SRC-MKV C.S.S.B. 562 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research CenterC.S.S.B. 562
77R9886 KKA-FBy: Shapiro
Education
3/15/2001
Committee Report (Substituted)


DIGEST AND PURPOSE 

Current law provides for an administrative cost ratio that compares
administrative costs to instructional costs.  Over the last several years,
many school districts have not been able to agree on what costs are defined
as administrative and those that are instructional, and accordingly,
information on these costs are being misreported.  C.S.S.B. 562 provides
for the administrative cost ratio to remain in the law to be used to
calculate the instructional expenditures ratios and instructional employees
ratio.  C.S.S.B. 562 also requires the Texas Education Agency to calculate
and disseminate the list of role codes on each district's report card,
listing the totals and the percentages, and provides for the administrative
cost ratio to be included on the district's report card to show how the
ratio was calculated. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

Rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the commissioner of education
in SECTION 1 (Section 44.0071, Education Code) of this bill. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Chapter 44A, Education Code, by adding Section 44.0071,
as follows: 

Sec. 44.0071. COMPUTATION AND DISCLOSURE OF EXPENDITURES AND STAFFING.  (a)
Requires the Texas Education Agency (agency), each fiscal year,  to compute
and report to each school district certain information for each accounting
function code; the number of the district's full-time equivalent employees
for the preceding fiscal year employed in each capacity; and the percentage
of the district's total full-time equivalent employees for the preceding
fiscal year employed in each capacity, with a comparison of that percentage
to the corresponding statewide average percentage of total full-time
equivalent employees employed in each capacity. 

(b)  Requires the agency to include with the information reported in
accordance with Subsection (a) a simplified definition of each accounting
function code and employment capacity used by the agency in making the
computations required under that subsection. 

(c)  Requires a school district, at least annually, to make a available to
the employees at each campus a list of all campus employees who were
included in making the computations required under Subsections (a)(2) and
(3).  Requires the list to identify each employee by name and state the
capacity in which the employee was classified. 

(d) Requires the commissioner of education (commissioner) to adopt rules as
necessary to implement this section. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 39.053, Education Code, by adding Subsection
(h), to require the report to include the district's administrative cost
ratio determined under Section 42.204 and a description of the method used
to determine that ratio and the accounting function codes used in
determining that ratio; and information regarding the district's
expenditures and staffing provided to the  district under Section 44.0071. 
 
SECTION 3.  Amends Section 39.182 (a), Education Code, to add language in
the list of  information to be included in a certain report requiring a
summary and analysis of the compliance of school districts with
administrative cost ratios set by the commissioner under Section 42.201,
including any improvements and cost savings achieved by school districts,
and information regarding expenditures and staffing of school districts
computed under Section 44.0071.  

SECTION 4.  Amends Sections 42.201(g)(2) and (3), Education Code, to make
conforming changes. 

SECTION 5. Effective date: September 1, 2001.


SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE CHANGES

Differs from the original as follows:

 _In SECTION 1, Section 44.0071(a), it requires the Texas Education Agency
(agency) to compute and report to each school district certain information
for each accounting function code, the number of the district's full-time
equivalent employees for the preceding fiscal year, and the percentage of
the district's full-time equivalent employees for the preceding fiscal year
employed in each capacity, with a comparison of that percentage to the
corresponding statewide average percentage of total full-time equivalent
employees employed in each capacity.  The substitute also adds new
Subsections (b) and (c).  Subsection (a) of the original  required the
school district to report to the commissioner of education (commissioner)
the percentage of the district's full-time employees during the preceding
fiscal year whose only job function was to directly provide classroom
instruction to students, it required the district to provide the educators
employed by the district with a list of employees engaged only in providing
classroom instruction to students, and it set forth what constituted a
district's total expenditures. 

 _Adds a new SECTION 2 to amend Section 39.053, Education Code, to require
the report to include certain information. 

 _Amendments to Sections  39.052(b) and (c), Education Code, that are in
the original are not included in the substitute. 

 _Original SECTION 4 is now SECTION 3 and additional language in the list
of information to be included in a certain report requires a summary and
analysis of the compliance of school districts with administrative cost
ratios set by the commissioner under Section 42.201, including any
improvements and cost savings achieved by school districts, and information
regarding expenditures and staffing of school districts computed under
Section 44.0071. 

 _SECTION 5 in the original, which repealed Chapter 42D of the Education
Code, and the original SECTION 7, relating to the implementation of the
repealer, are not included in the substitute. 

 _Adds a new SECTION 4 to amend Sections 42.201(g)(2) and (3), Education
Code, to make conforming changes. 

 _Renumbers SECTION 6 to SECTION 5, the effective date.