84R2734 KKA-F
By: Watson S.B. No. 241
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the transportation allotment provided under the
Foundation School Program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Sections 42.155(b), (c), (e), (f), (i), (k), and
(l), Education Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) As used in this section, "eligible [:
[(1) "Regular eligible student" means a student who
resides two or more miles from the student's campus of regular
attendance, measured along the shortest route that may be traveled
on public roads, and who is not classified as a student eligible for
special education services.
[(2) "Eligible] special education student" means a
student who is eligible for special education services under
Section 29.003 and who would be unable to attend classes without
special transportation services.
[(3) "Linear density" means the average number of
regular eligible students transported daily, divided by the
approved daily route miles traveled by the respective
transportation system.]
(c) Each district or county operating a regular
transportation system is entitled to an annual allotment equal to
50 percent of [based on] the annual [daily] cost [per regular
eligible student] of operating and maintaining the regular
transportation system [and the linear density of that system]. The
commissioner shall adopt rules necessary to implement this
subsection, including rules that identify eligible components of a
district's costs for purposes of computing a district's allotment.
[In determining the cost, the commissioner shall give consideration
to factors affecting the actual cost of providing these
transportation services in each district or county. The average
actual cost is to be computed by the commissioner and included for
consideration by the legislature in the General Appropriations Act.
The allotment per mile of approved route may not exceed the amount
set by appropriation.]
(e) The commissioner may grant an amount set by
appropriation for private or commercial transportation [for
eligible students] from isolated areas for students who are not
classified as eligible for special education services. The need
for this type of transportation grant shall be determined on an
individual basis and the amount granted shall not exceed the actual
cost. The grants may be made only in extreme hardship cases. A
grant may not be made if the students live within two miles of an
approved school bus route.
(f) The cost of transporting career and technology
education students from one campus to another inside a district or
from a sending district to another secondary public school for a
career and technology program or an area career and technology
school or to an approved post-secondary institution under a
contract for instruction approved by the agency shall be reimbursed
based on the number of actual miles traveled times the district's
cost per mile of the regular transportation system for the
preceding year, as determined on the basis of the district's
transportation operations report [official extracurricular travel
per mile rate as set by the board of trustees and approved by the
agency].
(i) In the case of a district belonging to a county
transportation system, the district's transportation allotment for
purposes of determining a district's foundation school program
allocations is determined on the basis of the number of students in
average daily attendance in the district in comparison to the total
number of students in average daily attendance of all districts
belonging to the county transportation system [approved daily route
miles in the district multiplied by the allotment per mile to which
the county transportation system is entitled].
(k) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section,
the commissioner may not reduce the allotment to which a district or
county is entitled under this section because the district or
county provides transportation for a [an eligible] student to and
from a child-care facility, as defined by Section 42.002, Human
Resources Code, or a grandparent's residence instead of the
student's residence, as authorized by Section 34.007, if the
transportation is provided within the approved routes of the
district or county for the school the student attends.
(l) A school district may, with the funds allotted under
this section, provide a bus pass or card for another transportation
system to each student [who is eligible to use the regular
transportation system of the district but] for whom the regular
transportation system of the district is not a feasible method of
providing transportation. The commissioner by rule shall provide
procedures for a school district to provide bus passes or cards to
students under this subsection.
SECTION 2. Section 11.158(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) The board of trustees of an independent school district
may require payment of:
(1) a fee for materials used in any program in which
the resultant product in excess of minimum requirements becomes, at
the student's option, the personal property of the student, if the
fee does not exceed the cost of materials;
(2) membership dues in student organizations or clubs
and admission fees or charges for attending extracurricular
activities, if membership or attendance is voluntary;
(3) a security deposit for the return of materials,
supplies, or equipment;
(4) a fee for personal physical education and athletic
equipment and apparel, although any student may provide the
student's own equipment or apparel if it meets reasonable
requirements and standards relating to health and safety
established by the board;
(5) a fee for items of personal use or products that a
student may purchase at the student's option, such as student
publications, class rings, annuals, and graduation announcements;
(6) a fee specifically permitted by any other statute;
(7) a fee for an authorized voluntary student health
and accident benefit plan;
(8) a reasonable fee, not to exceed the actual annual
maintenance cost, for the use of musical instruments and uniforms
owned or rented by the district;
(9) a fee for items of personal apparel that become the
property of the student and that are used in extracurricular
activities;
(10) a parking fee or a fee for an identification card;
(11) a fee for a driver training course, not to exceed
the actual district cost per student in the program for the current
school year;
(12) a fee for a course offered for credit that
requires the use of facilities not available on the school premises
or the employment of an educator who is not part of the school's
regular staff, if participation in the course is at the student's
option;
(13) a fee for a course offered during summer school,
except that the board may charge a fee for a course required for
graduation only if the course is also offered without a fee during
the regular school year;
(14) a reasonable fee for transportation of a student
who lives within two miles of the school the student attends to and
from that school[, except that the board may not charge a fee for
transportation for which the school district receives funds under
Section 42.155(d)];
(15) a reasonable fee, not to exceed $50, for costs
associated with an educational program offered outside of regular
school hours through which a student who was absent from class
receives instruction voluntarily for the purpose of making up the
missed instruction and meeting the level of attendance required
under Section 25.092; or
(16) if the district does not receive any funds under
Section 42.155 and does not participate in a county transportation
system for which an allotment is provided under Section 42.155(i),
a reasonable fee for the transportation of a student to and from the
school the student attends.
SECTION 3. Section 42.155(d), Education Code, is repealed.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.