HB 178

An Act amending the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949, in preliminary provisions, further providing for Keystone Exams and providing for Every Student Succeeds Act State Plan Review; in school directors, providing for school director training programs; in school district financial recovery, further providing for additional criteria and providing for financial administrator in financial watch school district; in grounds and buildings, further providing for limitation on new applications for Department of Education approval of public school building projects; in district superintendents and assistant district superintendents, further providing for reports, for manner of election or approval and for term and salary of assistants; in professional employees, further providing for causes for suspension, for persons to be suspended and for appeals to superintendent of public instruction; in certification of teachers, further providing for granting provisional college certificates and for evaluation of applications for certification; in pupils and attendance, further providing for nonprofit school food program; in drug and alcohol recovery high school pilot program, further providing for establishment of drug and alcohol recovery high school pilot program, for scope of program and selection of students, for establishment and payment of tuition, for term of drug and alcohol recovery high school pilot program and for reporting; in terms and courses of study, further providing for fire and emergency evacuation drills, for alcohol, chemical and tobacco abuse program and for agriculture education and providing for Commission for Agricultural Education Excellence; in charter schools, providing for multiple charter school organizations; in community colleges, further providing for financial program and reimbursement of payments and repealing provisions relating to annual report; in rural regional college for underserved counties, further providing for establishment; in educational tax credits, further providing for limitations; in transfers of credits between institutions of higher education, further providing for definitions, for duties of public institutions of higher education and for Transfer and Articulation Oversight Committee; in funding for public libraries, providing for State aid for fiscal year 2017-2018; in reimbursements by Commonwealth and between school districts, further providing for definitions, for student-weighted basic education funding, for payments to intermediate units, for assistance to school districts declared to be in financial recovery status or identified for financial watch status and for Ready-to-Learn Block Grant; in State Board of Education, further providing for powers and duties of the board; further providing for the applicability of Act 2016-138; and making editorial changes.