S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7114
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               April 9, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  JONES  -- (at request of the State Education
   Department) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law, in  relation  to  the  attendance  of
   minors  upon  full  day  instruction  and  the  conditions under which
   districts are entitled to an apportionment of state aid; and repealing
   certain provisions of the education law relating thereto
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Subdivisions 7 and 8 of section 3604 of the education law,
 subdivision 7 as amended by section 3 of part B of  chapter  54  of  the
 laws  of 2016 and subdivision 8 as amended by chapter 260 of the laws of
 2012, are amended to read as follows:
   7. No district shall be entitled to any portion of such school  moneys
 on  such  apportionment  unless  the  report of the trustees or board of
 education for the preceding school  year  shall  show  that  the  public
 schools  were actually in session in the district and taught by a quali-
 fied teacher or by successive qualified teachers or by qualified  teach-
 ers  for  not less than one hundred eighty days. The moneys payable to a
 school district pursuant to section thirty-six hundred  nine-a  of  this
 [chapter]  PART  in the current year shall be reduced by one one-hundred
 eightieth of the district's total foundation aid FOR THE BASE  YEAR  for
 each  day  less  than  one  hundred  eighty days that the schools of the
 district were actually in session,  except  that  the  commissioner  may
 disregard  such  reduction[,  up  to five days,] in the apportionment of
 public money, (I) FOR ANY DAY OR DAYS ON WHICH SESSION HAD  BEEN  PREVI-
 OUSLY  SCHEDULED BUT THE SUPERINTENDENT WAS REQUIRED TO CLOSE THE SCHOOL
 OR SCHOOLS DUE TO A PROPERLY EXECUTED DECLARATION OF A  STATE  OR  LOCAL
 STATE  OF  EMERGENCY  PURSUANT  TO ARTICLE TWO-B OF THE EXECUTIVE LAW OR
 (II) FOR UP TO FIVE DAYS if he OR SHE finds  that  the  schools  of  the
 district  were  not  in  session  for one hundred eighty days because of
 extraordinarily adverse weather conditions, impairment of heating facil-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD09869-02-9

 A. 7114                             2
 
 ities, insufficiency of water supply, shortage of fuel,  lack  of  elec-
 tricity,   natural   gas   leakage,   unacceptable  levels  of  chemical
 substances, a credible threat to student safety as reasonably determined
 by a lead school official or the destruction of a school building either
 in  whole  or in part, and if, further, the commissioner finds that such
 district cannot make up such  days  of  instruction  by  using  for  the
 secondary  grades  all  scheduled vacation days which occur prior to the
 first scheduled regents examination day in June, and for the  elementary
 grades  all scheduled vacation days which occur prior to the last sched-
 uled regents examination day in June. For the purposes of this  subdivi-
 sion,  "scheduled vacation days" shall mean days on which the schools of
 the district are not in session and for which no prohibition  exists  in
 subdivision eight of this section for them to be in session.
   8.  No  school  shall  be in session on a Saturday or a legal holiday,
 except general election day, Washington's birthday and Lincoln's  birth-
 day,  and  except  that  driver  education classes may be conducted on a
 Saturday. A deficiency not exceeding four days during  any  school  year
 caused  by teachers' attendance upon conferences held by superintendents
 of schools of city school districts or other school districts  employing
 superintendents  of  schools  shall  be  excused  by  the  commissioner,
 notwithstanding any provision of law, rule or regulation to the  contra-
 ry,  a school district may elect to schedule such conference days in the
 last two weeks of August, subject to collective bargaining  requirements
 pursuant  to  article  fourteen  of the civil service law, and such days
 shall be counted  towards  the  required  one  hundred  eighty  days  of
 session,  provided  however,  that  such  scheduling shall not alter the
 obligation of the school district to provide transportation to  students
 in  non-public elementary and secondary schools or charter schools. [The
 commissioner shall excuse a deficiency not exceeding  four  days  during
 such school year caused by teachers' attendance upon conferences held by
 such  superintendents,  provided  that  at] AT least two such conference
 days during such school year shall be dedicated to staff attendance upon
 conferences providing staff development relating  to  implementation  of
 the new high learning standards and assessments, as adopted by the board
 of  regents.  Notwithstanding  any other provision of law, rule or regu-
 lation to the contrary, school districts may elect to use one or more of
 such allowable conference days in units of not less than one  hour  each
 to  provide  staff  development activities relating to implementation of
 the new high learning standards and assessments. A district making  such
 election may provide such staff development [during the regularly sched-
 uled  daily  session]  ON  ANY DAY DURING WHICH SESSIONS ARE ALLOWED and
 apply such units to satisfy a deficiency in the length of  one  or  more
 daily  sessions of instruction for pupils as specified in regulations of
 the commissioner. The commissioner shall  assure  that  such  conference
 days  include  appropriate  school  violence prevention and intervention
 training, and may require that up to one such conference  day  be  dedi-
 cated for such purpose.
   § 2. Subdivisions 7-a and 7-b of section 3604 of the education law are
 REPEALED.
   § 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.