Brief ⁽¹⁾

SB 552 does two main things which are described below.

School District Home Rule. The bill confers "home rule" powers on school district boards of education. This authority permits the district to transact all school district business and adopt policies that the board deems appropriate to perform its constitutional duty to maintain, develop, and operate local public schools, subject to the following limitations:

• School districts are subject to all legislative acts and State Board of Education rules and regulations which apply to all school districts.



• School districts may not consolidate or alter school district boundaries except as provided by law.



• School districts may not affect the courts located therein.



• School districts are subject to all legislative acts prescribing debt limits.



• School districts are subject to all legislative acts concerning elections.



• School districts may levy and collect taxes only in conformity with legislative acts which specifically confer such authority.



• In the exercise of the power conferred by this legislation (i.e., school district home rule powers), the home rule powers of cities and counties may not be superseded or impaired without the consent of the affected city or county.



• School district boards may not adopt policies which modify, diminish, or reinterpret state or federal laws which affect school district employees.



• School district boards may not adopt policies which interfere with state policy in KSA 1999 Supp. 38-141(b), i.e., that parents retain the fundamental right to exercise primary control over the care and upbringing of their children.

The home rule power of school districts is not to be construed to relieve any other governmental unit of its legal duties and responsibilities or to create any responsibility on the part of a school district to assume duties or responsibilities required of another unit of government.

School District Transportation Fees. The bill generally permits school districts to charge fees for transporting students who attend public schools and State Board of Education accredited nonpublic schools and who live less than 2.5 miles from the school attended. In this connection, the bill specifies that fees may not be charged to:

• Pupils who are counted in determining the transportation weight of a school district under the school finance law (public school pupils who live 2.5 miles or more from school).



• Pupils who are determined to be children with disabilities under the special education law.



• Pupils who are eligible for free or reduced price meals under the National School Lunch Act.



• Pupils who are entitled to transportation under KSA 72-8306(a) and who reside 2.5 miles or more by the regular school bus route from school (pupils attending State Board of Education accredited private or parochial schools).

Fees may cover only the costs incurred and then only to the extent not reimbursed from any other source provided by law. Fee receipts would be deposited to the school district transportation fund. Contractual provisions would govern transportation fees in districts having interdistrict educational program agreements under KSA 72-8233, as amended, or interdistrict contracts for transportation under KSA 72-8307, as amended.

Background

SB 552 was proposed by Senator Karin Brownlee. As introduced, the bill contained only the school district home rule issue. Conferees appearing as proponents of the bill, as introduced, were a spokesperson for Olathe (USD 233), the Kansas Association of School Boards, and Schools for Quality Education. Generally, under Kansas law, school districts are limited to doing things specified or necessarily implied by law. SB 552 would give school districts somewhat more discretion than currently is the case, with the districts still being bound by state and federal laws and State Board of Education regulations. The Kansas National Education Association (KNEA) opposed the bill, both on policy and constitutional grounds (Kansas Constitution). The organization explained that its policy objection could be overcome by an amendment to Section 1(e)1(H) that would prohibit school districts from adopting policies that affect non-administrative school employees unless authorized to do so by the Legislature. KNEA explained that it believes "... as long as the State Board of Education has self-executing powers, local boards cannot be granted home rule by the State Legislature."

The fiscal note on SB 552, as introduced, explained that passage of the bill would have no effect on state revenues or expenditures.

Senator Lana Oleen proposed the amendment, adopted by the Senate Education Committee, which generally would permit school districts to charge fees for transporting pupils who live less than 2.5 miles from the school attended.

1. *Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.ink.org/public/legislative/bill_search.html