JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - A proposal to overhaul a Missouri school transfer law won state House approval Wednesday after lawmakers pared back provisions that could allow some students to attend a private school at local taxpayers' expense.
Legislators are seeking to revise a 1993 student transfer law after recent decisions by the state Supreme Court upheld the requirement for unaccredited districts to pay the costs of transferring students. Those costs already have put a financial strain on the unaccredited Normandy district in suburban St. Louis and soon could affect the unaccredited Riverview Gardens and Kansas City districts.
The House-backed measure would require accrediting individual schools along with entire school districts and allow transfers by students who have spent at least one semester at an unaccredited school within an unaccredited district. Transferring students could move to a better school within their home districts, or go to other school districts, charter schools or nonreligious private schools. A regional education authority would assign transferring students to a school and first would seek to fill seats within the unaccredited district.
The private school portion calls for districts to pay tuition using local tax revenues and has generated particular concern. House members approved limiting it to school districts in St. Louis city, St. Louis County and Jackson County and requiring approval from local voters. Private schools accepting public funds for transfer students would need to meet student performance and safety requirements and could not require additional tuition payments from parents. Backers said they sought to address concerns about the private school portion.
In addition, the House legislation calls for unaccredited districts to pay 70 percent of their tuition costs for students who transfer, plus additional money for transportation costs. The change would take effect during the current school year. Receiving school districts could establish policies for class sizes and student-teacher ratios and would not be required to accept transfers that would violate those polices.
House members passed the measure 91-64 on Wednesday, and the bill now returns to the Senate where lawmakers approved a different version of the transfer legislation in February. To send the bill to Gov. Jay Nixon, the two chambers must agree on the same version before the May 16 end of the session.
Rep. Rick Stream, a Republican from St. Louis County, said the bill would give the students enrolled in struggling schools "an opportunity to escape these bad buildings." He urged colleagues to consider what they would want if their children or grandchildren attended an unaccredited school.
"You would want those children to have access to a high quality education somewhere else than the buildings they are in, in those unaccredited school districts," said Stream, of Kirkwood.
Some Democrats criticized the private school portion.
"It's about sending money, public tax dollars, to private schools," said Rep. Jill Schupp, D-Creve Coeur.
Earlier Wednesday, a separate Senate bill addressing the Common Core academic standards became bogged down because of attempts to attach the student transfer law provisions to it.
That legislation would create groups of educators to write new benchmarks for student achievement standards in English, math, science and history to be implemented by the 2016 academic year.
Students are scheduled to take tests this fall aligned to the Common Core standards, which have been adopted by more than 40 states. But critics say Missouri lawmakers should have been consulted when the State Board of Education adopted the benchmarks in 2010. Now they want Missouri to write new standards.
"I want to have an open, transparent process so that, at the end, everyone is comfortable with the standards whether they be Common Core or not," said Sen. John Lamping, R-Ladue.
Indiana is the only other state to scrap Common Core in favor of writing its own school standards. Under Missouri's bill, the state could still choose to follow Common Core or adopt certain parts of the benchmarks.
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Student transfer bill is SB493.
Common Core bill is HB1490.
Online:
Legislature: http://www.moga.mo.gov
Roll call vote
The 91-64 roll call vote Wednesday by which the Missouri House approved student transfer legislation.
REPUBLICANS VOTING YES
Sue Allen, Town and Country
Sonya Anderson, Springfield
Kevin Austin, Springfield
Kurt Bahr, O'Fallon
Jay Barnes, Jefferson City
Mike Bernskoetter, Jefferson City
T.J. Berry, Kearney
Eric Burlison, Springfield
Mike Cierpiot, Lee's Summit
Steve Cookson, Poplar Bluff
Robert Cornejo, St. Peters
Stanley Cox, Sedalia
Sandy Crawford, Buffalo
Paul Curtman, Pacific
Charlie Davis, Webb City
John Diehl, Town and Country
Dean Dohrman, LaMonte
Kevin Engler, Farmington
Sue Entlicher, Bolivar
Scott Fitzpatrick, Shell Knob
Tom Flanigan, Carthage
Lyndall Fraker, Marshfield
Diane Franklin, Camdenton
Keith Frederick, Rolla
Doug Funderburk, St. Peters
Chuck Gatschenberger, Lake St. Louis
Don Gosen, Ballwin
Casey Guernsey, Bethany
Elijah Haahr, Springfield
Marsha Haefner, Oakville
Jim Hansen, Frankford
Ron Hicks, St. Peters
Galen Higdon, St. Joseph
Dave Hinson, St. Clair
Denny Hoskins, Warrensburg
Lincoln Hough, Springfield
Jay Houghton, Martinsburg
Delus Johnson, St. Joseph
Caleb Jones, Columbia
Jeffery Justus, Branson
Shelley Keeney, Marble Hill
Mike Kelley, Lamar
Andrew Koenig, Manchester
Glen Kolkmeyer, Wellington
Mike Lair, Chillicothe
Bill Lant, Pineville
Mike Leara, St. Louis County
Donna Lichtenegger, Jackson
Warren Love, Osceola
Steve Lynch, Waynesville
John McCaherty, High Ridge
Joe Don McGaugh, Carrollton
Jeffrey Messenger, Republic
Mike Moon, Ash Grove
Dave Muntzel, Boonville
Myron Neth, Liberty
Donna Pfautsch, Harrisonville
Don Phillips, Kimberling City
Holly Rehder, Sikeston
Bill Rieboldt, Neosho
Tim Remole, Excello
Todd Richardson, Poplar Bluff
Jeanie Riddle, Mokane
Robert Ross, Yukon
Caleb Rowden, Columbia
Lyle Rowland, Cedarcreek
Dwight Scharnhorst, Valley Park
Dave Schatz, Sullivan
Ron Schieber, Kansas City
Lindell Shumake, Hannibal
Sheila Solon, Blue Springs
Bryan Spencer, Wentzville
Rick Stream, Kirkwood
Kathy Swan, Cape Girardeau
Noel Torpey, Independence
Nate Walker, Kirksville
Bill White, Joplin
Paul Wieland, Imperial
Kenneth Wilson, Smithville
David Wood, Versailles
Anne Zerr, St. Charles
Tim Jones, Eureka
DEMOCRATS VOTING YES
Ira Anders, Independence
Linda Black, Desloge
Mike Colona, St. Louis
Courtney Curtis, Berkeley
Vicki Englund, St. Louis County
Penny Hubbard, St. Louis
Chris Kelly, Columbia
Jeremy LaFaver, Kansas City
John Wright, Rocheport
REPUBLICANS VOTING NO
Wanda Brown, Cole Camp
Kathie Conway, St. Charles
Gary Cross, Lee's Summit
Tony Dugger, Hartville
Kevin Elmer, Nixa
Paul Fitzwater, Potosi
Elaine Gannon, De Soto
Jeff Grisamore, Lee's Summit
Kent Hampton, Malden
Tom Hurst, Meta
Bart Korman, High Hill
Jeanie Lauer, Blue Springs
Nick Marshall, Parkville
Rocky Miller, Osage Beach
Chris Molendorp, Belton
Lynn Morris, Ozark
Jim Neely, Cameron
Mark Parkinson, St. Charles
Randy Pike, Adrian
Jeff Pogue, Salem
Craig Redmon, Canton
Shawn Rhoads, West Plains
Noel Shull, Kansas City
Chrissy Sommer, St. Charles
Mike Thomson, Maryville
DEMOCRATS VOTING NO
Bob Burns, Affton
Michael Butler, St. Louis
Jon Carpenter, Gladstone
Pat Conway, St. Joseph
Randy Dunn, Kansas City
Brandon Ellington, Kansas City
Keith English, Florissant
Michael Frame, Eureka
Kimberly Gardner, St. Louis
Ben Harris, Hillsboro
Jacob Hummel, St. Louis
Jeanne Kirkton, Webster Groves
Michele Kratky, St. Louis
Gail McCann Beatty, Kansas City
Tom McDonald, Raytown
TJ McKenna, Festus
Kevin McManus, Kansas City
Margo McNeil, Hazelwood
Sue Meredith, St. Louis County
Bonnaye Mims, Kansas City
Gina Mitten, Richmond Heights
Genise Montecillo, St. Louis County
Judy Morgan, Kansas City
Stacey Newman, Richmond Heights
Mary Nichols, Maryland Heights
Charlie Norr, Springfield
Bill Otto, Maryland Heights
Sharon Pace, Northwoods
Josh Peters, St. Louis
Tommie Pierson, Bellefontaine Neighbors
John Rizzo, Kansas City
Jeff Roorda, Barnhart
Joe Runions, Grandview
Ed Schieffer, Troy
Jill Schupp, Creve Coeur
Clem Smith, Velda Village Hills
Jay Swearingen, North Kansas City
Rochelle Walton Gray, Black Jack
Stephen Webber, Columbia
REPUBLICAN NOT VOTING
Rick Brattin, Harrisonville
DEMOCRATS NOT VOTING
Steve Hodges, East Prairie
Karla May, St. Louis
John Mayfield, Independence