86R3097 JES-D
By: Hall S.B. No. 377
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to eliminating certain requirements imposed on school
districts; establishing a process for review of a school district's
termination or suspension of a classroom teacher.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 11.253(d), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(d) Each campus improvement plan must:
(1) assess the academic achievement for each student
in the school using the achievement indicator system as described
by Section 39.053;
(2) set the campus performance objectives based on the
achievement indicator system, including objectives for special
needs populations, including students in special education
programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29;
(3) identify how the campus goals will be met for each
student;
(4) determine the resources needed to implement the
plan;
(5) identify staff needed to implement the plan;
(6) set timelines for reaching the goals;
(7) measure progress toward the performance
objectives periodically to ensure that the plan is resulting in
academic improvement;
(8) include goals and methods for violence prevention
and intervention on campus;
(9) provide for a program to encourage parental
involvement at the campus; and
(10) if the campus is an elementary, middle, or junior
high school, set goals and objectives for the coordinated health
program at the campus based on:
(A) student fitness assessment data, including
any data from research-based assessments such as the school health
index assessment and planning tool created by the federal Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention;
(B) student academic performance data;
(C) student attendance rates;
(D) the percentage of students who are
educationally disadvantaged; and
(E) the use and success of any method to ensure
that students participate in moderate to vigorous physical activity
as required by Section 28.002(l)[; and
[(F) any other indicator recommended by the local
school health advisory council].
SECTION 2. The heading to Subchapter F, Chapter 21,
Education Code, is amended to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER F. HEARINGS [BEFORE HEARING EXAMINERS]
SECTION 3. Section 21.253, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read as follows:
(c) The school district may choose to have the hearing
conducted before:
(1) a hearing examiner; or
(2) the board of trustees or a subcommittee designated
by the board.
(d) The school district shall notify the commissioner of the
school district's choice under Subsection (c).
SECTION 4. The heading to Section 21.258, Education Code,
is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 21.258. CONSIDERATION OF RECOMMENDATION OF HEARING
EXAMINER BY BOARD OF TRUSTEES OR BOARD SUBCOMMITTEE.
SECTION 5. The heading to Section 21.259, Education Code,
is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 21.259. DECISION OF BOARD OF TRUSTEES OR BOARD
SUBCOMMITTEE AFTER CONSIDERATION OF RECOMMENDATION OF HEARING
EXAMINER.
SECTION 6. Subchapter F, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 21.2595 to read as follows:
Sec. 21.2595. HEARING BY BOARD OF TRUSTEES OR BOARD
SUBCOMMITTEE; DECISION. (a) If the school district chooses to have
a hearing before the board of trustees or a subcommittee designated
by the board, the board or subcommittee shall conduct the hearing as
provided by this section.
(b) The board of trustees or board subcommittee has the same
authority as a hearing examiner and the hearing is subject to the
same requirements and shall be conducted in the same manner as
provided under Sections 21.255 and 21.256. The school district and
the teacher have the same rights and responsibilities as provided
by Sections 21.255 and 21.256.
(c) Not later than the 60th day after the date on which the
district receives a copy of the teacher's written request for a
hearing, the board of trustees or board subcommittee shall complete
the hearing and shall announce a decision that:
(1) includes findings of fact and conclusions of law;
and
(2) may include a grant of relief.
(d) A determination by the board of trustees or board
subcommittee regarding good cause for the suspension of a teacher
without pay or the termination of a probationary, continuing, or
term contract is a conclusion of law.
SECTION 7. Section 21.260, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 21.260. RECORDING OF BOARD PROCEEDINGS [MEETING AND
ANNOUNCEMENT]. A certified shorthand reporter shall record the
oral argument under Section 21.258 and the announcement of a [the]
decision under Section 21.259 or 21.2595. The school district
shall bear the cost of the services of the certified shorthand
reporter.
SECTION 8. Sections 21.301(a) and (c), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) Not later than the 20th day after the date the board of
trustees or board subcommittee announces its decision under Section
21.259 or 21.2595 or the board advises the teacher of its decision
not to renew the teacher's contract under Section 21.208, the
teacher may appeal the decision by filing a petition for review with
the commissioner.
(c) The commissioner shall review, as applicable, the
record of the hearing before the hearing examiner and the oral
argument before the board of trustees or board subcommittee or the
record of the hearing before the board of trustees or board
subcommittee. Except as provided in Section 21.302, the
commissioner shall consider the appeal solely on the basis of the
local record and may not consider any additional evidence or issue.
The commissioner, on the motion of a party or on the commissioner's
motion, may hear oral argument. The commissioner shall accept
written argument.
SECTION 9. Section 21.302(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) If a party alleges that procedural irregularities that
are not reflected in the local record occurred at a [the] hearing
under Subchapter F [before the hearing examiner], the commissioner
may hold a hearing for the presentation of evidence on that issue.
The party alleging that procedural irregularities occurred shall
identify the specific alleged defect and its claimed effect on the
board's or board subcommittee's decision. The commissioner may
make appropriate orders consistent with rules adopted by the
commissioner. The commissioner's determination on any alleged
procedural irregularities is final and may not be appealed.
SECTION 10. Sections 21.303(a) and (b), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) If the board of trustees or board subcommittee decided
not to renew a teacher's term contract, the commissioner may not
substitute the commissioner's judgment for that of the board or
subcommittee [of trustees] unless the decision was arbitrary,
capricious, or unlawful or is not supported by substantial
evidence.
(b) If the board of trustees or board subcommittee
terminated a teacher's probationary, continuing, or term contract
during the contract term or suspended a teacher without pay, the
commissioner may not substitute the commissioner's judgment for
that of the board or subcommittee unless:
(1) if the board or subcommittee accepted the hearing
examiner's findings of fact without modification, the decision is
arbitrary, capricious, or unlawful or is not supported by
substantial evidence; [or]
(2) if the board or subcommittee modified the hearing
examiner's findings of fact, the decision is arbitrary, capricious,
or unlawful or the hearing examiner's original findings of fact are
not supported by substantial evidence; or
(3) the decision of the board or subcommittee in a
hearing under Section 21.2595 is arbitrary, capricious, or unlawful
or the original findings of fact of the board or subcommittee are
not supported by substantial evidence.
SECTION 11. Sections 21.304(d) and (e), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(d) The commissioner shall maintain and index decisions of
the commissioner issued under this section with, as applicable:
(1) the recommendations or decisions of the hearing
examiner; or
(2) the decisions of the board of trustees or board
subcommittee announced under Section 21.2595.
(e) If the commissioner reverses the action of the board of
trustees or board subcommittee, the commissioner shall order the
school district to reinstate the teacher and to pay the teacher any
back pay and employment benefits from the time of discharge or
suspension to reinstatement.
SECTION 12. Section 21.305(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) If a teacher appeals the decision of the board of
trustees or board subcommittee, the school district shall bear the
cost of preparing the original transcripts of, as applicable:
(1) the hearing before the hearing examiner[;] and
[(2)] the oral argument before the board of trustees
or board subcommittee; or
(2) the hearing before the board or subcommittee under
Section 21.2595.
SECTION 13. Section 21.451, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (h) to read as follows:
(h) Notwithstanding any other law, a school district may,
but is not required to, provide staff training regarding:
(1) Internet safety;
(2) teen dating violence;
(3) bullying;
(4) student parenthood;
(5) child abuse; or
(6) school bus transportation safety.
SECTION 14. Section 28.002(p), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(p) The State Board of Education, in conjunction with the
office of the attorney general, shall develop a parenting and
paternity awareness program that a school district may [shall] use
in the district's high school health curriculum or[. A school
district may use the program developed under this subsection in]
the district's middle or junior high school curriculum. At the
discretion of the district, a teacher may modify the suggested
sequence and pace of the program at any grade level. The program
must:
(1) address parenting skills and responsibilities,
including child support and other legal rights and responsibilities
that come with parenthood;
(2) address relationship skills, including money
management, communication skills, and marriage preparation; and
(3) in district middle, junior high, or high schools
that do not have a family violence prevention program, address
skills relating to the prevention of family violence.
SECTION 15. Sections 28.0023(c) and (e), Education Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
[shall] provide instruction to students in grades 7 through 12 in
cardiopulmonary resuscitation in a manner consistent with the
requirements of this section [and State Board of Education rules
adopted under this section]. The instruction may be provided as a
part of any course. [A student shall receive the instruction at
least once before graduation.]
(e) If a school district or open-enrollment charter school
offers cardiopulmonary [Cardiopulmonary] resuscitation
instruction, the instruction must include training that has been
developed:
(1) by the American Heart Association or the American
Red Cross; or
(2) using nationally recognized, evidence-based
guidelines for emergency cardiovascular care and incorporating
psychomotor skills to support the instruction.
SECTION 16. Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 28.0026 to read as follows:
Sec. 28.0026. INSTRUCTION NOT REQUIRED. Notwithstanding
any other law, a school district may, but is not required to,
provide student instruction regarding:
(1) Internet safety;
(2) teen dating violence;
(3) bullying;
(4) student parenthood;
(5) child abuse; or
(6) school bus transportation safety.
SECTION 17. The heading to Section 28.004, Education Code,
is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 28.004. [LOCAL SCHOOL HEALTH ADVISORY COUNCIL AND]
HEALTH EDUCATION INSTRUCTION.
SECTION 18. Sections 28.004(e), (i), and (k), Education
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(e) Any course materials and instruction relating to human
sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases, or human
immunodeficiency virus or acquired immune deficiency syndrome
shall be selected by the board of trustees [with the advice of the
local school health advisory council] and must:
(1) present abstinence from sexual activity as the
preferred choice of behavior in relationship to all sexual activity
for unmarried persons of school age;
(2) devote more attention to abstinence from sexual
activity than to any other behavior;
(3) emphasize that abstinence from sexual activity, if
used consistently and correctly, is the only method that is 100
percent effective in preventing pregnancy, sexually transmitted
diseases, infection with human immunodeficiency virus or acquired
immune deficiency syndrome, and the emotional trauma associated
with adolescent sexual activity;
(4) direct adolescents to a standard of behavior in
which abstinence from sexual activity before marriage is the most
effective way to prevent pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases,
and infection with human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immune
deficiency syndrome; and
(5) teach contraception and condom use in terms of
human use reality rates instead of theoretical laboratory rates, if
instruction on contraception and condoms is included in curriculum
content.
(i) Before each school year, a school district shall provide
written notice to a parent of each student enrolled in the district
of the board of trustees' decision regarding whether the district
will provide human sexuality instruction to district students. If
instruction will be provided, the notice must include:
(1) a summary of the basic content of the district's
human sexuality instruction to be provided to the student,
including a statement informing the parent of the instructional
requirements under state law;
(2) a statement of the parent's right to:
(A) review curriculum materials as provided by
Subsection (j); and
(B) remove the student from any part of the
district's human sexuality instruction without subjecting the
student to any disciplinary action, academic penalty, or other
sanction imposed by the district or the student's school; and
(3) information describing the opportunities for
parental involvement in the development of the curriculum to be
used in human sexuality instruction[, including information
regarding the local school health advisory council established
under Subsection (a)].
(k) A school district shall publish in the student handbook
and post on the district's Internet website, if the district has an
Internet website:
(1) a statement of the policies adopted to ensure that
elementary school, middle school, and junior high school students
engage in at least the amount and level of physical activity
required by Section 28.002(l);
(2) a statement of:
(A) [the number of times during the preceding
year the district's school health advisory council has met;
[(B)] whether the district has adopted and
enforces policies to ensure that district campuses comply with
agency vending machine and food service guidelines for restricting
student access to vending machines; and
(B) [(C)] whether the district has adopted and
enforces policies and procedures that prescribe penalties for the
use of e-cigarettes, as defined by Section 38.006, and tobacco
products by students and others on school campuses or at
school-sponsored or school-related activities; and
(3) a statement providing notice to parents that they
can request in writing their child's physical fitness assessment
results at the end of the school year if assessment was requested
under Section 38.101.
SECTION 19. Sections 33.901(a) and (b), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) If at least 10 percent of the students enrolled in one or
more schools in a school district or enrolled in an open-enrollment
charter school are eligible for free or reduced-price breakfasts
under the national school breakfast program provided for by the
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. Section 1773), the board of
trustees of the school district or the governing body of the
open-enrollment charter school may [shall either]:
(1) participate in the national program and make the
benefits of the national program available to all eligible students
in the schools or school; or
(2) develop and implement a locally funded program to
provide free meals, including breakfast and lunch, to each student
eligible for free meals under federal law and reduced-price meals,
including breakfast and lunch, to each student eligible for
reduced-price meals under federal law, provided that the reduced
price may not exceed the maximum allowable rate under federal law.
(b) A school district campus or an open-enrollment charter
school participating in the national school breakfast program
provided for by the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. Section
1773) or providing a locally funded program in which 80 percent or
more of the students qualify under the national program for a free
or reduced-price breakfast may [shall] offer a free breakfast to
each student.
SECTION 20. Section 34.008(c), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) A mass transit authority contracting under this section
for daily transportation of pre-primary, primary, or secondary
students to or from school shall conduct, in a manner and on a
schedule approved by the county or district school board, the
following education programs:
(1) a program to inform the public that public school
students will be riding on the authority's or company's buses; and
(2) a program to educate the drivers of the buses to be
used under the contract of the special needs and problems of public
school students riding on the buses[; and
[(3) a program to educate public school students on
bus riding safety and any special considerations arising from the
use of the authority's or company's buses].
SECTION 21. Section 34.012(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The State Board of Education shall serve as a
clearinghouse of best practices for school districts seeking the
most efficient and sensible information regarding school bus
safety[, including possible compliance with Section 547.701,
Transportation Code, using school buses originally purchased
without seat belts].
SECTION 22. Section 37.001(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The board of trustees of an independent school district
shall, with the advice of its district-level committee established
under Subchapter F, Chapter 11, adopt a student code of conduct for
the district. The student code of conduct must be posted and
prominently displayed at each school campus or made available for
review at the office of the campus principal. In addition to
establishing standards for student conduct, the student code of
conduct must:
(1) specify the circumstances, in accordance with this
subchapter, under which a student may be removed from a classroom,
campus, disciplinary alternative education program, or vehicle
owned or operated by the district;
(2) specify conditions that authorize or require a
principal or other appropriate administrator to transfer a student
to a disciplinary alternative education program;
(3) outline conditions under which a student may be
suspended as provided by Section 37.005 or expelled as provided by
Section 37.007;
(4) specify that consideration will be given, as a
factor in each decision concerning suspension, removal to a
disciplinary alternative education program, expulsion, or
placement in a juvenile justice alternative education program,
regardless of whether the decision concerns a mandatory or
discretionary action, to:
(A) self-defense;
(B) intent or lack of intent at the time the
student engaged in the conduct;
(C) a student's disciplinary history; or
(D) a disability that substantially impairs the
student's capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the student's
conduct;
(5) provide guidelines for setting the length of a
term of:
(A) a removal under Section 37.006; and
(B) an expulsion under Section 37.007;
(6) address the notification of a student's parent or
guardian of a violation of the student code of conduct committed by
the student that results in suspension, removal to a disciplinary
alternative education program, or expulsion;
(7) prohibit bullying, harassment, and making hit
lists and ensure that district employees enforce those
prohibitions;
(8) provide, as appropriate for students at each grade
level, methods, including options, for:
(A) managing students in the classroom, on school
grounds, and on a vehicle owned or operated by the district;
(B) disciplining students; and
(C) preventing and intervening in student
discipline problems[, including bullying, harassment, and making
hit lists]; and
(9) include an explanation of the provisions regarding
refusal of entry to or ejection from district property under
Section 37.105, including the appeal process established under
Section 37.105(h).
SECTION 23. Section 37.0831(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) A dating violence policy:
(1) must:
(A) [(1)] include a definition of dating
violence that includes the intentional use of physical, sexual,
verbal, or emotional abuse by a person to harm, threaten,
intimidate, or control another person in a dating relationship, as
defined by Section 71.0021, Family Code; and
(B) [(2)] address safety planning, enforcement
of protective orders, school-based alternatives to protective
orders, and [training for teachers and administrators,] counseling
for affected students;[,] and
(2) may address:
(A) training for teachers and administrators;
and
(B) awareness education for students and
parents.
SECTION 24. Section 38.004(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) A [Each] school district may, but is not required to,
[shall] provide child abuse antivictimization programs in
elementary and secondary schools.
SECTION 25. Section 38.101, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 38.101. REQUEST FOR ASSESSMENT [REQUIRED]. At the
request of the student's parent or a person standing in parental
relation to the student [(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b)],
a school district annually shall assess the physical fitness of a
student [students] enrolled in grade three or higher in a course
that satisfies the curriculum requirements for physical education
under Section 28.002(a)(2)(C).
[(b) A school district is not required to assess a student
for whom, as a result of disability or other condition identified by
commissioner rule, the assessment instrument adopted under Section
38.102 is inappropriate.]
SECTION 26. (a) Section 12.0029(d), Agriculture Code, is
repealed.
(b) The following provisions of the Education Code are
repealed:
(1) Section 28.002(s);
(2) Sections 28.0023(b) and (d);
(3) Sections 28.004(a), (b), (c), (d), (d-1), (l),
(l-1), (m), and (n); and
(4) Section 33.901(c).
(c) Section 547.701(e), Transportation Code, is repealed.
SECTION 27. Section 21.253, Education Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to a written notice of a proposed decision
described by Section 21.251, Education Code, received by a teacher
on or after September 1, 2019.
SECTION 28. This Act applies beginning with the 2019-2020
school year.
SECTION 29. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2019.