By: Brown S.B. No. 1496 97S0461/1 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT 1-1 relating to restricting written reports required of classroom 1-2 teachers. 1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-4 SECTION 1. Subchapter I, Chapter 21, Education Code, is 1-5 amended by adding Section 21.410 to read as follows: 1-6 Sec. 21.410. RESTRICTING WRITTEN REPORTS. (a) The board of 1-7 trustees of each school district shall adopt policies to limit the 1-8 number and length of written reports that classroom teachers are 1-9 required to prepare. Classroom teachers shall not be required to 1-10 prepare written reports other than the following: 1-11 (1) reports of students' grades on specific 1-12 assignments or examinations; 1-13 (2) reports of students' grades at the end of each 1-14 grade reporting period; 1-15 (3) textbook reports; 1-16 (4) unit or weekly lesson plan reports that outline, 1-17 in a brief and general manner, the information to be presented 1-18 during each period at the secondary level or in each subject or 1-19 topic at the elementary level; 1-20 (5) attendance reports; 1-21 (6) any report or other paperwork specifically 1-22 required by law or State Board of Education rule to be prepared by 1-23 teachers; or 2-1 (7) reports required for accreditation review. 2-2 (b) With respect to reports or paperwork described in 2-3 Subsection (a)(6), districts shall review current requirements 2-4 imposed on classroom teachers and shall transfer reporting tasks 2-5 which can reasonably be accomplished by existing noninstructional 2-6 staff. If information is needed to comply with federal or state 2-7 requirements and if there is no reasonable way to collect the 2-8 information without the direct involvement of the classroom 2-9 teacher, teachers may be required to provide this information. 2-10 (c) Redundant requests for information shall be avoided. 2-11 (d) Nothing in this section shall preclude a school district 2-12 from collecting other essential information from classroom teachers 2-13 on a voluntary basis, provided that: 2-14 (1) participation shall be entirely at the discretion 2-15 of each individual teacher and no coercion, either direct or 2-16 indirect, shall be applied to pressure teachers to participate; 2-17 (2) a decision not to participate shall in no way be 2-18 held against the teacher; and 2-19 (3) the commissioner shall promptly investigate 2-20 allegations of misuse of voluntary information-gathering procedures 2-21 that burden teachers and circumvent compliance with the paperwork 2-22 reduction requirements of this section. 2-23 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997. 2-24 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 2-25 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.