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SECTION 1. Chapter 29,
Education Code, is amended by adding Subchapter J to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER J. ENHANCEMENT
PROGRAM FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Sec. 29.351.
DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Child with a disability" means a child who is:
(A) eligible to participate in a school district's special
education program under Section 29.003; or
(B) covered by Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. Section 794).
(2) "Enhancement services" means a service provided
to a program participant that is in addition to the special education
services that a school district is required to provide a child with a
disability under federal and state law.
(3) "Parent"
means a resident who otherwise meets the
definition of this term under Section 26.002.
(4) "Agency" means the Texas Education Agency.
(5) "Program
participant" means a student with a
disability and the parent(s) of a
child enrolled in the program.
(6) "Private service provider" means an individual or
entity approved by the commissioner of education to provide enhancement
services to program participants and that follows all accountability
standards outlined in this subchapter.
Sec. 29.352.
ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM. (a) The agency
shall establish a program, including
procedures and criteria in accordance with this subchapter, for the
allocation of funds appropriated under this subchapter to school districts
for the provision of enhancement services to certain students with
disabilities and their families
to promote and improve overall academic performance.
(b) The commissioner shall notify program participants, school
districts in which the program participant is enrolled, and approved
private service providers that approval to participate in this program is
for one year. Approval to participate as a program participant or a
private service provider does not guarantee approval for subsequent years
of participation within this program.
Sec. 29.353. PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.
(A) A student with a disability is eligible for enhancement services from a private
service provider if
(See Sec. 29.353(C)
below.)
the child has a Section
504 plan of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794) or an individual education plan, and
has one or more of the following disabilities:
(A) dyslexia
(B) autism
(C) speech disability; or
(D) learning disability.
(See Sec. 29.353(C)
below.)
(B) A student or parent must apply to the agency through the school district in which their
child is enrolled to participate in the program.
(C) A student must have attended public school in the
participating school district in the previous year prior to receiving
enhancement services created by Subchapter J. School districts shall notify
all eligible students and parents of this program.
(See Sec. 29.356(b)
below.)
(See Sec. 29.356 below.)
Sec. 29.354. ENHANCEMENT SERVICES.
(A) Funds provided by
this program may be used only for the following services provided by approved private service providers
under Section 29.357:
(1) costs of
transportation for the student to receive educational support services;
(2) fees for services
provided by a commissioner-approved
private tutor or teaching service under
Section 29.357;
(3) fees for educational
therapies or support services provided by a practitioner or provider under Section 29.357;
(4) costs of assistive
technology;
(5) in-home and
community-based training;
(6) positive behavioral
support strategies;
(7) parent and family training support;
(8) communication
interventions; and
(9) social skills,
supports, and strategies.
(a-1) Any services not listed in (A) do not qualify as
enhancement services and are not eligible for funding under this
subchapter.
(B) Enhancement services shall be chosen by the
parent in consultation with the school principal's designee. The principal's
designee shall advise the parent on the enhancement program. The
parent shall choose the enhancement
services and the private service
provider the program participant uses
under this subchapter.
Sec. 29.355. PROTECTION OF RIGHTS. (a) Students using funds
through a school district to access enhancement services from an approved
provider under Section 29.357 shall maintain rights awarded to the student
under Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794) and
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et
seq.), and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Sec. 29.356. ALLOCATION OF PROGRAM FUNDS.
(a) This program shall be funded at $10 million per year from
the state's general revenue fund.
(b) The commissioner shall award program funds to fund
enhancement services for students that meet the eligibility criteria under
Subsection 29.353. In awarding program funds to eligible students, the
commissioner shall prioritize students that are economically disadvantaged.
The selected students must reflect the diversity of this state.
Sec. 29.357. PRIVATE SERVICE PROVIDER REQUIREMENTS.
(A)
To be a private service provider, an entity or individual:
(1) must be determined and approved by the commissioner;
(2) must provide the agency a current financial audit
from a certified public accountant;
(3) must have operated
for at least three or more consecutive years, one of which has been in
Texas;
(4) must provide evidence of having successfully passed a
criminal background check;
(5) must provide the agency a list of state and national certification licensure credentials the provider has achieved;
(6) must agree to comply with the state's curriculum
standards under Section 28.002 (b-3) and (b-4);
(7) may document to the commissioner that
it provides one or more of the
enhancement services under 29.354 through an existing contract with
a school district; and
(8) may not solicit program participants to use their private
services with gifts, money, promotions, or any other kind of emollient.
(a-1) A parent, the principal's designee who consults with the
parent of a program participant, or a private
service provider may appeal to the
agency for a specific private service provider to be approved. The
commissioner shall develop rules to implement this process.
(B)
A private service provider shall deliver enhancement services to a
program participant on the basis of a written agreement between the private
service provider and the school district in which the program participant
is enrolled.
(C)
(1) The private service provider must participate in a meeting with the
parent and the principal's designee who consults with the parent of a program
participant at least one time within a semester of participation in
enhancement services to discuss progress and continued use of the private
service provider's enhancement services.
(2) A parent, the principal's designee who consults with the
parent of a program participant, or a private service provider may request
more frequent meetings between these groups to discuss progress and
continued use of the private service provider's enhancement services.
(3) At the conclusion of the school year, enhancement services
cease. A parent must re-apply in a subsequent school year to receive
enhancement services during a subsequent school year.
Sec. 29.357.
ACCOUNTABILITY. (a) An approved
private service provider shall adhere
to the following accountability standards to receive and maintain eligibility:
(1) report to the participating school district at the
end of each semester on the services the
program participant has received or will receive in accordance with
the contract as well as diagnostic or other evaluative information that the district requires in order to fulfill
its obligations under this subchapter;
(2) conduct pre- and
post- measurement evaluations of the program
participant, and share this
information with the program participant's parent and participating school district;
(3)
maintain a written contract with the school district of the program
participant to provide enhancement services;
(4) appropriately invoice the school
district of the program participant to
provide enhancement services.
(See Sec. 29.357(C)(1)
above.)
(b) The commissioner
shall annually review previously
approved private service providers to determine if the private service provider
shall remain an approved provider for enhancement services.
(See Sec. 29.355 above.)
(See Sec. 29.361 below.)
Sec. 29.358. PROGRAM
REVIEW. (a) the agency with input from program participants, parents of program participants, private service
providers, and participating school districts shall review the
performance of this program as established by Subchapter J, and report to
the legislature by December 31,
2020.
Sec. 29.359. STUDY. No
later than September 1, 2018, the agency shall report its findings to the legislature from a parent survey and study of the special
education services received from the local school districts where their
child(ren) are enrolled to determine whether those services meet the requirements of IDEA, 504 and ADA or if the provided services are insufficient
to meet the needs of the child as stipulated in his or her individualized
education plan or 504 plan. The agency will
include in its report to the legislature a list of services that parents
feel are needed but not being provided along with the reasons for a lack of
services being provided.
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SECTION 1. Chapter 29,
Education Code, is amended by adding Subchapter J to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER J. EDUCATION ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM FOR
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Sec. 29.351.
DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Parent"
means a resident of this state who is a
natural or adoptive parent, managing or possessory conservator, legal
guardian, custodian, or other person with legal authority to act on behalf
of a child.
(2) "Program" means the education enhancement program
for students with disabilities established under this subchapter.
(3) "Program
participant" means a student and a
parent of a student who has been accepted into the program.
Sec. 29.352.
ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM. The commissioner
shall establish and administer an
education enhancement program for students with disabilities to provide funding for eligible students to
obtain educational support services and other resources that:
(1) supplement the student's public education;
(2) promote and improve
the student's overall academic performance; and
(3) exceed the level of services that the student's committee
has determined to be necessary for the student to receive a free
appropriate public education.
Sec. 29.353. ELIGIBLE STUDENT. (a) A student is
eligible to participate in the program
if:
(1) the student is enrolled in a school district and was
enrolled in that district during the entire preceding school year;
(2) the student has one
or more of the following disabilities:
(A) dyslexia;
(B) autism;
(C) speech disability; or
(D) learning disability;
and
(3) for one or more disabilities listed in
Subdivision (2):
(A) an individualized education program has been developed for
the student under Section 29.005; or
(B) the student is
covered by Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794).
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a student placed in a
residential facility primarily for noneducational reasons is not eligible
to participate in the program.
Sec. 29.354. APPLICATION PROCESS. (a) On or before the date
established by commissioner rule, each school district annually shall
provide information regarding the program to a parent of each student
enrolled in the district who may be eligible to participate in the program.
(b) On or before the date established by commissioner rule,
a parent of an eligible student may
apply on behalf of the student to
the agency for participation in the program for
the school year for which the application is made. The school district in
which the student is enrolled shall assist the parent in making the
application.
(See Sec. 29.353(a)(1) above
and Sec. 29.354(a) above.)
(c) In accepting students into the program, the commissioner
shall:
(1) give priority to students who are educationally
disadvantaged; and
(2) to the greatest extent possible, ensure that the accepted
students reflect the diversity of the state.
(d) The commissioner annually shall notify each program
participant and each school district in which a student participating in
the program is enrolled that:
(1) a program participant must reapply to participate in the
program for each school year in which the participant wishes to participate
in the program; and
(2) continued acceptance into the program is not guaranteed.
Sec. 29.355. ALLOCATION OF MONEY; FINANCING.
(a) For each school year, the commissioner shall allocate money
available for the program to each school district in which a student
participating in the program is enrolled in amounts determined by the
commissioner. The total amount of money used for the program for a school
year may not exceed $10 million.
(b) The commissioner may only use money appropriated from the
general revenue fund for purposes of the program.
Sec. 29.356. QUALIFIED EXPENSES.
(a) Funds received under
the program may be used only for the following services or goods provided to a program participant by
an education service provider or vendor of educational products approved by
the commissioner under Section 29.357:
(1) costs of
transportation for the student to receive educational support services;
(2) fees for services
provided by a private tutor or teaching service;
(3) fees for educational
therapies or support services provided by a practitioner or provider;
(4) costs of assistive
technology; and
(5) costs associated with the provision of:
(A) in-home and
community-based training;
(B) positive behavioral
support strategies;
(C) family training
support;
(D) communication
interventions; and
(E) social skills,
supports, and strategies training.
(b) The parent of a student participating in the program,
with the assistance of an employee of the school at which the student is
enrolled designated for that purpose by the school's principal,
shall select the services or goods
allowed under Subsection (a) to be provided to the student under the program
and the appropriate education service provider or vendor of educational products to provide
those services or goods.
(c) On the parent's selection under Subsection (b), the school
district in which the parent's student is enrolled shall contract with the
selected education service provider or vendor of educational products to
provide the selected services or goods to the student.
(d) An education service provider or vendor of educational
products may not solicit or provide incentives to any program participant
to select the provider or vendor to provide services or goods using money
distributed under the program.
(See Sec. 29.358(a)
below.)
(See Sec. 29.355(a)
above.)
(See Sec. 29.354(c)
above.)
Sec. 29.357. PROVIDER AND VENDOR ACCOUNTABILITY. (a) An education
service provider or vendor of educational products must apply to and be
approved by the commissioner to receive
money distributed under the program.
(b) To be eligible for approval under Subsection (a), an
education service provider or vendor of educational products must:
(1) have operated for at
least three consecutive years, including at least one year in this state;
(2) provide to the commissioner:
(A) a current financial
audit from a certified public accountant;
(B) documentation indicating that the provider or
vendor has completed a national criminal history record information review
within a period established by commissioner rule; and
(C) a list of any
national or state licenses, certifications, or credentials
possessed by the provider or
vendor; and
(3) agree not to use the national curriculum standards
developed by the Common Core State Standards Initiative.
(c) In applying for approval under Subsection (a), an education
service provider or vendor of educational products may submit to the commissioner a statement listing the services or goods
allowed under Section 29.356(a) that the provider or vendor provides
to a school district under an existing contract.
(d) A parent of a student participating in the program, an employee
of the student's school designated under Section 29.356(b), or an education service provider or vendor of educational products may
appeal the commissioner's rejection of
an application submitted under Subsection (a) in accordance with rules established
by the commissioner.
(See Sec. 29.357(f)
below.)
(e) To maintain approval under this section, an education service provider or vendor of educational products
must, with respect to each student for
the benefit of whom the provider or vendor contracts with a school district
under Section 29.356(c):
(1) at the end of each
semester, report to the school district regarding the services or goods provided under the contract to
the student, including any
diagnostic or other evaluative information requested
by the district;
(2) conduct pre- and
post-measurement evaluations of the student
and provide the results of those
evaluations to the student's parent and the school district; and
(3) submit to the school district accurate and complete invoices regarding the services or goods provided to
the student.
(f) At least once each semester, an education service provider
or vendor of educational products selected to provide services or goods to
a student participating in the program shall meet with the student's parent
and the employee of the student's school designated under Section 29.356(b)
at a time and place determined by the school district to discuss the
student's progress and to evaluate the continued use of the provider or
vendor. The student's parent, designated employee, or provider or vendor
may request additional meetings to be held under this subsection.
(g) The commissioner
annually shall review each
approved education service provider or vendor of educational products and, as
appropriate, renew or revoke that approval.
(h) On approving an education service provider or vendor of
educational products under this section, the commissioner shall notify the
provider or vendor regarding the annual review of approval under Subsection
(g). The notice must include a statement that renewed approval under that
subsection is not guaranteed.
Sec. 29.359. RULES. The commissioner may adopt rules as
necessary to implement this subchapter.
Sec. 29.358. PROGRAM PARTICIPANT RIGHTS.
(a) A student's participation in the program does not affect the
student's rights or a school district's obligations with respect to the
student under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C.
Section 1400 et seq.); Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C.
Section 794); or the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.
Section 12101 et seq.).
(b) An education service provider or vendor of educational
products must comply with the federal laws listed in Subsection (a) in
providing services or goods to the student under the program.
(c) The provision of services or goods to a student under this
subchapter does not affect the obligations of any state agency with respect
to the student.
Sec. 29.3591. PROGRAM
REVIEW. (a) Not later than
December 31, 2020, the agency shall review the performance of the program
and submit to the legislature a report on
the agency's conclusions.
(b) In conducting the
review, the agency shall solicit input from program participants,
participating school districts, and education
service providers and vendors of educational products approved by the
commissioner under Section 29.357.
(c) This section expires September 1, 2021.
Sec. 29.3592. STUDY ON SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES. (a) The
agency shall conduct a study on the
special education services provided by school districts to students with
disabilities to determine whether those services satisfy the requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.); Section 504, Rehabilitation
Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794); and the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. Section 12101 et seq.).
(b) In conducting the study, the agency shall survey parents of students with
disabilities enrolled in school districts.
(c) Not later than
September 1, 2018, the agency shall submit to the legislature a report on the results of the study. The report
must include a list of services
that parents feel are needed but are not currently
being provided and the reasons why the listed services are not being
provided.
(d) This section expires September 1, 2019.
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