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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to primary and secondary education, including the |
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certification, compensation, and health coverage of certain public |
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school employees, the public school finance system, special |
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education in public schools, the establishment of an education |
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savings account program, measures to support the education of |
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public school students that include certain educational grant |
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programs, reading instruction, and early childhood education, the |
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provision of virtual education, and public school accountability. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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ARTICLE 1. CHANGES RELATED TO PUBLIC SCHOOL EDUCATORS EFFECTIVE FOR |
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2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR |
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SECTION 1.01. Section 19.009(d-2), Education Code, is |
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amended to read as follows: |
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(d-2) Beginning with the 2009-2010 school year, the |
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district shall increase the [monthly] salary of each classroom |
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teacher, full-time speech pathologist, full-time librarian, |
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full-time school counselor certified under Subchapter B, Chapter |
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21, and full-time school nurse employed by the district by the |
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greater of: |
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(1) $80 per month; or |
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(2) the maximum uniform amount per month that, when |
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combined with any resulting increases in the amount of |
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contributions made by the district for social security coverage for |
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the specified employees or by the district on behalf of the |
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specified employees under Section 825.405, Government Code, may be |
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provided using an amount equal to the product of $60 multiplied by |
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the number of students in weighted average daily attendance in the |
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district during the 2009-2010 school year. |
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SECTION 1.02. Subchapter A, Chapter 21, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 21.010 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 21.010. TEACHER POSITION DATA COLLECTION. The agency |
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shall collect data from school districts and open-enrollment |
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charter schools for the recruitment and retention of classroom |
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teachers, including the classification, grade level, subject area, |
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duration, and other relevant information regarding vacant teaching |
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positions in a district or school. The data may be collected using |
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the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) or |
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another reporting mechanism specified by the agency. |
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SECTION 1.03. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 21.0411 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 21.0411. WAIVER OR PAYMENT OF CERTAIN EXAMINATION AND |
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CERTIFICATION FEES. (a) Notwithstanding a rule adopted under |
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Section 21.041(c), the board shall, for a person applying for a |
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certification to teach established under this subchapter, waive: |
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(1) a certification examination fee imposed by the |
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board for the first administration of the examination to the |
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person; and |
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(2) a fee associated with the application for |
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certification by the person. |
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(b) The board shall pay to a vendor that administers a |
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certification examination required for certification to teach |
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under this subchapter a fee assessed by that vendor for the |
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examination of a person applying for a certification to teach |
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established under this subchapter for the first administration of |
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the examination to the person. |
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SECTION 1.04. Section 21.054, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsections (a) and (i) and adding Subsection (i-1) to |
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read as follows: |
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(a) The board shall propose rules establishing a process for |
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identifying continuing education courses and programs that fulfill |
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educators' continuing education requirements, including |
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opportunities for educators to receive micro-credentials, as |
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provided by Subsection (i), in: |
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(1) fields of study related to the educator's |
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certification class; or |
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(2) digital teaching [as provided by Subsection (i)]. |
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(i) The board shall propose rules establishing a program to |
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issue micro-credentials in fields of study related to an educator's |
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certification class or in digital teaching. The agency shall |
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approve continuing education providers to offer micro-credential |
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courses. A micro-credential received by an educator shall be |
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recorded on the agency's Educator Certification Online System |
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(ECOS) and included as part of the educator's public certification |
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records. |
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(i-1) In proposing rules under Subsection (i) for |
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micro-credentials related to digital teaching, the board shall |
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engage relevant stakeholders. |
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SECTION 1.05. Section 21.105, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (g) to read as |
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follows: |
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(c) Subject to Subsections (e), [and] (f), and (g), on |
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written complaint by the employing district, the State Board for |
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Educator Certification may impose sanctions against a teacher |
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employed under a probationary contract who: |
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(1) resigns; |
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(2) fails without good cause to comply with Subsection |
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(a) or (b); and |
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(3) fails to perform the contract. |
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(g) The State Board for Educator Certification may not |
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impose a sanction under Subsection (c) against a teacher who |
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relinquishes a position under a probationary contract and leaves |
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the employment of the district after the 45th day before the first |
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day of instruction for the upcoming school year in violation of |
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Subsection (a) and without the consent of the board of trustees |
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under Subsection (b) if the teacher's failure to comply with |
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Subsection (a) was due to: |
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(1) a serious illness or health condition of the |
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teacher or a close family member of the teacher; |
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(2) the teacher's relocation because the teacher's |
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spouse or a partner who resides with the teacher changes employers; |
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(3) a significant change in the needs of the teacher's |
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family in a manner that requires the teacher to: |
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(A) relocate; or |
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(B) forgo employment during a period of required |
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employment under the teacher's contract; or |
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(4) the teacher's reasonable belief that the teacher |
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had written permission from the school district's administration to |
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resign. |
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SECTION 1.06. Section 21.160, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (g) to read as |
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follows: |
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(c) Subject to Subsections (e), [and] (f), and (g), on |
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written complaint by the employing district, the State Board for |
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Educator Certification may impose sanctions against a teacher who |
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is employed under a continuing contract that obligates the district |
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to employ the person for the following school year and who: |
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(1) resigns; |
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(2) fails without good cause to comply with Subsection |
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(a) or (b); and |
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(3) fails to perform the contract. |
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(g) The State Board for Educator Certification may not |
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impose a sanction under Subsection (c) against a teacher who |
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relinquishes a position under a continuing contract and leaves the |
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employment of the district after the 45th day before the first day |
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of instruction of the upcoming school year in violation of |
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Subsection (a) and without the consent of the board of trustees |
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under Subsection (b) if the teacher's failure to comply with |
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Subsection (a) was due to: |
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(1) a serious illness or health condition of the |
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teacher or a close family member of the teacher; |
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(2) the teacher's relocation because the teacher's |
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spouse or a partner who resides with the teacher changes employers; |
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(3) a significant change in the needs of the teacher's |
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family in a manner that requires the teacher to: |
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(A) relocate; or |
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(B) forgo employment during a period of required |
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employment under the teacher's contract; or |
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(4) the teacher's reasonable belief that the teacher |
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had written permission from the school district's administration to |
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resign. |
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SECTION 1.07. Section 21.210, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (g) to read as |
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follows: |
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(c) Subject to Subsections (e), [and] (f), and (g), on |
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written complaint by the employing district, the State Board for |
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Educator Certification may impose sanctions against a teacher who |
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is employed under a term contract that obligates the district to |
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employ the person for the following school year and who: |
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(1) resigns; |
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(2) fails without good cause to comply with Subsection |
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(a) or (b); and |
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(3) fails to perform the contract. |
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(g) The State Board for Educator Certification may not |
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impose a sanction under Subsection (c) against a teacher who |
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relinquishes a position under a term contract and leaves the |
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employment of the district after the 45th day before the first day |
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of instruction of the upcoming school year in violation of |
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Subsection (a) and without the consent of the board of trustees |
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under Subsection (b) if the teacher's failure to comply with |
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Subsection (a) was due to: |
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(1) a serious illness or health condition of the |
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teacher or a close family member of the teacher; |
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(2) the teacher's relocation because the teacher's |
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spouse or a partner who resides with the teacher changes employers; |
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(3) a significant change in the needs of the teacher's |
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family in a manner that requires the teacher to: |
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(A) relocate; or |
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(B) forgo employment during a period of required |
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employment under the teacher's contract; or |
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(4) the teacher's reasonable belief that the teacher |
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had written permission from the school district's administration to |
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resign. |
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SECTION 1.08. Section 21.257, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (f) to read as |
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follows: |
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(a) Except as provided by Subsection (f), not [Not] later |
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than the 60th day after the date on which the commissioner receives |
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a teacher's written request for a hearing, the hearing examiner |
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shall complete the hearing and make a written recommendation that: |
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(1) includes proposed findings of fact and conclusions |
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of law; and |
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(2) may include a proposal for granting relief. |
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(f) The hearing examiner may dismiss a hearing before |
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completing the hearing or making a written recommendation if: |
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(1) the teacher requests the dismissal; |
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(2) the school district withdraws the proposed |
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decision that is the basis of the hearing; or |
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(3) the teacher and school district request the |
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dismissal after reaching a settlement regarding the proposed |
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decision that is the basis of the hearing. |
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SECTION 1.09. Sections 21.3521(a), (c), and (e), Education |
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Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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(a) Subject to Subsection (b), a school district or |
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open-enrollment charter school may designate a classroom teacher as |
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a master, exemplary, [or] recognized, or acknowledged teacher for a |
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five-year period based on the results from single year or multiyear |
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appraisals that comply with Section 21.351 or 21.352. |
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(c) Notwithstanding performance standards established |
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under Subsection (b), a classroom teacher that holds a National |
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Board Certification issued by the National Board for Professional |
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Teaching Standards may be designated as nationally board certified |
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[recognized]. |
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(e) The agency shall develop and provide technical |
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assistance for school districts and open-enrollment charter |
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schools that request assistance in implementing a local optional |
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teacher designation system, including: |
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(1) providing assistance in prioritizing high needs |
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campuses; |
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(2) providing examples or models of local optional |
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teacher designation systems to reduce the time required for a |
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district or school to implement a teacher designation system; |
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(3) establishing partnerships between districts and |
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schools that request assistance and districts and schools that have |
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implemented a teacher designation system; |
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(4) applying the performance and validity standards |
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established by the commissioner under Subsection (b); |
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(5) providing centralized support for the analysis of |
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the results of assessment instruments administered to district |
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students; and |
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(6) facilitating effective communication on and |
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promotion of local optional teacher designation systems. |
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SECTION 1.10. Subchapter H, Chapter 21, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 21.3522 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 21.3522. LOCAL OPTIONAL TEACHER DESIGNATION SYSTEM |
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GRANT PROGRAM. (a) From funds appropriated or otherwise |
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available for the purpose, the agency shall establish and |
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administer a grant program to provide money and technical |
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assistance to: |
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(1) expand implementation of local optional teacher |
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designation systems under Section 21.3521; and |
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(2) increase the number of classroom teachers eligible |
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for a designation under that section. |
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(b) A grant awarded under this section must: |
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(1) meet the needs of individual school districts; and |
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(2) enable regional leadership capacity. |
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(c) The commissioner may adopt rules to establish and |
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administer the grant program under this section. |
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SECTION 1.11. Section 21.402, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsections (a) and (g) and adding Subsections (a-1), |
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(c-2), (i), (j), and (k) to read as follows: |
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(a) Except as provided by Subsection (c-2) [(e-1) or (f)], a |
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school district must pay each employee who is employed as a |
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classroom teacher, full-time librarian, full-time school counselor |
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certified under Subchapter B, or full-time school nurse not less |
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than the highest annual minimum [minimum monthly] salary described |
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by the following schedule applicable to [, based on] the employee's |
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certification, if any, and years [level] of experience: |
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(1) for an employee with less than five years of |
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experience who: |
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(A) holds no certification $35,000; |
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(B) holds a teacher intern, teacher trainee, or |
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probationary certificate issued under Subchapter B $37,000; |
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(C) holds the base certificate required under |
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Section 21.003(a) for employment in the employee's position other |
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than a certificate described by Paragraph (B) $40,000; |
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(D) holds a designation under Section 21.3521 |
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$43,000; or |
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(E) holds a residency educator certificate or has |
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successfully completed a residency partnership program under |
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Subchapter R $43,000; |
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(2) for an employee with at least five years of |
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experience who holds: |
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(A) no certification $45,000; |
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(B) a teacher intern, teacher trainee, or |
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probationary certificate issued under Subchapter B $47,000; |
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(C) the base certificate required under Section |
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21.003(a) for employment in the employee's position other than a |
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certificate described by Paragraph (B) $50,000; or |
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(D) a designation under Section 21.3521 |
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$53,000; or |
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(3) for an employee with at least 10 years of |
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experience who holds: |
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(A) no certification $55,000; |
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(B) a teacher intern, teacher trainee, or |
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probationary certificate issued under Subchapter B $57,000; |
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(C) the base certificate required under Section |
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21.003(a) for employment in the employee's |
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position . . .. $60,000; or |
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(D) a designation under Section 21.3521 |
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$63,000 [in addition to other factors, as determined by |
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commissioner rule, determined by the following formula: |
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[MS = SF x FS |
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[where: |
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["MS" is the minimum monthly salary; |
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["SF" is the applicable salary factor specified by Subsection |
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(c); and |
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["FS" is the amount, as determined by the commissioner under |
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Subsection (b), of the basic allotment as provided by Section |
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48.051(a) or (b) for a school district with a maintenance and |
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operations tax rate at least equal to the state maximum compressed |
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tax rate, as defined by Section 48.051(a)]. |
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(a-1) For purposes of Subsection (a), a full-time school |
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nurse is considered to hold the base certificate required under |
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Section 21.003(a) for employment as a school nurse, regardless of |
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the other certifications held by the nurse. |
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(c-2) A school district is not required to pay an employee |
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who is employed as a classroom teacher, full-time librarian, |
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full-time school counselor certified under Subchapter B, or |
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full-time school nurse the minimum salary required under Subsection |
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(a) for the school year following a school year during which the |
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district reviews the employee's performance and finds the |
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employee's performance unsatisfactory. |
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(g) The commissioner may adopt rules to govern the |
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application of this section, including rules that: |
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(1) require the payment of a minimum salary under this |
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section to a person employed in more than one capacity for which a |
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minimum salary is provided and whose combined employment in those |
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capacities constitutes full-time employment; and |
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(2) specify the credentials a person must hold to be |
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considered a [speech pathologist or] school nurse under this |
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section. |
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(i) A school district that increases employee compensation |
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in the 2024-2025 school year to comply with Subsection (a), as |
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amended by _.B. ___, 88th Legislature, 3rd Called Session, 2023, is |
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providing compensation for services rendered independently of an |
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existing employment contract applicable to that year and is not in |
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violation of Section 53, Article III, Texas Constitution. A school |
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district that does not meet the requirements of Subsection (a) in |
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the 2024-2025 school year may satisfy the requirements of this |
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section by providing an employee a one-time bonus payment during |
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the 2025-2026 school year in an amount equal to the difference |
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between the compensation earned by the employee during the |
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2024-2025 school year and the compensation the employee should have |
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received during that school year if the district had complied with |
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Subsection (a). |
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(j) Notwithstanding the minimum salary schedule under |
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Subsection (a), a school district that increases the amount a |
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classroom teacher, full-time librarian, full-time school counselor |
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certified under Subchapter B, or full-time school nurse is |
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compensated during the 2024-2025 school year by at least $8,000 |
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more than the amount the employee was compensated during the |
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2023-2024 school year complies with the requirements of this |
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section for the 2024-2025 school year. |
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(k) Subsections (i) and (j) and this subsection expire |
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September 1, 2027. |
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SECTION 1.12. The heading to Section 21.403, Education |
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Code, is amended to read as follows: |
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Sec. 21.403. DETERMINATION OF YEARS OF EXPERIENCE |
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[PLACEMENT ON MINIMUM SALARY SCHEDULE]. |
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SECTION 1.13. Sections 21.403(b) and (c), Education Code, |
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are amended to read as follows: |
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(b) For each year of work experience required for |
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certification in a career or technological field, up to a maximum of |
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two years, a certified career or technology education teacher is |
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entitled to [salary step] credit as if the work experience were |
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teaching experience. |
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(c) The commissioner shall adopt rules for determining the |
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experience for which a teacher, librarian, school counselor, or |
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nurse is to be given credit for purposes of the minimum salary |
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schedule under Section 21.402(a) [in placing the teacher, |
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librarian, school counselor, or nurse on the minimum salary |
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schedule]. A district shall credit the teacher, librarian, school |
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counselor, or nurse for each year of experience without regard to |
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whether the years are consecutive. |
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SECTION 1.14. Subchapter I, Chapter 21, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Sections 21.416 and 21.417 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 21.416. EMPLOYED RETIREE TEACHER REIMBURSEMENT GRANT |
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PROGRAM. (a) From funds appropriated or otherwise available, the |
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commissioner shall establish and administer a grant program to |
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award funds to reimburse a school district, an open-enrollment |
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charter school, the Windham School District, the Texas School for |
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the Deaf, or the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired |
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that hires a teacher, including an educator who provides services |
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related to special education, who retired before September 1, 2022, |
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for the increased contributions to the Teacher Retirement System of |
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Texas associated with hiring the retired teacher. |
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(b) In appropriating money for grants awarded under this |
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section, the legislature may provide for, modify, or limit amounts |
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appropriated for that purpose in the General Appropriations Act, |
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including by: |
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(1) providing, notwithstanding Subsection (a), a date |
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or date range other than September 1, 2022, before which a teacher |
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must have retired for a school district, an open-enrollment charter |
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school, the Windham School District, the Texas School for the Deaf, |
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or the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired that hires |
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the teacher to be eligible; or |
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(2) limiting eligibility to a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school that hires a retired teacher: |
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(A) who holds a certain certification; |
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(B) to teach a certain subject or grade; |
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(C) in a certain geographical area; or |
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(D) to provide instruction to certain students, |
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including to students with disabilities. |
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(c) The commissioner shall proportionally reduce the amount |
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of funds awarded to school districts, open-enrollment charter |
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schools, the Windham School District, the Texas School for the |
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Deaf, and the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired under |
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this section if the number of grant applications by eligible |
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districts or schools exceeds the number of grants the commissioner |
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could award with the money appropriated or otherwise available for |
|
the purpose. |
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(d) A school district, an open-enrollment charter school, |
|
the Windham School District, the Texas School for the Deaf, or the |
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Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired may use funds |
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received under this section to make required payments under Section |
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825.4092, Government Code. |
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Sec. 21.417. ELECTION BY TEACHER TO USE UNPAID LEAVE. The |
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board of trustees of a school district shall adopt a policy that |
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provides a classroom teacher employed by the district the option to |
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elect not to take the teacher's paid personal leave concurrently |
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with unpaid leave the teacher is entitled to take under the Family |
|
and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. Section 2601 et seq.) for |
|
an absence due to pregnancy or the birth or adoption of a child. |
|
SECTION 1.15. Section 21.4552(d), Education Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
(d) From funds appropriated for that purpose, a teacher who |
|
attends a literacy achievement academy is entitled to receive a |
|
stipend in the amount determined by the commissioner. A stipend |
|
received under this subsection is not considered in determining |
|
whether a school district is paying the teacher the minimum |
|
[monthly] salary under Section 21.402. |
|
SECTION 1.16. Section 21.4553(d), Education Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
(d) From funds appropriated for that purpose, a teacher who |
|
attends a mathematics achievement academy is entitled to receive a |
|
stipend in the amount determined by the commissioner. A stipend |
|
received under this subsection is not considered in determining |
|
whether a district is paying the teacher the minimum [monthly] |
|
salary under Section 21.402. |
|
SECTION 1.17. Section 21.4555(f), Education Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
(f) From funds available for that purpose, a teacher who |
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attends a civics training program may receive a stipend in an amount |
|
determined by the commissioner. A stipend received under this |
|
section is not included in determining whether a district is paying |
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the teacher the minimum [monthly] salary under Section 21.402. |
|
SECTION 1.18. Subchapter J, Chapter 21, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Sections 21.466 and 21.467 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 21.466. TEACHER QUALITY ASSISTANCE. (a) From funds |
|
appropriated or otherwise available for the purpose, the agency |
|
shall develop training for and provide technical assistance to |
|
school districts and open-enrollment charter schools regarding: |
|
(1) strategic compensation, staffing, and scheduling |
|
efforts that improve professional growth, teacher leadership |
|
opportunities, and staff retention; |
|
(2) programs that encourage high school students or |
|
other members of the community in the area served by the district to |
|
become teachers, including available teacher apprenticeship |
|
programs; and |
|
(3) programs or strategies that school leaders may use |
|
to establish clear and attainable behavior expectations while |
|
proactively supporting students. |
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(b) From funds appropriated or otherwise available, the |
|
agency shall provide grants to school districts and open-enrollment |
|
charter schools to implement initiatives developed under this |
|
section. |
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Sec. 21.467. TEACHER TIME STUDY. (a) From funds |
|
appropriated or otherwise available for the purpose, the agency |
|
shall develop and maintain a technical assistance program to |
|
support school districts and open-enrollment charter schools in: |
|
(1) studying how the district's or school's staff and |
|
student schedules, required noninstructional duties for classroom |
|
teachers, and professional development requirements for educators |
|
are affecting the amount of time classroom teachers work each week; |
|
and |
|
(2) refining the schedules for students or staff as |
|
necessary to ensure teachers have sufficient time during normal |
|
work hours to fulfill all job duties, including addressing the |
|
needs of students. |
|
(b) The agency shall periodically make findings and |
|
recommendations for best practices publicly available using |
|
information from participating school districts and |
|
open-enrollment charter schools. |
|
SECTION 1.19. Chapter 21, Education Code, is amended by |
|
adding Subchapter R to read as follows: |
|
SUBCHAPTER R. TEXAS TEACHER RESIDENCY PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM |
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Sec. 21.901. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: |
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(1) "Board" means the State Board for Educator |
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Certification. |
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(2) "Cooperating teacher" means a classroom teacher |
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who: |
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(A) has at least three full school years of |
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teaching experience with a superior record of assisting students in |
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achieving improvement in student performance; |
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(B) is employed by a school district or |
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open-enrollment charter school participating in a partnership |
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program under this subchapter and paired with a partnership |
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resident at the district or school; and |
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(C) provides coaching to a partnership resident |
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in the teacher's classroom. |
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(3) "Partnership program" means a Texas Teacher |
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Residency Partnership Program established at a school district or |
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open-enrollment charter school in accordance with this subchapter. |
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(4) "Partnership resident" means a person enrolled in |
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a qualified educator preparation program participating in a |
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partnership program as a candidate for educator certification. |
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(5) "Qualified educator preparation program" means an |
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educator preparation program approved in accordance with rules |
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proposed under Section 21.903. |
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Sec. 21.902. ESTABLISHMENT OF PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM. (a) |
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The commissioner shall establish the Texas Teacher Residency |
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Partnership Program to enable qualified educator preparation |
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programs to form partnerships with school districts or |
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open-enrollment charter schools to provide residency positions to |
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partnership residents at the district or school. |
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(b) The partnership program must be designed to: |
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(1) allow partnership residents to receive |
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field-based experience working with cooperating teachers in |
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prekindergarten through grade 12 classrooms; and |
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(2) gradually increase the amount of time a |
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partnership resident spends engaging in instructional |
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responsibilities, including observation, co-teaching, and |
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lead-teaching responsibilities. |
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Sec. 21.903. QUALIFIED EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAMS. The |
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board shall propose rules specifying the requirements for board |
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approval of an educator preparation program as a qualified educator |
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preparation program for purposes of this subchapter. The rules |
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must require an educator preparation program to: |
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(1) use research-based best practices for recruiting |
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and admitting candidates into the educator preparation program to |
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participate in the partnership program; |
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(2) integrate curriculum, classroom practice, and |
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formal observation and feedback; |
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(3) use multiple assessments to measure a partnership |
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resident's progress in the partnership program; and |
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(4) partner with a school district or open-enrollment |
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charter school. |
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Sec. 21.904. REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATING DISTRICTS AND |
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SCHOOLS. (a) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
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participating in the partnership program shall: |
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(1) enter into a written agreement with a qualified |
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educator preparation program to: |
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(A) provide a partnership resident with at least |
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one school year of clinical teaching in a residency position at the |
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district or school in the subject area and grade level for which the |
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resident seeks certification; and |
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(B) pair the partnership resident with a |
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cooperating teacher; |
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(2) specify the amount of money the district receives |
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under Section 48.157 that the district will provide to the program; |
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(3) only use money received under Section 48.157 to: |
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(A) implement the partnership program; |
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(B) provide compensation to: |
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(i) partnership residents in residency |
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positions at the district or school; and |
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(ii) cooperating teachers who are paired |
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with partnership residents at the district or school; and |
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(C) provide an amount equal to at least 10 |
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percent of the funding received by the district or school to the |
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qualified educator preparation program with which the district or |
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school partners; |
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(4) pay at least 50 percent of the compensation paid to |
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partnership residents using money other than money received under |
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Section 48.157; and |
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(5) provide any information required by the agency |
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regarding the district's or school's implementation of the program. |
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(b) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
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only pair a partnership resident with a cooperating teacher who |
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agrees to participate in that role in a partnership program at the |
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district or school partnership program. |
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(c) A partnership resident may not serve as a teacher of |
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record, as that term is defined by Section 21.051. |
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Sec. 21.905. RESIDENCY EDUCATOR CERTIFICATE. The board |
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shall propose rules specifying the requirements for the issuance of |
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a residency educator certificate to a candidate who has |
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successfully completed a qualified educator preparation program |
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under Section 21.903. The rules may not require the resident to |
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pass a pedagogy examination unless the examination tests |
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subject-specific content appropriate for the grade and subject area |
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for which the candidate seeks certification. |
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Sec. 21.906. AGENCY SUPPORT. The agency shall provide |
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technical assistance, planning, and support to school districts, |
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open-enrollment charter schools, and qualified educator |
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preparation programs, which must include: |
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(1) providing model forms and agreements a district, |
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school, or educator preparation program may use to comply with the |
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requirements of this subchapter; and |
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(2) support for district and school strategic staffing |
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and compensation models to incentivize participation in a |
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partnership program. |
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Sec. 21.907. AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT CERTAIN FUNDS. The |
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commissioner may solicit and accept gifts, grants, and donations |
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from public and private entities to use for the purposes of this |
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subchapter. |
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Sec. 21.908. RULES; NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING COMMITTEE. (a) |
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The board shall propose rules necessary to implement this |
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subchapter, including, subject to Subsection (b), rules under |
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Sections 21.903 and 21.905. |
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(b) In using negotiated rulemaking procedures under Chapter |
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2008, Government Code, for any proposed rule related to the |
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implementation of Section 21.903 or 21.905, the board must appoint |
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to the negotiated rulemaking committee persons representing |
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institutions of higher education, as defined by Section 61.003. |
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(c) The commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to |
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implement this subchapter after considering the recommendations of |
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the negotiated rulemaking committee appointed under Subsection |
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(b). |
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SECTION 1.20. Section 29.153(b), Education Code, is amended |
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to read as follows: |
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(b) A child is eligible for enrollment in a prekindergarten |
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class under this section if the child is at least three years of age |
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and: |
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(1) is unable to speak and comprehend the English |
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language; |
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(2) is educationally disadvantaged; |
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(3) is homeless, regardless of the residence of the |
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child, of either parent of the child, or of the child's guardian or |
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other person having lawful control of the child; |
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(4) is the child of an active duty member of the armed |
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forces of the United States, including the state military forces or |
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a reserve component of the armed forces, who is ordered to active |
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duty by proper authority; |
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(5) is the child of a member of the armed forces of the |
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United States, including the state military forces or a reserve |
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component of the armed forces, who was injured or killed while |
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serving on active duty; |
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(6) is or ever has been in: |
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(A) the conservatorship of the Department of |
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Family and Protective Services following an adversary hearing held |
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as provided by Section 262.201, Family Code; or |
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(B) foster care in another state or territory, if |
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the child resides in this state; [or] |
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(7) is the child of a person eligible for the Star of |
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Texas Award as: |
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(A) a peace officer under Section 3106.002, |
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Government Code; |
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(B) a firefighter under Section 3106.003, |
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Government Code; or |
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(C) an emergency medical first responder under |
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Section 3106.004, Government Code; or |
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(8) is the child of a person employed as a classroom |
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teacher at a public primary or secondary school in the school |
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district that offers a prekindergarten class under this section. |
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SECTION 1.21. Section 30.102(b), Education Code, is amended |
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to read as follows: |
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(b) A classroom teacher, full-time librarian, full-time |
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school counselor certified under Subchapter B, Chapter 21, or |
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full-time school nurse employed by the department is entitled to |
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receive as a minimum salary the [monthly] salary specified by |
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Section 21.402. A classroom teacher, full-time librarian, |
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full-time school counselor, or full-time school nurse may be paid, |
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from funds appropriated to the department, a salary in excess of the |
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minimum specified by that section, but the salary may not exceed the |
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rate of pay for a similar position in the public schools of an |
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adjacent school district. |
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SECTION 1.22. Section 33.009(h), Education Code, is amended |
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to read as follows: |
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(h) From funds appropriated for that purpose, a school |
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counselor who attends the academy under this section is entitled to |
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receive a stipend in the amount determined by the coordinating |
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board. If funds are available after all eligible school counselors |
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have received a stipend under this subsection, the coordinating |
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board shall pay a stipend in the amount determined by the |
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coordinating board to a teacher who attends the academy under this |
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section. A stipend received under this subsection is not |
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considered in determining whether a district is paying the school |
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counselor or teacher the minimum [monthly] salary under Section |
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21.402. |
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SECTION 1.23. Sections 48.112(c) and (d), Education Code, |
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are amended to read as follows: |
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(c) For each classroom teacher with a teacher designation |
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under Section 21.3521 employed by a school district, the school |
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district is entitled to an allotment equal to the following |
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applicable base amount increased by the high needs and rural factor |
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as determined under Subsection (d): |
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(1) $12,000, or an increased amount not to exceed |
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$36,000 [$32,000] as determined under Subsection (d), for each |
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master teacher; |
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(2) $9,000 [$6,000], or an increased amount not to |
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exceed $25,000 [$18,000] as determined under Subsection (d), for |
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each exemplary teacher; [and] |
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(3) $5,000 [$3,000], or an increased amount not to |
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exceed $15,000 [$9,000] as determined under Subsection (d), for |
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each recognized teacher; and |
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(4) $3,000, or an increased amount not to exceed |
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$9,000 as determined under Subsection (d), for each: |
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(A) acknowledged teacher; or |
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(B) teacher designated as nationally board |
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certified. |
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(d) The high needs and rural factor is determined by |
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multiplying the following applicable amounts by the average of the |
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point value assigned to each student at a district campus under |
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Subsection (e): |
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(1) $6,000 [$5,000] for each master teacher; |
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(2) $4,000 [$3,000] for each exemplary teacher; [and] |
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(3) $2,500 [$1,500] for each recognized teacher; and |
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(4) $1,500 for each: |
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(A) acknowledged teacher; or |
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(B) teacher designated as nationally board |
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certified. |
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SECTION 1.24. Subchapter D, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 48.157 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 48.157. RESIDENCY PARTNERSHIP ALLOTMENT. (a) In this |
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section, "partnership program" and "partnership resident" have the |
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meanings assigned by Section 21.901. |
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(b) For each partnership resident employed at a school |
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district in a residency position under Subchapter R, Chapter 21, |
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the district is entitled to an allotment equal to a base amount of |
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$22,000 increased by the high needs and rural factor, as determined |
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under Subsection (c), to an amount not to exceed $42,000. |
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(c) The high needs and rural factor is determined by |
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multiplying $5,000 by the lesser of: |
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(1) the average of the point value assigned to each |
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student at a district campus under Sections 48.112(e) and (f); or |
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(2) 4.0. |
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(d) In addition to the funding under Subsection (b), a |
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district that qualifies for an allotment under this section is |
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entitled to an additional $2,000 for each partnership resident |
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employed in a residency position at the district who is a candidate |
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for special education or bilingual education certification. |
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(e) The Texas School for the Deaf and the Texas School for |
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the Blind and Visually Impaired are entitled to an allotment under |
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this section. If the commissioner determines that assigning point |
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values under Subsection (c) to students enrolled in the Texas |
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School for the Deaf or the Texas School for the Blind and Visually |
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Impaired is impractical, the commissioner may use the average point |
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value assigned for those students' home districts for purposes of |
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calculating the high needs and rural factor. |
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SECTION 1.25. Subchapter F, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 48.280 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 48.280. SALARY TRANSITION ALLOTMENT. (a) A school |
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district is entitled to receive an annual salary transition |
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allotment equal to the number of employees on the minimum salary |
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schedule under Section 21.402 for the applicable school year |
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multiplied by the difference, if that amount is greater than zero, |
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between: |
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(1) the amount calculated under Subsection (b); and |
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(2) the amount calculated under Subsection (c). |
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(b) The agency shall calculate a school district's value for |
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Subsection (a)(1) by determining the difference between: |
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(1) the amount the district must pay in compensation |
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for the current school year for employees on the minimum salary |
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schedule under Section 21.402, as amended by _.B. ___, 88th |
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Legislature, 3rd Called Session, 2023, divided by the total number |
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of employees on the minimum salary schedule under that section for |
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that school year; and |
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(2) the amount paid in compensation for the 2023-2024 |
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school year for employees on the minimum salary schedule under |
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Section 21.402 divided by the total number of employees on the |
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minimum salary schedule under that section for that school year. |
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(c) The agency shall calculate a school district's value for |
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Subsection (a)(2) by determining the difference between: |
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(1) the total maintenance and operations revenue for |
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the current school year divided by the total number of employees on |
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the minimum salary schedule under Section 21.402 for that school |
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year; and |
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(2) the total maintenance and operations revenue that |
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would have been available to the district for the current school |
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year using the basic allotment formula provided by Section 48.051 |
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and the small and mid-sized allotment formulas provided by Section |
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48.101 as those sections existed on January 1, 2023, divided by the |
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total number of employees on the minimum salary schedule under |
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Section 21.402 for that school year. |
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(d) In calculating the values under this section for a |
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school district or open-enrollment charter school to which Section |
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21.402 does not apply, the agency shall include as employees on the |
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minimum salary schedule under that section employees of the |
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district or school who would have been on the minimum salary |
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schedule under that section if the district or school were a school |
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district to which that section applies. |
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(e) Before making a final determination of the amount of an |
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allotment to which a school district is entitled under this |
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section, the agency shall ensure each school district has an |
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opportunity to review and submit revised information to the agency |
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for purposes of calculating the values under Subsection (a). |
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(f) For purposes of this section, "compensation" includes |
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contributions made to the Teacher Retirement System of Texas under |
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Sections 825.4035 and 825.405, Government Code. |
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SECTION 1.26. The following provisions are repealed: |
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(1) Sections 21.402(b), (c), (c-1), (f), and (h), |
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Education Code; |
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(2) Sections 21.403(a) and (d), Education Code; |
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(3) Subchapter Q, Chapter 21, Education Code; |
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(4) Section 48.114(b), Education Code; and |
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(5) Section 825.4092(f), Government Code. |
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SECTION 1.27. Not later than September 1, 2026, the |
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commissioner of education, with the assistance of the executive |
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director of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas and the |
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comptroller of public accounts, shall make recommendations to the |
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legislature to improve and coordinate pension contribution |
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appropriations for public school employees. |
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SECTION 1.28. Section 21.257(f), Education Code, as added |
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by this article, applies only to a hearing before a hearing examiner |
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commenced on or after the effective date of this article. |
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SECTION 1.29. Immediately following the effective date of |
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this article, a school district or open-enrollment charter school |
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shall redesignate a teacher who holds a designation made under |
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Section 21.3521, Education Code, before the effective date of this |
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article, to reflect the teacher's designation under Section |
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21.3521, Education Code, as amended by this article. Funding |
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provided to a school district under Section 48.112, Education Code, |
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for a teacher who held a designation made under Section 21.3521, |
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Education Code, as that section existed immediately before the |
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effective date of this article, shall be increased to reflect the |
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teacher's redesignation under Section 21.3521, Education Code, as |
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amended by this article. |
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SECTION 1.30. Notwithstanding Section 21.903, Education |
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Code, as added by this article, until the State Board for Educator |
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Certification adopts rules specifying the requirements for |
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approval of an educator preparation program as a qualified educator |
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preparation program as required by that section, the commissioner |
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of education may approve a program as a qualified educator |
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preparation program for purposes of Subchapter R, Chapter 21, |
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Education Code, as added by this article, if the commissioner |
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determines that the program meets the requirements under Section |
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21.903, Education Code, as added by this article. An educator |
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preparation program's designation as a qualified educator |
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preparation program by the commissioner under this section remains |
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effective until the first anniversary of the earliest effective |
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date of a rule adopted by the State Board for Educator Certification |
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under Section 21.903, Education Code, as added by this article. |
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SECTION 1.31. This article takes effect September 1, 2024. |
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ARTICLE 2. CHANGES RELATED TO PUBLIC SCHOOL FINANCE EFFECTIVE FOR |
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2023-2024 SCHOOL YEAR |
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SECTION 2.01. Section 12.106, Education Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsections (d-1) and (d-2) to |
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read as follows: |
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(d) Subject to Subsection (e), in addition to other amounts |
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provided by this section, a charter holder is entitled to receive, |
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for the open-enrollment charter school, funding per student in |
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average daily attendance in an amount equal to the guaranteed level |
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of state and local funds per student per cent of tax effort under |
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Section 46.032(a) multiplied by the lesser of: |
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(1) the state average interest and sinking fund tax |
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rate imposed by school districts for the current year; or |
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(2) a rate that would result in a total amount to which |
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charter schools are entitled under this subsection for the current |
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year equal to $300 [$60] million or a greater amount provided by |
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appropriation. |
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(d-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (d)(2), the total amount |
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that may be used to provide allotments under Subsection (d) may not |
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exceed: |
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(1) for the 2023-2024 school year, $108 million; |
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(2) for the 2024-2025 school year, $156 million; |
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(3) for the 2025-2026 school year, $204 million; and |
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(4) for the 2026-2027 school year, $252 million. |
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(d-2) Subsection (d-1) and this subsection expire September |
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1, 2028. |
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SECTION 2.02. Subchapter Z, Chapter 29, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 29.935 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 29.935. UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MCDONALD OBSERVATORY |
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EDUCATION AND OUTREACH GRANT. (a) From money appropriated for the |
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Foundation School Program or otherwise made available for purposes |
|
of this section, the commissioner shall transfer the amount of $10 |
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million to The University of Texas at Austin to enhance education |
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outreach and visitor experiences and engagement, particularly for |
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students and educators, at The University of Texas McDonald |
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Observatory at Mount Locke. |
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(b) Funds transferred under this section may only be used by |
|
The University of Texas McDonald Observatory at Mount Locke to: |
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(1) install new exhibits and renovate existing |
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exhibits; |
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(2) modernize self-guided tours with the integration |
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of technology; |
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(3) renovate and upgrade the observatory's theater and |
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facilities; |
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(4) leverage technology to create first-class virtual |
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experiences; and |
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(5) design in-person and virtual engagements for all |
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ages with special consideration given to students and educators. |
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(c) The commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to |
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implement this section. |
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(d) This section expires September 1, 2025. |
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SECTION 2.03. Section 30.003, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsections (b) and (f-1) and adding Subsection (b-1) to |
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read as follows: |
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(b) If the student is admitted to the school for a full-time |
|
program for the equivalent of two long semesters, the district's |
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share of the cost is an amount equal to the dollar amount of |
|
maintenance and debt service taxes imposed by the district for that |
|
year, subject to Subsection (b-1), divided by the district's |
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average daily attendance for the preceding year. |
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(b-1) For purposes of Subsection (b), the commissioner |
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shall reduce the dollar amount of maintenance and debt service |
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taxes imposed by the district for a year by the amount, if any, by |
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which the district is required to reduce the district's local |
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revenue level under Section 48.257 for that year. |
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(f-1) The commissioner shall determine the total amount |
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that the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the |
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Texas School for the Deaf would have received from school districts |
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in accordance with this section if the following provisions had not |
|
reduced the districts' share of the cost of providing education |
|
services: |
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(1) H.B. No. 1, Acts of the 79th Legislature, 3rd |
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Called Session, 2006; |
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(2) Subsection (b-1) of this section; |
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(3) Section 45.0032; |
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(4) [(3)] Section 48.255; and |
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(5) [(4)] Section 48.2551. |
|
SECTION 2.04. Subchapter B, Chapter 38, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 38.0631 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 38.0631. TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER |
|
TEXAS SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH CENTERS GRANT. (a) From money |
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appropriated for the Foundation School Program or otherwise made |
|
available for purposes of this section and in addition to other |
|
grants available under this subchapter, the commissioner shall |
|
transfer the amount of $20 million to the Texas Tech University |
|
Health Sciences Center to enhance the provision of telehealth |
|
services to public school students who receive services from |
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school-based health centers located in partner schools that |
|
participate in the Texas Child Health Access through Telemedicine |
|
program operated by the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium |
|
established under Chapter 113, Health and Safety Code. |
|
(b) Funds transferred under this section may only be used by |
|
the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center to: |
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(1) establish health care delivery infrastructure to |
|
provide public school students the option of virtual health care |
|
clinic visits during school hours; |
|
(2) develop a network of health care providers to |
|
facilitate direct access for public school students to health care |
|
providers through telehealth platforms; and |
|
(3) establish partnerships with school districts. |
|
(c) The commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to |
|
implement this section. |
|
(d) This section expires September 1, 2025. |
|
SECTION 2.05. Sections 48.005(b), (e), and (f), Education |
|
Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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(b) A school district that experiences a decline of more |
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than five [two] percent [or more] in average daily attendance shall |
|
be funded on the basis of[: |
|
[(1) the actual average daily attendance of the |
|
preceding school year, if the decline is the result of the closing |
|
or reduction in personnel of a military base; or |
|
[(2) subject to Subsection (e),] an average daily |
|
attendance of 95 [not to exceed 98] percent of the actual average |
|
daily attendance of the preceding school year[, if the decline is |
|
not the result of the closing or reduction in personnel of a |
|
military base]. |
|
(e) For each school year, the commissioner shall adjust the |
|
average daily attendance of school districts that are entitled to |
|
funding on the basis of an adjusted average daily attendance under |
|
Subsection (b) [(b)(2)] so that: |
|
(1) all districts are funded on the basis of the same |
|
percentage of the preceding year's actual average daily attendance; |
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and |
|
(2) the total cost to the state does not exceed $50 |
|
million [the amount specifically appropriated for that year for |
|
purposes of Subsection (b)(2)]. |
|
(f) An open-enrollment charter school is not entitled to |
|
funding based on an adjustment under Subsection (b) [(b)(2)]. |
|
SECTION 2.06. Sections 48.011(a-1), (d), and (e), Education |
|
Code, are amended to read as follows: |
|
(a-1) The commissioner may modify dates relating to the |
|
adoption of a school district's maintenance and operations tax rate |
|
and, if applicable, an election required for the district to adopt |
|
that rate as necessary to implement the changes to the Foundation |
|
School Program and requirements relating to school district tax |
|
rates made by the 88th [H.B. 3, 86th] Legislature, 3rd Called |
|
[Regular] Session, 2023 [2019]. |
|
(d) Beginning with the 2027-2028 [2021-2022] school year, |
|
the commissioner may not make an adjustment under Subsection (a) or |
|
(a-1). |
|
(e) This section expires September 1, 2028 [2023]. |
|
SECTION 2.07. Section 48.051, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsections (a), (c), and (d) and adding Subsections |
|
(c-3), (c-4), (c-5), and (c-6) to read as follows: |
|
(a) For each student in average daily attendance, not |
|
including the time students spend each day in special education |
|
programs in an instructional arrangement other than mainstream or |
|
career and technology education programs, for which an additional |
|
allotment is made under Subchapter C, a district is entitled to an |
|
allotment equal to [the lesser of $6,160 or] the amount that results |
|
from the following formula: |
|
A = B [$6,160] X TR/MCR |
|
where: |
|
"A" is the allotment to which a district is entitled; |
|
"B" is the base amount, which equals the greater of: |
|
(1) $6,190; |
|
(2) an amount equal to the district's base amount under |
|
this section for the preceding school year; or |
|
(3) the amount appropriated under Subsection (b); |
|
"TR" is the district's tier one maintenance and operations |
|
tax rate, as provided by Section 45.0032; and |
|
"MCR" is the district's maximum compressed tax rate, as |
|
determined under Section 48.2551. |
|
(c) During any school year for which the value of "A" |
|
determined [maximum amount of the basic allotment provided] under |
|
Subsection (a) or, if applicable, the sum of the value of "A" and |
|
the allotment under Section 48.101 to which the district is |
|
entitled, [or (b)] is greater than the value of "A" or, if |
|
applicable, the sum of the value of "A" and the allotment under |
|
Section 48.101 to which the district is entitled, [maximum amount |
|
provided] for the preceding school year, a school district must use |
|
at least 50 [30] percent of the amount[, if the amount is greater |
|
than zero,] that equals the product of the average daily attendance |
|
of the district multiplied by the amount of the difference between |
|
the district's funding under this chapter per student in average |
|
daily attendance, excluding the amounts described by Subsection |
|
(c-6), for the current school year and the preceding school year to |
|
increase the average total compensation per [provide compensation |
|
increases to] full-time district employee [employees] other than an |
|
administrator [administrators] as follows: |
|
(1) 75 percent must be used to increase the average |
|
total compensation per full-time district employee employed as |
|
[paid to] classroom teachers, full-time librarians, full-time |
|
school counselors certified under Subchapter B, Chapter 21, and |
|
full-time school nurses[, prioritizing differentiated compensation |
|
for classroom teachers with more than five years of experience]; |
|
and |
|
(2) 25 percent may be used as determined by the |
|
district to increase the average total compensation per [paid to] |
|
full-time district employee who is not described by Subdivision (1) |
|
[employees]. |
|
(c-3) In calculating the average total compensation per |
|
full-time district employee under Subsection (c), a school district |
|
may not consider compensation paid to a district employee employed |
|
in a position described by that subsection who is added by the |
|
district for the current school year and that increases the ratio of |
|
those employees to students enrolled in the district compared to |
|
the preceding school year. |
|
(c-4) If a school district increases employee compensation |
|
in a school year to comply with Subsection (c), as amended by |
|
_.B. ___, 88th Legislature, 3rd Called Session, 2023, the district |
|
is providing compensation for services rendered independently of an |
|
existing employment contract applicable to that year and is not a |
|
violation of Section 53, Article III, Texas Constitution. |
|
(c-5) A school district that does not meet the requirements |
|
of Subsection (c) during a school year may satisfy the requirements |
|
of this section by providing a full-time district employee |
|
described by that subsection a one-time bonus payment during the |
|
following school year in an amount equal to the difference between |
|
the compensation earned by the employee and the compensation the |
|
employee should have received during the school year if the |
|
district had complied with Subsection (c). |
|
(c-6) For purposes of determining the amount of a school |
|
district's funding under this chapter under Subsection (c), the |
|
commissioner shall exclude: |
|
(1) money received from the state instructional |
|
materials and technology fund under Section 31.021; |
|
(2) the special education full individual and initial |
|
evaluation allotment under Section 48.1022; |
|
(3) the college, career, and military readiness |
|
outcomes bonuses under Section 48.110; |
|
(4) the school safety allotment under Section 48.115; |
|
and |
|
(5) the allotments under Subchapter D, other than the |
|
allotments under Sections 48.153 and 48.154. |
|
(d) In this section, "compensation" includes: |
|
(1) benefits such as insurance premiums; and |
|
(2) contributions to the Teacher Retirement System of |
|
Texas under Section 825.4035, Government Code. |
|
SECTION 2.08. Subchapter C, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 48.1022 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.1022. SPECIAL EDUCATION FULL INDIVIDUAL AND INITIAL |
|
EVALUATION. For each student for whom a school district conducts a |
|
full individual and initial evaluation under Section 29.004 or 20 |
|
U.S.C. Section 1414(a)(1), the district is entitled to an allotment |
|
of $500 or a greater amount provided by appropriation. |
|
SECTION 2.09. Section 48.106(a-1), Education Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
(a-1) In addition to the amounts under Subsection (a), for |
|
each student in average daily attendance, a district is entitled to |
|
$150 [$50] for each of the following in which the student is |
|
enrolled: |
|
(1) a campus designated as a P-TECH school under |
|
Section 29.556; or |
|
(2) a campus that is a member of the New Tech Network |
|
and that focuses on project-based learning and work-based |
|
education. |
|
SECTION 2.10. Section 48.108(a), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(a) For each student in average daily attendance in |
|
prekindergarten [kindergarten] through third grade, a school |
|
district is entitled to an annual allotment equal to the basic |
|
allotment multiplied by 0.1 if the student is: |
|
(1) educationally disadvantaged; or |
|
(2) an emergent bilingual student, as defined by |
|
Section 29.052, and is in a bilingual education or special language |
|
program under Subchapter B, Chapter 29. |
|
SECTION 2.11. Section 48.110(d), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(d) For each annual graduate in a cohort described by |
|
Subsection (b) who demonstrates college, career, or military |
|
readiness as described by Subsection (f) in excess of the minimum |
|
number of students determined for the applicable district cohort |
|
under Subsection (c), a school district is entitled to an annual |
|
outcomes bonus of: |
|
(1) if the annual graduate is educationally |
|
disadvantaged, $5,000; |
|
(2) if the annual graduate is not educationally |
|
disadvantaged, $3,000; and |
|
(3) if the annual graduate is enrolled in a special |
|
education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, $4,000 [$2,000], |
|
regardless of whether the annual graduate is educationally |
|
disadvantaged. |
|
SECTION 2.12. Section 48.111(a), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(a) A [Except as provided by Subsection (c), a] school |
|
district is entitled to an annual allotment equal to the basic |
|
allotment multiplied by the applicable weight under Subsection |
|
(a-1) for each enrolled student equal to the difference, if the |
|
difference is greater than zero, that results from subtracting 250 |
|
from the difference between the number of students enrolled in the |
|
district during the school year immediately preceding the current |
|
school year and the number of students enrolled in the district |
|
during the school year six years preceding the current school year. |
|
SECTION 2.13. Section 48.115(a), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (a-1), a school |
|
district is entitled to an annual allotment equal to the greater of |
|
[sum of the following amounts or a greater amount provided by |
|
appropriation]: |
|
(1) [$10 for each student in average daily attendance, |
|
plus $1 for each student in average daily attendance per every $50 |
|
by which] the [district's maximum] basic allotment multiplied by |
|
0.005 for each student in average daily attendance [under Section |
|
48.051 exceeds $6,160, prorated as necessary]; and |
|
(2) the following amount, as applicable, [$15,000] per |
|
campus: |
|
(A) $30,000 for each campus with 500 or fewer |
|
enrolled students; |
|
(B) $50,000 for each campus with 501 to 1,000 |
|
enrolled students; |
|
(C) $75,000 for each campus with 1,001 to 1,500 |
|
enrolled students; |
|
(D) $87,500 for each campus with 1,501 to 2,000 |
|
enrolled students; and |
|
(E) $100,000 for each campus with more than 2,000 |
|
enrolled students. |
|
SECTION 2.14. Subchapter C, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Sections 48.116 and 48.119 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.116. FINE ARTS ALLOTMENT. (a) For each student in |
|
average daily attendance enrolled in a fine arts education course |
|
approved by the agency under Subsection (b) in grades 6 through 12, |
|
a school district is entitled to an annual allotment equal to: |
|
(1) if the student is not educationally disadvantaged, |
|
the basic allotment, or, if applicable, the sum of the basic |
|
allotment and the allotment under Section 48.101 to which the |
|
district is entitled, multiplied by .008; or |
|
(2) if the student is educationally disadvantaged, the |
|
amount determined under Subdivision (1) multiplied by two. |
|
(b) The agency shall approve fine arts education courses |
|
that qualify for the allotment provided under this section. The |
|
approved courses must include fine arts education courses that: |
|
(1) are authorized by the State Board of Education, |
|
including music, art, theater, and dance; |
|
(2) provide students with the knowledge and skills |
|
necessary for success in the fine arts; and |
|
(3) require a student in full-time attendance to |
|
receive not less than 225 minutes of fine arts instruction per week. |
|
(c) The agency shall annually publish a list of fine arts |
|
courses approved under Subsection (b). |
|
Sec. 48.119. BOOK SAFETY ALLOTMENT. (a) For each student |
|
in average daily attendance, a school district is entitled to an |
|
annual allotment of $3 or a greater amount provided by |
|
appropriation. |
|
(b) Funds allocated under this section may be used only to |
|
ensure that school library books and related materials meet the |
|
standards adopted under Section 33.021. |
|
(c) The agency shall adopt a list of approved vendors at |
|
which a school district may spend funds allocated under this |
|
section for the purpose described by Subsection (b). |
|
SECTION 2.15. Section 48.118(f), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(f) The total amount of state funding for allotments and |
|
outcomes bonuses under this section may not exceed $5 million per |
|
year unless money is specifically appropriated for the purpose of |
|
this section and designated as money in excess of the $5 million |
|
permitted under this subsection. If the total amount of allotments |
|
and outcomes bonuses to which school districts are entitled under |
|
this section exceeds the amount permitted under this subsection, |
|
the agency shall allocate state funding to districts under this |
|
section in the following order: |
|
(1) allotments under Subsection (a) for which school |
|
districts participating in partnerships prioritized under Section |
|
29.912(h) are eligible; |
|
(2) allotments under Subsection (a) for which school |
|
districts that entered into a memorandum of understanding or letter |
|
of commitment regarding a multidistrict pathway partnership, as |
|
defined by commissioner rule, before May 1, 2023, are eligible; |
|
(3) allotments under Subsection (a) for which school |
|
districts that have entered into a performance agreement under |
|
Section 29.912 with a coordinating entity that is an institution of |
|
higher education, as defined by Section 61.003, are eligible; |
|
(4) allotments under Subsection (a) for which school |
|
districts with the highest percentage of students who are |
|
educationally disadvantaged, in descending order, are eligible; |
|
and |
|
(5) outcomes bonuses under Subsection (c) for which |
|
school districts with the highest percentage of students who are |
|
educationally disadvantaged, in descending order, are eligible. |
|
SECTION 2.16. Section 48.151(g), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(g) A school district or county that provides special |
|
transportation services for eligible special education students is |
|
entitled to a state allocation at a [paid on a previous year's |
|
cost-per-mile basis. The] rate of $1.75 per mile or a greater |
|
amount provided [allowable shall be set] by appropriation [based on |
|
data gathered from the first year of each preceding biennium]. |
|
Districts may use a portion of their support allocation to pay |
|
transportation costs, if necessary. The commissioner may grant an |
|
amount set by appropriation for private transportation to reimburse |
|
parents or their agents for transporting eligible special education |
|
students. The mileage allowed shall be computed along the shortest |
|
public road from the student's home to school and back, morning and |
|
afternoon. The need for this type of transportation shall be |
|
determined on an individual basis and shall be approved only in |
|
extreme hardship cases. |
|
SECTION 2.17. Subchapter D, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Sections 48.160 and 48.161 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.160. ALLOTMENT FOR ADVANCED MATHEMATICS PATHWAYS |
|
AND CERTAIN PROGRAMS OF STUDY. (a) A school district is eligible |
|
to receive an allotment under this section if the district offers |
|
through in-person instruction, remote instruction, or a hybrid of |
|
in-person and remote instruction: |
|
(1) an advanced mathematics pathway that begins with |
|
Algebra I in grade eight and continues through progressively more |
|
advanced mathematics courses in each grade from grade 9 through 12; |
|
(2) a program of study in: |
|
(A) computer programming and software |
|
development; or |
|
(B) cybersecurity; and |
|
(3) a program of study in a specialized skilled trade, |
|
such as: |
|
(A) plumbing and pipefitting; |
|
(B) electrical; |
|
(C) welding; |
|
(D) diesel and heavy equipment; |
|
(E) aviation maintenance; or |
|
(F) applied agricultural engineering. |
|
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a school district is |
|
eligible for the allotment under this section for students in |
|
average daily attendance in a high school in the district that does |
|
not offer a program of study described by Subsection (a)(2) or (3) |
|
if: |
|
(1) high school students who reside in the attendance |
|
zone of the high school may participate in the program of study by |
|
enrolling in another high school: |
|
(A) that: |
|
(i) is in the same district or a neighboring |
|
school district; |
|
(ii) was assigned the same or a better |
|
campus overall performance rating under Section 39.054 as the high |
|
school in whose attendance zone the students reside; and |
|
(iii) offers the program of study; and |
|
(B) to and from which transportation is provided |
|
for those students; or |
|
(2) students in average daily attendance in the high |
|
school: |
|
(A) are offered instruction for the program of |
|
study at another location, such as another high school in the same |
|
district or a neighboring school district; and |
|
(B) receive transportation to and from the |
|
location described by Paragraph (A). |
|
(c) An eligible school district is entitled to an annual |
|
allotment of $10 for each student in average daily attendance at a |
|
high school in the district that offers a pathway or program of |
|
study from each subdivision described by Subsection (a) if: |
|
(1) each student in average daily attendance at the |
|
high school takes a progressively more advanced mathematics course |
|
each year of enrollment; and |
|
(2) for each of those pathways or programs of study, at |
|
least one student in average daily attendance at the high school |
|
completes a course in the pathway or program of study. |
|
(d) A school district that receives an allotment under |
|
Subsection (c) and Section 48.101 is entitled to receive an |
|
additional allotment in an amount equal to the product of 0.1 and |
|
the allotment to which the district is entitled under Section |
|
48.101 for each student for which the district receives an |
|
allotment under Subsection (c). An open-enrollment charter school |
|
is not eligible for an allotment under this subsection. |
|
(e) The commissioner by rule may establish requirements to |
|
ensure students in average daily attendance in a high school to |
|
which Subsection (b) applies have meaningful access to the programs |
|
of study described by Subsections (a)(2) and (3). |
|
(f) The agency may reduce the amount of a school district's |
|
allotment under this section if the agency determines that the |
|
district has not complied with any provision of this section. |
|
Sec. 48.161. COMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS EXPANSION |
|
ALLOTMENT. (a) A school district is eligible to receive an |
|
annual allotment of $50,000 for each campus in the district that |
|
participates in the Communities In Schools program under Subchapter |
|
E, Chapter 33. |
|
(b) The commissioner by rule may establish requirements for |
|
the use of an allotment under this section by a school district to |
|
ensure that the allotment is used to establish or expand a |
|
Communities In Schools program on a district campus. |
|
(c) The amount appropriated for allotments under this |
|
section may not exceed $50 million in a school year. If the total |
|
amount of allotments to which districts are entitled under this |
|
section for a school year exceeds the amount appropriated under |
|
this subsection, the commissioner shall proportionately reduce |
|
each district's allotment under this section. |
|
(d) The commissioner may reduce the amount of a school |
|
district's allotment under this section if the commissioner |
|
determines that the district has not complied with any provision of |
|
this section. |
|
SECTION 2.18. Section 48.202, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsection (a-1) and adding Subsections (f-1) and (f-2) to |
|
read as follows: |
|
(a-1) For purposes of Subsection (a), the dollar amount |
|
guaranteed level of state and local funds per weighted student per |
|
cent of tax effort ("GL") for a school district is: |
|
(1) the greater of the amount of district tax revenue |
|
per weighted student per cent of tax effort available to a school |
|
district at the 96th percentile of wealth per weighted student or |
|
the amount that results from multiplying the maximum amount of the |
|
basic allotment provided under Section 48.051 for the applicable |
|
school year [6,160, or the greater amount provided under Section |
|
48.051(b), if applicable,] by 0.016, for the first eight cents by |
|
which the district's maintenance and operations tax rate exceeds |
|
the district's tier one tax rate; and |
|
(2) subject to Subsection (f), the amount that results |
|
from multiplying the maximum amount of the basic allotment provided |
|
under Section 48.051 for the applicable school year [$6,160, or the |
|
greater amount provided under Section 48.051(b), if applicable,] by |
|
0.008, for the district's maintenance and operations tax effort |
|
that exceeds the amount of tax effort described by Subdivision (1). |
|
(f-1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, |
|
Subsection (f) does not apply for the 2023-2024 school year. |
|
(f-2) Subsection (f-1) and this subsection expire September |
|
1, 2025. |
|
SECTION 2.19. Section 48.277(b), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(b) For purposes of calculating maintenance and operations |
|
revenue under Subsection (a), the commissioner shall: |
|
(1) for purposes of Subsections (a)(1) and (2), use |
|
the following applicable school year: |
|
(A) in a school year ending in an even-numbered |
|
year, the 2019-2020 school year; and |
|
(B) in a school year ending in an odd-numbered |
|
year, the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school year, whichever is greater; |
|
(2) include all state and local funding, except for |
|
any funding resulting from: |
|
(A) reimbursement for disaster remediation costs |
|
under former Sections 41.0931 and 42.2524; |
|
(B) an adjustment for rapid decline in taxable |
|
value of property under former Section 42.2521; |
|
(C) an adjustment for property value affected by |
|
a state of disaster under former Section 42.2523; [and] |
|
(D) additional state aid under Section 48.307 or |
|
48.308; and |
|
(E) additional state aid for retention stipends |
|
under Section 48.285; |
|
(3) adjust the calculation to reflect a reduction in |
|
tax effort by a school district; and |
|
(4) if a school district or open-enrollment charter |
|
school receives a waiver relating to eligibility requirements for |
|
the national free or reduced-price lunch program under 42 U.S.C. |
|
Section 1751 et seq., use the numbers of educationally |
|
disadvantaged students on which the district's or school's |
|
entitlement to compensatory education funds was based for the |
|
school year before the school year in which the district or school |
|
received the waiver, adjusted for estimated enrollment growth. |
|
SECTION 2.20. Subchapter F, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Sections 48.284 and 48.285 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.284. PROPERTY VALUE STUDY HARDSHIP GRANTS. (a) For |
|
the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 school years, from money appropriated |
|
for purposes of this section, the commissioner may administer a |
|
grant program to provide grants to eligible school districts to |
|
offset a reduction in the district's funding under the Foundation |
|
School Program resulting from the use of the state value for the |
|
district's taxable value of property as provided by Section |
|
403.302(c), Government Code, for the 2022 and 2023 tax years. |
|
(b) The amount of a grant awarded under this section is the |
|
difference, if that difference is greater than zero, between: |
|
(1) the funding the school district would have |
|
received under Chapter 46, this chapter, and Chapter 49 for the |
|
applicable school year if the local value for the district's |
|
taxable value of property was used for the applicable tax year; and |
|
(2) the funding to which the district is entitled |
|
under Chapter 46, this chapter, and Chapter 49 for the applicable |
|
school year. |
|
(c) An open-enrollment charter school is not eligible to |
|
receive a grant under this section. |
|
(d) Funding provided to a school district under this section |
|
is in addition to all other funding provided under Chapter 46, this |
|
chapter, and Chapter 49. |
|
(e) The commissioner may require a school district to |
|
submit, or request from a state agency or a political subdivision of |
|
this state, additional information as needed to make a |
|
determination under this section. |
|
(f) The total amount of grants awarded under this section |
|
for a school year may not exceed $60 million. |
|
(g) In awarding grants under this section, the commissioner |
|
shall prioritize school districts experiencing the greatest |
|
percentage reduction in funding described by Subsection (a). |
|
(h) The commissioner may not adjust the amount of a grant |
|
awarded under this section based on data revisions received after |
|
the grant has been awarded. |
|
(i) A determination by the commissioner under this section |
|
is final and may not be appealed. |
|
(j) This section expires September 1, 2025. |
|
Sec. 48.285. ADDITIONAL STATE AID FOR RETENTION STIPENDS. |
|
(a) For the 2023-2024 school year, a school district, including a |
|
school district that is otherwise ineligible for state aid under |
|
this chapter, is entitled to state aid in an amount equal to the sum |
|
of: |
|
(1) the product of $4,000 multiplied by the number of |
|
full-time employees subject to the minimum salary schedule under |
|
Section 21.402 employed by the district; and |
|
(2) the product of $2,000 multiplied by the number of |
|
part-time classroom teachers, part-time librarians, part-time |
|
school counselors certified under Subchapter B, Chapter 21, and |
|
part-time school nurses employed by the district. |
|
(b) A school district shall use state aid received under |
|
Subsection (a) to provide a one-time stipend to each employee for |
|
whom the district received state aid in the amount of the state aid |
|
provided under that subsection for that employee. |
|
(c) An open-enrollment charter school is entitled to state |
|
aid under this section in the same manner as a school district and |
|
is required to provide a one-time stipend to each employee in a |
|
comparable role as a school district employee described by |
|
Subsection (a) as if those employees were subject to the minimum |
|
salary schedule under Section 21.402. |
|
(d) A one-time stipend provided to an eligible employee |
|
under this section satisfies the compensation increase required by |
|
Section 48.051. |
|
(e) A determination by the commissioner under this section |
|
is final and may not be appealed. |
|
(f) A school district or an open-enrollment charter school |
|
is not entitled to funding under this section beginning with the |
|
2024-2025 school year. |
|
(g) This section expires September 1, 2025. |
|
SECTION 2.21. Sections 48.111(c), (c-1), and (c-2), |
|
Education Code, are repealed. |
|
SECTION 2.22. Except as otherwise provided by this article, |
|
this article takes effect immediately if this Act 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, the entirety of |
|
this article takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of the |
|
legislative session. |
|
ARTICLE 3. CHANGES RELATED TO PUBLIC SCHOOL FINANCE EFFECTIVE FOR |
|
2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR |
|
SECTION 3.01. Section 12.263(b), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(b) For purposes of determining the average daily |
|
attendance of an adult education program operated under a charter |
|
granted under this subchapter, a student is considered to be in |
|
average daily attendance, with a 100 percent attendance rate, for: |
|
(1) all of the instructional days of the school year, |
|
if the student is enrolled for at least 75 percent of the school |
|
year; |
|
(2) three-quarters [half] of the instructional days of |
|
the school year, if the student is enrolled for at least 50 percent |
|
but less than 75 percent of the school year; |
|
(3) half [a quarter] of the instructional days of the |
|
school year, if the student is enrolled for at least 25 percent but |
|
less than 50 percent of the school year; or |
|
(4) a quarter [one-tenth] of the instructional days of |
|
the school year, if the student is enrolled for at least 10 percent |
|
but less than 25 percent of the school year. |
|
SECTION 3.02. Sections 48.0051(a), (b), and (d), Education |
|
Code, are amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) The [Subject to Subsection (a-1), the] commissioner |
|
shall adjust the average daily attendance of a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school under Section 48.005 in the manner |
|
provided by Subsection (b) if the district or school: |
|
(1) provides the minimum number of minutes of |
|
operational and instructional time required under Section 25.081 |
|
and commissioner rules adopted under that section over at least 175 |
|
[180] days of instruction; and |
|
(2) offers an additional 30 days of half-day |
|
instruction for students enrolled in prekindergarten through fifth |
|
grade. |
|
(b) For a school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
described by Subsection (a), the commissioner shall increase the |
|
average daily attendance of the district or school under Section |
|
48.005 by the amount that results from the quotient of the sum of |
|
attendance by students described by Subsection (a)(2) for each of |
|
the 30 additional instructional days of half-day instruction that |
|
are provided divided by 175 [180]. |
|
(d) This section does not prohibit a school district from |
|
providing the minimum number of minutes of operational and |
|
instructional time required under Section 25.081 and commissioner |
|
rules adopted under that section over fewer than 175 [180] days of |
|
instruction. |
|
SECTION 3.03. Section 48.051(a), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(a) For each student in average daily attendance, not |
|
including the time students spend each day in special education |
|
programs in a setting [an instructional arrangement] other than a |
|
general education setting [mainstream] or career and technology |
|
education programs, for which an additional allotment is made under |
|
Subchapter C, a district is entitled to an allotment equal to [the |
|
lesser of $6,160 or] the amount that results from the following |
|
formula: |
|
A = B [$6,160] X TR/MCR |
|
where: |
|
"A" is the allotment to which a district is entitled; |
|
"B" is the base amount, which equals the greater of: |
|
(1) $6,500; |
|
(2) an amount equal to the district's base amount under |
|
this section for the preceding school year; or |
|
(3) the amount appropriated under Subsection (b); |
|
"TR" is the district's tier one maintenance and operations |
|
tax rate, as provided by Section 45.0032; and |
|
"MCR" is the district's maximum compressed tax rate, as |
|
determined under Section 48.2551. |
|
SECTION 3.04. Effective September 1, 2026, Section 48.051, |
|
Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as |
|
follows: |
|
(a-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), for the second year |
|
of each state fiscal biennium, the commissioner shall adjust the |
|
value of "B" under that subsection for the preceding state fiscal |
|
year by a factor equal to the average annual percentage increase, if |
|
any, in the Texas Consumer Price Index for the preceding 10 years. |
|
SECTION 3.05. Section 48.101, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.101. SMALL AND MID-SIZED DISTRICT ALLOTMENT. (a) |
|
Small and mid-sized districts are entitled to an annual allotment |
|
in accordance with this section. In this section: |
|
(1) "AA" is the district's annual allotment per |
|
student in average daily attendance; |
|
(2) "ADA" is the number of students in average daily |
|
attendance for which the district is entitled to an allotment under |
|
Section 48.051, other than students in average daily attendance who |
|
do not reside in the district and are enrolled in a full-time |
|
virtual program; and |
|
(3) "BA" is the basic allotment determined under |
|
Section 48.051. |
|
(b) A school district that has fewer than 1,600 students in |
|
average daily attendance is entitled to an annual allotment for |
|
each student in average daily attendance based on the following |
|
formula: |
|
AA = ((1,600 - ADA) X .00044 [.0004]) X BA |
|
(c) A school district that offers a kindergarten through |
|
grade 12 program and has less than 5,000 students in average daily |
|
attendance is entitled to an annual allotment for each student in |
|
average daily attendance based on the formula, of the following |
|
formulas, that results in the greatest annual allotment: |
|
(1) the formula in Subsection (b), if the district is |
|
eligible for that formula; or |
|
(2) AA = ((5,000 - ADA) X .000034 [.000025]) X BA. |
|
(d) Instead of the allotment under Subsection (b) or (c)(1), |
|
a school district that has fewer than 300 students in average daily |
|
attendance and is the only school district located in and operating |
|
in a county is entitled to an annual allotment for each student in |
|
average daily attendance based on the following formula: |
|
AA = ((1,600 - ADA) X .00054 [.00047]) X BA |
|
SECTION 3.06. Section 48.102, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.102. SPECIAL EDUCATION. (a) For each enrolled |
|
student [in average daily attendance] in a special education |
|
program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, [in a mainstream |
|
instructional arrangement,] a school district is entitled to an |
|
annual allotment equal to the basic allotment, or, if applicable, |
|
the sum of the basic allotment and the allotment under Section |
|
48.101 to which the district is entitled, multiplied by a weight in |
|
an amount set by the legislature in the General Appropriations Act |
|
for the highest tier of intensity of service for which the student |
|
qualifies [1.15]. [For each full-time equivalent student in |
|
average daily attendance in a special education program under |
|
Subchapter A, Chapter 29, in an instructional arrangement other |
|
than a mainstream instructional arrangement, a district is entitled |
|
to an annual allotment equal to the basic allotment, or, if |
|
applicable, the sum of the basic allotment and the allotment under |
|
Section 48.101 to which the district is entitled, multiplied by a |
|
weight determined according to instructional arrangement as |
|
follows: |
|
[Homebound 5.0 |
|
[Hospital class 3.0 |
|
[Speech therapy 5.0 |
|
[Resource room 3.0 |
|
[Self-contained, mild and moderate, |
|
regular campus 3.0 |
|
[Self-contained, severe, regular campus 3.0 |
|
[Off home campus 2.7 |
|
[Nonpublic day school 1.7 |
|
[Vocational adjustment class 2.3] |
|
(a-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), for the 2024-2025 and |
|
2025-2026 school years, the amount of an allotment under this |
|
section shall be determined in accordance with Section 48.1023. |
|
This subsection expires September 1, 2026. |
|
(b) The commissioner by rule shall define seven tiers of |
|
intensity of service for use in determining funding under this |
|
section. The commissioner must include one tier specifically |
|
addressing students receiving special education services in |
|
residential placement [A special instructional arrangement for |
|
students with disabilities residing in care and treatment |
|
facilities, other than state schools, whose parents or guardians do |
|
not reside in the district providing education services shall be |
|
established by commissioner rule. The funding weight for this |
|
arrangement shall be 4.0 for those students who receive their |
|
education service on a local school district campus. A special |
|
instructional arrangement for students with disabilities residing |
|
in state schools shall be established by commissioner rule with a |
|
funding weight of 2.8]. |
|
(c) [For funding purposes, the number of contact hours |
|
credited per day for each student in the off home campus |
|
instructional arrangement may not exceed the contact hours credited |
|
per day for the multidistrict class instructional arrangement in |
|
the 1992-1993 school year. |
|
[(d) For funding purposes the contact hours credited per day |
|
for each student in the resource room; self-contained, mild and |
|
moderate; and self-contained, severe, instructional arrangements |
|
may not exceed the average of the statewide total contact hours |
|
credited per day for those three instructional arrangements in the |
|
1992-1993 school year. |
|
[(e) The commissioner by rule shall prescribe the |
|
qualifications an instructional arrangement must meet in order to |
|
be funded as a particular instructional arrangement under this |
|
section. In prescribing the qualifications that a mainstream |
|
instructional arrangement must meet, the commissioner shall |
|
establish requirements that students with disabilities and their |
|
teachers receive the direct, indirect, and support services that |
|
are necessary to enrich the regular classroom and enable student |
|
success. |
|
[(f) In this section, "full-time equivalent student" means |
|
30 hours of contact a week between a special education student and |
|
special education program personnel. |
|
[(g)] The commissioner shall adopt rules and procedures |
|
governing contracts for residential and day program placement of |
|
[special education] students receiving special education services. |
|
(d) [The legislature shall provide by appropriation for the |
|
state's share of the costs of those placements. |
|
[(h)] At least 55 percent of the funds allocated under this |
|
section must be used in the special education program under |
|
Subchapter A, Chapter 29. |
|
(e) [(i)] The agency shall ensure [encourage] the placement |
|
of students in special education programs, including students in |
|
residential placement [instructional arrangements], in the least |
|
restrictive environment appropriate for their educational needs. |
|
(f) [(j)] A school district that provides an extended year |
|
program required by federal law for special education students who |
|
may regress is entitled to receive funds in an amount equal to 75 |
|
percent, or a lesser percentage determined by the commissioner, of |
|
the basic allotment, or, if applicable, the sum of the basic |
|
allotment and the allotment under Section 48.101 to which the |
|
district is entitled for each [full-time equivalent] student in |
|
average enrollment [daily attendance], multiplied by the amount |
|
designated for the highest tier of intensity of service for which |
|
the student qualifies [student's instructional arrangement] under |
|
this section, for each day the program is provided divided by the |
|
number of days in the minimum school year. The total amount of |
|
state funding for extended year services under this section may not |
|
exceed $10 million per year. A school district may use funds |
|
received under this section only in providing an extended year |
|
program. |
|
(g) [(k)] From the total amount of funds appropriated for |
|
special education under this section, the commissioner shall |
|
withhold an amount specified in the General Appropriations Act, and |
|
distribute that amount to school districts for programs under |
|
Section 29.014. The program established under that section is |
|
required only in school districts in which the program is financed |
|
by funds distributed under this subsection and any other funds |
|
available for the program. After deducting the amount withheld |
|
under this subsection from the total amount appropriated for |
|
special education, the commissioner shall reduce each district's |
|
allotment proportionately and shall allocate funds to each district |
|
accordingly. |
|
(h) Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year, |
|
the commissioner shall submit to the Legislative Budget Board, for |
|
purposes of the allotment under this section, proposed weights for |
|
the tiers of intensity of service for the next state fiscal |
|
biennium. |
|
SECTION 3.07. Subchapter C, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Sections 48.1021 and 48.1023 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.1021. SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICE GROUP ALLOTMENT. |
|
(a) For each six-week period in which a student in a special |
|
education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, receives eligible |
|
special education services, a school district is entitled to an |
|
allotment in an amount set by the legislature in the General |
|
Appropriations Act for the service group for which the student is |
|
eligible. |
|
(a-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), for the 2024-2025 and |
|
2025-2026 school years, the amount of an allotment under this |
|
section shall be determined in accordance with Section 48.1023. |
|
This subsection expires September 1, 2026. |
|
(b) The commissioner by rule shall establish four service |
|
groups for use in determining funding under this section. In |
|
establishing the groups, the commissioner must consider the level |
|
of services, equipment, and technology required to meet the needs |
|
of students receiving special education services. |
|
(c) A school district is entitled to receive an allotment |
|
under this section for each service group for which a student is |
|
eligible. |
|
(d) A school district is entitled to the full amount of an |
|
allotment under this section for a student receiving eligible |
|
special education services during any part of a six-week period. |
|
(e) At least 55 percent of the funds allocated under this |
|
section must be used for a special education program under |
|
Subchapter A, Chapter 29. |
|
(f) Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year, |
|
the commissioner shall submit to the Legislative Budget Board, for |
|
purposes of the allotment under this section, proposed amounts of |
|
funding for the service groups for the next state fiscal biennium. |
|
Sec. 48.1023. SPECIAL EDUCATION TRANSITION FUNDING. (a) |
|
For the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years, the commissioner may |
|
adjust weights or amounts provided under Section 48.102 or 48.1021 |
|
as necessary to ensure compliance with requirements regarding |
|
maintenance of state financial support under 20 U.S.C. Section |
|
1412(a)(18) and maintenance of local financial support under |
|
applicable federal law. |
|
(b) For the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years, the |
|
commissioner shall determine the formulas through which school |
|
districts receive funding under Sections 48.102 and 48.1021. In |
|
determining the formulas, the commissioner may combine the methods |
|
of funding under those sections with the method of funding provided |
|
by Section 48.102, as it existed on September 1, 2023. |
|
(c) For the 2026-2027 school year, the commissioner may |
|
adjust the weights or amounts set by the legislature in the General |
|
Appropriations Act for purposes of Section 48.102 or 48.1021. |
|
Before making an adjustment under this subsection, the commissioner |
|
shall notify and must receive approval from the Legislative Budget |
|
Board. |
|
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, |
|
the sum of funding provided under Sections 48.102 and 48.1021 for |
|
the 2024-2025 or for the 2025-2026 school year as adjusted under |
|
this section may not exceed the sum of: |
|
(1) funding that would have been provided under |
|
Section 48.102, as it existed on September 1, 2023; and |
|
(2) the amount set by the legislature in the General |
|
Appropriations Act. |
|
(e) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall report to the agency information necessary to implement this |
|
section. |
|
(f) The agency shall provide technical assistance to school |
|
districts and open-enrollment charter schools to ensure a |
|
successful transition in funding formulas for special education. |
|
(g) This section expires September 1, 2028. |
|
SECTION 3.08. Section 48.103(c), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(c) A school district may receive funding for a student |
|
under each provision of this section, [and] Section 48.102, and |
|
Section 48.1021 for which [if] the student qualifies [satisfies the |
|
requirements of both sections]. |
|
SECTION 3.09. Sections 48.104(a), (d), and (e), Education |
|
Code, are amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) For each student who does not have a disability and |
|
resides in a residential placement facility in a district in which |
|
the student's parent or legal guardian does not reside, a district |
|
is entitled to an annual allotment equal to the basic allotment |
|
multiplied by 0.2 or, if the student is educationally |
|
disadvantaged, 0.28 [0.275]. For each full-time equivalent student |
|
who is in a remedial and support program under Section 29.081 |
|
because the student is pregnant, a district is entitled to an annual |
|
allotment equal to the basic allotment multiplied by 2.41. |
|
(d) The weights assigned to the five tiers of the index |
|
established under Subsection (c) are, from least to most severe |
|
economic disadvantage, 0.23 [0.225], 0.2425 [0.2375], 0.255 |
|
[0.25], 0.2675 [0.2625], and 0.28 [0.275]. |
|
(e) If insufficient data is available for any school year to |
|
evaluate the level of economic disadvantage in a census block |
|
group, a school district is entitled to an annual allotment equal to |
|
the basic allotment multiplied by 0.23 [0.225] for each student who |
|
is educationally disadvantaged and resides in that census block |
|
group. |
|
SECTION 3.10. Section 48.108, Education Code, is amended by |
|
adding Subsections (a-1), (a-2), (a-3), and (a-4) to read as |
|
follows: |
|
(a-1) In addition to the allotment under Subsection (a) and |
|
subject to Subsection (a-2), a school district is entitled to an |
|
annual allotment equal to the basic allotment multiplied by 0.2 for |
|
each student in average daily attendance enrolled in a |
|
prekindergarten class provided through a contract with a |
|
community-based child-care provider under Section 29.153. |
|
(a-2) The total number of students in average daily |
|
attendance statewide for whom an allotment may be provided under |
|
Subsection (a-1) for a school year may not exceed 10,000 students in |
|
average daily attendance. If the number of students in average |
|
daily attendance for whom a school district is entitled to an |
|
allotment under this section exceeds the maximum number provided by |
|
this subsection, the commissioner shall allocate the allotments to |
|
school districts under this section in accordance with commissioner |
|
rule. |
|
(a-3) Notwithstanding Subsection (a-2), the maximum number |
|
of students in average daily attendance statewide for whom an |
|
allotment may be provided under Subsection (a-1) for a school year |
|
is: |
|
(1) for the 2024-2025 school year, 2,000 students; |
|
(2) for the 2025-2026 school year, 4,500 students; and |
|
(3) for the 2026-2027 school year, 7,000 students. |
|
(a-4) Subsection (a-3) and this subsection expire September |
|
1, 2027. |
|
SECTION 3.11. Section 48.114, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to read as |
|
follows: |
|
(a) A school district [that has implemented a mentoring |
|
program for classroom teachers who have less than two years of |
|
teaching experience under Section 21.458] is entitled to an |
|
allotment [as determined under Subsection (b)] to fund a [the] |
|
mentoring program and to provide stipends for mentor teachers if: |
|
(1) the district has implemented a mentoring program |
|
for classroom teachers under Section 21.458; and |
|
(2) the mentor teachers assigned under that program |
|
complete a training program that is required or developed by the |
|
agency for mentor teachers. |
|
(d) A school district is entitled to an allotment of $2,000 |
|
for each classroom teacher with less than two years of experience |
|
who participates in a mentoring program described by Subsection |
|
(a). A district may receive an allotment under this section for no |
|
more than 40 teachers during a school year unless an appropriation |
|
is made for the purposes of providing a greater number of allotments |
|
per district. |
|
SECTION 3.12. Section 48.115(a), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (a-1), a school |
|
district is entitled to an annual allotment equal to the greater of |
|
[sum of the following amounts or a greater amount provided by |
|
appropriation]: |
|
(1) [$10 for each student in average daily attendance, |
|
plus $1 for each student in average daily attendance per every $50 |
|
by which] the [district's maximum] basic allotment multiplied by |
|
0.01 for each student in average daily attendance [under Section |
|
48.051 exceeds $6,160, prorated as necessary]; and |
|
(2) the following amount, as applicable, [$15,000] per |
|
campus: |
|
(A) $50,000 for each campus with 500 or fewer |
|
enrolled students; |
|
(B) $100,000 for each campus with 501 to 1,000 |
|
enrolled students; |
|
(C) $150,000 for each campus with 1,001 to 1,500 |
|
enrolled students; |
|
(D) $175,000 for each campus with 1,501 to 2,000 |
|
enrolled students; and |
|
(E) $200,000 for each campus with more than 2,000 |
|
enrolled students. |
|
SECTION `1. Subchapter C, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 48.120 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.120. MILITARY TRANSITION AID. (a) A school |
|
district is entitled to an annual allotment equal to the basic |
|
allotment multiplied by 0.08 for each eligible student in average |
|
daily attendance. |
|
(b) A student is eligible for purposes of Subsection (a) if |
|
the student: |
|
(1) is a military-connected student, as defined by |
|
Section 25.006; and |
|
(2) is in the student's first year of enrollment in the |
|
school district. |
|
(c) Funds allocated under this section may be used only to |
|
maintain a transition program that assists military families with |
|
relocation, enrollment, registration, records transfer, academic |
|
planning, counseling, and other support services available at a |
|
Purple Star Campus, as described by Section 33.909. |
|
SECTION 3.14. Section 48.257, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as |
|
follows: |
|
(a) Subject to Subsection (b) and except as provided by |
|
Subsection (b-1), if a school district's tier one local share under |
|
Section 48.256 exceeds the district's entitlement under Section |
|
48.266(a)(1) less the district's distribution from the state |
|
available school fund, the district must reduce the district's tier |
|
one revenue level in accordance with Chapter 49 to a level not to |
|
exceed the district's entitlement under Section 48.266(a)(1) less |
|
the district's distribution from the state available school fund. |
|
(b-1) This subsection applies only to a school district to |
|
which Subsection (a) applies, that received an allotment under |
|
Section 48.277 for the 2023-2024 school year, and that adopts a |
|
maintenance and operations tax rate for the current school year |
|
equal to or greater than the sum of the district's maximum |
|
compressed tax rate, as determined under Section 48.2551, and four |
|
cents. Notwithstanding Subsection (a), if, after reducing the tier |
|
one revenue level of a school district to which this subsection |
|
applies as required under Subsection (a), the maintenance and |
|
operations revenue per student in average daily attendance of the |
|
district for a school year would be less than the maintenance and |
|
operations revenue per student in average daily attendance |
|
available to the district for the 2023-2024 school year, excluding |
|
any funding provided to the district under Sections 48.279 and |
|
48.281, the agency shall adjust the amount of the reduction |
|
required in the district's tier one revenue level under Subsection |
|
(a) up to the amount of local funds necessary to provide the |
|
district with the amount of maintenance and operations revenue per |
|
student in average daily attendance available to the district for |
|
the 2023-2024 school year. |
|
SECTION 3.15. Subchapter F, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 48.286 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.286. REGIONAL DISASTER INSURANCE VARIATION |
|
ALLOTMENT. (a) A school district is entitled to an annual |
|
allotment for each student in average daily attendance equal to the |
|
basic allotment, or, if applicable, the sum of the basic allotment |
|
and the allotment under Section 48.101 to which the district is |
|
entitled, multiplied by the product, if the product is greater than |
|
zero, of the district's variation factor as determined under |
|
Subsection (b) and .012. |
|
(b) The commissioner shall determine a school district's |
|
variation factor by: |
|
(1) assigning each school district to the county in |
|
which the district's central administrative office is located; |
|
(2) determining the percentage spent on expenses |
|
related to property and casualty insurance by calculating the |
|
average of the quotient of property and casualty insurance expenses |
|
incurred by all districts assigned to a county under Subdivision |
|
(1) divided by total expenditures made by those districts for each |
|
of the three most recent school years; and |
|
(3) subtracting one percentage point from the |
|
percentage determined under Subdivision (2). |
|
(c) The commissioner shall use the variation factor |
|
determined under Subsection (b) for the 2023-2024 school year for a |
|
school district for purposes of determining a school district's |
|
allotment under Subsection (a) for any subsequent school year. |
|
SECTION 3.16. Subchapter G, Chapter 48, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Sections 48.304 and 48.306 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 48.304. DAY PLACEMENT PROGRAM FUNDING. (a) For each |
|
qualifying day placement program that a regional education service |
|
center makes available in partnership with a school district, |
|
open-enrollment charter school, or shared services arrangement, |
|
the center is entitled to an allotment of: |
|
(1) $250,000 for the first year of the program's |
|
operation; and |
|
(2) $150,000 for each year of the program's operation |
|
after the first year. |
|
(b) A day placement program qualifies for purposes of |
|
Subsection (a) if: |
|
(1) the program complies with commissioner rules |
|
adopted under Section 48.102(c); |
|
(2) the program offers services to students who are |
|
enrolled at any school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
in the county in which the program is offered, unless the |
|
commissioner by rule waives or modifies the requirement under this |
|
subdivision for the program to serve all students in a county; and |
|
(3) the agency has designated the program for service |
|
in the county in which the program is offered and determined that, |
|
at the time of designation, the program increases the availability |
|
of day placement services in the county. |
|
Sec. 48.306. PARENT-DIRECTED SERVICES FOR STUDENTS |
|
RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES GRANT. (a) A student to whom |
|
the agency awards a grant under Subchapter A-1, Chapter 29, is |
|
entitled to receive an amount of $1,500 or a greater amount provided |
|
by appropriation. |
|
(b) The legislature shall include in the appropriations for |
|
the Foundation School Program state aid sufficient for the agency |
|
to award grants under Subchapter A-1, Chapter 29, in the amount |
|
provided by this section. |
|
(c) A student may receive one grant under Subchapter A-1, |
|
Chapter 29, unless the legislature appropriates money for an |
|
additional grant in the General Appropriations Act. |
|
(d) A determination of the commissioner under this section |
|
is final and may not be appealed. |
|
SECTION 3.17. Effective January 1, 2024, Section 26.08(n), |
|
Tax Code, is amended to read as follows: |
|
(n) For purposes of this section, the voter-approval tax |
|
rate of a school district is the sum of the following: |
|
(1) the rate per $100 of taxable value that is equal to |
|
the district's maximum compressed tax rate, as determined under |
|
Section 48.2551, Education Code, for the current year; |
|
(2) the greater of: |
|
(A) the district's enrichment tax rate for the |
|
preceding tax year, less any amount by which the district is |
|
required to reduce the district's enrichment tax rate under Section |
|
48.202(f), Education Code, in the current tax year; or |
|
(B) the rate of $0.06 [$0.05] per $100 of taxable |
|
value; and |
|
(3) the district's current debt rate. |
|
SECTION 3.18. Except as otherwise provided by this article, |
|
this article takes effect September 1, 2024. |
|
ARTICLE 4. CHANGES RELATED TO SPECIAL EDUCATION EFFECTIVE FOR |
|
2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR |
|
SECTION 4.01. Section 29.001, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.001. IMPLEMENTATION OF SPECIAL EDUCATION |
|
LAW [STATEWIDE PLAN]. (a) As the state education agency |
|
responsible for carrying out the purposes of Part B, Individuals |
|
with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (20 U.S.C. Section 1411 et |
|
seq.), the [The] agency shall develop, and revise [modify] as |
|
necessary, a comprehensive system to ensure statewide and local |
|
compliance [design, consistent] with federal and state law related |
|
to special education[, for the delivery of services to children |
|
with disabilities in this state that includes rules for the |
|
administration and funding of the special education program so that |
|
a free appropriate public education is available to all of those |
|
children between the ages of three and 21]. |
|
(b) The comprehensive system [statewide design] shall |
|
include the provision of services primarily through school |
|
districts and shared services arrangements, supplemented by |
|
regional education service centers. |
|
(c) The comprehensive system [agency] shall focus on |
|
maximizing student outcomes and include [also develop and implement |
|
a statewide plan with programmatic content that includes procedures |
|
designed to]: |
|
(1) rulemaking, technical assistance, guidance |
|
documents, monitoring protocols, and other resources as necessary |
|
to implement and ensure compliance with federal and state law |
|
related to special education [ensure state compliance with |
|
requirements for supplemental federal funding for all |
|
state-administered programs involving the delivery of |
|
instructional or related services to students with disabilities]; |
|
(2) the facilitation of [facilitate] interagency |
|
coordination when other state agencies are involved in the delivery |
|
of instructional or related services to students with disabilities; |
|
(3) the pursuit of [periodically assess statewide |
|
personnel needs in all areas of specialization related to special |
|
education and pursue] strategies to meet statewide special |
|
education and related services personnel [those] needs [through a |
|
consortium of representatives from regional education service |
|
centers, local education agencies, and institutions of higher |
|
education and through other available alternatives]; |
|
(4) ensuring [ensure] that regional education service |
|
centers throughout the state maintain a regional support function, |
|
which may include direct service delivery and a component designed |
|
to facilitate the placement of students with disabilities who |
|
cannot be appropriately served in their resident districts; |
|
(5) [allow the agency to] effectively monitoring |
|
[monitor] and periodically conducting [conduct] site visits of all |
|
school districts to ensure that rules adopted under this subchapter |
|
[section] are applied in a consistent and uniform manner, to ensure |
|
that districts are complying with those rules, and to ensure that |
|
annual statistical reports filed by the districts and not otherwise |
|
available through the Public Education Information Management |
|
System under Sections 48.008 and 48.009 are accurate and complete; |
|
and |
|
(6) the provision of training and technical assistance |
|
to ensure that: |
|
(A) appropriately trained personnel are involved |
|
in the diagnostic and evaluative procedures operating in all |
|
districts and that those personnel routinely serve on district |
|
admissions, review, and dismissal committees; |
|
(B) [(7) ensure that] an individualized |
|
education program for each student with a disability is properly |
|
developed, implemented, and maintained in the least restrictive |
|
environment that is appropriate to meet the student's educational |
|
needs; |
|
(C) [(8) ensure that,] when appropriate, each |
|
student with a disability is provided an opportunity to participate |
|
in career and technology and physical education classes[, in |
|
addition to participating in regular or special classes]; |
|
(D) [(9) ensure that] each student with a |
|
disability is provided necessary related services; |
|
(E) [(10) ensure that] an individual assigned |
|
to act as a surrogate parent for a child with a disability, as |
|
provided by 20 U.S.C. Section 1415(b), is required to: |
|
(i) [(A)] complete a training program that |
|
complies with minimum standards established by agency rule; |
|
(ii) [(B)] visit the child and the child's |
|
school; |
|
(iii) [(C)] consult with persons involved |
|
in the child's education, including teachers, caseworkers, |
|
court-appointed volunteers, guardians ad litem, attorneys ad |
|
litem, foster parents, and caretakers; |
|
(iv) [(D)] review the child's educational |
|
records; |
|
(v) [(E)] attend meetings of the child's |
|
admission, review, and dismissal committee; |
|
(vi) [(F)] exercise independent judgment |
|
in pursuing the child's interests; and |
|
(vii) [(G)] exercise the child's due |
|
process rights under applicable state and federal law; and |
|
(F) [(11) ensure that] each district develops a |
|
process to be used by a teacher who instructs a student with a |
|
disability in a regular classroom setting: |
|
(i) [(A)] to request a review of the |
|
student's individualized education program; |
|
(ii) [(B)] to provide input in the |
|
development of the student's individualized education program; |
|
(iii) [(C)] that provides for a timely |
|
district response to the teacher's request; and |
|
(iv) [(D)] that provides for notification |
|
to the student's parent or legal guardian of that response. |
|
SECTION 4.02. Subchapter A, Chapter 29, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 29.0012 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.0012. ANNUAL MEETING ON SPECIAL EDUCATION. (a) At |
|
least once each year, the board of trustees of a school district or |
|
the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school shall |
|
include during a public meeting a discussion of the performance of |
|
students receiving special education services at the district or |
|
school. |
|
(b) The agency by rule shall adopt a set of performance |
|
indicators for measuring and evaluating the quality of learning and |
|
achievement for students receiving special education services at |
|
the school district or open-enrollment charter school to be |
|
considered at a meeting held under this section. The indicators |
|
must include performance on the college, career, or military |
|
readiness outcomes described by Section 48.110. |
|
SECTION 4.03. Section 29.003, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.003. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA. (a) The agency shall |
|
develop specific eligibility criteria based on the general |
|
classifications established by this section and in accordance with |
|
federal law [with reference to contemporary diagnostic or |
|
evaluative terminologies and techniques]. Eligible students with |
|
disabilities shall enjoy the right to a free appropriate public |
|
education, which may include instruction in the regular classroom, |
|
instruction through special teaching, or instruction through |
|
contracts approved under this subchapter. Instruction shall be |
|
supplemented by the provision of related services when appropriate. |
|
(b) A student is eligible to participate in a school |
|
district's special education program [if the student]: |
|
(1) from birth through [is not more than] 21 years of |
|
age if the student [and] has a visual [or auditory] impairment or is |
|
deaf or hard of hearing and that disability prevents the student |
|
from being adequately or safely educated in public school without |
|
the provision of special education services; [or] |
|
(2) from three years of age through five years of age |
|
if the student is experiencing developmental delays as described by |
|
20 U.S.C. Section 1401(3)(B) and defined by commissioner rule; or |
|
(3) from 3 years of age through [is at least three but |
|
not more than] 21 years of age if the student [and] has one or more |
|
of the [following] disabilities described by 20 U.S.C. Section |
|
1401(3)(A) and that disability prevents the student from being |
|
adequately or safely educated in public school without the |
|
provision of special education services[: |
|
[(A) physical disability; |
|
[(B) intellectual or developmental disability; |
|
[(C) emotional disturbance; |
|
[(D) learning disability; |
|
[(E) autism; |
|
[(F) speech disability; or |
|
[(G) traumatic brain injury]. |
|
SECTION 4.04. Subchapter A, Chapter 29, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 29.0056 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.0056. INFORMATION REGARDING STATE SUPPORTED LIVING |
|
CENTERS. (a) In this section, "state supported living center" has |
|
the meaning assigned by Section 531.002, Health and Safety Code. |
|
(b) The Health and Human Services Commission, in |
|
collaboration with the agency and stakeholders who represent the |
|
full continuum of educational residential placement options, shall |
|
develop and provide to the agency materials regarding educational |
|
residential placement options for children who may qualify for |
|
placement in a state supported living center. The agency shall make |
|
the materials developed under this subsection available to school |
|
districts. |
|
(c) At a meeting of a child's admission, review, and |
|
dismissal committee at which residential placement is discussed, |
|
the school district shall provide to the child's parent the |
|
materials developed under Subsection (b). |
|
SECTION 4.05. Section 29.008, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (a-1) to |
|
read as follows: |
|
(a) The commissioner shall establish a list of approved |
|
public or private facilities, institutions, or agencies inside or |
|
outside of this state that a [A] school district, shared services |
|
arrangement unit, or regional education service center may contract |
|
with [a public or private facility, institution, or agency inside |
|
or outside of this state] for the provision of services to students |
|
with disabilities in a residential placement. The commissioner may |
|
approve either the whole or a part of a facility or program. |
|
(a-1) Each contract described by this section [for |
|
residential placement] must be approved by the commissioner. The |
|
commissioner may approve a [residential placement] contract under |
|
this section only after at least a programmatic evaluation of |
|
personnel qualifications, costs, adequacy of physical plant and |
|
equipment, and curriculum content. [The commissioner may approve |
|
either the whole or a part of a facility or program.] |
|
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), costs of an |
|
approved contract for residential placement may be paid from a |
|
combination of federal, state, and local funds. The local share of |
|
the total contract cost for each student is that portion of the |
|
local tax effort that exceeds the district's local fund assignment |
|
under Section 48.256, divided by the average daily attendance in |
|
the district. If the contract involves a private facility, the |
|
state share of the total contract cost is that amount remaining |
|
after subtracting the local share. If the contract involves a |
|
public facility, the state share is that amount remaining after |
|
subtracting the local share from the portion of the contract that |
|
involves the costs of instructional and related services. For |
|
purposes of this subsection, "local tax effort" means the total |
|
amount of money generated by taxes imposed for debt service and |
|
maintenance and operation less any amounts paid into a tax |
|
increment fund under Chapter 311, Tax Code. This subsection |
|
expires September 1, 2027. |
|
SECTION 4.06. The heading to Section 29.009, Education |
|
Code, is amended to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.009. PUBLIC NOTICE CONCERNING EARLY CHILDHOOD |
|
SPECIAL EDUCATION [PRESCHOOL] PROGRAMS [FOR STUDENTS WITH |
|
DISABILITIES]. |
|
SECTION 4.07. Section 29.010, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.010. GENERAL SUPERVISION AND COMPLIANCE. (a) The |
|
agency shall develop [adopt] and implement a comprehensive system |
|
for monitoring school district compliance with federal and state |
|
laws relating to special education. The monitoring system must |
|
include a comprehensive cyclical process and a targeted risk-based |
|
process [provide for ongoing analysis of district special education |
|
data and of complaints filed with the agency concerning special |
|
education services and for inspections of school districts at |
|
district facilities]. The agency shall establish criteria and |
|
instruments for use in determining district compliance under this |
|
section [use the information obtained through analysis of district |
|
data and from the complaints management system to determine the |
|
appropriate schedule for and extent of the inspection]. |
|
(b) As part of the monitoring process [To complete the |
|
inspection], the agency must obtain information from parents and |
|
teachers of students in special education programs in the district. |
|
(c) The agency shall develop and implement a system of |
|
interventions and sanctions for school districts the agency |
|
identifies as being in noncompliance with [whose most recent |
|
monitoring visit shows a failure to comply with major requirements |
|
of] the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. |
|
Section 1400 et seq.), federal regulations, state statutes, or |
|
agency requirements necessary to carry out federal law or |
|
regulations or state law relating to special education. |
|
(d) The agency shall establish a graduated process of |
|
sanctions to apply to [For] districts that remain in noncompliance |
|
for more than one year[, the first stage of sanctions shall begin |
|
with annual or more frequent monitoring visits]. The [Subsequent] |
|
sanctions shall [may] range in severity and may include [up to] the |
|
withholding of funds. If funds are withheld, the agency may use the |
|
funds to provide, through alternative arrangements, services to |
|
students and staff members in the district from which the funds are |
|
withheld. |
|
(e) The agency's complaint management division shall |
|
develop a system for expedited investigation and resolution of |
|
complaints concerning a district's failure to provide special |
|
education or related services to a student eligible to participate |
|
in the district's special education program. |
|
[(f) This section does not create an obligation for or |
|
impose a requirement on a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school that is not also created or imposed under another |
|
state law or a federal law.] |
|
SECTION 4.08. Section 29.018, Education Code, is amended by |
|
adding Subsection (g) to read as follows: |
|
(g) This section expires September 1, 2026. |
|
SECTION 4.09. Subchapter A, Chapter 29, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Sections 29.026, 29.027, and 29.029 to read as |
|
follows: |
|
Sec. 29.026. GRANT PROGRAM PROVIDING SERVICES TO STUDENTS |
|
WITH AUTISM. (a) The commissioner shall establish a program to |
|
award grants to school districts and open-enrollment charter |
|
schools that provide innovative services to students with autism. |
|
(b) A school district, including a school district acting |
|
through a district charter issued under Subchapter C, Chapter 12, |
|
and an open-enrollment charter school, including a charter school |
|
that primarily serves students with disabilities, as provided under |
|
Section 12.1014, may apply for a grant under this section. |
|
(c) A program is eligible for a grant under this section if |
|
the program: |
|
(1) incorporates: |
|
(A) evidence-based and research-based design; |
|
(B) the use of empirical data on student |
|
achievement and improvement; |
|
(C) parental support and collaboration; |
|
(D) the use of technology; |
|
(E) meaningful inclusion; and |
|
(F) the ability to replicate the program for |
|
students statewide; and |
|
(2) gives priority for enrollment to students with |
|
autism. |
|
(d) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
|
not: |
|
(1) charge a fee for the program, other than those |
|
authorized by law for students in public schools; |
|
(2) require a parent to enroll a child in the program; |
|
(3) allow an admission, review, and dismissal |
|
committee to place a student in the program without the written |
|
consent of the student's parent or guardian; or |
|
(4) continue the placement of a student in the program |
|
after the student's parent or guardian revokes consent, in writing, |
|
to the student's placement in the program. |
|
(e) A program under this section may: |
|
(1) alter the length of the school day or school year |
|
or the number of minutes of instruction received by students; |
|
(2) coordinate services with private or |
|
community-based providers; |
|
(3) allow the enrollment of students without |
|
disabilities or with other disabilities, if approved by the |
|
commissioner; and |
|
(4) adopt staff qualifications and staff to student |
|
ratios that differ from the applicable requirements of this title. |
|
(f) The commissioner shall create an external panel of |
|
stakeholders, including parents of students with disabilities, to |
|
provide assistance in the selection of applications for the award |
|
of grants under this section. |
|
(g) In selecting programs to receive a grant under this |
|
section, the commissioner shall prioritize programs that are |
|
collaborations between multiple school districts, multiple charter |
|
schools, or school districts and charter schools. The selected |
|
programs must reflect the diversity of this state. |
|
(h) A program selected to receive a grant under this section |
|
is to be funded for two years. |
|
(i) A grant awarded to a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school under this section is in addition to the Foundation |
|
School Program funds that the district or charter school is |
|
otherwise entitled to receive. A grant awarded under this section |
|
may not come out of Foundation School Program funds. |
|
(j) The commissioner shall use funds appropriated or |
|
otherwise available to fund grants under this section. |
|
(k) The commissioner and any program selected under this |
|
section may accept gifts, grants, and donations from any public or |
|
private source, person, or group to implement and administer the |
|
program. The commissioner and any program selected under this |
|
section may not require any financial contribution from parents to |
|
implement and administer the program. |
|
(l) A regional education service center may administer |
|
grants awarded under this section. |
|
Sec. 29.027. GRANT PROGRAM PROVIDING TRAINING IN DYSLEXIA |
|
FOR TEACHERS AND STAFF. (a) The commissioner shall establish a |
|
program to award grants to school districts and open-enrollment |
|
charter schools to increase local capacity to appropriately serve |
|
students with dyslexia. |
|
(b) A school district, including a school district acting |
|
through a district charter issued under Subchapter C, Chapter 12, |
|
or an open-enrollment charter school, including a charter school |
|
that primarily serves students with disabilities, as provided under |
|
Section 12.1014, is eligible to apply for a grant under this section |
|
if the district or school submits to the commissioner a proposal on |
|
the use of grant funds that: |
|
(1) incorporates evidence-based and research-based |
|
design; and |
|
(2) increases local capacity to appropriately serve |
|
students with dyslexia by providing: |
|
(A) high-quality training to classroom teachers |
|
and administrators in meeting the needs of students with dyslexia; |
|
or |
|
(B) training to intervention staff resulting in |
|
appropriate credentialing related to dyslexia. |
|
(c) The commissioner shall create an external panel of |
|
stakeholders, including parents of students with disabilities, to |
|
provide assistance in the selection of applications for the award |
|
of grants under this section. |
|
(d) A grant under this section is to be awarded for two |
|
years. |
|
(e) A grant awarded to a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school under this section is in addition to the Foundation |
|
School Program funds that the district or charter school is |
|
otherwise entitled to receive. A grant awarded under this section |
|
may not come out of Foundation School Program funds. |
|
(f) The commissioner shall use funds appropriated or |
|
otherwise available to fund grants under this section. |
|
(g) The commissioner and any grant recipient selected under |
|
this section may accept gifts, grants, and donations from any |
|
public or private source, person, or group to implement and |
|
administer the grant. The commissioner and any grant recipient |
|
selected under this section may not require any financial |
|
contribution from parents to implement and administer the grant. |
|
(h) A regional education service center may administer |
|
grants awarded under this section. |
|
Sec. 29.029. SUPPORTS FOR RECRUITING SPECIAL EDUCATION |
|
STAFF. (a) From funds appropriated or otherwise available for the |
|
purpose, the agency shall provide grants to school districts and |
|
open-enrollment charter schools to increase the number of qualified |
|
and appropriately credentialed special education staff, including |
|
special education teachers, special education paraprofessionals, |
|
evaluation personnel, ancillary instruction personnel, and related |
|
service personnel. |
|
(b) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
that receives a grant under this section shall require each person |
|
the district or school uses the grant money to assist in becoming |
|
licensed, certified, or otherwise credentialed as described by |
|
Subsection (a) to work at the district or school for a period |
|
established by commissioner rule. |
|
(c) The commissioner shall adopt rules establishing the |
|
period of required employment described by Subsection (b) and any |
|
other rules necessary to implement this section. |
|
SECTION 4.10. The heading to Subchapter A-1, Chapter 29, |
|
Education Code, is amended to read as follows: |
|
SUBCHAPTER A-1. PARENT-DIRECTED [SUPPLEMENTAL SPECIAL EDUCATION] |
|
SERVICES FOR STUDENTS RECEIVING SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES |
|
[PROGRAM] |
|
SECTION 4.11. Sections 29.041(2) and (3), Education Code, |
|
are amended to read as follows: |
|
(2) "Supplemental [special education] instructional |
|
materials" includes textbooks, computer hardware or software, |
|
other technological devices, and other materials suitable for |
|
addressing an educational need of a student receiving special |
|
education services under Subchapter A. |
|
(3) "Supplemental [special education] services" means |
|
an additive service that provides an educational benefit to a |
|
student receiving special education services under Subchapter A, |
|
including: |
|
(A) occupational therapy, physical therapy, and |
|
speech therapy; and |
|
(B) private tutoring and other supplemental |
|
private instruction or programs. |
|
SECTION 4.12. Section 29.042(a), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(a) The agency by rule shall establish and administer a |
|
parent-directed [supplemental special education services and |
|
instructional materials] program for students receiving special |
|
education services through which a parent may direct supplemental |
|
services and supplemental instructional materials for the parent's |
|
student [students] who meets [meet] the eligibility requirements |
|
for participation in the program. Subject to Subsection (c), the |
|
agency shall provide each student approved as provided by this |
|
subchapter a grant in the amount provided under Section 48.306 [of |
|
not more than $1,500] to purchase supplemental [special education] |
|
services and supplemental [special education] instructional |
|
materials. A student may receive one grant under this subchapter |
|
unless the legislature appropriates money for an additional grant |
|
in the General Appropriations Act. |
|
SECTION 4.13. Section 29.045, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.045. APPROVAL OF APPLICATION; ASSIGNMENT OF |
|
ACCOUNT. The [Subject to available funding the] agency shall |
|
approve each student who meets the program eligibility criteria |
|
established under Section 29.044 and assign to the student an |
|
account maintained under Section 29.042(b). The account may only |
|
be used by the student's parent to purchase supplemental [special |
|
education] services or supplemental [special education] |
|
instructional materials for the student, subject to Sections 29.046 |
|
and 29.047. |
|
SECTION 4.14. Sections 29.046(a) and (b), Education Code, |
|
are amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) Money in an account assigned to a student under Section |
|
29.045 may be used only for supplemental [special education] |
|
services and supplemental [special education] instructional |
|
materials. |
|
(b) Supplemental [special education] services must be |
|
provided by an agency-approved provider. |
|
SECTION 4.15. Sections 29.047(a), (c), (d), and (e), |
|
Education Code, are amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) The agency shall establish criteria necessary for |
|
agency approval for each category of provider of a professional |
|
service that is a supplemental [special education] service, as |
|
identified by the agency. |
|
(c) The agency shall provide a procedure for providers of |
|
supplemental [special education] services to apply to the agency to |
|
become an agency-approved provider. |
|
(d) The agency may establish criteria for agency approval of |
|
vendors for each category of supplemental [special education] |
|
instructional materials identified by the agency. |
|
(e) If the agency establishes criteria for agency approval |
|
for a vendor of a category of supplemental [special education] |
|
instructional materials, the agency shall provide a procedure for |
|
vendors of that category to apply to the agency to become an |
|
agency-approved vendor. |
|
SECTION 4.16. Subchapter A-1, Chapter 29, Education Code, |
|
is amended by adding Section 29.0475 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.0475. PROGRAM PARTICIPANT, PROVIDER, AND VENDOR |
|
AUTONOMY. (a) A provider of supplemental services or vendor of |
|
supplemental instructional materials that receives money |
|
distributed under the program is not a recipient of federal |
|
financial assistance on the basis of receiving that money. |
|
(b) A rule adopted or action taken related to the program by |
|
an individual, governmental entity, court of law, or program |
|
administrator may not: |
|
(1) consider the actions of a provider of supplemental |
|
services, vendor of supplemental instructional materials, or |
|
program participant to be the actions of an agent of state |
|
government; |
|
(2) limit: |
|
(A) a provider of supplemental services' ability |
|
to determine the methods used to educate the provider's students or |
|
to exercise the provider's religious or institutional values; or |
|
(B) a program participant's ability to determine |
|
the participant's educational content or to exercise the |
|
participant's religious values; |
|
(3) obligate a provider of supplemental services or |
|
program participant to act contrary to the provider's or |
|
participant's religious or institutional values, as applicable; |
|
(4) impose any regulation on a provider of |
|
supplemental services, vendor of supplemental instructional |
|
materials, or program participant beyond those regulations |
|
necessary to enforce the requirements of the program; or |
|
(5) require as a condition of receiving money |
|
distributed under the program: |
|
(A) a provider of supplemental services to modify |
|
the provider's creed, practices, admissions policies, curriculum, |
|
performance standards, employment policies, or assessments; or |
|
(B) a program participant to modify the |
|
participant's creed, practices, curriculum, performance standards, |
|
or assessments. |
|
(c) In a proceeding challenging a rule adopted by a state |
|
agency or officer under this subchapter, the agency or officer has |
|
the burden of proof to establish by clear and convincing evidence |
|
that the rule: |
|
(1) is necessary to implement or enforce the program |
|
as provided by this subchapter; |
|
(2) does not violate this section; |
|
(3) does not impose an undue burden on a program |
|
participant or a provider of supplemental services or vendor of |
|
supplemental instructional materials that participates or applies |
|
to participate in the program; and |
|
(4) is the least restrictive means of accomplishing |
|
the purpose of the program while recognizing the independence of a |
|
provider of supplemental services to meet the educational needs of |
|
students in accordance with the provider's religious or |
|
institutional values. |
|
SECTION 4.17. Section 29.048, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.048. ADMISSION, REVIEW, AND DISMISSAL COMMITTEE |
|
DUTIES. (a) A student's admission, review, and dismissal |
|
committee shall develop a student's individualized education |
|
program under Section 29.005, in compliance with the Individuals |
|
with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.), |
|
without consideration of any supplemental [special education] |
|
services or supplemental instructional materials that may be |
|
provided under the program under this subchapter. |
|
(b) Unless the district first verifies that an account has |
|
been assigned to the student under Section 29.045, the [The] |
|
admission, review, and dismissal committee of a student approved |
|
for participation in the program shall provide to the student's |
|
parent at an admission, review, and dismissal committee meeting for |
|
the student: |
|
(1) information regarding the types of supplemental |
|
[special education] services or supplemental instructional |
|
materials available under the program and provided by |
|
agency-approved providers for which an account maintained under |
|
Section 29.042(b) for the student may be used; and |
|
(2) instructions regarding accessing an account |
|
described by Subdivision (1). |
|
SECTION 4.18. Subchapter A-1, Chapter 29, Education Code, |
|
is amended by adding Section 29.0485 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.0485. DETERMINATION OF COMMISSIONER FINAL. |
|
Notwithstanding Section 7.057, a determination of the commissioner |
|
under this subchapter is final and may not be appealed. |
|
SECTION 4.19. Section 29.049, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.049. RULES. The commissioner shall adopt rules as |
|
necessary to administer the supplemental [special education] |
|
services and supplemental instructional materials program under |
|
this subchapter. |
|
SECTION 4.20. Section 29.315, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.315. TEXAS SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF MEMORANDUM OF |
|
UNDERSTANDING. The Texas Education Agency and the Texas School for |
|
the Deaf shall develop[, agree to, and by commissioner rule adopt no |
|
later than September 1, 1998,] a memorandum of understanding to |
|
establish: |
|
(1) the method for developing and reevaluating a set |
|
of indicators of the quality of learning at the Texas School for the |
|
Deaf; |
|
(2) the process for the agency to conduct and report on |
|
an annual evaluation of the school's performance on the indicators; |
|
(3) the requirements for the school's board to |
|
publish, discuss, and disseminate an annual report describing the |
|
educational performance of the school; |
|
(4) the process for the agency to assign an |
|
accreditation status to the school, to reevaluate the status on an |
|
annual basis, and, if necessary, to conduct monitoring reviews; and |
|
(5) the type of information the school shall be |
|
required to provide through the Public Education Information |
|
Management System (PEIMS). |
|
SECTION 4.21. Section 30.001(b), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(b) The commissioner, with the approval of the State Board |
|
of Education, shall develop and implement a plan for the |
|
coordination of services to children with disabilities in each |
|
region served by a regional education service center. The plan |
|
must include procedures for: |
|
(1) identifying existing public or private |
|
educational and related services for children with disabilities in |
|
each region; |
|
(2) identifying and referring children with |
|
disabilities who cannot be appropriately served by the school |
|
district in which they reside to other appropriate programs; |
|
(3) assisting school districts to individually or |
|
cooperatively develop programs to identify and provide appropriate |
|
services for children with disabilities; |
|
(4) expanding and coordinating services provided by |
|
regional education service centers for children with disabilities; |
|
and |
|
(5) providing for special education supports |
|
[services], including special seats, books, instructional media, |
|
and other supplemental supplies and services required for proper |
|
instruction. |
|
SECTION 4.22. Section 30.002(g), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(g) To facilitate implementation of this section, the |
|
commissioner shall develop a system to distribute from the |
|
foundation school fund to school districts or regional education |
|
service centers a special supplemental allowance for each student |
|
with a visual impairment and for each student with a serious visual |
|
disability and another medically diagnosed disability of a |
|
significantly limiting nature who is receiving special education |
|
services through any approved program. The supplemental allowance |
|
may be spent only for special education services uniquely required |
|
by the nature of the student's disabilities and may not be used in |
|
lieu of educational funds otherwise available under this code or |
|
through state or local appropriations. |
|
SECTION 4.23. Section 30.005, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 30.005. TEXAS SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND AND VISUALLY |
|
IMPAIRED MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING. The Texas Education Agency |
|
and the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired shall |
|
develop[, agree to, and by commissioner rule adopt] a memorandum of |
|
understanding to establish: |
|
(1) the method for developing and reevaluating a set |
|
of indicators of the quality of learning at the Texas School for the |
|
Blind and Visually Impaired; |
|
(2) the process for the agency to conduct and report on |
|
an annual evaluation of the school's performance on the indicators; |
|
(3) the requirements for the school's board to |
|
publish, discuss, and disseminate an annual report describing the |
|
educational performance of the school; |
|
(4) the process for the agency to: |
|
(A) assign an accreditation status to the school; |
|
(B) reevaluate the status on an annual basis; and |
|
(C) if necessary, conduct monitoring reviews; |
|
and |
|
(5) the type of information the school shall be |
|
required to provide through the Public Education Information |
|
Management System (PEIMS). |
|
SECTION 4.24. Section 37.146(a), Education Code, as |
|
effective until January 1, 2025, is amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) A complaint alleging the commission of a school offense |
|
must, in addition to the requirements imposed by Article 45.019, |
|
Code of Criminal Procedure: |
|
(1) be sworn to by a person who has personal knowledge |
|
of the underlying facts giving rise to probable cause to believe |
|
that an offense has been committed; and |
|
(2) be accompanied by a statement from a school |
|
employee stating: |
|
(A) whether the child is eligible for or receives |
|
special education services under Subchapter A, Chapter 29; and |
|
(B) the graduated sanctions, if required under |
|
Section 37.144, that were imposed on the child before the complaint |
|
was filed. |
|
SECTION 4.25. Section 37.146(a), Education Code, as |
|
effective January 1, 2025, is amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) A complaint alleging the commission of a school offense |
|
must, in addition to the requirements imposed by Article 45A.101, |
|
Code of Criminal Procedure: |
|
(1) be sworn to by a person who has personal knowledge |
|
of the underlying facts giving rise to probable cause to believe |
|
that an offense has been committed; and |
|
(2) be accompanied by a statement from a school |
|
employee stating: |
|
(A) whether the child is eligible for or receives |
|
special education services under Subchapter A, Chapter 29; and |
|
(B) the graduated sanctions, if required under |
|
Section 37.144, that were imposed on the child before the complaint |
|
was filed. |
|
SECTION 4.26. Section 48.265(a), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(a) If [Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if] the |
|
commissioner determines that the amount appropriated for the |
|
purposes of the Foundation School Program exceeds the amount to |
|
which school districts are entitled under this chapter, the |
|
commissioner may provide [by rule shall establish a grant program |
|
through which excess funds are awarded as] grants using the excess |
|
money for the purchase of video equipment, or for the reimbursement |
|
of costs for previously purchased video equipment, used for |
|
monitoring special education classrooms or other special education |
|
settings required under Section 29.022. |
|
SECTION 4.27. Section 29.002, Education Code, is repealed. |
|
SECTION 4.28. This article takes effect immediately if this |
|
Act 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 article takes effect on the 91st day after the last day |
|
of the legislative session. |
|
ARTICLE 5. EDUCATION SAVINGS ACCOUNT PROGRAM |
|
SECTION 5.01. Chapter 29, Education Code, is amended by |
|
adding Subchapter J to read as follows: |
|
SUBCHAPTER J. EDUCATION SAVINGS ACCOUNT PROGRAM |
|
Sec. 29.351. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: |
|
(1) "Account" means an education savings account |
|
established under the program. |
|
(2) "Certified educational assistance organization" |
|
means an organization certified under Section 29.354 to support the |
|
administration of the program. |
|
(3) "Child with a disability" means a child who is |
|
eligible to participate in a school district's special education |
|
program under Section 29.003. |
|
(4) "Higher education provider" means an institution |
|
of higher education or a private or independent institution of |
|
higher education, as those terms are defined by Section 61.003. |
|
(5) "Parent" means a resident of this state who is a |
|
natural or adoptive parent, managing or possessory conservator, |
|
legal guardian, custodian, or other person with legal authority to |
|
act on behalf of a child. |
|
(6) "Participating child" means a child enrolled in |
|
the program. |
|
(7) "Participating parent" means a parent of a |
|
participating child who submitted an application under Section |
|
29.356 on behalf of the child. |
|
(8) "Program" means the program established under this |
|
subchapter. |
|
(9) "Program participant" means a participating child |
|
or a participating parent. |
|
Sec. 29.352. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM. The comptroller |
|
shall establish a program to provide funding for approved |
|
education-related expenses of participating children. |
|
Sec. 29.353. PROGRAM FUND. (a) The program fund is an |
|
account in the general revenue fund to be administered by the |
|
comptroller. |
|
(b) The fund is composed of: |
|
(1) money appropriated to the fund; |
|
(2) gifts, grants, and donations received under |
|
Section 29.370; and |
|
(3) any other money available for purposes of the |
|
program. |
|
(c) Money in the fund may be appropriated only for the uses |
|
specified by this subchapter. |
|
(d) The governor and the Legislative Budget Board may not |
|
transfer or repurpose money under a proposal under Chapter 317, |
|
Government Code, to provide funding to administer the program. |
|
Sec. 29.3535. PROMOTION OF PROGRAM. Notwithstanding |
|
Chapter 2113, Government Code, the comptroller or the comptroller's |
|
designee may enter into contracts or agreements and engage in |
|
marketing, advertising, and other activities to promote, market, |
|
and advertise the development and use of the program. The |
|
comptroller may use money from the program fund to pay for |
|
activities authorized under this section. |
|
Sec. 29.354. SELECTION OF CERTIFIED EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE |
|
ORGANIZATIONS. (a) An organization may apply to the comptroller |
|
for certification as a certified educational assistance |
|
organization during an application period established by the |
|
comptroller. |
|
(b) To be eligible for certification, an organization must: |
|
(1) have the ability to perform one or more of the |
|
duties and functions required of a certified educational assistance |
|
organization under this subchapter; |
|
(2) be in good standing with the state; and |
|
(3) be able to assist the comptroller in administering |
|
the program in whole or in part, such as the ability to: |
|
(A) accept, process, and track applications for |
|
the program; |
|
(B) assist prospective applicants, applicants, |
|
and program participants with finding preapproved education |
|
service providers and vendors of educational products; |
|
(C) accept and process payments for approved |
|
education-related expenses; and |
|
(D) verify that program funding is used only for |
|
approved education-related expenses. |
|
(c) The comptroller may certify one or more educational |
|
assistance organizations to support the administration of the |
|
program, including by: |
|
(1) administering in whole or in part: |
|
(A) the application process under Section |
|
29.356; and |
|
(B) the program expenditures process under |
|
Section 29.360; and |
|
(2) assisting prospective applicants, applicants, and |
|
program participants with understanding approved education-related |
|
expenses and finding preapproved education service providers and |
|
vendors of educational products. |
|
(d) A certified educational assistance organization is not |
|
considered to be a provider of professional or consulting services |
|
under Chapter 2254, Government Code. |
|
Sec. 29.355. ELIGIBLE CHILD. (a) A child is eligible to |
|
participate in the program and may, subject to available funding |
|
and the requirements of this subchapter, initially enroll in the |
|
program for the following school year if the child is eligible to |
|
attend a public school under Section 25.001 and: |
|
(1) either: |
|
(A) was enrolled in a public school in this state |
|
for at least 90 percent of the school year preceding the school year |
|
for which the child applies to enroll in the program; |
|
(B) is enrolling in kindergarten or first grade |
|
for the first time; or |
|
(C) attended a private school on a full-time |
|
basis or was home-schooled for the preceding school year; or |
|
(2) is a sibling of a child who is eligible to |
|
participate in the program and: |
|
(A) applies to enroll in the program for the same |
|
school year in which the sibling applies to enroll in the program; |
|
or |
|
(B) is participating in the program. |
|
(b) A child who establishes eligibility under this section |
|
may, subject to available funding and the requirements of this |
|
subchapter, participate in the program until the earliest of the |
|
following dates: |
|
(1) the date on which the child graduates from high |
|
school; |
|
(2) the date on which the child is no longer eligible |
|
to attend a public school under Section 25.001; |
|
(3) the date on which the child enrolls in a public |
|
school, including an open-enrollment charter school, in a manner in |
|
which the child will be counted toward the school's average daily |
|
attendance for purposes of the allocation of funding under the |
|
foundation school program; |
|
(4) for a child who performed satisfactorily on an |
|
assessment instrument administered under Subchapter B, Chapter 39, |
|
in the school year preceding the child's enrollment in the program, |
|
the date of the first day of the school year following the school |
|
year in which the child fails to perform satisfactorily for the |
|
second consecutive year in the same subject area on an assessment |
|
instrument required under Section 29.371; or |
|
(5) the date on which the child is declared ineligible |
|
for the program by the comptroller under this subchapter. |
|
(c) Notwithstanding Subsection (a) or (b), a child is not |
|
eligible to participate in the program during the period in which |
|
the child's parent or legal guardian is a state representative or |
|
state senator. |
|
Sec. 29.3551. PROGRAM ENROLLMENT. (a) For the 2024-2025 |
|
school year, the total amount of children participating in the |
|
program may not exceed 25,000. |
|
(b) For the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 school years, the total |
|
amount of children participating in the program may not exceed the |
|
sum of: |
|
(1) the number of children who participated in the |
|
program during the preceding school year; and |
|
(2) 25,000. |
|
(c) This section expires September 1, 2027. |
|
Sec. 29.356. APPLICATION TO PROGRAM. (a) A parent of an |
|
eligible child may apply to a certified educational assistance |
|
organization designated by the comptroller to enroll the child in |
|
the program for the following school year. The comptroller shall |
|
establish deadlines by which an applicant must complete and submit |
|
an application form to participate in the program. |
|
(b) On receipt of more acceptable applications during an |
|
application period for admission under this section than available |
|
positions in the program due to insufficient funding, a certified |
|
educational assistance organization shall, at the direction of the |
|
comptroller, prioritize applicants: |
|
(1) in the following order: |
|
(A) children to whom Paragraph (B) does not |
|
apply; and |
|
(B) children who previously ceased participation |
|
in the program due to enrollment in a public school; and |
|
(2) within each of the groups described by Subdivision |
|
(1), as follows, as applicable: |
|
(A) children with a disability who are members of |
|
a household with a total annual income that is at or below 400 |
|
percent of the federal poverty guidelines; |
|
(B) children who are members of a household with |
|
a total annual income that is at or below 185 percent of the federal |
|
poverty guidelines; |
|
(C) children who are members of a household with |
|
a total annual income that is above 185 percent of the federal |
|
poverty guidelines and below 400 percent of the federal poverty |
|
guidelines; and |
|
(D) children who are members of a household with |
|
a total annual income that is at or above 400 percent of the federal |
|
poverty guidelines. |
|
(b-1) For purposes of Subsection (b), a certified |
|
educational assistance organization shall prioritize a |
|
participating child's sibling who is initially eligible to |
|
participate in the program under Section 29.355(a)(2) in the same |
|
manner as the participating child. |
|
(b-2) The agency shall provide to the comptroller the |
|
information necessary to make the determinations required under |
|
Subsection (b). |
|
(c) The comptroller shall create an application form for the |
|
program and ensure the application form is made readily available |
|
through various sources, including a certified educational |
|
assistance organization's Internet website. The application form |
|
must state the application deadlines established by the comptroller |
|
under Subsection (a). Each certified educational assistance |
|
organization designated under Subsection (a) shall ensure that the |
|
application form, including any required supporting document, is |
|
capable of being submitted to the organization electronically. |
|
(d) The comptroller shall create and maintain a waiting list |
|
based on the priority categories described by Subsection (b) for |
|
applicants if, during an application period, there are more |
|
acceptable applications for admission than there are available |
|
positions. |
|
(e) Each certified educational assistance organization |
|
designated under Subsection (a) shall post on the organization's |
|
Internet website program information for prospective applicants, |
|
including: |
|
(1) a description of the program; |
|
(2) expenses allowed under the program under Section |
|
29.359; |
|
(3) a link to a list of preapproved education service |
|
providers and vendors of educational products under Section 29.358; |
|
(4) a description of the application process; |
|
(5) a description of the applicant selection process; |
|
(6) a description of the program expenditures process |
|
under Section 29.360; and |
|
(7) a description of the responsibilities of program |
|
participants. |
|
(f) A certified educational assistance organization shall |
|
produce and provide to each participating parent a |
|
comptroller-approved program participant handbook that includes: |
|
(1) information regarding expenses allowed under the |
|
program under Section 29.359; |
|
(2) if the handbook is provided electronically, a link |
|
to a list of preapproved education service providers and vendors of |
|
educational products under Section 29.358; |
|
(3) a description of the program expenditures process |
|
under Section 29.360; and |
|
(4) a description of the responsibilities of program |
|
participants. |
|
(g) Each certified educational assistance organization |
|
designated under Subsection (a) shall on enrollment and annually |
|
provide to each participating parent the information described by |
|
Subsections (e) and (f). The organization may provide the |
|
information electronically. |
|
(h) The comptroller or a certified educational assistance |
|
organization designated under Subsection (a): |
|
(1) may require a participating parent to submit |
|
annual notice regarding the parent's intent for the child to |
|
continue participating in the program for the next school year; and |
|
(2) may not require a program participant in good |
|
standing to annually resubmit an application for continued |
|
participation in the program. |
|
Sec. 29.357. PARTICIPATION IN PROGRAM. To receive funding |
|
under the program, a participating parent must agree to: |
|
(1) spend money received through the program only for |
|
expenses allowed under Section 29.359; |
|
(2) ensure the administration of assessment |
|
instruments to the participating child in accordance with Section |
|
29.371 and share or authorize administrators of assessment |
|
instruments to share with the child's certified educational |
|
assistance organization the results of those assessment |
|
instruments; |
|
(3) refrain from selling an item purchased with |
|
program money while the child is participating in the program; and |
|
(4) notify the applicable certified educational |
|
assistance organization not later than 30 days after the date on |
|
which the child: |
|
(A) enrolls in a public school, including an |
|
open-enrollment charter school in a manner in which the child will |
|
be counted toward the school's average daily attendance for |
|
purposes of the allocation of funding under the foundation school |
|
program; |
|
(B) graduates from high school; or |
|
(C) is no longer eligible to enroll in a public |
|
school under Section 25.001. |
|
Sec. 29.358. PREAPPROVED PROVIDERS AND VENDORS. (a) The |
|
comptroller shall by rule establish a process for the preapproval |
|
of education service providers and vendors of educational products |
|
for participation in the program. The comptroller shall allow for |
|
the submission of applications on a rolling basis. |
|
(b) The comptroller shall approve an education service |
|
provider or vendor of educational products for participation in the |
|
program if the provider or vendor: |
|
(1) has previously been approved by the agency to |
|
provide supplemental special education services under Subchapter |
|
A-1 and remains in good standing with the agency; |
|
(2) for a private school, demonstrates accreditation |
|
by an organization recognized by: |
|
(A) the Texas Private School Accreditation |
|
Commission; or |
|
(B) the agency; |
|
(3) for a public school, demonstrates: |
|
(A) accreditation by the agency; and |
|
(B) the ability to provide services or products |
|
to participating children in a manner in which the children are not |
|
counted toward the school's average daily attendance; |
|
(4) for a private tutor, therapist, or teaching |
|
service, demonstrates that: |
|
(A) the tutor or therapist or each employee of |
|
the teaching service who intends to provide educational services to |
|
a participating child: |
|
(i) is an educator employed by or a retired |
|
educator formerly employed by a school accredited by the agency, an |
|
organization recognized by the agency, or an organization |
|
recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission; |
|
(ii) holds a relevant license or |
|
accreditation issued by a state, regional, or national |
|
certification or accreditation organization; or |
|
(iii) is employed in or retired from a |
|
teaching or tutoring capacity at a higher education provider; |
|
(B) the tutor or therapist or each employee of |
|
the teaching service who intends to provide educational services to |
|
a participating child provided to the comptroller a national |
|
criminal history record information review completed by the tutor, |
|
therapist, or employee, as applicable, within a period established |
|
by comptroller rule; and |
|
(C) the tutor or therapist or each employee of |
|
the teaching service who intends to provide educational services to |
|
a participating child is not: |
|
(i) required to be discharged or refused to |
|
be hired by a school district under Section 22.085; or |
|
(ii) included in the registry under Section |
|
22.092; or |
|
(5) for a higher education provider, demonstrates |
|
nationally recognized postsecondary accreditation. |
|
(c) The comptroller shall review the national criminal |
|
history record information or documentation for each private tutor, |
|
therapist, or teaching service employee who submits information or |
|
documentation under this section. The tutor, therapist, or service |
|
must provide the comptroller with any information requested by the |
|
comptroller to enable the comptroller to complete the review. |
|
(d) An education service provider or vendor of educational |
|
products shall provide information requested by the comptroller to |
|
verify the provider's or vendor's eligibility for preapproval under |
|
Subsection (b). The comptroller may not approve a provider or |
|
vendor if the comptroller cannot verify the provider's or vendor's |
|
eligibility for preapproval. |
|
(e) An education service provider or vendor of educational |
|
products must agree to: |
|
(1) abide by the disbursement schedule under Section |
|
29.360(c) and all other requirements of this subchapter; |
|
(2) accept money from the program only for |
|
education-related expenses approved under Section 29.359; |
|
(3) notify the comptroller not later than the 30th day |
|
after the date that the provider or vendor no longer meets the |
|
requirements of this section; and |
|
(4) return any money received in violation of this |
|
subchapter or other relevant law to the comptroller for deposit |
|
into the program fund. |
|
(f) An education service provider or vendor of educational |
|
products that receives approval under this section may participate |
|
in the program until the earliest of the date on which the provider |
|
or vendor: |
|
(1) no longer meets the requirements under this |
|
section; or |
|
(2) violates this subchapter or other relevant law. |
|
(g) This section may not be construed to allow a learning |
|
pod, as defined by Section 27.001, or a home school to qualify as an |
|
approved education service provider or vendor of educational |
|
products. |
|
Sec. 29.359. APPROVED EDUCATION-RELATED EXPENSES. (a) |
|
Subject to Subsection (b), money received under the program may be |
|
used only for the following education-related expenses incurred by |
|
a participating child at a preapproved education service provider |
|
or vendor of educational products: |
|
(1) tuition and fees for: |
|
(A) a private school; |
|
(B) a higher education provider; |
|
(C) an online educational course or program; or |
|
(D) a program that provides training for an |
|
industry-based credential; |
|
(2) the purchase of textbooks or other instructional |
|
materials or uniforms required by a private school, higher |
|
education provider, or course in which the child is enrolled, |
|
including purchases made through a third-party vendor of |
|
educational products; |
|
(3) fees for classes or other educational services |
|
provided by a public school, including an open-enrollment charter |
|
school, if the classes or services do not qualify the child to be |
|
included in the school's average daily attendance; |
|
(4) costs related to academic assessments; |
|
(5) fees for services provided by a private tutor or |
|
teaching service; |
|
(6) fees for transportation provided by a |
|
fee-for-service transportation provider for the child to travel to |
|
and from a preapproved education service provider or vendor of |
|
educational products; |
|
(7) fees for educational therapies or services |
|
provided by a practitioner or provider, only for fees that are not |
|
covered by any federal, state, or local government benefits such as |
|
Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or by |
|
any private insurance that the child is enrolled in at the time of |
|
receiving the therapies or services; |
|
(8) costs of computer hardware and software and other |
|
technological devices prescribed by a physician to facilitate a |
|
child's education, not to exceed in any year 10 percent of the total |
|
amount paid to the participating child's account that year; |
|
(9) costs of breakfast or lunch provided to a child |
|
during the school day by a private school; and |
|
(10) before- and after-school academic child care. |
|
(b) Money received under the program may not be used to pay |
|
any person who is related to the program participant within the |
|
third degree by consanguinity or affinity, as determined under |
|
Chapter 573, Government Code. |
|
(c) A finding that a program participant used money |
|
distributed under the program to pay for an expense not allowed |
|
under Subsection (a) does not affect the validity of any payment |
|
made by the participant for an approved education-related expense |
|
that is allowed under that subsection. |
|
Sec. 29.360. PROGRAM EXPENDITURES. (a) The comptroller |
|
shall disburse from the program fund to each certified educational |
|
assistance organization the amount specified under Section |
|
29.361(a) for each participating child for which the organization |
|
is responsible. |
|
(b) To initiate payment to an education service provider or |
|
vendor of educational products for an education-related expense |
|
approved under Section 29.359, the participating parent must submit |
|
a request in a form prescribed by comptroller rule to the applicable |
|
certified educational assistance organization. |
|
(c) Subject to Subsection (d) and Sections 29.362(g) and |
|
29.364, on receiving a request under Subsection (b), a certified |
|
educational assistance organization shall verify that the request |
|
is for an expense approved under Section 29.359 and, not later than |
|
the 15th business day after the date the organization verifies the |
|
request, send payment to the education service provider or vendor |
|
of educational products. |
|
(d) A disbursement under this section may not exceed the |
|
applicable participating child's account balance. |
|
(e) A certified educational assistance organization shall |
|
provide the participating parent for which the organization is |
|
responsible with electronic access to: |
|
(1) view the current balance of the participating |
|
child's account; |
|
(2) initiate the payment process under Subsection (b); |
|
and |
|
(3) view a summary of the past activity on the |
|
participating child's account, including payments from the account |
|
to education service providers and vendors of educational products. |
|
Sec. 29.361. AMOUNT OF PAYMENT; FINANCING. (a) Regardless |
|
of the deadline by which the participating parent applies for |
|
enrollment in the program under Section 29.356(a) and except as |
|
provided by Subsections (a-1) and (a-3), a participating parent |
|
shall receive each school year that the parent's child participates |
|
in the program payments from the state to be held in trust for the |
|
benefit of the child from funds available under Section 29.353 to |
|
the child's account equal to 75 percent of the estimated statewide |
|
average amount of funding per student in average daily attendance |
|
for the applicable school year, as determined by the commissioner |
|
not later than January 15 preceding the applicable school year. For |
|
purposes of determining the estimated statewide average amount of |
|
funding per student under this subsection, the commissioner shall |
|
include state and local funding under Chapters 46, 48, and 49 and |
|
the amount the state is required to contribute under Section |
|
825.404, Government Code. |
|
(a-1) If a child enrolls in the program after the beginning |
|
of a school year, the comptroller shall prorate the amount the |
|
participating parent of the child receives under Subsection (a) |
|
based on the date the child enrolls in the program. |
|
(a-2) A participating parent must submit all requests for |
|
payment from the account of the parent's child for expenses |
|
incurred during a fiscal year to the comptroller not less than 90 |
|
days after the end of that fiscal year. |
|
(a-3) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a participating child |
|
who is a home-schooled student, as defined by Section 29.916(a)(1), |
|
may not receive payments to the child's account under Subsection |
|
(a) in an amount that exceeds $1,000 for a school year. |
|
(b) Any money remaining in a participating child's account |
|
at the end of a fiscal year that is not obligated for expenses |
|
incurred during that fiscal year shall be returned to the |
|
comptroller for deposit to the program fund. The comptroller shall |
|
provide to a participating parent adequate notice of the return of |
|
money in the account under this subsection. |
|
(c) A participating parent may make payments for the |
|
expenses of educational programs, services, and products not |
|
covered by money in the account of the parent's child. |
|
(d) A payment under Subsection (a) may not be financed using |
|
federal money or money from the available school fund or |
|
instructional materials fund. |
|
(e) Payments received under this subchapter do not |
|
constitute taxable income to a participating parent, unless |
|
otherwise provided by federal or another state's law. |
|
(f) On dates consistent with satisfying the application |
|
deadlines established under Section 29.356(a), the agency shall |
|
calculate and report to the comptroller the amount specified under |
|
Subsection (a) for each participating child. |
|
Sec. 29.3615. ENROLLMENT IN PUBLIC SCHOOL. Notwithstanding |
|
any other provision of this subchapter or other law, if a child |
|
ceases participation in the program due to the child's enrollment |
|
in a public school, including an open-enrollment charter school: |
|
(1) the public school is entitled to receive an amount |
|
equal to the amount in the child's account returned to the |
|
comptroller under Section 29.362(f); and |
|
(2) the child may not be considered in evaluating the |
|
performance of a public school under the public school |
|
accountability system as prescribed by Chapters 39 and 39A for the |
|
first school year after the child ceases participation in the |
|
program. |
|
Sec. 29.362. ADMINISTRATION OF ACCOUNTS. (a) On receipt of |
|
money distributed by the comptroller for purposes of making |
|
payments to accounts, a certified educational assistance |
|
organization shall hold the money in trust for the benefit of |
|
participating children and make quarterly payments to the account |
|
of each participating child for which the organization is |
|
responsible in equal amounts on or before the first day of July, |
|
October, January, and April. |
|
(b) Each year, the comptroller may deduct from the total |
|
amount of money appropriated for purposes of this subchapter an |
|
amount, not to exceed three percent of that total amount, to cover |
|
the comptroller's cost of administering the program. |
|
(c) Each quarter, each certified educational assistance |
|
organization shall submit to the comptroller a breakdown of the |
|
organization's actual costs of administering the program for the |
|
previous quarter and the comptroller shall disburse from money |
|
appropriated for the program to each certified educational |
|
assistance organization the amount necessary to cover the |
|
organization's actual costs of administering the program for that |
|
quarter. The total amount disbursed to all certified educational |
|
assistance organizations under this subsection for a state fiscal |
|
year may not exceed five percent of the amount appropriated for the |
|
purposes of the program for that fiscal year. |
|
(d) On or before the first day of October and February or |
|
another date determined by comptroller rule, each certified |
|
educational assistance organization shall: |
|
(1) verify with the agency that each participating |
|
child for which the organization is responsible is not enrolled in a |
|
public school, including an open-enrollment charter school, in a |
|
manner in which the child is counted toward the school's average |
|
daily attendance for purposes of the allocation of state funding |
|
under the foundation school program; and |
|
(2) notify the comptroller if the organization |
|
determines that a participating child for which the organization is |
|
responsible is enrolled in a public school, including an |
|
open-enrollment charter school, in a manner in which the child is |
|
counted toward the school's average daily attendance for purposes |
|
of the allocation of state funding under the foundation school |
|
program. |
|
(e) The comptroller by rule shall establish a process by |
|
which a participating parent may authorize the comptroller or the |
|
certified educational assistance organization to make a payment |
|
directly from the account of the parent's child to a preapproved |
|
education service provider or vendor of educational products for an |
|
expense allowed under Section 29.359. |
|
(f) On the date on which a child who participated in the |
|
program is no longer eligible to participate in the program under |
|
Section 29.355 and payments for any education-related expenses |
|
allowed under Section 29.359 from the child's account have been |
|
completed, the child's account shall be closed and any remaining |
|
money returned to the comptroller for deposit in the program fund. |
|
(g) Each quarter, any interest or other earnings |
|
attributable to money held by a certified educational assistance |
|
organization for purposes of the program shall be remitted to the |
|
comptroller for deposit in the program fund. |
|
Sec. 29.363. AUDITING. (a) The comptroller shall contract |
|
with a private entity to audit accounts and program participant |
|
eligibility data not less than once per year to ensure compliance |
|
with applicable law and program requirements. The audit must |
|
include a review of: |
|
(1) each certified educational assistance |
|
organization's internal controls over program transactions; and |
|
(2) compliance by: |
|
(A) certified educational assistance |
|
organizations with Section 29.354 and other program requirements; |
|
(B) program participants with Section 29.357 and |
|
other program requirements; and |
|
(C) education service providers and vendors of |
|
educational products with Section 29.358 and other program |
|
requirements. |
|
(b) In conducting an audit, the private entity may require a |
|
certified educational assistance organization, program |
|
participant, or education service provider or vendor of educational |
|
products to provide information and documentation regarding any |
|
transaction occurring under the program. |
|
(c) The private entity shall report to the comptroller any |
|
violation of this subchapter or other relevant law and any |
|
transactions the entity determines to be unusual or suspicious |
|
found by the entity during an audit conducted under this section. |
|
The comptroller shall report the violation or transaction to: |
|
(1) the applicable certified educational assistance |
|
organization; |
|
(2) the education service provider or vendor of |
|
educational products, as applicable; and |
|
(3) the participating parent of each participating |
|
child who is affected by the violation or transaction. |
|
Sec. 29.364. SUSPENSION OF ACCOUNT. (a) The comptroller |
|
shall suspend the account of a program participant who fails to |
|
remain in good standing by complying with applicable law or a |
|
requirement of the program. |
|
(b) On suspension of an account under Subsection (a), the |
|
comptroller shall notify the participating parent in writing that |
|
the account of the parent's child has been suspended and that no |
|
additional payments may be made from the account. The notification |
|
must specify the grounds for the suspension and state that the |
|
participating parent has 30 days to respond and take any corrective |
|
action required by the comptroller. |
|
(c) On the expiration of the 30-day period under Subsection |
|
(b), the comptroller shall: |
|
(1) order closure of the suspended account; |
|
(2) order temporary reinstatement of the account, |
|
conditioned on the performance of a specified action by the program |
|
participant; or |
|
(3) order full reinstatement of the account. |
|
(d) The comptroller may recover money distributed under the |
|
program that was used for expenses not allowed under Section |
|
29.359, for a child who was not eligible to participate in the |
|
program at the time of the expenditure, or from an education service |
|
provider or vendor of educational products that was not approved at |
|
the time of the expenditure. The money may be recovered from the |
|
program participant or the education service provider or vendor of |
|
educational products that received the money if the participating |
|
child's account is suspended or closed under this section. Failure |
|
to reimburse the state on demand by the comptroller constitutes a |
|
debt to the state for purposes of Section 403.055, Government Code. |
|
The comptroller shall deposit money recovered under this subsection |
|
into the program fund. |
|
Sec. 29.365. TUITION AND FEES; REFUND PROHIBITED. (a) An |
|
education service provider or vendor of educational products may |
|
not charge a participating child an amount greater than the |
|
standard amount charged for that service or product by the provider |
|
or vendor. |
|
(b) An education service provider or vendor of educational |
|
products receiving money distributed under the program may not in |
|
any manner rebate, refund, or credit to or share with a program |
|
participant, or any person on behalf of a participant, any program |
|
money paid or owed by the participant to the provider or vendor. |
|
Sec. 29.366. REFERRAL TO DISTRICT ATTORNEY. If the |
|
comptroller obtains evidence of fraudulent use of an account or |
|
money distributed under the program or any other violation of law by |
|
a certified educational assistance organization, program |
|
participant, or education service provider or vendor of educational |
|
products, the comptroller shall notify the appropriate local county |
|
or district attorney with jurisdiction over, as applicable: |
|
(1) the principal place of business of the |
|
organization or provider or vendor; or |
|
(2) the residence of the program participant. |
|
Sec. 29.367. SPECIAL EDUCATION NOTICE. (a) Each certified |
|
educational assistance organization designated under Section |
|
29.356(a) shall post on the organization's Internet website and |
|
provide to each parent who submits an application for the program a |
|
notice that: |
|
(1) states that a private school is not subject to |
|
federal and state laws regarding the provision of educational |
|
services to a child with a disability in the same manner as a public |
|
school; and |
|
(2) provides information regarding rights to which a |
|
child with a disability is entitled under federal and state law if |
|
the child attends a public school, including: |
|
(A) rights provided under the Individuals with |
|
Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.); and |
|
(B) rights provided under Subchapter A. |
|
(b) A private school in which a participating child with a |
|
disability enrolls shall provide to the participating parent a copy |
|
of the notice required under Subsection (a). |
|
Sec. 29.368. CHARACTER OF DISTRIBUTION. An education |
|
service provider or vendor of educational products that receives |
|
money distributed under the program is not a recipient of federal |
|
financial assistance and may not be considered to be an agent of |
|
state government on the basis of receiving that money. |
|
Sec. 29.369. STUDENT RECORDS AND INFORMATION. (a) On |
|
request by the parent of a child participating or seeking to |
|
participate in the program, the school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school that the child would otherwise attend shall provide |
|
a copy of the child's school records possessed by the district or |
|
school, if any, to the child's parent or, if applicable, the private |
|
school the child attends. |
|
(b) As necessary to verify a child's eligibility for the |
|
program, the agency, a school district, or an open-enrollment |
|
charter school shall provide to the applicable certified |
|
educational assistance organization any information available to |
|
the agency, district, or school requested by the organization |
|
regarding a child who participates or seeks to participate in the |
|
program, including information regarding: |
|
(1) the child's public school enrollment status; and |
|
(2) whether the child: |
|
(A) is a child with a disability; or |
|
(B) can be counted toward a public school's |
|
average daily attendance for purposes of the allocation of funding |
|
under the foundation school program. |
|
(c) A certified educational assistance organization may not |
|
retain information provided under Subsection (b) beyond the period |
|
necessary to determine a child's eligibility to participate in the |
|
program. |
|
(d) A certified educational assistance organization or an |
|
education service provider or vendor of educational products that |
|
obtains information regarding a participating child: |
|
(1) shall comply with state and federal law regarding |
|
the confidentiality of student educational information; and |
|
(2) may not sell or otherwise distribute information |
|
regarding a child participating in the program. |
|
Sec. 29.370. GIFTS, GRANTS, AND DONATIONS. The comptroller |
|
and a certified educational assistance organization may solicit and |
|
accept gifts, grants, and donations from any public or private |
|
source for any expenses related to the administration of the |
|
program, including establishing the program and contracting for the |
|
report required under Section 29.372. |
|
Sec. 29.371. ADMINISTRATION OF STATE ASSESSMENT |
|
INSTRUMENTS. (a) The agency shall ensure that each child |
|
participating in the program is annually administered each |
|
assessment instrument required to be administered to a public |
|
school student at the child's grade and course level under Section |
|
39.023(a) or (c), subject to any applicable exemptions or |
|
accommodations provided under Subchapter B, Chapter 39. |
|
(b) For purposes of the annual report required under Section |
|
29.372, the agency shall provide to the comptroller the results of |
|
the assessment instruments administered under this section, in |
|
aggregate and disaggregated by race, ethnicity, socioeconomic |
|
status, and status as a child with a disability. A child's results |
|
on an assessment instrument administered under this section are |
|
confidential, are not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, |
|
Government Code, and may only be shared as necessary to develop the |
|
annual report required under Section 29.372 of this subchapter. In |
|
providing the results of the assessment instruments, the agency |
|
shall ensure compliance with state and federal law regarding the |
|
confidentiality of student educational information, including the |
|
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C. |
|
Section 1232g). |
|
(c) The agency shall require a regional education service |
|
center to administer assessment instruments under this section. |
|
(d) A school district may administer assessment instruments |
|
under this section. |
|
(e) If authorized by the agency, a private school may, but |
|
is not required to, administer assessment instruments under this |
|
section in accordance with agency rule. |
|
Sec. 29.372. ANNUAL REPORT. (a) The comptroller shall |
|
require that the certified educational assistance organizations |
|
collaborate to compile program data and produce an annual |
|
longitudinal report regarding: |
|
(1) the number of program applications received, |
|
accepted, and wait-listed, disaggregated by age; |
|
(2) program participant satisfaction; |
|
(3) the results of assessment instruments provided in |
|
accordance with Section 29.371; |
|
(4) the effect of the program on public and private |
|
school capacity and availability; |
|
(5) the amount of cost savings accruing to the state as |
|
a result of the program; |
|
(6) in a report submitted in an even-numbered year |
|
only, an estimate of the total amount of funding required for the |
|
program for the next state fiscal biennium; |
|
(7) the amount of gifts, grants, and donations |
|
received under Section 29.370; and |
|
(8) based on surveys of former program participants or |
|
other sources available to the organizations, the number and |
|
percentage of participating children who, within one year after |
|
graduating from high school, are: |
|
(A) college ready, as indicated by earning a |
|
minimum of 12 non-remedial semester credit hours or the equivalent |
|
or an associate degree from a postsecondary educational |
|
institution; |
|
(B) career ready, as indicated by: |
|
(i) earning a credential of value included |
|
in a library of credentials established under Section 2308A.007, |
|
Government Code; or |
|
(ii) employment at or above the median wage |
|
in the child's region; or |
|
(C) military ready, as indicated by achieving a |
|
passing score set by the applicable military branch on the Armed |
|
Services Vocational Aptitude Battery and enlisting in the armed |
|
forces of the United States or the Texas National Guard. |
|
(b) In producing the report, the certified educational |
|
assistance organizations shall: |
|
(1) use appropriate analytical and behavioral science |
|
methodologies to ensure public confidence in the report; and |
|
(2) comply with the requirements regarding the |
|
confidentiality of student educational information under the |
|
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C. |
|
Section 1232g). |
|
(c) The report must cover a period of not less than five |
|
years and include, subject to Subsection (b)(2), the data analyzed |
|
and methodology used. |
|
(d) The comptroller and the applicable certified |
|
educational assistance organizations shall post the report on the |
|
comptroller's and organization's respective Internet websites. |
|
Sec. 29.373. RULES; PROCEDURES. The comptroller shall |
|
adopt rules and procedures as necessary to implement, administer, |
|
and enforce this subchapter. |
|
Sec. 29.374. APPEAL; FINALITY OF DECISIONS. (a) A program |
|
participant may appeal to the comptroller an administrative |
|
decision made by a certified educational assistance organization |
|
under this subchapter, including a decision regarding eligibility, |
|
allowable expenses, or the participant's removal from the program. |
|
(b) This subchapter may not be construed to confer a |
|
property right on a certified educational assistance organization, |
|
education service provider, vendor of educational products, or |
|
program participant. |
|
(c) A decision of the comptroller made under this subchapter |
|
is final and not subject to appeal. |
|
Sec. 29.375. TERM OF AUTHORIZATION. (a) The program is |
|
subject to appropriations from the legislature and continues in |
|
existence until September 1, 2027, unless reauthorized by the |
|
legislature. |
|
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a program participant |
|
who is participating in the program on or before September 1, 2027, |
|
shall continue to receive payments from the state under Section |
|
29.361 until the date on which the child who participated in the |
|
program would no longer be eligible to participate in the program |
|
under Section 29.355(b). |
|
(c) This subchapter expires September 1, 2027. |
|
SECTION 5.02. Section 22.092(d), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(d) The agency shall provide equivalent access to the |
|
registry maintained under this section to: |
|
(1) private schools; |
|
(2) public schools; [and] |
|
(3) nonprofit teacher organizations approved by the |
|
commissioner for the purpose of participating in the tutoring |
|
program established under Section 33.913; and |
|
(4) the comptroller for the purpose of preapproving |
|
education service providers and vendors of educational products |
|
under Section 29.358 for participation in the program established |
|
under Subchapter J, Chapter 29. |
|
SECTION 5.03. Section 411.109, Government Code, is amended |
|
by adding Subsection (b-1) and amending Subsection (c) to read as |
|
follows: |
|
(b-1) The comptroller is entitled to obtain criminal |
|
history record information as provided by Subsection (c) about a |
|
person who is a private tutor, a therapist, or an employee of a |
|
teaching service or school who intends to provide educational |
|
services to a child participating in the program established under |
|
Subchapter J, Chapter 29, Education Code, and is seeking approval |
|
to receive money distributed under that program. |
|
(c) Subject to Section 411.087 and consistent with the |
|
public policy of this state, the comptroller is entitled to: |
|
(1) obtain through the Federal Bureau of Investigation |
|
criminal history record information maintained or indexed by that |
|
bureau that pertains to a person described by Subsection (a), [or] |
|
(b), or (b-1); and |
|
(2) obtain from the department or any other criminal |
|
justice agency in this state criminal history record information |
|
maintained by the department or that criminal justice agency that |
|
relates to a person described by Subsection (a), [or] (b), or (b-1). |
|
SECTION 5.04. Subchapter J, Chapter 29, Education Code, as |
|
added by this article, applies beginning with the 2024-2025 school |
|
year. |
|
SECTION 5.05. Not later than May 15, 2024, the comptroller |
|
of public accounts shall adopt rules as provided by Section 29.373, |
|
Education Code, as added by this article. |
|
SECTION 5.06. (a) The constitutionality and other validity |
|
under the state or federal constitution of all or any part of |
|
Subchapter J, Chapter 29, Education Code, as added by this article, |
|
may be determined in an action for declaratory judgment under |
|
Chapter 37, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, in a district court in |
|
Travis County. |
|
(b) An order, however characterized, of a trial court |
|
granting or denying a temporary or otherwise interlocutory |
|
injunction or a permanent injunction on the grounds of the |
|
constitutionality or unconstitutionality, or other validity or |
|
invalidity, under the state or federal constitution of all or any |
|
part of Subchapter J, Chapter 29, Education Code, as added by this |
|
article, may be reviewed only by direct appeal to the Texas Supreme |
|
Court filed not later than the 15th day after the date on which the |
|
order was entered. The Texas Supreme Court shall give precedence to |
|
appeals under this section over other matters. |
|
(c) The direct appeal is an accelerated appeal. |
|
(d) This section exercises the authority granted by Section |
|
3-b, Article V, Texas Constitution. |
|
(e) The filing of a direct appeal under this section will |
|
automatically stay any temporary or otherwise interlocutory |
|
injunction or permanent injunction granted in accordance with this |
|
section pending final determination by the Texas Supreme Court, |
|
unless the supreme court makes specific findings that the applicant |
|
seeking such injunctive relief has pleaded and proved that: |
|
(1) the applicant has a probable right to the relief it |
|
seeks on final hearing; |
|
(2) the applicant will suffer a probable injury that |
|
is imminent and irreparable, and that the applicant has no other |
|
adequate legal remedy; and |
|
(3) maintaining the injunction is in the public |
|
interest. |
|
(f) An appeal under this section, including an |
|
interlocutory, accelerated, or direct appeal, is governed, as |
|
applicable, by the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, including |
|
Rules 25.1(d)(6), 28.1, 32.1(g), 37.3(a)(1), 38.6(a) and (b), |
|
40.1(b), and 49.4. |
|
(g) This section does not authorize an award of attorney's |
|
fees against this state, and Section 37.009, Civil Practice and |
|
Remedies Code, does not apply to an action filed under this section. |
|
SECTION 5.07. It is the intent of the legislature that every |
|
provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or word |
|
in this article, and every application of the provisions in this |
|
article to each person or entity, is severable from each other. If |
|
any application of any provision in this article to any person, |
|
group of persons, or circumstances is found by a court to be invalid |
|
for any reason, the remaining applications of that provision to all |
|
other persons and circumstances shall be severed and may not be |
|
affected. |
|
SECTION 5.08. This article takes effect immediately if this |
|
Act 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 article takes effect on the 91st day after the last day |
|
of the legislative session. |
|
ARTICLE 6. CHANGES RELATED TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS GENERALLY |
|
SECTION 6.01. Subchapter Z, Chapter 25, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 25.906 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 25.906. PROTECTIONS FOR CERTAIN MILITARY DEPENDENTS. |
|
(a) In this section: |
|
(1) "Compact" means the Interstate Compact on |
|
Educational Opportunity for Military Children executed under |
|
Section 162.002. |
|
(2) "Uniformed services" means: |
|
(A) the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, |
|
Space Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard; |
|
(B) the Commissioned Officer Corps of the |
|
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; or |
|
(C) the Commissioned Corps of the United States |
|
Public Health Service. |
|
(b) The provisions of Articles IV, V, VI, and VII of the |
|
compact apply to the following children as if those children were |
|
children described by Article III of the compact: |
|
(1) a child of a veteran of the uniformed services who |
|
was discharged or released through retirement, for a period of four |
|
years after the date of the veteran's retirement, if the veteran |
|
returns to the veteran's home of record on military orders; and |
|
(2) a child of a member of the uniformed services who |
|
dies on active duty or as a result of injuries sustained on active |
|
duty, for a period of four years after the member's death. |
|
(c) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school |
|
that maintains an Internet website shall post on the district's or |
|
school's Internet website an easily accessible link to information |
|
regarding the compact and the additional protections provided by |
|
this section. |
|
SECTION 6.02. Section 26.002, Education Code, is amended to |
|
read as follows: |
|
Sec. 26.002. DEFINITIONS [DEFINITION]. In this chapter: |
|
(1) "Benchmark assessment" includes a benchmark |
|
assessment instrument as defined by Section 39.0263(a) and a |
|
district-required assessment designed to evaluate students against |
|
a set of national or state comparison points. |
|
(2) "Parent" [, "parent"] includes a person standing |
|
in parental relation. The term does not include a person as to whom |
|
the parent-child relationship has been terminated or a person not |
|
entitled to possession of or access to a child under a court order. |
|
Except as provided by federal law, all rights of a parent under |
|
Title 2 of this code and all educational rights under Section |
|
151.001(a)(10), Family Code, shall be exercised by a student who is |
|
18 years of age or older or whose disabilities of minority have been |
|
removed for general purposes under Chapter 31, Family Code, unless |
|
the student has been determined to be incompetent or the student's |
|
rights have been otherwise restricted by a court order. |
|
(3) "Test" includes a benchmark assessment. |
|
SECTION 6.03. Chapter 26, Education Code, is amended by |
|
adding Section 26.0062 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 26.0062. NOTICE REGARDING BENCHMARK ASSESSMENT |
|
RESULTS. A school district shall report in writing to each |
|
student's parent the results of a benchmark assessment administered |
|
to the student not later than the 30th calendar day after the date |
|
on which the results of the assessment are available. The results |
|
may be made available to the parent through a parent portal. |
|
SECTION 6.04. Section 28.006, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsections (a), (b), (c), (c-1), (c-2), (c-3), and (j) |
|
and adding Subsections (a-1), (b-2), (b-3), (b-4), (d-1), (g-3), |
|
(g-4), (g-5), (g-6), (n), and (o) to read as follows: |
|
(a) The commissioner shall adopt procedures [develop |
|
recommendations] for school districts and open-enrollment charter |
|
schools for: |
|
(1) administering reading instruments to: |
|
(A) ensure the results of the reading instruments |
|
are valid, reliable, and equated; |
|
(B) diagnose student reading development and |
|
comprehension; and |
|
(C) identify students at risk for dyslexia or |
|
other reading difficulties; |
|
(2) training educators in administering the reading |
|
instruments; and |
|
(3) applying the results of the reading instruments to |
|
the instructional program and intervention practices. |
|
(a-1) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
may not administer a reading instrument to a student more than three |
|
times during a school year. |
|
(b) The commissioner shall adopt a comprehensive list of |
|
reading instruments that a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school shall select from for [may] use in diagnosing [to |
|
diagnose student] reading development and comprehension for |
|
students who are enrolled in kindergarten through third grade. A |
|
reading instrument included on the commissioner's list must include |
|
the foundational literacy components of phonemic and phonological |
|
awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. For |
|
use in diagnosing the reading development and comprehension of |
|
kindergarten students, the commissioner shall adopt [a] |
|
multidimensional assessment tools [tool] that include [includes a] |
|
reading instruments that test [instrument and tests] at least three |
|
developmental skills, including the foundational literacy |
|
components. A multidimensional assessment tool administered as |
|
provided by this subsection is considered to be a reading |
|
instrument for purposes of this section. A school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school [district-level committee |
|
established under Subchapter F, Chapter 11,] may use other [adopt a |
|
list of] reading instruments, subject to Subsection (b-4), [for use |
|
in the district in a grade level other than kindergarten] in |
|
addition to the reading instruments included on the commissioner's |
|
list. Each reading instrument included on the list adopted by the |
|
commissioner or administered by a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school [or a district-level committee] |
|
must: |
|
(1) be based on scientific research concerning reading |
|
skills development and reading comprehension; |
|
(2) [. A list of reading instruments adopted under |
|
this subsection must] provide for diagnosing the reading |
|
development and comprehension of students participating in a |
|
program under Subchapter B, Chapter 29; |
|
(3) provide progress monitoring capabilities; |
|
(4) provide a diagnostic tool to assist teachers in |
|
developing research-based targeted instruction; |
|
(5) allow screening of students three times each |
|
school year; |
|
(6) assess only foundational literacy components not |
|
already mastered by the student; and |
|
(7) assess whether a student needs reading instruction |
|
intervention. |
|
(b-2) The commissioner shall include on the commissioner's |
|
list any reading instrument that is: |
|
(1) based on scientific research concerning reading |
|
skills development and reading comprehension; and |
|
(2) submitted for inclusion on the list under |
|
Subsection (b-4). |
|
(b-3) The commissioner shall update the list of reading |
|
instruments at least once every four years, including |
|
multidimensional assessment tools authorized under this section. |
|
(b-4) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
that uses one or more reading instruments not included on the |
|
commissioner's list in accordance with Subsection (b) must submit |
|
the instrument to the commissioner to verify the instrument |
|
satisfies the requirements of this section. The commissioner shall |
|
place on the commissioner's list a reading instrument that |
|
satisfies the requirements of this section. |
|
(c) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall administer, at the first and second grade levels, a reading |
|
instrument that is based on scientific research concerning reading |
|
skills development and reading comprehension included on the list |
|
adopted by the commissioner [or by the district-level |
|
committee]. The district or school shall administer the reading |
|
instrument in accordance with the commissioner's recommendations |
|
under Subsection (a)(1). |
|
(c-1) Each school district and open-enrollment charter |
|
school shall administer at the beginning of the seventh grade a |
|
reading instrument included on the list adopted by the commissioner |
|
to each student whose performance on the assessment instrument in |
|
reading administered under Section 39.023(a) to the student in |
|
grade six did not demonstrate reading proficiency, as determined by |
|
the commissioner. The district or school shall administer the |
|
reading instrument in accordance with the commissioner's policies |
|
adopted [recommendations] under Subsection (a)(1). |
|
(c-2) Each school district and open-enrollment charter |
|
school shall administer at the kindergarten level a reading |
|
instrument included on the list adopted by the commissioner [under |
|
Subsection (b) or approved by the commissioner under Subsection |
|
(b-1)]. The district or school shall administer the reading |
|
instrument in accordance with the commissioner's policies adopted |
|
[recommendations] under Subsection (a)(1). |
|
(c-3) The commissioner by rule shall determine the |
|
performance on a [the] reading instrument adopted under Subsection |
|
(b) that indicates kindergarten readiness. |
|
(d-1) The commissioner shall prominently display on the |
|
agency's Internet website information regarding the commissioner's |
|
list of reading instruments maintained under this section and the |
|
process for applying for inclusion on the list, as provided by |
|
agency rule adopted under Subsection (n). |
|
(g-3) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall provide reading intervention to each student in kindergarten |
|
through grade three who is determined to need reading intervention |
|
using an assessment administered in accordance with Subsection (b). |
|
The school district shall continue to offer a student reading |
|
intervention until the student achieves satisfactory performance |
|
on a reading instrument. A reading intervention program offered |
|
under this subsection must: |
|
(1) include targeted instruction to improve the |
|
student's reading skills in the relevant areas identified through |
|
the assessment instrument; |
|
(2) monitor the progress of the student's reading |
|
skills throughout the school year; |
|
(3) be implemented during regular school hours and in |
|
addition to core instruction; |
|
(4) use high-quality instructional materials, |
|
curricula, and curricular tools that are research based and |
|
effective for early childhood literacy intervention; and |
|
(5) be provided by a teacher who has attended a |
|
literacy achievement academy provided under Section 21.4552. |
|
(g-4) In providing reading intervention under Subsection |
|
(g-3), a school district or open-enrollment charter school may not |
|
remove a student, except under circumstances for which a student |
|
enrolled in the same grade level who is not receiving reading |
|
intervention would be removed, from: |
|
(1) instruction in the foundation curriculum and |
|
enrichment curriculum adopted under Section 28.002 for the grade |
|
level in which the student is enrolled; or |
|
(2) recess or other physical activity that is |
|
available to other students enrolled in the same grade level. |
|
(g-5) In addition to the report required under Subsection |
|
(d)(2), a school district or open-enrollment charter school shall |
|
notify the parent or guardian of each student in kindergarten |
|
through grade three who is determined to need reading intervention. |
|
The notification must: |
|
(1) be distributed not later than the 30th day after |
|
the date the result of the reading instrument indicating that the |
|
student needs intervention is available; |
|
(2) describe the current reading services the district |
|
or school provides to the student; |
|
(3) describe the reading interventions that will be |
|
provided to the student to ensure the student will meet or exceed |
|
grade-level reading standards; and |
|
(4) include high-quality resources for the parent or |
|
guardian of the student to use at home to help the student succeed |
|
at reading. |
|
(g-6) From funds appropriated for teacher literacy |
|
achievement academies developed under Section 21.4552, the |
|
commissioner may, in collaboration with regional education service |
|
centers, provide assistance to school districts and |
|
open-enrollment charter schools in complying with the requirements |
|
of Section 28.0062. The commissioner shall prioritize providing |
|
assistance under this subsection in school districts with the |
|
highest rate of students performing below satisfactory levels on |
|
reading instruments administered under Subsection (b). |
|
(j) [No more than 15 percent of the funds certified by the |
|
commissioner under Subsection (i) may be spent on indirect costs.] |
|
The commissioner shall evaluate the programs that fail to meet the |
|
standard of performance under Section 39.301(c)(5) and may |
|
implement interventions or sanctions under Chapter 39A. [The |
|
commissioner may audit the expenditures of funds appropriated for |
|
purposes of this section. The use of the funds appropriated for |
|
purposes of this section shall be verified as part of the district |
|
audit under Section 44.008.] |
|
(n) The agency by rule shall provide a process under which a |
|
school district or open-enrollment charter school may submit an |
|
application for inclusion of a reading instrument on the |
|
commissioner's list of reading instruments maintained under this |
|
section. |
|
(o) The agency may not use data collected from a reading |
|
instrument administered under this section in evaluating the |
|
performance of a school district or campus under Section 39.054. |
|
SECTION 6.05. Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 28.0063 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 28.0063. SUPPLEMENTAL READING INSTRUCTION FOR CERTAIN |
|
STUDENTS. (a) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall make available supplemental instruction described by Section |
|
28.0211(a-4) to address a student's reading deficiency if the |
|
student's results on both of the reading assessments administered |
|
under Section 28.006 in two consecutive school years indicate the |
|
student needs reading intervention. |
|
(b) A parent or guardian of a student described by |
|
Subsection (a) may select a tutor from a list of high-quality tutors |
|
approved by the agency or by the school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school the student attends to provide the supplemental |
|
instruction required under Subsection (a). The district or school |
|
shall contract directly with the tutor selected, who may be a |
|
classroom teacher employed at the district or school. A classroom |
|
teacher selected as a student's tutor is entitled to supplemental |
|
pay from the district or school. The district or school may not |
|
provide money under this subsection directly to a parent or |
|
guardian of a student. |
|
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall submit to the agency the district's or school's list of |
|
high-quality tutors and publish the list on the district's or |
|
school's Internet website. |
|
(d) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
that provides a tutor to a student under this section shall continue |
|
to provide the student any other reading support required of the |
|
district or school by federal or state law. |
|
SECTION 6.06. Section 28.009, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-6) to read as |
|
follows: |
|
(a) Each school district shall implement a program under |
|
which students may earn the equivalent of at least 12 semester |
|
credit hours of college credit in high school. On request, a public |
|
institution of higher education in this state shall assist a school |
|
district in developing and implementing the program. The college |
|
credit may be earned through: |
|
(1) international baccalaureate, advanced placement, |
|
or dual credit courses, including courses provided through OnRamps; |
|
(2) articulated postsecondary courses provided for |
|
local credit or articulated postsecondary advanced technical |
|
credit courses provided for state credit; or |
|
(3) any combination of the courses described by |
|
Subdivisions (1) and (2). |
|
(a-6) Each school district shall report through the Public |
|
Education Information Management System (PEIMS) the number of |
|
district students who, during that school year, were enrolled in an |
|
OnRamps course and provide the name of the OnRamps courses in which |
|
the students were enrolled. The commissioner shall establish a |
|
unique identifier in PEIMS for each OnRamps course offered. |
|
SECTION 6.07. Subchapter E, Chapter 29, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 29.1537 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.1537. PREKINDERGARTEN COMMUNITY-BASED CHILD-CARE |
|
PARTNERSHIP GRANT PROGRAM. (a) The commissioner shall establish |
|
and administer a grant program to support school districts and |
|
open-enrollment charter schools in increasing partnerships with |
|
community-based child-care providers to provide prekindergarten |
|
classes under Section 29.153. |
|
(b) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
|
apply for a grant under the grant program in partnership with a |
|
community-based child-care provider described by Section |
|
29.153(g). |
|
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall use money received under the grant program to fund the |
|
enrollment of eligible children in prekindergarten classes |
|
provided under Section 29.153 through a partnership between the |
|
district or school and a community-based child-care provider |
|
described by Section 29.153(g). A child is eligible for enrollment |
|
in a prekindergarten class described by this subsection using money |
|
received under the grant program if the child: |
|
(1) is at least three years of age; and |
|
(2) receives subsidized child-care services provided |
|
through the child-care services program administered by the Texas |
|
Workforce Commission. |
|
(d) The commissioner may provide grants under the grant |
|
program for the enrollment in each school year of not more than |
|
3,500 children in a prekindergarten class described by Subsection |
|
(c). |
|
(e) The agency shall annually report to the legislature |
|
regarding the number of children described by Subsection (c) |
|
enrolled in a prekindergarten class. |
|
SECTION 6.08. Section 29.1543, Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.1543. EARLY EDUCATION REPORTS. The agency shall |
|
produce and make available to the public on the agency's Internet |
|
website annual district and campus-level reports containing |
|
information from the previous school year on early education in |
|
school districts and open-enrollment charter schools. A report |
|
under this section must contain: |
|
(1) the information required by Section 29.1532(c) to |
|
be reported through the Public Education Information Management |
|
System (PEIMS); |
|
(2) a description of any [the] diagnostic reading |
|
instruments administered as provided by Section 28.006 [in |
|
accordance with Section 28.006(c) or (c-2)]; |
|
(3) the number of students who were administered a |
|
diagnostic reading instrument administered as provided by Section |
|
28.006 [in accordance with Section 28.006(c) or (c-2)]; |
|
(4) the number of students whose scores from a |
|
diagnostic reading instrument administered as provided by Section |
|
28.006 [in accordance with Section 28.006(c) or (c-2)] indicate |
|
reading proficiency; |
|
(5) the number of kindergarten students who were |
|
enrolled in a prekindergarten program in the previous school year |
|
in the same district or school as the district or school in which |
|
the student attends kindergarten; |
|
(6) the number and percentage of students who perform |
|
satisfactorily on the third grade reading or mathematics assessment |
|
instrument administered under Section 39.023, disaggregated by |
|
whether the student was eligible for free prekindergarten under |
|
Section 29.153; |
|
(7) the number of students described by Subdivision |
|
(6) who attended kindergarten in the district, disaggregated by: |
|
(A) whether the student met the kindergarten |
|
readiness standard on a [the] reading instrument adopted under |
|
Section 28.006; |
|
(B) whether the student attended prekindergarten |
|
in the district; and |
|
(C) the type of prekindergarten the student |
|
attended, if applicable; and |
|
(8) the information described by Subdivisions (6) and |
|
(7) disaggregated by whether the student is educationally |
|
disadvantaged. |
|
SECTION 6.09. Subchapter Z, Chapter 29, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 29.9016 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 29.9016. CAREER AND MILITARY TECHNICAL GRANT PILOT |
|
PROGRAM. (a) The agency shall establish a pilot program to award |
|
grants to school districts to implement or maintain a program under |
|
which the district: |
|
(1) establishes a junior reserve officer training |
|
corps program under 10 U.S.C. Section 2031 for students in high |
|
school; |
|
(2) annually administers the Armed Services |
|
Vocational Aptitude Battery test to each student in grades 9 |
|
through 12; and |
|
(3) provides career counseling at least once each year |
|
to each student administered the test under Subdivision (2) based |
|
on the results of the test. |
|
(b) The amount of a grant awarded under the pilot program is |
|
$50,000. |
|
(c) The total amount of grants awarded under the pilot |
|
program for a school year may not exceed $2 million. |
|
(d) Not later than December 1, 2026, the agency shall submit |
|
to the legislature a report on the results of the pilot program. |
|
The report must include the agency's recommendation on whether the |
|
pilot program should be continued, expanded, or terminated. |
|
(e) The commissioner may adopt rules necessary to implement |
|
the pilot program. |
|
(f) This section expires September 1, 2027. |
|
SECTION 6.10. Chapter 791, Government Code, is amended by |
|
adding Subchapter D to read as follows: |
|
SUBCHAPTER D. INTERLOCAL CONTRACTING BETWEEN LOCAL EDUCATION |
|
AGENCIES TO PROCURE HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE |
|
Sec. 791.051. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: |
|
(1) "Cooperative" means a cooperative established |
|
under this subchapter by an interlocal contract for group health |
|
coverage. |
|
(2) "Local education agency" means: |
|
(A) a school district; or |
|
(B) an open-enrollment charter school as defined |
|
by Section 5.001, Education Code. |
|
(3) "Participating local education agency" means, |
|
with respect to a cooperative, a local education agency that |
|
participates in the cooperative. |
|
Sec. 791.052. COMPLIANCE WITH SUBCHAPTER REQUIRED. A local |
|
education agency shall comply with this subchapter when procuring |
|
and administering employee group health coverage with another local |
|
education agency. |
|
Sec. 791.053. INTERLOCAL CONTRACT FOR GROUP HEALTH |
|
INSURANCE COVERAGE. (a) The governing body of a local education |
|
agency may by resolution enter into an interlocal contract and |
|
cooperate with one or more other local education agencies to |
|
establish a cooperative for the purposes of procuring group health |
|
insurance coverage under this subchapter. |
|
(b) The governing body of a local education agency may renew |
|
an interlocal contract entered into under Subsection (a). |
|
(c) This subchapter does not affect the ability of local |
|
education agencies to provide group health coverage through a risk |
|
pool established in accordance with Chapter 172, Local Government |
|
Code. |
|
Sec. 791.054. COOPERATIVE. (a) A cooperative is a legal |
|
entity that may procure employee group health insurance coverage |
|
for each participating local education agency. |
|
(b) Participating local education agencies may contract for |
|
the supervision and administration of the cooperative in accordance |
|
with Section 791.013. |
|
(c) Except as provided by this subsection, a cooperative is |
|
governed by a board of directors composed of the chief executive |
|
officers of each participating local education agency or the |
|
officers' designees. If the cooperative is composed of more than |
|
seven local education agencies, the cooperative shall appoint at |
|
least seven directors to serve on the cooperative's board of |
|
directors. |
|
Sec. 791.055. PROCUREMENT. (a) A cooperative must procure |
|
a contract for employee group health coverage under this subchapter |
|
through a request for proposals to potential vendors advertised in |
|
a manner consistent with Section 44.031(g), Education Code, in at |
|
least one county in which a participating local education agency's |
|
central office is located. |
|
(b) The board of directors of a cooperative shall select the |
|
vendor that provides the best value to participating local |
|
education agencies considering the factors described by Section |
|
44.031(b), Education Code. |
|
(c) A cooperative that enters into a contract in accordance |
|
with this section satisfies a competitive bidding requirement |
|
applicable to the procurement of group health coverage under other |
|
law. |
|
Sec. 791.056. OFFER OF COVERAGE; PREMIUM LIABILITY. (a) A |
|
cooperative shall offer one or more group health insurance plans |
|
procured under Section 791.055 to employees of participating local |
|
education agencies and dependents of those employees. |
|
(b) The board of directors of a cooperative may determine a |
|
participating local education agency's payment of all or part of |
|
the premiums for employees or dependents for a plan offered under |
|
Subsection (a). |
|
(c) A participating local education agency's payment: |
|
(1) is subject to the requirements described by |
|
Section 1581.052, Insurance Code; and |
|
(2) shall include the contributions by the state |
|
described by Subchapter F, Chapter 1579, Insurance Code. |
|
SECTION 6.11. Section 28.006(b-1), Education Code, is |
|
repealed. |
|
SECTION 6.12. This article applies beginning with the |
|
2024-2025 school year. |
|
SECTION 6.13. This article takes effect on the 91st day |
|
after the last day of the legislative session. |
|
ARTICLE 7. VIRTUAL EDUCATION |
|
SECTION 7.01. Section 1.001(b), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(b) Except as provided by Chapter 18, Chapter 19, Subchapter |
|
A of Chapter 29, or Subchapter E of Chapter 30, [or Chapter 30A,] |
|
this code does not apply to students, facilities, or programs under |
|
the jurisdiction of the Department of Aging and Disability |
|
Services, the Department of State Health Services, the Health and |
|
Human Services Commission, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, |
|
the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, a Job Corps program |
|
operated by or under contract with the United States Department of |
|
Labor, or any juvenile probation agency. |
|
SECTION 7.02. Section 7.0561(f), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(f) In consultation with interested school districts, |
|
open-enrollment charter schools, and other appropriate interested |
|
persons, the commissioner shall adopt rules applicable to the |
|
consortium, according to the following principles for a next |
|
generation of higher performing public schools: |
|
(1) engagement of students in digital learning, |
|
including engagement through the use of electronic textbooks and |
|
instructional materials adopted under Subchapters B and B-1, |
|
Chapter 31, and virtual or hybrid courses offered by school |
|
districts and open-enrollment charter schools under Chapter 30B |
|
[through the state virtual school network under Subchapter 30A]; |
|
(2) emphasis on learning standards that focus on |
|
high-priority standards identified in coordination with districts |
|
and charter schools participating in the consortium; |
|
(3) use of multiple assessments of learning capable of |
|
being used to inform students, parents, districts, and charter |
|
schools on an ongoing basis concerning the extent to which learning |
|
is occurring and the actions consortium participants are taking to |
|
improve learning; and |
|
(4) reliance on local control that enables communities |
|
and parents to be involved in the important decisions regarding the |
|
education of their children. |
|
SECTION 7.03. Section 25.007(b), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(b) In recognition of the challenges faced by students who |
|
are homeless or in substitute care, the agency shall assist the |
|
transition of students who are homeless or in substitute care from |
|
one school to another by: |
|
(1) ensuring that school records for a student who is |
|
homeless or in substitute care are transferred to the student's new |
|
school not later than the 10th working day after the date the |
|
student begins enrollment at the school; |
|
(2) developing systems to ease transition of a student |
|
who is homeless or in substitute care during the first two weeks of |
|
enrollment at a new school; |
|
(3) developing procedures for awarding credit, |
|
including partial credit if appropriate, for course work, including |
|
electives, completed by a student who is homeless or in substitute |
|
care while enrolled at another school; |
|
(4) developing procedures to ensure that a new school |
|
relies on decisions made by the previous school regarding placement |
|
in courses or educational programs of a student who is homeless or |
|
in substitute care and places the student in comparable courses or |
|
educational programs at the new school, if those courses or |
|
programs are available; |
|
(5) promoting practices that facilitate access by a |
|
student who is homeless or in substitute care to extracurricular |
|
programs, summer programs, credit transfer services, virtual or |
|
hybrid [electronic] courses provided under Chapter 30B [30A], and |
|
after-school tutoring programs at nominal or no cost; |
|
(6) establishing procedures to lessen the adverse |
|
impact of the movement of a student who is homeless or in substitute |
|
care to a new school; |
|
(7) entering into a memorandum of understanding with |
|
the Department of Family and Protective Services regarding the |
|
exchange of information as appropriate to facilitate the transition |
|
of students in substitute care from one school to another; |
|
(8) encouraging school districts and open-enrollment |
|
charter schools to provide services for a student who is homeless or |
|
in substitute care in transition when applying for admission to |
|
postsecondary study and when seeking sources of funding for |
|
postsecondary study; |
|
(9) requiring school districts, campuses, and |
|
open-enrollment charter schools to accept a referral for special |
|
education services made for a student who is homeless or in |
|
substitute care by a school previously attended by the student, and |
|
to provide comparable services to the student during the referral |
|
process or until the new school develops an individualized |
|
education program for the student; |
|
(10) requiring school districts, campuses, and |
|
open-enrollment charter schools to provide notice to the child's |
|
educational decision-maker and caseworker regarding events that |
|
may significantly impact the education of a child, including: |
|
(A) requests or referrals for an evaluation under |
|
Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), or |
|
special education under Section 29.003; |
|
(B) admission, review, and dismissal committee |
|
meetings; |
|
(C) manifestation determination reviews required |
|
by Section 37.004(b); |
|
(D) any disciplinary actions under Chapter 37 for |
|
which parental notice is required; |
|
(E) citations issued for Class C misdemeanor |
|
offenses on school property or at school-sponsored activities; |
|
(F) reports of restraint and seclusion required |
|
by Section 37.0021; |
|
(G) use of corporal punishment as provided by |
|
Section 37.0011; and |
|
(H) appointment of a surrogate parent for the |
|
child under Section 29.0151; |
|
(11) developing procedures for allowing a student who |
|
is homeless or in substitute care who was previously enrolled in a |
|
course required for graduation the opportunity, to the extent |
|
practicable, to complete the course, at no cost to the student, |
|
before the beginning of the next school year; |
|
(12) ensuring that a student who is homeless or in |
|
substitute care who is not likely to receive a high school diploma |
|
before the fifth school year following the student's enrollment in |
|
grade nine, as determined by the district, has the student's course |
|
credit accrual and personal graduation plan reviewed; |
|
(13) ensuring that a student in substitute care who is |
|
in grade 11 or 12 be provided information regarding tuition and fee |
|
exemptions under Section 54.366 for dual-credit or other courses |
|
provided by a public institution of higher education for which a |
|
high school student may earn joint high school and college credit; |
|
(14) designating at least one agency employee to act |
|
as a liaison officer regarding educational issues related to |
|
students in the conservatorship of the Department of Family and |
|
Protective Services; and |
|
(15) providing other assistance as identified by the |
|
agency. |
|
SECTION 7.04. The heading to Section 26.0031, Education |
|
Code, is amended to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 26.0031. RIGHTS CONCERNING [STATE] VIRTUAL AND HYBRID |
|
COURSES [SCHOOL NETWORK]. |
|
SECTION 7.05. Section 26.0031, Education Code, is amended |
|
by amending Subsections (a), (b), (c), (c-1), (d), and (e) and |
|
adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows: |
|
(a) At the time and in the manner that a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school informs students and parents about |
|
courses that are offered in the district's or school's traditional |
|
classroom setting, the district or school shall notify parents and |
|
students of the option to enroll in a virtual or hybrid [an |
|
electronic] course offered by the district or school in which the |
|
student is enrolled or by another district or school [through the |
|
state virtual school network] under Chapter 30B [30A]. |
|
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), a school district |
|
or open-enrollment charter school in which a student is enrolled as |
|
a full-time student may not deny the request of a parent of a |
|
student to enroll the student in a virtual or hybrid [an electronic] |
|
course offered by the district or school in which the student is |
|
enrolled or by another district or school [through the state |
|
virtual school network] under Chapter 30B [30A]. |
|
(b-1) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
may not actively discourage a student, including by threat or |
|
intimidation, from enrolling in a virtual or hybrid course. |
|
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
|
deny a request to enroll a student in a virtual or hybrid [an |
|
electronic] course if: |
|
(1) a student attempts to enroll in a course load that |
|
is inconsistent with the student's high school graduation plan or |
|
requirements for college admission or earning an industry |
|
certification; |
|
(2) the student requests permission to enroll in a |
|
virtual or hybrid [an electronic] course at a time that is not |
|
consistent with the enrollment period established by the school |
|
district or open-enrollment charter school providing the course; or |
|
(3) the district or school determines that the cost of |
|
the course is too high [offers a substantially similar course]. |
|
(c-1) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
may decline to pay the cost for a student of more than three |
|
yearlong virtual [electronic] courses, or the equivalent, during |
|
any school year. This subsection does not: |
|
(1) limit the ability of the student to enroll in |
|
additional virtual [electronic] courses at the student's cost; or |
|
(2) apply to a student enrolled in a full-time virtual |
|
[online] program [that was operating on January 1, 2013]. |
|
(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (c)(2), a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school that provides a virtual or hybrid |
|
[an electronic] course [through the state virtual school network] |
|
under Chapter 30B [30A] shall make all reasonable efforts to |
|
accommodate the enrollment of a student in the course under special |
|
circumstances. |
|
(e) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
that denies a request to enroll a student in a virtual or hybrid |
|
course under Subsection (c) must provide a written explanation of |
|
the denial to the student and the student's parent. The written |
|
explanation must provide notice of the student's ability to appeal |
|
the decision and an explanation of the appeal process, including |
|
the process of pursuing a final appeal heard by the board of |
|
trustees of the district or the governing board of the school. A |
|
determination made by the board of trustees of the school district |
|
or the governing board of the open-enrollment charter school [A |
|
parent may appeal to the commissioner a school district's or |
|
open-enrollment charter school's decision to deny a request to |
|
enroll a student in an electronic course offered through the state |
|
virtual school network. The commissioner's decision] under this |
|
subsection is final and may not be appealed. |
|
SECTION 7.06. Subtitle F, Title 2, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Chapter 30B to read as follows: |
|
CHAPTER 30B. VIRTUAL AND HYBRID CAMPUSES, PROGRAMS, AND COURSES |
|
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS |
|
Sec. 30B.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: |
|
(1) "Full-time hybrid campus" means a school district |
|
or open-enrollment charter school campus at which at least 50 |
|
percent of the enrolled students are enrolled in a full-time hybrid |
|
program authorized under Subchapter C. |
|
(2) "Full-time hybrid program" means a full-time |
|
educational program offered by a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school campus in which: |
|
(A) a student is in attendance in person for less |
|
than 90 percent of the minutes of instruction provided; and |
|
(B) the instruction and content may be delivered |
|
synchronously or asynchronously over the Internet, in person, or |
|
through other means. |
|
(3) "Full-time virtual campus" means a school district |
|
or open-enrollment charter school campus at which at least 50 |
|
percent of the enrolled students are enrolled in a full-time |
|
virtual program authorized under Subchapter C. |
|
(4) "Full-time virtual program" means a full-time |
|
educational program offered by a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school campus in which: |
|
(A) a student is in attendance in person |
|
minimally or not at all; and |
|
(B) the instruction and content are delivered |
|
synchronously or asynchronously primarily over the Internet. |
|
(5) "Hybrid course" means a course in which: |
|
(A) a student is in attendance in person for less |
|
than 90 percent of the minutes of instruction provided; and |
|
(B) the instruction and content may be delivered |
|
synchronously or asynchronously over the Internet, in person, or |
|
through other means. |
|
(6) "Parent" means a student's parent or a person |
|
standing in parental relation to a student. |
|
(7) "Virtual course" means a course in which |
|
instruction and content are delivered synchronously or |
|
asynchronously primarily over the Internet. |
|
(8) "Whole program virtual instruction provider" |
|
means a private or third-party service that provides oversight and |
|
management of the virtual instruction services or otherwise |
|
provides a preponderance of those services for a full-time virtual |
|
or full-time hybrid campus or program. |
|
Sec. 30B.002. RULES. (a) The commissioner shall adopt |
|
rules as necessary to administer this chapter. |
|
(b) To the extent practicable, the commissioner shall |
|
consult school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, and |
|
parents in adopting rules under this section. |
|
(c) The agency may form an advisory committee to comply with |
|
the provisions of this section. Chapter 2110, Government Code, |
|
does not apply to an advisory committee formed under this section. |
|
Sec. 30B.003. GRANTS AND FEDERAL FUNDS. (a) For purposes |
|
of this chapter, the commissioner may seek and accept a grant from a |
|
public or private person. |
|
(b) For purposes of this chapter, the commissioner may |
|
accept federal funds and shall use those funds in compliance with |
|
applicable federal law, regulations, and guidelines. |
|
Sec. 30B.004. PROVISION OF COMPUTER EQUIPMENT OR INTERNET |
|
SERVICE. This chapter does not: |
|
(1) require a school district, an open-enrollment |
|
charter school, a virtual course provider, or the state to provide a |
|
student with home computer equipment or Internet access for a |
|
virtual course provided by a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school; or |
|
(2) prohibit a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school from providing a student with home computer |
|
equipment or Internet access for a virtual course provided by the |
|
district or school. |
|
Sec. 30B.005. EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITY. A student enrolled |
|
in a virtual or hybrid course, program, or campus offered under this |
|
chapter may participate in an extracurricular activity sponsored or |
|
sanctioned by the school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
in which the student is enrolled or by the University |
|
Interscholastic League in the same manner as other district or |
|
school students. |
|
Sec. 30B.006. HYBRID AND VIRTUAL INSTRUCTION PERMITTED. |
|
(a) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
|
deliver instruction through hybrid courses, virtual courses, |
|
full-time hybrid programs, and full-time virtual programs in the |
|
manner provided by this chapter. |
|
(b) The following entities may deliver instruction through |
|
hybrid or virtual courses under this chapter in the same manner |
|
provided for a school district or open-enrollment charter school: |
|
(1) a consortium of school districts or |
|
open-enrollment charter schools; |
|
(2) an institution of higher education, as that term |
|
is defined by Section 61.003; or |
|
(3) a regional education service center. |
|
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
that delivers instruction through a hybrid or virtual course shall |
|
develop written information describing each hybrid or virtual |
|
course available for enrollment and complying with any other |
|
requirement of Section 26.0031. |
|
(d) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall make information under this section available to students and |
|
parents at the time students ordinarily select courses and may |
|
provide that information to students and parents at other times as |
|
determined by the district or school. |
|
Sec. 30B.007. FOUNDATION SCHOOL FUNDING. A student |
|
enrolled in a hybrid course, virtual course, full-time hybrid |
|
program, or full-time virtual program offered under this chapter by |
|
a school district or open-enrollment charter school is counted |
|
toward the district's or school's average daily attendance in the |
|
same manner as district or school students not enrolled in a hybrid |
|
course, virtual course, full-time hybrid program, or full-time |
|
virtual program. |
|
SUBCHAPTER B. HYBRID AND VIRTUAL COURSES |
|
Sec. 30B.051. HYBRID OR VIRTUAL COURSE QUALITY |
|
REQUIREMENTS. (a) A school district or open-enrollment charter |
|
school that offers a hybrid or virtual course under this chapter |
|
must certify to the commissioner that the course: |
|
(1) includes the appropriate essential knowledge and |
|
skills adopted under Subchapter A, Chapter 28; |
|
(2) provides instruction at the appropriate level of |
|
rigor for the grade level at which the course is offered and will |
|
prepare a student enrolled in the course for the student's next |
|
grade level or a subsequent course in a similar subject matter; and |
|
(3) except as provided by Subsection (b), meets |
|
standards for hybrid or virtual courses adopted by the |
|
commissioner. |
|
(b) If the commissioner has not adopted applicable |
|
standards for hybrid or virtual courses, a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school that offers a hybrid or virtual |
|
course must instead certify to the commissioner that the course |
|
meets the National Standards for Quality Online Courses published |
|
by the Virtual Learning Leadership Alliance, Quality Matters, and |
|
the Digital Learning Collaborative, or a successor publication. |
|
Sec. 30B.052. RIGHTS OF STUDENTS REGARDING HYBRID AND |
|
VIRTUAL COURSES. (a) Except as provided by Section 30B.104(b), a |
|
school district or open-enrollment charter school may not require a |
|
student to enroll in a hybrid or virtual course. |
|
(b) A hybrid or virtual course offered under this chapter to |
|
a student receiving special education services or other |
|
accommodations must meet the needs of the participating student in |
|
a manner consistent with Subchapter A, Chapter 29, and with federal |
|
law, including the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 |
|
U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.) and Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of |
|
1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), as applicable. |
|
Sec. 30B.053. RIGHTS OF TEACHERS REGARDING HYBRID AND |
|
VIRTUAL COURSES. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (a-1), a |
|
school district or open-enrollment charter school may not require a |
|
classroom teacher to provide both virtual instruction and in-person |
|
instruction for a course offered under this chapter during the same |
|
class period. The commissioner may waive the requirements of this |
|
subsection for courses included in the enrichment curriculum under |
|
Section 28.002. |
|
(a-1) Subsection (a) does not apply to a requirement that a |
|
classroom teacher simulcast the teacher's in-person instruction |
|
provided that the teacher is not required to interact with students |
|
observing the instruction virtually. |
|
(b) A classroom teacher may not provide instruction for a |
|
hybrid or virtual course offered under this chapter unless: |
|
(1) the teacher has received appropriate professional |
|
development in hybrid or virtual instruction, as determined by the |
|
school district or open-enrollment charter school at which the |
|
teacher is employed; or |
|
(2) the district or school has determined that the |
|
teacher has sufficient previous experience to not require the |
|
professional development described by Subdivision (1). |
|
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
|
not directly or indirectly coerce any classroom teacher hired to |
|
provide in-person instruction to agree to an assignment to teach a |
|
hybrid or virtual course. |
|
Sec. 30B.054. ASSESSMENTS. Except as authorized by |
|
commissioner rule, an assessment instrument administered under |
|
Section 39.023 or 39.025 to a student enrolled in a hybrid or |
|
virtual course offered under this chapter shall be administered to |
|
the student in the same manner in which the assessment instrument is |
|
administered to a student enrolled in an in-person course at the |
|
student's school district or open-enrollment charter school. |
|
Sec. 30B.055. TUITION AND FEES. A school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school may charge tuition and fees for a |
|
hybrid or virtual course provided to a student who: |
|
(1) is not eligible to enroll in a public school in |
|
this state; or |
|
(2) is not enrolled in the school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school. |
|
Sec. 30B.056. ATTENDANCE FOR CLASS CREDIT OR GRADE. |
|
Notwithstanding Section 25.092, a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school shall establish the participation |
|
necessary to earn credit or a grade for a hybrid or virtual course |
|
offered by the district or school. |
|
Sec. 30B.057. AGENCY PUBLICATION OF AVAILABLE VIRTUAL |
|
COURSES. (a) The agency shall publish a list of virtual courses |
|
offered by school districts and open-enrollment charter schools in |
|
this state that includes: |
|
(1) whether the course is available to a student who is |
|
not otherwise enrolled in the offering district or school; |
|
(2) the cost of the course; and |
|
(3) information regarding any third-party provider |
|
involved in the delivery of the course. |
|
(b) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
shall provide to the agency information required to publish the |
|
list under Subsection (a). |
|
SUBCHAPTER C. FULL-TIME HYBRID AND FULL-TIME VIRTUAL CAMPUSES |
|
Sec. 30B.101. FULL-TIME HYBRID OR FULL-TIME VIRTUAL CAMPUS |
|
AUTHORIZATION. (a) A school district or open-enrollment charter |
|
school may operate a full-time hybrid campus or a full-time virtual |
|
campus if authorized by the commissioner in accordance with this |
|
section. |
|
(b) The commissioner shall adopt rules establishing the |
|
requirements for and process by which a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school may apply for authorization to |
|
operate a full-time hybrid campus or a full-time virtual campus. |
|
The rules adopted by the commissioner may require certain written |
|
application materials and interviews and shall require a school |
|
district or open-enrollment charter school to: |
|
(1) engage in a year of planning before offering a |
|
course under this chapter to verify the course is designed in |
|
accordance with high-quality criteria; |
|
(2) develop an academic plan that incorporates: |
|
(A) curriculum and instructional practices |
|
aligned with the appropriate essential knowledge and skills |
|
provided under Subchapter A, Chapter 28; |
|
(B) monitoring of the progress of student |
|
performance and interventions; |
|
(C) a method for meeting the needs of and |
|
complying with federal and state requirements for special |
|
populations and at-risk students; and |
|
(D) compliance with the requirements of this |
|
chapter; |
|
(3) develop an operations plan that addresses: |
|
(A) staffing models; |
|
(B) the designation of selected school leaders; |
|
(C) professional development for staff; |
|
(D) student and family engagement; |
|
(E) school calendars and schedules; |
|
(F) student enrollment eligibility; |
|
(G) cybersecurity and student data privacy |
|
measures; and |
|
(H) any educational services to be provided by a |
|
private or third party; and |
|
(4) demonstrate the capacity to execute the district's |
|
or school's plan successfully. |
|
(c) A full-time hybrid campus or full-time virtual campus |
|
authorized under this section must include: |
|
(1) at least one grade level in which an assessment |
|
instrument is required to be administered under Section 39.023(a) |
|
or (c), including each subject or course for which an assessment |
|
instrument is required in that grade level; |
|
(2) sufficient grade levels, as determined by the |
|
commissioner, to allow for the annual evaluation of the performance |
|
of students who complete the courses offered; or |
|
(3) for a campus that does not include grade levels |
|
described by Subdivision (1) or (2), another performance evaluation |
|
measure approved by the commissioner during the authorization |
|
process. |
|
(d) A campus approved under this subchapter may only apply |
|
for and receive authorization to operate as a full-time hybrid |
|
campus or a full-time virtual campus. A campus may not change its |
|
operation designation during the authorization process or after the |
|
campus is authorized. |
|
(e) The commissioner may only authorize a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school to operate a full-time hybrid campus |
|
or a full-time virtual campus if the commissioner determines that |
|
the authorization of the campus is likely to result in improved |
|
student learning opportunities. If a district or school will use a |
|
private or third party in operating the campus, the commissioner |
|
shall consider the historical performance of the private or third |
|
party, if known, in making a determination under this section. |
|
(f) A determination made by the commissioner under this |
|
section is final and not subject to appeal. |
|
Sec. 30B.102. REVOCATION. (a) Unless revoked as provided |
|
by this section, the commissioner's authorization of a full-time |
|
hybrid campus or full-time virtual campus under Section 30B.101 |
|
continues indefinitely. |
|
(b) The commissioner shall revoke the authorization of a |
|
full-time hybrid campus or full-time virtual campus if the campus |
|
has been assigned, for the three preceding school years: |
|
(1) a needs improvement or unacceptable performance |
|
rating under Subchapter C, Chapter 39; |
|
(2) a rating of performance that needs improvement or |
|
unacceptable, as determined by the commissioner, on a performance |
|
evaluation approved by the commissioner under Section |
|
30B.101(c)(3); or |
|
(3) any combination of the ratings described by |
|
Subdivision (1) or (2). |
|
(c) The commissioner may, based on a special investigation |
|
conducted under Section 39.003: |
|
(1) revoke an authorization of a full-time hybrid |
|
campus or full-time virtual campus; or |
|
(2) require any intervention authorized under that |
|
section. |
|
(d) If a private or third party is determined to be |
|
ineligible under Section 30B.152, the commissioner shall revoke an |
|
authorization of a full-time hybrid campus or full-time virtual |
|
campus for which the private or third party acts as a whole program |
|
virtual instruction provider, unless the commissioner approves a |
|
request by the school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
that operates the campus to use an alternative private or third |
|
party. |
|
(e) An appeal by a school district or open-enrollment |
|
charter school of a revocation of an authorization under this |
|
chapter that results in the closure of a campus must be made under |
|
Section 39A.301. |
|
Sec. 30B.103. STUDENT ELIGIBILITY. (a) A student eligible |
|
to enroll in a public school of this state is eligible to enroll at a |
|
full-time hybrid campus. |
|
(b) A student is eligible to enroll in a full-time virtual |
|
campus if the student: |
|
(1) attended a public school in this state for a |
|
minimum of six weeks in the current school year or in the preceding |
|
school year; |
|
(2) is, in the school year in which the student first |
|
seeks to enroll in the full-time virtual campus, enrolled in the |
|
first grade or a lower grade level; |
|
(3) was not required to attend public school in this |
|
state due to nonresidency during the preceding school year; |
|
(4) is a dependent of a member of the United States |
|
military who has been deployed; or |
|
(5) has been placed in substitute care in this state. |
|
Sec. 30B.104. STUDENT RIGHTS REGARDING FULL-TIME HYBRID AND |
|
FULL-TIME VIRTUAL CAMPUSES. (a) A student enrolled in a school |
|
district may not be compelled to enroll in a full-time hybrid or |
|
full-time virtual campus. A school district must offer the option |
|
for a student's parent to select in-person instruction for the |
|
student. |
|
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a) or Section 30B.052, an |
|
open-enrollment charter school may require a student to attend a |
|
full-time hybrid or full-time virtual campus. |
|
Sec. 30B.105. CAMPUS DESIGNATIONS. The commissioner shall |
|
determine and assign a unique campus designation number to each |
|
full-time hybrid campus or full-time virtual campus authorized |
|
under this subchapter. |
|
Sec. 30B.106. FUNDING. (a) For purposes of calculating the |
|
average daily attendance of students attending a full-time hybrid |
|
campus or full-time virtual campus, the commissioner shall use the |
|
number of full-time equivalent students enrolled in the full-time |
|
hybrid or full-time virtual campus multiplied by the average |
|
attendance rate of the school district or open-enrollment charter |
|
school that offers the full-time hybrid or full-time virtual campus |
|
not including any student enrolled full-time in a full-time hybrid |
|
or full-time virtual campus. In the event that a reliable |
|
attendance rate cannot be determined under this section, the |
|
commissioner shall use the statewide average attendance rate. |
|
(b) The commissioner shall provide proportionate funding to |
|
the applicable school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
for a student that alternates attendance between a traditional, |
|
in-person campus setting and the full-time hybrid or full-time |
|
virtual campus of any single district or school in the same school |
|
year. |
|
SUBCHAPTER D. PRIVATE AND THIRD-PARTY PROVIDERS |
|
Sec. 30B.151. NOTICE AND USE OF PRIVATE OR THIRD PARTY. (a) |
|
A school district or open-enrollment charter school shall provide |
|
notice to the commissioner of the use of or change in affiliation of |
|
a private or third party acting as a whole program virtual |
|
instruction provider for a full-time hybrid or full-time virtual |
|
campus or program. |
|
(b) Except as provided by Section 30B.152, a school district |
|
or open-enrollment charter school may not use a private or third |
|
party to act as a whole program virtual instruction provider if the |
|
party has been determined to be ineligible under that section. |
|
Sec. 30B.152. PRIVATE OR THIRD-PARTY ACCOUNTABILITY. (a) |
|
The commissioner shall, to the extent feasible, evaluate the |
|
performance of a private or third party acting as a whole program |
|
virtual instruction provider for a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school. |
|
(b) The commissioner shall establish a standard to |
|
determine if a private or third party is ineligible to act as a |
|
whole program virtual instruction provider. A private or third |
|
party determined to be ineligible under this section remains |
|
ineligible until after the fifth anniversary of that determination. |
|
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may |
|
use a private or third party determined to be ineligible under |
|
Subsection (b) as a whole program virtual instruction provider if: |
|
(1) the district or school requests approval from the |
|
commissioner; and |
|
(2) the commissioner determines that the reasons the |
|
private or third party was declared ineligible under Subsection (b) |
|
will not affect the operation of the party as a whole program |
|
virtual instruction provider at the district or school. |
|
SUBCHAPTER E. STATE SUPPORT |
|
Sec. 30B.201. EDUCATOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. From |
|
funds appropriated or otherwise available, the agency shall develop |
|
professional development courses and materials aligned with |
|
research-based practices for educators in providing high-quality |
|
virtual education. |
|
Sec. 30B.202. DEVELOPMENT GRANTS FOR VIRTUAL EDUCATION. |
|
From funds appropriated or otherwise available, the agency shall |
|
provide grants and technical assistance to school districts and |
|
open-enrollment charter schools to aid in the establishment of |
|
high-quality full-time hybrid or full-time virtual campuses. |
|
SECTION 7.07. Section 33.009(d), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(d) An academy developed under this section must provide |
|
counselors and other postsecondary advisors with knowledge and |
|
skills to provide counseling to students regarding postsecondary |
|
success and productive career planning and must include information |
|
relating to: |
|
(1) each endorsement described by Section |
|
28.025(c-1), including: |
|
(A) the course requirements for each |
|
endorsement; and |
|
(B) the postsecondary educational and career |
|
opportunities associated with each endorsement; |
|
(2) available methods for a student to earn credit for |
|
a course not offered at the school in which the student is enrolled, |
|
including enrollment in a virtual [an electronic] course provided |
|
[through the state virtual school network] under Chapter 30B [30A]; |
|
(3) general academic performance requirements for |
|
admission to an institution of higher education, including the |
|
requirements for automatic admission to a general academic teaching |
|
institution under Section 51.803; |
|
(4) regional workforce needs, including information |
|
about the required education and the average wage or salary for |
|
careers that meet those workforce needs; and |
|
(5) effective strategies for engaging students and |
|
parents in planning for postsecondary education and potential |
|
careers, including participation in mentorships and business |
|
partnerships. |
|
SECTION 7.08. Subchapter A, Chapter 37, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 37.0071 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 37.0071. VIRTUAL EDUCATION AS ALTERNATIVE TO |
|
EXPULSION. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), before a |
|
school district or open-enrollment charter school may expel a |
|
student, the district or school shall consider the appropriateness |
|
and feasibility of, as an alternative to expulsion, enrolling the |
|
student in a full-time hybrid program, full-time virtual program, |
|
full-time hybrid campus, or full-time virtual campus, as those |
|
terms are defined in Section 30B.001. |
|
(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to a student expelled |
|
under Section 37.0081 or 37.007(a), (d), or (e). |
|
SECTION 7.09. Section 48.005, Education Code, is amended by |
|
adding Subsection (e-1) to read as follows: |
|
(e-1) In a school year in which the occurrence of an |
|
emergency or crisis, as defined by commissioner rule, causes a |
|
statewide decrease in average daily attendance of school districts |
|
entitled to funding under this chapter or, for an emergency or |
|
crisis occurring only within a specific region of this state, |
|
causes a regional decrease in the average daily attendance of |
|
school districts located in the affected region, the commissioner |
|
shall modify or waive requirements applicable to the affected |
|
districts under this section and adopt appropriate safeguards as |
|
necessary to ensure the continued support and maintenance of an |
|
efficient system of public free schools and the continued delivery |
|
of high-quality instruction under that system. |
|
SECTION 7.10. Section 48.053(b), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(b) A school district to which this section applies is |
|
entitled to funding under this chapter as if the district were a |
|
full-time hybrid campus or full-time virtual campus for purposes of |
|
Section 30B.106 with [had] no tier one local share for purposes of |
|
Section 48.256 for each student enrolled in the district: |
|
(1) who resides in this state; or |
|
(2) who: |
|
(A) is a dependent of a member of the United |
|
States military; |
|
(B) was previously enrolled in school in this |
|
state; and |
|
(C) does not reside in this state due to a |
|
military deployment or transfer. |
|
SECTION 7.11. Section 48.104(f), Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
(f) A student receiving a full-time virtual education |
|
provided through a full-time virtual campus under Chapter 30B shall |
|
[through the state virtual school network may] be included in |
|
determining the number of students who are educationally |
|
disadvantaged and reside in an economically disadvantaged census |
|
block group under Subsection (b) or (e), as applicable[, if the |
|
school district submits to the commissioner a plan detailing the |
|
enhanced services that will be provided to the student and the |
|
commissioner approves the plan]. |
|
SECTION 7.12. Section 48.111, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as |
|
follows: |
|
(b) For purposes of Subsection (a), in determining the |
|
number of students enrolled in a school district, the commissioner |
|
shall exclude students enrolled in the district who receive |
|
full-time instruction provided through a full-time virtual campus |
|
under Chapter 30B [through the state virtual school network under |
|
Chapter 30A]. |
|
(b-1) For purposes of Subsection (a), in determining the |
|
number of students enrolled in a school district, the commissioner |
|
shall exclude students enrolled in the district who receive |
|
full-time instruction through the state virtual school network |
|
under Chapter 30A as that chapter existed on September 1, 2023. |
|
This subsection expires September 1, 2029. |
|
SECTION 7.13. The following provisions of the Education |
|
Code are repealed: |
|
(1) Section 26.0031(f); and |
|
(2) Chapter 30A. |
|
SECTION 7.14. (a) Notwithstanding the repeal by this |
|
article of Chapter 30A, Education Code, a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school providing an electronic course or a |
|
full-time program through the state virtual school network in |
|
accordance with Chapter 30A, Education Code, as that law existed |
|
immediately before the effective date of this article, may, except |
|
as provided by Subsection (b) of this section, continue to provide |
|
that course or full-time program as if that chapter were still in |
|
effect until the end of the 2025-2026 school year. |
|
(b) The funding provided to a school district or |
|
open-enrollment charter school for a student enrolled in an |
|
electronic course or full-time program offered through the state |
|
virtual school network in accordance with Chapter 30A, Education |
|
Code, as that law existed immediately before the effective date of |
|
this article, shall be determined, as applicable, under Section |
|
30B.007 or 30B.106, Education Code, as added by this article. |
|
SECTION 7.15. The commissioner of education shall adopt |
|
rules providing an expedited authorization process for a school |
|
district or open-enrollment charter school that applies to operate |
|
a full-time hybrid campus or a full-time virtual campus under |
|
Chapter 30B, Education Code, as added by this article, if the |
|
district or school, as of the effective date of this article: |
|
(1) operates an electronic course or full-time program |
|
through the state virtual school network in accordance with Chapter |
|
30A, Education Code, as that law existed immediately before the |
|
effective date of this article; or |
|
(2) operates a virtual education program, regardless |
|
of whether the district or school received funding for students |
|
enrolled in the program during the 2022-2023 or 2023-2024 school |
|
year. |
|
SECTION 7.16. This article takes effect immediately if this |
|
Act 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 article takes effect on the 91st day after the last day |
|
of the legislative session. |
|
ARTICLE 8. CHANGES RELATED TO ACCOUNTABILITY |
|
SECTION 8.01. Subchapter A, Chapter 39, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 39.008 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 39.008. EXPIRATION OF CHAPTER. This chapter expires |
|
August 31, 2026. |
|
SECTION 8.02. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 39.0521 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 39.0521. TEMPORARY PROVISION: ASSIGNMENT OF |
|
PERFORMANCE RATINGS AND SCORING OF ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS. (a) |
|
Notwithstanding any other law, for the 2023-2024, 2024-2025, and |
|
2025-2026 school years, the commissioner shall use the indicators, |
|
standards, procedures, criteria, and calculations prescribed by |
|
the 2022 Accountability Manual, adopted under 19 T.A.C. Section |
|
97.1001, as that rule existed on September 1, 2023, to: |
|
(1) evaluate school district and campus performance |
|
and assign each district and campus a performance rating; and |
|
(2) score assessment instruments administered under |
|
Subchapter B. |
|
(b) The agency shall receive a direct appropriation from the |
|
legislature for any additional costs for scoring the assessment |
|
instruments administered under Subchapter B in the manner described |
|
by Subsection (a)(2). |
|
(c) This section expires August 31, 2026. |
|
SECTION 8.03. Section 39.053, Education Code, is amended by |
|
amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsections (c-4), (c-5), and |
|
(c-6) to read as follows: |
|
(c) School districts and campuses must be evaluated based on |
|
three domains of indicators of achievement adopted under this |
|
section that include: |
|
(1) in the student achievement domain, indicators of |
|
student achievement that must include: |
|
(A) for evaluating the performance of districts |
|
and campuses generally: |
|
(i) an indicator that accounts for the |
|
results of assessment instruments required under Sections |
|
39.023(a), (c), and (l), as applicable for the district and campus, |
|
including the results of assessment instruments required for |
|
graduation retaken by a student, aggregated across grade levels by |
|
subject area, including: |
|
(a) for the performance standard |
|
determined by the commissioner under Section 39.0241(a), the |
|
percentage of students who performed satisfactorily on the |
|
assessment instruments, aggregated across grade levels by subject |
|
area; and |
|
(b) for the college readiness |
|
performance standard as determined under Section 39.0241, the |
|
percentage of students who performed satisfactorily on the |
|
assessment instruments, aggregated across grade levels by subject |
|
area; and |
|
(ii) an indicator that accounts for the |
|
results of assessment instruments required under Section |
|
39.023(b), as applicable for the district and campus, including the |
|
percentage of students who performed satisfactorily on the |
|
assessment instruments, as determined by the performance standard |
|
adopted by the agency, aggregated across grade levels by subject |
|
area; and |
|
(B) for evaluating the performance of high school |
|
campuses and districts that include high school campuses, |
|
indicators that account for: |
|
(i) students who satisfy the Texas Success |
|
Initiative (TSI) college readiness benchmarks prescribed by the |
|
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board under Section 51.334 on |
|
an assessment instrument in reading or mathematics designated by |
|
the coordinating board under that section; |
|
(ii) students who satisfy relevant |
|
performance standards on advanced placement tests or similar |
|
assessments; |
|
(iii) students who earn dual course credits |
|
in the dual credit courses; |
|
(iv) students who demonstrate military |
|
readiness by: |
|
(a) enlisting [enlist] in the armed |
|
forces of the United States or the Texas National Guard; |
|
(b) achieving a passing score set by |
|
the applicable military branch on the Armed Services Vocational |
|
Aptitude Battery test; or |
|
(c) successfully completing a Junior |
|
Reserve Officer Training Corps program; |
|
(v) students who earn industry |
|
certifications; |
|
(vi) students admitted into postsecondary |
|
industry certification programs that require as a prerequisite for |
|
entrance successful performance at the secondary level; |
|
(vii) students whose successful completion |
|
of a course or courses under Section 28.014 indicates the student's |
|
preparation to enroll and succeed, without remediation, in an |
|
entry-level general education course for a baccalaureate degree or |
|
associate degree; |
|
(viii) students who successfully met |
|
standards on a composite of indicators that through research |
|
indicates the student's preparation to enroll and succeed, without |
|
remediation, in an entry-level general education course for a |
|
baccalaureate degree or associate degree; |
|
(ix) high school graduation rates, computed |
|
in accordance with standards and definitions adopted in compliance |
|
with the Every Student Succeeds Act (20 U.S.C. Section 6301 et seq.) |
|
subject to the exclusions provided by Subsections (g), (g-1), |
|
(g-2), (g-3), and (g-4); |
|
(x) students who successfully completed an |
|
OnRamps dual enrollment course; |
|
(xi) students who successfully completed a |
|
practicum or internship approved by the State Board of Education; |
|
(xii) students who are awarded an associate |
|
degree; and |
|
(xiii) students who successfully completed |
|
a program of study in career and technical education; |
|
(2) in the school progress domain, indicators for |
|
effectiveness in promoting student learning, which must include: |
|
(A) for assessment instruments, including |
|
assessment instruments under Subdivisions (1)(A)(i) and (ii), the |
|
percentage of students who met the standard for improvement, as |
|
determined by the commissioner; and |
|
(B) for evaluating relative performance, the |
|
performance of districts and campuses compared to similar districts |
|
or campuses; and |
|
(3) in the closing the gaps domain, the use of |
|
disaggregated data to demonstrate the differentials among students |
|
from different racial and ethnic groups, socioeconomic |
|
backgrounds, and other factors, including: |
|
(A) students formerly receiving special |
|
education services; |
|
(B) students continuously enrolled; and |
|
(C) students who are mobile. |
|
(c-4) The agency shall study the college, career, and |
|
military readiness indicators adopted under Subsection (c) to |
|
determine the correlation of each indicator with post-secondary |
|
success, including the correlation of industry certifications with |
|
wages and available jobs. The assignment of value for an indicator |
|
must be based on the strength of the indicator's correlation with |
|
successful outcomes. |
|
(c-5) The agency shall maintain a list of industry |
|
certifications that are eligible for purposes of Subsection |
|
(c)(1)(B)(v). The certifications must: |
|
(1) be aligned to a program of study that, according to |
|
labor market data, prepares students for high-wage, high-skill, |
|
in-demand occupations; |
|
(2) allow students to demonstrate mastery of the |
|
skills required for occupations within an approved program of |
|
study; and |
|
(3) be obtained through an assessment of the knowledge |
|
and skills provided by or determined by an independent, third-party |
|
certifying entity using predetermined standards for knowledge, |
|
skills, and competencies. |
|
(c-6) The agency shall determine the eligibility of |
|
industry certifications under Subsection (c-5) using the most |
|
current labor market information. A certification the agency |
|
determines is no longer eligible for purposes of Subsection |
|
(c)(1)(B)(v) shall be removed from the list maintained under |
|
Subsection (c-5) not later than four years after the date the agency |
|
makes the determination. During the four years following an |
|
agency's determination under this subsection that an industry |
|
certification is no longer eligible for purposes of Subsection |
|
(c)(1)(B)(v), a school district may receive the benefit of |
|
achievement indicators based on that industry certification for |
|
purposes of Subsection (c) only for a cohort of students who earn |
|
the industry certification and graduate within the four-year |
|
period. |
|
SECTION 8.04. Section 39.0541, Education Code, is amended |
|
to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 39.0541. ADOPTION OF INDICATORS AND STANDARDS. The |
|
commissioner may adopt indicators and standards under this |
|
subchapter at any time [during a school year] before issuing the |
|
evaluation of a school district or campus for a school year. |
|
SECTION 8.05. Section 39.0542(a), Education Code, is |
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
(a) The [Each school year, the] commissioner shall provide |
|
each school district a document in a simple, accessible format that |
|
explains the accountability performance measures, methods, and |
|
procedures that will be applied [for that school year] in assigning |
|
each school district and campus a performance rating under Section |
|
39.054. |
|
SECTION 8.06. Subchapter H, Chapter 39, Education Code, is |
|
amended by adding Section 39.231 to read as follows: |
|
Sec. 39.231. LOCAL ACCOUNTABILITY GRANT PROGRAM. (a) With |
|
funds appropriated or otherwise available for the purpose, the |
|
agency shall establish a grant program with capacity to assist at |
|
least one school district per education service center region in |
|
developing local accountability systems that comply with the |
|
requirements of Section 39.0544. |
|
(b) The commissioner shall adopt rules to implement this |
|
section. |
|
SECTION 8.07. Chapter 39, Education Code, is amended by |
|
adding Subchapter N to read as follows: |
|
SUBCHAPTER N. TEXAS COMMISSION ON ASSESSMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY |
|
Sec. 39.451. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "commission" |
|
means the Texas Commission on Assessment and Accountability. |
|
Sec. 39.452. TEXAS COMMISSION ON ASSESSMENT AND |
|
ACCOUNTABILITY. (a) The commission is established to develop and |
|
make recommendations for: |
|
(1) improvements to the current public school |
|
assessment and accountability systems; and |
|
(2) the adoption of a new assessment and |
|
accountability system as provided by the Every Student Succeeds Act |
|
(20 U.S.C. Section 6301 et seq.). |
|
(b) The commission is composed of 15 members, consisting of: |
|
(1) four members appointed by the governor; |
|
(2) five members appointed by the lieutenant governor; |
|
(3) five members appointed by the speaker of the house |
|
of representatives; and |
|
(4) a member of the State Board of Education, as |
|
designated by the chair of that board. |
|
(c) The members appointed by the governor must have an |
|
interest in public education and include at least: |
|
(1) one person who is a current or retired classroom |
|
teacher with at least 10 years of teaching experience; |
|
(2) one person who is a member of the business |
|
community; and |
|
(3) one person who is a member of the civic community. |
|
(d) The appointments made by the lieutenant governor and the |
|
speaker of the house of representatives must each consist of: |
|
(1) three members of the applicable legislative |
|
chamber; |
|
(2) an administrator in the public school system or an |
|
elected member of the board of trustees of a school district; and |
|
(3) a member of the public who works in public |
|
education with experience in the assessment and accountability |
|
system. |
|
(e) In making appointments under Subsections (b)(1), (2), |
|
and (3), the governor, lieutenant governor, and speaker of the |
|
house of representatives shall coordinate to ensure that the |
|
membership of the commission reflects, to the extent possible, the |
|
ethnic and geographic diversity of this state. |
|
Sec. 39.453. PRESIDING OFFICER. The governor shall |
|
designate the presiding officer of the commission. |
|
Sec. 39.454. COMPENSATION AND REIMBURSEMENT. A member of |
|
the commission is not entitled to compensation for service on the |
|
commission but is entitled to reimbursement for actual and |
|
necessary expenses incurred in performing commission duties. |
|
Sec. 39.455. ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT AND FUNDING. (a) One |
|
full-time employee of the agency shall provide administrative |
|
support for the commission. Funding for the full-time employee |
|
shall be provided by legislative appropriation not to exceed |
|
$100,000 made to the agency for that purpose. |
|
(b) Funding for the administrative and operational expenses |
|
of the commission shall be provided by legislative appropriation |
|
not to exceed $100,000 made to the agency for that purpose. |
|
Sec. 39.456. RECOMMENDATIONS. (a) The commission shall |
|
develop recommendations under this subchapter to address issues |
|
related to the public school statewide assessment and |
|
accountability system, including: |
|
(1) the purpose of the assessment and accountability |
|
system and the relationship between state and local accountability |
|
in that system; |
|
(2) the appropriate number of assessments per grade |
|
level that comply with federal requirements; |
|
(3) changes in policy regarding the assessment and |
|
accountability system necessary to meet the needs of the state; |
|
(4) grading systems and the impact that those systems |
|
will have on the assessment and accountability system, including |
|
the use of artificial intelligence in grading systems; |
|
(5) the development and use of additional |
|
research-based indicators for the assessment and accountability |
|
system; and |
|
(6) the adoption of an assessment and accountability |
|
system that meets the needs of the 21st-century student. |
|
(b) The commission may establish one or more working groups |
|
composed of not more than five members of the commission to study, |
|
discuss, and address specific policy issues and recommendations to |
|
refer to the commission for consideration. |
|
Sec. 39.457. REPORT. Not later than December 31, 2024, the |
|
commission shall prepare and deliver a report to the governor and |
|
the legislature that recommends statutory changes to improve the |
|
public school assessment and accountability system, including any |
|
adjustments to funding necessary to account for student |
|
demographics. |
|
Sec. 39.458. PUBLIC MEETINGS AND PUBLIC INFORMATION. (a) |
|
The commission may hold public meetings as needed to fulfill its |
|
duties under this subchapter. |
|
(b) The commission is subject to Chapters 551 and 552, |
|
Government Code. |
|
Sec. 39.459. COMMISSION ABOLISHED; EXPIRATION OF |
|
SUBCHAPTER. The commission is abolished and this subchapter |
|
expires January 7, 2025. |
|
SECTION 8.08. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the |
|
commissioner of education may not assign A through F ratings, |
|
domain-scaled scores, or overall scaled scores to an independent |
|
school district or district campus under Chapter 39, Education |
|
Code, for the 2022-2023 school year. |
|
(b) Notwithstanding Subchapter B, Chapter 2001, Government |
|
Code, the commissioner of education may, using abbreviated notice |
|
as determined practicable by the commissioner and without a public |
|
hearing, but with input from the legislature, adopt rules for |
|
determining the accountability of public schools for the 2022-2023 |
|
school year. |
|
SECTION 8.09. This article takes effect on the 91st day |
|
after the last day of the legislative session. |