Senate Bill No. 608
(By Senator Plymale)
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[Introduced February 18, 2010; referred to the Committee on
Education; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §18A-4-8d of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended,
relating to encouraging and authorizing
county boards of education to obtain central office
administrator services by agreement with regional education
service agencies or other county boards; requiring county
boards to consider a detailed written study of the feasibility
of such an agreement and determine whether to obtain needed
administrative services through such an agreement before
posting notice of vacancy in certain administrator positions;
requiring the determination and the feasibility report to be
submitted to the state superintendent; prohibiting the county
board from posting the notice of vacancy without again making
the determination if the state superintendent finds that the
prior determination is arbitrary and capricious; requiring a
state board rule; authorizing the termination of an employee's
contract in certain instances; and requiring report to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18A-4-8d of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 4. SALARIES, WAGES AND OTHER BENEFITS.
§18A-4-8d. Securing central office administrator services by
agreement with regional education service agencies
or with other county boards.
(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage and
authorize county boards, where feasible, to improve the
administration of school districts and make the best use of
available funds by securing central office administrator services
through agreements with regional education service agencies or with
other county boards.
(b) Before posting notice of vacancy in a regular central
office administrator position of employment other than the position
of superintendent, the county board shall determine whether to
obtain the needed administrative services by agreement with the
regional education service agency for that county, or by a sharing
agreement with another county board or boards. In making the
determination, the county board shall consider a detailed written
study of the feasibility of those agreements, to be prepared by the
county superintendent. The county board's determination shall be
in writing and contain supporting reasons. The determination and feasibility report shall be submitted to the State Superintendent.
(c) If the board determines to post notice of the vacancy and
not to obtain the needed services by agreement with the regional
education service agency or another county board or boards, the
submission to the State Superintendent shall be made at least five
working days before the notice of vacancy is posted. If, within
five working days of the submission, the State Superintendent finds
that the county board's determination is arbitrary and capricious
under standards promulgated by the state board, the State
Superintendent shall notify the county board of his or her finding
and the county board shall not post the notice of vacancy without
again making the determination required by subsection (b) of this
section, in which case the provisions of this subsection apply.
(d) Any deadline under section seven-a of this article for
posting notice of vacancy in a central office position shall be
extended until the county board is permitted by this section to
post the notice of vacancy.
(e) The state board shall promulgate a rule to implement the
provisions of this section. The rule shall:
(1) Identify by title or function the central office
administrator positions of employment that cannot be filled by
posting except in accordance with this section;
(2) Specify matters to be considered and addressed by the
county superintendent's feasibility study;
(3) Establish the standards to be used by the State Superintendent in determining whether the county board's
determination to post a notice of vacancy is arbitrary or
capricious; and
(4) Require that the state and school district report cards
report the extent to which central office administrator services
are provided by agreements with regional education service agencies
or by sharing agreements between county boards.
(f) Where a district obtains central office administrative
services from its regional education service agency, or where
two
or more counties districts join together to share the services of
central office administrative personnel, any employee whose
services are no longer needed by virtue of such the sharing of
these services or the use of these services provided by a regional
education service agency
may have his or her contract terminated
for lack of need, as provided in sections two and six, article two
of this chapter, notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary. Any employee whose contract is so terminated shall be
afforded all rights pursuant to section eight-b of this article.
(g) Before December 1 of each year, the state board shall
report in writing to the Legislative Oversight Commission on
Education Accountability the instances in which county boards
obtained central office administrator services by agreement with a
regional education service agency or by a sharing agreement with
another county board or boards. The report also may recommend, for
consideration by the Legislature, financial incentives that could be instituted to encourage county boards to secure central office
administrator services by such means.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to encourage and authorize
county boards of education to obtain central office administrator
services by agreement with regional education service agencies or
other county boards; require county boards to consider a detailed
written study of the feasibility of such an agreement and determine
whether to obtain needed administrative services through such an
agreement before posting notice of vacancy in a regular central
office administrator position other than the position of
superintendent; require the determination and the feasibility
report to be submitted to the State Superintendent; prohibit the
county board from posting the notice of vacancy without again
making the determination if the State Superintendent finds that the
prior determination was arbitrary and capricious; require a state
board rule; and require report to the Legislative Oversight
Commission on Education Accountability.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.