1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to compliance by school districts and open-enrollment
1-3 charter schools with the public information law and the open
1-4 meetings law and to the governance of an open-enrollment charter
1-5 school.
1-6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-7 SECTION 1. Section 12.105(b), Education Code, is amended to
1-8 read as follows:
1-9 (b) The governing body of the school is considered a
1-10 governmental body for purposes of Chapters 551 and 552, Government
1-11 Code. Any requirement in those chapters relating to a school
1-12 district, school board, or school children applies to an
1-13 open-enrollment charter school and to children attending an
1-14 open-enrollment school.
1-15 SECTION 2. Section 12.111, Education Code, is amended to
1-16 read as follows:
1-17 Sec. 12.111. CONTENT. Each charter granted under this
1-18 subchapter must:
1-19 (1) describe the educational program to be offered,
1-20 which must include the required curriculum as provided by Section
1-21 28.002;
1-22 (2) specify the period for which the charter or any
1-23 charter renewal is valid;
1-24 (3) provide that continuation or renewal of the
2-1 charter is contingent on acceptable student performance on
2-2 assessment instruments adopted under Subchapter B, Chapter 39, and
2-3 on compliance with any accountability provision specified by the
2-4 charter, by a deadline or at intervals specified by the charter;
2-5 (4) establish the level of student performance that is
2-6 considered acceptable for purposes of Subdivision (3);
2-7 (5) specify any basis, in addition to a basis
2-8 specified by this subchapter, on which the charter may be placed on
2-9 probation or revoked or on which renewal of the charter may be
2-10 denied;
2-11 (6) prohibit discrimination in admission policy on the
2-12 basis of sex, national origin, ethnicity, religion, disability,
2-13 academic or athletic ability, or the district the child would
2-14 otherwise attend in accordance with this code, although the charter
2-15 may provide for the exclusion of a student who has a documented
2-16 history of a criminal offense, a juvenile court adjudication, or
2-17 discipline problems under Subchapter A, Chapter 37;
2-18 (7) specify the grade levels to be offered;
2-19 (8) describe the governing structure of the program,
2-20 including:
2-21 (A) the officer positions designated;
2-22 (B) the manner in which officers are selected
2-23 and removed from office;
2-24 (C) the manner in which members of the governing
2-25 body are selected and removed from office;
2-26 (D) the manner in which vacancies on the
2-27 governing board are filled;
3-1 (E) the term for which members of the governing
3-2 body serve; and
3-3 (F) whether the terms are to be staggered;
3-4 (9) specify the qualifications to be met by
3-5 professional employees of the program;
3-6 (10) describe the process by which the person
3-7 providing the program will adopt an annual budget;
3-8 (11) describe the manner in which an annual audit of
3-9 the financial and programmatic operations of the program is to be
3-10 conducted, including the manner in which the person providing the
3-11 program will provide information necessary for the school district
3-12 in which the program is located to participate, as required by this
3-13 code or by State Board of Education rule, in the Public Education
3-14 Information Management System (PEIMS);
3-15 (12) describe the facilities to be used;
3-16 (13) describe the geographical area served by the
3-17 program; and
3-18 (14) specify any type of enrollment criteria to be
3-19 used.
3-20 SECTION 3. Subchapter D, Chapter 12, Education Code, is
3-21 amended by adding Sections 12.119 and 12.120 to read as follows:
3-22 Sec. 12.119. BYLAWS; ANNUAL REPORT. (a) The entity to
3-23 which a charter is granted for an open-enrollment charter school
3-24 shall file with the State Board of Education a copy of its bylaws,
3-25 or a comparable document if the entity does not have bylaws, within
3-26 the period and in the manner prescribed by the board.
3-27 (b) Each year within the period and in a form prescribed by
4-1 the State Board of Education, each open-enrollment charter school
4-2 shall file with the board the following information:
4-3 (1) the name, address, and telephone number of each
4-4 officer and member of the governing body of the open-enrollment
4-5 charter school; and
4-6 (2) the amount of annual compensation the
4-7 open-enrollment charter school pays to each officer and member of
4-8 the governing body.
4-9 (c) On request, the State Board of Education shall provide
4-10 the information required by this section and Section 12.111(8) to a
4-11 member of the public. The board may charge a reasonable fee to
4-12 cover the board's cost in providing the information.
4-13 Sec. 12.120. LIMITATION ON SERVING AS OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE.
4-14 A person who has been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor
4-15 involving moral turpitude may not serve as an officer or member of
4-16 the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school.
4-17 SECTION 4. Section 53.02, Education Code, is amended by
4-18 adding Subdivision (13) to read as follows:
4-19 (13) "Authorized charter school" means an
4-20 open-enrollment charter school that holds a charter granted under
4-21 Subchapter D, Chapter 12.
4-22 SECTION 5. Section 53.48, Education Code, is amended to read
4-23 as follows:
4-24 Sec. 53.48. BONDS FOR ACCREDITED PRIMARY OR SECONDARY
4-25 SCHOOLS. In the same manner that a corporation may issue bonds
4-26 under this chapter for an institution of higher education, a
4-27 corporation created under Section 53.35(b) may issue bonds to
5-1 finance or refinance educational facilities or housing facilities
5-2 to be used by an accredited primary or secondary school or by an
5-3 authorized charter school.
5-4 SECTION 6. Subchapter C, Chapter 552, Government Code, is
5-5 amended by adding Section 552.131 to read as follows:
5-6 Sec. 552.131. EXCEPTION: CERTAIN INFORMATION HELD BY SCHOOL
5-7 DISTRICT. (a) "Informer" means a student or former student or an
5-8 employee or former employee of a school district who has furnished
5-9 a report of another person's or persons' possible violation of
5-10 criminal, civil, or regulatory law to the school district or the
5-11 proper regulatory enforcement authority.
5-12 (b) An informer's name or information that would
5-13 substantially reveal the identity of an informer is excepted from
5-14 the requirements of Section 552.021.
5-15 (c) Subsection (b) does not apply:
5-16 (1) if the informer is a student or former student,
5-17 and the student or former student, or the legal guardian, or spouse
5-18 of the student or former student consents to disclosure of the
5-19 student's or former student's name; or
5-20 (2) if the informer is an employee or former employee
5-21 who consents to disclosure of the employee's or former employee's
5-22 name; or
5-23 (3) if the informer planned, initiated, or
5-24 participated in the possible violation.
5-25 (d) Information excepted under Subsection (b) may be made
5-26 available to a law enforcement agency or prosecutor for official
5-27 purposes of the agency or prosecutor upon proper request made in
6-1 compliance with applicable law and procedure.
6-2 (e) This section does not infringe on or impair the
6-3 confidentiality of information considered to be confidential by
6-4 law, whether it be constitutional, statutory, or by judicial
6-5 decision, including information excepted from the requirements of
6-6 Section 552.021.
6-7 SECTION 7. Section 26.007(b), Education Code, is amended to
6-8 read as follows:
6-9 (b) A board of trustees of a school district must hold each
6-10 public meeting of the board within the boundaries of the district
6-11 except as required by law or except to hold a joint meeting with
6-12 another district or with another governmental entity, as defined by
6-13 Section 2051.041, Government Code, if the boundaries of the
6-14 governmental entity are in whole or in part within the boundaries
6-15 of the district. All public meetings must comply with Chapter 551,
6-16 Government Code.
6-17 SECTION 8. Chapter 26, Education Code, is amended by adding
6-18 Section 26.0085 to read as follows:
6-19 Sec. 26.0085. REQUESTS FOR PUBLIC INFORMATION. (a) A
6-20 school district or open-enrollment charter school that seeks to
6-21 withhold information from a parent who has requested public
6-22 information relating to the parent's child under Chapter 552,
6-23 Government Code, and that files suit as described by Section
6-24 552.324, Government Code, to challenge a decision by the attorney
6-25 general issued under Subchapter G, Chapter 552, Government Code,
6-26 must bring the suit not later than the 30th calendar day after the
6-27 date the school district or open-enrollment charter school receives
7-1 the decision of the attorney general being challenged.
7-2 (b) A court shall grant a suit described by Subsection (a)
7-3 precedence over other pending matters to ensure prompt resolution
7-4 of the subject matter of the suit.
7-5 (c) Notwithstanding any other law, a school district or
7-6 open-enrollment charter school may not appeal the decision of a
7-7 court in a suit filed under Subsection (a). This subsection does
7-8 not affect the right of a parent to appeal the decision.
7-9 (d) If the school district or open-enrollment charter school
7-10 does not bring suit within the period established by Subsection
7-11 (a), the school district or open-enrollment charter school shall
7-12 comply with the decision of the attorney general.
7-13 (e) A school district or open-enrollment charter school that
7-14 receives a request from a parent for public information relating to
7-15 the parent's child shall comply with Chapter 552, Government Code.
7-16 If an earlier deadline for bringing suit is established under
7-17 Chapter 552, Government Code, Subsection (a) does not apply. This
7-18 section does not affect the earlier deadline for purposes of
7-19 Section 532.353(b)(3) for a suit brought by an officer for public
7-20 information.
7-21 SECTION 9. Section 26.0085, Education Code, as added by this
7-22 Act, applies only to a suit described by that section with respect
7-23 to a decision of the attorney general made on or after the
7-24 effective date of this Act.
7-25 SECTION 10. (a) Each open-enrollment charter school for
7-26 which a charter is granted before September 1, 1999, shall revise
7-27 its charter as necessary to comply with Section 12.111, Education
8-1 Code, as amended by this Act, not later than January 1, 2000.
8-2 (b) The entity to which a charter for an open-enrollment
8-3 charter school is granted before September 1, 1999, shall file a
8-4 copy of its bylaws or other document as required by Section
8-5 12.119(a), Education Code, as added by this Act, not later than
8-6 January 1, 2000.
8-7 SECTION 11. The importance of this legislation and the
8-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
8-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
8-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
8-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
8-12 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
8-13 passage, and it is so enacted.
_______________________________ _______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 211 was passed by the House on May 6,
1999, by the following vote: Yeas 117, Nays 21, 1 present, not
voting; that the House refused to concur in Senate amendments to
H.B. No. 211 on May 22, 1999, and requested the appointment of a
conference committee to consider the differences between the two
houses; and that the House adopted the conference committee report
on H.B. No. 211 on May 29, 1999, by the following vote: Yeas 141,
Nays 0, 1 present, not voting.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 211 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 20, 1999, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays
0; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a conference
committee to consider the differences between the two houses; and
that the Senate adopted the conference committee report on H.B. No.
211 on May 30, 1999, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.
_______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor