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MINUTES OF HOUSE EDUCATION
STANDING COMMITTEE
Room 30, House Building
February 7, 2014

Menbers Present:    Rep. Francis Gibson, Chair
        Rep. Lowry Snow, Vice Chair
        Rep. Patrice M. Arent
        Rep. Rich Cunningham
        Rep. Steve Eliason
        Rep. Bradley G. Last
        Rep. David Lifferth    
        Rep. Dan McCay
        Rep. Carol Spackman Moss
        Rep. Jim Nielson
        Rep. Val Peterson
        Rep. Marie H. Poulson
        Rep. Kraig Powell
        Rep. Dean T. Sanpei
        Rep. Keven Stratton    
        
Members Absent:    Rep. Greg H. Hughes            
            
Staff Present        Ms. Constance C. Steffen, Policy Analyst
        Ms. Linda Service, Committee Secretary
        

Note: List of visitors and copy of handouts are filed with committee minutes.

Vice Chair Snow called the meeting to order at 4:06 p.m.

MOTION:    Rep. McCay moved to approve the minutes of the February 6, 2014 meeting. The motion passed unanimously with Rep. Eliason, Rep. Lifferth, Rep. Nielson, Rep. Peterson, Rep. Powell, Rep. Sanpei, and Rep. Stratton absent for the vote.

H.B. 292    School Grading - Calculation of High School Graduation Rate (Rep. R. Menlove)

Rep. Menlove explained the bill to the committee.

Spoke against the bill:    Jackie de Gasten, citizen
        Peter Cannon, citizen

MOTION:    Rep. McCay moved to pass the bill out favorably.

SUBSTITUTE MOTION:    Rep. Nielson moved to amend the bill as follows:

    Page 3, Line 63: After "four years." insert "The state board shall report the     number of students excluded from grading for each school."

The motion passed unanimously.

MOTION:    Rep. Stratton moved to amend the bill as follows:

    Page 3, Line 63: After "excluded from" delete "grading" and insert "the four-year     adjusted cohort for the graduating class"

The motion passed unanimously.

MOTION:    Rep. McCay moved to pass out the bill favorably.

The motion passed unanimously.

H.B. 215    Public School Employee Background Checks (Rep. S. Handy)

Rep. Handy explained the bill to the committee, assisted by Rodney Rose, Davis School District.

MOTION:    Rep. Gibson moved to amend the bill as follows:

1.    Page 1, Line 15 :    

             15      school since the date of the initial background check;
{   and   }

    .
  requires the Criminal Investigations and Technical Services Division of the Department of Public Safety to notify an administrator at a school district, charter school, or private school when a new entry is made against an employee or volunteer whose fingerprints are held on file regarding any matters involving an alleged offense against property; and      


2.    Page 3, Lines 72 through 77 :    

             72          (C) any matters involving an alleged alcohol-related offense;
{   or   }

             73          (D) any matters involving an alleged offense against the person under Title 76, Chapter
             74      5, Offenses Against the Person
{   .   }        ; or

    (E) any matters involving an alleged offense against property under Title 76, Chapter 6, Offenses Against Property.  

             75
         (iii) The [cost of maintaining the separate file shall be paid by the] school district,
             76      charter school, or private school shall pay the cost of maintaining the separate file
{   from fees

             77      charged to [those] applicants, volunteers, and employees submitting fingerprints   } .

The motion passed unanimously.

Spoke to the bill:    Jackie de Gasten

MOTION:    Rep. Poulson moved to pass out the bill favorably.

The motion passed unanimously with Rep. Stratton absent for the vote.

H.B. 81    Parental Review of Statewide Summative Test Questions (Rep. M. Kennedy)

Rep. Kennedy explained the bill to the committee.

Spoke to the bill:    Brad Asay, President, American Federation of Teachers

Spoke for the bill:    Tiffany Hess, parent
        Gayle Ruzicka, Eagle Forum
        Jackie de Gasten
        Jason Carmon, father

Spoke against the bill:    Sarah Jones, Utah Education Association

MOTION:    Rep. Cunningham moved to adjourn.


H.B. 249    Grants for Digital Textbooks (Rep. J. Anderegg)

The bill was not heard.

The motion to adjourn passed unanimously with Rep. Last, Rep. Moss, Rep. Poulson, and Rep. Sanpei absent for the vote. Rep. Snow adjourned the meeting at 5:57 p.m.


______________________________________________
Rep. Francis Gibson, Chair