Second Regular Session Sixty-eighth General Assembly STATE OF COLORADO INTRODUCED LLS NO. 12-0498.01 Richard Sweetman x4333HOUSE BILL 12-1091 HOUSE SPONSORSHIP Solano, SENATE SPONSORSHIP Bacon, House Committees Senate Committees State, Veterans, & Military Affairs A BILL FOR AN ACT Concerning reducing the requirements of statewide student assessments to not exceed federal testing requirements, and, in connection therewith, providing funding for the Colorado preschool program. Bill Summary (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://www.leg.state.co.us/billsummaries.) The bill removes the provisions of the Colorado student assessment program that require the department of education (department) to administer statewide assessments in certain subject matters to students in certain grades. Statewide assessments administered by the department shall not exceed federal requirements for the administration of assessments of students. The bill states that for the 2012-13 budget year and for each budget year thereafter, the general assembly intends to appropriate to the department, for the purposes of the Colorado preschool program, the general fund savings realized in implementing the provisions of the bill. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado: SECTION 1. Legislative declaration. (1) The general assembly hereby finds and declares that: (a) Colorado law exceeds the standardized testing requirements of the federal "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001", Public Law 107-110, which require states to administer a standardized, statewide test in reading or language arts and in mathematics annually to all students enrolled in public schools in grades three through eight and at least once to students enrolled in grades ten through twelve and to administer a standardized, statewide test in science at least once to students enrolled in grades three through five, at least once to students enrolled in grades six through nine, and at least once to students enrolled in grades ten through twelve; (b) The federal government has failed to adequately fund the requirements of the federal "No Child Left Behind" mandate, placing the majority of the financial burden of compliance on state and local school districts. For the past decade, the Colorado general assembly has annually appropriated approximately twenty-five million dollars to the administration of the Colorado student assessment program, with only nine million dollars of that amount consisting of federal funds. Local school districts also bear much of the cost of administering the assessments and preparing and compiling assessment materials. (c) The failures of "No Child Left Behind" to improve academic achievement and the inability of the United States Congress to pass corrective action during the scheduled 2007 re-authorization of the "No Child Left Behind Act" demand reflection and action on the part of the general assembly. (2) The general assembly further finds that: (a) State education resources should be committed to intervention programs that are evidence-based and that improve students' academic achievement; (b) Extensive research proves that providing early education intervention and prevention services to young children has the greatest positive impact on academic achievement; (c) Investing in standardized testing has neither closed the achievement gap nor decreased the dropout rate in Colorado; and (d) Nearly ten thousand children who are eligible for the Colorado preschool program do not receive services. (3) The general assembly therefore resolves that: (a) No additional state expenditures shall be allocated for the expansion or development of state standardized assessments beyond those assessments that are required to satisfy federal requirements; (b) Applications submitted by the state department of education to the United States Department of Education for the purpose of acquiring waivers of specific federal requirements shall not include provisions that exceed any other existing federal requirements; and (c) State funding that is currently being spent on excessive standardized testing shall be redirected to the provision of additional Colorado preschool program slots. SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 22-7-409, amend (1); and add (5) as follows: 22-7-409. Assessments. (1) Beginning in the spring semester 1997 2013, the department shall implement the Colorado student assessment program under which the department shall administer statewide assessments adopted by the board pursuant to section 22-7-406 in the first priority areas of reading, writing, mathematics, and science pursuant to this section. The department shall administer the English versions of the state assessments and may administer any assessments adopted by the board in languages other than English, as may be appropriate for students with limited English proficiency; except that any student who has participated in the English language proficiency program, created pursuant to section 22-24-104, for more than a total of three school years shall be ineligible to take the assessments in a language other than English. The statewide assessments shall be administered according to the following implementation schedule: (a) Beginning in the spring semester 1997, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in reading and writing to all students enrolled in fourth grade in public schools throughout the state. (b) Beginning in the spring semester 1998, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in reading to all students enrolled in the third grade in public schools throughout the state. (c) (I) Beginning in the fall semester 1999, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in mathematics to all students enrolled in the fifth grade in public schools throughout the state. (II) Beginning in the spring semester 2001, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in mathematics to all students enrolled in the fifth grade in public schools throughout the state. (d) Beginning in the spring semester 1999, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in reading and writing to all students enrolled in the seventh grade in public schools throughout the state. (d.5) Beginning in the spring semester 2000, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in mathematics and science to all students enrolled in the eighth grade in public schools throughout the state. (e) Beginning in the spring semester 2001, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in reading to all students enrolled in the fifth, sixth, eighth, and ninth grades in public schools throughout the state and in reading, writing, and mathematics to all students enrolled in the tenth grade in public schools throughout the state. (f) Beginning in the spring semester 2002, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment in writing to all students enrolled in the third, fifth, sixth, eighth, and ninth grades in public schools throughout the state and in mathematics to all students enrolled in the sixth, seventh, and ninth grades in public schools throughout the state. (g) (I) If sufficient moneys are received from the federal government through the federal "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001", Public Law 107-110, to pay for the development and administration of the assessments, beginning in the spring semester 2006 at the latest, and each spring semester thereafter, the department shall administer a statewide assessment first in mathematics to all students enrolled in the third and fourth grades and in science to all students enrolled in the fifth and tenth grades in public schools throughout the state. (II) The assessments described in this paragraph (g) shall only be developed or administered to the extent that federal moneys are received to pay for such development and administration. It is the intent of the general assembly that no state moneys shall be used to develop or administer the assessments described in this paragraph (g). (5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the statewide assessments administered by the department pursuant to this section shall not exceed federal requirements for the administration of assessments of students, including but not limited to any requirements of the federal "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001", Public Law 107-110. SECTION 3. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 22-28-115 as follows: 22-28-115. Appropriation of savings realized in House Bill 12-____ for the purposes of the Colorado preschool program. It is the intent of the general assembly that, for the 2012-13 budget year and for each budget year thereafter, the general assembly shall appropriate to the department for the purposes of this article an amount equal to the general fund savings realized in implementing the amendments to section 22-7-409 enacted in House Bill 12-____, as enacted in the 2012 regular session of the general assembly. SECTION 4. Act subject to petition - effective date. This act takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly (August 7, 2012, if adjournment sine die is on May 9, 2012); except that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V of the state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in November 2012 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.