Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1924 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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1	1	By: Patterson H.B. No. 1924
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the establishment of an ombudsman for parents of
7	7	children enrolled in public school.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Subtitle E, Title 2, Education Code, is amended
10	10	by adding Chapter 26A to read as follows:
11	11	CHAPTER 26A. OMBUDSMAN
12	12	SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
13	13	Sec. 26A.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "ombudsman"
14	14	means the individual who has been appointed as the ombudsman under
15	15	this chapter.
16	16	SUBCHAPTER B. APPOINTMENT AND ADMINISTRATION
17	17	Sec. 26A.051. APPOINTMENT OF OMBUDSMAN. (a) The State
18	18	Board of Education shall appoint an ombudsman for parents of
19	19	children enrolled in public school to serve at the will of the
20	20	board.
21	21	(b) To be eligible for appointment as ombudsman, a person:
22	22	(1) must be:
23	23	(A) a resident of this state; and
24	24	(B) a parent of a child enrolled in a school
25	25	district or open-enrollment charter school; and
26	26	(2) may not be a current or former elected official.
27	27	(c) The ombudsman is administratively attached to the
28	28	agency.
29	29	(d) From money appropriated for the purpose, the ombudsman
30	30	may employ staff to assist the ombudsman in performing the
31	31	ombudsman's duties under this chapter.
32	32	Sec. 26A.052. COMMUNICATION AND CONFIDENTIALITY. (a) A
33	33	person may communicate with the ombudsman regarding a complaint by
34	34	telephone, mail, e-mail, or any other means the ombudsman
35	35	determines to be feasible, secure, and generally accessible.
36	36	(b) Information received by the ombudsman regarding a
37	37	complaint is confidential and not subject to disclosure under
38	38	Chapter 552, Government Code. The ombudsman shall maintain the
39	39	information in a manner that preserves the information's
40	40	confidentiality.
41	41	(c) The disclosure of confidential information to the
42	42	ombudsman under this chapter does not constitute a waiver of
43	43	confidentiality. Any information disclosed to the ombudsman under
44	44	this chapter remains confidential and privileged following
45	45	disclosure.
46	46	(d) This section does not prohibit the ombudsman from
47	47	communicating with the agency, the State Board of Education, or a
48	48	school district or open-enrollment charter school regarding
49	49	confidential information disclosed to the ombudsman by the agency,
50	50	board, district, or school.
51	51	Sec. 26A.053. PUBLIC OUTREACH. The ombudsman shall
52	52	collaborate with the agency to develop and implement an annual
53	53	outreach plan to promote awareness of the ombudsman among parents
54	54	of children enrolled in a school district or open-enrollment
55	55	charter school.
56	56	SUBCHAPTER C. DUTIES AND POWERS
57	57	Sec. 26A.101. DUTIES AND POWERS OF OMBUDSMAN. (a) The
58	58	ombudsman serves as a neutral party in assisting parents of
59	59	children enrolled in a school district or open-enrollment charter
60	60	school with complaints regarding issues involving the agency, the
61	61	State Board of Education, or a school district or open-enrollment
62	62	charter school.
63	63	(b) The ombudsman shall develop and implement statewide
64	64	procedures to:
65	65	(1) receive complaints from parents of children
66	66	enrolled in a school district or open-enrollment charter school
67	67	regarding unethical conduct or a violation of state or federal law
68	68	relating to public education or agency procedure or policy by:
69	69	(A) the agency, the State Board of Education, or
70	70	a school district or open-enrollment charter school; or
71	71	(B) an employee of the agency, the State Board of
72	72	Education, or a school district or open-enrollment charter school;
73	73	(2) review complaints filed with the ombudsman and
74	74	take appropriate action, including:
75	75	(A) conducting an investigation; and
76	76	(B) referring to the agency for resolution any
77	77	trends or systemic issues identified in complaints;
78	78	(3) provide any necessary assistance to parents of
79	79	children enrolled in a school district or open-enrollment charter
80	80	school in making complaints or reporting allegations of behavior
81	81	described by Subdivision (1); and
82	82	(4) ensure a parent of a child enrolled in a school
83	83	district or open-enrollment charter school who filed a complaint
84	84	receives a report on the results of any investigations conducted or
85	85	final determinations made regarding the complaint.
86	86	Sec. 26A.102. INVESTIGATION OF UNREPORTED VIOLATIONS. If,
87	87	during the investigation of a complaint, the ombudsman discovers
88	88	unreported unethical conduct or violations described by Section
89	89	26A.101(b)(1), the ombudsman shall open a new investigation for
90	90	each unreported occurrence of unethical conduct or violation.
91	91	Sec. 26A.103. RETALIATION PROHIBITED. (a) The agency, a
92	92	school district, or an open-enrollment charter school may not
93	93	retaliate against:
94	94	(1) a parent of a child enrolled in a school district
95	95	or open-enrollment charter school who in good faith makes a
96	96	complaint to the ombudsman; or
97	97	(2) any person, including an employee of the agency,
98	98	State Board of Education, district, or school, who in good faith
99	99	cooperates with the ombudsman in an investigation.
100	100	(b) The ombudsman shall collaborate with the agency to
101	101	establish consequences for a retaliatory action taken in violation
102	102	of this section.
103	103	Sec. 26A.104. ACCESS TO INFORMATION. The agency shall
104	104	provide the ombudsman access to the agency's records relating to a
105	105	complaint filed with the ombudsman under this chapter.
106	106	Sec. 26A.105. REPORTS. (a) The ombudsman shall issue and
107	107	file with the agency a report that contains the ombudsman's final
108	108	determinations regarding a complaint and any recommended
109	109	corrective actions to be taken as a result of the complaint.
110	110	(b) Notwithstanding Section 26A.052, the ombudsman may make
111	111	a report relating to an investigation of a complaint public after
112	112	the complaint is resolved. A report made public under this
113	113	subsection may not include information that identifies any person
114	114	involved in the complaint, including the complainant, a child's
115	115	parent, or an employee of the agency, the State Board of Education,
116	116	a school district, or an open-enrollment charter school.
117	117	(c) Not later than December 1 of each year, the ombudsman
118	118	shall prepare and submit to the agency and the State Board of
119	119	Education a report on the ombudsman's work during the preceding
120	120	year. The report must include:
121	121	(1) a description of the ombudsman's work;
122	122	(2) any change made by the agency in response to a
123	123	substantiated complaint;
124	124	(3) a description of any trends in the nature of
125	125	complaints received by the ombudsman, any recommendations related
126	126	to addressing those trends, and an evaluation of the feasibility of
127	127	the ombudsman's recommendations;
128	128	(4) a glossary of terms used in the report;
129	129	(5) a description of the methods used to promote
130	130	awareness of the ombudsman under Section 26A.053 and the
131	131	ombudsman's outreach plan for the next year; and
132	132	(6) any public feedback received by the ombudsman
133	133	relating to the ombudsman's previous reports under this subsection.
134	134	(d) On receipt of the report required under Subsection (c),
135	135	the agency shall make the report publicly available on the agency's
136	136	Internet website.
137	137	SECTION 2. As soon as practicable after the effective date
138	138	of this Act, the State Board of Education shall appoint an ombudsman
139	139	under Chapter 26A, Education Code, as added by this Act.
140	140	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.