HBA-MPM H.B. 106 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 106
By: Gutierrez
Public Education
3/5/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

In 1995, the 74th Legislature reenacted and revised part of the Education
Code, and in the process, the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) that limited
the amount of paperwork required of teachers was repealed. As a result, the
power of the State Board of Education to adopt rules regarding PRA was
eliminated, and the amount of paperwork required by teachers is no longer
regulated by statute.  House Bill 106 limits the amount of paperwork that
can be required of a public school classroom teacher. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 106 amends the Education Code to require the board of trustees
of each school district to adopt a policy limiting redundant requests for
information and the number and length of written reports a classroom
teacher is required to prepare.  The bill prohibits requiring a teacher to
prepare written reports other than: 

_a report of a student's grade on a particular assignment or examination;

_a report of a student's grades at the end of a grade reporting period;

_a textbook report;

_a unit or weekly lesson plan report outlining the information to be
presented during each period at the secondary level or in each subject or
topic at the elementary level; 

_an attendance report;

_a report required for accreditation review;

_any other report required by law or State Board of Education rule; or

_any other report directly related to the classroom teacher's professional
duties. 

The bill provides that a teacher may be required to provide information
that is required under federal or state law, regulation, or rule, if the
only reasonable manner in which to collect the information is with the
direct involvement of a teacher.  The bill requires the board of trustees
to review paperwork requirements imposed on teachers and to transfer a
reporting task to existing noninstructional staff, if the staff can
reasonably accomplish it.   

In addition to the specific reporting requirements listed, the teacher's
involvement in the collection of  essential information by a school
district is not precluded by this bill if: 

_the participation is at the teacher's discretion and the district does not
coerce participation of the teacher;  

_the decision not to participate is not held against the teacher; and 

_the commissioner of education promptly investigates allegations of the
misuse of voluntary information-gathering procedures that burden a teacher
and do not comply with the statutory intent to reduce paperwork. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage.  The Act applies beginning with the 2001-2002 school year.