89R9544 ANG-D
By: Menéndez S.B. No. 1671
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to individualized education program requirements for
students placed in alternative special education settings and
monitoring of alternative special education settings.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 29, Education Code, is
amended by adding Sections 29.0053 and 29.0105 to read as follows:
Sec. 29.0053. ADDITIONAL PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS FOR STUDENTS
IN ALTERNATIVE SPECIAL EDUCATION SETTINGS. (a) In this section:
(1) "Alternative special education setting" means:
(A) a school district campus at which 90 percent
or more of the enrolled students are provided special education and
related services; or
(B) a self-contained program that:
(i) operates at a district facility that
does not meet the criteria for an instructional campus, as defined
by commissioner rule; and
(ii) provides special education and related
services to 90 percent or more of the students in regular
attendance.
(2) "Committee" means a committee established under
Section 29.005(a).
(b) In developing or modifying an individualized education
program for a student who receives special education or related
services in an alternative special education setting, the student's
committee shall:
(1) develop individualized, measurable goals for
academic and social-emotional and behavioral growth that would
allow the student to be returned to a general education setting; and
(2) ensure that the student is in the least
restrictive environment that is appropriate to meet the student's
educational needs.
(c) The committee for a student described by Subsection (b)
must meet at least once each semester to review the student's
progress toward the goals developed under Subsection (b) and
determine whether the student may be returned to a general
education setting.
Sec. 29.0105. MONITORING OF ALTERNATIVE SPECIAL EDUCATION
SETTINGS. (a) In this section, "alternative special education
setting" has the meaning assigned by Section 29.0053.
(b) The agency shall assign a unique campus identification
number to each alternative special education setting for purposes
of data collection and analysis, reporting requirements, and state
monitoring of compliance with federal and state law relating to
special education.
(c) The comprehensive system for monitoring adopted and
implemented under Section 29.010 must provide for:
(1) specific monitoring regarding a school district's
compliance with the requirements of Section 29.0053; and
(2) the ongoing collection and analysis of data to
identify patterns of discrepancies between students receiving
special education or related services in an alternative special
education setting and students placed in general education
settings.
SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026
school year.
SECTION 3. 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, 2025.