Advocacy

House Bill 269 Children with Disabilities Scholarship Grants passed the House of Representatives this week and will be considered by the Senate.   The bill, approved 76-36, would set aside up to $3 million per year for the grants. Parents with qualifying students would receive $6,000 per year per child to pay for private schooling or educational services related to the child’s disability. The bill, which will now be considered by the Senate, can be viewed here.

A bill that would require North Carolina insurers to cover the diagnosis and treatment of autism for children of their members passed the House and will now be considered by the Senate.  This bill, House Bill 498, can be viewed here.

To view the text of the bill, click here.

Link to press release on Governor McCrory’s new senior education advisor.

http://www.ncleg.net/LegislativeCalendar/

House Bill 838, Exceptional Children’s Services Study, passed the House of Representatives and will now be considered by the Senate.

House Bill 428, the School Bus Safety Act, passed the House of Representatives and will how be considered by the Senate.  The bill increases the penalty for passing a stopped bus sign and is sponsored by Rep. Hanes and Rep. Lambeth.

A bill that lowers eligibility to NC Pre-K to 130% of the federal poverty rate has passed the North Carolina House of Representatives and now heads to the Senate for consideration.

The House Education Committee approved a bill to encourage more students to take AP courses.  If passed, this bill would pay for fees associated with students taking AP tests, give teachers bonuses based on student performances, require that more information be given to students about the courses, and require additional professional development for AP teachers.  This bill, House Bill 969, now goes to the full House Appropriations for consideration.

The North Carolina House of Representatives gave tentative approval to a bill that lowers eligibility to NC Pre-K to the federal poverty rate, which is around $19,500 for a family of three. The eligibility mark is currently about twice that rate.