HBA-KMH H.B. 3538 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3538
By: Luna, Vilma
Higher Education
3/29/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Texas public schools face acute shortages of teachers appropriately
certified in the subject matter of the courses they are assigned to teach.
For example, according to data compiled by the State Board for Educator
Certification for 1997-98, 39.6 percent of secondary school math teachers;
74.2 percent of computer science teachers; 33 percent of secondary school
science teachers; 44.9 percent of earlyelementary bilingual teachers; and
14.6 percent of non-bilingual early-elementary teachers, are not
appropriately certified. 

H.B. 3538 provides an exemption for eligible classroom teachers from
payment of tuition for certification-related courses and certain required
fees. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating
Board in SECTION 1 (Section 54.219, Education Code) of this bill.  

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Subchapter D, Chapter 54, Education Code, by adding
Section 54.219, as follows: 

Sec.  54.219.  CLASSROOM TEACHERS.  (a) Requires the governing board of
each institution of higher education to exempt an eligible classroom
teacher from the payment of tuition and required fees for
certification-related course.  Provides that the exemption does not apply
to a required fee that is charged in the same amount to every student
registered for a semester without regard to the number of credit hours for
which a student is registered. 

(b) Provides the eligibility requirements for an exemption under this
section. 

(c) Requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to adopt rules
governing the granting or denial of an exemption under this section,
including rules relating to the determination of eligibility for an
exemption, and to adopt a uniform application form for an exemption under
this section. 

(d) Defines "classroom teacher" and "certification-related course."

SECTION 2.  (a) Provides that this Act takes effect with the fall semester
2000, except as provided by Subsection (b). 

(b) Requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to adopt rules
or forms relating to the exemption of classroom teachers under Section
54.219, Education Code, as added by this Act, not later than January 1,
2000. 

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.