BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 674

By: Patterson

Public Education

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

It has been suggested that there are benefits to gathering information about public school district compliance with state laws and rules during the annual evaluation process for a regional education service center. C.S.H.B. 674 seeks to facilitate this information gathering by requiring the commissioner of education to solicit certain information regarding such compliance from school districts in conjunction with that process.

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. 674 amends the Education Code to require the commissioner of education, in conjunction with the review of client satisfaction conducted as part of the annual evaluation of each regional education service center and executive director of a center, to solicit from each school district served by a center information regarding the reliance of the district on the center for assistance in complying with state education laws and rules and the specific laws or rules with which compliance is the most burdensome and expensive. The bill prohibits the solicited information from being considered in the annual evaluation of a center.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2019.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 674 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute includes a provision prohibiting the solicited information from being considered in the annual evaluation of a center.

The substitute does not include the requirement for the commissioner to solicit information regarding federal education laws and rules.