LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE, 76th Regular Session
May 13, 1999
TO: Honorable Teel Bivins, Chair, Senate Committee on
Education
FROM: John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE: HB2307 by Keffer (Relating to assistance to certain
low-performing public school districts), Committee Report
2nd House, Substituted
**************************************************************************
* Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for *
* HB2307, Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted: negative impact *
* of $(12,350,000) through the biennium ending August 31, 2001. *
* *
* The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal *
* basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of *
* the bill. *
**************************************************************************
General Revenue-Related Funds, Five-Year Impact:
****************************************************
* Fiscal Year Probable Net Positive/(Negative) *
* Impact to General Revenue Related *
* Funds *
* 2000 $(350,000) *
* 2001 (12,000,000) *
* 2002 (12,000,000) *
* 2003 (12,000,000) *
* 2004 (12,000,000) *
****************************************************
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
*****************************************************
* Fiscal Year Probable Savings/(Cost) from *
* General Revenue Fund *
* 0001 *
* 2000 $(350,000) *
* 2001 (12,000,000) *
* 2002 (12,000,000) *
* 2003 (12,000,000) *
* 2004 (12,000,000) *
*****************************************************
Fiscal Analysis
The bill creates a staff development account in the general revenue fund
which consists of gifts, grants, donations, appropriations for staff
development, and any other money transferred by law to the account. The
Commissioner of Education can allocate funds from the account to provide
staff development resources to a school district that is rate
academically unacceptable, has one or more low-performing campuses,
otherwise needs assistance.
As amended, the bill would create a master reading teacher grant program.
The commissioner of education would make grants to school districts to
pay stipends to selected certified master reading teachers who teach at
high-need campuses. High-need campuses would be identified by criteria
established in the commissioner's rules, including performance on the
TAAS reading test.
Also, the State Board for Educator Certification would be required to
develop and issue a master reading teacher certificate to each eligible
person.
The bill would create an account, separate from the master reading
teacher grant program, in the general revenue fund to be used for staff
development. The bill would establish the basis for an appropriation of
funds to the staff development account, but does not specify an
appropriation amount.
The bill would allow the commissioner to allocate funds to regional
service centers in order to help low-performing schools with staff
development efforts. Schools that receive resources from the account
would reimburse the account half the cost of the resources received.
Methodology
This note estimates that the commissioner would issue grants for the
master reading teacher program totaling $12 million each year beginning
in fiscal year 2001.
The note also includes $350,000 in fiscal year 2000 for the development
of master reading teacher standards and the master reading teacher exam
by the State Board for Educator Certification.
Local Government Impact
School districts would receive additional state funding for master
reading teaching grants, estimated at $12 million per year beginning in
the second year of the 2000-01 biennium.
Districts that receive funds from the staff development account would be
required to return one-half of resources received from the account.
Source Agencies:
LBB Staff: JK, CT, RN, CW