BILL ANALYSIS

 

 

 

C.S.H.B. 1469

By: Bailes

Public Education

Committee Report (Substituted)

 

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

 

Interested parties note that open-enrollment charter schools are often unable to find qualified teachers to educate students in vocational classrooms. C.S.H.B. 1469 seeks to remedy this issue by revising qualifications for certain charter school teachers.

 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

 

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

 

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.

 

ANALYSIS

 

C.S.H.B. 1469 amends the Education Code to create an exemption from the requirement that a person employed as a teacher by an open-enrollment charter school hold a baccalaureate degree for a person employed as a teacher for a noncore vocational course by a charter school that serves youth referred to or placed in a residential trade center by a local or state agency if the person has demonstrated subject matter expertise related to the subject taught and has received at least 20 hours of classroom management training, as determined by the charter school's governing body.

 

EFFECTIVE DATE

 

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2017.

 

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

 

While C.S.H.B. 1469 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and formatted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

 

INTRODUCED

HOUSE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

SECTION 1. Section 12.129, Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 12.129. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS FOR PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a [A] person employed as a principal or a teacher by an open-enrollment charter school must hold a baccalaureate degree.

(b) A person may be employed as a teacher for a noncore academic career and technical education course without holding a baccalaureate degree if the person has:

 

 

 

(1) demonstrated subject matter expertise related to the subject taught, such as professional work experience, formal training and education, holding a relevant active professional industry license, certification, or registration, or any combination of work experience, training and education, and industry license, certification, or registration; and

(2) received at least 20 hours of classroom management training, as determined by the governing body of the open-enrollment charter school.

SECTION 1. Section 12.129, Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 12.129. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS FOR PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a [A] person employed as a principal or a teacher by an open-enrollment charter school must hold a baccalaureate degree.

(b) In an open-enrollment charter school that serves youth referred to or placed in a residential trade center by a local or state agency, a person may be employed as a teacher for a noncore vocational course without holding a baccalaureate degree if the person has:

(1) demonstrated subject matter expertise related to the subject taught, such as professional work experience, formal training and education, holding a relevant active professional industry license, certification, or registration, or any combination of work experience, training and education, and industry license, certification, or registration; and

(2) received at least 20 hours of classroom management training, as determined by the governing body of the open-enrollment charter school.

SECTION 2. 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, 2017.

SECTION 2. Same as introduced version.