By: Barrientos S.B. No. 1535
97S0712/1
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the creation of the State Board of Communities In
1-2 Schools and the operation and expansion of a statewide Communities
1-3 In Schools program.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 305, Labor Code, is amended by adding
1-6 Subchapter E to read as follows:
1-7 SUBCHAPTER E. STATE BOARD OF COMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS
1-8 Sec. 305.041. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-9 (1) "Board" means the State Board of Communities In
1-10 Schools.
1-11 (2) "Commission" means the Texas Workforce Commission.
1-12 (3) "Communities In Schools, Inc." means the
1-13 established national Communities In Schools stay-in-school program
1-14 operating in Texas since 1979.
1-15 (4) "Private nonprofit corporation" means a
1-16 not-for-profit corporation incorporated in the State of Texas that
1-17 is exempt from federal taxation under Section 501(c)(3), Internal
1-18 Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. Section 501(c)(3)).
1-19 (5) "Program" means the state Communities In Schools
1-20 program.
1-21 (6) "Quality and Standards" means the Quality and
1-22 Standards set by the national Communities In Schools program.
1-23 (7) "State office" means the office established by the
2-1 State Board of Communities In Schools.
2-2 Sec. 305.042. ESTABLISHMENT OF BOARD. The State Board of
2-3 Communities In Schools is established to oversee the state
2-4 Communities In Schools, Inc., a private nonprofit corporation
2-5 established to oversee the operation and expansion of Communities
2-6 In Schools programs in the State of Texas.
2-7 Sec. 305.043. APPOINTMENT OF BOARD. (a) The board is
2-8 composed of five nonvoting ex officio members and 15 voting members
2-9 appointed in accordance with this section.
2-10 (b) The governor, with the advice and consent of the senate,
2-11 shall appoint nine voting members to the board. One member must be
2-12 from the private sector. One member must be a representative of a
2-13 state educators' association. Two members must be mayors or other
2-14 chief executive officers of a municipality. Two members must be
2-15 superintendents from public school districts. Three members must
2-16 be current chairs of local Communities In Schools boards and must
2-17 reflect the diversity of the state and shall remain members of the
2-18 state board only so long as they continue to serve as chairs of
2-19 their local board.
2-20 (c) The lieutenant governor shall appoint three voting
2-21 members to the board, who must be from the private sector.
2-22 (d) The speaker of the house of representatives shall
2-23 appoint three voting members to the board, who must be from the
2-24 private sector.
2-25 (e) The nonvoting ex officio members shall be the governor,
3-1 the executive director of the Texas Workforce Commission, the
3-2 commissioner of education, the commissioner of human services, and
3-3 the president of the Texas Communities In Schools Executive
3-4 Directors' Association, or their designees.
3-5 (f) Appointments to the board shall be made without regard
3-6 to the race, color, handicap, sex, religion, age, or national
3-7 origin of the appointees.
3-8 (g) Appointments must be representative of the ethnic
3-9 diversity of the Texas population and must reflect interests of the
3-10 major regions of the state.
3-11 (h) Other than the three members who are chairs of local
3-12 Communities In Schools boards, no other board member or employee of
3-13 a local Communities In Schools program may serve on the board.
3-14 (i) The 15 voting members of the board serve staggered
3-15 six-year terms, with the terms of five members expiring February 1
3-16 of each odd-numbered year. If a vacancy occurs during a term, the
3-17 appointing official shall appoint a replacement who meets the
3-18 requirements of the vacant office to fill the unexpired term.
3-19 (j) It is a ground for removal from the board if a member:
3-20 (1) does not have at the time of appointment the
3-21 qualifications required for appointment under Subsections (b), (c),
3-22 and (d);
3-23 (2) does not maintain during service on the board the
3-24 qualifications required by Subsections (b), (c), and (d);
3-25 (3) cannot discharge the member's duties for a
4-1 substantial part of the term for which the member is appointed
4-2 because of illness or disability;
4-3 (4) is absent from more than half of the regularly
4-4 scheduled board meetings that the member is eligible to attend
4-5 during a calendar year; or
4-6 (5) has a substantial conflict of interest that
4-7 precludes objective and independent judgment.
4-8 Sec. 305.044. EXPENSES. A member of the board is not
4-9 entitled to compensation but is entitled to reimbursement for
4-10 expenses incurred in performing the member's duties at the rate
4-11 provided in the General Appropriations Act.
4-12 Sec. 305.045. OFFICERS; MEETINGS. (a) At the first meeting
4-13 of every other calendar year, the board shall elect a chairman from
4-14 among its private sector members and other officers as appropriate
4-15 for a nonprofit corporation, except that a local Communities In
4-16 Schools board chair may not serve as chair of the board.
4-17 (b) The board shall meet quarterly and at other times as
4-18 necessary at the call of the chair or a majority of the voting
4-19 members of the board.
4-20 Sec. 305.046. POWERS AND DUTIES. (a) The board shall be
4-21 responsible for planning, developing, and implementing policies,
4-22 implementing national Communities In Schools, Inc., Quality and
4-23 Standards, and overseeing the operation of the Communities In
4-24 Schools, Inc., program in Texas and for replicating the program in
4-25 local communities throughout this state.
5-1 (b) In carrying out its responsibilities the board shall:
5-2 (1) adopt by-laws;
5-3 (2) establish a state office for the state Communities
5-4 In Schools program, which shall be separate and independent of the
5-5 commission;
5-6 (3) hire a state director for the state Communities In
5-7 Schools program;
5-8 (4) authorize the state director to hire staff
5-9 necessary to carry out program responsibilities;
5-10 (5) develop, in cooperation with the commission, a
5-11 five-year strategic plan and a two-year operational plan for
5-12 carrying out its responsibilities consistent with the state's
5-13 biennial planning and budgeting process;
5-14 (6) increase public awareness of the Communities In
5-15 Schools program throughout this state;
5-16 (7) adopt national Communities In Schools, Inc.,
5-17 Quality and Standards for the state office and local Communities In
5-18 Schools programs, as appropriate;
5-19 (8) identify and promote statewide initiatives to
5-20 improve local service delivery;
5-21 (9) expand collaborative partnerships with public and
5-22 private institutions to strengthen local program administration;
5-23 (10) provide technical assistance and support to local
5-24 communities interested in developing a Communities In Schools
5-25 program;
6-1 (11) support local Communities In Schools' efforts to
6-2 secure private sector and foundation funding;
6-3 (12) secure financial support for the state office;
6-4 (13) solicit and accept gifts and grants;
6-5 (14) protect the programmatic and fiscal integrity of
6-6 the state Communities In Schools program;
6-7 (15) provide start-up training for local programs in
6-8 collaboration with Communities In Schools, Inc.; and
6-9 (16) provide information to the commission required to
6-10 carry out its fiscal agent responsibilities for the program.
6-11 (c) The board shall establish a formula for allocating
6-12 funding to local Communities In Schools boards that takes into
6-13 account factors such as the local economy and the financial ability
6-14 of the local school district to assist the program and gives due
6-15 consideration to the rural areas of this state. The formula must
6-16 take into account the higher costs associated with local program
6-17 start-up.
6-18 (d) The board shall work with the Legislative Budget Board
6-19 and the governor's office to develop and implement performance
6-20 measures and standards for the state Communities In Schools
6-21 program.
6-22 (e) Not later than March 1 of each year, the board shall
6-23 report on the performance and expenditures of the state Communities
6-24 In Schools program, including the performance and expenditures of
6-25 the board, the state office, the commission, and all local
7-1 Communities In Schools programs in this state, to the governor, the
7-2 lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
7-3 representatives.
7-4 (f) Not later than November 1 preceding each regular session
7-5 of the legislature, the board shall present the results of an
7-6 evaluation of the program, including all local Communities In
7-7 Schools programs, to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the
7-8 speaker of the house of representatives. The board shall contract
7-9 with an independent third party to conduct the evaluation.
7-10 (g) The board may contract with Communities In Schools,
7-11 Inc., to provide training for local boards and their staffs to
7-12 support the implementation of national Quality and Standards.
7-13 Sec. 305.047. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE COMMISSION. (a) The
7-14 commission shall serve as the fiscal agent for the state
7-15 Communities In Schools program and shall work closely with the
7-16 board in carrying out fiscal responsibilities, which include but
7-17 are not limited to funds management and accounting, legal,
7-18 procurement, contracting, and fiscal monitoring services.
7-19 (b) The commission shall implement the policies and program
7-20 decisions of the board that do not violate federal or state law or
7-21 requirements of the program's funding sources.
7-22 (c) In carrying out its responsibilities the commission
7-23 shall:
7-24 (1) contract with local nonprofit Communities In
7-25 Schools boards that have been approved by the state office as
8-1 operational, that either have been certified by Communities In
8-2 Schools, Inc., or are actively seeking certification through the
8-3 state office, or that have been accepted by the board for start-up
8-4 as a local Communities In Schools program;
8-5 (2) provide technical assistance and data to assist
8-6 the board in establishing a funding formula for the allocation of
8-7 state funds to local Communities In Schools programs;
8-8 (3) contract with the board to support the board's
8-9 planning and operational responsibilities under this subchapter,
8-10 including arranging for an independent evaluation of the state's
8-11 Communities In Schools program;
8-12 (4) maintain the program's management information
8-13 system, make quarterly reports, and provide, as requested by the
8-14 board, for its annual report to the governor, the lieutenant
8-15 governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives and to
8-16 all of the program's funding sources as requested; and
8-17 (5) provide information as requested to support the
8-18 independent evaluation required by this subchapter.
8-19 Sec. 305.048. FUNDING ARRANGEMENTS. (a) All state funds
8-20 appropriated to the commission for the state Communities In Schools
8-21 program shall be available:
8-22 (1) to support local Communities In Schools programs
8-23 across the state;
8-24 (2) to support the board and its state office
8-25 operations; and
9-1 (3) to cover the direct costs of the fiscal agent
9-2 services provided by the commission.
9-3 (b) Available funds shall be allocated as follows:
9-4 (1) at least 90 percent shall be directly available to
9-5 local Communities In Schools boards to support local programs and
9-6 the delivery of services consistent with state plans; and
9-7 (2) not more than 10 percent shall be retained at the
9-8 state level to support board and commission activities authorized
9-9 under this subchapter. Of this amount 60 percent shall be
9-10 available to the commission to carry out its powers and duties and
9-11 40 percent shall be available to the board to carry out its powers
9-12 and duties. All board and commission activities, along with their
9-13 budgeted costs, shall be included in the state operational plan.
9-14 Sec. 305.049. AUDIT REQUIREMENTS. (a) The state auditor
9-15 will audit the state Communities In Schools program, including the
9-16 board, its state office, and the commission as the corporation's
9-17 fiscal agent.
9-18 (b) Local Communities In Schools programs will arrange for
9-19 an independent audit consistent with state requirements as a
9-20 condition for receipt of state assistance.
9-21 Sec. 305.050. SUNSET PROVISION. The board and the state
9-22 Communities In Schools program are subject to Chapter 325,
9-23 Government Code (Texas Sunset Act). Unless continued in existence
9-24 as provided by that chapter, the board and the program are
9-25 abolished and this subchapter expires September 1, 2001.
10-1 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
10-2 SECTION 3. (a) Appointment of the initial members of the
10-3 State Board of Communities In Schools created by Section 305.042,
10-4 Labor Code, as added by this Act, shall be made promptly after this
10-5 Act takes effect.
10-6 (b) Five of the initial voting members shall serve terms
10-7 expiring February 1, 1999, as follows:
10-8 (1) three members appointed by the governor, one of
10-9 whom must be a chair of a local Communities In Schools board, one
10-10 of whom must be a mayor or other chief executive officer of a
10-11 municipality, and one of whom must be a superintendent of a public
10-12 school district; and
10-13 (2) one member appointed by the lieutenant governor
10-14 and one member appointed by the speaker of the house.
10-15 (c) Five of the initial voting members shall serve terms
10-16 expiring February 1, 2001, as follows:
10-17 (1) three members appointed by the governor, one of
10-18 whom must be a chair of a local Communities In Schools board, one
10-19 of whom must be a mayor or other chief executive officer of a
10-20 municipality, and one of whom must be a representative from a state
10-21 professional educators' association; and
10-22 (2) one member appointed by the lieutenant governor
10-23 and one member appointed by the speaker of the house of
10-24 representatives.
10-25 (d) Five of the initial voting members shall serve terms
11-1 expiring February 1, 2003, as follows:
11-2 (1) three members appointed by the governor, one of
11-3 whom must be a chair of a local Communities In Schools board, one
11-4 of whom must be a superintendent of a public school district, and
11-5 one of whom must be from the private sector; and
11-6 (2) one member appointed by the lieutenant governor
11-7 and one member appointed by the speaker of the house of
11-8 representatives.
11-9 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
11-10 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
11-11 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
11-12 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
11-13 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.