1-1 By: Chavez (Senate Sponsor - Truan) H.B. No. 3164 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House May 11, 2001; 1-3 May 11, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on 1-4 Education; May 11, 2001, reported favorably by the following vote: 1-5 Yeas 5, Nays 2; May 11, 2001, sent to printer.) 1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-7 AN ACT 1-8 relating to standards for prekindergarten programs and coordination 1-9 of resources among prekindergarten programs and other child-care 1-10 programs. 1-11 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-12 SECTION 1. Section 29.153, Education Code, is amended by 1-13 adding Subsections (h) and (i) to read as follows: 1-14 (h) At a minimum, a school district prekindergarten program 1-15 must comply with the applicable child-care licensing standards 1-16 adopted by the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services 1-17 under Section 42.042, Human Resources Code. The State Board of 1-18 Education by rule shall ensure the school district's compliance 1-19 with the applicable standards. 1-20 (i) Before a school district may initiate a new 1-21 prekindergarten program, the district shall investigate the 1-22 possibility of sharing program sites with existing child-care 1-23 programs licensed by the Department of Protective and Regulatory 1-24 Services and existing federal Head Start programs and shall 1-25 coordinate use of those sites to the greatest extent possible. The 1-26 school district shall also investigate and implement to the 1-27 greatest extent possible coordinated use of licensed child-care and 1-28 Head Start sites with existing prekindergarten programs. The Texas 1-29 Education Agency shall enter into an interagency agreement with the 1-30 Department of Protective and Regulatory Services for the department 1-31 to ensure compliance with the requirements of this subsection. The 1-32 Department of Protective and Regulatory Services may collect a fee 1-33 to offset the cost of providing the inspection service. 1-34 SECTION 2. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 2001. 1-35 (b) A prekindergarten program established before the 1-36 effective date of this Act is not required to comply with the 1-37 applicable child-care standards adopted by the Department of 1-38 Protective and Regulatory Services, as required by Subsection (h), 1-39 Section 29.153, Education Code, as added by this Act, until 1-40 September 1, 2004. 1-41 * * * * *