Act 989 of 2011 amends various sections of the Arkansas Code. The Financial Accountability and Reporting Unit of the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) monitors district compliance to the codes listed below. These changes apply to all school districts and are effective with fiscal year 2011-2012. The wording below summarizes the changes Sections 2, 26, 53, and 58 in Act 989. Ark. Code Ann. § 6-11-129(a)(1)(B) clarifies that classified as well as licensed personnel policies are required to be on the district’s website. Ark. Code Ann. § 6-17-201(d) requires that a district post by September 15 itscurrent licensed personnel policies and salary schedules signed by the president of the school board to the district’s website and provide to the ADE the website address. Any school district not meeting the above requirement shall NOT receive in any year any additional funding from the Public School Fund until they have complied with the above requirement. Ark. Code Ann. § 6-17-915 changes the term “certified” and “non-certified” to “licensed” personnel and all “classified“ personnel, respectively. This is the section requiring the ex officio financial secretary in each district to file by October 1 of each year a list of all licensed and all classified personnel employed by the school district for the current year, annual salary of each employee, and any other information required by the ADE. This information is collected in state reporting Cycle 1. THIS MEANS THAT EVERY EMPLOYEE MUST BE TIED TO A SALARY SCHEDULE, REGARDLESS OF POSITION. Ark. Code Ann. § 6-17-2301(d) requires that a district post by September 15 its current personnel policies and salary schedules for classified employees, signed by the president of the school board, to the district’s website and provide to the ADE the website address. Any school district not meeting the above requirement shall NOT receive in any year any additional funding from the Public School Fund until they have complied with the above requirement. Summary Notes and other Requirements 1. The main thing to note from the above changes is that districts are no longer required to send licensed and classified personnel policies and salary schedules to the ADE in electronic format. 2. The licensed and classified personnel policies and salary schedules MUST BE posted at the very latest by September 15, preferably before that date. 3. The personnel policies and salary schedules MUST BE posted to the district’s website in a downloadable format, such as a PDF file, Microsoft Excel, or Microsoft Word. 4. Clearly identify the School Year for which the Salary Schedules and Personnel Policies are effective. This is especially important if more than the current schedules are kept on the district website. If there is no date, the ADE will not assume the schedule is for the current year.
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