Committee advances attendance bills to General Register and finance committee after technical and policy fixes

Committee leaders and sponsors described three related attendance measures and moved them forward on March 25 after extensive technical discussion and public testimony.

Representative Keeler summarized House File 62 as a consolidation of existing attendance law into a single “landing spot” without new funding or new provisions; the committee voted to place HF62 on the General Register. Representative Keeler then presented House File 2,067, described as an “attendance minibus” consolidating policy changes developed by the task force: clarifying which school officials may record absences, specifying that time with a full‑time school employee counts toward attendance, and tightening notification requirements so counties can quickly follow up when a student is dropped from school rolls after 15 consecutive unexcused days.

The committee adopted two amendments to HF2,067 — a DE2 and an A1 — and later approved additional oral amendments to remove a provision (Section 6) that MDE said carried fiscal implications; sponsors said that fiscal component will move to House File 10,53 (the finance vehicle). Representative Keeler and Representative Bakeberg explained the revisions were intended to align statute with school practice (allowing a principal designee to receive absence reports) and to reduce unintended county referrals for excused absences.

Witnesses urged swift adoption of better data flows and county partnerships. Matt Shaver of EdAllies presented statewide figures on chronic absenteeism — 25 percent of students in the most recent year (about 199,000 students), representing roughly 3,000,000 missed school days and about 16,000,000 missed instructional hours — and said clearer state definitions and reporting could reduce the number of students who “disappear” and lack a safety net. Ashley Hightower of the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office described the Be at School program and urged supportive interventions over court referrals; she reported 7,167 program referrals to date and said 601 students had been dropped after 15 consecutive days this year. Megan Adeola of the Minnesota Department of Education said MDE is committed to supporting districts but cautioned that assigning MDE direct case management responsibilities could carry costs and operational implications; section 6 of the DE2 was removed and sponsors said they will handle fiscal details in HF1053.

The committee approved oral amendments and then voted to place HF2,067 as amended on the General Register. Finally, the chair re‑referred House File 10,53 to the Education Finance Committee as the likely vehicle for fiscal elements and additional enrollment‑reengagement work.

Ending: Sponsors said they will continue task‑force work and coordination with counties, the Department of Education and IT partners to improve real‑time reporting and supports for chronically absent students.