Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB41 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R1616 CAS-D
2	2	By: Corte H.B. No. 41
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to creation of a public education voucher pilot program
8	8	for certain children.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Chapter 29, Education Code, is amended by adding
11	11	Subchapter J to read as follows:
12	12	SUBCHAPTER J. PUBLIC EDUCATION VOUCHER PILOT PROGRAM
13	13	Sec. 29.351. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
14	14	(1) "Parent" includes a guardian or custodian.
15	15	(2) "Private school" means a nongovernmental
16	16	educational establishment that exists for the general education of
17	17	elementary or secondary students. The term does not include a
18	18	school that provides education in a home setting or by the parent or
19	19	that limits enrollment to relatives of the school's staff.
20	20	Sec. 29.352. ELIGIBLE CHILD. (a) A child is eligible for a
21	21	voucher to be used to pay the costs of attending a private school if
22	22	the child:
23	23	(1) is educationally disadvantaged;
24	24	(2) is eligible to attend school under Section 25.001
25	25	in a school district that is among the six largest districts in
26	26	membership for the 2009-2010 school year, as determined by the
27	27	commissioner;
28	28	(3) was enrolled in a public school district during
29	29	the preceding school year or is enrolling in prekindergarten,
30	30	kindergarten, or first grade for the first time; and
31	31	(4) either:
32	32	(A) failed to perform satisfactorily on the most
33	33	recent assessment instrument administered to the child under
34	34	Section 39.023(a), (b), (c), (l), or (n); or
35	35	(B) is eligible under Subchapter G to attend
36	36	another public school in the district in which the child resides or
37	37	to receive a public education grant to use to attend a public school
38	38	in another district, but has had an application to attend another
39	39	school in the child's district or in another district rejected.
40	40	(b) After a child establishes eligibility under Subsection
41	41	(a) and attends a private school using a voucher, the child is
42	42	entitled to continue receiving the voucher, regardless of whether
43	43	the child continues to meet the requirements of Subsection (a),
44	44	until the earlier of the date on which the child graduates from high
45	45	school or the child's 21st birthday, unless the child:
46	46	(1) enrolls in a public school district after using
47	47	the voucher; or
48	48	(2) changes residences and is no longer entitled under
49	49	Section 25.001 to attend school in the school district under which
50	50	the child's eligibility for a voucher was established.
51	51	Sec. 29.353. PARENTAL NOTIFICATION. (a) Not later than a
52	52	date established by the commissioner, a school district described
53	53	by Section 29.352(a)(2) shall notify in writing the parent of each
54	54	eligible child of the child's eligibility for a voucher.
55	55	(b) A parent may apply for a voucher on behalf of the
56	56	parent's child by notifying the school district by a date
57	57	established by the commissioner.
58	58	Sec. 29.354. AMOUNT OF VOUCHER; FINANCING. (a) A child's
59	59	voucher is an amount equal to the total average per student funding
60	60	amount in the school district the child would otherwise attend
61	61	during the preceding school year for maintenance and operations,
62	62	including state and local funding, but excluding money from the
63	63	available school fund.
64	64	(b) An eligible child who attends a private school in
65	65	compliance with this subchapter is entitled to 100 percent of the
66	66	child's voucher, unless the tuition charged by the school is less
67	67	than the amount of the voucher. In that event, the school district
68	68	the child would otherwise attend is entitled to the amount of the
69	69	voucher remaining after payment of tuition.
70	70	(c) An eligible child who attends a private school using a
71	71	voucher is included in determining the average daily attendance
72	72	under Section 42.005 of the school district in which the student
73	73	would otherwise attend school.
74	74	(d) A child's voucher is payable from the school district to
75	75	the private school on behalf of the child. A child's voucher is the
76	76	entitlement of the child, under the supervision of the child's
77	77	parent, is not an entitlement of any school, and is paid to a school
78	78	solely as a means of administrative convenience.
79	79	Sec. 29.355. ACCREDITATION. (a) Except as otherwise
80	80	provided by this section, a private school that accepts students
81	81	with vouchers must be accredited by a private organization
82	82	recognized by the commissioner.
83	83	(b) A newly established private school may receive voucher
84	84	funds without accreditation if the school applies for accreditation
85	85	before accepting students under the program.
86	86	(c) The commissioner may waive the requirements of this
87	87	section for good cause.
88	88	Sec. 29.356. ADMISSIONS. (a) A private school may not
89	89	refuse to enroll a child with a voucher on the basis of the child's
90	90	residence, race, national origin, ethnic background, religion,
91	91	disability, or academic achievement.
92	92	(b) A private school may refuse to enroll a child with a
93	93	voucher if the child:
94	94	(1) has been expelled from a public school; or
95	95	(2) has a criminal record.
96	96	(c) A private school may not consider the athletic ability
97	97	of a child with a voucher in any admission process relating to the
98	98	child.
99	99	(d) Except as provided by Subsection (e), a private school
100	100	that has more applicants with vouchers than available positions
101	101	must fill the positions by lottery. A private school must declare
102	102	the number of available positions and conduct the lottery for the
103	103	next school year not later than July 1 of each year.
104	104	(e) A private school may give preference to an enrolled
105	105	student to achieve continuity and to siblings of an enrolled
106	106	student or children residing in the same household as an enrolled
107	107	student for the convenience of the parents of those children.
108	108	Sec. 29.357. TUITION; ADDITIONAL CHARGES AND FEES. A
109	109	private school may not:
110	110	(1) charge an eligible child attending the school with
111	111	a voucher tuition:
112	112	(A) in addition to the voucher; or
113	113	(B) in an amount greater than the standard
114	114	tuition rate at the school; or
115	115	(2) assess any additional charge, other than a fee
116	116	that the board of trustees of a school district is authorized to
117	117	charge under Section 11.158, for providing an educational program
118	118	or service to the child.
119	119	Sec. 29.358. ACCOUNTABILITY. (a) A private school shall
120	120	administer to each student with a voucher who is enrolled in the
121	121	school the assessment instruments required under Section
122	122	39.023(a), (b), (c), (l), or (n) or other comparable assessment
123	123	instruments approved by the commissioner, in the same manner as
124	124	those instruments are administered to public school students.
125	125	(b) A private school shall report to the commissioner
126	126	concerning the school's performance on the academic excellence
127	127	indicators under Section 39.051 for students with vouchers who are
128	128	enrolled in the school. The commissioner shall publish the school's
129	129	performance information and make it available to parents for
130	130	review.
131	131	Sec. 29.359. CERTIFICATION TO COMPTROLLER. To receive
132	132	voucher funds, a private school must certify to the comptroller
133	133	that the school has complied with the conditions imposed by Section
134	134	29.356.
135	135	Sec. 29.360. DUTIES OF COMPTROLLER. The comptroller shall
136	136	adopt rules, procedures, and forms for the payment of vouchers to
137	137	private schools on behalf of students attending those schools with
138	138	vouchers.
139	139	Sec. 29.361. EVALUATION AND REPORT. The commissioner, in
140	140	consultation with the school districts whose students are eligible
141	141	to participate in the pilot program, shall evaluate the program
142	142	established by this subchapter and report the evaluation, together
143	143	with any recommendations, to the legislature not later than
144	144	December 1, 2012.
145	145	Sec. 29.362. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires
146	146	September 1, 2013, and vouchers may not be issued for the 2013-2014
147	147	or a later school year.
148	148	SECTION 2. The commissioner of education and the
149	149	comptroller shall implement the public education voucher pilot
150	150	program as provided by Subchapter J, Chapter 29, Education Code, as
151	151	added by this Act, beginning with the 2009-2010 school year.
152	152	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
153	153	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
154	154	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
155	155	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
156	156	Act takes effect September 1, 2009.