Relating to education, including modifying provisions related to the duties and powers of area education agencies, the department of education, the department of administrative services, area education agency funding, the calculation of the teacher salary supplement district cost per pupil and the minimum teacher starting salary, and including transition, effective date, and applicability provisions

The bill transfers this responsibility to the division of special education of DE, beginning July 1, 2025. The bill also requires the division of special education to oversee the operation of each area education agency beginning July 1, 2025. The bill requires DE to coordinate with each area education agency, and with the division of special education, to develop a plan to transfer certain specified employees of the area education agency from employment under the area education agency to employment under the division of special education. The bill establishes that DE is to compile the plans and submit the compilation to the general assembly on or before January 1, 2025. DIVISION II —— AREA EDUCATION AGENCIES —— GENERAL PROVISIONS. The bill authorizes the area education agencies to furnish evidence-based professional development services to public or nonpublic schools located within the area education agency’s boundaries, subject to the approval of the director of DE. The bill requires area education agencies to provide special education services to local school districts that request to receive such services by February of the preceding school year. The bill authorizes an area education agency to provide such services to local school districts that request to receive such services after February of the preceding school year. The bill also authorizes area education agencies to provide for media services for local school districts in the area. The bill establishes that these provisions are effective July 1, 2025. The bill requires area education agency boards to charge reasonable costs that are consistent with market rates for the educational services, special education services, professional development services, and media services provided by the area education agency. The bill requires area education agency boards to provide an annual report to the general assembly and DE related to student outcomes and use of moneys. The bill provides that the salary for an area education agency administrator shall not exceed 125 percent of the average salary of all superintendents of school districts that are located within the boundaries of the area education agency. The bill establishes that this provision applies to employment agreements entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024. The bill requires area education agencies to prepare and submit to each school district within the area education agency’s boundaries an annual report containing information related to an accounting of payments and a description of services provided. The bill modifies several provisions related to the accreditation of area education agency programs to incorporate the division of special education of DE into the accreditation process and to incorporate additional standards related to accreditation. The bill provides that an area education agency that was accredited on or before July 1, 2025, will remain accredited unless and until the division of special education takes action to remove accreditation. The bill establishes that these provisions are effective July 1, 2025. DIVISION III —— AREA EDUCATION AGENCIES —— FUNDING.10(7) (special education support services district cost) and received by a school district or an area education agency shall be used for special education support services. Under current law, amounts calculated for special education support services, media services, area education agency teacher salary supplement district cost, area education agency professional development supplement district cost, and educational services are deducted by the department of management from state aid for each school district and instead paid to the school district’s area education agency. The bill provides that, for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2024, the department of management shall instead deduct the following amounts from the state aid due to each school district and pay the amounts to the respective area education agencies: the amount calculated for special education support services for the school district, percent of the amount calculated for media services for the school district, the area education agency teacher salary supplement district cost, the area education agency professional development supplement district cost, and percent of the amount calculated for educational services for the school district. The bill provides that, for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2025, and each fiscal year thereafter, the department of management shall deduct the following amounts from the state aid due to each school district and pay the amounts to the respective area education agencies: percent of the amount calculated for special education support services for the school district, percent of the amount calculated for media services for the school district, the area education agency teacher salary supplement district cost, the area education agency professional development supplement district cost, and percent of the amount calculated for educational services for the school district. The bill modifies provisions related to the funding of media services and educational services provided by a school district or through an area education agency.35 (area education agency payments) may be used by the school district for media services provided by the district or by contract through the area education agency. The bill authorizes a school district to use unreserved fund balances for media services in a manner which the school district determines is appropriate to best maintain the level of special education services.37 (funding media and educational services), “enrollment served” means the basic enrollment of all school districts within the boundaries of the area education agency plus the number of nonpublic school pupils served by the area education agency. The bill authorizes area education agencies and school districts to expend for special education support services an amount that exceeds the payment for special education support services in order to maintain the level of required special education support services in the area education agency or the school district. DIVISION IV —— INITIAL TEACHER COMPENSATION. Current Code chapter 284 (teacher compensation) provides that the minimum annual salary for an initial teacher who has successfully completed an approved practitioner preparation program or holds an initial or intern teacher license issued by the board of educational examiners shall be at least $33,500. The bill increases this minimum annual salary to $46,251. The bill makes conforming changes to Code chapter 257 (financial school programs). DIVISION V —— AREA EDUCATION AGENCIES —— REQUIRED EVALUATIONS AND REPORTS. The bill requires each area education agency, on or before January 1, 2025, to submit a report to DE and the general assembly that contains information related to progress the area education agency has made in reducing executive administration expenses and a proposal for the reorganization of services provided by area education agencies. The bill requires the department of administrative services, in coordination with DE and each area education agency, on or before January 1, 2025, to submit a report to the general assembly that contains an inventory of all real property and facilities owned by the area education agencies, an evaluation of the value of all real property and facilities owned by the area education agencies, and an evaluation of how the real property and facilities owned by the area education agencies are used. DIVISION VI —— TEACHER SALARY SUPPLEMENT DISTRICT COST PER PUPIL. The bill provides that, for the budget year beginning July 1, 2024, the teacher salary supplement district cost per pupil for a school district shall be the greater of the teacher salary supplement district cost per pupil for the school district for the base year plus the teacher salary supplement supplemental state aid amount for the budget year or the per pupil amount necessary to allow the school district to provide a minimum teacher starting salary of $46,251. Additionally, the bill provides that for the budget year beginning July 1, 2025, and succeeding budget years, the teacher salary supplement district cost per pupil for each school district for a budget year is the teacher salary supplement program district cost per pupil for the base year plus the teacher salary supplement supplemental state aid amount for the budget year. DIVISION VII —— STATE MANDATE.2(3) (effect of unfunded state mandate) shall not apply to the bill.