AB 400 — Revises provisions relating to instructional materials. (BDR 34-446)

(Reprinted with amendments adopted on April 24, 2017) FIRST REPRINT A.B.

requiring the board of trustees of a school district or governing body of a charter school to transfer the copyright or otherwise relinquish any claim to the copyright for certain instructional materials or tools to an employee of the school district or charter school;

requiring the Department of Education to establish a database of instructional materials and tools created by employees of school districts and charter schools in this State;

§ 201) This bill requires the board of trustees of a school district or the governing body of a charter school toto: transfer to an employee of the school district or charter school the copyright for any instructional materials or tools created by the employee.

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-(1) *AB400*use –of 2the –instructional THEmaterials PEOPLEis OFapproved THEby STATEthe OFcreated NEVADA,the REPRESENTEDinstructional INmaterials SENATEis ANDemployed; ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

and (2) the Department enters into a contract with the employee who created the instructional materials authorizing the Department to include the instructional materials in the database and allow any - *AB400_R1* – 2 – employee of a school district or charter school in this State to use the instructional materials free of charge.

W HEREAS , Creating instructional materials, including textbooks, outside of the scope of a teacher’s or other employee’s employment allows the teacher or other employee to use his or her knowledge and experience to benefit a larger number of teachers, school employees and pupils;

and W HEREAS , A teacher or other employee of a school deserves to own any instructional materials created by the teacher or employee outside the scope of his or her employment without hindrance and receive compensation for the use of such instructional materials;

and W HEREAS , Providing teachers and other school employees with access to a wide variety of instructional materials will allow those teachers and school employees to better meet the needs of their pupils;

now, therefore, THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

The board of trustees of a school district or the governing body of a charter school shall transfer to an employee of the school district or charter school, as applicable, free of charge, the copyright for any instructional materials created by the employee outside the scope of his or toolsher createdemployment byor otherwise relinquish any claim to the employee.copyright for such instructional materials.

The Department shall establish a database of instructional materials or tools created by employees of school districts and charter schools in this State.

Any person, including, without limitation, an employee of a school district or charter school, may suggest to the Department the inclusion of such instructional materials or tools in the database.

The suggested instructional materials or tools must be included in the database if:

(a) The inclusion of the instructional materials or tools in the database is approved by the regional training program established pursuant to NRS 391A.120 for the region in which the employee who created the instructional materials or tools is employed;

and (b) The Department enters into a contract with the employee who created the instructional materials or tools authorizing the Department to include the instructional materials in the database and allow any employee of a school district or toolscharter school in this State to use the database.instructional materials free of charge.

- *AB400_R1* – 3 – 3.

The Department shall provide access to the database established pursuant to subsection 2 tomust: any employee of a school district or charter school in this State upon request.

(a) Identify, for each set of instructional materials included in the database, the school and, if applicable, the school district in which the set of instructional materials is used;

and (b) Allow an employee of a school district or charter school to search for all instructional materials that are used in schools that, pursuant to the attendance matriculation pattern of a particular school, are regularly attended by pupils who ultimately attend that school.

The Department shall provide access to the database established pursuant to subsection 2 to any employee of a school district or charter school in this State upon request.

5.

6.

As used in this section, the term “instructional materials” does not include tests, quizzes, homework problems or lesson plans.

1.5.

NRS 389.840 is hereby amended to read as follows:

389.840 As used in NRS 389.840 to 389.880, inclusive, unless the context requires otherwise:

1.

“Basic textbook” or “textbook” means any medium or manual of instruction, including, without limitation, software for computers [,] or a medium or manual of instruction to which an employee of a school district owns the copyright pursuant to section 1 of this act, containing a presentation of the principles of a subject and used as a basis of instruction.

“Supplemental textbook” means any medium or material, including, without limitation, software for computers [,] or a medium or material to which an employee of a school district owns the copyright pursuant to section 1 of this act, used to reinforce or extend a basic program of instruction.

3.

A basic or supplemental textbook becomes “unserviceable” when 4 years have elapsed since its removal from the adopted list.

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H - *AB400**AB400_R1*