BILL ANALYSIS |
C.S.H.B. 1018 |
By: Patrick, Diane |
Public Health |
Committee Report (Substituted) |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Recent reports from public health experts, such as the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, suggest that the obesity rates in states across the country may almost double over the next two decades if current trends continue. These same experts report that Texas stands to save tens of millions of dollars by taking proactive measures to reduce the average body mass index of its residents by 5 percent within this same time span. Given current and future costs to the state and the lives of its citizens, legislators have supported various efforts to combat this growing epidemic, such as the establishment of local school health advisory councils in school districts across Texas. These councils develop wellness recommendations and initiatives to help ensure a healthy and active student population. C.S.H.B. 1018 seeks to further encourage these efforts by expanding the duties of school health advisory councils regarding student physical activity and fitness.
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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.
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ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 1018 amends the Education Code to expand the duties of a school district's local school health advisory council to include recommending, if feasible and for purposes of health education instruction, joint use agreements or strategies for collaboration between the school district and community organizations or agencies. The bill requires the local school health advisory council of each school district to establish a physical activity and fitness planning subcommittee to consider issues relating to student physical activity and fitness and to make policy recommendations to increase physical activity and improve fitness among students. The bill requires that such recommendations be included in the annual written report submitted by the advisory council to the school district's board of trustees. The bill requires any joint use agreement that a school district and community organization or agency enter into based on a recommendation of the local school health advisory council to address liability for the school district and community organization or agency in the agreement.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2013.
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COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 1018 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and highlighted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
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