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On 11/6/2019 the board requested that this emergency stage be extended until 5/7/2020.

Reason for Extension:
The Honorable Ralph Northam Governor of Virginia Patrick Henry Building 1111 East Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 Dear Governor Northam: The Virginia Board of Education seeks an extension to emergency regulations amending 8VAC20-131, Regulations Establishing Standards for Accrediting Public Schools in Virginia, pursuant to Section 2.2-4011 D of the Code of Virginia. The emergency regulations became effective on May 5, 2018, and expire on November 8, 2019. The Board approved permanent regulations to replace the emergency regulations at our July 25, 2019 meeting and on July 31, 2019, these regulations were submitted for regulatory review using the fast-track provisions of the Administrative Process Act. These regulations are awaiting review by your office, and following your approval, they will not become effective until after publication in the Virginia Register and a 30-day public comment period. These emergency regulations align the provisions for high school students to earn locally-awarded verified credits for students who entered the ninth grade before the 2018-2019 school year with those who entered the ninth grade in the 2018-2019 school year and thereafter. Locally-awarded verified credits are an option available to meet graduation requirements when a student fails to earn a verified credit by passing an end-of-course Standards of Learning test. Without these regulations, students subject to the graduation requirements in effect for students who entered the ninth grade before the 2018-2019 school year would be limited to locally-awarded verified credits in social studies and science, while their younger peers would be able to earn locally-awarded verified credits in English and mathematics, in addition to social studies and science. Should these regulations expire, some students could be unable to graduate if they anticipated using a locally-awarded verified credit in English or mathematics to meet graduation requirements. Despite the Board’s best efforts, the replacement regulations will not be approved before the scheduled expiration on November 8, 2019; therefore, the Board respectively requests the Governor extend the duration of the emergency regulations for a period of six additional months to allow the regulatory review process to be completed. Sincerely, Daniel A. Gecker President

This emergency extension request was approved by the Governor's office on 11/7/2019.