AFTPA is monitoring mandate relief legislation (House Bill 135), which would reinstate a Mandate Relief Program from 2000-2010 and does not include the harsh, anti-union features of similar bills proposed in the previous legislative session.
Rep. Dan Truitt is the sponsor of HB 135, which would reinstate a Mandate Waiver Program that existed from 2000-2010. As written, it does not permit administrators to waive standards, statutes or regulations involving students’ health and safety, civil rights, certain special education and teacher certification, prevailing wage, collective bargaining and federal regulations AND it does not permit administrators to furlough teachers for economic reasons.
According to Rep. Truitt’s sponsorship memo, the bill would allow public schools to suspend certain mandates primarily for economic reasons
- after adopting a resolution at a regularly scheduled public meeting and
- receiving Pennsylvania Department of Education approval. Resolutions would include a memorandum detailing the rationale for the suspension of the mandate(s), along with a justification of how the change will improve instructional programs or allow the school entity to operate in a more “effective, efficient, or economical manner.”
Districts would be required to assess the economic and/ or educational benefits of suspending the mandate every three years and report to PDE.
AFTPA will continue to monitor mandate relief legislation to ensure that it does not take a path similar to bills proposed in 2011-12 that would have permitted economic furloughs for teachers and professional staff regardless of tenure and seniority, allowed school nurses to be replaced with registered nurses and other waivers that we believe would have had adverse effects on our students, members and families.
AFTPA’s POSITION ON HB 135 AS IT IS WRITTEN IS NEUTRAL.