Senator Massey proposes the following amendment (SR-62.KM0009S):

Amend the bill, as and if amended, SECTION 1, by striking Section 59-8-110(3)(b) and inserting:

  (a) is a resident of this State; and
  (b)(i) attended a public school in this State for at least ninety days during the previous school year;
   (ii) had not yet attained the age of five on or before September first of the previous school year but who has attained the age of five on or before September of the current school year; or
   (iii) received a scholarship pursuant to this chapter for the previous school year; and

Amend the bill further, SECTION 1, by striking Section 59-8-110(3)(b) and inserting:

   (ii) (b)(c)(i) in School Year 2025-2026, has a household income that does not exceed three hundred percent of the federal poverty guidelines; and

Amend the bill further, SECTION 1, by deleting Section 59-8-110(3)(b)(iii) from the bill.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 1, by striking Section 59-8-110(8) and inserting:

 (9)(8) "Resident school district" means the public school district in which the student is domiciledzoned for attendance.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 2, by striking Section 59-8-115(D) and inserting:

 (E)(D) The department shall approve an initial application for scholarship if:
  (1) the parent submits an annual application for a scholarship in accordance with the application and procedures established by the department;
  (2) the student on whose behalf the parent is applying is an eligible student;
  (3) funds are available for the ESTFscholarship; and
  (4) the parent signs an annual agreement with the departmentannually attests to the following:
   (a) to provide, at a minimum, a program of academic instruction for the eligible student in at least the subjects of English/language arts to include writing, mathematics, social studies, and science;
   (b) to acknowledge and agree to comply with the education service provider's prescribed curriculum, dress code, and other requirements of enrolled students;
   (c)(b) to ensure the scholarship student takes assessments as referenced in Section 59-8-150 or provides assessments in a similar manner through other means if the scholarship student does not receive full-time instruction from an education service provider;
   (d)(c) to use program fundsthe scholarship for qualifying expenses only for an approved provider to educate the scholarship student, subject to penalty;
   (e)(d) not to enroll their scholarship student in a public school as a full-time student in the resident school district, as defined in this chapter;
   (f)(e) not to participate in a home instruction program under Sections 59-65-40, 59-65-45, or 59-65-47;
   (g)(f) that includes documentation of the consultation process between the parent, the resident school district, the education service provider, and any school district that the education service provider contracts with under an IEP or services plan, for each scholarship student with a disability regarding the special education and related services, and the manner by which these services as listed in the student's IEP or services plan, will be provided to a scholarship student with a disability; and
   (h)(g) to confirm that, if the parent's child is a student with disabilities, the parent has received notice from the department that participation in the ESTF scholarship program is a parental placement of the scholarship student under IDEA, along with an explanation of the rights that parentally placed students possess under IDEA and any applicable state laws and regulations, including the consultation process provided for in 20 U.S.C. Section 1412(a)(10) and the Individual Education Program requirements described in Section 1414(d) of IDEA.
 (F)

Amend the bill further, SECTION 2, by striking Section 59-8-115(I) and inserting:

 (J)(I) The State Board of Education shall may promulgate regulations for the administration of the program as may be applicable.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 3, by striking Section 59-8-120(C) and inserting:

 (C) Upon request of the parent and approval of an eligible student's application by the department, the State Treasurer shall transfer the annual scholarship amount, as defined below, from the South Carolina Education Lottery Account to the K-12 Education Lottery Scholarship Fund:
  (1) In the first year of the program, the scholarship amount shall be six thousand five hundred dollars.
  (2) Each subsequent year, the scholarship amount shall increase in an amount equal to the percentage increase in an amount equal to the average per pupil funding from state sources for the prior academic year as provided by the Office of Revenue and Fiscal Affairs. to the Education Scholarship Trust Fund as directed by the General Assembly, unless an increased or decreased limit is authorized in the annual general appropriations act.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 4, by striking Section 59-8-125(E) and inserting:

 (E) Payments made by the department must remain in force until a parent or scholarship student is proven to have participated in a prohibited activity specified in this chapter, a scholarship student returns to a public school in his resident public school district, or a scholarship student graduates from high school or attains twenty-two years of age, whichever occurs first. A scholarship student who enrolls in his resident public school district is considered to have returned to a public school for the purpose of determining the end of the term. Any money remaining in the student's account reverts back to the K-12 Education Lottery Scholarship Fund.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 7, by striking Section 59-8-140(A)(3) and inserting:

  (3) An education service provider that participated in the program in the previous school year and desires to participate in the program in the current school year shall reapply to the departmentmust certify annually to the department that it meets all program requirements. The education service provider reapplying shall certify to the department that it continues to meet all program requirements. An education service provider required to administer academic testing shall provide to the department test score data from the previous school year. If individual student test score data is not submitted, then the department shall remove the education service provider from the program.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 7, by striking Section 59-8-140(E) and inserting:

 (E) The State Board of Education shall promulgate regulations to allow scholarship students to return to their resident schools districts during the course of their participation in the program.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 9, by striking Section 59-8-150(A)(3) and inserting:

  (3) not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin. This item shall not be interpreted to preclude any independent or religious educational provider from exercising an exemption allowed under federal law; and
  (4)(3) conduct and maintain records of completed criminal background checks on employees. An education service provider that is not an accredited or licensed school must submit documentation of completed criminal background checks to the department as part of their initial application. All education service providers must and exclude from employment anyone who:
   (a) is not permitted by state law to work in a school;
   (b) reasonably might pose a threat to the safety of students; or
   (c) is listed on federal, state, or other central child abuse registries.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 9, by striking Section 59-8-150(C)(1)(a), (b), and (c) and inserting:

   (a) ensure that each scholarship student in grades three through eight takes the SC Ready or SC Ready alternative summative assessment in English language arts, math, science or social studies as required of students in public schools in this State;
   (c)(b) in lieu of the assessments required by subitems (a) and (b), ensure that each scholarship recipient in grades three through eight takes a nationally norm-referenced summative assessment annually or a formative assessment at the beginning of the school year, at the end of the first semester, and at the end of the school year. The assessment must be approved by the department, aligned with state standards, and include a linking study;
   (d)(c) ensure that each scholarship student in grades nine through twelve takes a nationally norm-referenced or formative assessment approved by the department. . Students with disabilities for whom standardized testing is not appropriate are exempt from this requirement;

Amend the bill further, by deleting SECTIONS 11 and 12.

Renumber sections to conform.

Amend title to conform.