Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB400 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R2510 PAM-F
2	2	By: Campbell S.B. No. 400
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to procedural requirements for adopting and filing a
8	8	school district budget.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 44.004(f), Education Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	(f) The board of trustees, at the meeting called for that
13	13	purpose, shall adopt a budget to cover all expenditures for the
14	14	school district for the next succeeding fiscal year. A vote to
15	15	adopt the budget must be a record vote. Any taxpayer of the
16	16	district may be present and participate in the meeting.
17	17	SECTION 2. Section 44.005, Education Code, is amended to
18	18	read as follows:
19	19	Sec. 44.005. [FILING OF] ADOPTED BUDGET. (a) On or before
20	20	a date set by the State Board of Education, the budget must be filed
21	21	with the agency according to the rules established by the State
22	22	Board of Education.
23	23	(b) The filed budget must contain a cover page that
24	24	includes:
25	25	(1) one of the following statements in 18-point or
26	26	larger type that accurately describes the adopted budget:
27	27	(A) "This budget will raise more revenue from
28	28	property taxes than last year's budget by an amount of (insert total
29	29	dollar amount of increase), which is a (insert percentage increase)
30	30	percent increase from last year's budget. The property tax revenue
31	31	to be raised from new property added to the tax roll this year is
32	32	(insert amount computed by multiplying the proposed tax rate by the
33	33	value of new property added to the roll).";
34	34	(B) "This budget will raise less revenue from
35	35	property taxes than last year's budget by an amount of (insert total
36	36	dollar amount of decrease), which is a (insert percentage decrease)
37	37	percent decrease from last year's budget. The property tax revenue
38	38	to be raised from new property added to the tax roll this year is
39	39	(insert amount computed by multiplying the proposed tax rate by the
40	40	value of new property added to the roll)."; or
41	41	(C) "This budget will raise the same amount of
42	42	revenue from property taxes as last year's budget. The property tax
43	43	revenue to be raised from new property added to the tax roll this
44	44	year is (insert amount computed by multiplying the proposed tax
45	45	rate by the value of new property added to the roll).";
46	46	(2) the school district property tax rates for the
47	47	preceding fiscal year and each district property tax rate that has
48	48	been adopted or calculated for the current fiscal year, including:
49	49	(A) the property tax rate;
50	50	(B) the effective tax rate;
51	51	(C) the effective maintenance and operations tax
52	52	rate;
53	53	(D) the rollback tax rate; and
54	54	(E) the debt rate;
55	55	(3) the total amount of bonds and other debt
56	56	obligations owed by the district as of the date of the adoption of
57	57	the budget;
58	58	(4) the computation of the instructional expenditures
59	59	ratio and instructional employees ratio required to be reported to
60	60	the commissioner under Section 44.0071; and
61	61	(5) the record vote of each member of the board of
62	62	trustees by name voting on:
63	63	(A) the adoption of the budget; and
64	64	(B) the setting of the property tax rate for the
65	65	current fiscal year, if the vote has been taken.
66	66	(c) The district shall take action to ensure that the cover
67	67	page of the budget is amended to include the property tax rates
68	68	required by Subsection (b)(2) and the record vote of each member of
69	69	the board of trustees by name as required by Subsection (b)(5)(B),
70	70	if that information is not included on the cover page when the
71	71	budget is filed with the agency. The district shall file an amended
72	72	cover page with the agency and take action to ensure that a copy of
73	73	the amended cover page is posted on the district's Internet
74	74	website.
75	75	SECTION 3. Section 39.084, Education Code, is transferred
76	76	to Subchapter A, Chapter 44, Education Code, redesignated as
77	77	Section 44.0051, Education Code, and amended to read as follows:
78	78	Sec. 44.0051 [39.084]. POSTING OF ADOPTED BUDGET. (a) On
79	79	or before the date described by Section 44.005(a) [final approval
80	80	of the budget by the board of trustees], the school district shall
81	81	post on the district's Internet website a copy of the district's
82	82	adopted budget, including the cover page required by Section
83	83	44.005(b) [adopted by the board of trustees]. The district's
84	84	Internet website must prominently display the electronic link to
85	85	the adopted budget.
86	86	(b) The district shall maintain the adopted budget,
87	87	including the required cover page, on the district's Internet
88	88	website for at least three consecutive fiscal years [until the
89	89	third anniversary of the date the budget was adopted].
90	90	SECTION 4. This Act applies only to a budget adopted for a
91	91	fiscal year beginning on or after the effective date of this Act. A
92	92	budget adopted for a fiscal year beginning before the effective
93	93	date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the budget was
94	94	adopted, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
95	95	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.