HB 0447

CS

CHAMBER ACTION

1	The Choice & Innovation Committee recommends the following:
2
3	Council/Committee Substitute
4	Remove the entire bill and insert:
5	House Joint Resolution
6	A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section 1 of
7	Article IX of the State Constitution relating to public
8	education.
9
10	Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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12	That the following amendment to Section 1 of Article IX of
13	the State Constitution is agreed to and shall be submitted to
14	the electors of this state for approval or rejection at the next
15	general election or at an earlier special election specifically
16	authorized by law for that purpose:
17	ARTICLE IX
18	EDUCATION
19	SECTION 1.  Public education.--
20	(a)  The education of children is a fundamental value of
21	the people of the State of Florida. It is, therefore, a
22	paramount duty of the state to make adequate provision for the
23	education of all children residing within its borders. Adequate
24	provision shall be made by law for a uniform, efficient, safe,
25	secure, and high quality system of free public schools that
26	allows students to obtain a high quality education and for the
27	establishment, maintenance, and operation of institutions of
28	higher learning and other public education programs that the
29	needs of the people may require.
30	(b)  To assure that children attending public schools
31	obtain a high quality education, the legislature shall make
32	adequate provision to ensure that, by the beginning of the 2009-
33	2010 2010 school year and for each school year thereafter, there
34	are a sufficient number of classrooms so that:
35	(1)  The school district average maximum number of students
36	who are assigned to each teacher who is teaching in public
37	school classrooms for prekindergarten through grade 3 does not
38	exceed 18 students and the number of students who are assigned
39	to one teacher in an individual class does not exceed 23
40	students;
41	(2)  The school district average maximum number of students
42	who are assigned to each teacher who is teaching in public
43	school classrooms for grades 4 through 8 does not exceed 22
44	students and the number of students who are assigned to one
45	teacher in an individual class does not exceed 27 students; and
46	(3)  The school district average maximum number of students
47	who are assigned to each teacher who is teaching in public
48	school classrooms for grades 9 through 12 does not exceed 25
49	students and the number of students who are assigned to one
50	teacher in an individual class does not exceed 30 students.
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52	The class size requirements of this subsection do not apply to
53	extracurricular or virtual classes. Payment of the costs
54	associated with reducing class size to meet these requirements
55	is the responsibility of the state and not of local school
56	schools districts. Beginning with the 2003-2004 fiscal year, the
57	legislature shall provide sufficient funds to reduce the school
58	district average class size number of students in each classroom
59	by at least two students per year until the school district
60	average class size for each of the grade groupings maximum
61	number of students per classroom does not exceed the
62	requirements of this subsection.
63	(c)  By the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year and for
64	each school year thereafter, at least sixty-five percent of
65	total funds, as defined by law, received by school districts for
66	operational expenditures shall be expended for purposes directly
67	related to classroom instruction, as defined by law.
68	(d)  In exceptional circumstances a school district may
69	request from the governor a temporary waiver of the class size
70	requirements of subsection (b) or the classroom instruction
71	expenditure requirement of subsection (c), which the governor
72	may grant, partially grant, or deny.
73	(e)(1)(b)  Every four-year old child in Florida shall be
74	provided by the state a high quality prekindergarten pre-
75	kindergarten learning opportunity in the form of an early
76	childhood development and education program which shall be
77	voluntary, high quality, free, and delivered according to
78	professionally accepted standards. An early childhood
79	development and education program means an organized program
80	designed to address and enhance each child's ability to make age
81	appropriate progress in an appropriate range of settings in the
82	development of language and cognitive capabilities and
83	emotional, social, regulatory, and moral capacities through
84	education in basic skills and such other skills as the
85	legislature may determine to be appropriate.
86	(2)(c)  The early childhood education and development
87	programs provided by reason of this subsection subparagraph (b)
88	shall be implemented no later than the beginning of the 2005
89	school year through funds generated in addition to those used
90	for existing education, health, and development programs.
91	Existing education, health, and development programs are those
92	funded by the state as of January 1, 2002, that provided for
93	child or adult education, health care, or development.
94	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
95	placed on the ballot:
96	CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
97	ARTICLE IX, SECTION 1
98	REQUIRING 65 PERCENT OF EDUCATION FUNDS FOR CLASSROOM
99	RELATED INSTRUCTION; FLEXIBLE CLASS SIZE REDUCTION
100	IMPLEMENTATION.--Proposing an amendment to the State
101	Constitution to require school districts to expend at least 65
102	percent of their operational funds for classroom related
103	instruction as defined by law; to provide flexibility for school
104	districts in meeting class size reduction requirements by
105	calculating compliance at a school district average number of
106	students who are assigned to a teacher in specified grades; to
107	specify the maximum number of students who may be assigned to
108	one teacher in an individual class; to require implementation of
109	the class size reduction requirements and the classroom
110	instruction expenditure requirement by the beginning of the
111	2009-2010 school year and for each school year thereafter; to
112	exempt virtual classes from the class size requirements; and to
113	authorize, in exceptional circumstances, a school district to
114	request from the Governor a temporary waiver of the class size
115	reduction requirements or the 65-percent classroom instruction
116	expenditure requirement.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.