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PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 3524 PRINTER'S NO. 3582
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 2602
Session of
2026
INTRODUCED BY SCHWEYER, ISAACSON, ABNEY, CURRY, FRIEL, KAZEEM,
N. NELSON, O'MARA, OTTEN, PROBST, PROKOPIAK, SMITH-WADE-EL,
TAKAC, YOUNG, McNEILL, GUZMAN, SANCHEZ, MERSKI, HOWARD,
SCHLOSSBERG, PIELLI, BOROWSKI, HILL-EVANS, VENKAT, FREEMAN,
KINKEAD, BRENNAN, HOHENSTEIN, RIVERA, BOYD, D. WILLIAMS,
NEILSON, CIRESI, GREEN AND SHUSTERMAN, JUNE 4, 2026
AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, JUNE 10, 2026
AN ACT
Amending the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), entitled "An
act relating to the public school system, including certain
provisions applicable as well to private and parochial
schools; amending, revising, consolidating and changing the
laws relating thereto," in pupils and attendance, further
providing for attendance policy at charter, regional charter
and cyber charter schools; in charter schools, further
providing for cyber charter school requirements and
prohibitions and for enrollee wellness checks and providing
for child protection and support plan; and imposing
penalties.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Section 1327.2(a.1) of the act of March 10, 1949
(P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949,
amended November 12, 2025 (P.L.244, No.47), is amended and the
section is amended by adding subsections to read:
Section 1327.2. Attendance Policy at Charter, Regional
Charter and Cyber Charter Schools.--* * *
(a.1) In addition to the requirements of subsection (a), a
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cyber charter school shall include in its attendance policy the
following:
(1) (i) A policy to determine when a child has an unexcused
or excused absence or is present for synchronous instruction. To
be present for synchronous instruction, a child must be present
and visible to the teacher on camera at all times during each
synchronous instructional period for each course[.], with
exceptions allowed for brief, teacher-directed or teacher-
approved breaks. If a student fails to maintain continuous live
visual presence during instructional time, excluding any
teacher-directed or teacher-approved break period, the student
shall be deemed to have an absence for that class period.
(ii) The policy under subparagraph (i) shall establish a
procedure for a cyber charter school to notify a parent or
guardian if the student fails to follow attendance requirements
for synchronous instruction.
(iii) A secondary school student enrolled in a cyber charter
school is not required to comply with subparagraph (i) for
courses in which the student is dually enrolled and attending in
person or virtually at a postsecondary institution. The
postsecondary institution shall verify attendance for each
student enrolled in the course and shall report all absences to
the cyber charter school.
(2) A prohibition specifying that a cyber charter school
administrator or chief administrator may not alter an attendance
record taken by a teacher, unless the alteration corrects an
error.
(3) A policy to determine when a child has an unexcused or
excused absence or is present for asynchronous instruction. To
be present for asynchronous instruction, a child must complete
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weekly benchmarks. The following requirements shall apply to the
weekly benchmarks:
(i) A cyber charter school shall establish weekly benchmarks
for students participating in asynchronous instruction and shall
submit the weekly benchmarks to the department for approval by
[June 30] March 1 of each year for the following school year. If
the department has not approved, denied or returned the weekly
benchmarks within forty-five (45) days, the weekly benchmarks
shall be deemed approved for the following school year.
(ii) The weekly benchmarks must be sufficient to demonstrate
the student is making adequate and consistent progress toward
completion of each course in which the student is enrolled. The
cyber charter school's attendance policy shall define adequate
and consistent progress and include the consequence for failure
to make adequate and consistent progress. Each cyber charter
school shall establish a procedure to notify a parent or
guardian if the student fails to make adequate and consistent
progress.
(iii) If a student does not complete the weekly benchmark,
the student shall receive an absence or other consequence in
accordance with the policy under this paragraph.
(iv) The cyber charter school may not receive payment under
section 1725-A or 1725.1-A until the cyber charter school
receives a notice of approval of its synchronous instruction
attendance policy or asynchronous instruction attendance policy.
(v) Failure of a cyber charter school to comply with this
paragraph shall be sufficient cause for nonrenewal or revocation
of the charter.
* * *
(d) For cyber charter schools under subsection (a.1), no
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later than ninety (90) days after the effective date of this
subsection, the department shall develop and publish on its
publicly accessible Internet website:
(1) A standardized form and evaluation criteria for
synchronous instruction attendance policies to submit to the
department for approval.
(2) A standardized form and evaluation criteria for
asynchronous instruction attendance policies to submit to the
department for approval.
(e) A cyber charter school shall submit the attendance
policies and completed standardized form developed in accordance
with this section to the department by August 1 of each year.
(f) A cyber charter school that fails to submit each policy
by August 1, or that fails to receive approval after submitting
one synchronous instruction attendance policy or one
asynchronous instruction attendance policy, shall be subject to
the following:
(1) The cyber charter school shall not receive payment under
section 1725-A or 1725.1-A until the cyber charter school
receives a notice of approval of its synchronous instruction
attendance policy or asynchronous instruction attendance policy.
(2) The failure shall be sufficient cause for nonrenewal or
revocation of the charter.
Section 2. Section 1743-A(d) introductory paragraph, (3),
(5) and (10) of the act are amended to read:
Section 1743-A. Cyber charter school requirements and
prohibitions.
* * *
(d) Parent or guardian.--[Upon request and prior to the
student's first day in a cyber charter school,] At the time of a
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student's enrollment and at the beginning of each school year
thereafter, the cyber charter school shall, either in writing or
electronically, provide to the parent or guardian of a student
the following:
* * *
(3) The manner in which attendance will be reported and
work will be authenticated[.], including the attendance
policy for students participating in synchronous instruction
and asynchronous instruction.
* * *
(5) The meetings to be held during the school year
between a parent or guardian and a teacher and among other
school officials or parents or guardians, including mandatory
meetings in the case of a missed weekly wellness check
without prior excused absence notification in accordance with
section 1748.1-A, and the manner in which the parent or
guardian will be notified of the time and place for the
meeting.
* * *
(10) Copies of policies relating to computer security
and privacy, truancy, absences, wellness checks, child
protection and support plans, discipline and withdrawal or
expulsion of students.
* * *
Section 3. Section 1748.1-A of the act, amended or added
July 11, 2024 (P.L.618, No.55) and November 12, 2025 (P.L.244,
No.47), is amended to read:
Section 1748.1-A. Enrollee wellness checks.
(a) Requirements.--A cyber charter school shall, at least
once during any week consisting of at least three full or
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partial days of academic instruction, conduct individual
wellness checks to ensure that each enrolled student is visibly
seen and communicated with in real time by a teacher,
administrator or other representative of the cyber charter
school, either in person or via electronic means, in order to
ensure the well-being of the student and verify participation in
the educational program. [The requirement under this subsection
may be satisfied by students turning on a webcam during
synchronous online instruction.] The following apply to the
wellness checks:
(1) Participation in virtual or face-to-face health
screenings, standardized testing or tutoring shall count
toward fulfilling a weekly wellness check under this
subsection.
(2) Upon one failed weekly wellness check without an
excused absence, the cyber charter school shall schedule a
mandatory follow-up meeting with the following individuals to
re-establish engagement:
(i) The student.
(ii) The student's parent or guardian.
(iii) A certified school counselor, certified school
psychologist, school social worker, school teacher or
school administrator.
(3) If the cyber charter school has failed to make
contact with the student during a required wellness check and
mandatory follow-up meeting in the case of a missed weekly
wellness check under this section, the cyber charter school
shall conduct an in-person home visit or coordinate a local
law enforcement welfare check to visually verify the child's
safety.
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(4) A cyber charter school administrator or chief
administrator may not alter any attendance record for
wellness checks after the wellness check is performed, unless
the alteration corrects an error.
(b) Report.--
(1) E ach cyber charter school shall maintain
documentation of completed wellness checks, including the
date and method of each wellness check for each student,
subject to the requirements of 20 U.S.C. § 1232g (relating to
family educational and privacy rights). The cyber charter
school shall make the document available to the department
upon request.
(2) If any indication of abuse, neglect or harm to a
child is observed, the cyber charter school administrator,
employee or representative shall report the concerns in
accordance with 23 Pa.C.S. Ch. 63 (relating to child
protective services).
(c) Wellness policy.--[Each] No later than June 30 of each
year for the following school year, each cyber charter school
shall submit to the department for approval a wellness check
policy that demonstrates compliance with subsections (a) and
(b).
(d) Student verification.--The department may require proof
of compliance with this section from a cyber charter school to
ensure the well-being of a student enrolled in the cyber charter
school and to verify attendance in the educational program.
(e) Noncompliance.--Failure to comply with this section or
failure to receive approval after submitting one wellness check
policy or one asynchronous instruction attendance policy may
result in the department taking the following actions:
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(1) Requiring the cyber charter school to report to the
department the date, time and method of each wellness check
for each student.
(2) Mandating teachers, administrators and staff of the
cyber charter school to complete child abuse recognition,
prevention and reporting training annually.
(3) Requiring the cyber charter school to meet in person
with each student at least once during the school year
following the school year in which the cyber charter school
is out of compliance with this section.
(4) Prohibiting a cyber charter school from being
awarded a State grant by the department until the cyber
charter school demonstrates compliance with subsections (a)
and (b).
(5) Imposing a fine of not more than $15,000 per
incident.
(f) Charter.--A failure described in subsection (e) shall be
sufficient cause for nonrenewal or revocation of the charter of
the cyber charter school.
Section 4. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
Section 1752-A. Child protection and support plan.
(a) Purpose.--Each cyber charter school shall adopt and
implement a child protection and support plan to serve as a
structured protocol for identifying, responding to and reporting
signs of suspected child abuse, self-harm and other serious or
urgent student wellness or safety concerns in accordance with 23
Pa. C.S. Ch. 63 (relating to child protective services).
(b) Activation.--A plan shall be activated upon
identification of a wellness trigger during a required wellness
check under section 1748.1-A, during any direct or virtual
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contact with students , OR by other means of communication to the
cyber charter school or if a student does not attend a mandatory
meeting in the case of a missed weekly wellness check without
prior excused absence notification .
(c) Contents.--A plan must include the following:
(1) The following circumstances shall constitute a
wellness trigger and immediately initiate the child
protection and support plan:
(i) Indications or reports of child abuse.
(ii) Reports of students exhibiting suspected self-
harm or suicide risk factors or warning signs as provided
under section 1526.
(iii) Signs of acute physical or mental health
deterioration, substance abuse, psychosis or other
SUBSTANCE ABUSE OR behaviors suggesting urgent
psychiatric needs.
(2) Upon the identification of a wellness trigger, the
cyber charter school shall promptly notify the parent or
guardian. This notification may be reasonably delayed,
subject to the requirements of 23 Pa.C.S. § 6368 (relating to
investigation of reports). The following apply:
(i) If the child is suspected of being a victim of
child abuse, the school employee or other mandated
reporter under 23 Pa.C.S. § 6311 (relating to persons
required to report suspected child abuse) shall comply
with 23 Pa.C.S. § 6313 (relating to reporting procedure).
(ii) If the child is exhibiting self-harm or suicide
risk factors or warning signs as provided under section
1526, the school employee or other mandated reporter
shall comply with section 1302-E.
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(iii) If the child is exhibiting substance abuse or
behaviors suggesting urgent psychiatric needs, the school
employee or other mandated reporter shall comply with 22
Pa. Code § 12.42 (relating to student assistance
program).
(d) Development and posting.--No later than 90 days after
the effective date of this subsection, the department, in
consultation with the Department of Human Services, shall
develop and post on its publicly accessible Internet website
guidelines for cyber charter schools to submit a plan for
approval.
(e) Submittal AND REVISION of plan.-- No later than 180 days
after the effective date of this subsection, a A cyber charter
school shall submit a plan for approval by the department .
(f) Reviewing and revising.--No later than August 1 each
year, a BY AUGUST 1, 2026. EACH AUGUST 1 THEREAFTER, EACH cyber
charter school shall annually review its plan and submit any
revisions to the department for approval.
(g) (F) Activations.--
(1) Each cyber charter school shall maintain activations
of the child protection and support plan, and the date each
wellness trigger was identified.
(2) The information maintained under this subsection
shall be made available in an aggregated format to the
department upon request.
(3) The information maintained under this subsection
shall not contain a reporting source of SUSPECTED child abuse
or personal identifying information of a student.
(4) The information maintained under this subsection
must include the following:
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(i) The number of times that the plan was activated
annually, categorized by circumstance listed in
accordance with subsection (c)(1).
(ii) T he number of employees in the cyber charter
school who have completed mandatory training under
section 1310-B.
(iii) The number of employees in the cyber charter
school who have received a waiver for the mandatory
training under section 1310-B.
(h) (G) Penalties.--
(1) A cyber charter school that fails to submit a plan,
or fails to receive approval after submitting a plan, shall
be subject to the withholding of payment under section 1725-A
or 1725.1-A until the cyber charter school receives a notice
of approval of its plan.
(2) In addition to the penalty under paragraph (1),
failure to comply with any provision of this section shall
subject a cyber charter school to a fine of not more than
$15,000 per incident.
(3) A failure described under this subsection shall be
sufficient cause for nonrenewal or revocation of the charter
of the cyber charter school.
(i) (H) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following
words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Child abuse." As defined in 23 Pa.C.S. § 6303(b.1)
(relating to definitions).
"Plan." A child protection and support plan described in
subsection (a).
"School employee." An individual who is employed by a school
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or who provides a program, activity or service sponsored by a
school. The term does not include administrative or other
support personnel who have no direct contact with children.
"Student assistance program." As defined in 22 Pa. Code §
12.16 (relating to definitions).
Section 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
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