From the ECS State Policy Database Privatization

This database is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States (ECS). Most entries are legislative, although rules/regulations and executive orders that make substantive changes are included. Every effort is made to collect the latest available version of policies; in some instances, recent changes might not be reflected. For expediency purposes minimal attention has been paid to style (capitalization, punctuation) and format. Please cite use of the database as: Education Commission of the States (ECS) State Policy Database, retrieved [date]. State Status/Date Level Summary OH Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Provides that for any building that is ranked in the lowest 5% of all public school buildings statewide for three consecutive years and is declared to be under an academic watch or in a state of academic emergency, the district board must do one of the following: (1) Close the school and direct the district superintendent to reassign the students to another school; (2) Contract with another school district or a nonprofit or for-profit entity with a demonstrated record of effectiveness to operate the school; (3) Replace the principal and all teaching staff and, upon request from the new principal, exempt the school from all requested policies and regulations of the board regarding curriculum and instruction. The board must also distribute funding to the school in an amount that is at least equal to the product of the per pupil amount of state and local revenues received by the district multiplied by the student population of the school. (4) Reopen the school as a conversion community school. Provides that if any of the actions described above causes the district to no longer maintain all grades K-12, the district must contract with another district for enrollment of students. Provides that if the district board fails to or is unable to enter into or maintain such a contract, the state board of education shall take all necessary actions to dissolve the district. Pages 50-51 of 1000: http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/BillText129/129_HB_153_EN_part2.pdf Title: H.B. 153 - Sanctions for the Lowest-Performing Schools Source: www.legislature.state.oh.us OH Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Permits the board of a district to which the provisions of Chapter 124 of the revised code do not apply to terminate any of its transportation staff positions and enter into a contract with an independent agent for the provision of transportation services for some or all of its students. Permits a contract to be entered into only if specified conditions are satisfied (i.e., expiration of effective collective bargaining agreements, an employee whose position is terminated is permitted to fill any district vacancy for which the employee is qualified, the contract contains a stipulation that the contracting agent must consider hiring any district employees whose positions are terminated, etc.) Provides that if the board, after terminating any positions, fails to comply with the conditions specified in statute or fails to enforce on the agent specified contractual obligations, the terminations must be void and the board must reinstate the positions, fill them with the employees who filled those positions just prior to the terminations, and compensate them at a rate equal to their rate of compensation in those positions just prior to the terminations, plus any increases paid since the terminations to other nonteaching employees. Provides the employees must also be entited to back pay from the date of the terminations. Provides any employee aggrieved by the failure of the board to comply with any condition specified in statute or to enforce on the agent its contractual obligations must have the right to sue the board for reinstatement of the employee's former position. Pages 366-368 of 1000: http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/BillText129/129_HB_153_EN_part2.pdf Title: H.B. 153 - Privatization of Transportation Services Source: www.legislature.state.oh.us/ UT Signed into law 03/2011 P-12 Permits a local board or a charter school to sell advertising space on the exterior of a school bus. Directs such a local board or charter school to adopt guidelines for permissible advertising; sets in statute certain parameters and limitations for content and placement of advertising on school bus exteriors. Requires the department of transportation to make rules governing the placement and size of an advertisement on a school bus. Requires advertisers to pay the cost of placing of the advertisement on a school bus and removal after the contract has expired. Requires revenues from the sale of advertising space on a school bus to be used for pupil transportation expenditures. http://le.utah.gov/~2011/bills/hbillenr/hb0199.pdf Title: H.B. 199 Source: le.utah.gov GA Adopted 07/2010 P-12 Rule 160-4-8-.12, "Alternative Education Programs" has been repealed and a new rule adopted. Defines "alternative/non-traditional education program" as a program operating in affiliation with a school; a program does not report full-time equivalent (FTE) or receive an Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) designation. Achievement data for students enrolled in the program are reported back to the school where the student is reported for FTE. Provides a program may be housed within a school, on the same site or at a different location. Provides that programs may include Attendance Recovery, Credit Recovery, Disciplinary Program, Early College, Evening School, and Open Campus. Clarifies that an "Alternative/Non-traditional Education School" has an official school code and serves as the home school for students enrolled. The school receives an AYP designation; reports FTE counts for all enrolled students; and earns Quality Basic Education (QBE) formula funds directly. Defines "Community-based Alternative Education/Non-traditional Program" as a type of alternative education/non-traditional program where students are engaged in educationally relevant and meaningful learning experiences in the school and larger community. The academic curriculum is integrated into work-based learning and structured work experiences using partnerships among business, industry, government, community and school, including Performance Learning Centers. Defines "sparsity grant" as a grant provided to each LEA that is unable to offer its students or a portion of its students educational programs and services comparable to those which are typically being offered to students in the state; the inability to offer students comparable programs and services is attributable, at least in part, to the fact that the LEA has full-time equivalent counts less than base size specified in state law. Requires each LEA to provide an alternative/non-traditional education program/school for students in grades 6-12 with appropriate due process, who have been suspended from his/her regular classroom. Permits LEAs to provide an alternative/non-traditional education program/school to serve a student who is eligible to remain in his/her regular classroom but is more likely to succeed in a non-traditional educational setting. Authorizes an LEA to provide an alternative/non-traditional education program/school jointly with one or more LEAs. Authorizes an LEA to contract with educational management organizations to provide a non-traditional/alternative education program/school. Sets requirements/parameters for such contracts. Permits an LEA to use sparsity grant funds for all alternative/non-traditional education program(s)/school(s), but specifies that funds must be used exclusively for salaries and benefits for certified positions and assistants/paraprofessionals working in the program/school. Requires that all alternative/non-traditional education programs/schools only provide curriculum aligned to Georgia Performance Standards (GPS); permits curriculum to be delivered through computer-assisted instruction and online courses. Requires that programs/schools participate in state testing program, provide counseling services, operate in full compliance with federal and state laws and state board rules governing special education students and students with special needs, provide teachers that meet the requirements of the Georgia Professional Standards Commission in all classes, adhere to maximum class size provisions, and allocate to all Alternative/Non-traditional Education Programs/Schools the same expenditure per segment(s) based on what the student earns at his or her Full Time Equivalent reporting school, including federal and state funds allocated to the LEA for the student. For students in grades 9-12, permits LEAs to (1) award course credit based on demonstrated competency on course examination(s) for course work completed while enrolled in the program/school in lieu of the 150/135 clock hours of instruction and (2) determine the length of the school day in lieu of the school day length set in state board rule. Establishes reporting requirements for alternative/non-traditional education programs/schools. Requires each LEA to maintain and annually report to the state department of education on each alternative/non-traditional education program/school. Requires each program/school school improvement plan to demonstrate how the alternative/non-traditional education program/school modified SBOE rules, including methods to measure competency as well as what is defined as a full school day. Requires LEAs to seek parental and public input before submitting a program/school's improvement plan to the department of education. http://www.doe.k12.ga.us/_documents/doe/legalservices/160-4-8-.12.pdf Title: 160-4-8-.12 Source: www.doe.k12.ga.us IL Signed into law 07/2009 P-12 Increases statewide charter school cap and charter school cap for Chicago. Above and beyond caps, permits five Chicago charters (and specified numbers of campuses and enrollment seats within those five charters) to be devoted to serving returning high school dropouts. Requires charter schools to submit to the state board of education a copy of their audit and Form 990. Increases time frame for state board to approve a charter school proposal. Adds procedures for a charter school to respond to a proposed revocation of its charter. Beginning with the 2012-13 school year, requires at least 75% of instructional staff in established charter schools to hold teacher certification; for charter schools established after these provisions are enacted, requires 75% of instructional staff to be certified by the beginning of the 4th school year in which students are enrolled in the school. Provides charter schools statewide are exempt from caps on the number of employees who may be enrolled in alternative certification programs. Requires state board to report findings of charter school evaluation every two years rather than annually. Establishes an Independent Charter School Authorizer Task Force to study the need for an independent charter school authorizer in the state. Directs the task force to report its findings and recommendations to the governor and legislature by January 2010. Defines "contract school" as a Chicago attendance center run by a for- or not-for-profit private entity on contract to provide instructional and other services to a majority of the students enrolled in the attendance center. Defines "contract turnaround school" as an experimental Chicago contract school created to implement alternative governance in an attendance center subject to restructuring or similar intervention under NCLB that has not made adequate yearly progress (AYP) for 5 consecutive years. Provides that a Chicago school placed on probation that fails to make adequate progress in correcting deficiencies after one year may be converted to a contract turnaround school. Specifies the Chicago school board may operate no more than 30 contract schools, plus up to 5 contract turnaround schools. http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/96/SB/PDF/09600SB0612lv.pdf Title: S.B. 612 Source: www.ilga.gov OH Signed into law 07/2009 P-12 Repeals Section 3319.0810, which allowed local boards to terminate student transportation staff positions for reasons of economy and efficiency if the board entered into a contract with an independent agent to provide transportation services. Page 2725 of 3120: http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/BillText128/128_HB_1_EN_N.pdf Title: H.B. 1 - Section 3319.0810 Source: www.legislature.state.oh.us TX Signed into law 06/2009 P-12 Section 66: Establishes provisions allowing a school district to adopt a budget after the district adopts a tax rate for the tax year in which the fiscal year covered by the budget begins. Section 86 makes a conforming change in the Tax Code. Section 67: Adds section 44.908. Requires school districts to adopt policies governing the expenditure of local funds from vending machines, rentals, gate receipts or other local sources of revenue over which the district has direct control. Requires discretionary expenditures of local funds to be related to the district's educational purpose and provide a commensurate benefit to the district or its students and to meet the standards of Section 52, Article III, Texas Constitution, regarding expenditure of public funds. Section 68: Specifies that the guarantee of district bonds remains in effect until the date those bonds mature or are defeased in accordance with state law. Pages 67-68 and 96 of 108: http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/81R/billtext/pdf/HB03646F.pdf Title: H.B. 3646 - Sections 66-68 and 86 Source: www.legis.state.tx.us TX Adopted 02/2009 P-12 Sets forth the advertising display requirements for school buses (repeals and replaces earlier language). Establishes a traffic crash reporting requirement for school buses that are displaying exterior advertising. http://info.sos.state.tx.us/pls/pub/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=5&ti=37&pt=1&ch=14&sch=E&rl=Y Title: 37 TAC 1.14.E.14.61 -.65 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet LA Signed into law 06/2008 P-12 Relates to the Recovery School District; prohibits the RSD from contracting with any for-profit private provider for the general operation of schools under its jurisdiction but authorizes the RSD to contract with for-profit providers for any needed services for such schools. http://www.legis.state.la.us/billdata/streamdocument.asp?did=497368 Title: H.B. 350 Source: http://www.legis.state.la.us/ IL Signed into law 08/2007 P-12 Adds to provisions allowing a local board of education to contract with a third party for non-instructional services currently performed by any employee or bargaining unit member or to lay off such educational support personnel. Extends date of written notice that must be given such employees from 30 to 90 days. Provides that a contract must not become effective during the term of a collective bargaining agreement covering such employees. Provides that any third party submitting a bid to perform the non-instructional services must provide evidence of: --liability insurance equivalent to that provided by the school board --a benefits package comparable to that provided by the school board --the number, job classifications and wages of employees who will provide the non-instructional services --a minimum 3-year cost projection, using generally accepted accounting principles and which the third party is prohibited from increasing if the bid is accepted by the school board, for all expenditure categories and account for performing the non-instructional services --composite information about the criminal and disciplinary records of any employees who may perform the non-instructional services --a notarized affadavit that each of the bidder's employees has completed a criminal background check within 3 months prior to submission of the bid. Provides that the local board may not enter into a contract unless the school board provides a cost comparison, using generally accepted accounting principles, of all expenditure categories and accounts that the board projects it would incur over the term of the contract if it continued to perform the non-instructional services using its own employees with all expenditure categories and accounts that a third party would incur if a third party performed the non-instructional services. Provides the review and consideration of all bids by third parties to perform the non-instructional services must take place in open session of a regularly scheduled school board meeting, unless specified circumstances are met. Provides the school board must conduct at least one public hearing prior to a regularly scheduled school board meeting, to discuss the school board's proposal to contract with a third party to perform the non-instructional services before the school board may enter into such a contract. Provides a contract must require the contractor to offer available employee positions within the contract to qualified school district employees whose employment is terminated because of the contract. Also provides a contract must require the contractor to comply with a policy of nondiscrimination and equal employment opportunity for all persons and to take affirmative steps to provide equal opportunity for all persons. Authorizes a local board, the above provisions notwithstanding, to enter into a maximum 3-month contract with a third party for non-instructional services currently performed by an employee or bargaining unit member in order to augment the current workforce in an emergency situation that threatens the safety or health of district students or staff, provided that the school board meets all of its obligations under the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act. http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/95/HB/PDF/09500HB1347lv.pdf Title: H.B. 1347 Source: www.ilga.gov/legislation ND Signed into law 04/2007 P-12 Postsec. Allows institutions of higher education and school districts to provide (for fee) catered meal services off-site as long as those functions meet certain parameters (i.e., are related to school or institution activities). http://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/60-2007/bill-text/HBPS0500.pdf Title: S.B. 2344 Source: http://www.legis.nd.gov LA Adopted 12/2005 P-12 Allows students to attend summer school from private providers if the summer school applications from the private provider are approved by the district. Page 7 of 106: http://www.doa.state.la.us/osr/reg/0512/0512RUL.pdf Title: LAC 28:CXV.2504 Source: www.doa.state.la.us/osr, Lexis-Nexis/StateNet RI Signed into law 07/2003 Postsec. This act would provide that researchers at institutions of higher education may form relationships with or hold interests in commercial ventures stemming from their research. The act would provide procedures for approval of such relationships and for the development of conflict of interest regulations and guidelines governing such relationships. http://www.rilin.state.ri.us/PublicLaws/law03/law03158.htm Title: H.B. 6154, S.B. 864 Source: StateNet NM Signed into law 04/2003 P-12 Relates to juveniles; authorizes public support for public-private partnerships to develop after-school and other prevention programs for the youth of New Mexico; provides for fund distribution. Title: H.B. 700 Source: StateNet WV Signed into law 03/2002 Postsec. In order to facilitate research and development grants and opportunities for state institutions of higher education, it is appropriate to authorize the governing boards to contract with private corporations organized for the purpose of providing such services to state institutions of higher education and to provide funding and property, both real and personal, to the corporations to enable them to provide the services to the institutions and to facilitate the purposes of this article. Title: H.B. 4322 Source: ftp://129.71.164.29/ftp-house02/HB4301-4400/ NC Signed into law 08/2001 Postsec. Community College Session Law Number 368., Exempts certain community college activities from the Umstead Act; provides for use of community college personnel or facilities, with the consent of the trustees of that college, in support of private business enterprise located on the college campus of in the college's service area for specific services in support of economic and business development. Title: S.B. 531 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet SC Signed into law 06/2001 Postsec. Authorizes the Board of Trustees of State University and other institutions of higher education to enter into a ground lease agreement with a private entity for providing all services necessary to the creation and operation of an on-campus student housing facility including, financing, designing, constructing, managing, operating, maintaining and related services; provides for the terms and conditions of this ground lease agreement including approval by the Budget and Control Board. Title: S.B. 557 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet TN Signed into law 05/2001 P-12 Authorizes local education agencies (LEAs) to enter into cooperative agreements with nonprofit entities to offer technical-prep high school curriculum under the following conditions: the local board of education must approve all agreements; agreements must be in writing and include course name, minimum number of student contact hours, whether the course is an elective or as part of the technical prep high school curriculum, instructor's qualifications, and any funding the local board of education provides to the non-profit organization; courses approved for credit are limited to those for which the state board offers no teaching endorsements; the nonprofit is located in the LEAs' service area and has a primary purpose of promoting educational programs with an emphasis on state of the art technology; any course offered must have prior approval of the state department acting in accordance with the state board on special courses; and any funding provided to the nonprofit by the board shall not exceed, on a per-pupil basis, regular tuition charged other attendees for the same or similar classes. The bill prohibits LEAs from entering into agreements if such agreements directly result in the elimination of an existing course offering of the local board of education. Title: S.B. 1743 Source: Tennessee Legislative Web Site: AZ To governor 05/2001 P-12 THE GOVERNING BOARD MAY OBTAIN THE SERVICES OF ANY EMPLOYEE, INCLUDING TEACHERS, SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS, BY CONTRACTING WITH A PRIVATE ENTITY THAT EMPLOYS PERSONNEL REQUIRED BY THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. Title: S.B. 1483 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet VA Signed into law 02/2001 P-12 States that commercial, promotional and corporate partnerships and sponsorships relating to public schools; requires each school board to develop and implement and authorizes them to revise, from time to time, a policy relating to commercial, promotional, and corporate partnerships and sponsorships involving public schools in the division; notes that commercial activities have increased significantly in schools during the past decade; states that most school officials and parents agree that corporate and business involvement in education is desirable and that the contributions of business and industry have made many activities into reality that would not otherwise have been possible; states that some ethical questions have, however, arisen concerning apparel companies and others and their influence on the lifestyles and choices of young people; states that incidents in other states require clarification of the rules on such activities; requires Virginia school boards to develop policies on these issues designed to meet their local needs, circumstances, and standards. Title: H.B. 2395 Source: http://senate.state.va.us SD Signed into law 02/2001 P-12 Allows vendors to sell soft drinks or other concessions on school property; permits a school district to enter into contracts for sale of soft drinks or other concessions. Title: H.B. 1070 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet VA To governor 02/2001 P-12 Allows any local governing body, school district or public institution of higher education to enter into energy performance-based contracts to significantly reduce energy and operating costs of a facility. Title: H.B. 1967 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet RI Became law without GOVERNOR'S signature 07/2000 P-12 Relates to curriculum; permits the display of televised commercial advertising necessarily incidental to Internet access. Title: H.B. 6893 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet RI Signed into law 07/2000 P-12 Allows municipal committees to promulgate rules and regulations permitting fundraising activities by public schools; enhances prohibition against school employees accepting money for tutoring students under their instruction during the school year; prohibits the selling of commercial goods or services to students in public schools or on public school property. Title: H.B. 6927, S.B. 2139 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet AL Vetoed 05/2000 Postsec. Exempts from competitive bidding the renewal of all existing contracts that do not involve the expenditure of State funds and that are made for the selection of service contractors by or on behalf of public two-year and four-year colleges and universities of the state. Title: S.B. 478 Source: Lexis-Nexis/StateNet MN Signed by governor 05/2000 P-12 Prohibits a school board or school within the district to enter into a contract for use of a computer or related equipment or service that requires a advertising to be disseminated to students unless the board: 1) enters into a contract at a public hearing; 2) makes a finding that the product or service is an integral component of students' education; 3) provides written notice to students' parents that advertising will be used in the classroom, media center, computer lab, or other areas of learning, whether data will be collected on students, and how that data will be used; 4) allows parents to request in writing that (i) their student not be exposed to the program that contains the advertising for the current school year, or that (ii) any or all data relating to the student collected as a result of this contract is not disclosed; and 5) honors parents' request that their student not be exposed to advertising or that data relating to the student is not disclosed and allows parents to withdraw their request at any time. Advertising under this provision does not include the identification of the source of the document or information and advertising that is generally available to the public viewing a particular site or application and is not directed specifically to students benefiting from the contract. Title: H.B. 3800 (Omnibus Bill) Source: MN Department of Children, Families and Learning