Text of ID H 516 (2026)

LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-eighth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2026 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HOUSE BILL NO. 516 BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE AN ACT 1 RELATING TO EDUCATION; AMENDING SECTION 33-6001, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PRO- 2 VISIONS REGARDING PARENTAL RIGHTS IN EDUCATION; AND DECLARING AN EMER- 3 GENCY AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. 4 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho: 5 SECTION 1. That Section 33-6001, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 6 amended to read as follows: 7 33-6001. PARENTAL RIGHTS. (1) A student's parent or legal guardian 8 has the right to reasonable academic accommodation from the child's public 9 school. "Reasonable academic accommodation" means the school shall make its 10 best effort to enable parents and legal guardians to exercise their rights 11 without substantial impact to staff and resources, including employee 12 working conditions, safety and supervision on school premises for school 13 activities, and the efficient allocation of expenditures, while balancing 14 the parental rights of parents and legal guardians, the educational needs 15 of other students, the academic and behavioral impacts to a classroom, a 16 teacher's workload, and the assurance of the safe and efficient operations 17 of the school. 18 (2) School districts and the boards of directors of public charter 19 schools, in consultation with parents, teachers, and administrators, shall 20 develop and adopt a policy to promote the involvement of parents and legal 21 guardians of children enrolled in the schools within the school district or 22 the charter school, including: 23 (a) A plan for parent participation in the schools that is designed to 24 improve parent and teacher cooperation in areas such as homework, at- 25 tendance, and discipline; 26 (b) A process by which parents may learn about the course of study for 27 their children and review learning materials, including the source of 28 any supplemental educational materials; 29 (c) A process by which parents who object to any learning material or 30 activity on the basis that it harms the child or impairs the parents' 31 firmly held beliefs, values, or principles may withdraw their child 32 from the activity, class, or program in which the material is used; 33 (d) The public school's responsibility for notifying a student's par- 34 ent or legal guardian regarding known changes in the student's mental, 35 emotional, or physical health or well-being; 36 (e) The reinforcement of the fundamental rights and responsibilities 37 of parents as primary stakeholders to make decisions regarding the up- 38 bringing and control of the parent's child; and 39 (f) A process for staff to encourage students to discuss issues related 40 to the student's well-being with the student's parent or legal guardian 41 2 and, if necessary, to facilitate discussion of the issues with the par- 1 ent or legal guardian. 2 (3) A policy shall not prohibit parents or legal guardians from ac- 3 cessing any of their children's education and health records created, 4 maintained, or used by the public school unless such documentation relates 5 to physical abuse, abandonment, or neglect by the parent or legal guardian. 6 Unless a timeline is otherwise delineated in a specific applicable state or 7 federal law, records shall be provided to the parent or legal guardian within 8 five (5) school days after a request to access such records is made. 9 (4) A public school shall not adopt procedures, policies, or student 10 support forms that prohibit public school personnel from notifying a parent 11 or legal guardian about a student's mental, emotional, or physical health or 12 well-being or a change in related services or monitoring or that encourage 13 or have the effect of encouraging a student to withhold from a parent or le- 14 gal guardian such information. This subsection does not prohibit a public 15 school from adopting procedures that permit public school personnel to with- 16 hold information from a parent or legal guardian if ordered by a court of com- 17 petent jurisdiction. 18 (5) A public school shall be required to adopt procedures and policies 19 that prohibit classroom instruction by public school personnel on sexual 20 orientation or gender identity from kindergarten through grade 12 or in a 21 manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for stu- 22 dents in accordance with state standards. 23 (6) At the start of the school year, each public school shall notify 24 parents and legal guardians of health services offered or made available 25 through the school or by private organizations, including preventative 26 health and wellness services, screenings, medication administration, first 27 aid and emergency care, and appropriate management of all health conditions 28 with parental consent. Parental consent to any health or wellness service 29 does not waive parents' or legal guardians' right to access their children's 30 educational or associated health records or to be notified about their chil- 31 dren's health status or monitoring as provided in this section. 32 (7) A public school shall notify a student's parent or legal guardian if 33 a student has been or may be questioned by a school resource officer or other 34 law enforcement official, unless the child is a victim or suspected victim 35 of physical child abuse. School districts and public charter schools shall 36 develop and adopt policies to ensure compliance with this subsection. 37 (8) Before any public school employee administers any noncurricu- 38 lar-related student survey, well-being questionnaire, or health screening 39 to any student, the employee must first obtain consent from the school's su- 40 perintendent or designee. If the content of any such survey, questionnaire, 41 or screening regards an individual student's sexuality, sex, religion, 42 personal political beliefs, mental or psychological problems, personal fam- 43 ily information, or individual or family financial information, the public 44 school shall provide the survey, questionnaire, or screening form to the 45 student's parent or legal guardian in advance and obtain the permission of 46 the parent or legal guardian. 47 (9) A parent or legal guardian of a child enrolled in an Idaho public 48 school shall have reasonable access to observe all school activities during 49 school hours in which the child is enrolled, except for those who are oth- 50 3 erwise legally prohibited. Observations of individual classrooms during 1 instructional time shall be permitted with the principal's and teacher's 2 pre-approval. Visits shall not be permitted if their occurrence, duration, 3 frequency, or conduct on campus interferes with the delivery of instruction 4 or disrupts the normal school environment. Nothing in this section shall 5 prevent a reasonable denial of entry due to emergency or safety drills, 6 situations outlined in school safety plans, an emergency lockdown, periods 7 of statewide testing, school officials' enforcement of the provisions of 8 section 33-512, Idaho Code, or other specific situations enumerated by the 9 school. 10 (10) A parent or legal guardian whose rights, as provided by this sec- 11 tion, are violated by a public school may file a complaint with the school. 12 Public schools shall implement policies and procedures to accept, evaluate, 13 and remedy complaints. 14 (11) If a complaint is not satisfactorily remedied by the public school, 15 a parent shall have a private cause of action for injunctive relief, damages, 16 and any other relief available under law against the school. 17 SECTION 2. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby 18 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after 19 July 1, 2026. 20

LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-eighth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2026 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HOUSE BILL NO. 516, As Amended in the Senate BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE AN ACT 1 RELATING TO EDUCATION; AMENDING SECTION 33-1271, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE 2 PROVISIONS REGARDING SCHOOL DISTRICTS, PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYEES, AND 3 NEGOTIATION AGREEMENTS; AMENDING SECTION 33-1272, IDAHO CODE, TO DE- 4 FINE TERMS; AMENDING SECTION 33-1275, IDAHO CODE, TO PROHIBIT TAXPAYER 5 FUNDING OF TEACHERS UNIONS; AMENDING CHAPTER 12, TITLE 33, IDAHO CODE, 6 BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION 33-1277, IDAHO CODE, TO PROHIBIT TAX- 7 PAYER FUNDING OF TEACHERS UNIONS; AMENDING SECTION 33-513, IDAHO CODE, 8 TO REMOVE A PROVISION REGARDING ATTENDANCE AT CERTAIN MEETINGS OF THE 9 STATE TEACHERS ASSOCIATION AND TO MAKE TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS; PROVID- 10 ING SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING APPLICABILITY; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY 11 AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. 12 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho: 13 SECTION 1. That Section 33-1271, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 14 amended to read as follows: 15 33-1271. SCHOOL DISTRICTS -- PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYEES -- NEGOTIATION 16 AGREEMENTS. (1) The board of trustees of each school district, includ- 17 ing specially chartered districts, or the designated representative(s) 18 representatives of such district, is hereby empowered to and shall, upon 19 its own initiative or upon the request of a local education organization 20 representing a majority of the professional employees, enter into a nego- 21 tiation agreement with the local education organization or the designated 22 representative(s) representatives of such organization. 23 (1) (2) The parties to such negotiations shall negotiate in good faith 24 on those matters specified in any such negotiation agreement between the lo- 25 cal board of trustees and the local education organization, unless otherwise 26 prohibited by section 33-1275, Idaho Code, or any other applicable law. 27 (2) (3) A request for negotiations may be initiated by either party to 28 such negotiation agreement. 29 (3) (4) Upon either party making a request for negotiations, the lo- 30 cal education organization, upon board request, shall provide to the dis- 31 trict written evidence establishing that the local education organization 32 represents fifty percent (50%) plus one (1) of the professional employees 33 for negotiations. If requested by the board, the local education organiza- 34 tion shall establish this representative status on an annual basis, prior to 35 the commencement of negotiations. In order to establish a local education 36 organization's representative status, a local education organization must 37 show that within the last two (2) years, fifty percent (50%) plus one (1) of 38 the professional employees, as defined in section 33-1272, Idaho Code, in- 39 dicated agreement to be represented by the local education organization for 40 negotiation purposes. Evidence of fifty percent (50%) plus one (1) incon- 41 2 sistent with this provision shall not be counted in the establishment of rep- 1 resentative status. 2 (4) (5) Accurate records or minutes of the proceedings shall be kept and 3 shall be available for public inspection at the office of the affected school 4 district during normal business hours. 5 (5) (6) Joint ratification of all final offers of settlement shall be 6 made in open meetings. Each party must provide written evidence confirming 7 to the other that majority ratification has occurred. 8 SECTION 2. That Section 33-1272, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 9 amended to read as follows: 10 33-1272. DEFINITIONS. As used in this act: 11 (1) "Affiliate" means: 12 (a) Any organization subject to the constitution, bylaws, or similar 13 governing documents of a teachers union; 14 (b) Any organization with a constitution, bylaws, or similar governing 15 documents that a teachers union is subject to; 16 (c) Any organization that receives a regular portion of the dues or fees 17 collected by a teachers union from its members pursuant to the consti- 18 tution, bylaws, or similar governing documents of such organization or 19 the teachers union; or 20 (d) A political committee or political organization controlled by a 21 teachers union. 22 (1) "Professional employee" means any certificated employee of a 23 school district, including charter districts; provided however, that admin- 24 istrative personnel including superintendents, supervisors or principals 25 are excluded from the professional employee group for the purposes of nego- 26 tiations. 27 (2) "Local education organization" or "teachers union" means any local 28 district organization duly chosen and selected by fifty percent (50%) plus 29 one (1) of the professional employees, excluding administrative personnel 30 as addressed in this section, as their representative organization for nego- 31 tiations under this act, as well as any organization seeking such status. 32 (3) "Negotiations" means publicly meeting and conferring in good faith 33 by a local board of trustees and the authorized local education organiza- 34 tion, or the respective designated representatives of both parties for the 35 purpose of reaching an agreement, upon matters and conditions subject to ne- 36 gotiations as specified in a negotiation agreement between said parties and 37 not otherwise prohibited by section 33-1275, Idaho Code, or any other appli- 38 cable law. 39 (4) "Professional employee" means any certificated employee of a 40 school district, including charter districts; provided however, that admin- 41 istrative personnel including superintendents, supervisors or principals 42 are excluded from the professional employee group for the purposes of nego- 43 tiations. 44 (5) "Representational activities" means the activities specified in 45 paragraphs (i) through (m) of subsection (6) of this section. 46 (6) "Teachers union activities" means any of the following activities 47 undertaken at the direction of, on behalf of, or to advance the purposes of a 48 teachers union or its affiliate: 49 3 (a) Supporting or opposing any candidate for federal, state, or local 1 public office; 2 (b) Influencing the passage or defeat of any federal or state legisla- 3 tion, federal or state regulation, local ordinance, or any ballot mea- 4 sure; 5 (c) Promoting or soliciting membership or participation in, or finan- 6 cial support of, a teachers union or its affiliate; 7 (d) Seeking to become the exclusive representative of all professional 8 employees in a school district; 9 (e) Participating in the administration, business, or internal gover- 10 nance of a teachers union or its affiliate; 11 (f) Preparing, conducting, or attending teachers union or affiliate 12 events, conferences, conventions, meetings, or trainings, unless such 13 training is directly related to the performance of professional employ- 14 ees' job duties; 15 (g) Distributing teachers union or affiliate communications; 16 (h) Representing or speaking on behalf of a teachers union or its affil- 17 iate in any setting, venue, or procedure in which the school district is 18 not a participant; 19 (i) Preparing, filing, or pursuing grievances; 20 (j) Representing professional employees in investigatory interviews, 21 disciplinary proceedings or appeals up to and including termination, or 22 other administrative or legal proceedings; 23 (k) Engaging in negotiations and any related mediation; 24 (l) Administering a negotiation agreement; or 25 (m) Participating in labor-management committees. 26 For the purposes of this section, "good faith" means honesty, fairness and 27 lawfulness of purpose with the absence of any intent to defraud, act mali- 28 ciously or take unfair advantage or the observance of reasonable standards 29 of fair dealing. 30 SECTION 3. That Section 33-1275, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 31 amended to read as follows: 32 33-1275. TERMS OF AGREEMENTS. (1) All agreements, by any name or ti- 33 tle, entered into pursuant to the provisions of this act, shall have a one 34 (1) year duration of July 1 through June 30 of the ensuing fiscal year. The 35 parties shall not have the authority to enter into any agreement negotiated 36 under the provisions of this act that has any term that allows for such agree- 37 ment or any provision of such agreement to be in any force or effect for mul- 38 tiple years or indefinitely, or otherwise does not expire on its own terms on 39 or before June 30 of the ensuing fiscal year. 40 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, 41 upon mutual ratification, any item other than compensation and benefits as 42 defined in subsection (3) of this section of any agreement entered into pur- 43 suant to this act may have a nonrolling two (2) year duration with a desig- 44 nated start date and end date. A second year term for any item not defined in 45 subsection (3) of this section cannot be added, automatically or by mutual 46 consent, back into the agreement after the expiration of the first year but 47 rather may be addressed by the parties at the expiration of the end date of 48 the two (2) year term. 49 4 (3) For purposes of this section, "compensation" means salary and ben- 1 efits for professional employees. "Benefits" means employee insurance, 2 leave time and sick leave benefits. 3 (4) No agreement by any name or title that is entered into pursuant to 4 the provisions of this section or otherwise may require or permit a school 5 district, including specially chartered districts, to use taxpayer funds to 6 promote a teachers union or its affiliate in a manner prohibited by section 7 33-1277, Idaho Code. Any provision of an agreement in violation of this sub- 8 section shall be null and void, contrary to public policy, and of no legal 9 force or effect. 10 SECTION 4. That Chapter 12, Title 33, Idaho Code, be, and the same is 11 hereby amended by the addition thereto of a NEW SECTION, to be known and des- 12 ignated as Section 33-1277, Idaho Code, and to read as follows: 13 33-1277. TAXPAYER FUNDING OF TEACHERS UNIONS PROHIBITED. (1) No 14 school district, including a specially chartered district, or its agents or 15 representatives, may use or authorize the use of taxpayer funds to support 16 teachers unions by: 17 (a) Deducting dues, fees, assessments, fines, or contributions from 18 the pay of a professional employee on behalf of a teachers union or its 19 affiliate; 20 (b) Increasing a professional employee's compensation with the in- 21 tent that the additional compensation, or a part of it, be used to pay 22 teachers union or affiliate dues, fees, assessments, fines, or contri- 23 butions; 24 (c) Providing more personal or contact information of a professional 25 employee to a teachers union or its affiliate than the school district 26 is required to disclose pursuant to chapter 1, title 74, Idaho Code, un- 27 less the school district receives written authorization from the pro- 28 fessional employee to disclose additional information; 29 (d) Requiring or coercing a professional employee to meet, communi- 30 cate, listen to, or otherwise interact with a teachers union or its 31 affiliate; 32 (e) Distributing communications or membership solicitations on behalf 33 of a teachers union or its affiliate; 34 (f) Contributing funds to, or expending funds on behalf of, a teachers 35 union or its affiliate; or 36 (g) Except as provided by sections 33-1216 and 33-1279, Idaho Code, and 37 except as otherwise provided by this section, providing any form of com- 38 pensation or paid leave to a public employee, directly or indirectly, 39 for the purpose of engaging in teachers union activities. 40 (2) If provided by a negotiated agreement between a school district, 41 including a specially chartered district, and a teachers union: 42 (a) A professional employee may be granted time off without pay or ben- 43 efits to engage in teachers union activities, and a teachers union may 44 compensate a professional employee for engaging in teachers union ac- 45 tivities. 46 (b) A professional employee may use compensated personal leave, 47 whether the professional employee's own leave or leave voluntarily 48 5 donated by other professional employees, to engage in teachers union 1 activities if: 2 (i) The leave is accrued at the same rate by similarly situated 3 professional employees of the school district without regard to 4 membership or participation in a teachers union; and 5 (ii) The professional employee may freely choose how to use the 6 leave. 7 (c) A professional employee may engage in representational activities 8 while in a duty status without loss of pay or benefits if: 9 (i) The teachers union reports to the school district no less 10 than twice per year the amount of time, in increments rounded to 11 the nearest quarter of an hour, spent on representational activi- 12 ties each day by each professional employee engaged in representa- 13 tional activities; 14 (ii) The school district calculates the pro rata value of compen- 15 sation, including wages and benefits, paid or accruing to a pro- 16 fessional employee for time spent engaged in representational ac- 17 tivities and provides an invoice to the teachers union no less than 18 twice per year for the amounts so calculated; and 19 (iii) Upon receipt of the invoice from the school district, the 20 teachers union remits full payment to the school district within 21 thirty (30) days. 22 (3)(a) A person who violates the provisions of this section shall 23 be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed two hundred fifty dollars 24 ($250). 25 (b) A person who knowingly violates the provisions of this section 26 shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed one thousand five hun- 27 dred dollars ($1,500). 28 (c) A person who knowingly violates the provisions of this section and 29 who has previously admitted to committing or has been previously deter- 30 mined to have committed a violation pursuant to this subsection shall be 31 subject to a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dol- 32 lars ($2,500). 33 (4) The attorney general or appropriate county prosecutor may inves- 34 tigate complaints regarding violations of this section and shall ensure the 35 effective enforcement of this section. 36 SECTION 5. That Section 33-513, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 37 amended to read as follows: 38 33-513. PROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL. The board of trustees of each school 39 district, including any specially chartered district, shall have the fol- 40 lowing powers and duties: 41 1. (1) To employ professional personnel, on written contract in a form 42 approved by the state superintendent of public instruction, conditioned 43 upon on a valid certificate being held by such professional personnel at the 44 time of entering upon the duties thereunder. Should the board of trustees 45 fail to enter into written contract for the employment of any such person, 46 the state superintendent of public instruction shall withhold ensuing ap- 47 portionments until such written contract be is entered into. When the board 48 of trustees has delivered a proposed contract for the next ensuing year to 49 6 any such person, such person shall have a period of time to be determined by 1 the board of trustees in its discretion, but in no event less than ten (10) 2 calendar days from the date the contract is delivered, in which to sign the 3 contract and return it to the board. If the board of trustees does not make a 4 determination as to how long the person has to sign and return the contract, 5 the default time limit shall be twenty-one (21) calendar days after the con- 6 tract is delivered to the person. Delivery of a contract may be made only 7 in person or by certified mail, return receipt requested or electronically, 8 return receipt requested. When delivery is made in person, delivery of the 9 contract must be acknowledged by a signed receipt. When delivery is made 10 by certified mail or electronically, delivery must be acknowledged by the 11 return of the certified mail receipt or return electronic receipt from the 12 person to whom the contract was sent. If the delivery is made electroni- 13 cally, with return electronic receipt, and the district has not received a 14 return of a signed contract and has not received an electronic read receipt 15 from the employee, the district shall then resend the original electroni- 16 cally delivered contract to the employee via certified mail, return receipt 17 requested, and provide such individual with a new date for contract return. 18 Should the person willfully refuse to acknowledge receipt of the contract or 19 the contract is not signed and returned to the board in the designated period 20 of time or if no designated period of time is set by the board, the default 21 time, the board or its designee may declare the position vacant. 22 (a) The board of trustees shall withhold the salary of any teacher who 23 does not hold a teaching certificate valid in this state. It shall not 24 contract to require any teacher to make up time spent in attending any 25 meeting called by the state board of education or by the state superin- 26 tendent of public instruction; nor while attending regularly scheduled 27 official meetings of the state teachers association. 28 (b) No contract shall be issued for the next ensuing year until such 29 time as the employee's formal written performance evaluation has been 30 completed. 31 (c) If applicable student data relating to Idaho's standards achieve- 32 ment test has not been received by the district within thirty (30) days 33 of the deadline to complete the formal written performance evaluation 34 for district employees, the school district or charter school shall 35 utilize one (1) of the other objective measures of growth in student 36 achievement as determined by the board of trustees or governing board, 37 not including Idaho's standards achievement test, in order to complete 38 the required student achievement component of performance evaluations. 39 2. (2) In the case of school districts other than elementary school 40 districts, to employ a superintendent of schools for a term not to exceed 41 three (3) years, who shall be the executive officer of the board of trustees 42 with such powers and duties as the board may prescribe. The superintendent 43 shall also act as the authorized representative of the district whenever 44 such is required, unless some other person shall be named by the board of 45 trustees to act as its authorized representative. The board of trustees 46 shall conduct an annual, written formal evaluation of the work of the su- 47 perintendent of the district to be completed no later than June 1. The 48 evaluation shall indicate the strengths and weaknesses of the superinten- 49 dent's job performance in the year immediately preceding the evaluation and 50 7 areas where improvement in the superintendent's job performance, in the view 1 of the board of trustees, is called for. 2 3. (3) To employ through written contract principals who shall hold a 3 valid certificate appropriate to the position for which they are employed, 4 who shall supervise the operation and management of the school in accordance 5 with the policies established by the board of trustees and who shall be under 6 the supervision of the superintendent. 7 4. (4) To employ assistant superintendents and principals for a term 8 not to exceed two (2) years. Service performed under such contract shall 9 be included in meeting the provisions of section 33-515, Idaho Code, as a 10 teacher and persons eligible for a renewable contract as a teacher shall re- 11 tain such eligibility. The superintendent, the superintendent's designee, 12 or in a school district that does not employ a superintendent, the board 13 of trustees, shall conduct an annual, written evaluation of each such em- 14 ployee's performance to be completed no later than June 1. 15 5. (5) To suspend, grant leave of absence, place on probation or dis- 16 charge certificated professional personnel for a material violation of any 17 lawful rules or regulations of the board of trustees or of the state board of 18 education, or for any conduct which that could constitute grounds for revo- 19 cation of a teaching certificate. Any certificated professional employee, 20 except the superintendent, may be discharged during a contract term under 21 the following procedures: 22 (a) The superintendent or any other duly authorized administrative of- 23 ficer of the school district may recommend the discharge of any certifi- 24 cated employee by filing with the board of trustees written notice spec- 25 ifying the alleged reasons for discharge. 26 (b) Upon receipt of such notice, the board, acting through its duly 27 authorized administrative official, shall give the affected employee 28 written notice of the allegations and the recommendation of discharge, 29 along with written notice of a hearing before the board prior to any de- 30 termination by the board of the truth of the allegations. 31 (c) The hearing shall be scheduled to take place not less than six (6) 32 days nor more than twenty-one (21) days after receipt of the notice by 33 the employee. The date provided for the hearing may be changed by mutual 34 consent. 35 (d) The hearing shall be public unless the employee requests in writing 36 that it be in executive session. 37 (e) All testimony at the hearing shall be given under oath or affirma- 38 tion. Any member of the board, or the clerk of the board, may administer 39 oaths to witnesses or affirmations by witnesses. 40 (f) The employee may be represented by legal counsel and/or by a repre- 41 sentative of a local or state teachers association. 42 (g) The chairman of the board or the designee of the chairman shall con- 43 duct the hearing. 44 (h) The board shall cause an electronic record of the hearing to be made 45 or shall employ a competent reporter to take stenographic or stenotype 46 notes of all the testimony at the hearing. A transcript of the hearing 47 shall be provided at cost by the board upon request of the employee. 48 8 (i) At the hearing, the superintendent or other duly authorized admin- 1 istrative officer shall present evidence to substantiate the allega- 2 tions contained in such notice. 3 (j) The employee may produce evidence to refute the allegations. Any 4 witness presented by the superintendent or by the employee shall be sub- 5 ject to cross-examination. The board may also examine witnesses and be 6 represented by counsel. 7 (k) The affected employee may file written briefs and arguments with 8 the board within three (3) days after the close of the hearing or such 9 other time as may be agreed upon on by the affected employee and the 10 board. 11 (l) Within fifteen (15) days following the close of the hearing, the 12 board shall determine and, acting through its duly authorized adminis- 13 trative official, shall notify the employee in writing whether the evi- 14 dence presented at the hearing established the truth of the allegations 15 and whether the employee is to be retained, immediately discharged, or 16 discharged upon termination of the current contract. 17 (m) If the employee appeals the decision of the board of trustees to 18 the district court, the district court may affirm the board's decision 19 or set it aside and remand the matter to the board of trustees upon on 20 the following grounds and shall not set the same aside for any other 21 grounds: 22 (i) That the findings of fact are not based upon on any substan- 23 tial, competent evidence; 24 (ii) That the board of trustees has acted without jurisdiction or 25 in excess of its authority; or 26 (iii) That the findings by the board of trustees as a matter of law 27 do not support the decision. 28 (n) The determination of the board of trustees shall be affirmed unless 29 the court finds that the action of the board of trustees was: 30 (i) In violation of constitutional or statutory provisions; 31 (ii) In excess of the statutory authority of the board; 32 (iii) Made upon on unlawful procedure; or 33 (iv) Arbitrary, capricious or an abuse of discretion. 34 (o) Record augmentation on appeal: 35 (i) If, before the date set for any hearing at the district court, 36 application is made to the court for leave to present additional 37 evidence and it is shown to the satisfaction of the court that the 38 additional evidence is material, relates to the validity of the 39 board action and that there was good cause for failure to present 40 it in the proceeding before the board, then the court may remand 41 the matter to the board with direction that the board receive addi- 42 tional evidence and conduct additional fact-finding; 43 (ii) Any party desiring to augment the transcript or record may 44 file a motion in the same manner and pursuant to the same procedure 45 for augmentation of the record in appeals to the supreme court; and 46 (iii) The board may modify its action by reason of the additional 47 evidence and shall file any modifications, new findings or deci- 48 sions with the reviewing court. 49 9 6. (6) To grant an employee's request for voluntary leave of absence. 1 The board of trustees may delegate ongoing authority to grant an employee's 2 request for voluntary leave of absence to the district's superintendent or 3 other designee. Upon the superintendent or designee's granting of an em- 4 ployee's request for voluntary leave of absence, the board shall ratify or 5 nullify the action at the next regularly scheduled board meeting. 6 7. (7) To delegate to the superintendent or other designee the ongo- 7 ing authority to place any employee on a period of involuntary leave of ab- 8 sence should the superintendent or designee believe that such action is in 9 the best interest of the district. Upon the superintendent or designee's ac- 10 tion to place a certificated employee on a period of involuntary leave of ab- 11 sence, the board shall ratify or nullify the action of the superintendent or 12 designee at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board or at a special 13 meeting of the board should the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board 14 not be within a period of twenty-one (21) days from the date of the action. 15 (a) Where there is a criminal court order preventing the certificated 16 employee from being in the presence of minors or students, preventing 17 the employee from being in the presence of any other adult individual 18 employed at the school or detaining the employee in prison or jail, the 19 certificated employee's involuntary leave of absence shall be without 20 pay due to the certificated employee's inability to perform the essen- 21 tial functions of the employee's position. Without such a condition or 22 situation, the involuntary leave of absence shall be with pay. 23 (i) During the period of involuntary leave of absence without 24 pay, the salary of the certificated employee will be maintained 25 in a district-managed account. Should the certificated employee 26 return to the district for active employment subsequent to the 27 removal or dismissal of the court order, acquittal or adjudication 28 of innocence, the district shall remit the salary funds, less the 29 cost incurred by the district for the substitute hired to replace 30 the certificated employee. Further, should the certificated em- 31 ployee return to the district under the provisions established 32 in this subsection, the district shall arrange to have the cer- 33 tificated employee credited with the public employee retirement 34 system of Idaho (PERSI) for the certificated employee's time away 35 from work during the period of leave of absence. 36 (ii) During the period of involuntary leave of absence, the dis- 37 trict shall continue to pay the district's portion of monthly 38 costs associated with the certificated employee's health insur- 39 ance benefits. The assumption of this payment by the district 40 shall not alter the certificated employee's financial obliga- 41 tions, if any, under the policy. 42 (b) Should there be dual court orders preventing more than one (1) em- 43 ployee from being in the presence of one (1) or more other employees, all 44 employees subject to the court order shall be excluded from the school 45 pursuant to subsection 7.(a) of this section paragraph (a) of this sub- 46 section. 47 (c) If the period of involuntary leave of absence is due to the dis- 48 trict's need to conduct an investigation into the conduct of the cer- 49 tificated employee, and there are no related criminal investigation(s) 50 10 and/or investigations or criminal charges of any nature pending, the 1 administration shall complete its investigation within a period of 2 sixty (60) working days. On or before the sixtieth working day, the 3 administrative leave shall either cease and the certificated employee 4 shall be returned to his position of employment or the administration 5 shall advance a personnel recommendation to the board of trustees. If 6 a recommendation is advanced, the involuntary leave of absence shall 7 continue until such time as the district board has made its decision in 8 regard to the personnel recommendation with such decision effectively 9 concluding the involuntary leave of absence. If a related criminal 10 investigation is occurring and/or or criminal charges are pending, the 11 district shall not be bound to any limitation as to the duration of in- 12 voluntary leave of absence. The timelines established in this section 13 may be waived or modified by mutual agreement. 14 SECTION 6. SEVERABILITY. The provisions of this act are hereby declared 15 to be severable and if any provision of this act or the application of such 16 provision to any person or circumstance is declared invalid for any reason, 17 such declaration shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of 18 this act. 19 SECTION 7. APPLICABILITY. The provisions of this act shall apply to all 20 contracts entered into or amended on or after July 1, 2026, and shall apply to 21 any renewal or extension of any existing contract on or after that date. 22 SECTION 8. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby 23 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after 24 July 1, 2026. 25