SPONSOR: Baker
This bill adds compensation and benefits for public employees, including employees of political subdivisions, public institutions of higher education, and public school districts and charter schools, to the Missouri Accountability Portal Database (Section 37.850, RSMo).
The bill establishes the "Parents' Bill of Rights Act" and provides a list of rights that parents can require school districts that receive federal or state money to follow.
Rights listed in the bill include but are not limited to:
(1) The right to review curricula, books, and instructional materials;
(2) The right to visit school during school hours, receive school records, and be notified about situations that affect their minor child's safety; and
(3) The right to have sufficient accountability and transparency regarding school boards.
School districts and public schools are prohibited from:
(1) Requiring nondisclosure agreements to review curriculum or for IEP meetings and certain other meeting and hearings specified in the bill;
(2) Authorizing student involvement in school assemblies, field trips, or other extracurricular activities without written authorization from the parent;
(3) Collecting biometric data without parental consent; and
(4) Encouraging or coercing a minor child to withhold information from the child's parents.
Each school district and public school must notify parents of all reported incidents pertaining to student safety including, but not limited to, any felony or misdemeanor committed by teachers or other school employees.
Each school board must adopt policies that will ensure accountability and transparency for parents in the district as outlined in the bill. The bill provides details on civil actions that can be taken against a school district and provides that withholdings from state funding can occur for noncompliance (Section 161.841).
This bill requires that, beginning in the 2026-27 school year, all school districts and charter schools post on the school's website the approved school curriculum that will be used for pupil instruction.
Any changes to the curriculum must be updated on the website within 30 days and notice must be provided in a form of written communication with parents. Any curriculum that is trademarked or copyrighted can not be widely disseminated to the public.
The bill requires that districts and charter schools provide a link to the library management system for the district or charter school for parents to access book title, author, and bibliography information, along with a system for notification of any book accessed by a parent's child.
The bill provides details on civil actions that can be taken against a school district and provides that withholdings from state funding can occur for noncompliance (Section 170.231).
The bill specifies that teachers and students cannot be compelled to adopt, affirm, or profess ideas in violation of Title IV and VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 including but not limited to: that individuals of any race, ethnicity, color, or national origin are inherently superior or inferior; and that individuals, by virtue of their race, ethnicity, color, or national origin, bear collective guilt and are inherently responsible for actions committed in the past by other members of the same race, ethnicity, color, or national origin.
Students, parents, or teachers may file a complaint with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or the state Attorney General for violations (Section 170.355).
This bill is similar to HCS HB 2160 (2024).
Statutes affected: