JUNIOR ROTC CONSIDERED AS INSTRUCTION

Senate Bill 77

Sponsor:  Sen. Gerald Van Woerkom

House Committee:  Education                                                         

Senate Committee:  Education

Complete to 5-2-05

A SUMMARY OF SENATE BILL 77 AS PASSED BY THE SENATE 2-10-05

The bill would amend the State School Aid Act to count as pupil instruction the time devoted to Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps instruction in grades seven through 12, regardless of whether the instructor was a certified teacher, under certain conditions.

Under the act, a school district is required to provide at least 1,098 hours of pupil instruction, or forfeit a portion of its state aid (subject to certain allowances).

Specifically, the bill provides that instructional time that was part of a JROTC program in grades 7 to 12 would have to be considered pupil instruction time, regardless of whether the instructor was a certified teacher, if both of the following conditions were met:

-- The instructor had met all of the requirements established by the United States Department of Defense and the applicable branch of the armed services for serving as an instructor in the JROTC program.

-- The board of the district or intermediate district employing or assigning the instructor complied with the requirements of Sections 1230 and 1230a of the code with respect to the instructor as if employing the instructor as a regular classroom teacher. (Sections 1230 and 1230a require a district to conduct a criminal history check through both the Michigan State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, before hiring a teacher or school administrator.)

MCL 388.1701

FISCAL IMPACT:

This bill will have no fiscal impact on the state or local school districts.

                                                                                           Legislative Analyst:   J. Hunault

                                                                                                  Fiscal Analyst:   Mary Ann Cleary

■ This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House staff for use by House members in their deliberations, and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.