HF1413 modifies Minnesota’s school performance reporting law to require the commissioner of education to include a new attendance measure in annual public school performance reports. The bill adds “consistent attendance” as a reported metric and defines it as a student attending more than 90 percent of school days while enrolled at a school, with the student enrolled for at least half an academic year to be counted. It also requires the Department of Education to post consistent attendance data for the 2024-2025 school year by September 1, 2025, and to continue posting updated annual data each year thereafter.
The bill also updates the timing and content of school performance reports generally. It adds consistent attendance to the list of data elements the commissioner must report, alongside academic performance, school safety, student engagement, English learner progress, student-to-teacher ratios, demographics, foster care and homelessness data, and extracurricular activities. The commissioner must continue to publish school performance reports annually on the department website, with deadlines tied to whether new assessment or English proficiency standards are in effect. The new attendance reporting provisions take effect July 1, 2025.
Impact
HF1413 amends Minnesota Statutes, section 120B.36, by expanding required school performance reporting and creating a statutory definition for consistent attendance. It affects the Minnesota Department of Education’s reporting obligations and requires public disclosure of attendance data at the school and district level as part of school performance reports. Schools and districts will be subject to the new reporting framework, and the commissioner may update posted data after the annual deadline to ensure accuracy.
Sentiment
Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee testimony or votes, the overall sentiment appears neutral and administrative rather than controversial. The bill is framed as a reporting and transparency measure focused on attendance data, with no indication in the available record of organized opposition or debate. Its purpose appears to be to give the public and policymakers a clearer picture of student attendance patterns and school performance.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the available committee or voting history. Potential areas of policy interest, however, include the choice of a 90 percent threshold for “consistent attendance,” the requirement that students be enrolled for at least half an academic year to count, and the public reporting of attendance data, which could raise concerns about comparability, data accuracy, or how attendance metrics are interpreted for schools serving highly mobile or vulnerable student populations. The bill also leaves implementation details to the commissioner, which may be a point of interest for school districts.
Requirements for gifted and talented programs and services modified, commissioner required to report gifted and talented program data, revenue increased, and money appropriated.
Gifted and talented programs and services requirements modifications provision, certain gifted and talented program data reported by the commissioner requirement, gifted and talented programs and services revenue increase provision, and appropriation
Read Act modified, appropriations cancelled; education innovation provisions modified; P-TECH approval process modified; Office of Achievement and Innovation established in the Department of Education; equity, diversity, and inclusion appropriation modified; school performance reporting system established; fund transfers for fiscal years 2025 through 2029 authorized; and school board authorized to not comply with recently enacted state laws or rules.
Payment rates established for certain substance use disorder treatment services, and vendor eligibility recodified for payments from the behavioral health fund.
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