HB188 Alabama 2024 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Terri CollinsRepresentative

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2024

Title

Public K-12 education, creates uniform process for suspension and expulsion of public school students, requires disciplinary hearing following long-term suspension or expulsion, St. Bd. of Ed. required to adopt rules

Summary

HB188 creates a uniform statewide due-process framework for suspensions, expulsions, and long-term disciplinary actions in Alabama public K-12 schools, including formal hearings and defined procedures.

What This Bill Does

HB188 establishes a uniform statewide system of procedural protections for suspensions and expulsions, including long-term disciplinary placements. Local boards must adopt rules about student behavior and discipline, with those rules approved by the State Board of Education. For long-term actions, the process includes a disciplinary hearing before the board or a designee, written notice to the student and parent, an opportunity for representation, access to evidence before the hearing, and a written decision within five school days after the hearing, with hearings occurring within 10 school days after the initial suspension if notice is responded to. The bill defines key terms (expulsion, long-term suspension, long-term placement) and requires consideration of factors like the student’s age, disciplinary history, seriousness of the violation, and whether a lesser intervention would address the behavior, while preserving rights under federal laws.

Who It Affects

• Public K-12 students facing long-term disciplinary actions (suspension, expulsion, or long-term placement) and their families, who gain a uniform due-process process, hearing rights, notice, representation, evidence access, and written decisions with appeal rights.
• Local boards of education and the State Board of Education, who must adopt and approve rules to implement the act and oversee the disciplinary process.

Key Provisions

• Defines expulsion (more than 90 but less than 180 days per incident), long-term suspension (more than 10 but less than 90 days per incident), long-term alternative school placement (more than 15 days per incident), and regular school environment.
• Requires local boards to adopt rules and regulations on pupil behavior and discipline; rules must be approved by the State Board of Education.
• Removals or other disciplinary actions must not deprive a student of equal and adequate education.
• Provides procedural protections for long-term actions, including a disciplinary hearing, written notice with time/place/nature, rights to representation, access to evidence, opportunity to present a defense, witness handling, and a written decision with appeal rights within specified timelines.
• Requires consideration of factors before disciplinary action: student age, disciplinary history, seriousness of violation, and whether a lesser intervention would address the behavior.
• Protects federal rights for students under IDEA, FERPA, and Section 504; the act does not infringe those rights.
• Effective date: October 1, 2024.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Education