AN ACT to require school assignment zones that allow students the opportunity to attend the schools closest to their place of residence in onslow county schools.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑366(b) reads as rewritten:

(b)      Each local board of education shall assign to a public school each student qualified for assignment under this section. For students in middle and high schools, the local board of education shall establish zones of attendance reflecting the capacity of each school building and shall assign students to the geographically closest middle or high school to that student's residence. In the event that a school building has reached capacity, a local board of education shall reassign students to the next school with capacity geographically closest to that student's residence. The local board of education may assign students to attend other middle or high schools to participate in magnet or other special programs offered at those schools with parental consent. Except as otherwise provided by law, the authority of each board of education in the matter of assignment of children to the public schools shall be full and complete, and its decision as to the assignment of any child to any school shall be final.

SECTION 2.  Notwithstanding G.S. 115C‑366(b), as amended by this act, students enrolled in a middle or high school in Onslow County in the 2022‑2023 school year may, in the discretion of that student's parents, remain enrolled in that school until the student completes the grades offered at that school, rather than attend the school with capacity that is geographically closest to that student's residence. Except as provided in this section, Onslow County Schools shall assign students to the geographically closest school in accordance with G.S. 115C‑366(b), as amended by this act, beginning with the 2023‑2024 school year.

SECTION 3.  This act applies only to Onslow County Schools.

SECTION 4.  This act is effective when it becomes law.