By Gutierrez, Flores, Serna H.B. No. 437 75R3324 CAS-F A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to restricting written reports required of public school 1-3 classroom teachers. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Subchapter I, Chapter 21, Education Code, is 1-6 amended by adding Section 21.410 to read as follows: 1-7 Sec. 21.410. RESTRICTING WRITTEN REPORTS. (a) The board of 1-8 trustees of each school district shall adopt a policy to limit 1-9 redundant requests for information and the number and length of 1-10 written reports that a classroom teacher is required to prepare. 1-11 Except as provided by Subsection (b), a classroom teacher may not 1-12 be required to prepare a written report other than: 1-13 (1) a report of a student's grade on a particular 1-14 assignment or examination; 1-15 (2) a report of a student's grades at the end of a 1-16 grade reporting period; 1-17 (3) a textbook report; 1-18 (4) a unit or weekly lesson plan report that outlines, 1-19 in a brief and general manner, the information to be presented 1-20 during each period at the secondary level or in each subject or 1-21 topic at the elementary level; 1-22 (5) an attendance report; 1-23 (6) a report required for accreditation review; or 1-24 (7) any other report specifically required by law or 2-1 State Board of Education rule to be prepared by a classroom 2-2 teacher. 2-3 (b) If information is required under federal or state law, 2-4 regulation, or rule and the only reasonable manner in which to 2-5 collect the information is with the direct involvement of a 2-6 classroom teacher, the teacher may be required to provide the 2-7 information. 2-8 (c) The board of trustees shall review paperwork 2-9 requirements imposed on classroom teachers and shall transfer to 2-10 existing noninstructional staff a reporting task that can 2-11 reasonably be accomplished by that staff. 2-12 (d) This section does not preclude a school district from 2-13 collecting essential information, in addition to information 2-14 specified under Subsection (a) or (b), from a classroom teacher if: 2-15 (1) participation is entirely at the discretion of the 2-16 teacher and the school district does not directly or indirectly 2-17 coerce the teacher to participate; 2-18 (2) the decision not to participate is not held 2-19 against the teacher; and 2-20 (3) the commissioner promptly investigates any 2-21 allegation of the misuse of voluntary information-gathering 2-22 procedures that burden a teacher and circumvent compliance with the 2-23 statutory intent for paperwork reduction. 2-24 SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 1997-1998 2-25 school year. 2-26 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 2-27 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 3-1 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 3-2 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 3-3 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 3-4 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 3-5 passage, and it is so enacted.