BILL ANALYSIS |
C.S.H.B. 1568 |
By: Springer |
Public Education |
Committee Report (Substituted) |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
An amendment made to the Texas Constitution in the mid-2000s required marriage in the state to consist only of the union of one man and one woman and prohibited the state or a political subdivision of the state from creating or recognizing any legal status identical or similar to marriage. It is reported that a school district recently enacted a policy under which domestic partners can acquire insurance benefits, a policy that interested parties contend is essentially contrary to the constitutional amendment. There are concerns that the district's actions may be impetus for other districts to do the same, and the parties warn against a precedent that permits school districts and other subdivisions of the state to ignore the constitution and create their own interpretations of the law. C.S.H.B. 1568 seeks to address this problem by revoking the accreditation status of a district that violates the constitution and by withholding Foundation School Program funding from such a district.
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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. 1568 amends the Education Code to require the commissioner of education to revoke the accreditation of a school district and order closure of the district if the attorney general determines that the district knowingly violated a provision of the Texas Constitution and to prohibit the district from receiving funds from the Texas Education Agency if the commissioner revokes the district's accreditation for such a violation.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2013.
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COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 1568 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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