SRC-AMY H.B. 591 78(R) BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research CenterH.B. 591 78R8092 KKA-DBy: Delisi (Fraser) Veteran Affairs & Military Installations 5-2-2003 Engrossed DIGEST AND PURPOSE The dependents of military personnel often experience frequent moves during their educational careers. Difficulty with transfer of records and credits, and repetitive tests, can add to the frustration of a transfer. Currently, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) is authorized, but not required, to negotiate reciprocity agreements governing the terms of school transfers with other states. Such reciprocity agreements would facilitate the transfer of military families and dependents. H.B. 591 requires TEA to pursue reciprocity agreements governing the terms of transfers with other states, identifying certain priority states, and to report the results of those efforts. This bill also requires such an agreement to address allowing a student to fulfill exitlevel requirements through comparable instruments administered in other states. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 25.005, Education Code, as follows: Sec. 25.005. RECIPROCITY AGREEMENTS REGARDING MILITARY PERSONNEL AND DEPENDENTS. (a) Requires, rather than authorizes, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to pursue reciprocity agreements with other states governing the terms of transfers of military personnel and their dependents to and from the public schools of this state. (b) Includes in the list of requirements, that a reciprocity agreement address procedures for permitting a student to satisfy the requirements of Section 39.025 (Exit Level Performance Required) through successful performance on comparable exit-level assessment instruments administered in another state. Makes nonsubstantive changes. SECTION 2. (a) Requires TEA, in implementing Section 25.005 to give priority to pursuing reciprocity agreements with Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. (b) Requires TEA to report the results of its efforts to enter into reciprocity agreements to certain elected officials, not later than January 1, 2004. Requires the report to include, if TEA has not been able to enter into a reciprocity agreement with the each state identified in Subsection (a), certain information about each state with which TEA did not enter into an agreement. SECTION 3. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2003.