SRC-MWN H.B. 3164 77(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   H.B. 3164
By: Chavez (Truan)
Education
5/11/2001
Engrossed


DIGEST AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, school district prekindergarten programs are not
required to comply with child-care licensing standards adopted by the Texas
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services (DPRS). This means that
some programs might be short staffed or not comply with health and safety
standards. Such noncompliance may threaten the safety and health of
children. H. B. 3164 requires a school district kindergarten program to
comply with child-care licensing standards adopted by DPRS. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

Rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the State Board of Education
in SECTION 1 (Section 29.153, Education Code) of this bill. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 29.153, Education Code, as follows:  Provides
that at a minimum a school district (district) prekindergarten program must
comply with the applicable child-care licensing standards adopted by the
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services (PRS). The bill requires
the State Board of Education by rule to ensure the district's compliance
with the standards. Before a district is authorized to initiate a new
prekindergarten program, the district is required to investigate the
possibility of sharing program sites with existing child-care programs
licensed by PRS and existing federal Head Start programs and to coordinate
the use of those sites to the greatest extent possible. The bill requires
the district to also investigate and implement to the greatest extent
possible coordinated use of licensed child-care and Head Start sites with
existing prekindergarten programs. A prekindergarten program established
before the effective date of this Act is not required to comply with the
applicable child-care standards adopted by PRS until September 1, 2004.  

SECTION 2. (a) Effective date: September 1, 2001. 

(b) Provides that a prekindergarten program established before the
effective date of this Act is not required to comply with the applicable
child-care standards adopted by the Department of Protective and Regulatory
Services, as required by Subsection (h), Section 29.153, Education Code, as
added by this Act, until September 1, 2004.