The bill provides an additional $19,000,000 for aid for school mental health programs in the 2020-21 school year.

Summer school grants; urban school districts

Under current law, DPI must award a grant to a first class city school district (currently, only Milwaukee Public Schools) for the purpose of developing, redesigning, or implementing a summer school program. This bill expands the summer school grant program to include additional urban school districts. Under the bill, an urban school district is a school district that had a membership of at least 18,000 pupils in the previous school year. The bill requires DPI to annually allocate $2,000,000 to MPS and to allocate the remaining amount appropriated equally to the other urban school districts. The bill provides an additional $3,600,000 for summer school grants in the 2020-21 school year.

Tribal language revitalization grants

Under current law, a school board, CESA, or Head Start agency may apply to DPI for a grant to support instruction in one or more American Indian languages. Under this bill, beginning in the 2020-21 school year, an applicant also may apply to DPI for a two-year grant to develop, implement, and provide American Indian heritage, language, and cultural instruction programs for children participating in Head Start programs and for pupils in grades kindergarten to two.

The bill also authorizes DPI to contract with the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council, Inc., to implement and administer those grant programs and provides an additional $262,200 for tribal language revitalization grants in the 2020-21 school year.

WRS annuities for teachers returning to work

Under current law, if a WRS annuitant, or a disability annuitant who has attained his or her normal retirement date, is appointed to a position with a WRS-participating employer, or provides employee services to a WRS-participating employer in which he or she is expected to work at least two-thirds of what is considered full-time employment by the Department of Employee Trust Funds, the annuity must be suspended and no annuity payment is payable until after the participant again terminates covered employment.

This bill creates an exception to this requirement for an annuitant who retired from employment as a teacher with a school district who is subsequently rehired or provides employee services as a teacher after retirement if 1) the participating employer is a school district; 2) at least 30 days have elapsed from the date the person left covered employment with a school district; 3) at the time the person initially retires from a school district, the person does not have an agreement with any school district to return to employment; and 4) the person elects to not become a participating employee at the time the person is rehired as a teacher by a school district or enters into a contract to provide employee services as a teacher after retirement. In other words, the bill allows a teacher annuitant who retired from a school district to return to work as a teacher for a school district that is a participating employer and elect to not become a participating employee for purposes of the WRS, and instead continue to receive his or her annuity.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB821-ASA1,1 Section 1 . 20.005 (3) (schedule) of the statutes: at the appropriate place, insert the following amounts for the purposes indicated: - See PDF for table

SB821-ASA1,2 Section 2. 20.255 (1) (kt) of the statutes is created to read:

SB821-ASA1,6,8 20.255 (1) (kt) Tribal language revitalization grant program operations. The amounts in the schedule to pay operational and administrative costs incurred by the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council, Inc., to implement and administer the tribal language revitalization grant programs under s. 115.745. All moneys transferred from the appropriation account under s. 20.505 (8) (hm) 5m. shall be credited to this appropriation account. Notwithstanding s. 20.001 (3) (a), the unencumbered balance on June 30 of each year shall revert to the appropriation account under s. 20.505 (8) (hm).

SB821-ASA1,3 Section 3 . 20.255 (2) (ac) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB821-ASA1,6,15 20.255 (2) (ac) General equalization aids. The amounts in the schedule A sum sufficient for the payment of educational aids under ss. 121.08, 121.09, 121.095, 121.105, and 121.137 and subch. VI of ch. 121 equal to the amount determined by the joint committee on finance under s. 121.15 (3m) (c) in the 2020-21 fiscal year and biennially thereafter, and equal to the amount determined by law in the 2021-22 fiscal year and biennially thereafter.

SB821-ASA1,4 Section 4. 20.255 (2) (bd) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB821-ASA1,6,18 20.255 (2) (bd) Additional special education aid. The amounts in the schedule for A sum sufficient for the payment of aid under s. 115.881.

SB821-ASA1,5 Section 5. 20.255 (2) (da) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB821-ASA1,6,22 20.255 (2) (da) Aid for school mental health programs. The amounts in the schedule for aid to school districts and independent charter schools employ, hire, and retain pupil services professionals under s. 115.364.

SB821-ASA1,6 Section 6. 20.255 (2) (dj) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB821-ASA1,7,3 20.255 (2) (dj) Summer school programs; grants; urban school districts . The amounts in the schedule for grants to school boards districts for summer school grant programs under s. 115.447.

SB821-ASA1,7 Section 7. 20.505 (8) (hm) 5m. of the statutes is created to read:

SB821-ASA1,7,6 20.505 (8) (hm) 5m. The amount transferred to s. 20.255 (1) (kt) shall be the amount in the schedule under s. 20.255 (1) (kt).

SB821-ASA1,8 Section 8 . 40.22 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB821-ASA1,7,12 40.22 (1) Except as provided in sub. (2) and s. 40.26 (6), each employee currently in the service of, and receiving earnings from, a state agency or other participating employer shall be included within the provisions of the Wisconsin retirement system as a participating employee of that state agency or participating employer.

SB821-ASA1,9 Section 9 . 40.22 (2m) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB821-ASA1,7,20 40.22 (2m) (intro.) An Except as otherwise provided in s. 40.26 (6), an employee who was a participating employee before July 1, 2011, who is not expected to work at least one-third of what is considered full-time employment by the department, as determined by rule, and who is not otherwise excluded under sub. (2) from becoming a participating employee shall become a participating employee if he or she is subsequently employed by the state agency or other participating employer for either of the following periods:

SB821-ASA1,10 Section 10 . 40.22 (2r) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read: