Three bills to improve school board transparency await Gov. Matt Meyer’s approval amid dysfunction within the Christina School Board.
The Christina School Board has been in hot water for over a year after numerous FOIA violations, removal of the district’s superintendent who is suing over the decision and residency concerns around board member Naveed Baqir.
Board member Doug Manley is suing Baqir over his eligibility to serve on the board. Baqir has reportedly been living in Pakistan and attended meetings virtually for the past 16 months.
The three bills passed would require all school board meetings to provide a virtual option for the public, provide guidelines for when members can participate virtually and require member background checks.
A fourth piece of legislation, House Bill 82, awaits a final House vote — it already passed in the House once but requires a second round of approval following the addition of a Senate amendment. The bill would require a school board candidate and member be an inhabitant of the district they serve.
The Senate amendment adds an exception to the time required in the district to remain an inhabitant when a school board member’s absence is due to an event that can neither be anticipated nor controlled.
An example given on the floor by State Sen. Minority Whip Brian Pettyjohn (R-Georgetown) was if a board member's house burns down and their insurance pays for temporary housing outside the district they serve — this exception is also granted to members of the General Assembly.
The bills are reaching the finish line just days before an anticipated shakeup within the Christina School Board.
Christina School Board President Donald Patton announced during the board’s June 10 meeting that Baqir is expected to resign from the board in July, but not until after the Board votes on a new president July 8.
State Sen. Majority Leader Bryan Townsend (D-Newark) made comments on the floor tying the bill directly to Baqir’s case. He said a Christina School Board member texted him requesting the bill be passed unamended.
“I guess because his intent is to use this law, once signed into law by the governor, to try and declare a vacancy for a seat that is soon going to become vacant, and as I understand it, that battle is because the issue of whether or not a vote on the school board presidency occurs before the person resigns," Sen. Townsend explained to the Senate.
He ultimately voted yes on the bill, but not before expressing hesitation with meddling in the Christina School Board’s dysfunction.
“It's frustrating that the legislature is being asked to pass a law to try and sort it out when clearly, even when we pass this law, it's not going be sorted out, and I think we should be very very careful about changing the law in a way that affects people who are duly elected and currently serving," Sen. Townsend said.
"It doesn't mean the board member should be serving from overseas for as long as he has, even if he's attended all the meetings virtually. I guess I would just ask that people think very long and hard— someone, before he casts a vote for a president's spot, and then resigns, not sure you should do that even if you could, and before members of the board perhaps use this law, if signed into law by the governor quickly enough, to challenge the vacancy, rather than the public process," he added.
Only State Sen. Darius Brown (D-New Castle) voted against the bill's passage.
The four bills are part of a larger package introduced in March, but two of the bills sponsored by State Rep. Eric Morrison (D-Glasglow) are a little further behind in the legislative process.
One would codify FOIA training requirements for new board members — that bill still needs a full vote from the Senate — and the other would ensure board meeting recordings are posted publicly in a timely manner. That bill is missing several legislative steps and the rules would have to be suspended on Monday if it were to make it through the General Assembly before the end of the legislative session.
Last year, the state legislature included epilogue language in its fiscal year 2025 Grants-In-Aid bill instructing DOJ to "monitor the meetings of the Christina School Board for one year, commencing July 1, 2024. The monitoring will focus on transparency, adherence to public information laws, and other issues that may arise."
When asked about the status of the report, DOJ said it does not have any updates at this time.
