Sponsors of a student assessment opt out bill are worried not only about a veto by Gov. John Hickenlooper, they fret that lawmakers won’t have an opportunity to override the possible action.

That’s because Senate Bill 223 won’t receive a hearing in the House Education Committee until April 27, less than two weeks before the Legislature adjourns.

That gives the House plenty of time to pass the measure, but past the deadline for a vote to override a potential veto from the governor. April 24 is the deadline for any bill that passes the General Assembly to receive a veto override vote.

Bill sponsors insist they are not putting the cart before the horse regarding the fate of the bill. They believe the measure, after having already received overwhelming support in the Senate, will pass the House — but that could be as far as it will go.

“I am concerned about that because the governor is not a big fan of Senate Bill 223,” said Rep. Steve Lebsock, D-Thornton, a House sponsor.

Lebsock’s concerns were justified during a press event Hickenlooper held on April 22, where he stood with former governors Bill Owens, a Republican, and Roy Romer, a Democrat, to affirm their support for standardized testing in K-12 schools.

When asked by The Statesman for his thoughts on Senate Bill 223, Hickenlooper said, “We obviously have great concerns with it.”

“But I want to see what the final version is,” Hickenlooper said. “I haven’t changed. I haven’t moved an inch in feeling that it is important that we have tests that are meaningful.”

The bill reinforces parents’ rights to opt their children out of state standardized testing. The bill also prohibits districts, schools and teachers from being penalized for low testing participation rates.

The legislation doesn’t create new opt out rights for parents, but it prohibits teachers or school administrators from applying any pressure on a parent or student who chooses to opt out.

The debate over school assessment testing has become the biggest education issue at the Capitol this session. Eleven bills related to K-12 testing have been introduced as a result of cries from many parents and teachers who feel they are overwhelmed with assessment mandates.

Those opposed to the opt out bill argue that assessments could become useless if a large number of students opt out of state tests. That would also make it difficult for parents to know where their child or district stands among others.

Bills to reduce testing in schools are receiving bipartisan support and sponsorship this session. Senate Bill 223 passed the Senate Education Committee in March on an 8-1 vote before passing the full Senate on a 28-7 vote.

A veto override requires a two-thirds majority in both chambers — which it surpassed in the Senate vote. But sponsors worry that none of that is going to matter by the time the bill gets to Hickenlooper’s desk.

“My concern is that, with the delay in hearing that bill, the governor may veto it out of session, which means it couldn’t be overturned,” said Sen. Chris Holbert, R-Parker, a Senate bill sponsor.

Holbert and Lebsock also wonder why the bill is being considered by the House Education Committee so late in the calendar. The bill was originally scheduled to be heard by the committee on April 13.

“And for some strange reason the bill has been delayed until April 27,” Lebsock said.

The Statesman attempted to reach House Education Committee Chairman John Buckner, D-Aurora, for comment. However, Buckner has been having health issues of late and was not available.

Committee Vice Chairwoman Brittany Pettersen, D-Lakewood, said the committee has been overwhelmed by education bills that have caused a log-jam in the agenda. They include House Bill 1323, a testing reduction measure, that has taken up much of the committee’s time.

But the sponsors wonder if the bill has been purposely delayed.

“I’m not making accusations, but it seems that the timing has been apparent,” Holbert said.

Lebsock agrees.

“I suspect that is the real reason (the) bill was rescheduled after the 24th,” Lebsock said of a possible override-proof veto.

Lebsock said it would be a shame if the governor vetoes the measure.

“It’s a basic fairness, common sense bill that simply states that if I choose to opt out my son from assessments then we’re not going to punish schools, school districts and teachers because of my choice,” Lebsock said.

But if former governors Owens and Romer offer any indication of Hickenlooper’s feelings on the bill, the legislation is in trouble.

“We need to be very careful in terms of allowing students to opt out of tests,” Owens said. “We don’t allow parents to choose to let their 16-year-old opt out of a driver’s test, for example, because there is an important state reason behind that driver’s test.”

Romer — who was largely seen as an education governor and who later became superintendent of Los Angeles Unified School District — was also forceful in his opposition to allowing students to opt out of standardized tests.

“The whole system has an investment that everybody takes a test,” Romer said. “To opt out is harmful to the system.”

— Twitter: @VicVela1