82R21699 VOO-D

By: Eissler H.B. No. 2365

Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2365:

By: Huberty C.S.H.B. No. 2365

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to certain responsibilities of education research centers and to a joint advisory board for education research centers.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 1.005, Education Code, is amended by amending Subsections (e) and (k) and adding Subsections (l) and (m) to read as follows:

(e) A center shall conduct research for the benefit of education in this state, including research relating to the impact of state and federal education programs, the performance of educator preparation programs, public school finance, and the best practices of school districts with regard to classroom instruction, bilingual education programs, special language programs, and business practices. A center shall support policy and academic research, including support of graduate student research in this state.

(k) In implementing this section, the commissioner of education may use funds appropriated to the agency and available for the purpose of establishing the centers. After a center is established, the cost of complying with this section and Section 1.006, including necessary personnel costs at the Texas Education Agency and the coordinating board and the costs of operation of each center, must be funded by gifts and grants accepted under Subsection (h)(1) and fees imposed under Subsection (h)(2). Fees adopted under Subsection (h)(2) must be set in an amount sufficient to provide for the continued operation of the center.

(l) Each center shall administer the process for reviewing research proposals developed under Section 1.006(e)(4) and shall forward to the joint advisory board only proposals of high quality as determined using criteria developed under Section 1.006(e)(4).

(m) On behalf of a center, the commissioner of education and the coordinating board may pursue and enter data agreements with:

(1) another agency of this state; and

(2) the state education agency of another state, giving priority to the agencies of those states that send the highest number of students to this state or that receive the highest number of students from this state.

SECTION 2. Chapter 1, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 1.006 to read as follows:

Sec. 1.006. JOINT ADVISORY BOARD FOR EDUCATION RESEARCH CENTERS. (a) In this section, "center" means a center for education research authorized by Section 1.005.

(b) The commissioner of education and the commissioner of higher education shall co-chair a joint advisory board to adopt policies governing the operations of the centers, including a process for review and approval of center research involving confidential information. The commissioner of education and the commissioner of higher education each may delegate duties as co-chair, including voting, to an employee of the Texas Education Agency or the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, as appropriate.

(c) The commissioner of education and the commissioner of higher education shall jointly appoint not more than 10 additional members to the joint advisory board to serve one-year terms. A member of the joint advisory board serves at the pleasure of the commissioner of education and the commissioner of higher education. A member may be reappointed each year to an additional term.

(d) The joint advisory board shall meet at the call of the co-chairs at least twice each year.

(e) The joint advisory board shall:

(1) establish a schedule of fees to fund the cost of data processing by the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board;

(2) develop a plan for establishing access at public institutions of higher education to data;

(3) develop policies to give state agencies acting for a governmental purpose and public entities performing studies authorized by the legislature priority in access to and use of center research;

(4) develop, in consultation with each center, a process for reviewing center research proposals and criteria for evaluating proposal quality that emphasize the benefits to education in this state and use of accepted social science research methods;

(5) identify, in consultation with each center, the type of data that the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board send annually to each center without the necessity of a request for that data by a center and a schedule on which the data is sent; and

(6) perform other duties as necessary to advise each center.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.