87R2797 MWC-D
By: Dutton H.B. No. 998
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the qualifications for designation as a dropout
recovery school and evaluating the performance of dropout recovery
schools for purposes of the public school accountability system.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 12.1141(c), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) 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 and the charter
does not meet the criteria for expedited renewal under Subsection
(b) or for expiration under Subsection (d), the commissioner shall
use the discretionary consideration process. The commissioner's
decision under the discretionary consideration process must take
into consideration the results of annual evaluations under the
performance frameworks established under Section 12.1181. The
renewal of the charter of an open-enrollment charter school that is
registered under the agency's alternative education accountability
procedures for evaluation under Chapter 39 shall be considered
under the discretionary consideration process regardless of the
performance ratings under Subchapter C, Chapter 39, of the
open-enrollment charter school or of any campus operating under the
charter, except that if 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, the
commissioner shall allow the charter to expire under Subsection
(d). In considering the renewal of the charter of an
open-enrollment charter school that is registered under the
agency's alternative education accountability procedures for
evaluation under Chapter 39, such as a dropout recovery school or a
school providing education within a residential treatment
facility, the commissioner shall use academic criteria established
by commissioner rule that are appropriate to measure the specific
goals of the school. The criteria established by the commissioner
shall recognize growth in student achievement as well as
educational attainment. For purposes of this subsection, the
commissioner shall designate as a dropout recovery school an
open-enrollment charter school or a campus of an open-enrollment
charter school:
(1) that serves students in grades 9 through 12 and has
an enrollment of which at least 50 percent of the students are 16
[17] years of age or older as of September 1 of the school year as
reported for the fall semester Public Education Information
Management System (PEIMS) submission; and
(2) that meets the eligibility requirements for and is
registered under alternative education accountability procedures
adopted by the commissioner.
SECTION 2. Section 12.137(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) This section applies only to:
(1) an open-enrollment charter school designated as a
dropout recovery school as described by Section 12.1141(c) if the
enrollment of the school consists only of students 16 [17] years of
age and older; and
(2) an adult education program provided under a high
school diploma and industry certification charter school program
under Section 29.259.
SECTION 3. (a) Section 39.0548(a), Education Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) For purposes of evaluating performance under Section
39.053(c), the commissioner shall designate as a dropout recovery
school a school district or an open-enrollment charter school or a
campus of a district or of an open-enrollment charter school:
(1) that serves students in grades 9 through 12 and has
an enrollment of which at least 50 percent of the students are 16
[17] years of age or older as of September 1 of the school year as
reported for the fall semester Public Education Information
Management System (PEIMS) submission; and
(2) that meets the eligibility requirements for and is
registered under alternative education accountability procedures
adopted by the commissioner.
(b) Effective September 1, 2023, Section 39.0548, Education
Code, is amended by amending Subsections (a) and (d) and adding
Subsections (a-1), (e), and (f) to read as follows:
(a) For purposes of evaluating performance under Section
39.053(c), the commissioner shall designate as a dropout recovery
school a school district or an open-enrollment charter school or a
campus of a district or of an open-enrollment charter school:
(1) that serves students in grades 9 through 12 and has
an enrollment of which at least 50 percent of the students are 16
[17] years of age or older as of September 1 of the school year as
reported for the fall semester Public Education Information
Management System (PEIMS) submission; and
(2) that [meets the eligibility requirements for and]
is registered under alternative education accountability
procedures adopted by the commissioner.
(a-1) For purposes of assigning performance ratings under
Section 39.054, the commissioner shall evaluate a dropout recovery
school under alternative education accountability procedures
adopted by the commissioner.
(d) For [Notwithstanding Section 39.053(c), for] purposes
of evaluating a dropout recovery school under the alternative
education accountability procedures adopted by the commissioner
[to determine the performance rating of the school under Section
39.054], only the best result from the primary administration or
any retake of an assessment instrument administered to a student in
the school year evaluated may be considered in assigning
performance ratings for the school under 39.054.
(e) To the extent consistent with or permitted by an
authorized waiver of federal law, the commissioner, for purposes of
evaluating performance of a dropout recovery school under the
alternative education accountability procedures adopted by the
commissioner, shall adopt performance targets for the student
achievement domain under Section 39.053(c)(1) and the school
progress domain under Section 39.053(c)(2) that are based on the
average performance of school districts and campuses registered
under the alternative education accountability procedures for the
preceding school year for those respective domains.
(f) To the extent consistent with or permitted by an
authorized waiver of federal law, the commissioner, for purposes of
evaluating performance of a dropout recovery school under the
alternative education accountability procedures adopted by the
commissioner, shall attribute to a dropout recovery school not less
than a minimum scaled score of 60 for the closing the gaps domain
under Section 39.053(c)(3).
SECTION 4. Sections 12.1141(c) and 12.137(a), Education
Code, as amended by this Act, and Section 39.0548(a), Education
Code, as amended by Section 3(a) of this Act, apply beginning with
the 2021-2022 school year.
SECTION 5. (a) Not later than September 1, 2023, the
commissioner of education shall:
(1) obtain any necessary waiver from the application
of federal law or regulation conflicting with Section 39.0548,
Education Code, as amended by this Act, effective September 1,
2023; or
(2) receive written notification from the United
States Department of Education that a waiver is not required for
Section 39.0548, Education Code, as amended by this Act, effective
September 1, 2023, to take effect.
(b) If the commissioner of education obtains any necessary
waiver or receives written notification that a waiver is not needed
as described by Subsection (a) of this section, the commissioner
shall certify that the commissioner has obtained the waiver or
received notification that a waiver is not required, as applicable,
and shall publish notice of that fact in the Texas Register as soon
as practicable after obtaining the waiver or receiving
notification.
SECTION 6. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, 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.