20-HB1993/SB2343 Dunn/Gresham

Present law requires each LEA to develop a policy whereby the LEA provides for an open enrollment period during which parents or guardians may choose from a list of the LEA schools with available space and request a transfer.

This bill changes and adds to present law concerning open enrollment. This bill requires that the open enrollment period last at least 30 days. This bill requires that each LEA, prior to the start of a school year, identify each school that has space available to enroll additional students and post on the LEA's website the number of spaces available for enrollment in each school by grade, class, and program level at least 14 days before the open enrollment period begins. During the open enrollment period, parents and guardians of students residing in the LEA will be authorized to choose from the LEA's list of available spaces and request transfers. If more transfers are requested for particular spaces than are available, this bill requires the LEA to conduct a lottery to determine which students will receive the transfers. This bill prohibits LEAs from admitting a nonresident student seeking to transfer into the LEA from outside the LEA before all applications for transfer from parents and guardians of students residing within the district have been acted upon.

This bill prohibits LEAs from denying a student who is zoned to attend or was enrolled in a school during the previous school year enrollment and attendance in the school.