Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
1 State of Arkansas
2 93rd General Assembly A Bill
3 Regular Session, 2021 SENATE BILL 540
4
5 By: Senator B. Davis
6 By: Representative Gonzales
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT CONCERNING A CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT FOR A
10 PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT; TO SPECIFY
11 TERMS REGARDING TERMINATION AND BUYOUT AGREEMENTS
12 THAT A CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT FOR A PUBLIC SCHOOL
13 DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT SHALL INCLUDE; AND FOR OTHER
14 PURPOSES.
15
16
17 Subtitle
18 TO SPECIFY TERMS REGARDING TERMINATION
19 AND BUYOUT AGREEMENTS THAT A CONTRACT OF
20 EMPLOYMENT FOR A PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT
21 SUPERINTENDENT SHALL INCLUDE.
22
23
24 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
25
26 SECTION 1. Arkansas Code 6-17-301(b), concerning the contract of
27 employment for a superintendent, is amended to read as follows:
28 (b)(1) A superintendent's contract of employment or an amendment to a
29 superintendent's contract of employment with a school district may shall
30 include standards for which a superintendent may be terminated for cause and
31 without the school district's having any further financial obligation to the
32 superintendent if:
33 (1) The school district has:
34 (A) Been placed on fiscal distress by the Division of
35 Elementary and Secondary Education because of:
36 (i) Commitments made by the superintendent of which
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SB540
1 the school district board of directors had no notice or knowledge; or
2 (ii) A material misrepresentation made by the
3 superintendent concerning the school district's finances that the school
4 district board of directors relied upon to the detriment of the school
5 district;
6 (B) Exhausted all appeals of the division's decision
7 regarding the fiscal distress determination;
8 (2) The superintendent was provided:
9 (A) Notice of the reason for termination;
10 (B) A hearing to allow the superintendent to explain or
11 rebut the reasons stated in the notice; and
12 (C) A record of the hearing provided at the expense of the
13 school district; and
14 (3) The superintendent's contract was terminated by a majority
15 vote of the full school district board of directors after the hearing
16 described in subdivision (b)(2) of this section.
17 (2) A contract buyout agreement shall not:
18 (A)(i) Use more than twelve (12) months' worth of state
19 funds to compensate an outgoing superintendent.
20 (ii) However, the use of state funds for a contract
21 buyout agreement shall not exceed the amount of money owed to the
22 superintendent under the remainder of his or her contract of employment with
23 a school district; or
24 (B) Use state funds to compensate an outgoing
25 superintendent for any term exceeding the remainder of the current fiscal
26 year.
27 (3) Subdivision (b)(1) of this section does not prohibit a
28 public school district from authorizing an outgoing superintendent to obtain
29 employment as either a teacher or other agreed-upon employment position other
30 than the position of superintendent within the public school district.
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Statutes affected: SB 540: 6-17-301(b)