H.B. 699 78(R) BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 699 By: Gutierrez Public Education Committee Report (Amended) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, if a majority of the area of an independent school district is located in a county with a population of more than 10,000, 70% of the members of a board of trustees are to be elected by single member districts. In some rural districts, there is a lack of interest in running for election. House Bill 699 resolves this by reducing the mandate of 70% to a 50% requirement of elected trustees from single member districts. The bill permits school boards to make this change if they deem it necessary. Reducing the membership of trustees from single member districts to 50% will result in a larger pool of people to choose from for board representation. At 50%, single member trustees will only be reduced by one member on a 7 member board. This reduction will not affect the voting power of members from single member districts as they will still hold a 4/3 majority on a 7 member board. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 699 amends the Education Code by authorizing the board of trustees of an independent school district to order that trustees of the district are to be elected from single-member trustee districts or that not fewer than 50%, rather than 70%, of the members of the board of trustees are to be elected from single-member trustee districts with the remaining trustees to be elected from the district at large. EFFECTIVE DATE Upon passage, or, if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2003. EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS Committee Amendment No. 1 provides that this Act does not apply to a school board that elected at least 70% of its trustees from single member districts before the effective date of this Act. The school district shall be subject to the law in effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.