| 1 | 1 | | By: Morales of Maverick H.B. No. 5039 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to the governance and number of trustees of certain |
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| 7 | 7 | | independent school districts. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Sec. 11.051, Education Code is amended to read |
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| 10 | 10 | | as follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | Sec. 11.051. GOVERNANCE OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT; |
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| 12 | 12 | | NUMBER OF TRUSTEES. (a) An independent school district is |
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| 13 | 13 | | governed by a board of trustees who, as a body corporate, shall: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (1) oversee the management of the district; and |
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| 15 | 15 | | (2) ensure that the superintendent implements and |
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| 16 | 16 | | monitors plans, procedures, programs, and systems to achieve |
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| 17 | 17 | | appropriate, clearly defined, and desired results in the major |
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| 18 | 18 | | areas of district operations. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (a-1) Unless authorized by the board, a member of the board |
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| 20 | 20 | | may not, individually, act on behalf of the board. The board of |
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| 21 | 21 | | trustees may act only by majority vote of the members present at a |
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| 22 | 22 | | meeting held in compliance with Chapter 551, Government Code, at |
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| 23 | 23 | | which a quorum of the board is present and voting. The board shall |
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| 24 | 24 | | provide the superintendent an opportunity to present at a meeting |
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| 25 | 25 | | an oral or written recommendation to the board on any item that is |
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| 26 | 26 | | voted on by the board at the meeting. |
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| 27 | 27 | | (b) The board consists of the number of members that the |
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| 28 | 28 | | district had on September 1, 1995. |
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| 29 | 29 | | (c) A board of trustees that has three or five members may by |
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| 30 | 30 | | resolution increase the membership to seven. A board of trustees |
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| 31 | 31 | | that votes to increase its membership must consider whether the |
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| 32 | 32 | | district would benefit from also adopting a single-member election |
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| 33 | 33 | | system under Section 11.052. A resolution increasing the number of |
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| 34 | 34 | | trustees takes effect with the second regular election of trustees |
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| 35 | 35 | | that occurs after the adoption of the resolution. The resolution |
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| 36 | 36 | | must provide for a transition in the number of trustees so that when |
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| 37 | 37 | | the transition is complete, trustees are elected as provided by |
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| 38 | 38 | | Section 11.059. |
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| 39 | 39 | | (d) A board of trustees of a an independent school district |
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| 40 | 40 | | eligible to receive funding under Chapter 48.101(b), Education |
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| 41 | 41 | | Code, that has seven members may by resolution decrease the |
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| 42 | 42 | | membership to five. A board of trustees that votes to decrease its |
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| 43 | 43 | | membership must certify that in two previous consecutive trustee |
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| 44 | 44 | | elections the board was unable to fill all trustee seats on the |
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| 45 | 45 | | board. A resolution decreasing the number of trustees takes effect |
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| 46 | 46 | | with the next regular election of trustees that occurs after the |
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| 47 | 47 | | adoption of the resolution. The resolution must provide for a |
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| 48 | 48 | | transition in the number of trustees so that when the transition is |
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| 49 | 49 | | complete, trustees are elected as provided by Section 11.059. |
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| 50 | 50 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 51 | 51 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 52 | 52 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 53 | 53 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 54 | 54 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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