Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1594 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	86R13277 SOS-D
2	2	By: Rodríguez S.B. No. 1594
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the regulation of open-enrollment charter schools and
8	8	requiring a study comparing and evaluating certain characteristics
9	9	of open-enrollment charter schools and school districts.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 7, Education Code, is
12	12	amended by adding Section 7.067 to read as follows:
13	13	Sec. 7.067. OPEN-ENROLLMENT CHARTER SCHOOL IMPACT REPORT.
14	14	(a) The commissioner shall conduct a study to evaluate:
15	15	(1) the relative enrollment characteristics of
16	16	open-enrollment charter schools and school districts; and
17	17	(2) the financial impact of open-enrollment charter
18	18	schools on school districts required to take action under Chapter
19	19	41 to reduce district wealth per student to the equalized wealth
20	20	level.
21	21	(b) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school
22	22	shall submit to the commissioner any information, including
23	23	information that is disaggregated with respect to designated
24	24	categories, required by the commissioner to conduct the study under
25	25	this section.
26	26	(c) The study must:
27	27	(1) compare open-enrollment charter schools to school
28	28	districts with respect to the number of enrolled students who are:
29	29	(A) eligible under Section 29.003 to participate
30	30	in special education services;
31	31	(B) identified as economically disadvantaged; or
32	32	(C) placed in a disciplinary alternative
33	33	education program or expelled; and
34	34	(2) examine the financial impact of open-enrollment
35	35	charter schools on school districts required to take action under
36	36	Chapter 41 to reduce district wealth per student to the equalized
37	37	wealth level by:
38	38	(A) considering:
39	39	(i) the adequacy of school and district
40	40	educators and other employees necessary to achieve the state policy
41	41	under Section 42.001;
42	42	(ii) school and district performance,
43	43	including student performance; and
44	44	(iii) student demographics, including
45	45	race, sex, ethnicity, and national origin; and
46	46	(B) determining whether open-enrollment charter
47	47	schools affect the standard of neutrality described by Section
48	48	42.001(b) with respect to:
49	49	(i) property wealth per weighted student;
50	50	(ii) revenue per weighted student;
51	51	(iii) tax effort; and
52	52	(iv) revenue per cent of tax effort.
53	53	(d) Not later than December 1, 2020, the commissioner shall
54	54	prepare and submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the
55	55	speaker of the house of representatives, and the presiding officer
56	56	of each legislative standing committee with primary jurisdiction
57	57	over primary and secondary education a written report containing
58	58	the results of the study and any recommendations for legislative or
59	59	other action.
60	60	(e) The commissioner shall adopt rules to administer this
61	61	section, including rules:
62	62	(1) providing guidance regarding the format and manner
63	63	for the submission of information under Subsection (b); and
64	64	(2) ensuring that reporting under this section
65	65	complies with federal law regarding confidentiality of student
66	66	medical or educational information, including the Health Insurance
67	67	Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. Section 1320d
68	68	et seq.) and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974
69	69	(20 U.S.C. Section 1232g), and any state law relating to the privacy
70	70	of student information.
71	71	(f) This section expires September 1, 2021.
72	72	SECTION 2. Section 12.101, Education Code, is amended by
73	73	amending Subsections (b-1) and (b-2) and adding Subsections (b-10)
74	74	and (b-11) to read as follows:
75	75	(b-1) Beginning September 1, 2019, and except as provided by
76	76	Subsection (b-10) [In granting charters for open-enrollment
77	77	charter schools], the commissioner may not:
78	78	(1) grant a charter for an open-enrollment charter
79	79	school, including a school operating only a full-time online
80	80	program [a total of more than:
81	81	[(1) 215 charters through the fiscal year ending
82	82	August 31, 2014]; or
83	83	(2) approve an expansion amendment under Section
84	84	12.114 [225 charters beginning September 1, 2014;
85	85	[(3) 240 charters beginning September 1, 2015;
86	86	[(4) 255 charters beginning September 1, 2016;
87	87	[(5) 270 charters beginning September 1, 2017; and
88	88	[(6) 285 charters beginning September 1, 2018].
89	89	(b-2) Beginning September 1, 2021 [2019], the total number
90	90	of charters for open-enrollment charter schools that may be granted
91	91	is 305 charters.
92	92	(b-10) Subsection (b-1) does not apply to a charter for an
93	93	open-enrollment charter school that:
94	94	(1) is designated as a dropout recovery school under
95	95	Section 12.1141(c);
96	96	(2) specializes in one or more performing arts; or
97	97	(3) provides combined services for an adult education
98	98	program and a high school dropout recovery program under Section
99	99	12.137.
100	100	(b-11) Subsections (b-1) and (b-10) and this subsection
101	101	expire September 1, 2021.
102	102	SECTION 3. Section 12.1011(a), Education Code, is amended
103	103	to read as follows:
104	104	(a) Notwithstanding Section 12.101(b) and beginning
105	105	September 1, 2021, the commissioner may grant a charter for an
106	106	open-enrollment charter school to an applicant that is:
107	107	(1) an eligible entity under Section 12.101(a)(3) that
108	108	proposes to operate the charter school program of a charter
109	109	operator that operates one or more charter schools in another state
110	110	and with which the eligible entity is affiliated and, as determined
111	111	by the commissioner in accordance with commissioner rule, has
112	112	performed at a level of performance comparable to performance under
113	113	the highest or second highest performance rating category under
114	114	Subchapter C, Chapter 39; or
115	115	(2) an entity that has operated one or more charter
116	116	schools established under this subchapter or Subchapter C or E and,
117	117	as determined by the commissioner in accordance with commissioner
118	118	rule, has performed in the highest or second highest performance
119	119	rating category under Subchapter C, Chapter 39.
120	120	SECTION 4. Section 12.1012, Education Code, is amended by
121	121	adding Subdivision (1-a) to read as follows:
122	122	(1-a) "Expansion amendment" means an amendment to the
123	123	charter of an open-enrollment charter school that permits the
124	124	school to increase its maximum allowable enrollment, extend the
125	125	grade levels it serves, change its geographic boundaries, or add a
126	126	campus or site.
127	127	SECTION 5. Section 12.107(a), Education Code, is amended to
128	128	read as follows:
129	129	(a) Funds received under Section 12.106 after September 1,
130	130	2001, by a charter holder:
131	131	(1) are considered to be public funds for all purposes
132	132	under state law;
133	133	(2) are held in trust by the charter holder for the
134	134	benefit of the students of the open-enrollment charter school;
135	135	(3) may be used only for a purpose for which a school
136	136	may use local funds under Section 45.105(c); [and]
137	137	(4) pending their use, must be deposited into a bank,
138	138	as defined by Section 45.201, with which the charter holder has
139	139	entered into a depository contract; and
140	140	(5) may not:
141	141	(A) be pledged or used for marketing,
142	142	advertising, or other activities to promote the charter holder or
143	143	the open-enrollment charter school; or
144	144	(B) be used to support an operation or activity
145	145	not related to the educational activities of the charter holder.
146	146	SECTION 6. Effective September 1, 2021, Section 12.110,
147	147	Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (d-1) to read as
148	148	follows:
149	149	(d-1) The commissioner shall deny an application for a
150	150	charter for an open-enrollment charter school from an applicant
151	151	that has submitted three or more applications for a charter under
152	152	this section and has not received approval.
153	153	SECTION 7. Section 12.1101, Education Code, is amended to
154	154	read as follows:
155	155	Sec. 12.1101. NOTIFICATION OF CHARTER APPLICATION [OR
156	156	ESTABLISHMENT OF CAMPUS]. The commissioner by rule shall adopt a
157	157	procedure for providing notice to the following persons on receipt
158	158	by the commissioner of an application for a charter for an
159	159	open-enrollment charter school under Section 12.110 [or of notice
160	160	of the establishment of a campus as authorized under Section
161	161	12.101(b-4)]:
162	162	(1) the board of trustees of each school district from
163	163	which the proposed open-enrollment charter school [or campus] is
164	164	likely to draw students, as determined by the commissioner; and
165	165	(2) each member of the legislature that represents the
166	166	geographic area to be served by the proposed school [or campus], as
167	167	determined by the commissioner.
168	168	SECTION 8. Effective September 1, 2021, Section 12.114,
169	169	Education Code, is amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding
170	170	Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
171	171	(a) A revision of a charter of an open-enrollment charter
172	172	school may be made only with the approval of the commissioner, in
173	173	coordination with a member of the State Board of Education
174	174	designated for the purpose by the chair of the board.
175	175	(a-1) The commissioner shall notify the State Board of
176	176	Education of each request for revision the commissioner proposes to
177	177	grant under this subchapter.
178	178	SECTION 9. Section 12.131, Education Code, is amended by
179	179	adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
180	180	(d) The commissioner by rule shall establish reporting
181	181	procedures to require the governing body of an open-enrollment
182	182	charter school to annually report to the commissioner information
183	183	consistent with the information described by Section 37.020
184	184	regarding each student placement in a disciplinary alternative
185	185	education program and each student expulsion.
186	186	SECTION 10. Section 12.101(b-4), Education Code, is
187	187	repealed.
188	188	SECTION 11. (a) Section 12.110(d-1), Education Code, as
189	189	added by this Act, and Section 12.114, Education Code, as amended by
190	190	this Act, apply only to an application for a charter for an
191	191	open-enrollment charter school or a request for approval of a
192	192	revision to the charter of an open-enrollment charter school
193	193	submitted on or after September 1, 2021.
194	194	(b) As soon as practicable after the effective date of this
195	195	Act, the commissioner of education shall adopt rules necessary to
196	196	implement the changes in law made by this Act.
197	197	SECTION 12. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this
198	198	Act takes effect September 1, 2019.