| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Commissioner of Education; amending |
| 3 | s. 1001.10, F.S.; authorizing the Commissioner of |
| 4 | Education, upon the request of a district school board, to |
| 5 | waive the final examination requirement for a student who |
| 6 | meets certain criteria; providing an effective date. |
| 7 |
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| 8 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 9 |
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| 10 | Section 1. Subsection (3) of section 1001.10, Florida |
| 11 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 12 | 1001.10 Commissioner of Education; general powers and |
| 13 | duties.-- |
| 14 | (3)(a) To facilitate innovative practices and to allow |
| 15 | local selection of educational methods, the State Board of |
| 16 | Education may authorize the commissioner to waive, upon the |
| 17 | request of a district school board, State Board of Education |
| 18 | rules that relate to district school instruction and school |
| 19 | operations, except those rules pertaining to civil rights, and |
| 20 | student health, safety, and welfare. |
| 21 | (b) The Commissioner of Education is not authorized to |
| 22 | grant waivers for any provisions in rule pertaining to: |
| 23 | 1. The allocation and appropriation of state and local |
| 24 | funds for public education; |
| 25 | 2. The election, compensation, and organization of school |
| 26 | board members and superintendents; |
| 27 | 3. Graduation and state accountability standards; however, |
| 28 | upon the request of a district school board, the commissioner |
| 29 | may waive the final examination requirement for a student who is |
| 30 | maintaining at least an average grade of "B" for the semester |
| 31 | and who has not had more than 3 days of unexcused absences |
| 32 | during the semester; |
| 33 | 4. Financial reporting requirements; |
| 34 | 5. Reporting of out-of-field teaching assignments under s. |
| 35 | 1012.42; |
| 36 | 6. Public meetings or; public records; or |
| 37 | 7. Due process hearings governed by chapter 120. |
| 38 | (c) No later than January 1 of each year, the commissioner |
| 39 | shall report to the Legislature and the State Board of Education |
| 40 | all approved waiver requests in the preceding year. |
| 41 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009. |