C.R.S. § 22-24-101 Short title
22-24-101. Short title. This article shall be known and may be cited as the "English Language Proficiency Act".
English Language Proficiency Act
C.R.S. tit. 22, art. 24
in effectC.R.S. § 22-24-102 Legislative declaration
22-24-102. Legislative declaration. (1) The general assembly finds that:
(a) There is a substantial number of students in Colorado who are English language learners;
(b) Local education providers must provide evidence-based English language proficiency programs for English language learners to enable them to develop and acquire English language proficiency while achieving and maintaining grade-level performance in academic content areas;
(c) To improve the educational and career opportunities for every student in Colorado, the state must ensure support for local education providers to establish evidence-based English language proficiency programs;
(d) The state and local education providers must enhance all educators' effectiveness in supporting English language development and in enabling English language learners to achieve and maintain grade-level performance in academic content areas;
(e) The state must develop an educator workforce that can support the educational approach and goals of local education providers to help ensure that English language learners are postsecondary and workforce ready at graduation;
(f) The state must appropriate and allocate moneys to local education providers to help ensure that English language learners are postsecondary and workforce ready at graduation;
(g) The department of education and the state board of education must hold local education providers accountable through the "Education Accountability Act of 2009", article 11 of this title, and by English language development measures mandated by this article for meeting the English language development and academic achievement goals for English language learners; and
(h) The department of education and the state board of education must recognize local education providers who provide effective English language proficiency programs by awarding grants through a competitive program that is supported with annual appropriations.
C.R.S. § 22-24-103 Definitions
22-24-103. Definitions. As used in this article, unless the context otherwise requires:
(1) "Charter school" means a charter school authorized by a district pursuant to part 1 of article 30.5 of this title or an institute charter school authorized by the state charter school institute pursuant to part 5 of article 30.5 of this title.
(2) "Department" means the department of education.
(3) "District" means a school district organized and existing pursuant to article 30 of this title or a board of cooperative services organized and existing pursuant to article 5 of this title.
(4) "English language learner" means a student who is linguistically diverse and who is identified pursuant to section 22-24-105 (2) as having a level of English language proficiency that requires language support to achieve standards in grade-level content in English.
(5) "English language proficiency program" means a program implemented by a local education provider that is designed to develop English language proficiency for an English language learner while enabling the English language learner to achieve and maintain grade-level performance in academic content areas.
(6) "Evidence-based" means the instruction or item described is based on reliable, trustworthy, and valid evidence that the instruction or item shows promise or has demonstrated a record of success in achieving objectives that are relevant to English language development, English language proficiency, and achievement in grade-level content for English language learners.
(7) "Facility school" means an approved facility school as defined in section 22-2-402 (1).
(8) "Local education provider" means a district, the state charter school institute, or a facility school.
(9) "State charter school institute" means the state charter school institute created pursuant to part 5 of article 30.5 of this title.
C.R.S. § 22-24-104 English language proficiency program established - funding
22-24-104. English language proficiency program established - funding. (1) There is established the state English language proficiency program to assist local education providers in administering and implementing English language proficiency programs for English language learners in kindergarten and grades one through twelve.
(2) (a) A student who is identified for inclusion in an English language proficiency program may receive funding pursuant to this section for up to a total of five budget years regardless of whether the student transfers enrollment among local education providers during the five years. The five budget years in which a student receives funding pursuant to this section are not required to be consecutive if a student exits an English language proficiency program and is subsequently re-identified for inclusion in an English language proficiency program. A student is not eligible for funding in a school year in which the student does not receive educational support through an English language proficiency program. The department shall allocate state moneys pursuant to this section on the student's behalf to the local education provider that enrolls the student.
(b) If a student was identified for inclusion in an English language proficiency program before May 21, 2014, and received state funding pursuant to this article as it existed before May 21, 2014, the department must include the budget years for which the student received funding before May 21, 2014, in calculating the five-year limit on funding for the student.
(3) (a) The general assembly shall annually appropriate money to the department to implement this section. The department shall allocate the money annually appropriated to local education providers on a per-pupil basis using the number of English language learners certified pursuant to section 22-24-105, subject to the time limit specified in subsection (2) of this section. The local education providers shall use the allocated amount to provide services to the certified English language learners.
(b) (I) The department shall distribute a portion of the amount annually appropriated to the department pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section to local education providers based on the percentage of certified English language learners who:
(A) Speak a language other than English and do not comprehend or speak English;
(B) Comprehend or speak some English but whose primary comprehension or speech is in a language other than English; and
(C) Are eligible for funding pursuant to the time limit specified in subsection (2) of this section.
(II) A student shall not be funded pursuant to this paragraph (b) for more than four hundred dollars per year or an amount equal to twenty percent of the state average per pupil revenues, as defined in section 22-54-103 (12), for the preceding budget year as determined by the department, whichever is greater.
ible for funding pursuant to the time limit specified in subsection (2) of this section.
(II) A student shall not be funded pursuant to this paragraph (b) for more than four hundred dollars per year or an amount equal to twenty percent of the state average per pupil revenues, as defined in section 22-54-103 (12), for the preceding budget year as determined by the department, whichever is greater.
(c) (I) The department shall distribute a portion of the amount annually appropriated pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section to local education providers based on the percentage of certified English language learners who are eligible for funding pursuant to the time limit specified in subsection (2) of this section and who comprehend and speak English and one or more other languages but whose English language development and comprehension is:
(A) At or below the mean of students enrolled in the local education provider or below the mean or equivalent on a nationally standardized test; or
(B) Below the acceptable proficiency level based on the assessments identified by the department pursuant to section 22-24-106 (1)(a).
(II) A student shall not be funded pursuant to this paragraph (c) for more than two hundred dollars per year or an amount equal to ten percent of the state average per pupil revenues, as defined in section 22-54-103 (12), for the preceding budget year as determined by the department, whichever is greater.
(4) Each local education provider shall provide English language proficiency programs for English language learners who are enrolled in the public schools operated by the local education provider; except that local education providers may cooperate in carrying out the provisions of this article.
(5) This article does not prohibit a local education provider from using the moneys allocated pursuant to this article for bilingual programs, English-as-a-second-language programs, or any other method of achieving the purposes of this article. A local education provider that administers any of these programs shall receive moneys pursuant to this article only on the basis of the number of English language learners enrolled in the programs.
C.R.S. § 22-24-105 Local education provider - duties
22-24-105. Local education provider - duties. (1) Each local education provider shall provide an English language proficiency program for all English language learners who are enrolled in the public schools of the local education provider.
(2) Each local education provider shall identify English language learners who are enrolled in the public schools of the local education provider using the state-approved assessment for English language proficiency. The local education provider shall annually certify to the department the number of English language learners who are enrolled in the public schools of the local education provider.
(3) Each local education provider shall annually report to the department the number of English language learners who exit the English language proficiency program.
C.R.S. § 22-24-106 Department of education - powers - duties - state board of education - rules
22-24-106. Department of education - powers - duties - state board of education - rules. (1) The department shall:
(a) Identify the English language proficiency assessments that local education providers must use to identify students who are eligible for inclusion in English language proficiency programs, which may include the assessments in use prior to May 21, 2014;
(b) Annually review the statewide levels of proficiency on the statewide assessments administered pursuant to section 22-7-1006 for those English language learners who are required to take the statewide assessment;
(c) Establish, by guidelines, any accommodations that a local education provider must allow and the circumstances in which a local education provider must allow the accommodations for English language learners who are taking assessments pursuant to section 22-7-1006.3;
(d) Provide guidance documents and technical assistance to assist local education providers in identifying and assessing English language learners and in developing, implementing, and evaluating English language proficiency programs;
(e) Identify, based on the certifications received from local education providers, the students who are counted as English language learners for purposes of calculating each local education provider's allocation of moneys pursuant to section 22-24-104 (3);
(f) Annually allocate the moneys appropriated for implementation of this article, including allocating the moneys specified in section 22-24-104 (3) on a per-pupil basis, using the number of English language learners identified pursuant to paragraph (e) of this subsection (1) and participating in the English language proficiency program;
(g) For each local education provider, monitor and report through the data portal operated pursuant to section 22-11-502, the number of English language learners who exit the English language proficiency program, the length of time English language learners remain in the English language proficiency program, and the number of English language learners who reenter the English language proficiency program;
(h) Disaggregate the data received through the state assessment program pursuant to section 22-7-1006.3 and report the English language proficiency and academic achievement of English language learners, while they are receiving services through the English language proficiency program and after they exit the English language proficiency program through high school graduation, as provided in part 5 of article 11 of this title; and
(i) Administer the English language proficiency act excellence award program created in section 22-24-107 and the professional development and student support program created in section 22-24-108.
(2) In implementing the provisions of this article, the department shall not require local education providers to submit reports or otherwise provide data that is required by or that the department collects under other state or federal data-collection or reporting statutory or regulatory requirements.
(3) The state board rules that are in effect to implement this article prior to May 21, 2014, may continue in effect after that date to the extent the state board finds that the rules continue to be appropriate, and the state board shall promulgate pursuant to the "State Administrative Procedure Act", article 4 of title 24, C.R.S., such additional rules as may be necessary to implement this article. The state board by rule may identify measures that are specific to the English language proficiency assessment, which measures the department must use to determine a local education provider's level of achievement in meeting the English language development and academic achievement goals for English language learners.
C.R.S. § 22-24-107 English language proficiency act excellence award program - created - rules - legislative declaration
22-24-107. English language proficiency act excellence award program - created - rules - legislative declaration. (1) There is created in the department the English language proficiency act excellence award program to award grants to local education providers and charter schools that achieve the highest English language and academic growth among English language learners and the highest academic achievement for English language learners who transition out of the English language proficiency program. The department shall administer the program by annually identifying, based on rules of the state board, the local education providers and charter schools that qualify for grants and distributing the moneys that the general assembly appropriates to the department for the program. The state board by rule shall set the grant amount based on the student enrollment of the local education providers and charter schools that qualify for grants and the concentration of English language learners enrolled by the local education providers and charter schools as a percentage of the total student enrollment. Subject to available appropriations, the department shall distribute the moneys in accordance with the rules to the local education providers and charter schools that qualify for the grants.
(2) The state board shall promulgate rules that create the criteria or measures that the department must apply to identify the local education providers and charter schools that achieve the highest English language and academic growth among English language learners and that achieve the highest academic achievement for English language learners who transition out of the English language proficiency program.
(3) (a) Each local education provider and charter school that receives a grant pursuant to this section, at the conclusion of each school year for which it receives a grant, must submit to the department:
(I) A data analysis and summary of the local education provider's or charter school's English language proficiency program; and
(II) A report of the local education provider's or charter school's use of the grant moneys received.
(b) The department shall provide the information received pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subsection (3) to local education providers and shall make the information available to the public through the data portal operated pursuant to section 22-11-502.
(4) Repealed.
(5) The general assembly finds that, for purposes of section 17 of article IX of the state constitution, the English language proficiency act excellence award program is an important component of an accountable program to meet state academic standards and, therefore, may be funded from moneys in the state education fund created in section 17 (4) of article IX of the state constitution.
C.R.S. § 22-24-108 Professional development and student support program - created - rules
22-24-108. Professional development and student support program - created - rules. (1) There is created in the department the professional development and student support program, referred to in this section as the "support program", to provide moneys to local education providers to:
(a) Offset the costs incurred in complying with the requirements specified in section 22-24-105 (3);
(b) Provide effective professional development activities related to teaching English language learners for all educators who may work with English language learners in the classroom; and
(c) Expand programs to assist students who, at any time, have been identified as English language learners in achieving greater content proficiency.
(2) (a) The department shall distribute the amount that the general assembly annually appropriates for the support program as follows:
(I) A portion of the amount annually appropriated to local education providers to provide services to English language learners, and professional development activities for educators who work with English language learners, based on the percentage of certified English language learners who:
(A) Speak a language other than English and do not comprehend or speak English;
(B) Comprehend or speak some English but whose primary comprehension or speech is in a language other than English; and
(C) Are eligible for funding pursuant to the time limit specified in section 22-24-104 (2); and
(II) The remaining portion of the amount annually appropriated to local education providers to provide services to, and to provide professional development activities for educators who work with, English language learners who comprehend and speak English and one or more other languages but whose English language development and comprehension is:
(A) At or below the mean of students enrolled in the local education provider or below the mean or equivalent on a nationally standardized test; or
(B) Below the acceptable proficiency level based on the assessments identified by the department pursuant to section 22-24-106 (1)(a).
(b) Each district shall annually distribute to each charter school one hundred percent of the amount that the district receives pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subsection (2) on behalf of the English language learners enrolled in each charter school for the applicable budget year. The moneys a district distributes to charter schools pursuant to this paragraph (b) are in addition to the moneys the district distributes pursuant to part 1 of article 30.5 of this title.
(c) The state charter school institute shall annually distribute to each institute charter school one hundred percent of the amount that the state charter school institute receives on behalf of the English language learners enrolled in each institute charter school for the applicable budget year. The moneys the state charter school institute distributes to institute charter schools pursuant to this paragraph (c) are in addition to the moneys the institute distributes pursuant to part 5 of article 30.5 of this title.
(3) Repealed.
(4) The general assembly finds that, for purposes of section 17 of article IX of the state constitution, the professional development and student support program is an important component of an accountable program to meet state academic standards and, therefore, may be funded from moneys in the state education fund created in section 17 (4) of article IX of the state constitution.
Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-22.docxFetched: 10/6/2026