Bill > HSB735

Introduced Session

This bill relates to education, including by modifying provisions related to charter schools, the Iowa public employees’ retirement system, financing programs for charter schools and nonpublic schools administered by the Iowa finance authority, the statewide voluntary preschool program for four-year-old children, education savings accounts, the school start date, independent accrediting agencies, teacher training and licensure, and making appropriations, and including applicability and retroactive applicability provisions. DIVISION I —— CHARTER SCHOOL FUNDING. Currently, each student enrolled in a charter school under Code chapter 256E shall be counted, for state school foundation purposes, in the student’s district of residence. The department of education is then required to pay to the charter school in which the student is enrolled an amount equal to the sum of the regular program state cost per pupil for the budget year plus other additional costs specified in Code section 256E.8(2)(a). This division adds the teacher salary supplement state cost per pupil to the amount required to be paid to the charter school. This provision applies to school budget years beginning on or after July 1, 2026. DIVISION II —— IOWA PUBLIC EMPLOYEES’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM. The division provides that persons employed by charter schools are employees for purposes of the provisions of the Iowa public employees’ retirement system (IPERS). Additionally, the division provides that charter schools are employers for purposes of the provisions of IPERS. DIVISION III —— EXTRACURRICULAR INTERSCHOLASTIC ATHLETIC H.F. _____ CONTESTS OR COMPETITIONS PROVIDED BY PUBLIC SCHOOLS. The division requires the board of directors of a school district to allow a student who resides within the district, and who is enrolled in a charter school, to participate in any extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition that is provided by the school district pursuant to the terms of an agreement between the board of directors of the school district and the governing board of the charter school if the extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition has not been provided by the charter school during the two immediately preceding school years and if the charter school has not entered into an agreement under Code section 280.13A (sharing interscholastic activities) with another school district, nonpublic school, or charter school that provides for the eligibility of students enrolled in the charter school to participate in the extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition that is being provided by that school. The division requires the board of directors of a school district to allow a student who resides within a contiguous school district, and who is enrolled in a charter school, to participate in any extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition that is provided by the school district pursuant to the terms of an agreement between the board of directors of the school district and the governing board of the charter school if the extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition has not been provided by the charter school or by the student’s school district of residence during the two immediately preceding school years and if the charter school has not entered into an agreement under Code section 280.13A with another school district, nonpublic school, or charter school that provides for the eligibility of students enrolled in the charter school to participate in the extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition that is being provided by that school. The division provides that if the board of directors of H.F. _____ a school district has established a fee for the cost of a student’s participation in an extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition, a student who is enrolled in a charter school and is participating in a contest or competition at a public school pursuant to the division’s provisions, or the student’s parent or guardian, shall be responsible for the payment of such fee. The division requires a student who is enrolled in a charter school and is participating in a contest or competition at a public school pursuant to the division’s provisions to participate under the same conditions as a student who is enrolled in the school district, including meeting the school district’s student code of conduct requirements. The division provides that a student who participates in an extracurricular interscholastic athletic contest or competition pursuant to the division’s provisions is deemed to satisfy the residence requirements for purposes of Code section 256.46 (rules for participation in extracurricular activities by certain children). DIVISION IV —— LOCAL EDUCATION AGENCY STATUS. The division provides that the governing board of a charter school that is approved under Code section 256E.5 (founding group-state board model) is a local education agency for the purpose of receiving federal funds for all attendance centers that are under the jurisdiction of the governing board. DIVISION V —— CHARTER SCHOOL AND NONPUBLIC SCHOOL FACILITIES. The division requires the Iowa finance authority (IFA) to cooperate with charter schools established pursuant to Code chapter 256E and accredited nonpublic schools that accept payment from a parent or guardian using funds from a pupil’s individual account in an education savings account fund in the creation, administration, and funding of a charter school and accredited nonpublic school facilities bond program to assist charter schools and accredited nonpublic schools in financing the purchase, acquisition, development, reconstruction, H.F. _____ remodeling, or replacement of school buildings. The division allows the IFA to issue its bonds and notes for the purpose of funding the nonrecurring cost of purchasing, acquiring, developing, reconstructing, remodeling, or replacing a school building for a charter school or accredited nonpublic school and to enter into lending agreements or purchase agreements with bondholders or noteholders that contain certain specified provisions. The division establishes the sources from which the principal of, premium, and interest on the bonds or notes are payable. The bonds or notes issued by the IFA in connection with the program are exempt from taxation by this state and the interest on the bonds or notes is exempt from state income tax, both personal and corporate. This provision applies retroactively to January 1, 2026, for tax years beginning on or after that date. The division establishes a charter school facilities revolving loan program fund and an accredited nonpublic school facilities revolving loan program fund within the IFA to assist charter schools and accredited nonpublic schools that accept payment from a parent or guardian using funds from a pupil’s individual account in an education savings account fund in acquiring suitable school facilities. The moneys in the funds are appropriated to the IFA for use in the development and operation of a charter school facilities revolving loan program and an accredited nonpublic school facilities revolving loan program to assist charter schools and accredited nonpublic schools in purchasing, acquiring, developing, reconstructing, remodeling, or replacing school buildings. The division also allows the IFA to make or enter into a liquidity or credit enhancement agreement with a charter school or an accredited nonpublic school to assist the charter school or accredited nonpublic school in purchasing, acquiring, developing, reconstructing, remodeling, or replacing school buildings. DIVISION VI —— STATEWIDE VOLUNTARY PRESCHOOL PROGRAM FOR FOUR-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN. The division authorizes school H.F. _____ districts to enter into a Code chapter 28E agreement with a community-based provider allowing the community-based provider to provide instruction as part of the approved local program, and the division requires school districts to enter into such an agreement upon the request of a community-based provider. Additionally, the division prohibits such Code chapter 28E agreements from limiting the number of eligible students who may receive instruction from a community-based provider as part of the approved local program. The division prohibits Code chapter 256C (statewide voluntary preschool program for four-year-old children) from being construed to authorize the state or any political subdivision of the state to exercise authority over any community-based provider or construed to require a community-based provider to modify its academic standards for admission or educational program in order to receive payments from a school district under the statewide voluntary preschool program (SWVPP). The division also prohibits Code chapter 256C from being construed to expand the authority of the state or any political subdivision of the state to impose regulations upon any community-based provider that are not necessary to implement this section. The division provides that a community-based provider that receives payments from a school district under the SWVPP is not an agent of this state or of a political subdivision of this state. Rules adopted by the department of education to implement the SWVPP that impose an undue burden on a community-based provider are invalid. The division requires that a community-based provider that receives payments from a school district under the SWVPP be given the maximum freedom possible to provide for the educational needs of the community-based provider’s students, consistent with state and federal law. DIVISION VII —— EDUCATION SAVINGS ACCOUNTS. The education savings account program is a program that provides funds to pupils who attend nonpublic schools to pay for qualified H.F. _____ educational expenses, including but not limited to tuition, tutoring or cognitive skill training fees, educational therapy costs, software expenses, and expenses related to course materials. Under current law, the parent or guardian of a pupil is required to submit an application for payment under the education savings account program to the department of education on or after January 1, but on or before June 30, preceding the school year for which the education savings account payment is requested. The division allows the parent or guardian of a pupil to submit such an application on or after December 1, but on or before December 20, preceding the semester for which the education savings account payment is requested. Additionally, under current law each education savings account payment is equal to the regular program state cost per pupil for the same school budget year. The division provides that, if the parent or guardian of a pupil submitted such an application on or after December 1, but on or before December 20, preceding the semester for which the education savings account payment is requested, the education savings account payment for such pupil is equal to 50 percent of the regular program state cost per pupil for the same school budget year. The division makes conforming changes. DIVISION VIII —— SCHOOL START DATE. The division modifies the earliest possible start date of the school calendar for school districts and accredited nonpublic schools. Current law provides that the school calendar for school districts and accredited nonpublic schools shall begin no sooner than August 23. The division modifies this provision to provide that the school calendar shall, instead, begin no sooner than the Monday immediately preceding the last Monday in August. DIVISION IX —— INDEPENDENT ACCREDITING AGENCIES. Current law authorizes a nonpublic school to be accredited by an approved independent accrediting agency instead of by the state board of education if the nonpublic school is accredited by an independent accrediting agency that is on a list of H.F. _____ approved independent accrediting agencies maintained by the state board of education. The division provides that these provisions shall not be construed to authorize the state or any political subdivision of the state to exercise authority over any nonpublic school or construed to require a nonpublic school to modify its academic standards for admission or educational program. The division also provides that these provisions shall not be construed to expand the authority of the state or any political subdivision of the state to impose regulations upon any nonpublic school that are not necessary to implement the state’s educational standards. The division provides that rules adopted by the state board of education to implement these provisions that impose an undue burden on a nonpublic school are invalid. The division requires that a nonpublic school shall be given the maximum freedom possible to provide for the educational needs of the school’s students, consistent with state and federal law. DIVISION X —— SCHEDULE OF TEACHER TRAININGS AND LICENSURE RENEWAL REQUIREMENTS. The division requires the department of education to convene a task force to study the training programs in which teachers in this state are required to participate pursuant to state law and the requirements associated with renewing a teaching license. The task force is required to submit its findings and recommendations to the general assembly on or before December 31, 2026. The recommendations must include specific recommendations related to how to change current law to create a more manageable training program schedule and licensure renewal requirement schedule for teachers.

Committee Categories

No sponsors listed

Other Sponsors (1)

Committee report approving bill, renumbered as HF 2713. (on 02/24/2026)

Official Document