By Allen                                              H.B. No. 1315
       74R4275 CAS-D
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to providing vouchers for at-risk students attending a
    1-3  public school or students expelled from a public school.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Subchapter Z, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
    1-6  amended by adding Section 21.940 to read as follows:
    1-7        Sec. 21.940.  VOUCHERS.  (a)  A school district may provide a
    1-8  voucher to a district student who:
    1-9              (1)  is expelled from school under Section 21.3011; or
   1-10              (2)  is considered at risk of dropping out of school as
   1-11  provided by Section 21.557(f).
   1-12        (b)  A voucher provided to a student under this section must
   1-13  be used to pay tuition to a private school.
   1-14        (c)  A school district providing a voucher that a student
   1-15  uses to pay tuition to attend a private school is entitled to
   1-16  receive foundation school fund payments as if the student continued
   1-17  to attend a district school.  The district shall pay to the private
   1-18  school an amount equal to 80 percent of the amount of foundation
   1-19  school fund money and local funds the district spends per weighted
   1-20  student in average daily attendance for the portion of the school
   1-21  year for which the voucher is issued.
   1-22        (d)  The school district shall require a private school in
   1-23  which the student enrolls to provide to the district a record of
   1-24  the student's enrollment and may require periodic reports of the
    2-1  student's continued enrollment in and attendance at the private
    2-2  school.
    2-3        (e)  In accordance with State Board of Education rule and at
    2-4  the request of the parent or guardian of a student, a district may
    2-5  continue to provide funds for a voucher after the period of
    2-6  expulsion has ended or the student is no longer considered at risk
    2-7  of dropping out of school, as applicable.
    2-8        (f)  A private school accepting a voucher under this section
    2-9  must accept the payment from the school district as full payment
   2-10  for the student's tuition.
   2-11        (g)  The State Board of Education shall adopt rules as
   2-12  necessary to implement this section.
   2-13        (h)  For purposes of this section, "weighted student in
   2-14  average daily attendance" is computed in the manner provided by
   2-15  Section 16.302.
   2-16        SECTION 2.  A school district may issue a voucher under
   2-17  Section 21.940, Education Code, as added by this Act, beginning
   2-18  with the 1995-1996 school year.
   2-19        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   2-20  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   2-21  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   2-22  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   2-23  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
   2-24  and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
   2-25  passage, and it is so enacted.