SB 685

Standards of Quality; school board policies; communication and language accessibility for limited English proficient parents; requirements; report. Requires each school board to develop, implement, and post in a publicly accessible location on its website a language access plan consisting of policies and procedures designed to ensure meaningful communication with and informational accessibility for limited English proficient (LEP) parents, as that term is defined in the bill. The bill directs each school board to annually submit to the Department of Education (the Department) a report on its activities relating to satisfying the requirements set forth in the bill. Finally, the bill (i) directs the Department to annually post and maintain in a publicly accessible location on its website each such annual report submitted by a school board; (ii) permits the Department to adopt such policies and procedures as it deems necessary for monitoring and enforcing each school board's compliance with the provisions of the section; (iii) directs the Department to develop and make available to each school board by September 1, 2026, guidance on the development and implementation of language access plans in accordance with the provisions of the bill; and (iv) directs the Department to designate one or more staff members to provide direct technical assistance and compliance support to school boards in implementing the provisions of the bill by the beginning of the 2027-2028 school year. The provisions of the bill requiring each school board to develop, implement, and annually submit to the Department a report on such language access plan; directing the Department to annually post on its website each report submitted by a school board; and permitting the Department to adopt policies and procedures for monitoring and enforcing compliance with the provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.