Act No. 141
Public Acts of 2008
Approved by the Governor
May 28, 2008
Filed with the Secretary of State
May 28, 2008
EFFECTIVE DATE: May 28, 2008
STATE OF MICHIGAN
94TH LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION OF 2008
Introduced by Senators Garcia, Allen, Birkholz, Richardville, Pappageorge, Kahn, Jelinek, Van Woerkom, Cropsey, Hardiman, George, Gilbert, Patterson, McManus, Cassis, Kuipers, Olshove, Jansen, Switalski, Stamas, Jacobs, Brown, Cherry, Barcia, Gleason, Whitmer, Sanborn, Bishop, Basham, Anderson, Schauer, Hunter, Scott, Clark-Coleman and Clarke
ENROLLED SENATE BILL No. 747
AN ACT to amend 1976 PA 451, entitled "An act to provide a system of public instruction and elementary and secondary schools; to revise, consolidate, and clarify the laws relating to elementary and secondary education; to provide for the organization, regulation, and maintenance of schools, school districts, public school academies, intermediate school districts, and other public school entities; to prescribe rights, powers, duties, and privileges of schools, school districts, public school academies, intermediate school districts, and other public school entities; to provide for the regulation of school teachers and certain other school employees; to provide for school elections and to prescribe powers and duties with respect thereto; to provide for the levy and collection of taxes; to provide for the borrowing of money and issuance of bonds and other evidences of indebtedness; to establish a fund and provide for expenditures from that fund; to provide for and prescribe the powers and duties of certain state departments, the state board of education, and certain other boards and officials; to provide for licensure of boarding schools; to prescribe penalties; and to repeal acts and parts of acts," (MCL 380.1 to 380.1852) by adding section 1138.
The People of the State of Michigan enact:
Sec. 1138. (1) If a pupil is absent from school for up to 1 full school day because his or her parent, legal guardian, or sibling is a service member being deployed on or returning from active duty, or if a pupil is absent from school for up to 2 full school days if the location of the deployment or return is more than 300 miles from the pupil's home, the school officials of a public school shall consider that absence to be an excused absence. The board of a school district or intermediate school district or board of directors of a public school academy shall ensure that their attendance policy is consistent with this section.
(2) This section does not prohibit a public school from considering an absence for a reason described in subsection (1) that is longer than the number of school days prescribed in subsection(1) to be an excused absence.
(3) As used in this section:
(a) "Active duty" means active duty pursuant to an executive order of the president of the United States, an act of congress, or an order of the governor.
(b) "Armed forces" means that term as defined in section 2 of the veteran right to employment services act, 1994 PA 39, MCL 35.1092.
(c) "Michigan national guard" means that term as defined in section 105 of the Michigan military act, 1967 PA 150, MCL 32.505.
(d) "Service member" means a member of the armed forces, a reserve branch of the armed forces, or the Michigan national guard.
This act is ordered to take immediate effect.
Secretary of the Senate
Clerk of the House of Representatives
Approved
Governor