D.C. Law 24-252. Access to Advanced Placement Tests Act of 2022.

AN ACT

To require the District of Columbia Public Schools to permit non-enrollees to sit for Advanced Placement tests at the non-enrollee's right-to-attend school or a reasonable alternate location, to require that the Office of the State Superintendent of Education certify non-enrollees as eligible to sit for a test, to prescribe the timing and content of notice to be provided to non-enrollees on the timing and location of a test, and to require that the District of Columbia Public Schools and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education include information on non-enrollee's access to college preparatory standardized tests on their websites.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this act may be cited as the "Access to Advanced Placement Tests Act of 2022".

Sec. 2.

(a)(1) Beginning no later than 180 days after the effective date of this act, the District of Columbia Public Schools ("DCPS") shall permit a non-enrollee to sit for an Advanced Placement test ("test") at the student's right-to-attend DCPS school; provided, that the Office of the State Superintendent of Education ("OSSE") has certified to DCPS that the non-enrollee is eligible to sit for the test.

(2) OSSE shall certify a non-enrollee as eligible to sit for a test where:

(A) OSSE has received timely notification that the non-enrollee is participating in a homeschooling program for the school year in which the test is to be administered; and

(B) OSSE has received a timely request from the non-enrollee to register for the test.

(b) DCPS may offer a reasonable alternate location for a non-enrollee to take a currently offered test where the non-enrollee's right-to-attend school will not offer that test during the relevant school year or term.

(c) Where OSSE has certified to DCPS that a non-enrollee is eligible to sit for a test pursuant to subsection (a)(2) of this section, DCPS shall provide notice to the non-enrollee at least 30 days in advance of the test. The notice shall include:

(1) The date, time, and location that the non-enrollee will take the test; and

(2) Information on testing logistics, including an e-mail address and phone number that non-enrollees may use to contact DCPS about the test, and a link to information on the DCPS website on Advanced Placement testing for non-enrollees.

(d) A non-enrollee shall remit payment for test fees, processing fees, or costs incurred by OSSE, DCPS, or an individual school to administer a test by check made payable to the District of Columbia Treasurer.

(e) Beginning no later than 30 days after the effective date of this act:

(1) DCPS shall make available and maintain on its website information on how a non-enrollee may register for tests with OSSE, test day logistics, and any other relevant information, including a method for non-enrollees and their parents or guardians to contact DCPS with questions about testing under this act; and

(2) OSSE shall make available and maintain on its website information on how a non-enrollee may register for tests, a link to information on the DCPS website on Advanced Placement testing for non-enrollees and any other relevant information, including a method for non-enrollees and their parents or guardians to contact OSSE with questions about testing under this act.

(f) This act shall not be construed to require DCPS to offer a test to a non-enrollee student when that particular test will not be offered at any DCPS school during the relevant school year or term.

(g) For the purposes of this section, the term:

(1) "Non-enrollee" means a District resident of school age participating in a homeschooling program who is eligible to enroll at a DCPS school.

(2) "Right-to-attend school" means the DCPS school that a District resident of school-age may attend by right, based on the child's place of residence being located in the catchment area for that school.

Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement.

The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1-301.47a).

Sec. 4. Effective date.

This act shall take effect following approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30-day period of congressional review as provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1-206.02(c)(1)), and publication in the District of Columbia Register.