House File 870 amends existing Iowa law regarding school attendance and chronic absenteeism by introducing provisions for students attending courses in religious instruction provided by private organizations. The bill specifies that a child may be excused from school attendance for up to five hours per week to participate in such courses, provided that certain conditions are met. These conditions include parental notification to the school, maintenance of attendance records by the private organization, and the requirement that the organization assumes liability for the child during the course. Additionally, the bill stipulates that the school district cannot incur costs related to the religious instruction, except for minimal administrative expenses.

Furthermore, the bill modifies the definition of "chronically absent" to exclude absences related to attending religious instruction courses from the calculation of absences that exceed ten percent of the school days or hours in a grading period. This change aims to ensure that students participating in religious instruction are not penalized for their absences in terms of chronic absenteeism. The bill also allows parents or guardians to take civil action against school districts if they believe their rights under this new provision have been violated, with the possibility of recovering court costs and attorney fees if they prevail.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 256E.7, 279.87, 299.1, 299.12
Reprinted: 299.1, 299.12
Enrolled: 299.1, 299.12