S.B. No. 570, introduced by Bettencourt and others, aims to enhance attendance policies in public schools to combat truancy. The bill mandates that the board of trustees of each school district and the governing body of each open-enrollment charter school adopt and implement a comprehensive attendance policy. This policy must inform students and parents about the importance of regular attendance, outline the benefits of consistent school participation, and detail the consequences of truancy, including its negative impact on academic progress and potential referrals to truancy courts. Additionally, the policy must include provisions for notifying parents about their child's absences, facilitate meetings between parents and school officials when a student is at risk of truancy, and establish guidelines for identifying students in need of additional support.

The bill also requires that each school district or charter school provide a copy of the adopted attendance policy to the parents of all enrolled students at the beginning of each school year. The new provisions will take effect starting with the 2025-2026 school year, and the bill will become effective immediately if it receives a two-thirds majority vote in both houses; otherwise, it will take effect on September 1, 2025.

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