Letter to Legislative (Bill: HB0145 School Excused Absence Amendments)

• This Utah bill updates school attendance laws by defining new terms like “home-based microschool,” “micro-education entity,” and “instructor,” and clarifying what counts as a school-age child, truant, and truant minor.
• It tightens the definition of “absence” so that schools cannot simply add up multiple tardies to count as an absence for truancy purposes.
• The bill expands and clarifies what counts as a “valid excuse” for missing school, including illness (mental or physical), mental/behavioral health, family death, approved school activities, IEP/504-based absences, certain rodeo competitions, and some club or youth development events—plus other excuses a local board decides.
• For students with at least a 2.0 GPA, a parent can justify absences for additional reasons (such as mountain biking and shooting sports clubs, or Utah State University–administered youth programs), as long as those fit within the listed categories and local rules.

• You’re looking at a Utah bill that amends §53G-6-201 to define “home-based microschool” and “micro-education entity” and to tweak “valid excuse” for truancy.
• To see the full official context of your excerpt, you can read the current Compulsory Education definitions in Utah Code 53G-6-201 on Justia, which also links out to related sections on truancy and exemptions ((Justia, Utah Code 53G-6-201, 2025)).
• The bill you pasted looks closely related to “Education Entity Amendments,” a proposal that defines home-based education entities and micro‑education entities and gives them similar rights and zoning treatment as private and charter schools ((Utah Legislature, SB0013, 2024); see also a similar earlier bill SB0166: (Utah Legislature, SB0166, 2023)).
• For commentary and easier explanation, you might like news pieces that explain why lawmakers want to make it easier to open microschools and how “home-based microschools” (≤16 students) differ from “micro‑education entities” (≤100 students) ((Schott, Salt Lake Tribune, 2024); (MacDonald, Utah News Dispatch, 2024); for a pro‑microschool advocacy take, see (Libertas Institute, HB 126 explainer, 2026)).

You’re looking at Utah’s compulsory education / truancy law, so magazines on these kinds of issues will mostly be education‑policy and law/teaching magazines and journals rather than “Utah law” magazines only. Here are some places that regularly cover truancy, absenteeism, and alternative schooling (like microschools, homeschooling, etc.):

• Education Week (often called EdWeek) covers chronic absenteeism, truancy policy, and state law changes across the U.S., including Utah.
• Phi Delta Kappan (Kappan Magazine) runs articles for educators on attendance, equity, and discipline policy in K–12 schools.
• ASCD’s Educational Leadership magazine often has issues on student engagement, discipline, and policy that connect directly to compulsory education and “valid excuses.”
• American School Board Journal (from NSBA) focuses on how local boards handle attendance rules, liability, and new schooling options like microschools.