By Hernandez H.B. No. 1573
75R5402 CAS-F
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to public school employees.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 7.055, Education Code, is amended by
1-5 adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
1-6 (c) The commissioner shall prescribe a uniform system of
1-7 forms, reports, and records under Subsection (a)(4) in a manner
1-8 that provides for simplifying and reducing the number and length of
1-9 the written reports the agency requires from school districts and
1-10 school district employees.
1-11 SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 7, Education Code, is
1-12 amended by adding Sections 7.058 and 7.059 to read as follows:
1-13 Sec. 7.058. REVIEW OF WRITTEN REPORTS. (a) Biennially, the
1-14 commissioner shall conduct a comprehensive review of all of the
1-15 written reports required from school districts and school district
1-16 employees in an effort to reduce the number and length of reports.
1-17 (b) Not later than January 15 of each odd-numbered year, the
1-18 commissioner shall report to the legislature the number of written
1-19 reports required of school districts and school district employees,
1-20 the length of each of those reports, and any effort made to reduce
1-21 reporting requirements.
1-22 Sec. 7.059. TIME-MANAGEMENT IMPROVEMENT PLAN AWARDS. (a)
1-23 The commissioner shall develop and implement a program to evaluate
1-24 and reward school districts and school campuses for time-management
2-1 improvement plans developed under Section 21.404(c).
2-2 (b) A district- or campus-level planning and decision-making
2-3 committee under Subchapter F, Chapter 11, may nominate a school
2-4 district or school campus for an award. In making the nomination,
2-5 the committee shall use the procedure and form prescribed by the
2-6 commissioner.
2-7 (c) The commissioner may use not more than $25 million each
2-8 year from funds appropriated for that purpose to distribute to
2-9 districts and campuses that have earned awards under this section.
2-10 SECTION 3. Section 21.401, Education Code, is amended to
2-11 read as follows:
2-12 Sec. 21.401. MINIMUM SERVICE REQUIRED. (a) A contract
2-13 between a school district and an educator must be for a minimum of
2-14 10 months' service.
2-15 (b) An educator employed under a 10-month contract must
2-16 provide a minimum number of days of service as determined by the
2-17 following formula:
2-19 where:
2-20 "M D S" is the minimum number of days of service;
2-21 "R1" is equal to FSP/ADA as determined under Section 21.402
2-22 for the fiscal year; and
2-23 "R2" is equal to FSP/ADA as determined under Section 21.402
2-24 for the 1994-1995 school year.
2-25 (c) The result of the formula prescribed by Subsection (b)
2-26 shall be rounded to the nearest whole number.
2-27 (d) If the minimum number of days of service for a school
3-1 year is increased over the minimum number of days of service for
3-2 the preceding school year, the number of days of increase must be
3-3 used in equal proportion for additional days of staff development
3-4 and teacher preparation. For each succeeding school year, days
3-5 added for staff development and teacher preparation purposes under
3-6 this subsection shall continue to be used for those purposes.
3-7 (e) The commissioner, as provided by Section 25.081(b), may
3-8 reduce the number of days of service required by this section. A
3-9 reduction by the commissioner does not reduce an educator's salary.
3-10 SECTION 4. Subchapter I, Chapter 21, is amended by adding
3-11 Section 21.4011 to read as follows:
3-12 Sec. 21.4011. MAXIMUM WORK DAY. (a) Except as provided by
3-13 Subsection (b), a work day for a teacher is 30 minutes longer than
3-14 the school day established under Section 25.082.
3-15 (b) A school district may not require a teacher to attend
3-16 more than one school-related meeting or other activity each week
3-17 beyond the teacher work day unless the district compensates the
3-18 teacher for the time spent on the activity. The teacher shall be
3-19 compensated for the time based on a proportionate amount of the
3-20 teacher's daily rate of pay. For purposes of this section, a
3-21 teacher's daily rate of pay is the quotient of the teacher's salary
3-22 for a school year divided by the number of days of service for that
3-23 year as determined under Section 21.401.
3-24 SECTION 5. Section 21.404, Education Code, is amended to
3-25 read as follows:
3-26 Sec. 21.404. PLANNING AND PREPARATION [TIME]. (a) Each
3-27 classroom teacher is entitled to at least 450 minutes within each
4-1 two-week period for instructional preparation, including
4-2 parent-teacher conferences, evaluating students' work, and
4-3 planning. A planning and preparation period under this section may
4-4 not be less than 45 minutes within the instructional day. During a
4-5 planning and preparation period, a classroom teacher may not be
4-6 required to participate in any other activity.
4-7 (b) A teacher may not be required to use a teacher
4-8 preparation day prescribed under Section 21.401(d) for a purpose
4-9 other than performing classroom-related tasks such as planning or
4-10 preparing lessons, grading student work, or performing required
4-11 paperwork. A teacher may not be required to attend a
4-12 school-related meeting or other activity on a teacher preparation
4-13 day.
4-14 (c) In each school district, district and campus
4-15 administrators, in collaboration with the appropriate campus-level
4-16 planning and decision-making committees prescribed under Subchapter
4-17 F, Chapter 11, shall develop a plan to increase the amount of time
4-18 available during the teacher work day as defined by Section 21.4011
4-19 for preparation and for collaboration among teachers through the
4-20 use of strategies such as providing for:
4-21 (1) common planning and preparation periods for
4-22 teachers teaching at the same grade level or in the same
4-23 department;
4-24 (2) an additional conference period each month during
4-25 the teacher work day that is specifically designated for grade
4-26 level or department planning and preparation;
4-27 (3) the availability of an aide or school volunteer
5-1 for each grade level or department in each school facility to
5-2 perform duties such as clerical work, hall monitoring, and school
5-3 bus supervision;
5-4 (4) more efficient use of the regular instructional
5-5 day through block scheduling and reducing time permitted for class
5-6 changes;
5-7 (5) increased teacher access to technology;
5-8 (6) two non-teaching days each school year that a
5-9 teacher may use at the teacher's discretion to perform professional
5-10 duties;
5-11 (7) limiting the reports that teachers may be required
5-12 to prepare to those authorized under Section 21.410; or
5-13 (8) at least one-half day at the end of each grade
5-14 reporting period that a teacher may use for tasks such as
5-15 completing grade reports, performing required paperwork, or
5-16 preparing the classroom for a subsequent unit of study.
5-17 SECTION 6. Subchapter I, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
5-18 amended by adding Section 21.410 to read as follows:
5-19 Sec. 21.410. RESTRICTING WRITTEN REPORTS. The board of
5-20 trustees of each school district shall adopt a policy to limit the
5-21 number and length of written reports that a classroom teacher is
5-22 required to prepare. A classroom teacher may not be required to
5-23 prepare a written report other than:
5-24 (1) a report of a student's grade on a particular
5-25 assignment or examination;
5-26 (2) a report of a student's grades at the end of a
5-27 grade reporting period;
6-1 (3) a textbook report;
6-2 (4) a brief unit or weekly lesson plan;
6-3 (5) an attendance report;
6-4 (6) a report required for accreditation review; and
6-5 (7) any other report specifically required by law to
6-6 be prepared by a classroom teacher.
6-7 SECTION 7. Section 21.357, Education Code, is repealed.
6-8 SECTION 8. (a) Sections 3-6 of this Act apply beginning
6-9 with the 1997-1998 school year.
6-10 (b) The commissioner of education shall implement a time
6-11 management improvement plan award program as required by Section
6-12 7.059, Education Code, as added by this Act, not later than
6-13 September 1, 1998.
6-14 SECTION 9. The importance of this legislation and the
6-15 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-16 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-17 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-18 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
6-19 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
6-20 passage, and it is so enacted.