By Grusendorf H.B. No. 2118
Line and page numbers may not match official copy.
Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to opportunity scholarships for children assigned to
1-3 attend a low-performing public school in certain school districts.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 29, Education Code, is amended by adding
1-6 Subchapter J to read as follows:
1-7 SUBCHAPTER J. OPPORTUNITY SCHOLARSHIP PILOT PROGRAM
1-8 Sec. 29.351. PURPOSE; CONSTRUCTION. (a) To improve the
1-9 quality and efficiency of education for children, to increase the
1-10 authority, control, and empowerment of teachers, and to promote
1-11 competition among schools, a system of public free schools may
1-12 allow children the freedom to voluntarily choose between attending
1-13 a public or free school and financially support that choice.
1-14 (b) A purpose of this subchapter is to allow educators and
1-15 parents maximum freedom to respond to educational needs without
1-16 excessive government control, and this subchapter shall be
1-17 liberally construed to achieve that purpose.
1-18 (c) It is the intent of the legislature that freedom of
1-19 religion of all citizens is inviolate and that nothing in this
1-20 subchapter be construed to cause excessive governmental
1-21 entanglement with the religious instruction of a free school. With
2-1 respect to a free school, nothing in this subchapter gives a
2-2 governmental agency authority to regulate, control, supervise, or
2-3 in any way be involved in the:
2-4 (1) form, manner, or content of religious instruction,
2-5 ministry, teaching, or curriculum offered by the school;
2-6 (2) ability of the school to select and supervise
2-7 qualified personnel and otherwise control the terms of employment,
2-8 including the right to employ individuals who share the religious
2-9 views of the school;
2-10 (3) internal self-governance and autonomy of the
2-11 school; or
2-12 (4) religious environment of the school, such as
2-13 symbols, art, icons, and scripture.
2-14 Sec. 29.352. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
2-15 (1) "Free school" means a nongovernmental educational
2-16 establishment for the general education of elementary or secondary
2-17 students that accepts opportunity scholarships under this
2-18 subchapter. A "free school" does not include a school that limits
2-19 enrollment to relatives of the staff of the school.
2-20 (2) "Parent" includes a person standing in parental
2-21 relation.
2-22 (3) "Private school" means a nongovernmental
2-23 educational establishment that does not accept opportunity
2-24 scholarships under this subchapter.
2-25 (4) "Public school" means a school that is
3-1 administered, operated, and staffed by governmental employees.
3-2 Sec. 29.353. PARTICIPATING SCHOOL DISTRICTS; CHILD
3-3 ELIGIBILITY; PARENTAL CHOICE. (a) Each school district that has an
3-4 average daily attendance greater than 55,000 according to the
3-5 1997-1998 Public Education Information Management System data shall
3-6 participate in an opportunity scholarship pilot program.
3-7 (b) Subject to Subsections (c) and (d), a child is entitled
3-8 to participate in the program and attend, with public financial
3-9 aid, the public school or free school chosen by the child's parent,
3-10 subject to availability, if the child is eligible under Section
3-11 25.001 to attend school in a participating district and is assigned
3-12 to attend a campus in the participating district:
3-13 (1) that was, at any time in the preceding three
3-14 years, identified as low-performing by the commissioner under
3-15 Subchapter D, chapter 39; or
3-16 (2) at which 50 percent or more of the students did
3-17 not perform satisfactorily on an assessment instrument administered
3-18 under Section 39.023(a) or (c) in any two of the preceding three
3-19 years.
3-20 (c) Not more than 10 percent of eligible students assigned
3-21 to a single public school campus may participate in the program.
3-22 If more than 10 percent of eligible students assigned to a single
3-23 public school campus express intent to participate under Subsection
3-24 (d), the scholarships shall be allocated according to a random
3-25 selection process.
4-1 (d) Not later than February 1 of each year, a school
4-2 district shall notify the parent of each child eligible under this
4-3 program of the child's eligibility. The notice shall inform the
4-4 parent that the district should be notified of intent to
4-5 participate in the program by April 1 of that year. Anyone who
4-6 declares intent to participate after April 1 shall be admitted to
4-7 the program so long as the limit in Subsection (c) is not exceeded.
4-8 (e) The parent's choice under Subsections (b) and (c) in
4-9 regard to a participating child must be registered with the central
4-10 administrative office of the participating school district for the
4-11 child to obtain public financial aid.
4-12 (f) This subchapter does not restrict the right of a child
4-13 to attend private school, but the child may not receive funding for
4-14 that purpose under this subchapter. A child attending a private or
4-15 free school without an opportunity scholarship is not required to
4-16 register with the participating school district in which the child
4-17 would otherwise attend school.
4-18 Sec. 29.354. FINANCING. (a) Each participating school
4-19 district is entitled to receive public financing as provided by
4-20 law.
4-21 (b) A participating child who chooses to attend a free
4-22 school or a public school in a district other than the
4-23 participating district and registers that choice under Section
4-24 29.353 is included in determining the average daily attendance
4-25 under Section 42.005 of the participating district. The
5-1 commissioner shall adopt a procedure for a free school or public
5-2 school to use in reporting the daily attendance of a child for whom
5-3 the school receives opportunity scholarship money.
5-4 (c) A child's opportunity scholarship is an amount equal to
5-5 the total average per student funding amount in the participating
5-6 school district during the preceding school year for maintenance
5-7 and operations, including state and local funding and funding based
5-8 on special categories of students, but excluding money from the
5-9 available school fund and federal money.
5-10 (d) Each participating school district shall distribute to
5-11 each participating child's parent a certificate stating the amount
5-12 of the child's opportunity scholarship. The parent may present the
5-13 certificate to the child's school of choice in lieu of direct
5-14 payment.
5-15 (e) A participating school district shall retain 100 percent
5-16 of the opportunity scholarship of a participating child assigned to
5-17 attend a campus in the district described by Section 29.353 (b) who
5-18 attends another public school campus in the district. If the
5-19 participating child attends a public school in another school
5-20 district, the participating school district shall transfer 100
5-21 percent of the child's opportunity scholarship to the district in
5-22 which the child attends school. If the participating child attends
5-23 a free school, the participating school district shall:
5-24 (1) retain 20 percent of the child's opportunity
5-25 scholarship; and
6-1 (2) transfer 80 percent of the child's opportunity
6-2 scholarship to the free school the child attends.
6-3 (f) The free school, or the public school outside the
6-4 participating school district in which the child would otherwise
6-5 attend school, must present the child's certificate to the
6-6 participating school district to receive payment. The
6-7 participating school district shall pay the free school or public
6-8 school on a monthly pro rata basis after services have been
6-9 provided.
6-10 (g) A child's opportunity scholarship is the entitlement of
6-11 the child, under the supervision of the child's parent, is not the
6-12 entitlement of any school, and is paid to a free school or public
6-13 school solely as a means of administrative convenience.
6-14 (h) A free school may not share, refund, or rebate the
6-15 child's opportunity scholarship with the parent or child. A free
6-16 school may not charge a participating child attending the school
6-17 under this subchapter tuition in excess of the amount of the
6-18 child's opportunity scholarship.
6-19 Sec. 29.355. RECEIPT OF MONEY BY FREE SCHOOLS. (a) To
6-20 receive the applicable portion of a child's opportunity
6-21 scholarship, a free school must certify to the participating school
6-22 district in which the child would otherwise attend school that
6-23 that, with respect to scholarship students, the free school will
6-24 not refuse to admit a student on the basis of the student's
6-25 residence, race, national origin, ethnic background.
7-1 (b) A free school that has more opportunity scholarship
7-2 applicants than available positions must fill the positions by a
7-3 random selection process. A free school may give preference to an
7-4 enrolled student to achieve continuity and to siblings of an
7-5 enrolled student residing in the same household or other children
7-6 residing in the same household as an enrolled student for the
7-7 convenience of the parents of those children.
7-8 (c) Each opportunity scholarship student attending a free
7-9 school shall be assessed as required by Subchapter B, Chapter 39.
7-10 The aggregate results of the assessment instruments shall be
7-11 published, and copies of the statewide scores shall be made
7-12 available for parental inspection at each public or free school.
7-13 Sec. 29.356. TRANSPORTATION. Each participating school
7-14 district shall offer transportation without charge to a free school
7-15 student who would otherwise attend school in the district to and
7-16 from the public school the student would otherwise attend.
7-17 Sec. 29.357. NONSTATE ACTION AND FREE SCHOOL AUTONOMY. A
7-18 free school that accepts an opportunity scholarship is not an agent
7-19 or arm of the government, and the conduct of the free school is
7-20 governed as private conduct, not state action. A free school is
7-21 not subject to any educational statute or rule except this
7-22 subchapter.
7-23 Sec. 29.358. REPORT TO LEGISLATURE. The Center for the
7-24 Study of Educational Reform at the University of North Texas shall
7-25 report to the legislature on the success of the opportunity
8-1 scholarship program not later than January 1, 2003.
8-2 SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 1999-2000
8-3 school year.
8-4 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
8-5 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
8-6 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
8-7 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
8-8 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
8-9 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
8-10 passage, and it is so enacted.