By Hochberg, Delisi                                    H.B. No. 623
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the selection, distribution, and use of public school
 1-3     textbooks; providing a criminal penalty.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1. Section 26.006, Education Code, is amended by
 1-6     adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
 1-7           (c)  A student's parent is entitled to request that the
 1-8     school district or open-enrollment charter school the student
 1-9     attends allow the student to take home any textbook used by the
1-10     student.  Subject to the availability of a textbook, the district
1-11     or school shall honor the request.  A student who takes home a
1-12     textbook must return the textbook to school at the beginning of the
1-13     next school day if requested to do so by the student's teacher.  In
1-14     this subsection, "textbook" has the meaning assigned by Section
1-15     31.002.
1-16           SECTION 2.  Subchapter C, Chapter 31, Education Code, is
1-17     amended by adding Section 31.1011 to read as follows:
1-18           Sec. 31.1011.  TEXTBOOK CREDITS. (a)  The commissioner shall
1-19     implement a program to study the use of credits for textbooks.  The
1-20     program shall be designed to allow a participating school district
1-21     or open-enrollment charter school to receive credit for textbooks
1-22     purchased at a cost below the cost limit established under Section
1-23     31.025(a).
1-24           (b)  The credit is an amount equal to the difference between
 2-1     the price paid for a textbook and the cost limit established under
 2-2     Section 31.025(a) for that textbook multiplied by the number of
 2-3     copies of that textbook the participating school district or
 2-4     open-enrollment charter school purchases.
 2-5           (c)  Fifty percent of the total textbook credit of a
 2-6     participating school district or open-enrollment charter school
 2-7     shall be credited to the state textbook fund, and 50 percent of the
 2-8     credit shall be credited to the participating district or school to
 2-9     apply toward the requisition of additional textbooks or electronic
2-10     textbooks on the conforming or nonconforming list.
2-11           (d)  The commissioner shall prepare a report relating to the
2-12     use of the textbook credit system and deliver the report to the
2-13     79th Legislature.
2-14           (e)  This section expires September 1, 2005.
2-15           SECTION 3.  Section 31.103, Education Code, is amended by
2-16     adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
2-17           (c)  In making a requisition under this section, a school
2-18     district or open-enrollment charter school may requisition
2-19     textbooks on the conforming or nonconforming list for grades above
2-20     the grade level in which a student is enrolled, except that the
2-21     total quantity of textbooks requisitioned under this section may
2-22     not exceed the limit prescribed by Subsection (b).
2-23           SECTION 4.  Subchapter C, Chapter 31, Education Code, is
2-24     amended by adding Section 31.1031 to read as follows:
2-25           Sec. 31.1031.  SHORTAGE OF REQUISITIONED TEXTBOOKS. If a
2-26     school district or open-enrollment charter school does not have a
2-27     sufficient number of copies of a textbook used by the district or
 3-1     school for use during the following school year, and a sufficient
 3-2     number of additional copies will not be available from the
 3-3     depository or the publisher within the time specified by Section
 3-4     31.151(a)(8), the district or school is entitled to:
 3-5                 (1)  be reimbursed from the state textbook fund, at a
 3-6     rate provided by State Board of Education rule, for the purchase of
 3-7     a sufficient number of used adopted textbooks; or
 3-8                 (2)  return currently used textbooks to the
 3-9     commissioner in exchange for sufficient copies of other textbooks
3-10     on the conforming or nonconforming list to be used during the
3-11     following school year.
3-12           SECTION 5.  Section 31.104(c), Education Code, is amended to
3-13     read as follows:
3-14           (c)  Each textbook must state that the textbook is the
3-15     property of or is licensed to this state, as appropriate.  [A
3-16     school district or open-enrollment charter school must number or
3-17     place another identifying mark on each textbook.  Each teacher
3-18     shall keep a record of the number or other identifying mark of each
3-19     textbook issued to each student.]  Each textbook, other than an
3-20     electronic textbook, must be covered by the student under the
3-21     direction of the teacher.  [Subject to availability, each school
3-22     district or open-enrollment charter school shall, at the request of
3-23     a parent or guardian of a student enrolled in the district or
3-24     school, allow the student to take home any textbook, other than an
3-25     electronic textbook, used by the student.  The student must return
3-26     the textbook to school at the beginning of the next school day.] A
3-27     student must return all textbooks to the teacher at the end of the
 4-1     school year or when the student withdraws from school.
 4-2           SECTION 6.  Section 31.151(a), Education Code, is amended to
 4-3     read as follows:
 4-4           (a)  A publisher or manufacturer of textbooks:
 4-5                 (1)  shall furnish any textbook the publisher or
 4-6     manufacturer offers in this state, at a price that does not exceed
 4-7     the lowest price at which the publisher offers that textbook for
 4-8     adoption or sale to any state, public school, or school district in
 4-9     the United States;
4-10                 (2)  shall automatically reduce the price of a textbook
4-11     sold for use in a school district or open-enrollment charter school
4-12     to the extent that the price is reduced elsewhere in the United
4-13     States;
4-14                 (3)  shall provide any textbook or ancillary item free
4-15     of charge in this state to the same extent that the publisher or
4-16     manufacturer provides the textbook or ancillary item free of charge
4-17     to any state, public school, or school district in the United
4-18     States;
4-19                 (4)  shall guarantee that each copy of a textbook sold
4-20     in this state is at least equal in quality to copies of that
4-21     textbook sold elsewhere in the United States and is free from
4-22     factual error;
4-23                 (5)  may not become associated or connected with,
4-24     directly or indirectly, any combination in restraint of trade in
4-25     textbooks or enter into any understanding or combination to control
4-26     prices or restrict competition in the sale of textbooks for use in
4-27     this state;
 5-1                 (6)  shall maintain a depository in this state or
 5-2     arrange with a depository in this state to receive and fill orders
 5-3     for textbooks, consistent with State Board of Education rules;
 5-4                 (7)  shall, at the time an order for textbooks is
 5-5     acknowledged, provide to school districts or open-enrollment
 5-6     charter schools an accurate shipping date for textbooks that are
 5-7     back-ordered;
 5-8                 (8)  shall guarantee delivery of textbooks at least 10
 5-9     business days before the opening day of school of the year for
5-10     which the textbooks are ordered if the textbooks are ordered by a
5-11     date specified in the sales contract; and
5-12                 (9) [(8)]  shall submit to the State Board of Education
5-13     an affidavit certifying any textbook the publisher or manufacturer
5-14     offers in this state to be free of factual errors at the time the
5-15     publisher executes the contract required by Section 31.026.
5-16           SECTION 7. Section 31.152, Education Code, is amended to read
5-17     as follows:
5-18           Sec. 31.152.  ACCEPTING REBATE ON TEXTBOOKS. (a)  A school
5-19     trustee, administrator, or teacher commits an offense if that
5-20     person receives any commission or rebate on any textbooks used in
5-21     the schools with which the person is associated as a trustee,
5-22     administrator, or teacher.
5-23           (b)  A school trustee, administrator, or teacher commits an
5-24     offense if the person accepts a gift, favor, or service that:
5-25                 (1)  is given to the person or the person's school;
5-26                 (2)  might reasonably tend to influence a trustee,
5-27     administrator, or teacher in the selection of a textbook; and
 6-1                 (3)  could not be lawfully purchased with funds from
 6-2     the state textbook fund.
 6-3           (c)  An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor.
 6-4           (d)  In this section, "gift, favor, or service" does not
 6-5     include:
 6-6                 (1)  staff development, in-service, or teacher
 6-7     training; or
 6-8                 (2)  instructional materials, such as maps or
 6-9     worksheets, that convey information to the student or otherwise
6-10     contribute to the learning process.
6-11           SECTION 8. (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
6-12     section, this Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of
6-13     two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by
6-14     Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this Act does not
6-15     receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes
6-16     effect September 1, 2001.
6-17           (b)  Section 7 of this Act takes effect September 1, 2001.