87R20516 CAE-D
By: Dutton H.B. No. 3731
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3731:
By: Dutton C.S.H.B. No. 3731
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to public school accountability ratings, including
interventions and sanctions administered to a school district,
open-enrollment charter school, or district or school campus
assigned an unacceptable performance rating.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Sections 12.1141(b) and (d), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(b) At the end of the term of a charter for an
open-enrollment charter school, if a charter holder submits to the
commissioner a petition for expedited renewal of the charter, the
charter automatically renews unless, not later than the 30th day
after the date the charter holder submits the petition, the
commissioner provides written notice to the charter holder that
expedited renewal of the charter is denied. The commissioner may
not deny expedited renewal of a charter if:
(1) the charter holder has been assigned the highest
or second highest performance rating under Subchapter C, Chapter
39, for the three preceding school years;
(2) the charter holder has been assigned a financial
performance accountability rating under Subchapter D, Chapter 39,
indicating financial performance that is satisfactory or better for
the three preceding school years; and
(3) no campus operating under the charter has been
assigned an unacceptable [the lowest] performance rating under
Subchapter C, Chapter 39, for the three preceding school years or
such a campus has been closed.
(d) At the end of the term of a charter for an
open-enrollment charter school, if a charter holder submits to the
commissioner a petition for renewal of the charter, the
commissioner may not renew the charter and shall allow the charter
to expire if:
(1) the charter holder has been assigned an
unacceptable [the lowest] performance rating under Subchapter C,
Chapter 39, for any three of the five preceding school years;
(2) the charter holder has been assigned a financial
accountability performance rating under Subchapter D, Chapter 39,
indicating financial performance that is lower than satisfactory
for any three of the five preceding school years;
(3) the charter holder has been assigned any
combination of the ratings described by Subdivision (1) or (2) for
any three of the five preceding school years; or
(4) any campus operating under the charter has been
assigned an unacceptable [the lowest] performance rating under
Subchapter C, Chapter 39, for the three preceding school years and
such a campus has not been closed.
SECTION 2. Section 39.054(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) The commissioner shall adopt rules to evaluate school
district and campus performance and assign each district and campus
an overall performance rating of A, B, C, D, or F. In addition to
the overall performance rating, the commissioner shall assign each
district and campus a separate domain performance rating of A, B, C,
D, or F for each domain under Section 39.053(c). An overall or
domain performance rating of A reflects exemplary performance. An
overall or domain performance rating of B reflects recognized
performance. An overall or domain performance rating of C reflects
acceptable performance. An overall or domain performance rating of
D reflects performance that needs improvement or unacceptable
performance, in accordance with Section 39.0543. An overall or
domain performance rating of F reflects unacceptable performance.
A district may not receive an overall or domain performance rating
of A if the district includes any campus with a corresponding
overall or domain performance rating of D or F. If a school
district has been approved under Section 39.0544 to assign campus
performance ratings and the commissioner has not assigned a campus
an overall performance rating of D or F, the commissioner shall
assign the campus an overall performance rating based on the school
district assigned performance rating under Section 39.0544. A
reference in law to an acceptable rating or acceptable performance
includes an overall or domain performance rating of A, B, C, or D,
except as provided by Section 39.0543, or performance that is
exemplary, recognized, or acceptable performance or performance
that needs improvement. A reference in law to an unacceptable
performance rating includes an overall or domain performance rating
of D, as provided by Section 39.0543, and F.
SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 39.0543 to read as follows:
Sec. 39.0543. NEEDS IMPROVEMENT OR UNACCEPTABLE
PERFORMANCE RATING. (a) A reference in law to an acceptable
performance or acceptable performance rating for a school district,
open-enrollment charter school, district campus, or charter school
campus includes an overall performance rating of D if, since
previously receiving an overall performance rating of C or higher
the district, charter school, district campus, or school campus:
(1) has not received an overall performance rating of
F; and
(2) has not received two or more overall performance
ratings of D.
(a-1) For the purposes of this section, an overall
performance rating issued in 2017-2018 or a prior school year for a
school district, open-enrollment charter school, district campus,
or charter school campus of:
(1) met standard, academically acceptable,
recognized, exemplary, A, B, or C is considered to be a performance
rating of C or higher; and
(2) improvement required, academically unacceptable,
or F is considered to be a rating of F.
(a-2) Subsection (a-1) and this subsection expire September
1, 2027.
(b) A performance rating of D that meets the requirements of
Subsection (a) is considered performance that needs improvement.
(c) A reference in law to an unacceptable performance or
unacceptable performance rating includes a performance rating of D
if the rating does not satisfy Subsection (a).
SECTION 4. Section 39A.061(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The commissioner may authorize a targeted improvement
plan, [or] an updated targeted improvement plan, or a local
improvement plan to supersede the provisions of and satisfy the
requirements of developing, reviewing, and revising a campus
improvement plan under Subchapter F, Chapter 11.
SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 39A, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 39A.065 to read as follows:
Sec. 39A.065. LOCAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN. (a) A school
district, open-enrollment charter school, district campus, or
charter school campus that is assigned a rating of D that qualifies
as a performance that needs improvement rating under Section
39.0543(a) shall develop and implement a local improvement plan.
(b) A local improvement plan must be presented to the board
of trustees of the school district or governing board of the
open-enrollment charter school.
(c) The commissioner shall adopt rules to establish
requirements for a local improvement plan components and training.
The commissioner may not require a school district or
open-enrollment charter school to submit the local improvement plan
to the agency.
SECTION 6. Subchapter C, Chapter 39A, Education Code, is
amended by adding Sections 39A.118 and 39A.119 to read as follows:
Sec. 39A.118. INTERVENTION IF ASSIGNED CERTAIN PERFORMANCE
NEEDS IMPROVEMENT RATING. (a) Until another performance rating is
issued, the agency may not implement the intervention or sanctions
as provided by Subsection (b) for a school district,
open-enrollment charter school, district campus, or charter school
campus, if the performance rating initiating the action under
Subsection (b) is based on the first or second overall performance
rating of D, since previously receiving a rating of C or higher.
(b) The following interventions are subject to a pause under
Subsection (a):
(1) revocation of a charter under Section 12.115(c);
(2) annexation under Section 13.054;
(3) change in accreditation status under rules adopted
for accreditation under Section 39.052; and
(4) interventions or sanctions under Section
39A.101(a), 39A.107(a) or (c), or 39A.111.
(c) The performance rating identified under Subsection (a):
(1) may not be included in calculating consecutive
school years of an unacceptable performance rating; and
(2) is not considered a break in consecutive school
years of an unacceptable performance rating.
(d) Interventions or sanctions implemented prior to the
intervention pause under Subsection (a) shall continue during the
school year for which actions under Subsection (b) are paused.
(e) This section does not apply to a commissioner action
based on performance or reasons not listed as interventions under
Subsection (b).
Sec. 39A.119. PERFORMANCE NEEDS IMPROVEMENT RATING
TRANSITION PROVISION. (a) For each school district,
open-enrollment charter school, district campus, and charter
school campus, the commissioner shall determine the number of
unacceptable performance ratings issued to the district, school, or
district or school campus since the last acceptable performance
rating or higher as defined by Subsection (b) and use that as the
base number of consecutive years of unacceptable performance for
which the performance rating in the 2021-2022 school year will be
added.
(b) For purposes of this section:
(1) an acceptable performance rating includes:
(A) a rating of met standard, academically
acceptable, recognized, exemplary, A, B, or C; or
(B) a rating of D that meets the requirements of
Section 39.0543(a);
(2) an unacceptable performance rating includes:
(A) a rating of improvement required,
academically unacceptable, or F; or
(B) a rating of D that meets the requirements of
Section 39.0543(c); and
(3) a rating of not rated may not be considered
acceptable or unacceptable and may not be considered a break in
consecutive years of unacceptable performance.
(c) This section expires September 1, 2027.
SECTION 7. Section 39A.0545, Education Code, is repealed.
SECTION 8. 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, 2021.