Provides relative to student assessments (OR SEE FISC NOTE LF EX See Note)

House Bill 818 amends Louisiana's student assessment statutes to expand the scope of assessments subject to instructional time limitations and to establish new transparency and reporting requirements. The bill modifies R.S. 17:24.4(F) to broaden the two-percent instructional time cap to include not only standards-based assessments but also all other assessments required by federal law, state law, State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education rules, and local school governing authorities, including benchmarks and interim assessments. The bill simultaneously carves out specific categories from this limitation: college entrance exams, Advanced Placement exams, International Baccalaureate exams, industry-based credential exams, accommodations for students with exceptionalities or Section 504 plans, and teacher-selected routine classroom quizzes, tests, and examinations used for regular instruction and grading. Additionally, the bill mandates that any testing requirements not mandated by federal or state law must be administered only at the professional discretion of the classroom teacher based on instructional value and developmental appropriateness.

The bill substantially impacts school governing authorities, teachers, and the Department of Education by imposing new administrative obligations and protections. School governing authorities must now conduct annual reviews of benchmarks and interim assessments, post statewide mandated assessment schedules and locally adopted assessment schedules on their websites by specified deadlines, and submit compiled schedule information to the Department of Education, which must forward it to the legislative education committees. Teachers gain explicit protection through a provision prohibiting reprisals or adverse employment actions against educators who choose not to administer, score, or use district or school-mandated assessments that exceed state or federal requirements or lack instructional value in the teacher's professional judgment. The Department of Education must post a statewide mandated assessment schedule on its website in an accessible format with detailed information about each assessment, and must review and consolidate assessment mandates annually. The bill also adds to Louisiana's Parents' Bill of Rights for Public Schools the right to receive copies of these assessment schedules.

The bill operates within the existing framework of Louisiana's competency-based education program and state assessment requirements established in R.S. 17:24.4 and integrates with federal requirements including Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act provisions referenced through R.S. 17:1942. The State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is directed to promulgate rules under the Administrative Procedure Act to monitor and enforce compliance with the assessment time limitations and review requirements, including establishing complaint and corrective action processes for violations. The bill includes a limited waiver provision for school governing authorities with multi-year assessment contracts executed before August 1, 2026, allowing time to fulfill those obligations in one-year increments but prohibiting waivers for contracts entered into after that date. The legislation becomes effective upon the governor's signature and establishes implementation timelines beginning in the 2026-2027 school year, with the two-percent time limitation taking effect in the 2027-2028 school year.