HB 1955: Education; Education Leadership Oklahoma program; clarifying award coverage; increasing maximum amount; repayment; reimbursement; effective date. - Oklahoma

Floor (House) → Floor (Senate) · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was revised from the House version to the Senate floor version, primarily updating the document header to reflect the Senate's amendments and reorganizing the text flow. The substantive policy content regarding the Education Leadership Oklahoma program, including funding amounts, eligibility criteria, and bonus structures, remains unchanged.

Scope change

The bill's scope and applicability remain the same; the changes are limited to formatting and document metadata.

TECHNICAL

Updated the document title from 'HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES' to 'SENATE FLOOR VERSION' and changed the session date to April 15, 2025.

Reorganized the header section to list sponsors in a different order and updated the bill status from 'COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE' to 'ENGROSSED HOUSE BILL'.

Adjusted the layout and line breaks of the legislative text to match the Senate's formatting standards.

House Committee Substitute → Floor (House) · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was renumbered and reformatted to reflect its status as a Floor version of the House Committee Substitute. Substantively, the text of the Education Leadership Oklahoma program remains unchanged, preserving the same funding limits, eligibility criteria, and bonus structures for National Board certification.

TECHNICAL

The document header was updated to indicate this is the 'Floor (House)' version, and the list of sponsors was expanded to include a Senate sponsor.

Page numbering and formatting were adjusted to align with the official floor version of the bill.

Internal committee markup symbols (e.g., Req. No. 13101) and specific amendment highlighting instructions were removed.

A legend explaining that bold face text denotes committee amendments was added to the header.

Proposed Policy Committee Substitute 1 → House Committee Substitute · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was completely rewritten to update the title and page references, while adding new provisions that allow teachers who were selected for the Education Leadership Oklahoma program or applied for National Board certification before June 30, 2013, to receive an annual bonus for the duration of their certification. This change expands the eligibility for financial bonuses to include a specific group of long-term applicants, ensuring they receive support even if they did not meet the original strict criteria.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include a new category of eligible teachers (those selected or applying before June 30, 2013) who were previously excluded from the bonus program.

ELIGIBILITY

Added eligibility for teachers who were selected for the Education Leadership Oklahoma program or submitted an application for National Board certification before June 30, 2013.

FISCAL

Established that eligible teachers receive an annual bonus for the ten-year duration of their National Board certification, provided they teach full-time in an Oklahoma public school.

TECHNICAL

Updated the document title from 'Proposed Policy Committee Substitute' to 'Committee Substitute' and changed the requirement number from 12364 to 13101.

Enrolled (final version) → Proposed Policy Committee Substitute 1 · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was converted from a final enrolled version to a proposed committee substitute, which resets the legislative process and allows for further amendments. The substantive policy text regarding the Education Leadership Oklahoma program remains largely identical, though minor formatting inconsistencies and a single typo ('pay your own way' instead of 'paying their own way') were introduced in the new version. No significant changes to funding amounts, eligibility criteria, or program requirements were made.

TECHNICAL

The document format changed from a finalized 'Enrolled' bill to a 'Proposed Policy Committee Substitute,' indicating the bill is back in the legislative pipeline for potential further review or amendment.

Minor formatting and layout adjustments were applied throughout the text, including the addition of committee headers and page numbers.

A grammatical error was introduced in the text, changing 'paying their own way' to 'pay your own way' in the section describing teacher eligibility.

Engrossed → Enrolled (final version) · 5 edits · May 27, 2025

MODERATE

The bill was finalized from its Engrossed version to the Enrolled version, resulting in several substantive policy changes. The most significant change is the addition of a clause stating that schools or districts are not liable for paying the bonuses, which clarifies financial responsibility. Additionally, the eligibility for the annual bonus was expanded to include teachers who attained certification after June 30, 2013, provided they submitted an application before that date. The bonus calculation was also clarified to explicitly exclude it from salary schedules and retirement contributions. Finally, new rules were added requiring certified teachers to verify their active status and full-time employment annually to continue receiving benefits.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include teachers who obtained National Board certification after June 30, 2013, if they had applied before that date, whereas the original version only covered those certified prior to the deadline.

REQUIREMENT

Added a requirement for the State Board of Education to promulgate rules ensuring certified teachers verify their certification has not lapsed and they remain full-time employees annually.

FISCAL

Added a specific provision stating that no school or school district is liable for payment of the bonuses, shifting financial responsibility away from local entities.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded eligibility for the annual bonus to include teachers who attained certification after June 30, 2013, if they applied for certification before that date.

Added an exclusion preventing teachers who receive the annual bonus from also receiving the additional salary increment for National Board certification.

DEFINITION

Clarified that the bonus is not included in salary calculations for minimum wage compliance, retirement contributions, or other benefits.

Amended And Engrossed → Engrossed · 3 edits · May 12, 2025

MINOR

The amendment clarifies that substitute teachers must be provided at no cost to educators earning National Board certification bonuses. It also updates the bonus eligibility criteria to include teachers who applied for certification before a specific 2013 deadline, ensuring they receive the financial incentive even if they certified later. These changes aim to reduce financial barriers for teachers pursuing advanced certification and expand the pool of eligible recipients.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to explicitly cover the provision of substitute teachers during portfolio development days and to include teachers who applied for certification prior to 2013 in the bonus program.

REQUIREMENT

Mandates that school districts provide substitute teachers at no cost to educators during designated portfolio development days for National Board certification.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded bonus eligibility to include teachers who applied for National Board certification before June 30, 2013, regardless of when they actually attained certification.

Replaced the phrase 'pay your' with 'paying their' to correct the grammatical reference to the teacher's ongoing certification status.

Introduced → Amended And Engrossed · 3 edits · May 12, 2025

MINOR

The bill was amended to update its title and summary to reflect that it modifies an existing statute rather than creating new law. A key substantive change involves correcting a grammatical error in the repayment clause, changing 'pay your own way' to 'paying their own way' to ensure the text is legally clear. Additionally, a co-author was added to the House sponsors list.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from creating a new 'Education Reform Act' to amending the existing 'Education Leadership Oklahoma' program within 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6-204.2.

TECHNICAL

The bill title and summary were changed from creating a new act to amending an existing statute.

A House co-author, Pittman, was added to the list of sponsors.

REQUIREMENT

A grammatical error in the repayment conditions was fixed by changing 'pay your own way' to 'paying their own way' to clarify eligibility for mentorship.

Education; Education Leadership Oklahoma program; clarifying award coverage; increasing maximum amount; repayment; reimbursement; effective date.

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