of degree completion, each enrolled student to complete coursework on positive behavior interventions and supports, crisis prevention and de-escalation, the proper use of physical restraint, and appropriate alternative methods to reduce and prevent the need for the use of physical restraint and seclusion. The bill would require every person seeking initial licensure as a teacher who has not completed such coursework to complete instruction or training on such topics.

Mental Health Training HB 74 (Kory) would require each school board to adopt and implement policies that require each teacher and other relevant personnel, as determined by the school board, employed on a full-time basis, to complete a Mental Health First Aid training or similar program. The bill would require each school board to provide such training and provides that a school board may contract with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, a community services board, a behavioral health authority, a nonprofit organization, or other certified trainer to provide such training.  HB 716 (Reid) would require the Department of Education to adopt and implement policies that require each teacher, school counselor, school athletics team coach, and school activity supervisor to complete an online mental health awareness training. The bill would require the Department of Education to provide such training and permits the Department of Education to contract with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, a community services board, a behavioral health authority, a nonprofit organization, or other certified trainer to provide such training.  SB 619 (Deeds) would  require the Board of Education to amend its regulations related to teacher licensure to require that every person seeking initial licensure complete a Mental Health First Aid training or similar program and every person seeking renewal of a license complete an online module on mental health developed or approved by the Department of Education. The bill would require the Department of Education, in collaboration with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, to develop or approve one or more online modules on mental health by November 30, 2020.

Seizure Treatment and Training SB 420 (DeSteph) would provide for the submission and utilization of seizure management plans for students with a seizure disorder. The bill would require that school nurses and certain school division employees complete an online course of instruction regarding treating students with seizure disorders. The bill would also provide immunity from civil liability for acts or omissions related to providing for the care of a student under a seizure management plan.

Sudden cardiac arrest prevention in student-athletes SB 463 (Reeves) would direct the Board of Education to develop, biennially update, and distribute to each local school division guidelines on policies to inform and educate coaches, student-athletes, and student-athletes' parents or guardians about the nature and risk of sudden cardiac arrest, procedures for removal from and return to play, and the risks of not reporting symptoms. The bill also would require local school divisions to develop and biennially update policies and procedures regarding the identification and handling of symptoms that may lead to sudden cardiac arrest in student-athletes.

Study of teacher licensing process SJ 15 (Locke) would request the Department of Education to study the teacher licensure process and the assessment requirements therein for any inherent biases that may prevent minority teacher candidates from entering the profession.

Bills Related to the Standards of Quality

Standards of Quality; work-based learning; teacher leaders and mentors; principal mentors; certain personnel positions and initiatives. HB 1316 (Aird) and SB (728) McClellan would implement the Board of Education’s recommended changes in the Standards of Quality, including requiring the establishment of units in the Department of Education to oversee work-based learning and principal mentorship statewide in Standard 1 and requiring the Board of Education to establish and oversee the local implementation of teacher leader and teacher mentor programs in Standard 5. The bill also would make several changes relating to school personnel in Standard 2, including (i) establishing schoolwide ratios of students to teachers in certain schools with high concentrations of poverty and granting flexibility to provide compensation adjustments to teachers in such schools; (ii) requiring each school board to assign licensed personnel in a manner that provides an equitable distribution of experienced, effective teachers and other personnel among all schools in the local school division; (iii) requiring each school board to employ teacher leaders and teacher mentors at specified student-to-position ratios; (iv) requiring state funding in addition to basic aid to support at-risk students and granting flexibility in the use of such funds by school boards; (v) lowering the ratio of English language learner students to teachers; (vi) requiring each school board to employ reading specialists and establishing a student-to-position ratio for such specialists; (vii) requiring school boards to employ one full-time principal in each elementary school; (viii) lowering the ratio of students to assistant principals and school counselors in elementary, middle, and high schools; and (ix) requiring each school board to provide at least four specialized student support positions, including school social workers, school psychologists, school nurses, and other licensed health and behavioral positions, per 1,000 students.

School Counselors HB 1508 (McQuinn) would require local school boards to employ school counselors in accordance with the following ratios, effective with the 2020–2021 school year: in elementary schools, one hour per day per 75 students, one full-time equivalent at 375 students, one hour per day additional time per 75 students or major fraction thereof; in middle schools, one period per 65 students, one full-time equivalent at 325 students, one additional period per 65 students or major fraction thereof; and in high schools, one period per 60 students, one full-time equivalent at 300 students, one additional period per 60 students or major fraction thereof. The bill would also require local school boards to employ one full-time equivalent school counselor position per 250 students in grades kindergarten through 12, effective with the 2021–2022 school year.  HB 1515 (McQuinn) would require school boards to employ school counselors in accordance with the following ratios: effective with the 2020-2021 school year, in elementary schools, one hour per day per 60 students, one full-time at 300 students, one hour per day additional time per 60 students or major fraction thereof; in middle and high schools, one period per 55 students, one full-time at 275 students, one additional period per 55 students or major fraction thereof and effective with the 2021-2022 school year, in elementary, middle, and high schools, one hour per day per 50 students, one full-time at 250 students, one additional hour per day per 50 students or major fraction thereof.

School Counselors and Social Workers; Student to Position Ratio; Certain Schools HB 398 (Keam) would requires school boards to employ one school counselor and one social worker for every 250 students in each elementary school, middle school, and high school in which at least 50 percent of the students are eligible for federal free lunch.

School Nurses SB 151 (Stuart) would exclude school nurse positions from requirements for student support positions and instead requires each local school board to employ at least one full-time equivalent school nurse position in each elementary school, middle school, and high school in the local school division or at least one full-time equivalent school nurse position per 550 students in grades kindergarten through 12.

Instructional positions; students identified as having limited English proficiency. HB 1323 (Kory) would require state funding to be provided pursuant to the general appropriation act to support 20 full-time equivalent instructional positions for each 1,000 students identified as having limited English proficiency. Current law requires state funding to support 17 such positions for each 1,000 such students.  HB 975 (Guzman) would require state funding, pursuant to the general appropriation act, to be provided pursuant to Standard 2 of the Standards of Quality to support divisionwide ratios of English language learner students in average daily membership to full-time equivalent teaching positions as follows: (i) for each English language learner identified as proficiency level one, one position per 25 students; (ii) for each English language learner identified as proficiency level two, one position per 30 students; (iii) for each English language learner identified as proficiency level three, one position per 40 students; and (iv) for all other English language learners, one position per 58 students. Current law requires 17 full-time equivalent instructional positions for each 1,000 students identified as having limited English proficiency.

Bills Related to Student Discipline

Disorderly Conduct at School Sponsored Activities HB 8 (Bourne) and SB 3 (McClellan) would eliminate the Class 1 misdemeanor for disrupting willfully or while intoxicated, whether willfully or not, the operation of any school or any school activity conducted or sponsored by any school if the disruption prevents or interferes with the orderly conduct of the operation or activity or has a direct tendency to cause acts of violence by the person or persons at whom, individually, the disruption is directed. HB 256 (Mullin) would provide that a student at any elementary or secondary school is not guilty of disorderly conduct in a public place if the disorderly conduct occurred on school property or a school bus.

School Principal Incident Reports HB 257 (Mullin), HB 1114 (Hudson), and SB 729 (McClellan)  would eliminate the requirement that school principals report certain enumerated acts that may constitute a misdemeanor offense to law enforcement.

Discipline; suspension; access to graded work. HB 415 (Delaney) would require school boards to adopt policies and procedures to ensure suspended students are able to access and complete graded work during the suspension.

Public elementary and secondary school students; suspension and expulsion; sufficient cause. HB 109 (Cole, J.G.) would provide that in no case shall sufficient cause for the suspension or expulsion of a student from attendance at a public elementary or secondary school include only instances of truancy or nonviolent behavior. Current law provides that in no cases may sufficient cause for suspensions include only instances of truancy.

Bills Related to School Facilities

Uniform Minimum Standards for Modern Public School Buildings SB 5 (Stanley) would require the Board of Education to prescribe by regulation uniform minimum standards for the erection of modern public school buildings and the modernization of existing public school buildings for the purpose of promoting positive educational outcomes for each public elementary and secondary school student.

Legionella bacteria testing; review; report. SB 410 (Hashmi) would require each school board to test each public school building in the local school division for the presence of Legionella bacteria at such regular intervals as the school board deems necessary to maintain the health and decency of such buildings. The bill would require the Department of Education to make recommendations for the frequency of testing for the presence of Legionella bacteria in public school buildings and to notify each local school board of its recommendations no later than September 1, 2020. The bill would also require each public elementary and secondary school to maintain files of its Legionella bacteria test results and make such files available for review and the division superintendent to report such results to the Department of Health.

Mold testing; parental notification. SB 845 (Ebbin) would require each local school board to develop and implement a plan to test and, if necessary, remediate mold from sources identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as high priority for testing. The bill would require local school boards to give priority in the testing plan to schools whose school building was constructed, in whole or in part, before 1986 and to submit their testing plan and any testing results to the Department of Health. The bill also would require local school boards to take all steps necessary to notify the parents of all enrolled students if testing results indicate the presence of mold in a school building.

Lead testing; report; parental notification. HB 797 (Askew) would require each local school board to submit its plan to test and remediate certain potable water sources and report the results of any such test to the Department of Health. The bill also requires local school boards to take all necessary steps to notify parents if testing results indicate lead contamination that exceeds the maximum contaminant level goals set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  SB 392 (McPike) would require each local school board to submit its plan to test and remediate certain potable water sources and report the results of any such test to the Department of Health.

Potable water; water bottle filling stations SB 299 (Stanley) would require each local school board to install at least one purified water bottle filling station in every public school in the local school division. The bill requires that each purified water bottle filling station (i) dispense filtered, clean drinking water; (ii) be regularly cleaned and maintained; and (iii) be accompanied by a cup dispenser if there is no drinking fountain on the same floor and wing as the water bottle filling station.  HB 1085 (Hayes) would establish minimum requirements for the installation of water bottle filling stations and drinking fountains in new public school buildings, additions to existing public school buildings, and alterations to existing public school buildings estimated to cost $50,000 or more. The bill would also require the Board of Education to amend its regulations to require local school divisions to allow all students to carry and utilize a water bottle while at school.

Menstrual supplies; certain school buildings. HB 405 (Keam) would require each school board to make tampons and pads available at all times and at no cost to students in the bathrooms of each facility that it owns, leases, or otherwise controls that houses a public school at which any student in grades five through 12 is enrolled. SB 232 (Boysko) would require each school board to make tampons and pads available at all times and at no cost to students in the bathrooms of each public school at which any student in grades five through 12 is enrolled and at which at least 40 percent of enrolled students are eligible for free or reduced lunch.

Undesignated stock albuterol inhalers; administration by certain individuals HB 1174 (Lopez) would require each local school board to adopt and implement policies for the possession and administration of undesignated stock albuterol inhalers in every school in the local school division, to be administered by any school nurse, employee of the school board, employee of a local governing body, or employee of a local health department who is authorized by a prescriber and trained in the administration of albuterol inhalers for any student believed in good faith to be in need of such medication. The bill would limit the liability of (i) any such individual who provides, administers, or assists in the administration of an albuterol inhaler for a student believed in good faith to be in need of such medication and (ii) the prescriber of such medication.

Additional K-12 Related Legislation

Treatment of transgender students; policies. HB 145 (Simon) and SB 161 (Boysko) would require the Department of Education to develop and make available to each school board, no later than December 31, 2020, model policies concerning the treatment of transgender students in public elementary and secondary schools that address common issues regarding transgender students in accordance with evidence-based best practices and include information, guidance, procedures, and standards relating to (i) compliance with applicable nondiscrimination laws; (ii) maintenance of a safe and supportive learning environment free from discrimination and harassment for all students; (iii) prevention of and response to bullying and harassment; (iv) maintenance of student records; (v) identification of students; (vi) protection of student privacy and the confidentiality of sensitive information; (vii) enforcement of sex-based dress codes; and (viii) student participation in sex-specific school activities, events, and athletics and use of school facilities. The bill would require each school board to adopt, no later than the beginning of the 2021–2022 school year, policies that are consistent with but may be more comprehensive than such model policies developed by the Department of Education.

Student Transportation, Students with Medical Conditions HB 1208 (Tran) would require each school board to establish a process for assisting any student whose family members have one or more medical conditions that preclude them from providing transportation for the student to attend school to apply for and obtain a pass to ride a regionally operated or locally operated bus to school.

Alcoholic beverage control; possession and sale of alcoholic beverages at school sporting events; penalty. HB 1142 (Tran) would prohibit persons from drinking alcoholic beverages in or upon the grounds of facilities hosting public elementary or secondary school sporting events and prohibits facilities hosting such events from serving alcoholic beverages during such events.

Sixth grade science curriculum, environmental quality  HB 272 (VanValkenburg) and SB 779 (Lewis) would direct the Department of Education to coordinate with the Department of Environmental Quality to update the "Window into a Green Virginia" curriculum developed by the Departments for sixth grade science to include a unit on the benefits, including the energy benefits, of recycling and reuse.

Early childhood care and education; licensing. HB 1012 (Bulova) and SB 578 (Howell) would require the Board of Education to establish a statewide unified public-private system for early childhood care and education in the Commonwealth to be administered by the Board of Education, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the Department of Education. The bill would transfer the authority to license and regulate child day programs and other early child care agencies from the Board of Social Services and Department of Social Services to the Board of Education and Department of Education. The bill would maintain current licensure, background check, and other requirements of such programs. Such provisions of the bill would have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2021. The bill would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction to establish a plan for implementing the statewide unified early childhood care and education system and requires the Department of Social Services and the Department of Education to enter into a cooperative agreement to coordinate the transition. The bill also would require the Board of Education to establish, no later than July 1, 2021, a uniform quality rating and improvement system designed to provide parents and families with information about the quality and availability of certain publicly funded early childhood care and education providers and to publish the initial quality ratings under such system in the fall of 2022.

Special Education; Due Process Hearings; Nonattorney Representatives HB 1381 (Leftwich) would permit a school division and the parents of a child with a disability in the school division to be accompanied and advised by any nonattorney with special knowledge or training with respect to the needs of children with disabilities in any due process hearing before a hearing officer. The bill would declare that it constitutes the practice of law without being authorized or licensed to do so as prohibited by law when any such nonattorney drafts or submits pleadings, motions, or briefs; presents evidence; makes any argument, including any argument relating to any law or regulation; or questions witnesses on behalf of any parent or student. The bill would  require the Board of Education to adopt regulations to establish licensure requirements, including minimum training and qualification requirements, a code of professional conduct, and a mechanism for the review and resolution of complaints for such nonattorneys.

Reading Diagnostic Tests; Intervention HB 332 (Hope) would require each student in kindergarten and grade one to participate in reading diagnostic tests that include a rapid automatized naming test and one or more rapid alternating stimulus tests as follows: for students in kindergarten, a rapid automatized naming test and a rapid alternating stimulus test that each include colors and objects and for students in grade one, a rapid automatized naming test and two rapid alternating stimulus tests that each include colors, objects, letters, and numbers. The bill would require any student who enrolls in a public elementary school in the Commonwealth for the first time in grade two or grade three to participate in the reading diagnostic tests required for students in grade one. The bill would specify that such diagnostic tests shall consist of the RAN/RAS tests developed and published by Maryanne Wolf and Martha Bridge Denckla or a substantially similar reading diagnostic tool that is evidence-based, normed, and approved by the Department of Education. The bill would require, beginning July 1, 2021, each local school division to provide evidence-based, structured literacy instruction to students in kindergarten through grade three who fall below the benchmark on any such reading diagnostic test and requires that such structured literacy instruction be overseen and monitored by the local school division's advisor on dyslexia and related disorders, when applicable.

Parental Notice; Literacy and Response to Intervention Screening and Services HB 410 (Delaney) would require each local school board to enact a policy to require that notice is provided to the parents of any student who receives literacy and Response to Intervention screening and services.

Immunization rates SB 339 (Stuart) would require each school board to publish on the official school division website for each school in the school division the number of students admitted to the school with documentary proof of immunization, the number of students who have been admitted with a medical or religious exemption, and the number of students who have been conditionally admitted.

Study; JLARC; Feasibility of Adjusting the Composite Index of Local Ability to Pay and Expanding Access to the Cost of competing Adjustment HJ 20 (Cole) and SJ 28 (Reeves) would direct the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to study the feasibility of adjusting the composite index of local ability to pay and expanding access to the cost of competing adjustment by reviewing current statutory, constitutional, and budgetary provisions governing the calculation of Standards of Quality costs and funding; examining the components of the composite index of local ability to pay and the cost of competing adjustment; evaluating other states' public school funding formulas; and hearing local concerns and seeking input from various state and national experts, as applicable.

Education Improvement Scholarships Tax Credits HB 521 (Bulova) would repeal the Education Improvement Scholarships Tax Credits. Any qualifying donations made prior to July 1, 2020, would be eligible for the credit, including the ability to carry over the credit, as it was in effect on June 30, 2020.

Planning Time and Planning Periods HB 273 (VanValkenburg) and SB 134 (Stuart) would require each local school board to ensure that each elementary school teacher has an average of one 45-minute period per school day of planning time and that each middle and high school teacher is provided one planning period per school day or the equivalent, which shall be at least 45 minutes or one class period, whichever is longer. The bill would permit local school boards and teachers to enter into an appropriate contractual arrangement providing for compensation in lieu of such planning time or period.

Seat Belts on School Buses HB 15 (Krizek) would require the Board of Education to make regulations to require each new public school bus purchased for the transportation of students to be equipped with a seat belt consisting of a lap belt and shoulder strap or harness in every seat. The bill would require each school board to ensure that no later than July 1, 2038, each school bus that it uses for the transportation of students is equipped with a seat belt in every seat.

School Lock-Down Drills HB 270 (VanValkenburg) would require every public school to provide the parents of enrolled students with at least 24 hours' notice before the school conducts any lock-down drill. The bill would specify that no such notice would be required to include the exact date and time of the lock-down drill.  HB 402 (Keam) would require every public school at which sixth grade is the highest grade taught to hold at least one lock-down drill after the first 60 days of the school session and every public school at which seventh grade or any grade above seventh grade is taught to hold at least two lock-down drills after the first 60 days of the school session, in addition to the two lock-down drills required to be held during the first 20 days of the school session at each such school. The bill would require kindergarten students to be exempt from mandatory participation in lock-down drills during the first 60 days of the school session and would require the principal at each relevant school to implement such exemption by either conducting teacher-only drills or otherwise providing suitable training for kindergarten teachers or notifying each parent of a kindergarten student at least five school days in advance of each planned lock-down drill and permitting each such parent to opt his child out of participation in such lock-down drill.

Excused Absences; Mental and Behavioral Health HB 308 (Hope) would require the Department of Education to establish and distribute to each school board no later than August 1, 2020, guidelines for the granting of excused absences to students who are absent from school due to mental or behavioral health and require any student who is absent from school due to his mental or behavioral health to be granted an excused absence, subject to such guidelines.

School Bus Drivers; Critical Shortages SB 324 (Deeds) would require the Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the assistance of each school board or division superintendent, to survey each local school division to identify critical shortages of school bus drivers by geographic area and local school division and to report any such critical shortage to each local school division and to the Virginia Retirement System. HB 351 (Bell) would require the same identification of critical shortages as well as permit any school bus driver in any geographic area or school division in which a critical shortage of school bus drivers has been so identified to elect to continue to receive a service retirement allowance if the driver meets certain other conditions.

Student Journalists Freedom of Speech and the Press HB 36 (Hurst) and SB 80 (Marsden) would  declare that, except in certain limited circumstances, a student journalist at a public middle school or high school or public institution of higher education has the right to exercise freedom of speech and the press in school-sponsored media, including determining the news, opinion, feature, and advertising content of school-sponsored media, regardless of whether the media is supported financially by the school board or governing board, supported through the use of school or campus facilities, or produced in conjunction with a class or course in which the student is enrolled. The bill defines "school-sponsored media" as any material that is prepared, substantially written, published, or broadcast by a student journalist at a public middle school or high school or public institution of higher education under the direction of a student media adviser and distributed or generally made available to members of the student body.

Election Day HB 108 (Lindsey) would designate Election Day, the Tuesday after the first Monday in November, as a state holiday and removes Lee-Jackson Day as a state holiday.  SB 176 (Chase) would prohibit local school boards from requiring students to attend school on the second Tuesday in June or the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The bill would also prohibit parent-teacher conferences and meetings from being held on those dates.