Synder Signs Bill to Allow Schools With Too Many Snow Days to Lengthen Remaining Days

Governor Snyder signed legislation Thursday that would allow school districts that have exceeded their allotted six days of school closure to extend the length of remaining school days instead of adding days to the year in order to meet the required minimum 1,098 hours of instruction.

In a statement Snyder said "this will help schools that were forced to use more snow days this year, particularly in northern and west Michigan, to meet instructional time requirements without having to extend the school year any further into June."

The State School Aid Act requires that schools must meet a minimum 170 days and 1,098 hours of pupil instruction to qualify for funding. House Bill 4471 permits schools that failed to provide the minimum number of days for the 2012-13 school year to extend the length of remaining school days if:

• The failure was due to school closings that occurred before April 20, 2013.
• The school closings were due to conditions outside the control of school authorities, such as severe storms, fires, epidemics, utility power unavailability, water or sewer failure, or health conditions.
• The school district provided at least the minimum number of hours of pupil instruction.

Districts that use this exception must report the amount of instructional time lost due to closures, the amount of instructional time added to compensate, activities and subject areas addressed during the added time, and other information needed to asses whether the additional instruction was appropriate to the State Dept. of Education by July 1.

HB 4471 in now Public Act 29 of 2013.