Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3445 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R8150 KJE-D
2	2	By: Huberty H.B. No. 3445
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to requiring the use of a public school's excess funds for
8	8	certain purposes.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 44, Education Code, is
11	11	amended by adding Section 44.013 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 44.013. USE OF EXCESS FUNDS REQUIRED. (a) In this
13	13	section:
14	14	(1) "Cash on hand" includes cash equivalents and money
15	15	invested in short-term investments.
16	16	(2) "Operating expenses" means total general fund
17	17	expenditures less any capital outlay.
18	18	(b) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school
19	19	shall annually review the district's or school's fund balances to
20	20	determine the amount of excess funds held by the district or school
21	21	as described by Subsection (c).
22	22	(c) For purposes of this section, a school district or
23	23	open-enrollment charter school has excess funds if:
24	24	(1) for a district, the total amount of the district's
25	25	cash on hand or unobligated funds exceeds the district's operating
26	26	expenses for a period of 110 days; or
27	27	(2) for a school, the total amount of the school's cash
28	28	on hand or net assets exceeds the school's operating expenses for a
29	29	period of 80 days.
30	30	(d) Not later than the end of the fiscal year following a
31	31	determination made under Subsection (b), each school district or
32	32	open-enrollment charter school shall use the amount of excess funds
33	33	identified under that subsection, if any, to, as applicable:
34	34	(1) pay down debt obligations;
35	35	(2) lower the district's maintenance and operations
36	36	tax rate;
37	37	(3) provide employee compensation, subject to
38	38	Subsection (e); or
39	39	(4) pay costs of deferred maintenance.
40	40	(e) Funding provided for employee compensation under
41	41	Subsection (d)(3) must be used to implement a new compensation
42	42	program or supplement an existing compensation program and may not
43	43	be used to supplant funding for an existing compensation program.
44	44	(f) Subject to Subsection (g), for any period of the fiscal
45	45	year following a determination made under Subsection (b) in which
46	46	the school district or open-enrollment charter school has excess
47	47	funds, the district or school may not:
48	48	(1) for a district, issue a bond or hold an election
49	49	seeking voter approval to issue a bond under Subchapter A, Chapter
50	50	45; or
51	51	(2) for a school:
52	52	(A) receive funding under Section 12.106(d); or
53	53	(B) apply for bonds issued under Chapter 53 for
54	54	the school to be guaranteed by the permanent school fund under
55	55	Chapter 45, as provided by Section 12.135.
56	56	(g) The restrictions under Subsection (f) do not apply to a
57	57	school district or open-enrollment charter school that posts on the
58	58	district's or school's Internet website an explanation of how the
59	59	district's or school's excess funds identified under Subsection (b)
60	60	will be spent in accordance with Subsection (d).
61	61	(h) If the commissioner determines that a school district or
62	62	open-enrollment charter school has failed to comply with this
63	63	section, the commissioner shall, as applicable, increase the
64	64	district's local share under Section 48.256 or reduce the school's
65	65	entitlement under Section 12.106 by an amount equal to the amount of
66	66	the district's or school's excess funds not spent as required under
67	67	Subsection (d).
68	68	(i) This section does not apply to:
69	69	(1) a special-purpose school district established
70	70	under Section 11.351 that is operated by an institution of higher
71	71	education, as that term is defined by Section 61.003;
72	72	(2) an open-enrollment charter school operated under a
73	73	charter granted to a governmental entity; or
74	74	(3) a charter school granted a charter under
75	75	Subchapter E, Chapter 12.
76	76	(j) The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to
77	77	implement this section.
78	78	SECTION 2. Section 12.106, Education Code, is amended by
79	79	adding Subsection (k) to read as follows:
80	80	(k) The commissioner shall reduce the amount of funding to
81	81	which a charter holder is entitled for an open-enrollment charter
82	82	school under this section as provided by Section 44.013(h).
83	83	SECTION 3. Section 48.256, Education Code, is amended by
84	84	adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
85	85	(f) The commissioner shall increase a school district's
86	86	local share under this section as provided by Section 44.013(h).
87	87	SECTION 4. Section 48.277, Education Code, is amended by
88	88	amending Subsection (e) and adding Subsection (f) to read as
89	89	follows:
90	90	(e) The commissioner shall reduce a school district's or
91	91	open-enrollment charter school's allotment under this section as
92	92	necessary to comply with Section 44.013(h).
93	93	(f) This section expires September 1, 2025.
94	94	SECTION 5. Section 48.278, Education Code, is amended by
95	95	adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows:
96	96	(b-1) The commissioner shall reduce a school district's
97	97	allotment under this section as necessary to comply with Section
98	98	44.013(h).
99	99	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.