(HB1769)

GOVERNOR'S VETO

Pursuant to Article V, Section 6 of the Constitution of Virginia, I veto House Bill 1769, which directs the Chronic Absenteeism Task Force convened by the Department of Education to examine chronic student absenteeism and make recommendations to exclude certain student absences from the calculation of chronic student absenteeism.

Ensuring Virginia’s students are proficient in essential areas, especially considering the negative effects of closing schools during the pandemic, is of the utmost importance to my administration. The State Board of Education’s recent changes to the review of school district performance shed light on critical needs for our students. In order to address these needs, students must be in the classroom, a task that my Chronic Absenteeism Task Force is working to address.

This bill places Virginia out of alignment with federal education standards and changes the metrics related to absenteeism rather than working to address barriers to school attendance.

Accordingly, I veto this bill.