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NH LEGISLATIVE NEWS

The 2010 New Hampshire Legislative Session resulted in several laws requiring policy amendments and in some cases major revisions.  Educational funding was also reduced in some areas to address state budget issues.  A summary of these changes are referenced below.  State statutes (RSAs) and legislative bills can be referenced by clicking here.

Truancy - House Bill 154 amended RSA 189:34 through 36 on pupil truancy.  The statute requires that school district truancy policy define "excused absences" and include processes to consider exceptions to absences and to intervene in cases of specific truancy.   The School Board is to provide for parent participation in policy development and during the intervention process.  "Habitual truancy" has also been reduced from 20 to 10 half-days of unexcused absences.  This law also requires a school district to follow all the steps of the truancy intervention process before filing a court petition for a Child in Need of Services (CHINS).  This law became effective July 6, 2010.

Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention Act (Bullying) - House Bill 1523 significantly amended the Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention Act.  The law defines bullying and includes cyberbullying under the definition of bullying.  Cyberbullying is bullying through the use of electronic devices, such as telephones, cell phones, computers, web sites, email, etc.  Statute requires that within 6 months School Boards adopt a policy that addresses the following areas.  This law became effective July 1, 2010.

1. Statement prohibiting bullying or cyberbullying
2. Statement prohibiting retaliation or false accusations
3. Protection for all students
4. Disciplinary actions or interventions for students committing bullying, retaliation, or false accusations
5. Reporting procedures for bullying
6. Notification of policy to employees, volunteers, parents, and contractors
7. School contact to report bullying and school reporting requirements
8. Superintendent waiver of notification if in the best interest of student(s)
9. Parental notification of incidents and detailed procedure for notification
10. Written procedures for investigations
11. School response to remediate any substantiated incident and strategy to protect students from retaliation
12. Superintendent notification of all substantiated incidents
13. Parental communication of investigation completion including remedies and assistance (within 10 school days)
14. School officer responsible for policy implementation

School districts must report substantiated bullying incidents annually to the NH Department of Education.  School districts must also provide training annually.

School Employee and Volunteer Background Investigations - House Bill 1224 amends RSA 189:13-a requiring background investigations on school employees and volunteers.  Background checks have been expanded to include arrests in addition to convictions for criminal offenses included in RSA 189:13-a, V. This law became effective August 13, 2010.

Air Quality Issues in Schools - House Bill 1265 amends RSA 200:48 to require School Boards to implement a policy on air quality in schools.  The policy must include methods to minimize or eliminate car and bus emissions on school property.  This is in response to state anti-idling and clean air zone policy established by the Department of Environmental Services.  This law becomes effective January 1, 2011.

Limiting the Use of Child Restraint Practices in Schools - Senate Bill 396 creates a new statute RSA 126-T.  This law requires that school districts enact policy including procedures for managing behavior of children.  These procedures must detail when and how restraints will be used.  This law became effective September 1, 2010.

Notice of Non-Renewal to Support Personnel and Non-Certified School District Employees - House Bill 1411 amends RSA 189:14-g to require school districts to notify in writing all support personnel and non-certified school employees by the last day of school if the school district intends to continue/dis-continue employment.  This requirement does not apply to employees that have not completed the probationary period.  This law became effective September 6, 2010.

School District Liability for Special Education Costs - Senate Bill 520 amends RSA 193:3 and 186-C:13 to clarify that the district in which a student resides retains the liability for special education services and costs.  This law was in response to disputes regarding parentally placed students.  This law became effective September 11, 2010.

Budget - The NH Department of Education's budget was reduced by $9.9 million.  This action will reduce school district allocations for catastrophic aid (special education) and tuition and transportation (vocational education).  This will directly impact Epping School District revenues for 2010-2011.  Reductions have also been reported in state educational programs such as drop out prevention, state testing, etc. that support local schools.