914

LAWS OF MARYLAND

Ch. 147

House Bill 1247 was amended to delete those provisions
which would have changed the Education Article. The purpose
of this was to limit the bill to a change in the law for
1978 only.

Even though the Education Article repealed or
transferred the provisions of old Article 77, the intent of
the amendment to House Bill 1247 was misconstrued and the
State Board of Education has treated the provisions of House
Bill 1247 (Chapter 671) as still effective.

This bill makes clear that the provisions of House Bill
1247, as amended, are no longer effective and that the
procedures specified in § 7-103(b) of the Education Article
are the only ones available to the State Board of Education;
now, therefore,

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL    ASSEMBLY OF

MARYLAND, That chapter(s) of the Acts of    the General

Assembly be repealed, amended, or enacted    to read as
follows:

Chapter 671 of the Acts of 1978

[SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF
MARYLAND, That section(s) of the Annotated Code of Maryland
be repealed, amended, or enacted to read as follows:

Article 77 - Public Education

73.

(a)   All persons between the ages of five and twenty
years shall be admitted free of charge to the public schools
of the State provided, however, that in those counties that
do not on July 1, 1971 provide kindergartens or which on
this date provide less than full kindergarten programs,
implementation of full kindergarten programs shall be phased
in by September of 1973, but in no event shall full programs
be mandatory before September of 1973 provided, however,
that full kindergarten programs shall be implemented by
September of 1970 in Allegany and Carroll counties. Except
as provided in (b), such public schools under the
jurisdiction of boards of education shall be kept open for
not less than one hundred eighty (180) actual school days
during the ten-month period of each school year.

(b)  Upon written application from a county board of
education or the Board of School Commissioners of Baltimore
City containing a description of a demonstrated effort by
the individual board to comply with the provisions of (a)
above, the State Board of Education may reduce the minimum
number of school days required in subsection (a) of this
section by not more than 10 school days, provided that this
reduction may be granted only for reasons of natural or
civil disaster or severe weather conditions which prevent
normal school attendance.