Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education Testing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
House passes statewide achievement-testing bill in broad bipartisan support
Summary
House Bill 3-21, establishing statewide achievement testing and data collection for public schools, passed the Utah House after sponsors said it has stakeholder consensus; the bill was approved 67–2 and heads to the Senate.
The Utah House approved House Bill 3-21, a measure to create a structured statewide achievement-testing program intended to provide comparative data and a foundation for accountability in public education.
Representative Bradford, sponsor, described HB 3-21 as the product of lengthy negotiations among stakeholders and called it a "landmark bill" that creates a mechanism for statewide testing and comparative analysis. "For the first time, we have an agreement among all of the stakeholders in education on a method in which we can address some statewide testing," Bradford said. (Representative Bradford)
Supporters framed the bill as a tool for accountability and improvement. Representative Klassen said the measure would help identify what works in different educational settings and improve delivery of education. Representative Holmes added the bill will allow Utah to compare performance with other states and understand where the system needs improvement.
The House voted to pass HB 3-21; the chair announced a recorded result of 67 affirmative votes and 2 negative votes. The bill will be transmitted to the Senate for further consideration. Sponsors noted there is a fiscal note and that appropriations decisions were considered by the public education appropriations committee.
Next steps: HB 3-21 goes to the Senate. Committee appropriations will address the fiscal note as part of budget prioritization.
