Students with too many unexcused absences would be barred from playing sports and could lose their driver’s license under legislation approved by the state Senate Thursday.
“These are privileges,” said Sen. Jason Dickerson, R-Canton. “And this bill reinforces the connection between responsibility and opportunity.”
He carried the bill to address “chronic” absenteeism in public schools, defined as missing a tenth or more of the school year.
A legislative study committee learned last summer that more than one in five students had missed more than 15 days of school in 2024, nearly double the rate in 2019. The rate missing six to 15 days climbed to 42%, six points higher than in 2019.
The study committee heard proposals to address the problem, such as prohibiting participation in extracurricular and interscholastic sports and suspending driver’s licenses. Those are the punishments present in Senate Bill 513, co-sponsored by numerous senators, including several in leadership posts.
The punishment would only be a last resort.
Schools would have to first identify students at risk of missing too many days, then they would have to craft attendance intervention plans with the student and parents.
The student would have to sign the plan, and noncompliance would trigger the sanctions.
The measure was popular with both Republicans and Democrats.
“If we do not have kids’ butts in seats, they are not going to learn,” said Sen. RaShaun Kemp, D-Atlanta, who was a high school principal and now serves on the board of an Atlanta charter school.
One lawmaker had an issue with it, though.
Sen. Jaha Howard, D-Smyrna, who served on the Cobb County school board, said the idea was “wonderful,” but he also thought it burdensome for teachers, since the state would not help fund the mandates.
Among the requirements are that school districts assemble systemwide attendance review teams, with school-based teams required at schools with at least 15% of students chronically absent.
The measure passed 46-1, with Howard opposed. It now heads to the state House.
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