BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	H.B. 678
86R2451 KJE-F	By: Guillen; Gonz�lez, Mary (Powell)
	Education
	5/8/2019
	Engrossed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

It has been noted that public high school students are allowed to earn a foreign language credit for purposes of high school graduation by completing a dual language immersion program at an elementary school, but that this allowance does not include American Sign Language (ASL). H.B. 678 seeks to remedy this by allowing students to earn one foreign language credit by completing an ASL course at an elementary school.

H.B. 678 amends current law relating to the public high school graduation credit requirements for a language other than English.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

Rulemaking authority previously granted to the State Board of Education is modified in SECTION 1 (Section 28.025, Education Code) of this bill.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 28.025(b-21), Education Code, as follows:

(b-21) Requires the State Board of Education (SBOE), in adopting rules under Subsection (b-1) (relating to requiring SBOE by rule to require that the curriculum requirements for a certain foundation high school program include a requirement that students successfully complete certain educational credits), to adopt criteria to allow a student to comply with the curriculum requirement for one credit under Subsection (b-1)(5) (relating to requiring SBOE by rule to require that the curriculum requirements for a certain foundation high school program include a requirement that students successfully complete two credits in the same language in a language other than English) by successfully completing at an elementary school either a dual language immersion program under Section 28.0051 (Dual Language Immersion Program) or a course in American Sign Language, rather than by successfully completing a dual language immersion program under Section 28.0051 at an elementary school.

SECTION 2. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2019.