NOTICE OF PROPOSED CHANGES TO REQUIRED MINIMUM EXPENDITURE
FOR INSTRUCTION IN THE REGULATIONS OF
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND EARLY DEVELOPMENT

BRIEF DESCRIPTION
In its 2016 session, the legislature repealed AS 14.17.520, which required each school district to spend a minimum of 70 percent of its budget for instruction. The proposed revisions will conform the regulations to the statutory change.

The Department of Education and Early Development proposes to adopt regulation changes in Title 4 of the Alaska Administrative Code dealing with the required minimum expenditure for instruction, including the following:

1. 4 AAC 09.115 is proposed to be repealed, as no longer necessary. 4 AAC 09.115 explains how the minimum expenditure for instruction was calculated under AS 14.17.520, which was repealed by the 2016 legislature.

2. The proposed amendments of 4 AAC 09.120 remove the minimum expenditure for instruction requirement and the possible waiver of that requirement from the department's review of school district budgets. Under 4 AAC 09.120, as amended, the department will continue to review district budgets for compliance with other budget review standards.

The Department of Education and Early Development invites the public to submit written comments during the written comment period, which begins with the date of this notice and ends on November 4, 2016, at 4:30 p.m. The written comment period closes in advance of the meeting of the State Board of Education and Early Development at which the board will consider the adoption of the proposed regulations. This allows the Department of Education and Early Development an opportunity to prepare changes based on written comment and to distribute any proposed changes to the board for its consideration prior to the meeting.

You may comment in writing on the proposed regulation changes, including the potential costs to private persons of complying with the proposed changes, by submitting written comments to the Commissioner’s Office, Department of Education and Early Development, Attn: Regulations Review, 801 West Tenth Street, Suite 200, PO Box 110500, Juneau, Alaska 99811-0500.

You also may submit written comments by facsimile at (907) 465-4156; by electronic mail to eric.fry@alaska.gov; and online at the website of the Department of Education and Early Development at https://education.alaska.gov/regs/comment.cfm. Written comments also may be submitted through the Alaska Online Public Notice System by accessing this notice on the system and using the comment link.

All written comments must be received not later than 4:30 p.m. on November 4, 2016.

After the written comment period has ended, you may submit oral comments to the State Board of Education and Early Development at a hearing to be held by the board on December 8, 2016, by audioconference originating at the Department of Education and Early Development at 801 West 10th Street, Juneau, Alaska. The hearing will be held from 9:15 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. but may be extended to accommodate those present before 8:55 a.m. who have not had an opportunity to comment before 10:00 a.m.

You also may submit oral comments at this hearing, during this time only, via the Legislative Information Office streaming by calling 1-844-586-9085 if you are outside of Juneau. For participation from Juneau, call 586-9085.

This meeting will be streamed through the Legislative Information Office over http://www.alaskalegislature.tv/  beginning at 9:00 a.m. December 8, 2016, and 9:00 a.m. December 9, 2016 (audio only). 

 You also may submit oral comments at this hearing via the following Legislative Information Offices: Anchorage, 716 W 4th Ave., Suite 100; Bethel, 301 Willow Street; Fairbanks, 1292 Sadler Way, Suite 308; Juneau, Suite 111, Terry Miller Building, State Capitol; Kenai, 145 Main Street Loop, Suite 217; Ketchikan, 1900 First Avenue, Suite 310; Kodiak, 305 Center Ave., Suite 1; Mat-Su, 600 East Railroad Ave.; Nome 103 Front Street; Seward, 302 Railway, Suite 107; and Sitka, 201 Katlian Street, Suite 103.

You may submit written questions relevant to the proposed action to Eric Fry at eric.fry@alaska.gov or the Department of Education and Early Development, Attn: Eric Fry, 801 West 10th Street, Suite 200, PO Box 110500, Juneau, Alaska 99811-0500. If a question is relevant to the proposed change in the regulations and the question is received by October 25, 2016, which is 10 days before the end of the public comment period, the department will make a good-faith effort to answer the question before the end of the public comment period. The Department of Education and Early Development will aggregate its response to substantially similar questions and make the questions and responses available on the Alaska Online Public Notice System and on the website of the Department of Education and Early Development at https://education.alaska.gov/regs/comment.cfm. 

If you are a person with a disability who needs a special accommodation in order to participate in this process, please contact Ms. Angel Collins at (907) 465-2800 or angel.collins@alaska.gov not later than November 30, 2016, to ensure that any necessary accommodation can be provided.

Copies of the proposed regulation changes are available on the Alaska Online Public Notice System, on the website of the Department of Education and Early Development at https://education.alaska.gov/regs/comment.cfm, and by contacting Eric Fry at eric.fry@alaska.gov or 907-465-2851.

After the public comment period ends, the Department of Education and Early Development will either adopt the proposed regulation changes or other provisions dealing with the same subject, without further notice, or decide to take no action. The language of the final regulation may be different from that of the proposed regulation. You should comment during the time allowed if your interests could be affected.

Statutory authority: AS 14.07.020, AS 14.07.060, AS 14.17.920.
Statutes being implemented, interpreted, or made specific: AS 14.07.070, AS 14.07.170, AS 14.17.505, AS 14.17.900, AS 14.17.910.
Fiscal information: The proposed regulation changes are not expected to require an increased appropriation.