SCS/SB 168 - This act makes several changes affecting public schools.
TRANSPORTATION - The State Board of Education shall approve proper transportation costs to ensure that each resident pupil is able to attend the same district school throughout the school year even if the pupil s residence changes to a different school attendance area in the district.
FUNDING - The first ten million dollars of savings in court-ordered desegregation payments shall be appropriated to dropout prevention programs including at least two million dollars for alternative schools and two million dollars for A+ Schools.
DATABASE - The act establishes a public school pupil attendance database. The database shall contain only the name address, phone number and attendance record of the pupil. When a district reports a dropout, the district shall report the number of years the student attended the school. The database will be used to improve monitoring of dropouts and to determine the number of eligible pupils used to determine state school aid. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education shall report the graduation rate annually to the Governor and General Assembly on a statewide and per district basis.
ABSTINENCE - Public school instruction in sex education shall present abstinence as the preferred choice of sexual behavior for unmarried persons, shall devote more attention to abstinence, shall state that only abstinence is 100% effective in preventing pregnancy and sexual transmission of disease, shall discuss possible emotional, psychological and financial consequences of sexual activity, shall emphasize respect for monogamous marriage, shall emphasize self-control and resisting peer pressure and shall teach contraception in terms of real human use failure rates.
School districts shall not distribute condoms or other contraceptives. Policies concerning referrals and parental notification regarding contraception may be made by school boards, and such policies shall be consistent with current requirements, in section 167.611, RSMo, which provides that children requesting contraceptive drugs or other devices shall be referred to the previously-designated family practitioner.
School districts may separate students by gender for sex education. School districts shall ensure that sexual education is appropriate to the age of the student.
Parents shall be informed of the content of the district's sex education curriculum and of the parent s right to remove the student from any part of the district s sex education program.
A school district shall make sexual education curriculum materials available for public inspection prior to the use of such materials in actual instruction.
The portion of the act pertaining to abstinence is similar to SCS/SB 126 from 1997.
TEACHER TRAINING - Teacher training institutions shall provide courses in first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
REPORTING ACTS OF VIOLENCE ON SCHOOL PROPERTY - The act removes the current requirement that a school principal shall report any third degree assault committed against a pupil or school employee to the superintendent and the local law enforcement agency. This provision is similar to SCS/SBs 311 and 200.
A+ SCHOOLS - The act provides that A+ Schools scholarships shall also be provided for reimbursement of costs of tuition, books and fees of eligible students attending public four-year colleges. Such scholarships are currently available to eligible students attending public community colleges and vocational and technical schools.
SB 380 REFERENDUM CLAUSE - The act repeals sections 143.105, 143.106 and 143.107, RSMo. Section 143.107 is the "contingent referendum clause" from Section D of SB 380 of 1993, and sections 143.105 and 143.106, if submitted and approved pursuant to section 143.107, would revise the corporate income tax rate and deductibility of federal income tax liability to their pre-SB 380 provisions. On November 19, 1996, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled, in W. Todd Akin, et al. v. Director of Revenue, that these sections, as contained in sections B, C and D of SB 380, are void and unconstitutional.
OTTO FAJEN