CHAPTER 571
FORMERLY
HOUSE BILL NO. 661
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EDUCATION AND THE LOSS OR DESTRUCTION OF BOOKS AND OTHER SCHOOL PROPERTY.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend Chapter 17. Title 14 oldie Delaware Code, by inserting a new section,
"§ 1722. Accounting for textbooks, subject matter materials, and other school property entrusted to individual students.
(a) For the purposes of this section:
(1) 'costs' shall he the cost of lost or destroyed textbooks. subject matter-materials. supplementary books. instructional computer software, and other school property distributed to and entrusted to individual students:
(2) 'responsible person' shall include each student, the parents of each student who have a duty to support the student under 13 Del C § 501. and any guardian who has a duty to support a student.
(b) Each reorganized school district shall adopt a written policy that:
(1) at least annually requires responsible persons to refund to the district their costs:
(2) sets forth an effective process to collect at least annually such costs from the responsible persons: provided, however. that the process may permit a student to perform school or community service, at the district's option, in lieu of repaying book costs. if' and only if each responsible person's income falls below federal poverty guidelines, as they may be amended from time to time: and further provided that a student otherwise required to perform such service who refuses to perform such service. shall be subject to disciplinary action: and
(3) provides that local district funds shall cover the cost of all lost or
destroyed books which are required to be collected from responsible persons pursuant to a written policy which conforms to this section but are not collected.
(c) Each reorganized school district shall provide to the Superintendent of the Department of Public Instruction and each member of the Joint Finance Committee by February I of each year a copy of its current policy adopted pursuant to this section together with an accounting of costs recovered, costs which are not recovered, public service hours required in lieu or cost repayment, public service hours performed. and disciplinary action taken pursuant to its policy in the past three years.-
Section 2. This Act shall be effective upon enactment: provided that the accounting required under Section I shall commence annually as of February 1. 1997. notwithstanding that less than 3 years' data is then available, to the extent that the data is available.