Honorable Larry Taylor, Chair, Senate Committee on Education
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
SB1886 by Bettencourt (Relating to the oversight of public education, including the creation of the office of inspector general at the Texas Education Agency.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would amend the Education Code to establish an Office of Inspector General at the Texas Education Agency (TEA); require the Commissioner to appoint an Inspector General to service as the director of the office; and establish the responsibilities of the office to be the investigation, prevention, and detection of criminal misconduct and wrongdoing and of fraud, waste, and abuse by school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, regional education service centers, other local education agencies in the state, and county systems. The bill would permit the Office of Inspector General to conduct criminal investigations, issue subpoenas, and provide certain information to the State Auditor's Office, appropriate law enforcement officials, and appropriate administrative and prosecutorial agencies, including the Office of the Attorney General.
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) anticipates renaming its existing Special Investigation Unit and using existing full-time equivalent positions to implement the provisions of the bill. Accordingly TEA anticipates any additional work resulting from the passage of the bill could be reasonably absorbed within current resources. The Office of Court Administration, Office of the Attorney General, and State Auditor's Office indicate any work resulting from the passage of this bill could be reasonably absorbed within current agency resources.
Local Government Impact
County systems, such as Dallas County Schools and the Harris County Department of Education, may incur some administrative costs associated with the requirements to submit annual audited reports to the Texas Education Agency; however, these costs are anticipated to be minimal.
Source Agencies:
212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 302 Office of the Attorney General, 308 State Auditor's Office, 701 Texas Education Agency