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HB 1288

Concerning the department of veterans affairs.

2023-2024 Regular Session Introduced by Jenny Graham and 3 co-sponsors

Creates a formal review process for alleged school-district noncompliance with education statutes, with the Attorney General investigating and issuing findings to guide enforcement.

House Rules "X" file.
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Bill Summary · HB 1288

Summary — HB 1288 (North Dakota)

A bill to create and enact a new section in chapter 15.1‑01 of the North Dakota Century Code to establish a process for interested persons to request review of a public school district’s compliance with education‑related state law, and to vest the Attorney General with responsibility for making determinations on such requests.

Main purpose and intent

  • Provide a formal, public process by which any "interested person" can request a review to determine whether a school district is complying with an education‑related state statute.
  • Centralize review and initial enforcement guidance with the Office of the Attorney General (AG), while involving the State Board of Public School Education in administering the intake process and rulemaking as needed.
  • Increase transparency and create an administrative pathway that can lead to adjudicative proceedings when noncompliance is alleged.

Key provisions

  1. Request initiation

    • An interested person may submit a request for review to the State Board of Public School Education to determine school district compliance with an education‑related state statute.
    • The State Board must develop and prescribe a form and the manner of submission for initiating the review.

  2. Public access

    • Each school district must post the Board’s review form and submission instructions on its public website.

  3. Attorney General review and disposition

    • The Attorney General shall review information submitted, investigate as necessary, and determine whether the school district is in compliance.
    • The AG may dismiss a request that exceeds the section’s purpose or fails to meet the Board’s filing requirements.

  4. Remedies and guidance

    • If the AG finds noncompliance, the AG must advise the school district of the findings and provide instructions on how to come into compliance.

  5. Evidentiary status and rulemaking

    • The AG’s findings are declared prima facie evidence in any adjudicative proceeding under chapter 28‑32 (administrative adjudications).
    • The State Board, together with the AG, may adopt rules to implement the section.

Who is affected

  • School districts: required to post the review form/instructions on their websites and to respond to AG findings/guidance.
  • State Board of Public School Education: responsible for creating the intake form and submission process and may adopt implementing rules.
  • Attorney General’s Office: assumes investigatory and decision‑making responsibilities under the new review process.
  • Interested persons (parents, community members, organizations): gain a formal administrative avenue to allege statutory noncompliance by districts.
  • Potential downstream effect on schools, administrators, and legal counsel due to investigations and possible administrative proceedings.

Procedural and timeline aspects

  • The bill requires the Board to prescribe the submission manner (form and process) before reviews can be initiated.
  • The AG conducts review and investigation timelines are not specified in the text; rulemaking is authorized to establish implementation details.
  • AG determinations are usable as prima facie evidence in subsequent administrative proceedings.

Potential impacts

  • Transparency and accountability: provides a public mechanism for scrutiny of statutory compliance.
  • Administrative workload: may increase investigative duties for the AG’s Office and administrative tasks for local districts (posting materials, responding to findings).
  • Legal consequence: AG findings carry evidentiary weight in administrative hearings, which could streamline enforcement but also raise potential for disputes and legal challenges.
  • Fiscal: the bill text does not specify funding; implementation could impose modest administrative costs (investigations, rulemaking) depending on caseload.

Legislative status and note on documents provided

  • According to the supplied bill information: Introduced Nov 13, 2024; status listed as “Second reading, failed to pass (yeas 24, nays 64).”
  • The supplied materials include multiple distinct bills and amendments from different states (other unrelated HB 1288 versions in Arkansas, Maryland, Illinois, Indiana, and Maryland fiscal notes). This summary focuses only on the North Dakota HB 1288 (creation of a school compliance review process). If you want, I can reconcile the disparate legislative histories or provide a summary of any of the other HB 1288 versions included in the materials.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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