Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2619 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Creighton S.B. No. 2619
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6	6	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	7	AN ACT
8	8	relating to the board of trustees and superintendent of a school
9	9	district, including the election of trustees of underperforming
10	10	districts, and the hiring of a superintendent.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 11, Education Code, is
13	13	amended by adding Section 11.0585 to read as follows:
14	14	Sec. 11.0585. ELECTION OF TRUSTEES OF CERTAIN
15	15	UNDERPERFORMING DISTRICTS. (a) This section applies only to a
16	16	school district that:
17	17	(1) received an overall performance rating of F under
18	18	Section 39.054 for the preceding two school years; or
19	19	(2) was designated as rapidly declining under
20	20	Subsection (b) for the current school year.
21	21	(b) The commissioner shall designate a school district as
22	22	rapidly declining if, during the preceding two school years, the
23	23	district's relative performance percentile ranking assigned under
24	24	Section 39.060 decreased by at least:
25	25	(1) 15 percentage points; or
26	26	(2) a number of percentage points determined by the
27	27	commissioner.
28	28	(c) Not later than December 31 following the assignment of
29	29	performance ratings under Section 39.054 or relative performance
30	30	percentile rankings under Section 39.060, the commissioner shall
31	31	notify the board of trustees of each school district to which this
32	32	section applies that this section applies to the district.
33	33	(d) Notwithstanding any other law, the term of each trustee
34	34	on the board of trustees of a school district to which this section
35	35	applies expires on the date of the first regularly scheduled
36	36	election that occurs before December 31 of the year following the
37	37	year in which notice was received under Subsection (c) and must be
38	38	filled at that election. The trustees elected under this
39	39	subsection shall draw lots for staggered terms as provided by
40	40	Section 11.059.
41	41	(e) The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to
42	42	implement this section.
43	43	SECTION 2. Subchapter D, Chapter 11, Education Code, is
44	44	amended by adding Section 11.15125 to read as follows:
45	45	Sec. 11.15125. REVIEW OF SUPERINTENDENT APPLICANTS. (a)
46	46	Before taking a final action or vote on the employment of an
47	47	applicant for the position of superintendent of a school district,
48	48	the board of trustees of the district shall review the history of
49	49	the academic performance of each school or school system in which
50	50	the applicant has served in a leadership role.
51	51	(b) The history reviewed under this section must:
52	52	(1) include the relative performance percentile
53	53	rankings of each applicable school district and open-enrollment
54	54	charter school under Section 39.060; and
55	55	(2) be made publicly available on the district's
56	56	Internet website during the public notice period described by
57	57	Section 552.126, Government Code, for each applicant who is a
58	58	finalist being considered for the position.
59	59	(c) The commissioner may adopt rules to implement this
60	60	section.
61	61	SECTION 3. Section 11.1518, Education Code, is amended to
62	62	read as follows:
63	63	Sec. 11.1518. TRUSTEE INFORMATION POSTED ON WEBSITE AND
64	64	SUBMITTED TO AGENCY. (a) Each school district [that maintains an
65	65	Internet website] shall post on the district's Internet website the
66	66	name, e-mail address, and term of office, including the date the
67	67	term began and the date the term expires, of each member of the
68	68	district's board of trustees.
69	69	(b) [If a school district does not maintain an Internet
70	70	website, the district shall submit the information required by
71	71	Subsection (a) to the agency. On receipt of the district's
72	72	information, the agency shall post the information on the agency's
73	73	Internet website.
74	74	[(c)] Each time there is a change in the membership of a
75	75	school district's board of trustees, the district shall, not later
76	76	than the 30th day after the date a trustee is sworn in, update the
77	77	information required under Subsection (a) and[, as applicable:
78	78	[(1)] post the updated information on the district's
79	79	Internet website[; or
80	80	[(2) submit the updated information to the agency for
81	81	posting on the agency's Internet website in accordance with
82	82	Subsection (b)].
83	83	(c) Each school district shall submit to the agency the
84	84	name, e-mail address, phone number, designation as chair, if
85	85	applicable, and term of office, including the date the term began
86	86	and the date the term expires, of each member of the district's
87	87	board of trustees:
88	88	(1) annually; and
89	89	(2) each time there is a change in the membership of
90	90	the board of trustees, not later than the 30th day after the date a
91	91	trustee is sworn in.
92	92	(d) The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to
93	93	implement this section.
94	94	SECTION 4. Section 11.159, Education Code, is amended by
95	95	adding Subsections (d-1), (d-2), and (d-3) to read as follows:
96	96	(d-1) A regional education service center or another
97	97	authorized provider may not provide training under this section
98	98	until the agency has approved:
99	99	(1) the provider to provide the training;
100	100	(2) the content of the training;
101	101	(3) the manner in which the training is provided; and
102	102	(4) the location and time of the training.
103	103	(d-2) The agency may not approve the provision of training
104	104	under this section:
105	105	(1) by a provider who engages in electioneering or any
106	106	other form of political advocacy for or against any candidate,
107	107	measure, or political party;
108	108	(2) by a provider, agent of a provider, or entity
109	109	affiliated with a provider that primarily represents political
110	110	subdivisions of this state; or
111	111	(3) that occurs during a meeting of a professional
112	112	organization of school district employees.
113	113	(d-3) The agency shall adopt a procedure for the appeal of a
114	114	disapproval of a training by a provider under Subsection (d-1).
115	115	SECTION 5. Subchapter A, Chapter 12, Education Code, is
116	116	amended by adding Section 12.005 to read as follows:
117	117	Sec. 12.005. GOVERNING BOARD INFORMATION SUBMITTED TO
118	118	AGENCY. (a) Each holder of a charter to operate a charter school
119	119	under this chapter shall submit to the agency the name, e-mail
120	120	address, phone number, designation as chair, if applicable, and
121	121	term of office, including the date the term began and the date the
122	122	term expires, of each member of the school's governing body:
123	123	(1) annually; and
124	124	(2) each time there is a change in the membership of
125	125	the governing body.
126	126	(b) The commissioner may adopt rules to implement this
127	127	section.
128	128	SECTION 6. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
129	129	amended by adding Section 39.060 to read as follows:
130	130	Sec. 39.060. RELATIVE PERFORMANCE PERCENTILE RANKING. The
131	131	commissioner shall annually assign and publish a relative
132	132	performance percentile ranking of each school district and
133	133	open-enrollment charter school based on the data used for
134	134	evaluating relative performance in the school progress domain under
135	135	Section 39.053(c)(2)(B).
136	136	SECTION 7. Section 39A.208, Education Code, is amended by
137	137	amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (f) to read
138	138	as follows:
139	139	(a) Notwithstanding any other law and except as provided by
140	140	Subsection (f) [A board of managers shall], during the period of the
141	141	appointment of a board of managers, [order] the election of members
142	142	of the board of trustees of the school district is suspended [in
143	143	accordance with applicable provisions of law]. Except as provided
144	144	by Subsections [Subsection] (b) and (f), the members of the board of
145	145	trustees do not assume any powers or duties after the election until
146	146	the appointment of the board of managers expires.
147	147	(b) Except as otherwise provided by Subsection (c), not
148	148	later than the second anniversary of the date the board of managers
149	149	of a school district was appointed, the commissioner shall notify
150	150	the board of managers and the board of trustees of the date on which
151	151	the appointment of the board of managers will expire. Following
152	152	each of the last three years of the period of the appointment,
153	153	one-third of the members of the board of managers shall be replaced
154	154	by the number of members of the board of trustees of the district
155	155	who were elected at an election ordered under Subsection (f) [(a)]
156	156	that constitutes, as closely as possible, one-third of the
157	157	membership of the board of trustees.
158	158	(f) The commissioner shall ensure that the elections of
159	159	trustee positions are ordered in accordance with Subsection (b).
160	160	After an election ordered under this subsection, the commissioner
161	161	shall set staggered terms for the trustees elected and select which
162	162	trustee replaces which manager. If selected by the commissioner, a
163	163	trustee elected under this subsection who has satisfied all legal
164	164	and procedural prerequisites to assuming the office of trustee
165	165	assumes the powers and duties of the office at the first official
166	166	board meeting after the election.
167	167	SECTION 8. Section 39A.208, Education Code, as amended by
168	168	this Act, applies only to an election ordered on or after the
169	169	effective date of this Act. An election ordered before the
170	170	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the
171	171	election was ordered, and the former law is continued in effect for
172	172	that purpose.
173	173	SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.