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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to requiring that public schools spend a certain |
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percentage of funding for direct instructional activities, |
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including an indicator for that requirement under the public school |
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financial accountability system. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 39.082(c), Education Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(c) The system must [may not] include an indicator under |
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Subsection (b) [or any other performance measure] that[: |
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[(1)] requires a school district to spend at least 60 |
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[65] percent [or any other specified percentage] of district |
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operating funds for direct instructional activities as described by |
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Section 44.0071 [purposes; or |
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[(2) lowers the financial management performance |
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rating of a school district for failure to spend at least 65 percent |
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or any other specified percentage of district operating funds for |
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instructional purposes]. |
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SECTION 2. The heading to Section 44.0071, Education Code, |
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is amended to read as follows: |
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Sec. 44.0071. COMPUTATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL EXPENDITURES |
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RATIO AND INSTRUCTIONAL EMPLOYEES RATIO; MINIMUM RATIO REQUIRED. |
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SECTION 3. Sections 44.0071(a) and (c), Education Code, are |
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amended to read as follows: |
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(a) Each fiscal year, a school district shall compute and |
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report to the commissioner: |
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(1) the percentage of the district's total |
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expenditures for the preceding fiscal year that were used to fund |
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direct instructional activities, which must be at least 60 percent; |
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and |
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(2) the percentage of the district's full-time |
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equivalent employees during the preceding fiscal year whose job |
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function was to directly provide classroom instruction to students, |
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determined by dividing the number of hours spent by employees in |
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providing direct classroom instruction by the total number of hours |
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worked by all district employees. |
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(c) For purposes of this section, the computation of a |
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district's expenditures used to fund direct instructional |
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activities shall include: |
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(1) the salary, including any associated employment |
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taxes, and value of any benefits provided to any district employee |
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who directly provided classroom instruction to students, but only |
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in proportion to the percentage of time spent by the employee in |
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directly providing classroom instruction to students; |
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(2) the cost for the purchase of instructional |
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materials and supplies; |
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(3) the cost of professional and technical services |
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and the renting of educational equipment; and |
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(4) expenses relating to extracurricular and |
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cocurricular activities. |
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SECTION 4. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026 |
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school year. |
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SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |