Sb 47: Eligibility Expansion for the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program
| Publication year | 2022 |
SB 47: Eligibility Expansion for the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program
Saskia Olczak
solczak1@student.gsu.edu
Baker Swain
bswain3@student.gsu.edu
[Page 83]
Elementary and Secondary Education: Amend Article 33 of Chapter 2 of Title 2020 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, Relating to the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Act, so as to Revise the Prior School Year Requirement; Expand Eligibility for Students; Revise the Basis for Calculating Scholarship Amounts; Require Annual Parent Surveys; Provide for a Review Procedure for Scholarship Calculation, Provide for Related Matters; Repeal Conflicting Laws; and for Other Purposes
Code Sections: O.C.G.A. §§ 20-2-2113 (amended); -2114 (amended); -2116 (amended); -2117 (amended)
Bill Number: SB 47
Act Number: 243
Georgia Laws: 2021 Ga. Laws 541
Summary: The Act expands the eligibility requirements for the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program. The Act removes the requirement of having to reside in Georgia for one year before becoming eligible for the Scholarship. Further, the Act requires the Georgia department of education to conduct annual surveys of parents whose children participate in the Scholarship to increase transparency and facilitate budget allocation.
Effective Date: July 1, 2021
[Page 84]
History
Section 504 Plans and Individualized Education Programs
Congress passed the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to create programs that meet the needs of individuals with disabilities.1 Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) provides that "programs or activities" receiving federal funding cannot deny benefits to or discriminate against anyone because of disability.2 A public school is considered a program or activity.3
Thus, if a public school determines that a student has a qualifying disability, the school must develop a "504 plan" to prevent discrimination because of the disability.4 A 504 plan refers to how the school will address, support, and remove barriers to learning for students who have a disability such that they can adequately learn in the classroom.5
The goal of a 504 plan is to give students with disabilities the same opportunities for educational success as their peers without disabilities.6 A child must satisfy two requirements to qualify for a 504
[Page 85]
plan.7 First, the child must have a disability, which can include many different learning or attention issues.8 Second, the disability must interfere with the child's ability to learn in the classroom.9 The Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program originally did not include students solely on a 504 plan.10 Students under a 504 plan may be performing at their grade level but "need some kind of help" to be on an equal footing with their peers.11
In 1975, Congress passed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, which not only created individualized education programs (IEPs) but also gave the Department of Education (then called the Department of Health, Education, and welfare) the discretion to issue federal grants to states that met certain requirements related to providing education to children with disabilities.12 This Act later became known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).13 The IDEA not only requires states to provide "free appropriate public education" but also requires "school districts and state educational agencies . . . to locate and identify all children with disabilities in the state . . . ."14
Thus, students attending a public school who meet certain eligibility criteria qualify for an IEP—a plan documenting how students will receive their education and other related services.15 To receive an IEP,
[Page 86]
the child must first receive a formal diagnosis with at least one of the thirteen specific disabilities listed within the IDEA.16 Second, the disability must affect the child's ability to learn and benefit from the general educational curriculum.17
School districts work with parents of children with disabilities to craft an IEP for that student.18 An IEP includes the following: (1) a statement of the child's current academic achievement and performance, (2) a statement of annual goals for the child, (3) a description of how the child will progress toward meeting the annual goals, (4) a statement of education aids and services that the child will receive and supporting services that the school will provide for the child, (5) an explanation of whether the child will participate with non-disabled children in classes, (6) a statement of individual accommodations that are necessary to measure the child's academic and functional performance, (7) the IEP's projected start date and the projected duration that the child will need the IEP, and (8) a statement of goals for the child when the child reaches postsecondary education.19
Because Section 504 defines "disability" more broadly than the IDEA, a child may qualify for a 504 plan but not an IEP.20 In addition, students under a 504 plan cannot receive specialized instruction or other services, including occupational, speech, or physical therapy.21
[Page 87]
The Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program
The Georgia General Assembly created the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program in 2007 for students with disabilities.22 The Assembly modeled the Scholarship after Florida's John M. McKay Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Program, also known as the McKay Scholarship Program.23 The McKay Scholarship Program gives students funding to attend private schools if the students have an IEP or 504 plan.24 The Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program was designed to give students with special needs the option to pursue private-school education and give parents with special needs children the ability to make educational choices for them.25 The Scholarship provides eligibility requirements for students and schools.26
About 5,200 students in Georgia have used the Scholarship since its creation.27 Students who participate in the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program receive on average $6,743, and the Program earmarks this money for school tuition and fees.28
[Page 88]
In the 2020 legislative session, the Georgia General Assembly introduced Senate Bill (SB) 386, the precursor to SB 47.29 Most of the language in SB 386 is the same as the earlier versions of SB 47.30 Although SB 386 passed out of the Senate, the bill did not make it out of the House.31
Bill Tracking of SB 47
Consideration by the Senate
Senator Steve Gooch (R-51st) sponsored SB 47 in the Senate with Senator Butch Miller (R-49th), Senator Mike Dugan (R-30th), Senator John Kennedy (R-18th), Senator Larry Walker, III (R-20th), Senator Jason Anavitarte (R-31st), Senator Greg Dolezal (R-27th), Senator Billy Hickman (R-4th), Senator Lee Anderson (R-24th), Senator Brian Strickland (R-17th), Senator Ben Watson (R-1st), Senator Randy Robertson (R-29th), Senator Bruce Thompson (R-14th), Senator John Albers (R-56th), Senator Max Burns (R-23rd), and Senator Jeff Mullis (R-53rd).32
SB 47 was first introduced in the Senate on January 28, 2021.33 The following day, it was read for the first time and referred to the Senate Committee on Education and Youth, which ultimately made one change to the bill.34 The Committee discarded the bill's portion that discussed the method by which the Georgia Department of Education would provide quarterly scholarship payments to the parents of scholarship students.35
[Page 89]
After its changes, the Committee reported favorably on the bill.36 After the bill was read for a third time on the Senate floor, it passed on March 3, 2021.37 The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 30 to 23.38
Consideration by the House
Representative Will Wade (R-9th) sponsored the bill in the House and first read it on March 5, 2021.39 The bill was read for the second time on March 8, 2021, after which the bill was referred to the House Committee on Education.40 The Committee made several changes to the bill. First, the Committee changed the criteria for how students qualify for the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program. The Committee specified that a "formal diagnosis from a licensed physician or psychologist" is not enough; instead, a student specifically needs a "Section 504 Plan."41 In that same section of the bill, the Committee also added the requirement that the State Board of Education adopt rules and a process to ensure that students who qualify for the scholarship through a Section 504 Plan meet the eligibility requirements.42
Finally, the House Committee on Education omitted some of the student fees that were previously included in the calculation for the scholarship amount.43 Specifically, the Committee omitted fees for athletics, before or after-school care, books and school supplies, and field trips.44 Accordingly, these fees can no longer factor into the determination of a student's scholarship amount. The Committee
[Page 90]
added school-provided transportation fees to the list of appropriate fees considered when determining the scholarship amount.45
After the Committee made the changes, the bill was read in the House for the third time on March 25, 2021, and it passed the same day.46 The Senate adopted the House Committee on Education's substitute version of SB 47 on March 29, 2021.47
SB 47 was sent to Governor Brian Kemp (R) on April 7, 2021.48 Governor Kemp signed SB 47 into law on May 6, 2021, and the Act went into effect on July 1, 2021.49
The Act
The Act amends Article 33 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program.50 The Act's purpose is to increase accessibility to the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program for children with special needs.51
Section 1
Section 1 of the Act amends Code section 20-2-2113, relating to the school system's process for notifying parents of children with disabilities of the options available under the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program.52 The...
To continue reading
Request your trial