Today the full House passed by substitution HB362. This bill will authorize licensed health practitioners to prescribe albuterol sulfate for schools.

The Senate Education and Youth committee passed the following bills:

SB156, this bill will authorize the State Charter Schools Commission to establish a nonprofit foundation.  The foundation will follow the DOE's foundation lead on disclosure reporting;

SB132, the Move on When Ready Act;

SB164, would provide for positive behavior interventions and supports and response to intervention initiatives. The bill is an encouragement to school districts, not a mandate.  During his presentation, Senator Jones was encouraged to continue to work on this topic.

The Senate Education and Youth Committee continued their hearing on SB133 and SR287, regarding the Opportunity School District. A substitute bill was introduced. Ms. Hames, of the Governor's Office, reviewed the changes in the original bill. One amendment to line 43 of the bill would require that the superintendent selected by the Governor be confirmed by the Senate.

SR287, the ballot question for the Opportunity School District, with little to no discussion, was passed out of committee. The question would appear on the ballot in November of 2017.

The House Transportation Committee met to hear a substitute to HB170, the 2015 Transportation Bill. The bill passed out of committee and will now go on to the House Rules Committee. The bill will most likely be voted on by the full House on Wednesday or Thursday. There may be several changes to this bill once it is on the Senate side. The use of local funds in eSPLOST remains to appear unconstitutional.

The House Education Academic Achievement and Curriculum Sub Committee heard:

HB406, which would provide for age-appropriate sexual abuse awareness and prevention education in kindergarten through grade 12.  This bill was held in committee;

HR418, which would encourage local boards of education to screen the film, “America Imagine the World Without Her”, for students in grades eight and eleven. This bill was held in committee for further review and consideration.

The House Education Committee heard and passed all of the following bills:

SB2, students who complete certain coursework relating to postsecondary coursework can be awarded a high school diploma;

HB16, would require that no high school which receives funding from the Quality Basic Education Act shall participate in or sponsor interscholastic sports events unless students enrolled in magnet schools can participate under certain conditions;

HB131, the End to Cyberbullying Act;

HB296, scholarship program; special needs students, expand eligibility for refugee students;

HB271, would allow for the development of charter schools in the workplace;

HB372, would enact the Utopian Academy for the Arts Act; which will limit local agencies from interfering with the opening of a charter school once the certificate of occupancy is received;

HR303, would encourage the State Board of Education to develop and implement a comprehensive civics education curriculum.

These bills, passed by the House Education Committee, will move on to the Rules Committee for consideration for a full House vote.

HB502, the Title 20 clean-up bill to update and clarify provisions and repeal obsolete provisions;

HB414, this bill has many implications for the DOE regarding monitoring the collection and disclosure of student data. This bill may impact information systems of local school districts.