85R12545 KJE-F

By: Menéndez S.B. No. 1153

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to parental rights and information regarding certain intervention strategies used with public school students.

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

SECTION 1. Section 12.104(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) An open-enrollment charter school is subject to:

(1) a provision of this title establishing a criminal offense; and

(2) a prohibition, restriction, or requirement, as applicable, imposed by this title or a rule adopted under this title, relating to:

(A) the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) to the extent necessary to monitor compliance with this subchapter as determined by the commissioner;

(B) criminal history records under Subchapter C, Chapter 22;

(C) reading instruments and accelerated reading instruction programs under Section 28.006;

(D) accelerated instruction under Section 28.0211;

(E) high school graduation requirements under Section 28.025;

(F) special education programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29;

(G) bilingual education under Subchapter B, Chapter 29;

(H) prekindergarten programs under Subchapter E or E-1, Chapter 29;

(I) extracurricular activities under Section 33.081;

(J) discipline management practices or behavior management techniques under Section 37.0021;

(K) health and safety under Chapter 38;

(L) public school accountability under Subchapters B, C, D, E, F, G, and J, Chapter 39;

(M) the requirement under Section 21.006 to report an educator's misconduct;

(N) intensive programs of instruction under Section 28.0213; [and]

(O) the right of a school employee to report a crime, as provided by Section 37.148; and

(P) a parent's right to information regarding the provision of assistance for learning difficulties to the parent's child as provided by Sections 26.004(b)(11) and 26.0081(c) and (d).

SECTION 2. Section 26.004, Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 26.004. ACCESS TO STUDENT RECORDS. (a) In this section, "intervention strategy" means a strategy in a multi-tiered system of supports that is above the level of intervention generally used in that system with all children. The term includes response to intervention and other early intervening strategies.

(b) A parent is entitled to access to all written records of a school district concerning the parent's child, including:

(1) attendance records;

(2) test scores;

(3) grades;

(4) disciplinary records;

(5) counseling records;

(6) psychological records;

(7) applications for admission;

(8) health and immunization information;

(9) teacher and school counselor evaluations; [and]

(10) reports of behavioral patterns; and

(11) records relating to assistance provided for learning difficulties, including information collected regarding any intervention strategies used with the child.

SECTION 3. Section 26.0081, Education Code, is amended by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsections (d) and (e) to read as follows:

(c) The agency shall produce and provide to school districts a written explanation of the options and requirements for providing assistance to students who have learning difficulties or who need or may need special education. The explanation must state that a parent is entitled at any time to request an evaluation of the parent's child for special education services under Section 29.004 or for aids, accommodations, or services under Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794). Each school year, each district shall provide the written explanation to a parent of each district student by including the explanation in the student handbook or by another means.

(d) Each school year, each school district shall notify a parent of each child receiving assistance from the district for learning difficulties, including through the use of intervention strategies, as that term is defined by Section 26.004, that the district provides that assistance to the child. The notice must:

(1) be written in English or, to the extent practicable, the parent's native language; and

(2) include:

(A) a reasonable description of the assistance, including any instructional strategies used;

(B) information collected regarding any intervention strategies that have been used with the child;

(C) an estimate of the duration for which the assistance will be provided;

(D) the dates on which a report on the child's progress will be provided to the parent; and

(E) a copy of the explanation provided under Subsection (c).

(e) The notice required under Subsection (d) may be provided to a child's parent at a meeting of the child's admission, review, and dismissal committee or of the team established for the child under Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), if applicable.

SECTION 4. Section 42.006, Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (a-3) to read as follows:

(a-3) The commissioner by rule shall require each school district and open-enrollment charter school to report through the Public Education Information Management System information regarding the number of students enrolled in the district or school with whom the district or school, as applicable, uses intervention strategies, as that term is defined by Section 26.004. The agency shall maintain the information provided in accordance with this subsection.

SECTION 5. This Act applies beginning with the 2017-2018 school year.

SECTION 6. 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.