By: Luna S.B. No. 1918
97S0987/1
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the operation and administration of the Texas School
1-2 for the Deaf.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 30.051, Education Code, is amended by
1-5 adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
1-6 (d) The school shall cooperate with public and private
1-7 agencies and organizations serving students and other persons with
1-8 hearing impairments in the planning, development, and
1-9 implementation of effective educational and rehabilitative service
1-10 delivery systems associated with educating students with hearing
1-11 impairments. To maximize and make efficient use of state
1-12 facilities, funding, and resources, the services provided in this
1-13 area may include conducting a cooperative program with other
1-14 agencies to serve persons who have graduated from high school and
1-15 who have identified needs related to vocational training,
1-16 independent living skills, and social and leisure skills.
1-17 SECTION 2. Section 30.052, Education Code, is amended by
1-18 amending Subsections (d) and (g) and adding Subsections (i) and (j)
1-19 to read as follows:
1-20 (d) The board shall organize and conduct itself in the same
1-21 manner as an independent school district board of trustees to the
1-22 extent that the organization and conduct do [does] not conflict
1-23 with the board's responsibilities relating to the status of the
2-1 school as a state agency.
2-2 (g) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, an
2-3 action of the board may be appealed to a district court in Travis
2-4 County. An action of the board related to a dismissal during the
2-5 term of a teacher's [professional employee's] contract or to a
2-6 nonrenewal of a teacher's [professional employee's] contract may be
2-7 appealed to the commissioner in the manner prescribed by Subchapter
2-8 G, Chapter 21. For the purposes of this subsection, the term
2-9 "teacher" has the meaning assigned by Section 30.055(a).
2-10 (i) The board may accept and retain control of gifts,
2-11 devises, bequests, donations, or grants, either absolutely or in
2-12 trust, of money, securities, personal property, and real property
2-13 from any individual, estate, group, association, or corporation.
2-14 The funds or other property donated or the income from the property
2-15 may be spent by the board for:
2-16 (1) any purpose designated by the donor that is in
2-17 keeping with the lawful purpose of the school; or
2-18 (2) any legal purpose, if a specific purpose is not
2-19 designated by the donor.
2-20 (j) The board may lease or allow the use of some or all of
2-21 the physical facilities of the school and shall adopt policies
2-22 implementing this subsection which may include establishing a fee
2-23 schedule for lease of the facilities to the following persons under
2-24 the following conditions:
2-25 (1) any organization, group, or individual at the
3-1 prevailing market rate; or
3-2 (2) a federal or state agency, a unit of local
3-3 government, a nonprofit organization, a school employee, or an
3-4 individual member of the general public at less than the prevailing
3-5 market rate if the board determines that sufficient public benefit
3-6 will be derived from the use.
3-7 SECTION 3. Subsection (b), Section 30.055, Education Code,
3-8 is amended to read as follows:
3-9 (b) The governing board of the school may enter into an
3-10 employment contract with any employee who provides, or supervises
3-11 any employee who provides, direct and regular educational services
3-12 to students or who provides other professional, educational
3-13 services. Each teacher shall be employed under a term contract as
3-14 provided by Subchapter E, Chapter 21, or under a probationary
3-15 contract as provided by Subchapter C, Chapter 21. An employee
3-16 employed under a contract under this subsection:
3-17 (1) shall be paid in accordance with a salary
3-18 structure adopted by the superintendent with the concurrence of the
3-19 board that provides salaries equal, on a daily-rate basis, to
3-20 salaries paid to employees employed in comparable positions by the
3-21 Austin Independent School District;
3-22 (2) is not eligible for longevity pay under Subchapter
3-23 D, Chapter 659, Government Code, and is not entitled to a paid day
3-24 off from work on any national or state holiday;
3-25 (3) is eligible for sick leave accrual under the
4-1 General Appropriations Act in each month in which at least one day
4-2 of the month is included in the term of the employment contract and
4-3 in any other month in which work is performed or paid leave is
4-4 taken;
4-5 (4) may be permitted by the board to use a maximum of
4-6 four days per contract term of accrued sick leave for personal
4-7 reasons as designated by the board but the number of sick leave
4-8 days not used for personal reasons during a contract term may not
4-9 be carried forward to a subsequent contract term for use as
4-10 personal leave;
4-11 (5) may be permitted by the board to be paid the
4-12 salary designated in the employment contract in 12 equal monthly
4-13 installments; and
4-14 (6) shall work the hours established by the board.
4-15 SECTION 4. Section 30.057, Education Code, is amended to
4-16 read as follows:
4-17 Sec. 30.057. Admission to Texas School for the Deaf.
4-18 (a) The Texas School for the Deaf shall provide services in
4-19 accordance with Section 30.051 to any eligible student with a
4-20 disability for whom the school is an appropriate placement if the
4-21 student has been referred for admission:
4-22 (1) by the school district in which the student
4-23 resides under the student's individualized education program; [or]
4-24 (2) by the student's parent or legal guardian, or a
4-25 person with legal authority to act in place of the parent or legal
5-1 guardian, or the student, if the student is age 18 or older, at any
5-2 time during the school year, if the referring person [parent or
5-3 legal guardian] chooses the school[:]
5-4 [(A)] as the appropriate placement for the
5-5 student rather than the placement in the student's local or
5-6 regional program recommended under the student's individualized
5-7 education program; or
5-8 [(B) according to rules adopted by the State
5-9 Board of Education with the advice of the school's governing board;
5-10 or]
5-11 (3) by the student's parent or legal guardian through
5-12 the student's admission, review, and dismissal [individualized
5-13 education program] committee, as an initial referral to special
5-14 education for students who are three years of age or younger.
5-15 (b) Prior to any referral by the student's parent or legal
5-16 guardian, or a person with legal authority to act in place of the
5-17 parent or legal guardian, or the student, if the student is age 18
5-18 or older, the local school district in which the referring person
5-19 resides shall have conducted a duly constituted admission, review,
5-20 and dismissal committee meeting at which the local school district
5-21 demonstrated the availability of an appropriate program for the
5-22 student which includes, if appropriate:
5-23 (1) respect for, use of, and development to an
5-24 appropriate level of proficiency of the student's unique
5-25 communication mode;
6-1 (2) educational service providers, as designated by
6-2 Section 29.304, who understand deafness and the hard-of-hearing
6-3 condition and teachers proficient in or interpreters certified in,
6-4 if certification is available, appropriate language modes;
6-5 (3) the company of peers using the same language mode
6-6 with whom the student can communicate directly;
6-7 (4) the opportunity to be exposed to deaf or
6-8 hard-of-hearing role models; and
6-9 (5) all other requirements contained in Subchapter I,
6-10 Chapter 29.
6-11 (c) The commissioner, with the advice of the school's
6-12 governing board, shall adopt rules to implement this section. The
6-13 rules adopted by the commissioner [under Subsection (a)(2)(B)] may
6-14 address the respective responsibilities of a student's parent or
6-15 legal guardian or a person with legal authority to act in place of
6-16 the parent or legal guardian, or the student, if age 18 or older,
6-17 the school district in which the student resides, and the school.
6-18 SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 30, Education Code, is
6-19 amended by adding Section 30.059 to read as follows:
6-20 Sec. 30.059. LEASE OF CERTAIN PROPERTY OF TEXAS SCHOOL FOR
6-21 THE DEAF FOR A DAY-CARE CENTER. (a) The Texas School for the Deaf
6-22 may lease available building space on either of the school's
6-23 campuses located at 1102 South Congress, Austin, Travis County, and
6-24 601 Airport Boulevard, Austin, Travis County, to a private provider
6-25 to provide a day-care center for children of the school's
7-1 employees, other state employees, and private customers.
7-2 (b) The school is authorized to determine a fair rental rate
7-3 for the property and may consider the actual benefits to be
7-4 received by the school's employees and students.
7-5 (c) The asset management division of the General Land Office
7-6 shall negotiate the terms of the lease and close the transaction on
7-7 behalf of the school as provided by Subchapter E, Chapter 31,
7-8 Natural Resources Code.
7-9 (d) Proceeds from the lease transaction conducted under this
7-10 section shall be deposited to the credit of the school in the
7-11 general revenue fund.
7-12 SECTION 6. Subsections (a), (d), and (e), Section 411.113,
7-13 Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
7-14 (a) The Texas School for the Deaf is entitled to obtain
7-15 criminal history record information maintained by the Department of
7-16 Public Safety, the Federal Bureau of Investigation identification
7-17 division, or another law enforcement agency which relates to school
7-18 employees, professional consultants, applicants for permanent,
7-19 temporary, or consultative employment, student teachers,
7-20 educational interns, persons who perform ongoing educational
7-21 projects at the school, and volunteer positions whose employment or
7-22 potential employment or volunteer positions with the school
7-23 involves direct interactions with, or the opportunity to interact
7-24 and associate with, the children or youth attending the school.
7-25 (d) The school may not provide the applicant, employee,
8-1 professional consultant, [or] volunteer, student teacher,
8-2 educational intern, or person who performs ongoing educational
8-3 projects at the school with a copy of the [his or her] respective
8-4 criminal history record information obtained from the Department of
8-5 Public Safety, the Federal Bureau of Investigation identification
8-6 division, or another law enforcement agency. The school may
8-7 disclose to the applicant, employee, professional consultant, or
8-8 volunteer the dates and places of arrest, the offenses, and the
8-9 dispositions contained in the respective criminal history record
8-10 information.
8-11 (e) The failure or refusal to provide a complete set of
8-12 fingerprints or a complete name on request constitutes good cause
8-13 for dismissal or refusal to hire or accept for placement, as
8-14 applicable, with regard to school employees, professional
8-15 consultants, [and] applicants for permanent, temporary, or
8-16 consultative employment, student teachers, educational interns,
8-17 persons who perform ongoing educational projects at the school, or
8-18 volunteer positions whose employment or potential employment or
8-19 volunteer position with the school involves direct interactions
8-20 with, or the opportunity to interact and associate with, the
8-21 children or youth attending the school.
8-22 SECTION 7. Section 1, Chapter 22, Acts of the 57th
8-23 Legislature, 3rd Called Session, 1962 (Article 6228a-5, Vernon's
8-24 Texas Civil Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
8-25 Sec. 1. Local Boards of Education of the Public Schools of
9-1 this State, the Governing Boards of the state-supported
9-2 institutions of higher education, the Texas Higher Education
9-3 Coordinating Board[, Texas College and University System], the
9-4 Texas [Central] Education Agency, the Texas School for the Deaf,
9-5 the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation and
9-6 the state schools, state hospitals, and other facilities and
9-7 institutions under its jurisdiction, the Texas Department of Health
9-8 and facilities and institutions under its jurisdiction, the Texas
9-9 Youth Commission and facilities and institutions under its
9-10 jurisdiction, and the governing boards of Centers for Community
9-11 Mental Health and Mental Retardation Services, county hospitals,
9-12 city hospitals, city-county hospitals, hospital authorities,
9-13 hospital districts, affiliated state agencies, and political
9-14 subdivisions of each of them, may enter into agreements with their
9-15 employees for the purchase of annuities or for contributions to any
9-16 type of investment for their employees as authorized in Section
9-17 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as it existed on
9-18 January 1, 1981.
9-19 SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
9-20 SECTION 9. The importance of this legislation and the
9-21 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
9-22 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
9-23 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
9-24 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.