AN ACT relating to local boards of education.

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AN ACT relating to local boards of education. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 160.180 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) As used in this section, "relative" means father, mother, brother, sister, husband, 4
wife, son, and daughter. 5
(2) A person shall only be eligible for membership on a board of education if t he 6
person: 7
(a) Has attained the age of twenty-four (24) years; 8
(b) Has been a citizen of Kentucky for at least three (3) years preceding the 9
election and is a voter of the district for which he or she is elected; 10
(c) Has completed at least the twelfth grade or has been issued a High School 11
Equivalency Diploma[, as evidenced by: 12
1. An affidavit signed under penalty of perjury certifying completion of the 13
twelfth grade or the equivalent that has been filed with the nominating 14
petition required by KRS 118.315; or 15
2. A transcript evidencing completion of the twelfth grade or t he results of 16
a twelfth grade equivalency examination that has been filed with the 17
nominating petition required by KRS 118.315]; 18
(d) Is not ineligible for employment in the school district under KRS 19
160.380(5); 20
(e)[(d)] Does not hold any elective federal, state, county, or city office; 21
(f)[(e)] Is not, at the time of his or her election, directly or indirectly interested 22
in the sale to the board of books, stationery, or any other property, materials, 23
supplies, equipment, or services for which school funds are expended; 24
(g)[(f)] Has not been removed from membership on a board of education for 25
cause; and 26
(h)[(g)] Does not have a relative employed by the school district, in the case of a 27
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person elected after July 13, 1990. This shall not apply to a board member 1
holding office on July 13, 1990, whose relative was not initially hired by the 2
district during the tenure of the board member. 3
(3) (a) A member of a board of education shall be subject to removal from office 4
pursuant to KRS 415.050 and 415.060 if, after the election the member: 5
1. Becomes interested in any contract with or claims against the board, of 6
the kind mentioned in subsection (2)(f)[(e)] of this section; 7
2. Moves his or her residence from the division for which he or she was 8
chosen; 9
3. Attempts to influence the employment of any school employee, except 10
the superintendent or school board attorney; 11
4. Is convicted of a felony; 12
5. Performs acts of malfeasance in performance of duties prescribed by 13
law; 14
6. Willfully misuses, converts, or misappropriates public property or funds; 15
or 16
7. Does anything that would render the member ineligible for reelection. 17
(b) In accordance with KRS 7.410, the Office of Education Accountability shall 18
have the duty and responsibility to investigate current local board of education 19
members for allegations of conduct prohibited by paragraph (a) of this 20
subsection. After review and investigation, the Office of Education 21
Accountability shall refer appropriate matters to the Attorney General. 22
(4) A member of a board of education s hall be eligible for reelection unless he or she 23
becomes disqualified. 24
(5) The annual in-service training requirements for all members of boards of education 25
in office as of December 31, 2014, shall be as follows: 26
(a) Twelve (12) hours for members with zero to three (3) years of experience; 27
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(b) Eight (8) hours for members with four (4) to seven (7) years of experience; 1
and 2
(c) Four (4) hours for members with eight (8) or more years of experience. 3
The Kentucky Board of Education shall identify the criteria for fulfilling this 4
requirement. 5
(6) (a) For all members of boards of education who begin their initial service on or 6
after January 1, 2015, the in-service training requirements shall be: 7
1. Twelve (12) hours for members with zero to eight (8) years of 8
experience each year, which shall include a minimum of: 9
a. One (1) hour of ethics training each year; and 10
b. One (1) hour of open meetings and open records training within 11
the first twelve (12) months of initial service and at least once 12
every four (4) years thereafter; and 13
2. Eight (8) hours for members with more than eight (8) years of 14
experience each year, which shall include a minimum of: 15
a. One (1) hour of ethics training each year; and 16
b. One (1) hour of open meetings and open records training at least 17
once every four (4) years. 18
(b) Training topics for members under this subsection with less than two (2) years 19
of consecutive service shall include three (3) hours of finance and one (1) 20
hour of superintendent evaluation within the first two (2) years of service. The 21
Kentucky Board of Education shall identify criteria for fulfilling this 22
requirement. 23
SECTION 2. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 160 IS CREATED TO 24
READ AS FOLLOWS: 25
(1) A county clerk shall require an individual seeking membership on a board of 26
education, as a candidate named on the ballot or a registered write -in candidate, 27
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to establish that he or she meets the qualifications for office established by 1
subsection (2) of Section 1 of this Act by submitting: 2
(a) To a national and state criminal background check by the Department of 3
Kentucky State Police and the Federal Bu reau of Investigation, the cost of 4
which shall be paid by the individual, that indicates the individual has not 5
been convicted of, and does not have pending charges for, a criminal 6
offense that would make the individual ineligible for employment in the 7
district pursuant to KRS 160.380(5); 8
(b) A clear CA/N check, as defined in KRS 160.380, the cost of which shall be 9
paid by the individual; 10
(c) Proof of completion of the twelfth grade as evidenced by: 11
1. An affidavit signed under penalty of perjury certifyin g completion of 12
the twelfth grade or the equivalent; 13
2. A transcript evidencing completion of the twelfth grade; or 14
3. The results of a twelfth grade equivalency examination; and 15
(d) Other documentation determined by the clerk of the county to be necessa ry 16
to establish that the individual is eligible for membership on a board of 17
education under subsection (2) of Section 1 of this Act. 18
(2) Records collected by the county clerk pursuant to subsection (1) of this section 19
shall be: 20
(a) Used for the sole purp ose of determining an individual's qualification for 21
membership on a board of education pursuant to subsection (2) of Section 1 22
of this Act; and 23
(b) Exempt from the Kentucky Open Records Act, KRS 61.870 to 61.884. This 24
paragraph shall not restrict access t o open records in the possession or 25
control of another office or agency. 26
Section 3. KRS 160.190 is amended to read as follows: 27
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(1) Any vacancy in any board of education shall be filled by a majority vote of the 1
remaining members of the local board within sixty (60) days after the vacancy 2
occurs. Within thirty (30) days of the vacancy, the local board shall, for two (2) 3
weeks, have solicited applications by posting a notice announcing the vacancy on 4
the district's website and by placing an advertisement in the newspaper of the 5
largest general circulation in the county. An applicant shall file a letter of intent 6
with the local board affirming that the applicant meets the eligibility requirements 7
as established in[by] KRS 160 .180[ and shall submit with the application a 8
transcript evidencing completion of the twelfth grade or results of a twelfth grade 9
equivalency examination]. After the two (2) weeks of advertisement on the district's 10
website and in the newspaper, the local b oard shall select from the applicants under 11
this subsection to fill the vacancy. 12
(2) If the local board fails to make an appointment under subsection (1) of this section, 13
then the chief state school officer shall fill the vacancy within sixty (60) days of the 14
failure. 15
(3) The member chosen under this section shall: 16
(a) Meet the eligibility requirements for office established in subsection (2) of 17
Section 1 of this Act; and [Meet the eligibility requirements as established by 18
KRS 160.180 and shall ] 19
(b) Hold office until his or her successor is elected or appointed, and has 20
qualified. 21
(4) Any vacancy having an unexpired term of one (1) year or more on August 1 after 22
the vacancy occurs shall be filled for the unexpired term by an election to be held at 23
the next regular election after the vacancy occurs. The elected member shall 24
succeed the member chosen under subsection (1) or (2) of this section to fill the 25
vacancy. Nominating petitions shall be filed with the county clerk not later than the 26
second Tuesday in August preceding the day for holding the regular election for the 27
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unexpired term. Declarations of intent to be a write -in candidate shall be filed with 1
the county clerk in accordance with KRS 117.265. 2
(5) (a) If no candidate files a petition of nomination o r declaration of intent to be a 3
write-in candidate to fill an unexpired term on a local board of education 4
under subsection (4) of this section, then a new vacancy shall exist on 5
November 1 and the vacancy shall be filled according to subsection (1) of thi s 6
section. 7
(b) If no candidate files a petition of nomination or declaration of intent to be a 8
write-in candidate for a new term on a local board of education opening 9
pursuant to KRS 118.315 and 118.365, then a vacancy shall exist on January 1 10
and the vacancy shall be filled according to subsection (1) of this section. 11
Section 4. KRS 117.265 is amended to read as follows: 12
(1) A voter may, at any regular or special election, cast a write -in vote for any person 13
qualified as provided in su bsection (2) or (3) of this section, whose name does not 14
appear upon the ballot for any office, by writing the name of his or her choice upon 15
the appropriate ballot for the office being voted on as required by KRS 117.125. 16
Any candidate who is defeated or disqualified in a partisan or nonpartisan primary 17
shall be ineligible as a candidate for the same office in the regular election, unless 18
there is a vacancy pursuant to KRS 118.105(3). Any voter utilizing a federal 19
provisional ballot, a federal provisional in-person absentee ballot, or a mail -in 20
absentee ballot for a regular or special election may write in a vote for any eligible 21
person whose name does not appear upon the ballot, by writing the name of his or 22
her choice under the office. 23
(2) Write-in votes shall be counted only for candidates for election to office who have 24
filed a declaration of intent to be a write -in candidate with the Secretary of State or 25
county clerk, depending on the office being sought, on or before the certification 26
deadlines establ ished in KRS 118.215(1)(a) to (c) and 118A.090(2) and not later 27
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than the second Friday before the date of a special election. In the case of a special 1
election administered under KRS 118.730, a declaration of intent to be a write -in 2
candidate shall be file d at least twenty -eight (28) days before the day of the 3
election. The declaration of intent shall be filed no earlier than the first Wednesday 4
after the first Monday in November of the year preceding the year the office will 5
appear on the ballot, and no la ter than 4 p.m. local time at the place of filing when 6
filed on the last date on which papers may be filed. The declaration of intent shall 7
be on a form prescribed and furnished by the Secretary of State. 8
(3) A person shall not be eligible as a write-in candidate: 9
(a) For more than one (1) office in a regular or special election;[ or] 10
(b) If his or her name appears upon the ballot for any office, except that the 11
candidate may file a notice of withdrawal prior to filing an intent to be a 12
write-in candidate f or office when a vacancy in a different office occurs 13
because of: 14
1. Death; 15
2. Disqualification to hold the office sought; 16
3. Severe disabling condition which arose after the nomination; or 17
4. The nomination of an unopposed candidate; or 18
(c) For membership on a board of education, unless he or she meets the 19
eligibility requirements for office established in subsection (2) of Section 1 20
of this Act, as required to be proven in accordance with Section 2 of this 21
Act. 22
(4) Persons who wish to run for President an d Vice President shall file a declaration of 23
intent to be a write-in candidate, along with a list of presidential electors pledged to 24
those candidates, with the Secretary of State on or before the fourth Friday in 25
October preceding the date of the regular election for those offices. The declaration 26
of intent shall be filed no earlier than the first Wednesday after the first Monday in 27
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November of the year preceding the year the office will appear on the ballot, and no 1
later than 4 p.m. local time at the plac e of filing when filed on the last date on 2
which papers may be filed. Write -in votes cast for the candidates whose names 3
appear on the ballot shall apply to the slate of pledged presidential electors, whose 4
names shall not appear on the ballot. 5
(5) The cou nty clerk shall provide to the precinct election officers certified lists of 6
those persons who have filed declarations of intent as provided in subsections (2) 7
and (3) of this section. These lists shall not be posted anywhere, but a voter may 8
request to se e a copy of the list. Once the voter has reviewed the copy, it shall 9
immediately be returned to the precinct election officer. Only write-in votes cast for 10
qualified candidates shall be counted. 11
(6) Two (2) election officers of opposing parties shall upon the request of any voter 12
instruct the voter on how to cast a write-in vote. 13
Section 5. Notwithstanding subsection (3)(a)7. of Section 1 of this Act, 14
members serving on boards of education on the effective date of Section 1 of this Act 15
shall not be subject to removal from office on the basis of ineligibility for employment in 16
the school district pursuant to KRS 160.380(5) but shall not be eligible for reelection 17
unless he or she meets the eligibility requirements for offic e established in subsection (2) 18
of Section 1 of this Act, as required to be proven in accordance with Section 2 of this Act. 19
Section 6. Sections 1 to 4 of this Act take effect January 1, 2027. 20