S.B. 49

1

OPTIONAL EXTENDED-DAY KINDERGARTEN
2 2007 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Chief Sponsor: Lyle W. Hillyard
5 House Sponsor: ____________
6
7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill establishes a voluntary extended-day kindergarten program, with certain
10 funding priorities.
11 Highlighted Provisions:
12 This bill:
13 . establishes a program, administered by the State Board of Education, through which
14 school districts and charter schools may provide voluntary extended-day
15 kindergarten;
16 . establishes program requirements and funding priorities;
17 . requires districts to report certain information on the use of program monies and on
18 the program's outcomes to the State Board of Education; and
19 . requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to report to the Education Interim
20 Committee on the program.
21 Monies Appropriated in this Bill:
22 This bill appropriates as an ongoing appropriation subject to future budget constraints,
23 $7,500,000 from the Uniform School Fund for fiscal year 2007-08 to the State Board of
24 Education.
25 Other Special Clauses:
26 This bill takes effect on July 1, 2007.
27 Utah Code Sections Affected:

28 ENACTS:
29 53A-1a-801, Utah Code Annotated 1953
30 53A-1a-802, Utah Code Annotated 1953
31 53A-1a-803, Utah Code Annotated 1953
32
33 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
34 Section 1. Section 53A-1a-801 is enacted to read:
35 Part 8. Voluntary Extended-day Kindergarten Program
36 53A-1a-801. Definitions.
37 As used in this part:
38 (1) "Extended-day kindergarten" means a kindergarten program that provides at least
39 the same number of instructional hours per school year as first grade, as established under State
40 Board of Education rule.
41 (2) "Part-day kindergarten" means a kindergarten program that provides fewer
42 instructional hours than first grade, as established under State Board of Education rule.
43 Section 2. Section 53A-1a-802 is enacted to read:
44 53A-1a-802. Voluntary extended-day kindergarten program.
45 (1) If funds are appropriated for this purpose, the State Board of Education shall
46 allocate available funds, consistent with Section 53A-1a-803 , to charter schools and school
47 districts that apply to offer extended-day kindergarten.
48 (2) A school district shall coordinate program application, funding, administration, and
49 reporting for its schools that participate in the program.
50 (3) A charter school or school district:
51 (a) may not require a student to participate in extended-day kindergarten;
52 (b) shall continue to offer part-day kindergarten for students not participating in the
53 program; and
54 (c) shall continue to honor the provisions of any preexisting contractual agreement
55 related to other early intervention programs offered at the school site, through the remaining
56 term of the contract.
57 (4) A charter school or school district that receives funds under this part shall:
58 (a) annually conduct a kindergarten readiness assessment for incoming kindergarten

59 students prior to the beginning of the school year;
60 (b) ensure that:
61 (i) a majority of students enrolled in an extended-day kindergarten class under this part
62 are students who have the greatest need for additional instruction, as determined by the
63 kindergarten readiness assessment; and
64 (ii) an extended-day kindergarten class does not have more enrolled students than other
65 kindergarten classes in the school;
66 (c) utilize allocated funds to establish extended-day kindergarten in the schools with
67 greatest need as measured by the percentage of students eligible for free lunch; and
68 (d) annually report to the State Board of Education regarding:
69 (i) the number of students served;
70 (ii) the specific results achieved by the program, including any standardized testing or
71 district-directed assessment;
72 (iii) challenges encountered in administering the program and suggestions for
73 improvement; and
74 (iv) specific accountability for and tracking of the voluntary extended-day kindergarten
75 program dollars each year.
76 (5) Until 2012, the superintendent of public instruction shall annually report to the
77 Education Interim Committee on the program, including a summary of information reported
78 under Subsection (4)(d).
79 (6) In accordance with Title 63, Chapter 46a, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act,
80 and consistent with this part, the State Board of Education shall make rules establishing
81 application and reporting procedures necessary to administer this part.
82 Section 3. Section 53A-1a-803 is enacted to read:
83 53A-1a-803. Voluntary extended-day kindergarten program funding.
84 (1) As used in this section, "Title I school" means a school receiving federal monies
85 under Title I of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110, for a schoolwide
86 or targeted assistance program.
87 (2) If funds are appropriated for this purpose, the State Board of Education shall
88 allocate funds to charter schools and school districts.
89 (3) For charter schools, the State Board of Education shall:

90 (a) determine the total allocation for charter schools by:
91 (i) dividing the number of charter school students eligible to receive free lunch by the
92 total number of students in the public education system eligible to receive free lunch in the
93 prior school year; and
94 (ii) multiplying the resulting percentage by the total amount of available funds; and
95 (b) allocate the resulting amount of funds to individual charter schools with the greatest
96 need for extended-day kindergarten, as determined by the State Board of Education in
97 consultation with the State Charter School Board.
98 (4) For school districts, the State Board of Education shall:
99 (a) determine the total allocation for school districts by subtracting the charter school
100 amount calculated under Subsection (3)(a) from the total amount of available funds; and
101 (b) allocate the resulting amount to applicant school districts by:
102 (i) allocating to each school district the amount calculated by:
103 (A) multiplying the value of the weighted pupil unit under Subsection 53A-17a-103 (1)
104 by 0.45; and
105 (B) multiplying the result by 20; and
106 (ii) allocating any remaining funds after the allocation under Subsection (4)(b)(i) by:
107 (A) determining the number of students eligible to receive free lunch in the prior
108 school year for each school district; and
109 (B) prorating the remaining funds based on the number of students eligible to receive
110 free lunch in each district.
111 (5) The State Board of Education may modify the allocation of funds described under
112 this section to provide sufficient funding for each Title I school to participate in the voluntary
113 extended-day kindergarten program.
114 Section 4. Appropriation.
115 As an ongoing appropriation subject to future budget constraints, there is appropriated
116 from the Uniform School Fund for fiscal year 2007-08, $7,500,000 to the State Board of
117 Education, for allocation to school districts and charter schools pursuant to the voluntary
118 extended-day kindergarten program under Section 53A-1a-803 .
119 Section 5. Effective date.
120 This bill takes effect on July 1, 2007.

Legislative Review Note
as of 1-8-07 11:47 AM

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel