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Re-capping the Fall Legislative Session

By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | December 5, 2013

With the State Legislature’s floor period having ended in early November, it seems a perfect time to update the SAA membership on the status of important K-12 education issues and legislation currently before the State Legislature. 

Common Core State Standards

After dragging educators and the public through the circus-like atmosphere of four “public hearings” on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), it has become increasingly clear there is no will among Republican leaders inside the State Capitol to reject the Common Core.  At the end of the day, the irrational ranting of the anti-Common Core crowd was no match for the powerful testimony from school administrators and the strong pro-CCSS stance of State Superintendent Tony Evers.

Although the anti-Common Core coalition continues to pressure Governor Walker on this issue, State Capitol sources suggest the only legislation we may see is the creation of an advisory commission every 5-7 years to review state education standards.  But, given the unpredictable nature of all things political in Madison these days . . . stay tuned.

School Accountability

On September 12th, Senate Bill 286, the school accountability legislation that Senator Luther Olsen and Representative Steve Kestell have been crafting for more than two years, received a public hearing before the Senate Education Committee.  The SAA testified in support of the bill.  Our message, in a nutshell, was, “We don’t love the bill.  Accountability is hard.  But, we need to do it.  The system must include all schools that educate publicly-funded students with no preferential treatment for any type of school in the system.”  Private school voucher advocates opposed the bill.

Since the September 12 hearing, the bill authors have been negotiating with relevant parties to achieve consensus.  Recently, Senator Olsen suggested publicly that a consensus bill could be ready by mid-December.  Stay tuned.

Charter School Expansion

On October 3rd, a substantially revised Senate Bill 76 received a public hearing before the Senate Education Committee.  The next day, the SAA issued a priority legislative alert to members opposing SB 76 in which we argued the bill:  1) Greatly expanded the ranks of independent charter school authorizers; 2) Reduced general school aids to all school districts and raised property taxes; and 3) Removed the right of school boards to decide if they wish to authorize additional charter schools.

On the heels of the SAA alert, the bill fell apart in the Senate Republican Caucus.  Since then, a dramatically scaled-down version of the bill emerged focused primarily on allowing high performing independent charter schools in southeastern Wisconsin to replicate under certain circumstances.  Although the SAA considers the scaled-down version of the bill to be a positive development, we continue to oppose it because the replication of any new independent charter schools would further reduce general school aids to all school districts.  The bill stalled in committee at the end of the fall floor period, but we anticipate the bill will move forward next floor period beginning in January.

Special Education Substitutes

In recent years, increasing numbers of Wisconsin school districts have turned to contracting for substitute teacher and para-educator placements with private staffing services.  However, school districts cannot currently receive state special education aid for the costs of contracting with a staffing service for special education substitutes.  Senate Bill 271, authored by Senator Olsen and Representative Kestell with the SAA’s support, solves this problem by explicitly authorizing school districts to contract with staffing services and makes the costs eligible for special education aid.

SB 271 has encountered no opposition in the legislative process.  It has passed the Senate and we anticipate it will clear the Assembly as well in the next floor period.

Rural Schools Task Force

The Rural Schools Task Force was created by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos to seek solutions for problems facing rural schools.  To date, the Task Force has held public hearings in Rhinelander (October 23rd) and Elroy (November 6th).  These meetings have featured powerful invited testimony from rural school district administrators.

The SAA’s Rural Schools Legislative Agenda, produced in collaboration with the Rural Schools Alliance, has been distributed to all Task Force members.  The SAA has been invited to testify at the next Task Force hearing to be held in Madison on December 17th.  Stay tuned.  The work of the task force is a priority for the SAA.

Firearms in Schools

Assembly Bill 9, as originally introduced, would have allowed off-duty law enforcement officers and former law enforcement officers to carry firearms.

The SAA remained neutral on the bill until the bill’s author, Representative Joel Kleefish (R–Oconomowoc), introduced an amendment (Assembly Amendment 1) that would have allowed any person with a Wisconsin concealed carry (CCW) license or an out-of-state CCW license to go armed in a school.  The SAA issued a priority legislative alert opposing such an amendment.  Shortly thereafter, the bill was pulled from scheduled committee action and has essentially been pronounced “dead”.

Earning High School Credit in Middle School

Senate Bill 284, authored by Senator Glen Grothman (R–West Bend) and Representative Pat Strachota (R – West Bend) with the SAA’s support, allows a school board to count certain credits a pupil earns while in grades 7 and 8 as high school credits for purposes of graduation.

The bill has passed the Senate and awaits Assembly floor action.

Concussion Information/Paperwork

Senate Bill 258, authored by Senator Paul Farrow (R-Pewaukee) and Representative Keith Ripp (R–Lodi) and supported by the SAA, provides that the required concussion information sheet that must be signed by a parent/guardian and submitted prior to participation in youth athletics must only be submitted once per school year.

The bill has cleared both houses and awaits the governor’s signature.

Math and Science Credits

Senate Bill 51 increases the number of credits in math and science required for high school graduation from 2 to 3.  The SAA remained neutral on this bill.  You might recall that language boosting math and science credits for graduation was included in Wisconsin’s ESEA waiver.  The legislation first applies to a pupil graduating in the 2016-17 school year.

The bill has cleared both houses and awaits the governor’s signature.

Seat Belts on School Buses

Senate Bill 304, authored by Senator Tim Cullen (D – Janesville) and opposed by the SAA, would prohibit the future purchase, sale or lease of a larger school bus unless it is equipped with both shoulder and lap seat belts.

The bill received a public hearing on October 31st and has not moved.

180-Day Requirement

SAA-sponsored legislation removing the 180-day requirement (but maintaining the required minutes of instruction) is in its final drafting and will be ready for introduction soon.  Stay tuned.

Whole Grade Sharing

Whole Grade Sharing (WGS) refers to an agreement by 2 or more school boards that provides for the students in one or more grades in any of the districts to attend school in one or more of the other school districts.  It is a common practice among small rural school districts in Iowa.

SAA-sponsored legislation authorizing WGS in Wisconsin is in development and we hope it will be ready for introduction soon.  Stay tuned.

Thanks for listening, and thanks for all you do on behalf of Wisconsin school children.  If you should have questions regarding these or any other legislative issues, please contact John at john.forester@wsaa.org or 608-242-1370.

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