NY State Senate Bill 2019-S6756

Senate Bill S6756

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Directs the Rochester city school district to conduct a referendum regarding the suspension of the school board

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Education Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to education
Sep 30, 2019	referred to rules

2019-S6756 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Education
Law Section:: Education

2019-S6756 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Directs the Rochester city school district to conduct a referendum regarding the suspension of the school board; provides that, if approved, the superintendent shall assume administrative and budgetary decisions for the district in consultation with the department of education, for a period of five years.

2019-S6756 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S6756

SPONSOR: FUNKE
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act directing the Rochester city school district to
conduct a referendum regarding the suspension of the school board

 
PURPOSE:

To direct a vote of residents of the City of Rochester as to whether to
suspend the School Board and to grant additional powers to the Super-
intendent and oversight be the State Department of Education

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Directs that a referendum of residents of the City of Roches-
ter be held at the next School Board election to consider the suspension
of the School Board, the empowerment of the Superintendent and grant
additional oversight to the State Department of Education.

Section 2: Specifies that all aspects of the referendum process shall be
governed by and according to applicable provisions of the state election

law. Specifies that the current board will continue to serve in an advi-
sory capacity and will not be compensated during the suspension period.

Section 3: Directs the Superintendent to produce a comprehensive quar-
terly report to be shared with local and state officials

Section 4: Empowers the Department of Education to develop and issue
regulations and guidelines necessary to implement the provisions of this
act and directs the inclusion of specific benchmarks and measurements of
success

Section 5: Directs the Superintendent to develop a plan to expand the
use of the community schools model

Section 6: Empowers the Commissioner of Education to remove the school
Superintendent if the referendum is approved and replace him or her with
an interim superintendent

Section 7: Makes it clear that no provision of this act can undermine or
change any existing collective bargaining agreement and that all negoti-
ations needed during the suspension period shall be conducted by the
Superintendent or their designee and require the approval of the Commis-
sioner of Education

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The Rochester City Schools are in crises. Low graduation rates, poor
student attendance and issues related to school safety, particularly the
tragic death of Trevyan Rowe have shown this all too clearly.  The State
Department of Education appointed a Distinguished Educator Dr. Jaime
Acquino who investigated the failures in the school district and issued
a report demanding that these deficiencies be corrected. This was all
done under the supervision and direction of the State Department of
Education. While the School District did respond to this report, it is
another in a long line of promised corrections that have never come to
fruition.


Mayor Warren and the City Council adopted a resolution in support of a
local advisory referendum. Unfortunately, the School District challenged
that local action in court and it was decided that requiring a referen-
dum on this question was not within the purview of the City Council or
the Mayor.

More recently came revelations from RCSD that $50 million was missing
from District coffers and therefore the District faced a budget deficit
just months into their fiscal year. This situation only puts the need
for drastic change into starker relief.

It is impossible to argue that change is not needed. However, the School
Board was elected by voters in Rochester and if it is to be suspended,
that decision should similarly be made by those same voters. This bill
directs a referendum on that question to be held by next year in
conjunction with School board elections and includes enabling language
should voters decide to support the suspension of the school board.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately

2019-S6756 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6756
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                            September 30, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  FUNKE  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT directing the Rochester city school district to conduct a  refer-
   endum regarding the suspension of the school board
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. There shall be submitted to the  voters  of  the  Rochester
 city  school  district, at a special election held on or before December
 31, 2020, the following question:  "Should  the  Rochester  City  School
 Board  be suspended for a period of five years and the superintendent of
 the Rochester city school district be empowered to make all  administra-
 tive decisions in their place in consultation with and under the leader-
 ship of the New York State Education Department?"
   §  2.  (a)  Such question shall be submitted in the manner provided in
 the election law, and the provisions of such law, not inconsistent  with
 this  act, relating to the submission of and to the taking, counting and
 returning of the vote and canvassing the results upon a question submit-
 ted pursuant to law to the voters of the state shall apply to the  ques-
 tion  herein required to be submitted. The ballots shall be in such form
 as prescribed by such law.  When  the  board  of  elections  shall  have
 completed  its canvass of the results of the vote upon such question, it
 shall forthwith certify the results of the vote.
   (b) Where the referendum directed by this act is approved by a majori-
 ty of the voters in the school district, the  currently  elected  school
 board  shall  continue to serve in an advisory capacity only. They shall
 not receive any compensation during  the  suspension  period  but  shall
 continue  to  hold  regular  public  meetings.  The superintendent shall
 provide updates to the board at their regularly scheduled meetings,  but
 they  shall  not  have the power to take any actions or make administra-
 tive, budgetary or policy decisions.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13225-02-9

 S. 6756                             2
 
   § 3. The commissioner of education, in  conjunction  with  the  super-
 intendent of the Rochester city school district, shall produce a compre-
 hensive  quarterly  report and make sure such report is available to the
 Rochester city school board, the members of the assembly and the  senate
 representing  the city of Rochester, the mayor of the city of Rochester,
 the governor, the speaker of the assembly and the minority leader of the
 assembly, the temporary president of the senate and the minority  leader
 of the senate and the chairs of the education committees in the assembly
 and  senate.  Such report shall also be published on the school district
 website and the education department website.
   § 4. The education department shall develop guidelines and policies to
 implement the provisions of this act. Such guidelines and policies shall
 include benchmarks to be met every  six  months  during  the  suspension
 period. Such benchmarks shall include, but not be limited to, graduation
 rates,  attendance,  performance  on  state mandated standardized tests,
 whether students are performing at grade level or below,  budgeting  and
 costs, and evaluation and performance of administrators and professional
 staff.  The powers invested in the superintendent and a process of over-
 sight and local stakeholder engagement shall  be  developed  and  imple-
 mented by the department.
   §  5.  The  superintendent  shall  develop a plan to expand the use of
 community schools within the district.
   § 6. If the referendum is approved by a majority of the voters in  the
 school  district,  the  commissioner  of education may remove the super-
 intendent of the school district and appoint an interim superintendent.
   § 7. In no case shall the extraordinary powers invested in the  super-
 intendent  or  the department of education under this act violate, abro-
 gate or undermine any previous collective bargaining agreements.  During
 the  suspension period any new collective bargaining agreements shall be
 negotiated by the superintendent or his or her designee and require  the
 approval of the commissioner of education.
   § 8. This act shall take effect immediately.

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