Current Status Introducing Body:Senate Bill Number:919 Primary Sponsor:Leventis Committee Number:04 Type of Legislation:GB Subject:Child development programs, school age attendance Residing Body:Senate Current Committee:Education Computer Document Number:GJK/20172SD Introduced Date:19940111 Last History Body:Senate Last History Date:19940111 Last History Type:Introduced, read first time, referred to Committee Scope of Legislation:Statewide All Sponsors:Leventis Type of Legislation:General Bill
Bill Body Date Action Description CMN Leg Involved
____ ______ ____________ ______________________________ ___ ____________
919 Senate 19940111 Introduced, read first time, 04
referred to Committee
919 Senate 19931206 Prefiled, referred to 04
Committee
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TO AMEND SECTION 59-19-340, AS AMENDED, OF THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO CHILD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS; TO AMEND SECTION 59-63-20, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE AGE OF ATTENDANCE FOR THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF THIS STATE; AND TO AMEND SECTION 59-65-10, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE RESPONSIBILITY OF PARENTS OR GUARDIANS TO CAUSE THEIR CHILDREN TO ATTEND SCHOOL SO AS TO CHANGE FROM SEPTEMBER FIRST TO NOVEMBER FIRST THE DATE IN A PARTICULAR SCHOOL YEAR WHICH DETERMINES A CHILD'S ELIGIBILITY FOR ATTENDANCE OR PARTICIPATION BASED ON AGE; AND TO REPEAL SUBSECTION (D), PART II OF ACT 164 OF 1993 RELATING TO THE PHASING-IN BY GRADE OF EARLIER PROVISIONS CHANGING THE ABOVE DATE FROM NOVEMBER FIRST TO SEPTEMBER FIRST.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 59-19-340 of the 1976 Code, as amended by Act 164 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 59-19-340. The board of trustees of each school district may establish and provide for the education of children who will attain the age of four on or before September November first of the applicable school year in child development programs. The board of trustees of school districts having programs serving three and four-year-olds on the date of enactment of this section may continue to serve three-year-old children."
SECTION 2. Section 59-63-20 of the 1976 Code, as amended by Act 164 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 59-63-20. It is not lawful unlawful for any person who is less than five or more than twenty-one years of age to attend any of the public schools of this State, including kindergarten, except that:
(1) persons over twenty-one years of age may attend night schools;
(2) when a pupil is in the graduating class and becomes twenty-one years of age before graduation, he is permitted to complete the term if otherwise qualified to do so;
(3) students may enter kindergarten in the public schools of this State if they will attain the age of five on or before September November first of the applicable school year or have substantially initiated a public school kindergarten program in another state that has a different attendance age requirement from South Carolina;
(4) students may not enter the first grade in the public schools of this State unless they will attain the age of six on or before September November first of the applicable school year or have substantially initiated a first grade program in another state that has a different attendance age requirement from South Carolina or have attended a public school kindergarten program for one full school year;
(5) the restrictions in this section may be waived by the local board of school trustees in any proper case. However, that if the provisions of items (3) and (4) of this section are not complied with, the school district is not entitled to receive any state aid for any students who fail to meet these requirements;
(6) four-year-olds may attend optional child development programs and all three-year-old, four-year-old, and five-year-old handicapped children may participate in early intervention programs."
SECTION 3. Section 59-65-10(A) of the 1976 Code, as amended by Act 164 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"(A) All parents or guardians shall cause their children or wards to attend regularly a public or private school or kindergarten of this State which has been approved by the State Board of Education or a member school of the South Carolina Independent Schools' Association or some similar organization, or a parochial, denominational, or church-related school, or other programs which have been approved by the State Board of Education from the school year in which the child or ward is five years of age before September November first until the child or ward attains his seventeenth birthday or graduates from high school. A parent or guardian whose child or ward is not six years of age on or before the first day of September November of a particular school year may elect for their child or ward not to attend kindergarten. For this purpose, the parent or guardian shall sign a written document making the election with the governing body of the school district in which the parent or guardian resides. The form of this written document must be prescribed by regulation of the Department of Education. Upon the written election being executed, that child or ward may not be required to attend kindergarten."
SECTION 4. Subsection (D), Part II of Act 164 of 1993 is repealed.
SECTION 5. Notwithstanding the above provisions of this act, those three-year-old students who began the 1993-94 school year based on a September first age cut-off date rather than a November first date may continue to matriculate in school in succeeding grades and years based on a September first date.
SECTION 6. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.