By Rangel H.B. No. 1180
76R3681 CAS-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the State Board for Educator Certification.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 21.033, Education Code, is amended by
1-5 amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (d) and (e) to read
1-6 as follows:
1-7 (a) The State Board for Educator Certification is composed
1-8 of 15 members. The commissioner of education shall appoint an
1-9 employee of the agency to represent the commissioner as a nonvoting
1-10 member. The commissioner of higher education shall appoint an
1-11 employee of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to
1-12 represent the commissioner as a nonvoting member. The governor
1-13 shall appoint a dean of a college of education in this state as a
1-14 nonvoting member. The remaining 12 members are selected [appointed
1-15 by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate,] as
1-16 follows:
1-17 (1) seven [four] members must be teachers employed in
1-18 public schools who are elected by certified teachers in a statewide
1-19 referendum conducted by the board;
1-20 (2) one member [two members] must be a public school
1-21 administrator who is appointed by the governor with the advice and
1-22 consent of the senate [administrators];
1-23 (3) one member must be a public school counselor who
1-24 is appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the
2-1 senate; and
2-2 (4) three [five] members must be citizens who are
2-3 appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the
2-4 senate, at least two [three] of whom are parents of children
2-5 enrolled in [not and have not, in the five years preceding
2-6 appointment, been employed by a] public school [district or by an
2-7 educator preparation program in an institution of higher education
2-8 and two of whom are not and have not been employed by a public
2-9 school district or by an educator preparation program in an
2-10 institution of higher education].
2-11 (d) A referendum under this section may not be scheduled in
2-12 June, July, or August.
2-13 (e) The board shall propose rules for conducting a
2-14 referendum under Subsection (a)(1).
2-15 SECTION 2. Section 21.034, Education Code, is amended to
2-16 read as follows:
2-17 Sec. 21.034. TERMS; VACANCY. (a) The board members
2-18 elected by referendum or appointed by the governor hold office for
2-19 staggered terms of six years with the terms of one-third of the
2-20 members expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered year. A member
2-21 appointed by the commissioner of education or the commissioner of
2-22 higher education serves at the will of the appointing commissioner.
2-23 (b) In the event of a vacancy during a term of a member
2-24 elected by referendum or appointed by the governor, teachers by
2-25 referendum or the governor by appointment, as appropriate, shall
2-26 select [appoint] a replacement who meets the qualifications of the
2-27 vacated office to fill the unexpired portion of the term.
3-1 (c) A vacancy arises if a member elected by referendum
3-2 or appointed by the governor no longer qualifies for the office to
3-3 which the member was appointed.
3-4 SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
3-5 amended by adding Section 21.0411 to read as follows:
3-6 Sec. 21.0411. REFERENDUM ON EDUCATOR RULES. (a) On
3-7 submission of a petition that proposes adoption or amendment of a
3-8 rule described by Section 21.041(b) or (c) relating to educator
3-9 certification or to a fee and that is signed by at least 10 percent
3-10 of the certified educators employed in this state, the board shall
3-11 present the proposal to certified educators in a statewide
3-12 referendum.
3-13 (b) Before submission to the State Board of Education under
3-14 Section 21.042, the board must present to certified educators in a
3-15 statewide referendum a rule or amendment to a rule the board
3-16 proposes that:
3-17 (1) specifies the requirements for the renewal of an
3-18 educator certificate;
3-19 (2) provides for a disciplinary proceeding;
3-20 (3) provides for the adoption, amendment, or
3-21 enforcement of an educator code of ethics;
3-22 (4) provides for continuing education requirements; or
3-23 (5) provides for a fee to be imposed on certified
3-24 educators.
3-25 (c) The board shall mail a copy of each proposed rule or
3-26 amendment described by Subsection (a) or (b) in ballot form to
3-27 each certified educator employed in this state. The board shall
4-1 include on the ballot a notice of the date by which the ballot must
4-2 be returned to the board. In addressing the ballots, the board
4-3 shall use the most current mailing list of educators available to a
4-4 state agency. A certified educator who does not receive a ballot
4-5 by mail in a timely manner may notify the board, and the board
4-6 shall provide a ballot to the educator as soon as practicable
4-7 before the ballots are due. On the 30th day after the date the
4-8 ballots are mailed, the board shall discontinue accepting ballots
4-9 for counting and, as soon as practicable, shall count the ballots
4-10 returned by the due date. The board shall ensure that the counting
4-11 of votes is open to inspection by the representative of any
4-12 organization that represents educators in this state.
4-13 (d) The proposed rule or amendment described by Subsection
4-14 (a) or (b) is approved by the educators if:
4-15 (1) a majority of the educators voting in the
4-16 referendum vote in favor of the proposed rule or amendment; and
4-17 (2) at least 25 percent of the certified educators
4-18 employed in this state vote in the referendum.
4-19 (e) At the first board meeting after the date ballots are
4-20 counted, the board shall provide for submitting for review under
4-21 Section 21.042 a copy of each rule or amendment that is approved
4-22 under this section. The board may not submit for review a rule or
4-23 amendment described by Subsection (b) that has not been approved
4-24 under this section.
4-25 (f) A referendum under this section may not be scheduled:
4-26 (1) more often than twice each year; or
4-27 (2) in June, July, or August.
5-1 (g) The board may propose rules as necessary to implement
5-2 this section.
5-3 SECTION 4. Section 21.045, Education Code, is transferred to
5-4 Subchapter C, Chapter 61, Education Code, is redesignated as
5-5 Section 61.085, Education Code, and is amended to read as follows:
5-6 Sec. 61.085 [21.045]. ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM FOR EDUCATOR
5-7 PREPARATION PROGRAMS. (a) The board shall adopt [propose] rules
5-8 establishing standards to govern the approval and continuing
5-9 accountability of all educator preparation programs based on
5-10 information that [is disaggregated with respect to sex and
5-11 ethnicity and that] includes:
5-12 (1) results of the educator certification examinations
5-13 prescribed under Section 21.048(a); and
5-14 (2) performance based on the appraisal system for
5-15 beginning teachers adopted by the State Board for Educator
5-16 Certification [board].
5-17 (b) Each educator preparation program shall submit data
5-18 elements as required by the board for an annual performance report
5-19 to ensure access and equity. At a minimum, the annual report must
5-20 contain the performance data from Subsection (a) and the following
5-21 information, disaggregated by sex and ethnicity:
5-22 (1) the number of candidates who apply;
5-23 (2) the number of candidates admitted;
5-24 (3) the number of candidates retained;
5-25 (4) the number of candidates completing the program;
5-26 (5) the number of candidates employed in the
5-27 profession after completing the program; and
6-1 (6) the number of candidates retained in the
6-2 profession.
6-3 (c) The board shall adopt [propose] rules establishing
6-4 performance standards for the Accountability System for Educator
6-5 Preparation for accrediting educator preparation programs. At a
6-6 minimum, performance standards must be based on Subsection (a).
6-7 The board shall adopt [propose] rules for the sanction of educator
6-8 preparation programs and shall annually review the accreditation
6-9 status of each educator preparation program.
6-10 (d) The commissioner of higher education [executive director
6-11 of the board] shall appoint an oversight team of educators to make
6-12 recommendations and provide assistance to educator preparation
6-13 programs that do not meet accreditation standards. If, after one
6-14 year, an educator preparation program has not fulfilled the
6-15 recommendations of the oversight team, the commissioner [executive
6-16 director] shall appoint a person to administer and manage the
6-17 operations of the program. If the program does not improve after
6-18 two years, the board shall revoke the approval of the program to
6-19 prepare educators for state certification.
6-20 (e) The State Board for Educator Certification shall provide
6-21 the board with data necessary for the board to carry out its duties
6-22 under this section.
6-23 (f) In this section, "educator" has the meaning assigned by
6-24 Section 5.001.
6-25 SECTION 5. Sections 21.048(a) and (b), Education Code, are
6-26 amended to read as follows:
6-27 (a) The board shall propose rules prescribing comprehensive
7-1 examinations for each class of certificate issued by the board.
7-2 The board may approve alternative examinations proposed and
7-3 administered by an educator preparation program.
7-4 (b) The board or an educator preparation program may not
7-5 administer a written examination to determine the competence or
7-6 level of performance of an educator who has a hearing impairment
7-7 unless the examination has been field tested to determine its
7-8 appropriateness, reliability, and validity as applied to, and
7-9 minimum acceptable performance scores for, persons with hearing
7-10 impairments.
7-11 SECTION 6. (a) Notwithstanding Section 21.034, Education
7-12 Code, as amended by this Act, on February 1, 2001, all positions on
7-13 the State Board for Educator Certification shall be filled.
7-14 Members of the board selected to serve beginning on February 1,
7-15 2001, shall be selected in accordance with Section 21.033(a),
7-16 Education Code, as amended by this Act. Those members shall draw
7-17 lots for terms in accordance with Section 21.034, Education Code,
7-18 as amended by this Act, in a manner that provides that the terms of
7-19 the same number of voting members expire each time and that:
7-20 (1) the terms of three teacher members expire at one
7-21 time;
7-22 (2) the terms of two teacher members expire at other
7-23 times; and
7-24 (3) the term of not more than one citizen member
7-25 expires at one time.
7-26 (b) If a vacancy occurs in the membership of the State Board
7-27 for Educator Certification before the date members of the board are
8-1 selected to begin serving February 1, 2001, the vacancy shall be
8-2 filled in a manner that complies with Section 21.033(a), Education
8-3 Code, as that section existed before amendment by this Act.
8-4 SECTION 7. Section 21.0411, Education Code, as added by this
8-5 Act, applies only to a rule or amendment proposed by the State
8-6 Board for Educator Certification on or after the effective date of
8-7 this Act.
8-8 SECTION 8. (a) The powers and duties of the State Board for
8-9 Educator Certification relating to the accountability system for
8-10 educator preparation programs are transferred, as provided by
8-11 Section 4 of this Act, to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating
8-12 Board.
8-13 (b) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board assumes
8-14 the position of the State Board for Educator Certification as to
8-15 the obligations and agreements of the State Board for Educator
8-16 Certification relating to the accountability system for educator
8-17 preparation programs.
8-18 (c) The records, other property, and unobligated and
8-19 unexpended appropriations of the State Board for Educator
8-20 Certification that specifically relate to the accountability system
8-21 for educator preparation programs become the records, property, and
8-22 appropriations of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
8-23 (d) A rule of the State Board for Educator Certification
8-24 relating to the accountability system for educator preparation
8-25 programs that is in effect immediately before September 1, 1999,
8-26 becomes a rule of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and
8-27 remains in effect until amended or repealed by the coordinating
9-1 board.
9-2 SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
9-3 SECTION 10. The importance of this legislation and the
9-4 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
9-5 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
9-6 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
9-7 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.