HB3126

The filed bill, retained in the House committee report, applied only to school districts with 500 or fewer employees when electing to return. Darby’s first House amendment proposed adding charter schools and increasing the ceiling to 1,500 employees. But his adopted amendment to that amendment removed the employee-count condition altogether. Neither 500 nor 1,500 is a limit in the enacted law.

The Senate substitute changed references to districts and charter schools to the broader term entity. The Senate amendment packet contains that adopted substitute, which matches the final substantive text. The House concurred May 28. The amendment index lists the two House amendments; the Senate substitute is also important to understanding the outcome. All versions.

Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.

Qualifying former participants gained a chance to restore access to the school employee plan one year earlier than the ordinary five-year waiting period. Employees and dependents may benefit from their employer’s coverage choice, but the act does not promise lower premiums or reimburse earlier unpaid medical claims.

Returning entities bear the added fee and ordinary healthcare costs and give up the option to withdraw during the stated commitment period. The fee is intended to address the risks of early reentry; its amount and actual cost distribution are not specified in this act.

The May 25 final fiscal note anticipates no significant state fiscal impact, assuming implementation uses existing resources, but expressly says participating school districts would incur risk-stabilization fees and healthcare costs. That is not a finding that rejoining is cost-free. No appropriation is made.