Date: 02/04/2013

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB13-1021

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Adopt amendment L.002 (Attachment G). The motion p
Refer House Bill 13-1021, as amended, to the Commi		Pass Without Objection
PASS



04:04 PM -- House Bill 13-1021

Representative Fields came to the table to present House Bill 13-1021, which modifies the current compulsory school attendance requirements. If a district initiates court proceedings against a student for habitual truancy, the introduced bill requires that the district submit to the court:

If a case to compel attendance is brought by a district, the court may issue an order for the student to comply with the district's truancy plan. If the court sentences a student to detention for failing to comply with attendance laws, the term of detention is limited to five days.

The bill allows students in the juvenile court system to take the GED at age 16, providing the student's case officer believes it is in the student's best interest. School districts serving students in juvenile detention must provide educational services for a sufficient number of hours per day to allow students to comply with state attendance requirements. Further, school districts must ensure that educational services provided to students in detention align with and enable students to meet state academic standards.

Representative Fields stated that habitual truancy is a serious issue in Colorado and that the bill allows the state to establish educational standards for when students are placed into detention. Representative Fields discussed two amendments to the bill, Amendment L.002 (Attachment G) and Amendment L.003 (Attachment H).

13HseEd0204AttachG.pdf13HseEd0204AttachG.pdf 13HseEd0204AttachH.pdf13HseEd0204AttachH.pdf

The following persons testified:

04:12 PM -- Meg Williams, representing the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice, testified on the bill. Ms. Williams stated that there has been an increase in the student population being sent to detention and an increase in truant students being held in detention for violating a court order to attend school. She stated that the stay in detention for students ranges from nine to 45 days. She stated that there is serious risk involved when low-level offenders are in jail with high-level offenders, and that literature shows that low-level offenders often learn how to be a delinquent. She stated that the bill limits the court's jurisdiction to five days per contempt and helps determine what the purpose of detention is for truant students. She stated that many kids are showing up in the court system and are already so far behind their peers academically because they became disengaged with school at a very young age. She stated that it is hard for these students to stay in school when they are so far behind academically. She added that the bill assures that students will receive educational opportunities while they are in detention. Ms. Williams responded to questions from the committee.

04:23 PM -- Regina Huerter, representing the Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Huerter stated that in detention, the amount of time devoted to education ranges from two to six hours per day and the content varies greatly. She provided a handout demonstrating the type of material that is given to students in detention (Attachment I). Ms. Huerter responded to several questions from the committee about the educational and counseling services available to students while in detention, and the effectiveness of placing students in detention for being truant.

13HseEd0204AttachI.pdf13HseEd0204AttachI.pdf

04:41 PM -- Brian Donovan, representing Aurora Public Schools, testified in support of the amendment to the bill. He stated that Cherry Creek and Aurora School districts worked on the language in the amendment to the bill. He stated that he works with students who are in truancy court and knows that it is the juvenile detention facility that provides the educational standards and materials to students. He stated that Amendment L.003 (Attachment H) talks about the alignment of educational services provided in detention facilities with the Colorado model content standards. He stated that some students are in truancy court for years and that a five day limit on the court's jurisdiction does not limit any subsequent five day issuances for further contempts. He stated that with the amendment, his school supports the bill. He responded to a committee question about the effectiveness of detention for truant students.


04:50 PM

The committee took a five minute recess.


04:55 PM

The committee came back to order and Representative Fields, bill sponsor, explained that Amendment L.003 (Attachment H) would not be introduced at this time because of an issue with the amendment's language. She stated that she would work with the amendment supporters to iron out the language and introduce it upon second reading, if the bill moves forward. She explained that Amendment L.002 (Attachment G), which is a strike-below amendment to the bill, would still be moved at this time.
BILL:HB13-1021
TIME: 04:55:10 PM
MOVED:Fields
MOTION:Adopt amendment L.002 (Attachment G). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Young
VOTE
Buckner
Court
Everett
Fields
Holbert
Landgraf
Murray
Pettersen
Priola
Wilson
Young
Peniston
Hamner
YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:HB13-1021
TIME: 04:58:13 PM
MOVED:Fields
MOTION:Refer House Bill 13-1021, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a vote of 8-5.
SECONDED:Court
VOTE
Buckner
Yes
Court
Yes
Everett
No
Fields
Yes
Holbert
No
Landgraf
No
Murray
No
Pettersen
Yes
Priola
Yes
Wilson
No
Young
Yes
Peniston
Yes
Hamner
Yes
Final YES: 8 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


05:05 PM

The committee adjourned.