On Legislators’ Radar:
Sick Leave, Charters, Superintendent Tenure

State lawmakers have focused on several key issues this month, including sick leave for school staff, charter school authorization, and reinstating tenure for superintendents.

The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee on Aug. 16 discussed S-2220 (Sarlo), a recently introduced bill that caps sick leave and vacation pay for school employees at $15,000 and limits its use before retirement.

The provision would apply to both current and future employees of boards of education and local governments. Current employees would be able to retain any supplemental compensation already accrued as of the bill’s effective date.

The bill was up for discussion only and was not released by the committee. NJSBA is seeking amendments to clarify language in the bill.

Charter Authorization Also on Aug. 16, the Senate Education Committee discussed S-2198 (Ruiz, Cunningham), a bill that would enable Rutgers University to authorize charter schools. The bill would also expedite approval of charter school applications, and permit authorization of special purpose charter schools. NJSBA testimony sought amendments that would allow local districts to authorize charter schools – a power that only the Commissioner of Education currently has the authority to perform.

Nationwide, 45 percent of charter-school authorizers were local school districts, 41 percent were state educational agencies, 12 percent were higher education, and 2 percent were other entities, according to a 2004 report of the Public Charter Schools Program.  As of 2009, local school districts accounted for 55 percent of charter school authorizers in the nation, according to the National Association of Charter School Authorizers.

School districts can authorize charters in 21 of the 41 states that currently allow charter schools, according to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. When a local school board has authority over chartering and oversight, both the design and accountability of the charter school are more likely to be more responsive to the needs of the local community and the charter school students than without such involvement, according to NJSBA.

The bill was up for discussion only. Senator Teresa Ruiz, chairwoman of the committee, said she would consider stakeholder input as she makes improvements to the bill.

Superintendent Tenure Two lawmakers are advocating a bill, A-2359 (Voss), that would reinstate tenure for superintendents and administrative principals. The legislation, which was introduced in February, would begin providing tenure to those positions after the employment contracts expired. The legislators contend that reinstating tenure would bring more stability to the position of superintendent.

NJSBA opposes lifetime tenure protection for school employees, including superintendents. New Jersey was the only state that provided tenure to superintendents, until it was abolished in 1991.

Barbara Horl, NJSBA Governmental Relations staff member, discusses sick-leave cap legislation this month with Sen. Joseph M. Kyrillos of Monmouth County.

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