15-232. Division of adult education; duties

(Caution:  1998 Prop. 105 applies)

A. There is established a division of adult education within the department of education, under the jurisdiction of the state board of education, which shall:

1. Prescribe a course of study for adult education in school districts.

2. Make available and supervise the program of adult education in other institutions and agencies of this state.

3. Adopt rules for the establishment and conduct of classes for immigrant and adult education, including the teaching of English to foreigners, in school districts.

4. Devise plans for establishment and maintenance of classes for immigrant and adult education, including the teaching of English to foreigners, stimulate and correlate the Americanization work of various agencies, including governmental, and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the state board of education and the superintendent of public instruction.

5. Prescribe a course of study to provide training for adults to continue their basic education to the degree of passing an equivalency test approved by the state board of education.

6. Review, approve and monitor a fee structure that may be implemented by adult education providers to ensure they meet state and federal law and considers an individual's ability to pay.  The approved fee structure shall include a sliding scale fee schedule, based on household income, that shall be assessed to each individual participating in any program offered by the adult education provider.

B. The department of education shall provide classes under this section only to adults who are citizens or legal residents of the United States or are otherwise lawfully present in the United States. This subsection shall be enforced without regard to race, religion, gender, ethnicity or national origin.

C. The department of education shall report on December 31 and June 30 of each year to the joint legislative budget committee the total number of adults who applied for instruction and the total number of adults who were denied instruction under this section because the applicant was not a citizen or legal resident of the United States or was not otherwise lawfully present in the United States.