Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1707 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	H.B. No. 1707
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to the applicability of certain laws to open-enrollment
6	6	charter schools.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Section 12.1058, Education Code, is amended by
9	9	amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsections (d), (e), (f), (g),
10	10	(h), (i), (j), (k), (l), and (m) to read as follows:
11	11	(c) Notwithstanding Subsection (a) or (b), an
12	12	open-enrollment charter school operated by a tax exempt entity as
13	13	described by Section 12.101(a)(3) is not considered to be a
14	14	political subdivision, local government, or local governmental
15	15	entity unless:
16	16	(1) a [the applicable] statute specifically states
17	17	that the statute applies to an open-enrollment charter school; or
18	18	(2) a provision in this chapter states that a specific
19	19	statute applies to an open-enrollment charter school.
20	20	(d) A political subdivision shall consider an
21	21	open-enrollment charter school a school district for purposes of
22	22	zoning, project permitting, platting and replatting processes,
23	23	business licensing, franchises, utility services, signage,
24	24	subdivision regulation, property development projects, the
25	25	requirements for posting bonds or securities, contract
26	26	requirements, land development standards as provided by Section
27	27	212.902, Local Government Code, tree and vegetation regulations,
28	28	regulations of architectural features of a structure, construction
29	29	of fences, landscaping, garbage disposal, noise levels, fees or
30	30	other assessments, and construction or site development work if the
31	31	charter school provides to the political subdivision the
32	32	certification described by Subsection (e).
33	33	(e) To be considered a school district by a political
34	34	subdivision in accordance with Subsection (d), the governing body
35	35	of an open-enrollment charter school must certify in writing to the
36	36	political subdivision that no administrator, officer, or employee
37	37	of the charter school and no member of the governing body of the
38	38	charter school or its charter holder derives any personal financial
39	39	benefit from a real estate transaction with the charter school.
40	40	(f) An open-enrollment charter school considered a school
41	41	district under this section shall comply with the same requirements
42	42	imposed by the political subdivision on a campus of a school
43	43	district.
44	44	(g) An open-enrollment charter school does not have the
45	45	power of eminent domain.
46	46	(h) A political subdivision may not consider an
47	47	open-enrollment charter school a school district under Section
48	48	395.022, Local Government Code, for the purposes of the collection
49	49	of impact fees imposed under Chapter 395, Local Government Code, by
50	50	the political subdivision for providing capital funding for public
51	51	water and wastewater facilities.
52	52	(i) A political subdivision may not take any action that
53	53	prohibits an open-enrollment charter school from operating a public
54	54	school campus, educational support facility, athletic facility, or
55	55	administrative office within the political subdivision's
56	56	jurisdiction or on any specific property located within the
57	57	jurisdiction of the political subdivision that it could not take
58	58	against a school district. A political subdivision shall grant
59	59	approval in the same manner and follow the same timelines as if the
60	60	charter school were a school district located in that political
61	61	subdivision's jurisdiction, provided that, for a new campus, the
62	62	charter school provide notice, in the manner provided by and to the
63	63	persons listed in Section 12.1101, of the location of the new campus
64	64	within 20 business days of closing on the purchase or lease of real
65	65	property for that campus.
66	66	(j) This section applies to both owned and leased property
67	67	of the open-enrollment charter school under Section 12.128.
68	68	(k) Except as otherwise provided by this section, this
69	69	section does not affect the authority granted by state law to a
70	70	political subdivision to regulate an open-enrollment charter
71	71	school through applicable health and safety ordinances imposed by
72	72	the political subdivision.
73	73	(l) In this section, "political subdivision" does not
74	74	include a school district.
75	75	(m) This subsection applies only to information of a
76	76	financial nature related to property transactions of an
77	77	open-enrollment charter school subject to this section. A
78	78	nonprofit entity operating an open-enrollment charter school under
79	79	Chapter 12 or a management company providing management services to
80	80	the nonprofit entity is considered a governmental body for purposes
81	81	of Chapter 552, Government Code, and financial information related
82	82	to property transactions that is managed or possessed by the entity
83	83	or company is subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government
84	84	Code.
85	85	SECTION 2. Section 212.902, Local Government Code, is
86	86	amended to read as follows:
87	87	Sec. 212.902. SCHOOL DISTRICT AND OPEN-ENROLLMENT CHARTER
88	88	SCHOOL LAND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS. (a) This section applies to an
89	89	agreement [agreements] between a school district or
90	90	open-enrollment charter school [districts] and a [any]
91	91	municipality which has annexed territory for limited purposes.
92	92	(b) On request by a school district or open-enrollment
93	93	charter school, a municipality shall enter an agreement with the
94	94	board of trustees of the school district or the governing body of
95	95	the open-enrollment charter school to establish review fees, review
96	96	periods, and land development standards ordinances and to provide
97	97	alternative water pollution control methodologies for school
98	98	buildings constructed by the school district or open-enrollment
99	99	charter school. The agreement shall include a provision exempting
100	100	the district or charter school from all land development ordinances
101	101	in cases where the district or charter school is adding temporary
102	102	classroom buildings on an existing school campus.
103	103	(c) If the municipality and the school district or
104	104	open-enrollment charter school do not reach an agreement on or
105	105	before the 120th day after the date on which the municipality
106	106	receives the district's or charter school's request for an
107	107	agreement, proposed agreements by the [school] district or charter
108	108	school and the municipality shall be submitted to an independent
109	109	arbitrator appointed by the presiding district judge whose
110	110	jurisdiction includes the [school] district or charter school. The
111	111	arbitrator shall, after a hearing at which both the [school]
112	112	district or charter school and the municipality make presentations
113	113	on their proposed agreements, prepare an agreement resolving any
114	114	differences between the proposals. The agreement prepared by the
115	115	arbitrator will be final and binding upon both the [school]
116	116	district or charter school and the municipality. The cost of the
117	117	arbitration proceeding shall be borne equally by the [school]
118	118	district or charter school and the municipality.
119	119	(d) A school district or open-enrollment charter school
120	120	that requests an agreement under this section, at the time the
121	121	district or charter school [it] makes the request, shall send a copy
122	122	of the request to the commissioner of education. At the end of the
123	123	120-day period, the requesting district or charter school shall
124	124	report to the commissioner the status or result of negotiations
125	125	with the municipality. A municipality may send a separate status
126	126	report to the commissioner. The district or charter school shall
127	127	send to the commissioner a copy of each agreement between the
128	128	district or charter school and a municipality under this section.
129	129	(e) An agreement between a municipality and an
130	130	open-enrollment charter school under Subsection (b) may require
131	131	that:
132	132	(1) any revised land development standards may apply
133	133	only while the property is used for purposes of the charter school;
134	134	and
135	135	(2) any property in use subject to land development
136	136	standards established only for an open-enrollment charter school
137	137	must be brought into compliance with all development regulations
138	138	applicable to non-school related commercial developments by the
139	139	property owner after closure or relocation of the charter school.
140	140	(f) [(e)] In this section:
141	141	(1) "Land [, land] development standards" includes
142	142	impervious cover limitations, building setbacks, floor to area
143	143	ratios, building heights and coverage, water quality controls,
144	144	landscaping, development setbacks, compatibility standards,
145	145	traffic analyses, including traffic impact analyses, parking
146	146	requirements, signage requirements, and driveway cuts, if
147	147	applicable.
148	148	(2) "Open-enrollment charter school" means a school
149	149	granted a charter under Subchapter C, D, or E, Chapter 12, Education
150	150	Code.
151	151	(g) [(f)] Nothing in this section shall be construed to
152	152	limit the applicability of or waive fees for fire, safety, health,
153	153	or building code ordinances of the municipality prior to or during
154	154	construction of school buildings, nor shall any agreement waive any
155	155	fee or modify any ordinance of a municipality for an
156	156	administration, service, or athletic facility proposed for
157	157	construction by a school district or open-enrollment charter
158	158	school.
159	159	SECTION 3. Section 552.053(b), Local Government Code, is
160	160	amended to read as follows:
161	161	(b) The following may be exempt:
162	162	(1) this state;
163	163	(2) a county;
164	164	(3) a municipality; or
165	165	(4) [a] school districts and open-enrollment charter
166	166	schools [district].
167	167	SECTION 4. Section 12.103(c), Education Code, is repealed.
168	168	SECTION 5. An exemption granted to a school district under
169	169	Section 552.053(b)(4), Local Government Code, as that subdivision
170	170	existed before the effective date of this Act, automatically
171	171	extends to all open-enrollment charter schools located in the
172	172	municipality after the effective date of this Act unless the
173	173	municipality repeals the exemption before the effective date of
174	174	this Act.
175	175	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
176	176	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
177	177	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
178	178	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
179	179	Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
180	180	______________________________ ______________________________
181	181	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
182	182	I certify that H.B. No. 1707 was passed by the House on April
183	183	28, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 101, Nays 45, 1 present, not
184	184	voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
185	185	No. 1707 on May 25, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 130, Nays 8,
186	186	1 present, not voting.
187	187	______________________________
188	188	Chief Clerk of the House
189	189	I certify that H.B. No. 1707 was passed by the Senate, with
190	190	amendments, on May 23, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 25, Nays
191	191	6.
192	192	______________________________
193	193	Secretary of the Senate
194	194	APPROVED: __________________
195	195	Date
196	196	__________________
197	197	Governor