AN ACT to grant a continuing professional license to any teacher LICENSED IN ANOTHER STATE AND TO MAKE OTHER CHANGES TO TEACHER LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑270.20(a)(4a) reads as rewritten:

(4a)    Limited license. – A three‑year nonrenewable renewable license issued to an individual who meets the requirements of this subdivision. A limited license shall only be requested by the local board of education currently employing or seeking to employ the individual and shall be used for continued employment only in that local school administrative unit. The State Board shall not require individuals to demonstrate preparation through achieving a prescribed minimum score on a standardized examination for a limited license. To receive a limited license, one both of the following shall be met:

a.         In‑state licensee. – Both of the following are met:

1.         The individual was issued an IPL or RL, but failed to fulfill examination requirements under G.S. 115C‑270.15 after three years of licensure.

2.b.      The local board of education submits to the State Board an affidavit stating that the teacher is currently employed by that local board, is an effective teacher, and will be encouraged to continue to pursue a CPL. The affidavit shall be signed by both the principal and superintendent for the school to which the teacher is currently assigned.

b.         Out‑of‑state licensee. – Both of the following are met:

1.         The individual holds current teacher licensure in another state that is in good standing.

2.         The local board of education submits to the State Board an affidavit stating that the local board seeks to employ the teacher, that the teacher has been employed as a licensed teacher in another state for at least three years, and that the teacher will be encouraged to pursue an IPL or CPL, as appropriate for that teacher. The affidavit shall be signed by the superintendent for the local board of education seeking to employ the teacher.

SECTION 2.  G.S. 115C‑270.25 reads as rewritten:

§ 115C‑270.25.  Out‑of‑state license applicants.

Initial applications for a continuing professional license from an individual with an out‑of‑state teacher's license shall require the applicant to provide evidence of that teacher's effectiveness, when available, as measured by the evaluation system used in that applicant's state of current licensure at the time of application, including any growth measures included in that evaluation system. An individual who does not include evidence of that teacher's effectiveness with the initial application shall only be eligible for an IPL or LL.The State Board of Education shall grant a CPL to a teacher licensed in another state with substantially similar licensure requirements who has at least three years of teaching experience and is in good standing with the other state.

SECTION 3.  G.S. 115C‑270.30(b) is amended by adding a new subdivision to read:

(6)      For a teacher renewing a limited license, an affidavit from the employing local board of education that is signed by both the principal and superintendent for the school to which the teacher is currently assigned. The affidavit must state all of the following:

a.         The teacher is currently employed by the local board of education.

b.         The teacher is an effective teacher. For teachers who have available growth data under the Education Value‑Added Assessment System (EVAAS), the data must demonstrate that the teacher meets or exceeds expectations of growth.

c.         The teacher will be encouraged to continue to pursue a CPL.

SECTION 4.  For limited license renewals that occur on or before July 1, 2025, the State Board of Education shall only require the teacher to meet the licensure renewal requirements in G.S. 115C‑270.30(b)(6), as enacted by Section 3 of this act.

SECTION 5.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to applications for licensure and renewal applications submitted on or after that date.