Second Substitute S.B. 132

Senator Bill Wright proposes the following substitute bill:

1 EDUCATION ASSOCIATION LEAVE
2 2002 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Sponsor: Bill Wright
5 This act modifies the State System of Public Education Code by providing a definition of
6 association leave and requiring a school district to adopt a policy that governs paid and
7 unpaid association leave before they may be used by a school district employee. This act
8 specifies the procedures and controls that shall be contained in a school district's paid
9 association leave policy.
10 This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
11 ENACTS:
12 53A-3-425, Utah Code Annotated 1953
13 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
14 Section 1. Section 53A-3-425 is enacted to read:
15 53A-3-425. Association leave -- District policy.
16 (1) As used in this section, "association leave" means leave from a school district
17 employee's regular school responsibilities granted for that employee to spend time for association
18 or union duties.
19 (2) Prior to any school district employee's participation in paid or unpaid association leave,
20 a local school board shall adopt a written policy that governs association leave.
21 (3) If a local school board adopts a policy to allow paid association leave, the policy shall
22 include procedures and controls to:
23 (a) ensure that the duties performed by employees on paid association leave directly
24 benefit education within the school district;
25 (b) require the school district to document the use and approval of paid association leave;

26 (c) require school district supervision of employees on paid association leave;
27 (d) require the school district to account for the costs and expenses of paid association
28 leave;
29 (e) ensure that during the hours of paid association leave a school district employee may
30 not engage in political activity, including:
31 (i) actively campaigning for candidates for public office in partisan and nonpartisan
32 elections; and
33 (ii) fundraising for political organizations, political parties, or candidates;
34 (f) ensure that association leave is only paid out of school district funds when the paid
35 association leave directly benefits education within the district; and
36 (g) require the reimbursement to the school district of the cost of paid association leave
37 activities that do not provide a direct benefit to education within the school district.
38 (4) If a local school board adopts a policy to allow paid association leave, that policy shall
39 indicate that a violation of this section or of a policy adopted in accordance with Subsection (2)
40 or (3) may be used for disciplinary action under Section 53A-8-104 .