By: VanDeaver (Senate Sponsor - Perry) H.B. No. 363
(In the Senate - Received from the House April 28, 2021;
May 3, 2021, read first time and referred to Committee on
Education; May 10, 2021, reported favorably by the following vote:
Yeas 11, Nays 0; May 10, 2021, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to restricting the use of personally identifiable student
information by an operator of a website, online service, online
application, or mobile application used for a school purpose and
providing an exemption from certain restrictions for a national
assessment provider.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 32.155, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 32.155. PROTECTION OF COVERED INFORMATION. (a) An
operator must implement and maintain reasonable security
procedures and practices designed to protect any covered
information from unauthorized access, deletion, use, modification,
or disclosure.
(b) Any operator that has been approved by the agency or had
a product adopted by the agency and possesses any covered
information must use the unique identifier established by the Texas
Student Data System (TSDS) or a successor data management system
maintained by the agency for any account creation, data upload,
data transmission, analysis, or reporting to mask all personally
identifiable student information. The operator shall adhere to a
state-required student data sharing agreement that includes an
established unique identifier standard for all operators as
prescribed by the agency.
(c) In addition to including the unique identifier in
releasing information as provided by Subsection (b), an operator
may include any other data field identified by the agency or by a
school district, open-enrollment charter school, regional
education service center, or other local education agency as
necessary for the information being released to be useful.
(d) A school district, open-enrollment charter school,
regional education service center, or other local education agency
may include additional data fields in an agreement with an operator
or the amendment of an agreement with an operator under this
section. An operator may agree to include the additional data
fields requested by a school district, open-enrollment charter
school, regional education service center, or other local education
agency but may not require that additional data fields be included.
(e) A school district, open-enrollment charter school,
regional education service center, or other local education agency
may require an operator that contracts directly with the entity to
adhere to a state-required student data sharing agreement that
includes the use of an established unique identifier standard for
all operators as prescribed by the agency.
(f) A national assessment provider who receives covered
information from a student or from a school district or campus on
behalf of a student is not required to comply with Subsection (b) or
(e) if the provider receives the covered information solely to
provide access to:
(1) employment, educational scholarships, financial
aid, or postsecondary educational opportunities; or
(2) educational resources for middle school, junior
high school, or high school students.
(g) The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to
administer this section.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
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