Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 508 (2025GS)

Sponsor

Rep. MacPherson, Matt

Final action

Governor Signed 3/27/2025

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Spencer J. Cox

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• defines terms;
• creates a Data Systems and Reporting Advisory Committee;
• requires the state board to study LEA practices for collection and retention of student personally identifiable information;
• requires analysis of LEA student information system costs and capabilities;
• requires examination of LEA reporting requirements and potential sunset provisions;
• establishes requirements for stakeholder input and coordination;
• requires the state board to report findings and recommendations to the Education Interim Committee; and
• requires legislative review of recommendations.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

3
53E-3-526
0
School Data Amendments
2025 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Matt MacPherson
Senate Sponsor: Lincoln Fillmore
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill requires the State Board of Education (state board) to study and make 
recommendations regarding local education agency (LEA) data collection, retention, student 
information systems, and reporting requirements.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
defines terms; 
creates a Data Systems and Reporting Advisory Committee; 
requires the state board to study LEA practices for collection and retention of student 
personally identifiable information; 
requires analysis of LEA student information system costs and capabilities; 
requires examination of LEA reporting requirements and potential sunset provisions; 
establishes requirements for stakeholder input and coordination; 
requires the state board to report findings and recommendations to the Education Interim 
Committee; and 
requires legislative review of recommendations.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
ENACTS:
53E-3-526
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1, Section 
53E-3-526
 is enacted to read:
53E-3-526
. Student data systems and reporting study.
(1)
As used in this section:
(a)
"Advisory committee" means the Data Systems and Reporting Advisory Committee 
created in Subsection (3).
(b)
"Data retention schedule" means a schedule for maintaining and disposing of student 
data in accordance with Section 
63G-2-604
.
(c)
"Legacy system" means a student information system that:
(i)
was implemented before May 1, 2025; and
(ii)
may require manual data transmission to the state board in varying formats.
(d)
"Manual data transmission" means a process that requires LEA staff to:
(i)
extract data from a student information system;
(ii)
modify the data format; or
(iii)
manually enter data into a separate system.
(e)
"Reporting requirement" means any obligation that requires an LEA to submit data 
or information to the state board or another governmental entity established in:
(i)
statute;
(ii)
state board rule; or
(iii)
state board policy.
(f)
"Student information system" means a computer database that:
(i)
provides the functions described in Section 
53E-3-518
; and
(ii)
maintains student records and data over time.
(g)
"Student personally identifiable information" means student data that:
(i)
identifies a student; or
(ii)
is used by the holder to identify a student as defined in Section 
53E-9-301
.
(h)
"System modification" means a change to a student information system required or 
caused by:
(i)
statutory amendments;
(ii)
administrative rule changes; or
(iii)
state board policy updates.
(2)
The state board shall:
(a)
conduct a comprehensive study of LEA data practices, systems, and reporting;
(b)
coordinate with the advisory committee throughout the study process;
(c)
seek input from relevant stakeholders, including:
(i)
school district superintendents;
(ii)
charter school administrators;
(iii)
LEA technology directors;
(iv)
LEA student data managers;
(v)
the Utah School Boards Association;
(vi)
the Utah Association of Public Charter Schools;
(vii)
student information system vendors; and
(viii)
other parties the state board determines necessary; and
(d)
establish working groups as needed to examine specific study components.
(3)
The state board shall create a Data Systems and Reporting Advisory Committee that:
(a)
includes representatives from:
(i)
urban school districts;
(ii)
rural school districts;
(iii)
charter schools;
(iv)
the state board;
(v)
the Department of Administrative Services with expertise in regulations related to 
government records; and
(vi)
other stakeholders as determined by the state board;
(b)
provides guidance on study scope and methodology;
(c)
reviews preliminary findings and recommendations;
(d)
meets at least quarterly during the study period; and
(e)
assists in preparing the final report.
(4)
The advisory committee shall ensure the study of student data retention examines:
(a)
types of student personally identifiable information collected by LEAs, including:
(i)
information required by federal law;
(ii)
information required by state law;
(iii)
information required by administrative rule;
(iv)
optional information collected by an LEA; and
(v)
retention requirements for each type;
(b)
methods used by LEAs to:
(i)
store student personally identifiable information;
(ii)
secure stored data;
(iii)
control access to data;
(iv)
maintain data quality;
(v)
track data retention schedules; and
(vi)
dispose of outdated data;
(c)
compliance with:
(i)
retention schedules under Section 
63G-2-604
;
(ii)
privacy requirements under Chapter 9, Student Privacy and Data Protection;
(iii)
security standards established by the state board; and
(iv)
federal privacy laws;
(d)
potential requirements for:
(i)
annual data audits;
(ii)
regular purging of non-essential data;
(iii)
standardized retention schedules; and
(iv)
data disposal verification; and
(e)
fiscal and operational impacts of recommended changes.
(5)
The advisory committee shall ensure the study of student information systems examines:
(a)
current LEA expenditures for:
(i)
system licensing;
(ii)
hosting services;
(iii)
technical support;
(iv)
staff training;
(v)
data extraction;
(vi)
custom programming; and
(vii)
system modifications;
(b)
staff time required for:
(i)
manual data transmission;
(ii)
data validation;
(iii)
error correction;
(iv)
report generation; and
(v)
system maintenance;
(c)
frequency and cost of system modifications required by:
(i)
legislative changes;
(ii)
rule updates; and
(iii)
new data requests;
(d)
capabilities and limitations of:
(i)
current LEA systems;
(ii)
the state board system under Section 
53E-3-518
; and
(iii)
potential alternative solutions;
(e)
examples of statewide student information systems in other states;
(f)
analysis of:
(i)
total statewide spending on individual LEA systems;
(ii)
projected costs of a single statewide system;
(iii)
potential savings from consolidation;
(iv)
implementation challenges; and
(v)
transition requirements; and
(g)
recommendations for improving system efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
(6)
The advisory committee shall ensure the study of reporting requirements examines:
(a)
existing reporting obligations, including:
(i)
statutory reports;
(ii)
administrative rule reports;
(iii)
grant-required reports;
(iv)
federal reports; and
(v)
other regular data submissions;
(b)
for each identified requirement:
(i)
legal basis;
(ii)
intended purpose;
(iii)
current uses;
(iv)
submission frequency;
(v)
required data elements;
(vi)
collection burden; and
(vii)
continued relevance;
(c)
potential criteria for:
(i)
evaluating reporting necessity;
(ii)
consolidating similar reports;
(iii)
eliminating obsolete requirements; and
(iv)
sunsetting provisions;
(d)
methods to:
(i)
track reporting obligations;
(ii)
evaluate requirement impacts;
(iii)
coordinate review processes; and
(iv)
implement sunset procedures;
(e)
processes for:
(i)
annual reporting review;
(ii)
sunset recommendations;
(iii)
requirement reauthorization; and
(iv)
stakeholder input; and
(f)
proposed structures for:
(i)
managing reporting requirements;
(ii)
implementing sunset provisions; and
(iii)
maintaining transparency.
(7)
On or before September 15, 2025, the state board shall:
(a)
prepare a report that includes:
(i)
study findings related to student information systems as described in Subsection 
(5);
(ii)
stakeholder input related to student information systems;
(iii)
fiscal impacts;
(iv)
implementation considerations; and
(v)
specific recommendations for:
(A)
student information system improvements;
(B)
statutory changes related to student information systems;
(C)
rule modifications related to student information systems; and
(D)
implementation timelines; and
(b)
present the report to the Education Interim Committee.
(8)
On or before September 15, 2026, the state board shall:
(a)
prepare a report that includes:
(i)
study findings related to:
(A)
student data retention as described in Subsection (4); and
(B)
reporting requirements as described in Subsection (6);
(ii)
stakeholder input related to these components;
(iii)
fiscal impacts;
(iv)
implementation considerations; and
(v)
specific recommendations for:
(A)
data retention policies;
(B)
reporting requirement management;
(C)
statutory changes related to these components;
(D)
rule modifications related to these components; and
(E)
implementation timelines; and
(b)
present the report to the Education Interim Committee.
(9)
The Education Interim Committee shall:
(a)
review the state board reports described in Subsections 
(7)
 and (8);
(b)
accept public testimony on the recommendations;
(c)
evaluate implementation requirements; and
(d)
consider whether to recommend legislation for:
(i)
the 2026 General Session based on the report described in Subsection (7); and
(ii)
the 2027 General Session based on the report described in Subsection (8).
Section 2. 
Effective Date.
This bill takes effect on 
May 7, 2025
.
3-11-25 10:36 AM