78R2323 BDH-D
By: Nixon H.B. No. 580
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the abolition of the University Interscholastic League
and the establishment of the Texas Schoolchildren's Academic and
Athletic Commission.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 33.081, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 33.081. EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES. (a)
Extracurricular activities that involve interscholastic
competition are subject to the authority of the Texas
Schoolchildren's Academic and Athletic Commission.
(b) The commission consists of:
(1) 10 members appointed by the governor, five of whom
must be selected from a list of candidates submitted by the speaker
of the house of representatives; and
(2) five members appointed by the lieutenant governor.
(c) Members of the commission serve staggered six-year
terms, with the terms of one-third of the members expiring February
1 of each odd-numbered year.
(d) The governor shall designate the presiding officer of
the commission from among the members of the commission. The
presiding officer serves a term of two years.
(e) A member of the commission may not receive compensation
for serving on the commission but is entitled to receive
reimbursement for expenses incurred while conducting the business
of the commission.
(f) The commission may hire employees it considers
necessary to carry out the duties of the commission.
(g) The commission shall adopt rules governing athletic,
academic, and artistic competitions between students in this state,
including students enrolled in a school district, a private school,
or an open-enrollment charter school or attending a home school.
(h) The commission [State Board of Education] by rule shall
limit participation in and practice for extracurricular activities
involving interscholastic competition during the school day and the
school week. The rules must, to the extent possible, preserve the
school day for academic activities without interruption for
extracurricular activities. In scheduling those activities and
practices, a school district must comply with the rules of the
commission [board].
(i) [(b) A student enrolled in a school district in this
state or who participates in an extracurricular activity or a
University Interscholastic League competition is subject to school
district policy and University Interscholastic League rules
regarding participation only when the student is under the direct
supervision of an employee of the school or district in which the
student is enrolled or at any other time specified by resolution of
the board of trustees of the district.
[(c) A student who is enrolled in a school district in this
state or who participates in a University Interscholastic League
competition shall be suspended from participation in any
extracurricular activity sponsored or sanctioned by the school
district or the University Interscholastic League after a grade
evaluation period in which the student received a grade lower than
the equivalent of 70 on a scale of 100 in any academic class other
than an identified honors or advanced class. A suspension
continues for at least three school weeks and is not removed during
the school year until the conditions of Subsection (d) are met. A
suspension does not last beyond the end of a school year. For
purposes of this subsection, "grade evaluation period" means:
[(1) the six-week grade reporting period; or
[(2) the first six weeks of a semester and each grade
reporting period thereafter, in the case of a district with a grade
reporting period longer than six weeks.
[(d) Until the suspension is removed under this subsection or
the school year ends, a school district shall review the grades of a
student suspended under Subsection (c) at the end of each
three-week period following the date on which the suspension began.
At the time of a review, the suspension is removed if the student's
grade in each class, other than an identified honors or advanced
class, is equal to or greater than the equivalent of 70 on a scale of
100. The principal and each of the student's teachers shall make
the determination concerning the student's grades.
[(e) Suspension of a student with a disability that
significantly interferes with the student's ability to meet regular
academic standards must be based on the student's failure to meet
the requirements of the student's individualized education
program. The determination of whether a disability significantly
interferes with a student's ability to meet regular academic
standards must be made by the student's admission, review, and
dismissal committee. For purposes of this subsection, "student
with a disability" means a student who is eligible for a district's
special education program under Section 29.003(b).
[(f) A student suspended under this section may practice or
rehearse with other students for an extracurricular activity but
may not participate in a competition or other public performance.
[(g)] An appeal to the commissioner is not a contested case
under Chapter 2001, Government Code, if the issues presented relate
to a student's eligibility to participate in extracurricular
activities, including issues related to the student's grades or a
[the school district's] grading policy as applied to the student's
eligibility. The commissioner may delegate the matter for decision
to a person the commissioner designates. The decision of the
commissioner or the commissioner's designee in a matter governed by
this subsection may not be appealed except on the grounds that the
decision is arbitrary or capricious. Evidence may not be
introduced on appeal other than the record of the evidence before
the commissioner.
SECTION 2. Section 33.082(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) An extracurricular activity conducted in compliance
with rules adopted by the Texas Schoolchildren's Academic and
Athletic Commission [sponsored or sanctioned by a school district],
including an athletic event or an athletic team practice, may not
take place at an athletic club located in the United States that
denies any person full and equal enjoyment of equipment or
facilities provided by the athletic club because of the race,
color, religion, creed, national origin, or sex of the person.
SECTION 3. Section 33.083, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 33.083. FUNDS OF TEXAS SCHOOLCHILDREN'S ACADEMIC AND
ATHLETIC COMMISSION [INTERSCHOLASTIC LEAGUES]. (a) The Texas
Schoolchildren's Academic and Athletic Commission by rule shall
adopt fees for participation in extracurricular activities
involving interscholastic competition in an amount sufficient to
meet the budgetary needs of the commission. Fees collected by the
commission may be used only for commission activities. [rules and
procedures of an organization sanctioning or conducting
interscholastic competition, including rules providing penalties
for rules violations by school district personnel, must be
consistent with State Board of Education rules.]
(b) [The University Interscholastic League is a part of The
University of Texas at Austin and must submit its rules and
procedures to the commissioner for approval or disapproval.] The
funds belonging to the commission are [University Interscholastic
League shall be deposited with The University of Texas at Austin for
the benefit of the league and shall be] subject to audit [audits] by
[The University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas System,
and] the state auditor. Copies of annual audits shall be furnished,
on request, to members of the legislature.
(c) The commission [State Board of Education may seek an
injunction to enforce this section.
[(d) The University Interscholastic League] shall file
annually with the governor and the presiding officer of each house
of the legislature a complete and detailed written report
accounting for all funds received and disbursed by the commission
[University Interscholastic League] during the preceding fiscal
year. The form of the annual report and the reporting time are as
provided by the General Appropriations Act.
SECTION 4. Section 33.086, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 33.086. CERTIFICATION IN CARDIOPULMONARY
RESUSCITATION AND FIRST AID. (a) A person [school district
employee] who serves as the head coach or chief sponsor for an
extracurricular athletic activity, including cheerleading,
sponsored or sanctioned by a school district or conducted in
compliance with rules adopted by the Texas Schoolchildren's
Academic and Athletic Commission [University Interscholastic
League] must maintain and submit to the district or commission, as
applicable, proof of current certification in first aid and
cardiopulmonary resuscitation issued by the American Red Cross, the
American Heart Association, or another organization that provides
equivalent training and certification.
(b) The commission by rule and each [Each] school district
shall adopt procedures necessary for administering this section,
including procedures for the time and manner in which proof of
current certification must be submitted.
SECTION 5. Subchapter D, Chapter 33, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 33.087 to read as follows:
Sec. 33.087. VENUE FOR SUITS. Venue for suits brought
against the Texas Schoolchildren's Academic and Athletic
Commission or for suits involving the interpretation or enforcement
of rules of the commission is in Travis County. If the litigation
involves a school district located within Travis County, it must be
heard by a visiting judge.
SECTION 6. Section 105.304, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 105.304. EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES. The academy may
offer any extracurricular activity that a public secondary school
could offer. Students attending the academy may participate in all
extracurricular activities conducted in compliance with rules
adopted [sanctioned] by the Texas Schoolchildren's Academic and
Athletic Commission [university interscholastic league].
SECTION 7. Section 46.11(a), Penal Code, is amended to read
as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the punishment
prescribed for an offense under this chapter is increased to the
punishment prescribed for the next highest category of offense if
it is shown beyond a reasonable doubt on the trial of the offense
that the actor committed the offense in a place that the actor knew
was:
(1) within 300 feet of the premises of a school; or
(2) on premises where:
(A) an official school function is taking place;
or
(B) an event conducted in compliance with rules
adopted [sponsored or sanctioned] by the Texas Schoolchildren's
Academic and Athletic Commission [University Interscholastic
League] is taking place.
SECTION 8. Sections 7.055(b)(41), 33.0811, and 33.084,
Education Code, are repealed.
SECTION 9. (a) As soon as possible after September 1, 2003,
the governor and the lieutenant governor shall appoint members to
the Texas Schoolchildren's Academic and Athletic Commission in
compliance with Section 33.081, Education Code, as amended by this
Act.
(b) The members appointed under Subsection (a) of this
section shall draw lots to determine the length of terms to be
served by those members. Terms expiring February 1, 2005, must be
served by two members appointed by the lieutenant governor and
three members appointed by the governor, two of whom must be members
appointed from the list of candidates submitted by the speaker of
the house of representatives. Terms expiring February 1, 2007,
must be served by one member appointed by the lieutenant governor
and four members appointed by the governor, two of whom must be
members appointed from the list of candidates submitted by the
speaker of the house of representatives. Terms expiring February
1, 2009, must be served by two members appointed by the lieutenant
governor and three members appointed by the governor, one of whom
must be a member appointed from the list of candidates submitted by
the speaker of the house of representatives. Successor members
serve staggered six-year terms in accordance with Section
33.081(c), Education Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 10. (a) The University Interscholastic League is
abolished on the date of the first meeting of the Texas
Schoolchildren's Academic and Athletic Commission.
(b) Not later than the date of the first meeting of the Texas
Schoolchildren's Academic and Athletic Commission, the University
Interscholastic League shall transfer to the commission all records
of the University Interscholastic League relating to
extracurricular activities. Each other asset of the league shall
also be transferred to the commission unless the asset was acquired
at the expense of The University of Texas at Austin, in which case
the asset shall be transferred to the university.
(c) All forms, rules, and procedures adopted by the
University Interscholastic League that relate to extracurricular
activities and that are in effect on August 31, 2003, remain in
effect on and after that date as if adopted by the Texas
Schoolchildren's Academic and Athletic Commission under Section
33.081, Education Code, as amended by this Act, until amended or
repealed by the commission.
SECTION 11. A reference in law to the University
Interscholastic League means the Texas Schoolchildren's Academic
and Athletic Commission.
SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.