Senate Bill sb1592

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    Florida Senate - 2004                                  SB 1592

    By Senator Siplin





    19-1054-04

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to education assessment

  3         instruments; amending s. 1008.23, F.S.;

  4         allowing a student's parent or guardian and an

  5         accompanying assistant to review the questions

  6         and the student's answers to those questions on

  7         the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test and

  8         other state-required academic assessment tests;

  9         providing conditions to such review; requiring

10         the Department of Education to ensure that the

11         department and the school districts honor

12         requests for such review; providing for damages

13         for violations; providing for costs and

14         attorney's fees incurred in seeking compliance

15         and payment of damages; providing for

16         applicability; providing an effective date.

17  

18  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

19  

20         Section 1.  Section 1008.23, Florida Statutes, is

21  amended to read:

22         1008.23  Confidentiality of assessment

23  instruments.--All examination and assessment instruments,

24  including developmental materials and workpapers directly

25  related thereto, which are prepared, prescribed, or

26  administered pursuant to ss. 1003.43, 1008.22, and 1008.25

27  shall be confidential and exempt from the provisions of s.

28  119.07(1) and from s. 1001.52. Provisions governing access,

29  maintenance, and destruction of such instruments and related

30  materials shall be prescribed by rules of the State Board of

31  Education. However, a student's parent or guardian,

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    Florida Senate - 2004                                  SB 1592
    19-1054-04




 1  accompanied by anyone whose assistance the parent or guardian

 2  wishes to have, may review, at the student's school and within

 3  21 calendar days after making the request, the questions on

 4  each section of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test

 5  given to the student, as well as the questions on each other

 6  state-required academic assessment test given to the student,

 7  and the student's answers to those questions. The Department

 8  of Education shall ensure that each such request is fully and

 9  timely responded to by personnel of the department as well as

10  the school district in which the child resides or is enrolled.

11  If such a request is not fully and timely responded to, the

12  parent or guardian is entitled to receive damages of $100 per

13  day from the department until such compliance is achieved as

14  well as reasonable costs and attorney's fees incurred by the

15  parent or guardian in seeking such compliance and payment of

16  damages.

17         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2004,

18  and shall apply to every Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test

19  and every other state-required academic test given after

20  January 1, 2004.

21  

22            *****************************************

23                          SENATE SUMMARY

24    Allows a student's parent or guardian and an accompanying
      assistant to review the questions and the student's
25    answers to those questions on the Florida Comprehensive
      Assessment Test and other state-required academic
26    assessment tests. Provides conditions to such review.
      Requires the Department of Education to ensure that the
27    department and the school districts honor requests for
      such review. Provides for damages for violations.
28    Provides for costs and attorney's fees incurred in
      seeking compliance and payment of damages. Provides for
29    applicability to tests given after January 1, 2004.

30  

31  

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