ASSEMBLY, No. 1271
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
220th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2022 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman STERLEY S. STANLEY
District 18 (Middlesex)
Assemblyman KEVIN J. ROONEY
District 40 (Bergen, Essex, Morris and Passaic)
Assemblywoman ELLEN J. PARK
District 37 (Bergen)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywomen DeFuccio, Reynolds-Jackson, Jaffer and Assemblyman Benson
SYNOPSIS
Permits excused absences for students who attend civic events.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Assembly Education Committee on March 10, 2022, with amendments.
An Act concerning excused absences from public school for civic events and supplementing chapter 36 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
11. As used in this act, “civic event” means an event sponsored by a government entity, the community, or a local nonprofit organization to address an issue of public concern such as community health and safety or environmental, economic, or community well-being.1
1[1.] 2.1 a. Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a pupil of a public school in grades six through 12 who is absent from school to attend a civic event shall have one absence each school year for that purpose recorded as an excused absence on the pupil’s attendance record or on that of any group or class of which the pupil is a member. A board of education may permit additional excused absences for such purposes. Any transcript, application, employment form, or any similar form on which information concerning a pupil's attendance record is requested shall show, with respect to absences, only absences other than excused absences authorized pursuant to this subsection.
b. The parent or guardian of a pupil shall provide at least five school days’ notice in advance of the intended excused absence and such documentation as the superintendent or administrative principal of the school district deems necessary to prove that the pupil meets the requirements for an excused absence pursuant to subsection a. of this section.
1[2.] 3.1 The Commissioner of Education, with the approval of the State Board of Education, shall prescribe rules relative to absences for civic events including, but not limited to, a list of civic events where it shall be mandatory to excuse a pupil. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the right of a board of education, in its discretion, to excuse absences for civic events not included on the list.
1[3.] 4.1 This act shall take effect immediately.