Thread: NC:Critics say proposed school bill would violate fed law

Critics say proposed NC bill on illegal immigrants in schools would likely violate federal law

TOM BREEN Associated Press

12:40 p.m. EDT, May 31, 2011
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina lawmaker says schools should be required to keep track of the illegal immigrants in their student populations.

Rep. Dale Folwell of Forsyth County has introduced a bill to require school principals to record the citizenship and immigration status of new students at North Carolina schools.

The bill was up for discussion at the legislature Tuesday, where advocates and members of the public criticized the proposal. They say it will deter immigrant parents from enrolling their children in school.

Sarah Preston of the state American Civil Liberties Union chapter says the bill may violate federal law.

Folwell says the bill isn't intended to deny anyone access to schools. He says the measure would help provide a clearer picture of the costs of illegal immigration.

http://www.myfox8.com/news/sns-ap-nc-xg ... 6323.story
************************************************** *********
The bill:

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2011
H D
HOUSE DRH90078-LE-28 (01/1
Short Title: Safe Students Act. (Public)
Sponsors: Representatives Folwell, R. Brown, Hastings, and Torbett (Primary Sponsors).
Referred to:
*DRH90078-LE-28*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO ENACT THE SAFE STUDENTS ACT. 2
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 3
SECTION 1. This act may be cited as the "Safe Students Act." 4
SECTION 2. G.S. 115C-364(c) reads as rewritten: 5
"(c) The initial point of entry into the public school system shall be at the kindergarten 6 level. If the principal of a school finds as fact subsequent to initial entry that a child, by reason 7 of maturity can be more appropriately served in the first grade rather than in kindergarten, the 8 principal may act under G.S. 115C-288 to implement this educational decision without regard 9 to chronological age. The principal of any public school may shall require the parent or 10 guardian of any child presented for admission for the first time to that school to furnish (i) a 11 certified copy of the child's birth certificate, which shall be furnished by the register of deeds of 12 the county having on file the record of the birth of the child, or other satisfactory evidence of 13 date of birthbirth, as provided in Article 4 of Chapter 130A of the General Statutes and (ii) a 14 certificate of immunization as required by G.S. 130A-155." 15
SECTION 3. G.S. 130A-109 reads as rewritten: 16
"§ 130A-109. Birth certificate as evidence. 17
Certified copies of birth certificates shall be accepted by public school authorities in this 18 State as prima facie evidence of the age of children registering for school attendance, and no 19 other proof shall be required. In addition, certified copies of birth certificates shall be required 20 by all factory inspectors and employers of youthful labor, as prima facie proof of age, and no 21 other proof shall be required. However, when it is not possible to secure a certified copy of a 22 birth certificate, school authorities, factory inspectors and employers may accept as secondary 23 proof of age any competent evidence by which the age of persons is usually 24 established.established; school authorities may accept as secondary proof of age a certified 25 copy of any medical record of the child's birth issued by the treating physician or the hospital in 26 which the child was born or a certified copy of a birth certificate issued by a church, mosque, 27 temple, or other religious institution that maintains birth records of its members." 28
SECTION 4. G.S. 115C-366 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 29
"(g1) When a child first enrolls in or transfers into the public schools of a local school 30 administrative unit, the principal of the school to which the child is assigned shall require the 31 parent to state whether the child is a citizen or a national of the United States, and if the child is 32 not, the immigration status of the child. This information shall be used only for fiscal analysis 33 and shall not be used to deny admission to a child who is a domiciliary of the local school 34 administrative unit." 35
General Assembly of North Carolina Session 2011
Page 2 H744 [Filed]
SECTION 5. This act is effective when it becomes law and applies beginning with 1 the 2011-2012 school year. 2

http://www.ncga.state.nc.us/Sessions/20 ... H744v0.pdf

I'm thinking our government doesn't want us to know how much these kids cost us. If we realized just how much money illegals take from taxpayers there would be more of a revolt.

OMG! Thanks for posting this florgal, I am going to urge my Rep. to get on the band wagon! I would love to know how much of my tax dollars are going to educate these invaders. In my neighborhood alone I passed the kids waiting for the school bus. I observed a few American kids and about 30 Hispanic kids.

Originally Posted by nomas

OMG! Thanks for posting this florgal, I am going to urge my Rep. to get on the band wagon! I would love to know how much of my tax dollars are going to educate these invaders. In my neighborhood alone I passed the kids waiting for the school bus. I observed a few American kids and about 30 Hispanic kids.

Great!

Here are a couple of other North Carolina bills that need to come out of committee and to the floor for a vote:

HB 36 mandates E-Verify for local gov't contractors

SB 204 mandates E-Verify for local gov't contractors

(should be amended to include ALL employers/employees to verify eligibility)

SB 205 Requires applicants for public benefits to show certain documents to prove eligibility to receive those benefits.

chit! I should have waited 5 minutes before firing off my emails...LOL! Oh well, they will just hear from me twice today. Thanks!

Originally Posted by nomas

chit! I should have waited 5 minutes before firing off my emails...LOL! Oh well, they will just hear from me twice today. Thanks!

Illegal students targeted
Folwell offers measure to track illegal immigrants attending public schools


By BERTRAND M. GUTIERREZ | Winston-Salem Journal
Published: June 01, 2011

State Rep. Dale Folwell, R-Forsyth, said Tuesday that legislation he proposed would keep track of illegal immigrants in public schools with the overarching goal of stemming the flow of illegal immigration to North Carolina.

"We are having to make tough choices about what roads get paved, what folks get medical attention, what school teachers are going to have jobs … and how we're going to pay for them. And $1 spent on an illegal immigrant in any phase of government is a dollar taken away from somebody who's here legally," Folwell said.

Folwell's bill, known as HB744, would require principals to ask parents of new students to say whether the child is a U.S. citizen, and if not, to give the student's immigration status. The bill says that the information on immigration status would be used only for fiscal analysis and not to deny admission to any student.

All children are entitled to a public education, including children who are in the United States illegally, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1982.

That principle was reinforced in May, when the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights sent a letter warning school districts not to let enrollment policies lead to the exclusion of students based on their immigration status.

"You must ensure that you do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin, and that students are not barred from enrolling in public schools at the elementary and secondary levels on the basis of their own citizenship or immigration status," the letter reads.

The Folwell bill says it would not bar any child from getting an education, but Hispanic advocacy groups said it could have other consequences.

"Requiring children to register their immigration status with their schools will inevitably result in discrimination, harassment or exclusion. Plain and simple, the legislators who support these bills are unprincipled cowards," said a press release from the Raleigh-based N.C. Dream Team, an immigrant-rights youth advocacy group.

Folwell said, however, that policies must change to prevent illegal immigrants from choosing North Carolina as their home.

"The main thing I want is to answer the question: What policies are there at the state level that are making North Carolina a magnet for illegal immigration?" Folwell said. "I want to demagnetize this state."

This was the sixth time Folwell has introduced the bill in the four terms he has served in the state General Assembly.

The House Education Committee, which was considering the bill, didn't vote on the measure Tuesday. Its chairman, Rep. Bryan Holloway, R-Rockingham, said members would want to hear from the public and take time to think over the legislation first.

In Forsyth County, Don Martin, the superintendent of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, said: "As I understand, if this bill were passed, regardless of a parent's response, a student would be enrolled, which is consistent with federal law.

"I think that the intent is to get an idea of how many students are not here legally. Many people speculate on this number. The jury is out on whether this bill could accomplish that."

School board members had their own point of view of Folwell's bill.

"That's a little out of touch with reality," board member Victor Johnson said. "Dale is a friend of mine. I can understand his feelings about immigration. Some don't know the law, don't abide by the law. But the pressure should not be passed on to the kids."

Board member Jane Goins was more favorable toward the legislation, saying that the school system should be able to keep track of students who are illegal immigrants.

"I don't see why we shouldn't be able to do that. We all know it takes more money for non-English-speaking students, but I still think they're entitled to an education," Goins said. "There's no reason not to ask for information from our students. But we're responsible for the education of every child. That's it in a nutshell."

Folwell's bill also would try to deal with age disparities in the classroom, by requiring parents to submit birth certificates, Folwell said.

On that aspect, Martin said: "I don't envision that this bill will address age disparity in the classroom. Clearly inadequate records may place a student a year off from peers, but there is a certain amount of developmental disparity in every classroom and teachers always have to adjust."

www2.journalnow.com