Legislative Bills

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Description
General Description: 
Highlighted Provisions: 

HB 208 disallows any pedagogical performance assessment as a requirement for teacher licensure. It would require all competencies to be certified by a teacher leader prior to licensure. The teacher leader must have an assignment as a teacher. This would be an additional duty on top of regular teaching duties. A teacher leader has to evaluate competencies for all who gain their professional license, whether through university or APPEL program. It also requires USBE to collaborate with USHE to establish a strategy for an additional pathway to becoming a professionally licensed teacher.

Bill Details
Year: 
2024
Status: 
Sponsor
Representative
Republican - District 62
Fiscal Note
Fiscal Note Amount: 
$0
Utah PTA Response
Utah PTA Position
Pending
Impact on Children: 

Teachers without pedagogical competency are less prepared to manage a classroom, and studies show that they do not stay in the profession as long as those with pedagogical training. Having a teacher leader certify pedagogy puts an additional burden on the other teachers in the school. Also, there are concerns about the fiscal impact of paying stipends to the teacher leaders.

Commission: 
Education
Utah PTA Public Policy Program
National PTA and Utah PTA Resolutions: 

Teacher quality is the single most important school-based factor in student achievement; teacher’s knowledge of subject matter and effective pedagogies for teaching specific content and skills, along with particular knowledge about their students’ backgrounds, interests, and learning styles are central to effective teaching and learning; and to build teacher capacity the focus should be on policy, training, pedagogy, infrastructure development, teacher welfare, and empowerment.

HB0208 | Safe Routes to School Program

Description
General Description: 

This bill requires the Department of Transportation to implement a program to provide safe routes to school.

Bill Details
Year: 
2019
Status: 
Governor Signed
Last Action: 
Mar 25, 2019
Sponsor
Representative
Democrat - District 32
Fiscal Note
Fiscal Note Amount: 
$0
None
Utah PTA Response
Utah PTA Position
Pending
Impact on Children: 

Safe walking routes to school protects our children from harm and accident.

Commission: 
Education
Safety
Utah PTA Public Policy Program
National PTA and Utah PTA Resolutions: 

Resolved, That local PTAs review and offer suggestions on pedestrian safety for each school's child access
routing plan.

Resolved, That Utah PTA continue to work with the Utah State Legislature to secure adequate
funding specifically dedicated to safe school routes and pedestrian safety devices

National PTA Public Policy Agenda

HB0209S02 | Amendments to Civil and Criminal Actions

Description
General Description: 

This bill addresses civil and criminal actions.

Highlighted Provisions: 

This bill clarifies the requirements for bringing a civil action for human trafficking;

Bill Details
Year: 
2024
Status: 
Governor Signed
Last Action: 
Mar 18, 2024
Sponsor
Representative
Republican - District 50
Fiscal Note
Fiscal Note Amount: 
$0
None
Utah PTA Response
Utah PTA Position
Support
Impact on Children: 

Children are victims of both commercial and sexual abuse by traffickers. They often experience a wide range of trauma and adversities, resulting in sexual, physical, and emotional injuries and often lifelong health, educational, economic, legal, social, relational, sexual and spiritual impacts. This bill would allow victims of trafficking to recover damages inflicted upon them by traffickers.

Commission: 
Safety
Utah PTA Public Policy Program
National PTA and Utah PTA Resolutions: 

National PTA Child Trafficking

Resolved, That National PTA and its constituent organizations advocate for the protection of rights of victims and support efforts to provide measures for the physical, psychological, and social recovery of victims of child trafficking;

Utah PTA Legislative Policy: 

Equity in the form of equal justice, privileges, opportunities, and responsibilities in every phase of life for all children and youth, while recognizing that each child is unique with individual needs and talents.

HB0210 | Insurance Coverage for Children Amendments

Description
General Description: 

This bill enacts provisions relating to the Medicaid program and the Utah Children�s Health Insurance Program.

Bill Details
Year: 
2020
Status: 
House/ filed
Last Action: 
Mar 12, 2020
Sponsor
Representative
Republican - District 19
Fiscal Note
Fiscal Note Amount: 
$0
None
Utah PTA Response
Utah PTA Position
Support
Impact on Children: 

1. This bill would direct the Dept of Health to adopt policies to keep eligible children from unnecessarily losing Medicaid and going without insurance
2. It removes paperwork barriers in Medicaid and CHIP. Currently, if a child is on Medicaid, they can lose their coverage if their parent takes on an extra few hours at work one month- HB 210 would prevent this from happening.
3.When children are uninsured, it impacts all aspects of their life, for example they may be less likely to participate in physical activity programs or sports because parents are worried about an injury.
4. Utah has one of the highest rates of uninsured children in the nation.

Commission: 
Health
National PTA Public Policy Agenda

National PTA Position Statement-Elements of Comprehensive Health Programs
-Early diagnosis and treatment of children’s vision problems is a necessary component to school readiness and academic learning;
-Integrated school and community health promotion efforts that acknowledge the shared responsibility for student health with the home, public and private health care systems, law enforcement and justice systems, government, environmental agencies, business, religious organizations, civic groups and the media.

National PTA Position Statement - National Health Reform and Access to Care for Children, Youth, Families, and Pregnant Women 

-Universal Coverage. It is essential that health reform eliminate barriers to health care providing universal, affordable health coverage on a mandatory basis to all, regardless of income, age, geographic residence, health status, legal status or education. Pre-existing condition exclusions and waiting periods should be prohibited, and continuous portable coverage should be provided.

-Health Care Costs. The National PTA believes that agencies with responsibilities for educational, health or welfare services must have provisions for adequate funding and structure to meet effective legislative intent and to provide adequate funding for school and community services to children in areas under federal government control. Any health plan should provide adequate reimbursement levels to encourage the development of primary care practices and to ensure appropriate distribution of health resources to underserved areas, and not shift costs to families, particularly those of low income. Costs should be contained in all sectors of the health care system, and administrative procedures be simplified. The National PTA supports taxing tobacco and alcohol products as a means of raising revenues for health care, but would oppose taxing employees or organizations for health benefit premiums.

HB0211S01 | School Fees Amendments

Description
General Description: 

This bill amends provisions related to elementary and secondary school fees.

Highlighted Provisions: 

11 This bill:
12 ▸ amends definitions;
13 ▸ with certain exceptions, prohibits a local education agency (LEA) from charging an
14 elementary school student a fee;
15 ▸ with certain exceptions, prohibits an LEA from charging a secondary school student
16 a fee for a curricular activity or portions of a co-curricular activity;
17 ▸ authorizes an LEA to charge a secondary school student a fee for an extracurricular
18 activity;
19 ▸ amends provisions related to a fee waiver;
20 ▸ repeals provisions related to fees for textbooks;
21 ▸ prohibits charging a student in grade 6 a fee for a remediation program;
22 ▸ repeals outdated language

Bill Details
Year: 
2022
Status: 
House/ filed
Last Action: 
Mar 04, 2022
Sponsor
Representative
Republican - District 63
Fiscal Note
Fiscal Note Amount: 
$0
None
Utah PTA Response
Utah PTA Position
Support w/ Comment

Utah PTA recognizes that this will shift the burden of fees away from families, however, we do not want this revenue stream to be considered as an "increase" in Education Funding as districts will not see "extra" money.

Impact on Children: 

This will lift the financial burden on families.

Commission: 
Education
Utah PTA Public Policy Program
National PTA and Utah PTA Resolutions: 

That Utah PTA encourage the legislature to adequately fund critical educational needs, including but not limited to, class size reduction, teacher salaries, technology, textbooks and supplies