SB 744 — Voucher School Accountability Act.

FILED SENATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA MarSESSION 25, 2025 S.B.S 1 SENATE BILL 744 Short Title:

744 SESSION 2025 PRINCIPAL CLERK S D SENATE BILL DRS15305-MT-45 Short Title:

Rules and Operations of the Senate March 26, 2025 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO INCREASE ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING STANDARDS FOR NONPUBLIC SCHOOLS RECEIVING OPPORTUNITY SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS.

*DRS15305-MT-45**S744-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (1) Provide Annually provide to the Authority and the Division of Nonpublic education documentation for required tuition and fees charged to the student by the nonpublic school.

(2) Provide to the Authority a criminal background check conducted for the staff member with the highest decision-makingdecision-makingauthority, authority, as defined bybythe the bylaws, articles of incorporation, or other governing document.

Each nonpublic school shall apply its policy uniformlyuniformlyin inrequiringapplicants requiring applicants for employment to be checked for a criminal history before the applicant is given an unconditional job offer.

A nonpublic school maymayemploy employ an applicant conditionally while the board is checking the person's criminal history and making a decision based on the results of the check.

(3a) ComplyComplywith with the standard course of studystudyin in accordance with Part 1 of Article 8 of this Chapter and related rules adopted by the State Board of Education.

A nationally standardized test or other nationally standardized equivalent measurement selected bybythe the chief administrative officer of the nonpublic school in all other grades four and higher.

For grades four through seven, the nationallynationallystandardized standardized test or other equivalent Page 2 DRS15305-MT-45Senate Bill 744-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 measurement selected must measure achievement in the areas of English grammar,reading,grammar,reading,spelling,andmathematics.For spelling,grades andmathematics.Forgrades nine, 10, and 12, the nationally standardized test or other equivalent measurementselectedmustmeasureeither(i)achievementintheareas of English grammar, reading, spelling, and mathematics or (ii) competencies in the verbal and quantitative areas.Nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit a nonpublic school from administering additional tests to its students.

(5) Provide to the AuthorityAuthoritygraduation graduation rates of the students receiving scholarship grants in a manner consistent with nationally recognized standards.

DRS15305-MT-45Senate Bill 744-First Edition Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (14) Report to the Division of Nonpublic Education by September 1 of each year the identity of the highest paid employee in the nonpublic school.

(17) Report to the Authority on any expulsions from the nonpublic school, including the reason for the expulsion and the identityidentityof of the expelled student.

(b) Anonpublicschoolthatacceptsstudents receivingscholarshipgrantsshallnotrequirereceivingscholarship grantsshallnotrequire any additional fees based on the status of the student as a scholarship grant recipient.

(2) Retain standardized test performance data for eligible students in all other grades and annuallyannuallycertifyto certify to the AuthorityAuthoritycompliance compliance with the requirements of subdivision (4) of subsection (a) of this section.

§ 2000d, as that statuteread onJanuaryonJanuary1,2014.therace, 1,2014.therace, color,national origin, sex,sexual orientation, disability, or religion of any student or their family members.

The Authority shall establish by rule a process for a nonpublicschoolto appealforreconsiderationofeligibilityafteroneyear.Toensurecompliance,appealforreconsiderationofeligibilityafterone year.Toensurecompliance, the Board of Directors of the Authority shall review the criminal history provided under subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section to ensure that the person has not been convicted of any crime listed in G.S.

Page 4 DRS15305-MT-45Senate Bill 744-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (2) Demonstrates that he or she does not have the integrityintegrityor or honesty to fulfill his or her duties in overseeingoverseeingState State funds and the requirements of the scholarship grant program.

… DRS15305-MT-45Senate Bill 744-First Edition Page 5 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (f) The Department of Public Instruction shall report no later than April 1 of each year to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee on the cumulative difference in the current school year between the scholarship grant award amount for each prior public school attendee enrolled in a nonpublic school and the average State per pupil allocation for average daily membership for a student in a public school unit.

143C-1-1,foreachfiscal yearspecifiedyearspecifiedin in this subsection,theDirectorsubsection, theDirector of the Budget shall include the appropriated amount specified in this subsection for that fiscal year.

Page 6 DRS15305-MT-45Senate Bill 744-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (2) Any remaining funds shall be carried forward for one fiscal year pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.

(2) Of the funds appropriated to the OpportunityOpportunityScholarship Scholarship Grant Fund Reserve for the 2024-2025 fiscal year and allocated from the Reserve for the award of scholarship grants in the 2025-2026 fiscal year, by the sum of twenty-eight million four hundred sixty thousand dollars ($28,460,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.

(3) OftheOfthefundsappropriatedtotheOpportunityScholarshipGrantFundReserve, fundsappropriatedtotheOpportunityScholarshipGrantFundReserve, as follows:

ByBythe the sum of eighty-three million four hundred sixtysixtythousand thousand dollars ($83,460,000) in recurring funds for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.

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