Superintendent outlines pending state education bills affecting district operations
Summary
Superintendent Graham summarized several pieces of pending state legislation that could affect the district, including a phone-restriction law (school hours phone-free), statewide free breakfast reimbursement, the 'access' bill affecting concurrent-credit definitions and charges, and a proposed panic-alert device requirement (House Bill 1492).
Superintendent Graham briefed the board on multiple bills pending in the Arkansas Legislature that administration is watching because they could affect district operations and costs.
Graham said the governor signed the phone-restriction measure that will require phones to be controlled during the school day — described as a ban on phone access from roughly 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. as part of a “zone freeze” — and said districts must “play by the rules set forth that, that the legislature has passed.” He also said the state will reimburse breakfast for all students, which the district currently pays for; reimbursement will “help our pocketbook.”
Graham identified an “access bill” as a complex, higher-education–related bill that may change definitions for concurrent-credit, AP and honors courses and could allow higher-education institutions to charge more for concurrent credit. He said the district will monitor the bill closely and seek clarifications when staff are at the Capitol.
Graham raised several other items under consideration in committee: a bill (identified in the transcript as House Bill 1492) that would require every employee to wear a panic-alert system and a separate bill being discussed that would prevent the district from requiring return of district-issued devices when a student transfers to homeschooling or another district. He also noted a legislative proposal to limit the number of college credit hours a high-school student may earn per year.
Graham said the district would continue to track these bills, that some measures may shift available funding or create new mandates, and that staff would seek clarifying language where needed. The board did not take formal action on these legislative items at the meeting.
