By Bivins S.B. No. 1206
75R9059 ESH-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to creation of a public education scholarship pilot
1-3 program for children assigned to attend certain low-performing
1-4 public schools.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Chapter 29, Education Code, is amended by adding
1-7 Subchapter J to read as follows:
1-8 SUBCHAPTER J. PUBLIC EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP PILOT PROGRAM
1-9 Sec. 29.351. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-10 (1) "Free school" means a nongovernmental educational
1-11 establishment that exists for the general education of elementary
1-12 or secondary students and that accepts funding from state and local
1-13 sources as provided by this subchapter in lieu of tuition for some
1-14 or all of its students. The term does not include a school that
1-15 provides education in a home setting or by the parent or that
1-16 limits enrollment to relatives of the staff of the school.
1-17 (2) "Parent" includes a guardian or custodian.
1-18 (3) "Private school" means a nongovernmental
1-19 educational establishment that does not accept funding from state
1-20 and local sources as provided by this subchapter in lieu of
1-21 tuition.
1-22 Sec. 29.352. ELIGIBILITY OF CHILD FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION
1-23 SCHOLARSHIP. (a) A child is eligible for a public education
1-24 scholarship under this subchapter if:
2-1 (1) the child is assigned to attend a public school
2-2 campus at which fewer than 50 percent of the students performed
2-3 satisfactorily on an assessment instrument administered under
2-4 Section 39.023(a) or (b) in reading, writing, or mathematics during
2-5 each of the preceding three years;
2-6 (2) the child's parent has chosen a district under
2-7 Section 29.201 for the child to attend using a public education
2-8 grant; and
2-9 (3) the district chosen by the child's parent has
2-10 rejected the child under Section 29.203.
2-11 (b) After a student has used a public education scholarship
2-12 to attend a free school, the student does not become ineligible for
2-13 the scholarship because the public school to which the student
2-14 would be assigned if the student were attending public school no
2-15 longer meets the criteria under Subsection (a)(1).
2-16 Sec. 29.353. PARENTAL CHOICE. (a) A school district shall
2-17 notify the parent of each child assigned to attend a campus
2-18 described by Section 29.352(a)(1) that the child is eligible for a
2-19 public education grant and that if the parent chooses another
2-20 district under Section 29.201 and that district rejects the child
2-21 under Section 29.203, the child is eligible to attend a free school
2-22 as provided by this subchapter.
2-23 (b) A child may attend private school but may not receive
2-24 funding from state and local sources for that purpose under this
2-25 subchapter.
2-26 Sec. 29.354. FINANCING. (a) Each school district is
2-27 entitled to receive state funding as provided by Chapter 42 and
3-1 other law.
3-2 (b) A child eligible under Section 25.001 to attend school
3-3 in a school district but who attends a free school under this
3-4 subchapter and who registers that free school choice with the
3-5 district shall be considered in determining the district's average
3-6 daily attendance under Section 42.005. The commissioner shall
3-7 adopt a procedure that a free school shall use to report the
3-8 average daily attendance of any student for whom the free school is
3-9 receiving public education scholarship funds under this subchapter.
3-10 Sec. 29.355. PUBLIC EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP. (a) A child's
3-11 public education scholarship is the amount of state and local
3-12 funding per student for the district in which the child resides. A
3-13 child's public education scholarship is the entitlement of the
3-14 child, under the supervision of the child's parent, is not an
3-15 entitlement of any school of any kind, and is paid to the school
3-16 solely as a means of administrative convenience.
3-17 (b) The state portion of the public education scholarship
3-18 consists of amounts spent on behalf of or paid to a school district
3-19 for textbooks under Chapter 31, the basic allotment under
3-20 Subchapter B, Chapter 42, special allotments under Subchapter C,
3-21 Chapter 42, other than the transportation allotment under Section
3-22 42.155, the allotment under Subchapter F, Chapter 42, and
3-23 assistance under Subchapter H, Chapter 42. The scholarship does
3-24 not include funds allocated from the available school fund or the
3-25 adjustments under Sections 42.102, 42.103, or 42.105.
3-26 (c) The local portion of the public education scholarship
3-27 consists of:
4-1 (1) for special education students, the average
4-2 expenditure per student of local funds and federal funds received
4-3 by the district for all students with disabilities in all
4-4 instructional arrangements under Section 42.151, other than
4-5 students in residential care and treatment facilities under Section
4-6 42.151(b); or
4-7 (2) for students other than those identified as
4-8 special education students, the average expenditure per student of
4-9 local funds, subtracting the local funds used to compute the amount
4-10 under Subdivision (1).
4-11 (d) An eligible child who attends a free school is entitled
4-12 to 80 percent of the child's public education scholarship. A free
4-13 school may not share with, refund to, or rebate to the parent or
4-14 child in any manner the child's public education scholarship. The
4-15 school district the child would otherwise attend on the basis of
4-16 residence is entitled to the remainder of the child's public
4-17 education scholarship funds.
4-18 Sec. 29.356. TRANSPORTATION BY DISTRICT. A school district
4-19 shall offer each child attending a free school under this
4-20 subchapter transportation free of charge to and from the public
4-21 school the child would otherwise attend to the extent the district
4-22 would be required to provide transportation if the child were
4-23 attending that public school.
4-24 Sec. 29.357. CONDITIONS FOR RECEIPT OF FUNDS BY FREE
4-25 SCHOOLS. To receive a child's public education scholarship funds,
4-26 the free school selected for or by the child must certify to the
4-27 comptroller that the school has complied with the conditions
5-1 imposed by Sections 29.358-29.365.
5-2 Sec. 29.358. ACCREDITATION. A free school included in the
5-3 public education scholarship pilot program must be accredited by a
5-4 private organization recognized by the commissioner, except that a
5-5 newly established free school may operate without such
5-6 accreditation if the school applies for accreditation before
5-7 accepting students under the pilot program. A newly established
5-8 free school that is not accredited before the second anniversary of
5-9 the date the school begins operation may not participate in the
5-10 public education scholarship pilot program.
5-11 Sec. 29.359. ADMISSIONS. (a) A free school may not refuse
5-12 to enroll a child on the basis of the child's residence, race,
5-13 national origin, ethnic background, religion, physical or mental
5-14 ability or disability, or academic achievement.
5-15 (b) A free school may not consider athletic ability or the
5-16 amount of a public education scholarship in any admission process.
5-17 (c) A free school may refuse to enroll a child who has been
5-18 expelled from a school district during the term of alternative
5-19 education program placement or expulsion.
5-20 (d) Except as provided by Subsection (e), a free school that
5-21 has more public education scholarship applicants than available
5-22 positions must give priority to students at risk of dropping out of
5-23 school as defined by Section 29.081 and must fill other positions
5-24 by lottery. A free school must declare the number of available
5-25 positions and conduct the lottery for the next school year not
5-26 later than July 1 of each year.
5-27 (e) To achieve continuity in education, a free school may
6-1 give preference over at-risk students to enrolled students and to
6-2 the siblings of enrolled students residing in the same household or
6-3 other children residing in the same household as enrolled students
6-4 for the convenience of parents of those children.
6-5 Sec. 29.360. SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES. (a) A free school
6-6 shall provide, either directly or contractually with other free
6-7 schools or public schools, the educational and related services
6-8 identified by the individualized education plan for each child with
6-9 a disability attending the school with a public education
6-10 scholarship.
6-11 (b) A free school shall develop a child's individualized
6-12 education plan using procedures similar to the admission, review,
6-13 and dismissal committee under 20 U.S.C. Section 1401(a)(20). In
6-14 developing the plan, the free school shall use the plan developed
6-15 by the school district of the child's residence as a starting
6-16 point.
6-17 (c) The individualized education plan developed by the free
6-18 school may not be implemented without the written approval of the
6-19 child's parent. If a parent objects to the plan, the free school
6-20 must submit the plan to the commissioner. Not later than the 30th
6-21 day after the date the commissioner receives a plan under this
6-22 section, the commissioner must determine if the plan appropriately
6-23 addresses the child's needs. If the commissioner determines that a
6-24 free school has repeatedly submitted inappropriate individualized
6-25 education plans, the free school is ineligible to participate in
6-26 the pilot program.
6-27 Sec. 29.361. BILINGUAL EDUCATION SERVICES. A free school
7-1 shall comply with requirements related to bilingual education under
7-2 Subchapter B in the same manner as a school district.
7-3 Sec. 29.362. LUNCH; TRANSPORTATION. A free school shall use
7-4 a portion of the public education scholarship funds it receives to
7-5 provide lunch and transportation to the school for each eligible
7-6 child attending the school under this subchapter. Transportation
7-7 is required only from the public school the child would otherwise
7-8 attend.
7-9 Sec. 29.363. TUITION; ADDITIONAL CHARGES AND FEES. A free
7-10 school may not:
7-11 (1) charge an eligible child attending the school
7-12 under this subchapter tuition in addition to the child's public
7-13 education scholarship; or
7-14 (2) assess any additional charge, other than a fee
7-15 that a school board is authorized to charge under Section 11.158,
7-16 for providing an educational program or service to such a child.
7-17 Sec. 29.364. EXPULSION OF STUDENTS. A free school may not
7-18 expel a student unless the student engages in an activity for which
7-19 the student may be expelled under Section 37.007.
7-20 Sec. 29.365. ACCOUNTABILITY. (a) Each free school shall
7-21 report to the commissioner concerning the school's performance on
7-22 the academic excellence indicators under Section 39.051.
7-23 (b) Each free school shall administer an assessment
7-24 instrument required under Subchapter B, Chapter 39, in the same
7-25 manner as the assessment instrument is administered to public
7-26 school students. To ensure the security of the assessment
7-27 instrument and the validity of the results, the commissioner shall
8-1 adopt rules and procedures for the administration of state-required
8-2 assessment instruments in free schools.
8-3 (c) For the purpose of demonstrating the effectiveness of
8-4 the public education scholarship pilot program, the commissioner
8-5 shall report and publish student assessment results in a manner
8-6 that allows comparisons between students attending free schools and
8-7 students attending public schools. The commissioner's report must
8-8 show statewide results and district and campus results, if district
8-9 and campus results can be included without directly or indirectly
8-10 identifying the students assessed. Copies of the commissioner's
8-11 report shall be made available for public inspection at each public
8-12 school and free school.
8-13 Sec. 29.366. EVALUATION OF PUBLIC EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP
8-14 PILOT PROGRAM. (a) The State Board of Education shall designate
8-15 an impartial organization with experience in evaluating school
8-16 choice programs to annually evaluate the public education
8-17 scholarship pilot program.
8-18 (b) An evaluation under this section must include a
8-19 comparison of each of the following factors before and after
8-20 implementation of the program:
8-21 (1) students' scores on assessment instruments
8-22 administered under Subchapter B, Chapter 39;
8-23 (2) student attendance;
8-24 (3) students' grades;
8-25 (4) incidents involving student discipline;
8-26 (5) socioeconomic data on students' families;
8-27 (6) parents' satisfaction with their children's
9-1 schools; and
9-2 (7) students' satisfaction with their schools.
9-3 (c) An evaluation under this section must examine the
9-4 effects of the program on:
9-5 (1) eligible children who receive a public education
9-6 scholarship and who enroll in a free school;
9-7 (2) eligible children who receive a public education
9-8 scholarship but who do not enroll in a free school; and
9-9 (3) eligible children who do not apply for a public
9-10 education scholarship.
9-11 Sec. 29.367. DUTIES OF COMPTROLLER. The comptroller shall
9-12 adopt rules, procedures, and forms for the payment of public
9-13 education scholarships to the free schools on behalf of parents of
9-14 students attending free schools. The comptroller's rules shall
9-15 provide for payment to a free school only after the school provides
9-16 services and only to the extent students receiving public education
9-17 scholarships attended school.
9-18 Sec. 29.368. STATUS OF FREE SCHOOLS. (a) Except as
9-19 required by federal law, including the Individuals with
9-20 Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.), a free
9-21 school is not a government agent or instrumentality, and the
9-22 conduct of a free school is governed by law governing private
9-23 conduct rather than law governing state action. The purpose of
9-24 this subchapter is to allow maximum freedom to the private sector
9-25 to respond to educational needs without excessive government
9-26 control, and this subchapter shall be liberally construed to
9-27 achieve that purpose.
10-1 (b) The State Board of Education, the commissioner, or the
10-2 comptroller may not in any way regulate the educational program of
10-3 a free school, except as necessary to ensure the school's
10-4 compliance with this title.
10-5 Sec. 29.369. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires August 31,
10-6 2009.
10-7 SECTION 2. The State Board of Education shall implement the
10-8 public education scholarship pilot program as provided by
10-9 Subchapter J, Chapter 29, Education Code, as added by this Act,
10-10 beginning with the 1998-1999 school year.
10-11 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
10-12 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
10-13 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
10-14 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
10-15 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
10-16 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
10-17 passage, and it is so enacted.