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Bill would allow alternatives to birth certificates for school registration; charters raise implementation concerns
Summary
House Bill 3 47 would let parents use alternative proof of a child's age (passport, hospital records, notarized affidavit, prior school records) instead of a birth certificate when registering for public school; charter representatives said registration systems are misaligned and cause duplicate work.
House Bill 3 47 would remove a strict requirement for a birth certificate in public-school registration and permit alternative documentation—such as a valid passport, hospital birth records, adoption records, prior school records, notarized affidavits, or other reliable documentation—when a certified birth certificate is unavailable. The chair noted federal law requires immediate enrollment for students experiencing homelessness even if documentation is missing.
Public comment from charter-school representatives expressed general support for the policy change but raised operational concerns: they said uniform registration is 'broken' in practice, that parents are required to duplicate work registering in multiple systems, and that communication between districts and charter schools is insufficient. The representative said they are working with DOE to determine whether the issues are operational practice or need policy fixes and will return recommendations to the committee.
No committee vote on HB 3 47 was recorded at this meeting.
