TO:	Honorable Larry Taylor, Chair, Senate Committee on Education
FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:	SB15 by Taylor (Relating to virtual and off-campus electronic instruction at a public school, the satisfaction of teacher certification requirements through an internship teaching certain virtual courses, and the allotment for certain special-purpose school districts under the Foundation School Program.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted

This bill would authorize a school district to develop procedures and curriculum for virtual courses not provided by the Texas Virtual School Network (TXVSN) or required to meet TXVSN course standards.

The bill would also allow districts to earn Foundation School Program (FSP) funding based on the time a student participates in the virtual course provided through the local remote learning program as a full-time student in average daily attendance.

TEA does not anticipate that the bill would have a significant impact on average daily attendance. TEA does anticipate that there would be a minimal cost related to implementing the provisions of the bill, but this analysis assumes that those costs could be absorbed within existing resources. 

Local Government Impact

There would be costs to school districts who choose to operate virtual courses. Costs come from starting and maintaining virtual courses, designing policies to documents student participation and developing requirements related to tracking that participation, and the technology needed to design and maintain virtual courses and track participation.