Increases the qualifications for school business officials, to better ensure fiscal accountability within school districts; school business officials shall be required to have: a post graduate degree in finance, accounting or related field; completed a semester long internship or fellowship focused on school financing or within a school business office; and participated in annual professional development classes; rural and/or small school districts could share school business officials through BOCES or an interschool district agreement, if a full time business official is not required.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5856
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 20, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CONTE, HAWLEY, KOLB, OAKS, RAIA, REILICH, SALADI-
NO, THIELE, WALKER -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BACALLES, BALL,
BARCLAY, FINCH, JORDAN, MILLER, O'MARA, SAYWARD, SPANO, TEDISCO, TOWN-
SEND -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to increasing the quali-
fications for school district business officials
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 2116-d
2 to read as follows:
3 § 2116-d. School district business officials. 1. On and after July
4 first, two thousand twelve, the board of education or other governing
5 board of a school district or board of cooperative educational services
6 shall be required to employ a certified school business leader who meets
7 the requirements of subdivision six of section three thousand three of
8 this chapter as the chief school business official of the district,
9 except that an incumbent who is serving as the chief school business
10 official on such date as a deputy, assistant, or associate superinten-
11 dent for business or other certified school administrator having profes-
12 sional responsibility for the business operation of the school district,
13 or in a position in the classified civil service as a school business
14 manager or the equivalent, may continue to be employed in such capacity,
15 provided that such individual successfully completes the examination
16 prescribed by the commissioner pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision
17 six of section three thousand three of this chapter no later than June
18 thirtieth, two thousand fourteen.
19 2. Every employment contract entered into, amended or extended by the
20 trustees of the board of education of a school district or a board of
21 cooperative educational services on or after July first, two thousand
22 ten with a deputy superintendent of schools for business, associate
23 superintendent of schools for business, assistant superintendent of
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04325-01-9
A. 5856 2
1 schools for business or other person having professional responsibility
2 for the business operation of the school district or with an individual
3 employed in a classified civil service position as a school business
4 manager or the equivalent shall include a clause requiring that such
5 employee complete the required continuing education coursework in
6 accounting and/or finance and professional development courses approved
7 by the commissioner in each year of the contract.
8 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regulation to
9 the contrary, on and after July first, two thousand twelve, expenses
10 incurred by school districts or boards of cooperative educational
11 services for the sharing of personnel to serve as a deputy superinten-
12 dent of schools for business, associate superintendent of schools for
13 business, assistant superintendent of schools for business or other
14 person having professional responsibility for the business operation of
15 the school district shall not be eligible for aid pursuant to subdivi-
16 sion five of section nineteen hundred fifty of this chapter or any other
17 provisions of law providing aid for the sharing of services, unless such
18 shared employee is certified as a school district business leader pursu-
19 ant to subdivision six of section three thousand three of this chapter.
20 § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 3003 of the education law, as added by
21 chapter 639 of the laws of 1990, is amended and a new subdivision 6 is
22 added to read as follows:
23 5. [The] For candidates who apply for a certificate on or before the
24 first day of September, two thousand eleven, the commissioner may
25 provide for the issuance of a certificate as deputy, associate or
26 assistant superintendent for business to any qualified person who meets
27 all of the requirements of subdivision one of this section, except those
28 contained in paragraph b of subdivision one of this section.
29 6. a. For candidates who apply for a certificate on or after the
30 second day of September, two thousand eleven, the commissioner shall
31 provide for the issuance of a professional certificate as a school
32 district business leader (deputy superintendent of schools for business,
33 associate superintendent of schools for business, assistant superinten-
34 dent of schools for business or other person having professional respon-
35 sibility for the business operation of the school district) in accord-
36 ance with this subdivision to any qualified person who meets all of the
37 requirements of subdivision one of this section, except those contained
38 in paragraph b of subdivision one of this section, and the requirements
39 of this subdivision.
40 b. The commissioner shall require that at least twenty-four semester
41 hours of the graduate courses required under paragraph a of subdivision
42 one of this section be in accounting and/or finance courses determined
43 by the commissioner to be relevant to the effective management of the
44 fiscal resources of a school district. The commissioner shall also
45 require candidates to successfully complete an examination that will
46 assess the candidate's knowledge of basic budgeting and accounting prin-
47 ciples and the state and federal laws and regulations relating to school
48 finance, when such examination becomes available. The commissioner shall
49 also require that candidates complete an internship requirement as part
50 of their graduate program that includes a full-time experience of at
51 least fifteen weeks in duration.
52 c. The commissioner shall establish an alternative pathway to such
53 certification, whereby a candidate who fulfills all other requirements
54 shall be deemed to meet the coursework and internship requirements for a
55 professional certificate if he or she holds a master's degree in busi-
56 ness administration or a master's degree in accounting.
A. 5856 3
1 d. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regulation to
2 the contrary, the commissioner shall be authorized to grant a waiver of
3 the coursework and internship requirements for a professional certif-
4 icate to candidates who, upon review of their transcript and experience,
5 are determined by the commissioner to be exceptionally qualified to
6 serve as a school district business leader.
7 e. The commissioner shall also require that the professional develop-
8 ment required under the regulations of the commissioner of all certif-
9 icate holders to maintain a professional certificate as a school
10 district business leader annually include a majority annually of
11 approved coursework in accounting and/or finance.
12 § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding
13 the date on which it shall have become a law.
