DENVER - Colorado lawmakers Monday night appeared to have reached a compromise on student-testing reform efforts that they believe could receive a passing grade.
The House gave initial approval to a deal that would reduce testing, but not before questions surfaced over amendments to the legislation that caused lawmakers from both sides of the aisle to caucus for about 45 minutes later Monday night, revealing a divide.
A final recorded vote in the House could come Tuesday.
The sticking point has been ninth-grade assessments. A Senate version of legislation had not made ninth-grade assessments mandatory; a House version, however, had required those tests.
On Monday, both the House and Senate versions of legislation included the ninth-grade tests, leaving lawmakers optimistic a final proposal will be sent to Gov. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat, who has made it clear that ninth-grade assessments should be mandatory to preserve the state's evaluation system.
Senate Bill 257 passed the House Education Committee by a vote of 9-2, and House Bill 1323 passed the Senate Education Committee by a vote of 5-4. Both bills are nearly identical.
The Senate could take up the House proposal Tuesday. With the legislative session ending Wednesday, the clock is ticking.
"This is not perfect, but it is the result of some serious work between the House and the Senate, Republicans and Democrats, over the weekend to strike that right balance," said Rep. Millie Hamner, D-Dillon, co-sponsor of the Senate bill.
The bills would require testing in language arts and math in third and ninth grades, as well as science tests in each school level, including elementary, middle and high school. Students would not be required to take 10th- and 11th-grade assessments, though districts would have to offer those exams as an option, and there would be no change to social studies requirements. The college-readiness ACT exam would still be given in 11th grade.
Another area of contention has been local control. The Senate bill sought to extend to local districts more flexibility over what tests to administer. Lawmakers struck a compromise by proposing a pilot program that would allow districts to experiment with their own tests. But little consensus over that issue emerged Monday night, which is what led to the caucus.
"We're close to an agreement because no one is happy," said Rep. Jim Wilson, R-Salida, a co-sponsor of both the House and Senate proposals, who has been working on negotiations since the beginning of the legislative session.
Several unhappy stakeholders expressed their disappointment, suggesting that lawmakers should have challenged Hickenlooper to sign a bill that eliminated more tests and burdens.
"It's really unfortunate that others have sought a compromise versus really making the governor do his job and listen to the voters of Colorado," said Kerrie Dallman, president of the Colorado Education Association, which represents teachers in Colorado.
Much of the controversy has revolved around federal-testing standards, including those under Common Core. Lawmakers felt they were given a mandate by parents and teachers across the state.
Separate legislation that failed this year would have allowed parents to opt their children out of assessments without facing penalties. The current bills include a provision that would require notification to parents about their rights to opt students out. More amendments could be coming on that issue.
"I am very frustrated," said Sen. Laura Woods, R-Arvada, who has been vocal in seeking to reduce testing. "I think the parents are frustrated, the moms are frustrated. ... The bill doesn't reflect that they've been heard."
pmarcus@durangoherald.com
