Proposal to check Oklahoma students’ citizenship status draws bipartisan concerns in state House

OKLAHOMA CITY — Proposed rules that would require schools to collect Oklahoma students’ immigration status and mandate that teachers pass the U.S. Naturalization Test face bipartisan opposition in the state House.

Republicans and Democrats on the House Administrative Rules Committee expressed concerns with the proposals from the Oklahoma State Department of Education during a meeting Wednesday.

The immigration rule, which drew outcry from Gov. Kevin Stitt and many Oklahomans, could overstep the state agency’s authority, committee members of both political parties said.

The Oklahoma State Board of Education approved the rule on Jan. 28, sending it to the state Legislature for review.

The proposed rule would require schools to ask families to provide proof of citizenship or legal residency during enrollment. Schools would have to report to the state the number of children they enroll whose families were unable to provide this documentation.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters said he proposed the idea to better account for the resources needed in schools to accommodate immigrant students, like English learner programs. He said the state Department of Education would turn over the information to federal authorities, if asked, and would support immigration raids in schools.

Alabama enacted a similar law in 2011 for citizenship checks in schools, but a federal lawsuit later overturned the policy. Federal regulations forbid schools from asking students for their immigration status. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1982 that undocumented children cannot be denied access to public education.

House committee members Rep. John Waldron, D-Tulsa, and Rep. Clay Staires, R-Skiatook, both recommended a rejection of the immigration rule. Waldron said it could put an undue burden on schools, families and the state’s workforce and isn’t authorized by state law.

“I feel that if we allow this rule to come forward, we’re just going to replicate Alabama’s constitutional path, spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on lawsuits and end up back in the same place,” Waldron said during the meeting.

An administrative rule from a state agency isn’t an appropriate method of implementing citizenship checks in schools, Staires said. The state Legislature and the governor should have to approve legislation to create such a policy, he said.

The committee’s leader, Rep. Gerrid Kendrix, R-Altus, said he and his Senate counterpart, Sen. Micheal Bergstron, R-Adair, will review whether the rule has the proper basis in state law. He said some members of the House panel support the rule while others oppose it.

Over the coming week, the House and Senate will develop six resolutions that could approve and disapprove various state agency rules, including the Education Department’s, Kendrix said. If both chambers pass the resolutions, they would continue to the governor, who has pledged to block the immigration rule.

Stitt has been a vocal opponent of collecting children’s immigration information. He replaced three members of the state Board of Education who voted in favor of the proposed rule.

“I don’t think that President (Donald) Trump’s policies are talking about going after kids,” Stitt said during a news conference Wednesday. “He’s talking about criminals. He’s talking about criminal activity. He’s talking about getting those folks out of our country, secure our border, knowing who’s coming in. We agree with all that. I’m not going to start picking on 7, 8 year olds and putting them on a list.”

Kendrix said he’s mindful of the governor’s statements, as well as the voices of other Oklahomans who have spoken out against the rule, but it doesn’t change the committee’s approach.

“I respect the governor,” Kendrix said after the committee meeting. “I respect the governor’s opinion. He’s a part of this process. It’s a way our government is set up, and I respect that. But I also know that our responsibility is to take these rules, look at the statutes, look at the intent, look at the process and make the decision based on that.”

Another of Walters’ proposed rules also drew bipartisan concerns — one that would require all public school teachers to pass the U.S. Naturalization Test. Educators would have to take a written version of the citizenship test to earn or renew their teacher certification.

One of the committee members, Rep. Michelle McCane, D-Tulsa, was a teacher until she took office in November. She said the measure is a “slap in the face” to educators and could turn teachers away from the profession, which already has a critical workforce shortage.

Rep. Marilyn Stark, R-Bethany, said she spoke with experienced teachers who were against the test becoming part of renewing their certification.

“I, too, think that to require career teachers to go back to a test like this for recertification is a bit of overreach,” Stark told the committee. “It could be put into statute for incoming teachers initially, but I’ve had career teachers reach out to me that said they’re very good teachers, that said they would not do this and they would not renew.”

Waldron and Staires both suggested the committee reject a rule that would require schools to report to the Education Department’s Awareity system if a teacher resigns while under suspicion of child abuse or neglect. Awareity is a platform for reporting complaints to the state agency.

Waldron said he isn’t in favor of creating a rule reliant on a third-party vendor. Although not opposed to the idea, Staires said he also recommended disapproval because the regulation should come from legislation, not the administrative rulemaking process.

Kendrix said during the meeting that he questioned whether the rule is rooted in the necessary statutory authority. Administrative rules are meant to expound upon existing law.

Where Republicans and Democrats disagreed was over a rule impacting school counselors. The Education Department proposed a requirement that 80% of counselors’ total work time is spent on counseling services.

On top of providing mental health and career readiness support to students, counselors also are involved in administering state tests and other tasks.

The Oklahoma School Counselor Association has endorsed the 80% rule.

Waldron said it could infringe on school leaders’ local control and flexibility. Staires said the measure could protect counselors’ time. Both lawmakers are former educators.

“I don’t see this as a restriction,” Staires said during the meeting. “I see this as a protection. We want our counselors to be able to do what we hire them to do.”

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