Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB305 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R231 KJE-D
2	2	By: Collier H.B. No. 305
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the composition of the student body of an
8	8	open-enrollment charter school.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 12.111(a), Education Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	(a) Each charter granted under this subchapter must:
13	13	(1) describe the educational program to be offered,
14	14	which must include the required curriculum as provided by Section
15	15	28.002;
16	16	(2) provide that continuation of the charter is
17	17	contingent on the status of the charter as determined under Section
18	18	12.1141 or 12.115 or under Chapter 39A;
19	19	(3) specify the academic, operational, and financial
20	20	performance expectations by which a school operating under the
21	21	charter will be evaluated, which must include applicable elements
22	22	of the performance frameworks adopted under Section 12.1181;
23	23	(4) specify:
24	24	(A) any basis, in addition to a basis specified
25	25	by this subchapter or Chapter 39A, on which the charter may be
26	26	revoked, renewal of the charter may be denied, or the charter may be
27	27	allowed to expire; and
28	28	(B) the standards for evaluation of a school
29	29	operating under the charter for purposes of charter renewal, denial
30	30	of renewal, expiration, revocation, or other intervention in
31	31	accordance with Section 12.1141 or 12.115 or Chapter 39A, as
32	32	applicable;
33	33	(5) prohibit discrimination in admission policy on the
34	34	basis of sex, national origin, ethnicity, religion, disability,
35	35	academic, artistic, or athletic ability, or, subject to Section
36	36	12.1172, the district the child would otherwise attend in
37	37	accordance with this code, although the charter may:
38	38	(A) provide for the exclusion of a student who
39	39	has a documented history of a criminal offense, a juvenile court
40	40	adjudication, or discipline problems under Subchapter A, Chapter
41	41	37; and
42	42	(B) provide for an admission policy that requires
43	43	a student to demonstrate artistic ability if the school specializes
44	44	in performing arts;
45	45	(6) specify the grade levels to be offered;
46	46	(7) describe the governing structure of the program,
47	47	including:
48	48	(A) the officer positions designated;
49	49	(B) the manner in which officers are selected and
50	50	removed from office;
51	51	(C) the manner in which members of the governing
52	52	body of the school are selected and removed from office;
53	53	(D) the manner in which vacancies on that
54	54	governing body are filled;
55	55	(E) the term for which members of that governing
56	56	body serve; and
57	57	(F) whether the terms are to be staggered;
58	58	(8) specify the powers or duties of the governing body
59	59	of the school that the governing body may delegate to an officer;
60	60	(9) specify the manner in which the school will
61	61	distribute to parents information related to the qualifications of
62	62	each professional employee of the program, including any
63	63	professional or educational degree held by each employee, a
64	64	statement of any certification under Subchapter B, Chapter 21, held
65	65	by each employee, and any relevant experience of each employee;
66	66	(10) describe the process by which the person
67	67	providing the program will adopt an annual budget;
68	68	(11) describe the manner in which an annual audit of
69	69	the financial and programmatic operations of the program is to be
70	70	conducted, including the manner in which the person providing the
71	71	program will provide information necessary for the school district
72	72	in which the program is located to participate, as required by this
73	73	code or by commissioner rule, in the Public Education Information
74	74	Management System (PEIMS);
75	75	(12) describe the facilities to be used;
76	76	(13) describe the geographical area served by the
77	77	program;
78	78	(14) specify any type of enrollment criteria to be
79	79	used;
80	80	(15) provide information, as determined by the
81	81	commissioner, relating to any management company that will provide
82	82	management services to a school operating under the charter; and
83	83	(16) specify that the governing body of an
84	84	open-enrollment charter school accepts and may not delegate
85	85	ultimate responsibility for the school, including the school's
86	86	academic performance and financial and operational viability, and
87	87	is responsible for overseeing any management company providing
88	88	management services for the school and for holding the management
89	89	company accountable for the school's performance.
90	90	SECTION 2. Subchapter D, Chapter 12, Education Code, is
91	91	amended by adding Section 12.1172 to read as follows:
92	92	Sec. 12.1172. ADMISSION PREFERENCE FOR CERTAIN STUDENTS.
93	93	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (d), the governing body of an
94	94	open-enrollment charter school shall adopt and implement admission
95	95	procedures designed to ensure that students who reside in the
96	96	attendance zone of the school district within the boundaries of
97	97	which the school is located represent a majority of the school's
98	98	total enrollment.
99	99	(b) To the extent necessary to achieve the result described
100	100	by Subsection (a):
101	101	(1) a governing body that uses a lottery to fill
102	102	available positions, as authorized by Section 12.117, may conduct
103	103	separate lotteries for students who reside in the attendance zone
104	104	of the school district within the boundaries of which the school is
105	105	located and for students who do not reside in that attendance zone;
106	106	and
107	107	(2) a governing body that fills available positions
108	108	based on the order in which applications were received, as
109	109	authorized by Section 12.117, may fill available positions based on
110	110	the order in which applications were received from students who
111	111	reside in the attendance zone of the school district within the
112	112	boundaries of which the school is located before filling available
113	113	positions with students who do not reside in that attendance zone.
114	114	(c) The commissioner shall decline to renew the charter of
115	115	an open-enrollment charter school if the commissioner determines
116	116	that the governing body of the open-enrollment charter school has
117	117	not complied with this section, unless the commissioner determines
118	118	that the governing body made a good faith effort to comply but was
119	119	unable to achieve the result described by Subsection (a).
120	120	(d) This section does not apply to the governing body of an
121	121	open-enrollment charter school that:
122	122	(1) is designated as a dropout recovery school under
123	123	Section 12.1141(c);
124	124	(2) specializes in one or more performing arts; or
125	125	(3) serves another special purpose and limits
126	126	enrollment to students with specific characteristics related to
127	127	that purpose.
128	128	SECTION 3. (a) Section 12.1172, Education Code, as added by
129	129	this Act, applies to each open-enrollment charter school authorized
130	130	under Subchapter D, Chapter 12, Education Code. A school in
131	131	operation before the 2022-2023 school year shall achieve the
132	132	required student body composition by not later than the start of the
133	133	2025-2026 school year. A school that begins operation during or
134	134	after the 2022-2023 school year shall achieve the required student
135	135	body composition beginning with the first school year of operation.
136	136	(b) Section 12.1172, Education Code, as added by this Act,
137	137	does not affect the ability of a student enrolled in an
138	138	open-enrollment charter school during the 2021-2022 school year to
139	139	continue attending that school as long as the student maintains
140	140	enrollment during consecutive school years.
141	141	(c) A sibling of a student described by Subsection (b) of
142	142	this section who seeks admission for any school year to the same
143	143	open-enrollment charter school as attended by the student described
144	144	by Subsection (b) during the 2021-2022 school year shall be
145	145	considered for purposes of admission as a student who resides in the
146	146	attendance zone of the school district within the boundaries of
147	147	which the school is located, regardless of the student's actual
148	148	residence.
149	149	SECTION 4. This Act applies beginning with the 2022-2023
150	150	school year.
151	151	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
152	152	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
153	153	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
154	154	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
155	155	Act takes effect September 1, 2021.