HB423 Summary

• Requires children who are five years of age on or before September 1 to enroll in kindergarten in Alabama public schools.

• Allows children under five years of age on September 1 to be admitted to kindergarten on a space-available basis if they transfer from a public kindergarten in another state or meet local board-established criteria including a developmental readiness assessment.

• Maintains existing requirements for first grade admission, requiring children to be six years of age on or before December 31 or the school start date.

• Prohibits public school systems from losing any teacher units as a result of this enrollment change and authorizes the State Board of Education to adopt implementation policies for local boards.

• Becomes effective June 1, 2020, and applies to Code of Alabama 1975, Section 16-28-4 regarding minimum age for school attendance.