 |
 |
| Join Us | NEA | Contact Us | Search |
|
Wrap-Up of 2007 Texas Legislature
TSTA Makes a Difference in the 80th Legislature
Major Threats Defeated, Slow Progress Leaves Unfinished Business
Last year, Texas voters made it clear that public education is their top priority, and thanks to your efforts in both the primary and general elections, we saw a dramatic increase in the number of our pro-education allies in the Texas House. Due in large part to our work in the 2006 elections, TSTA members were able to call on legislators this year to make a real difference on major issues that directly impact educators and our public schools.
In January, TSTA conducted a statewide poll that showed a solid majority of Texans of all political persuasions believe the state should increase public school funding and increase teacher pay across the board instead of granting “incentive pay” increases to only a few. Our polling indicated 80% of Texans know the school finance “band aid” passed in 2006 was not a real school funding solution; legislators, who had fought through four years of regular and special session school finance battles, left that critical unfinished business to the 81st Legislature in 2009.
Craddick Loses One in the House
Despite restrictive rules the leadership imposed on House budget debate—rules that placed state surplus funds off limits for a teacher pay amendment—the House passed an amendment developed by TSTA and sponsored by Rep. Rick Noriega that redirected $583 million from a proposed incentive pay plan to provide all teachers an across-the-board pay raise of roughly $800 - $900. The leadership did everything possible to stop this amendment, and they failed on a 82-65 vote. While a conference committee later cut this amount in half, after losing this fight, the House leadership never put another bill that would have a negative impact on educational employees on the floor.
Is Dr. Leininger in the House?
Dr. Leininger spent an estimated $7 million of his own money trying to elect pro-voucher candidates in the last election cycle. Unlike the 2005 session, when he was working out the Speaker’s Office, Dr. Voucher was noticeably absent this session, with good reason—no voucher bill ever made it to the floor of the Texas House. Furthermore, a TSTA-supported state budget rider by Rep. Joe Heflin, prohibiting the use of state funds for private school vouchers, was adopted by an overwhelming House majority.
In the Senate, a coalition of 11 Democrats and 4 Republicans kept a voucher bill sponsored by Education Chair Florence Shapiro from ever coming to the floor.
Old Enemies, New Friends
The Governor’s Business Council, which played a major role in the reforms adopted during the last special session, became the Texas Institute for Education Reform this session and was pushing the same old high stakes testing agenda. Headed up by Sandy Kress (one of the chief architects of the No Child Left Behind law), James Windham (a staunch pro-voucher supporter), and Bill Hammond (president of the Texas Association of Business), they found life much more difficult after the 2006 elections.
In the Senate they, along with the Texas Public Policy Foundation, were pushing legislation that would have made due process and non-renewal protections a sham by changing the teacher appraisal system in a way that could have made student performance on high-stakes standardized tests the determining factor in personnel decisions about discharging or not renewing a teacher. TSTA and the newly founded Raise Your Hand group, headed up by former Lt. Governor Bill Ratliff, kept this bill (which was sponsored by Chairwoman Shapiro) off the floor of the Senate for over a month. The legislation never made it to the floor of the House.
Offense Was Another Story
Unfortunately, we were never able to get the bills that moved our agenda to the floor of the House. Offense is difficult when the leadership opposes your agenda, but the bottom line is clear. In the last 18 months, we learned that we can affect policy through our work to elect candidates and hold them accountable. By the time the 2009 session convenes, we must be prepared to take the next step and demand that our elected leaders make a real commitment that respects the long term needs of our children and those who educate them. TSTA has proudly supported a majority of the members of the Legislature, but neither TSTA nor the majority of Texans are likely to support those who support future budgets that do not adequately address our highest priority: public education.
Important Note on Salaries
Although school districts will receive enough money to provide an average $425 pay raise, since the budget rider does not include pass through language, local associations will need to work with their school boards to insure that local teachers get the money.
Bills TSTA Opposed that Were Defeated
SB 1000
by Shapiro would have created a voucher program for students with autism
beginning with the 2008-09 school year.
At the option of the parent, an autistic student would have been able to attend any public school or an accredited private school. The private school would receive the same amount of money that the student would have been entitled to at the home school. The private school would not have been governed by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) or the State Board of Education (SBOE). Once a student qualified for a voucher, the student would have been eligible to continue to receive it for each year until the student graduated from high school or turned 22.
SB 1643 by Shapiro would have directed the commissioner of education to establish an accountability system for educator preparation programs. Part of that evaluation would have been based on the performance of the students taught by a teacher for the first three years after certification and the percentage of teachers who remained in the profession for five or more years.
The commissioner would have been directed to adopt a new appraisal process for teachers. A majority of that appraisal would have been based on student performance and at least 25% of the evaluation would have been based on student test scores. If a teacher got an unsatisfactory appraisal he/she would have been put on an improvement plan. If a teacher got three unsatisfactory appraisals the school district would have been required to terminate that teacher.
HB 1607 by Zedler related to the dissemination of
false or misleading information by a professional association or
organization for educators and if passed would have granted the Texas
Attorney General the authority to impose civil penalties for disseminating
any form of false or misleading information, including information that
omits relevant facts in order to elicit a particular opinion. This bill had
the potential to significantly restrict the free speech rights of Texas
educators.
HB 2136 by Hancock would have required districts
with an enrollment of more than 5,500 students and that made 20 total
referrals at a middle school, junior high or high school during the
preceding school year to list each agency, organization, or other entity,
and number of times, to which a student is referred by a counselor for
services. This bill would have encumbered a counselor's ability to do their
job in a confidential manner.
HB 2508 by P King was defeated on the House floor by a point of order. This bill was designed to prohibit a member of the board of trustees or an employee of a school district from using state or local funds or other resources or facilities of the district, including time for which the person is being compensated by the district, to electioneer for or against any candidate, measure, or political party.
HB 2697 by Hancock related to the authority of public schools to operate distance learning schools which essentially created a virtual voucher. Charter schools were included and anyone could apply including home schooled children and possibly even out of state children. No fees or tuition were allowed to be collected for enrollment, and the most problematic part was that districts would have lost funds for those students who applied from their district.
HB 2785 by Paxton would have further reduced property taxes to $0.91 with an approximate cost of 1.4 billion. The bill would have taken $1.4 billion every two years from children’s schools, health care, and other important programs.
HB 2887 by T King would have allowed information to be provided by a superintendent or principal regarding the performance of a school district or campus employee to a prospective employer. The bill would also have allowed for a teacher evaluation to be shared by exempting it from confidentiality under these circumstances. The bill would have given legal immunity for all statements made in good faith by an administrator.
HB 3423 by Eissler related to performance appraisals of public school teachers and was a piece of the Governor’s Business Council agenda. This bill would have made a majority of a teacher’s appraisal be based on student achievement, with 25% of a teacher’s appraisal linked to high stakes testing and 10% being based on campus performance on high stakes tests. The bill would also have allowed a district to decline renewal if a teacher received an unsatisfactory appraisal for two consecutive years.
HB 3868 by Paxton would have allowed public education grants with certain limitations. The concern for this bill was that a school choice voucher could have been added to the language of the bill allowing for vouchers for private schools.
Bills TSTA Supported That Passed
SB 135 by Wentworth provides a school district may not restrict the ability of an employee to communicate directly with a member of the local school board regarding matters relating to the operation of the district except for communications relating to the termination/non-renewal of an employee.
SB 136 by Nelson directs T
EA to develop and make available to school districts an internet safety curriculum that a district may use to educate students about the potential dangers of allowing personal information to appear on the internet.
SB 158 by Seliger adds educational diagnosticians to the list of people who, beginning September 1, 2008, must have appropriate certification by the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) in order to be employed.
SB 230 by Harris provides that if a student with legal issues changes schools, the parole or probation office having jurisdiction over that student shall notify the superintendent, or designee, in the new district of the arrest, etc., of the student. The superintendent shall notify all instructional and support personnel that will have regular contact with the student.
SB 282 by Gallegos directs school districts to notify parents of ninth grade and above students about programs in which the student can earn college credit, dual credit, advanced placement and international baccalaureate programs.
SB 370 by Shapiro provides a school district may not adopt a policy to require an employee, who acts in good faith, to pay for or replace student property that was in the employee’s possession because of incidents within the scope of the employee’s duties. Similarly, a district may not require an employee, who acts in good faith, to pay for a textbook, an electronic textbook or technological equipment that is damaged, stolen, misplaced or not returned.
An employee may be required to assume financial responsibility for school property if the property is used for personal business.
SB 389 by Shapiro authorizes the SBO
E to increase the amount of school bonds that it will guarantee with the Permanent School Fund, up to five times the value of the PSF. Current law allows the SBOE to guarantee local bonds up to 2.5 times the value of the PSF.
SB 1039 by Lucio provides an exception to the Teacher Retirement System (TRS) rule that allows a retire/rehire to work six months in public schools without affecting his or her TRS annuity. This bill allows a retiree to work into June, but not past the 15th of the month, without affecting his or her June TRS annuity.
SB 1433 by Van de Putte creates an
Employers for Education Excellence Award. The awards are to honor employers that implement policies to encourage employees to actively participate in activities of schools.
SB 1456 by Uresti directs TEA to maintain on the agency website a list of links to websites that provide information regarding the prevention of child abuse. TEA will also develop and periodically update a training program on child abuse that a school district may use for staff development.
SB 1713 by Eltife provides a school district shall (current law says may) allow a parent to designate a childcare facility or grandparent’s residence as the place the student will ride the bus to, if the location is an approved stop.
SB 1871 by Zaffirini provides that information TEA collects on students of limited English proficiency shall be disaggregated by the method of instruction used for each student.
HB 208 by Flores provides for protections to students who participate in extracurricular activities or UIL competitions to remain eligible even though the student is enrolled in a course offered for joint high school and college credit.
HB 314 by Eissler allows parents to make a written request to have multiple birth siblings placed in either the same or different classrooms. The district must honor the request unless it is determined by the principal and teacher in consultation that the placement is disruptive by the end of the first grading period following the multiple birth siblings' enrollment in the school. A parent may appeal the principal's classroom placement of multiple birth siblings. During an appeal, the multiple birth siblings shall remain in the classroom chosen by the parent.
HB 426 by Madden mandates that educators employed for Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs be properly certified, and that the Texas Education Agency adopt minimum standards for the operation of the programs including student/teacher ratios, student health and safety and training for teachers in behavior management and safety procedures.
HB 776 by Dutton provides that when a child is taken into custody, that child may be brought to the school campus to which the child is assigned if school is in session and if the principal, the designee, or a peace officer assigned to the campus agrees to assume responsibility for the child for the remainder of the school day. Current law mandates that the child be released to a parent, brought to a juvenile detention facility, brought before the juvenile board, to a secure detention facility, or to a medical facility, if necessary.
HB 828 by Hochberg provides a hold harmless provision for the funding formulas for districts using Austin ISD as the baseline for determining each district's funding levels.
HB 973 by Eissler provides that an employee of a district participating in designated health plans who resigns after the last day of an instructional year is entitled to maintain insurance through the first anniversary of the date the plan was first made available to district employees for the last instructional year in which the employee was employed by the district; and the district may not diminish or eliminate the amount of a contribution available before the last date on which the employee is entitled to participate.
HB 1563 by Bolton mandates that a district issue a high school diploma posthumously to each student who died while enrolled in the district in the 12th grade upon a parents’ request. The student must have been academically on track at the time of death to receive a diploma, and not convicted or adjudicated of certain felony offenses.
HB 1609 by Crownover provides for the duties of the Commissioner of Education for the Communities in Schools program including establishing standards for improvement in student behavior, academic achievement and promotion, graduation, retention and dropout rates. Also provides the responsibilities of the Texas Education Agency in encouraging business participation, obtaining information from participating schools, use of federal and state funds, and other area concerning the program identified by the Commissioner. The Commissioner may withhold funding if it is determined that a program consistently fails to achieve performance goals, objectives and measures. Funding for these programs will come from funds appropriated for other allotments for service programs under Chapter 33 of the Texas Education Code.
HB 1622 by Delisi mandates that a district grievance policy must permit a district employee to report a grievance against a supervisor that alleges that supervisor's violation of the law in the workplace or unlawful harassment of the employee to a supervisor other than the one complained against.
HB 1700 by Hilderbran adds the "Nature Science Curriculum Project" to be developed by SBOE jointly with Texas Tech University Center at Junction, T-STEM at Tech, and South Llano River State Park and in accordance with section. This course will comply with the new 4x4 curriculum. Covers grades 6-12, and must be grade level appropriate in compliance with TEKS identified by SBOE for science and mathematics, social studies, and ELA to extent practicable and relevant to nature science.
HB 2112 by Patrick provides for a criminal offense if a person intentionally exhibits, uses or threatens to exhibit or use a firearm in a manner intended to cause alarm or personal injury to another person or to damage school property in or on any property, including a parking lot, garage or other area, that is owned by a private or public school or on a school bus.
HB 2383 by Lucio creates a subsidy for certification examinations for students who successfully complete a career and technology program for a certain trade or occupation, passes a certification exam to qualify for a license or certification for the trade or occupation, demonstrates financial need, and attended a public high school.
HB 2399 by Delisi provides twenty-five percent of the funds a campus receives under the Texas Educators Excellence Award program may now be used for a teacher retention demonstration project to identify and retain highly effective teachers including a selection strategy focused on attracting new and experienced teachers who have deep content knowledge and a commitment to long-term participation in the teaching profession, and an alternative certification program that prepares individuals who have deep content knowledge and outstanding academic or professional achievement for long-term participation in the teaching profession.
HB 2504 by Eissler mandates the Commissioner of Education to establish an intervention program in which a participating campus provides intensive math intervention for students not performing at grade level in four through seven, and algebra readiness intervention for grade eight.
HB 2646 by Rose allows for stipends to be paid under the Texas Educator Excellence Award Program to teachers who have obtained national board certification.
HB 2814 by Eissler creates a Language Immersion Pilot Project to be used at campuses that demonstrate a substantial enrollment of students with limited English proficiency or bilingual students, demonstrate parent, teacher and community support, and commit to a language immersion program for a minimum of three years.
HB 3171 by Swinford mandates TEA to develop an internet safety and use curriculum that a district may use to educate students about dangers of internet, copyright laws and consequences of cyber plagiarism and theft of audiovisual works.
HB 3659 by Dunnam prohibits the release under the Open Records Act of the name of a person who is enrolled in a public or private primary or secondary school and involved in an improper relationship with an educator.
Other Education Legislation That Passed
SB 7 by Hinojosa requires each school district to make available annual training for employees and volunteers in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the use of a defibrillator. Coaches, nurses, PE instructors, marching band leaders, etc., must take the training. The SBOE shall, by rule, include CPR and the use of a defibrillator in the health curriculum.
Each school district shall have at least one defibrillator on each campus. To the extent practical, each district shall make a reasonable effort to have a defibrillator at each athletic practice. Each school district, in cooperation with the University Interscholastic League (UIL), shall determine the extent to which defibrillators must be available at UIL competitions, including a staff person trained to use it.
SB 8 by Janek directs the
UIL to prohibit student participation in UIL activities unless the student agrees not to use steroids and agrees to submit to random drug testing. Parents have to sign a form acknowledging that the student may be subject to random drug testing.
The bill requires coaches in seventh grade and above to complete an educational program developed by the
UIL. The UIL will adopt rules to randomly test a statistically significant number of students for drugs in 30% of high schools. The UIL will provide for a period of ineligibility to participate in UIL athletic competitions for any student who tests positive or refuses to submit to random testing.
SB 9 by Shapiro directs SB
EC, on receipt of an alleged incident of misconduct by an educator, to place a notice of the incident on the educator’s certification record, if the alleged misconduct presents a risk to the health, safety or welfare of a student. If it is determined the educator has not engaged in the alleged misconduct, the board shall immediately remove the notice from the educator’s certification record.
It provides that SBEC may suspend/revoke or deny certification to people convicted of offenses ranging from moral turpitude to sexual or physical abuse of a minor, etc. It requires a national background check, using fingerprints, for current and future school employees.
The state will pay for the current employees to have the national background check. Future applicants for certification or employment shall pay this cost.
It creates a national clearinghouse, administered by the Department of Public Safety, to maintain information on each person submitted for a background check. In the future, SB
EC will be notified of any arrest of an educator on file in the clearinghouse, and that information will be made available to the employing school district.
It directs school districts to refuse employment to and terminate a person whose background check found a conviction for a felony offense under Title 5, Penal Code (murder, kidnap, sexual assault, etc.) or conviction for an offense for which the person has to register as a sex offender, unless the date of the offense is more than 30 years ago.
SB 82 by Van de Putte directs the commissioner, by rule, to adopt an extracurricular activity safety training program that must be completed by coaches, trainers, sponsors of athletic activities and marching band directors. The training must include certification by the American Red Cross or similar training in CPR, recognizing symptoms for potentially catastrophic injuries, etc. Students participating in athletics must receive training, including warnings about substances marketed to enhance athletic performance. Each competing student must complete and sign a
UIL form on medical history and an acknowledgement of the rules.
A school that is determined to be out of compliance with these requirements shall be subject to penalties to be determined by the UIL.
SB 530 by Nelson provides that school districts shall require students in grades K-5 to participate in moderate or vigorous physical activity for at least 30 minutes each day or at least 135 minutes per week. For grades 6-8 the district shall require 30 minutes of moderate or vigorous activity for four semesters of that time. School districts shall assess the physical fitness of students in grades 3-12.
SB 556 by Lucio creates an interagency obesity council, including the commissioner of education. The council shall meet at least once a year to discuss each agency’s programs to promote better health and prevent obesity and to consider the feasibility of tax incentives for employers who promote activities to reduce obesity.
SB 606 by Ogden provides that the name of a student or minor included in a report as a victim of abuse or unlawful conduct by an educator is not public information.
SB 670 by Ellis provides that local school boards, by December 31, 2007, may adopt a resolution changing the length of terms for trustees. The resolution must provide for either three or four year terms and must specify the transition methodology.
SB 673 by Zaffirini provides a district shall issue a certificate of attendance to a student who receives special education services and has completed four years of high school but has not completed an Individualized Education Program (IEP). The student shall also be allowed to participate in graduation ceremonies.
SB 827 by West expands to middle schools a Department of Agriculture program that currently demonstrates agricultural products and creates awareness of agriculture to urban elementary schools.
SB 883 by Deuell provides a school district may not be required to pay an impact fee unless the district enters into a contract with the political subdivision that imposes the fee.
SB 960 by Shapleigh directs the commissioner of education to allow a student, who is a military dependent, to meet the Texas exit level exam requirement by taking a recognized norm referenced test, if the student transfers to Texas after their sophomore year.
SB 962 by Shapleigh provides a district’s wealth is reduced by 25% in the formula to qualify for state facilities assistance, if the district demonstrates to the commissioner’s satisfaction that the money is necessary to serve students who are military dependents, who are transferred to the district because of the federal base closure and realignment act.
SB 1031 by Shapiro phases out the high school TAKS tests and replaces them with end-of-course exams in the core subjects starting with students entering the ninth grade in 2011-12.
The 12 end-of-course exams will be in math (algebra I & II and geometry), science (biology, chemistry and physics), social studies (world history, world geography, and U.S. history) and English language (English I, II, and III). To graduate from high school, a student must get an average score of 70 on the three tests in each core subject area. A student who scores below 60 on an exam must retake the test. The end-of-course exam will count as 15% of the student’s score for that course.
The end-of-course exams shall not be administered before the first week of May (except the
English exams, because additional time is needed to grade the writing sections).
The state will pay for each eighth grade student to take a nationally norm-referenced preliminary college prep assessment instrument for the purpose of diagnosing academic strengths and deficiencies of each student prior to high school.
The state will pay for each tenth grade student to take a preliminary college prep assessment instrument to measure the student’s progress toward college readiness and the workplace.
The state will pay for eleventh or twelfth grade students to take one nationally norm referenced assessment instrument used by colleges as part of their undergraduate admissions process.
The bill directs the commissioner to establish security procedures for these tests and makes it a Class C misdemeanor to intentionally disclose any portion of the secure assessment instrument.
The bill created a 15-member select committee, co-chaired by the chairs of the House and Senate education committees, to do a comprehensive review of the current accountability system.
SB 1161 by Jackson increases from seven to 10 days the time a school district has to file a complaint against a student/parent for failure of the student to attend school.
SB 1447 by Duncan authorizes TRS to invest in a wider range of products in order to efficiently manage the fund and reduce the risk of the overall investment portfolio.
SB 1504 by Van de Putte directs a school district to include in its multi-hazard emergency operations a plan for responding to a train derailment if the train track is within 1000 yards of school property.
SB 1517 by Janek provides that no pass/no play provisions do not apply to honors courses, AP classes, international baccalaureate, or dual credit classes in the core subjects or a foreign language. T
EA shall, on a biennial basis, determine if other courses should be added to the list.
SB 1788 by Shapiro creates a virtual school network run by the SBOE and paid for by the state. These electronic courses would be primarily delivered over the internet and would require the same number of instructional hours and include the same essential knowledge and skills requirements as a traditional class. Online course could be offered by institutions of higher education or a school district rated acceptable or higher. Teachers of online courses would have to be certified by SBEC.
The SBOE shall establish criteria for electronic courses, provide a list of approved courses, and evaluate the courses.
SB 1846 by Duncan provides an increase in the state contribution to TRS to 6.58%. It provides that, if needed to fund the retiree’s 13th check, the active employee’s contribution may be increased to 6.58%. It provides that if the system is actuarially sound TRS will provide retirees a 13th check in September 2007. The 13th check will be equal to the lesser of the retiree’s regular monthly annuity or $2400. However, if on September 1 TRS determines the system is not actuarially sound, the active employee’s contribution could be increased in order to help fund the 13th check. If there is still not enough money to cover the retirees’ increase, TRS may delay the delivery of the 13th check. TRS may not provide a 13th check if the board determines that doing so would extend the unfunded liability period beyond the 30 year allowable limit.
It changes the current law that requires districts to pay a surcharge for employing retire/rehire employees who retired after January 1, 2005 to cover people who retired after August 31, 2005.
SB 1877 by Averitt clarifies that salary amounts designated as health care supplementation (the $500 state health insurance stipend) count as salary for TRS purposes.
SB 1912 by Shapleigh provides SB
EC may issue temporary certification to an out-of-state teacher who has met all the requirements for certification except passing the exit exam. A certificate issued under this provision to a teacher, who is employed by a district that has constructed or expanded at least one instructional facility due to increased enrollment because of the federal base closure act, may not expire before the first anniversary of the date on which SBEC completes the review of the educator’s credentials.HB 121 by Dukes requires each school district to adopt and implement a dating violence policy in the district improvement plan. The policy must include a definition of dating violence that includes the intentional use of physical, sexual, verbal, or emotional abuse by a person to harm, threaten, intimidate, or control another person in a dating relationship; and address safety planning, enforcement of protective orders, school-based alternatives to protective orders, training for teachers and administrators, counseling for affected students, and awareness education for students and parents.
HB 155 by Pickett provides procedures for TRS when an error of incorrect payment to a retiree is discovered and mandates that TRS, upon discovery of an overpayment, to adjust any future payments to recover the overpayment, and provides for a complaint process by which a person may grieve the notice of overpayment and adjustment.
HB 188 by Hochberg mandates school boards to designate a request for production of textbooks in a subject area and grade level by the school year in which the textbooks are intended to be made available in classrooms. Also allows for the purchase of supplemental textbooks and if the cost is under the state limit districts are entitled to receive a credit of the difference at 50% of the amount. Credits may be used to pay the difference if the cost is more than the limit allowed and may also be used to pay for additional textbooks and electronic textbooks.
HB 189 by Hochberg prohibits a superintendent of a school district from receiving any financial benefit for personal services performed for any business entity that conducts or solicits business with the district. Any financial benefit received by a superintendent for performing personal services for any other entity must be approved by the school board in open meeting on a case by case basis.
HB 273 by Truitt mandates that any school district that enters into a purchasing contract valued at $25,000 dollars or more must document any contract related fee, including a management fee, and the purpose of each fee under the contract; and must be submitted in an annual report to the school board in open meeting.
HB 278 by Madden creates a Class C misdemeanor for violating any rule adopted by a school board providing for the operation and parking of vehicles on school property.
HB 323 by Hamilton requires that each school bus purchased after September 1, 2010 shall be equipped with a three-point seat belt for each passenger. Districts may implement a disciplinary policy to enforce the use of seat belts by students. The bill also mandates that districts report annually the number of accidents involving their school buses.
HB 425 by Madden mandates the Commissioner of Education to establish instructional requirements for education services provided by districts and charter schools in a pre or post adjudication facility under contract with the Texas Youth Commission. Rules must be adopted to ensure that students receiving educational services in these types of settings remain on track for completing high school graduation.
HB 438 by Hochberg amends the Tax Code to allow an appraisal office to increase the appraised value of a residence homestead for a tax year to an amount not to exceed the lesser of the market value for the most recent tax year the market value was determined by the appraisal office or 10%.
HB 566 by Hamilton allows for a school district to adopt a policy requiring a person that is at least 18 years of age to attend school until the end of the school year.
HB 606 by Madden provides that the procedures for write-in voting in school board elections also apply to an election for trustees of a common school district operating under Chapter 22 as that chapter existed on May 1, 1995.
HB 708 by Puente establishes the week in which September 17 falls to be designated as "Celebrate Freedom Week" in public schools in order to educate students about the sacrifices made for freedom in the founding of this country and the values on which this country was founded.
HB 890 by Hilderbran establishes the "Trust for County Permanent School Fund" which would protect proceeds from the disposal of county school lands and put it into a trust. The principal of the trust must be held in perpetuity for the strict use for public schools in county.
HB 945 by Herrero provides that school districts wholly or partly within a county with a population of less than 30,000 that is adjacent to a county with a population of more than three million holding elections authorized by a certain section of the election code, may hold its general elections on the same date.
HB 978 by Wayne grants districts another 30 days in which to publish its annual fiscal statement after every fiscal year.
HB 1059 by Parker requires that the Department of State Health Services prepare a list of all the immunizations required for admission to public schools and a list of immunizations recommended for school-age children in English and in Spanish. It further requires that a district that maintains an Internet website to post the above lists, health clinics known to offer the influenza vaccine, and a link to the Department of Health Services Internet website prominently on the website in English and in Spanish.
HB 1137 by Hochberg extends funding for schools to include people over 21 years of age but not over 26 years of age who are admitted to complete the requirements for a high school diploma. Provides a student who attends class between 75%-90% of the days class is offered, may be given credit for completing a plan approved by the school’s principal to meet the course requirements.
HB 1270 by Eissler changes the current permissive provision to require the commissioner to establish an intensive reading and language intervention pilot program. The pilot program must be made available to participating campuses during the 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 school years. Students will be selected to participate based on certain assessment data and be administered a benchmark test at the beginning and end of the program.
HB 1287 by Chisum establishes elective courses on the Bible and its impact on the history and literature of western civilization. These electives may be offered to students in grades nine and above. The purpose of these courses is specifically articulated in the statute, a student may use as the basic textbook a different translation than that chosen by the district or teacher, a course offered must follow all applicable laws and guidelines in maintaining religious neutrality, the State Board of Education must submit the proposed TEKS for these electives to the Attorney General for review to ensure compliance with the First Amendment, any educator teaching these electives must hold a minimum of a High School Composite Certification in designated subject areas and must complete staff development training, and if fewer than 15 students at a campus register to enroll in these electives, the district is not required to offer the course at that campus for that semester. Districts may also offer elective courses based on the books of a religion other than Christianity based on student and parent demand and the impact such books have had on history and culture. The Commissioner of Education must develop and make available training materials and other teacher training resources for districts to use in assisting teachers of elective Bible courses.
HB 1400 by Dutton mandates the Texas Public Finance Authority to establish a nonprofit corporation to act on behalf of the state to issue revenue bonds for authorized open-enrollment charter schools for the purpose of acquisition, construction, repair, or renovation of facilities.
HB 1679 by Hughes requires additional documentation for the General Land Office to determine the existence of vacant public school land, field notes describing the land and the lines and corners surveyed and a plot depicting the results of the survey.
HB 1748 by Morrison transfers responsibility for administration of the Texas Governor’s schools from TEA to the Higher Education Coordinating Board.
HB 1844 by C Howard creates the "Home Schooled Student Merit Scholarship and Advanced Placement Testing" program to permit a home schooled student to participate in an administration of the PSAT/NMSQT test or a college advanced placement test offered by the District. Home schooled student must pay the same fee as what an enrolled student would pay.
HB 1922 by Kolkhorst provides for the eligibility of a district to apply for state assistance with the payment of its existing debt. This bill simply amends current law to cover the fiscal year for 2006-2007.
HB 2171 by Swinford allows a district that does not offer each grade level from K to 12 and whose students generally attend a school in another state for grades not offered may start school on any date permitted by the laws of the other state.
HB 2176 by Deshotel requires the State Board of Education and the Attorney General to develop a parenting and paternity awareness program that a district must use in its high school health curriculum. The program must address parenting skills, relationship skills and skills relating to prevention of family violence.
HB 2190 by Truitt repeals the requirement that the Executive Director of TRS must be a Texas resident for at least three years preceding appointment.
HB 2237 by Eissler deals with dropout prevention initiatives in various forms and techniques. This review is simply the highlights of what is in the bill. First, it mandates that best practices relating to dropout prevention be placed in the online clearinghouse administered by TEA. The bill also requires a study be conducted relating to the best practices for dropout prevention to include high-performing and highly efficient dropout prevention programs, select the best programs identified for use in Texas, and recommend future legislation or other actions for implementation of programs. Second, it creates the Science Laboratory Grant Program which will be a competitive grant program for additional funds to be used in constructing and renovating high school science labs. Third, it provides for additional professional development activities for teachers and administrators not to exceed $2.5 million dollars each year, and the training under this provision shall include training relating to implementing curriculum and instruction that is aligned with the foundation curriculum and college readiness standards. Fourth, it establishes the Mathematics Instructional Coaches Pilot Program to provide assistance in developing the content knowledge and instructional expertise of teachers who instruct students in mathematics at middle, junior and high schools. Approved service providers such as academies and training centers including T-STEM centers are approved for the use of this grant. Fifth, it creates Teacher Reading Academies to be developed by the Commissioner of Education to include training for a teacher providing instruction in reading to students at the sixth, seventh or eighth grade levels in various subject areas. Teachers covered that are assigned to an academically unacceptable campus must attend a reading academy. The bill also provides for the implementation of a reading instrument at the beginning of seventh grade to students not demonstrating a reading proficiency in the sixth grade. Sixth, beginning with the 2008-09 school year; the SBOE shall incorporate college readiness standards and expectations into the TEKS of the foundation curriculum. This bill also provides for College Preparatory Courses and the development of TEKS of courses in college prepatory mathematics, science, social studies, and English language arts. Finally, this bill includes Grants for Student Clubs, Collaborative Dropout Reduction Pilot Program, Intensive Technology-Based Academic Intervention Pilot Program, Intensive Summer Programs, Education "Go Get It" Week, Higher Education and Workforce Readiness Programs, Dropout Prevention Strategies, Technology-Based Supplemental Instruction Pilot Program, High School Innovation Grant Initiative, and the High School Completion and Success Initiative which creates a council for future recommendations.
HB 2341 by Truitt allows for an educational institution to refuse a salary reduction agreement with an employee if the eligible qualified investment product is offered by a company that does not comply with the educational institution's administrative requirements and Internal Revenue code provisions.
HB 2411 by Strama provides for a conflict of interest provision for a board member who also is a stockholder, officer, director or employee of a bank submitting proposals to become a depository for school district.
HB 2427 by Truitt is the TRS Sunset bill which requires TRS to reduce disability annuities on a sliding scale based on other income for people who exceed an income level, to be determined, requires that TRS Board members to get training on TRS, after election and before beginning to make decisions, and finally requires that TRS provide more retirement benefit counseling around the state and that TRS to do more oversight of qualified investment products it approves for use by educators to supplement their TRS annuity.
HB 2455 by B Cook makes it an excused absence when a student attends a required court appearance including travel without penalty.
HB 2503 by Eissler creates the "Technology Literacy Assessment" Pilot Program which is a competitive grant program. It allows for a district to participate in the program in order to assess student technology proficiency, and assessment instruments shall be adopted by TEA for use by the districts. Each year the assessment instrument shall be implemented in the participating districts to students in either fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth or ninth grade. All results must be reported to TEA.
HB 2532 by Patrick authorizes the board of trustees to expel a student charged with a Title 5 felony regardless of whether the incident occurred on or off school property. The bill provides that, after a hearing, a student charged with assault, sexual offenses or other crime in Title 5 of the Penal Code must be placed in Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Program if one is available or in a Disciplinary Alternative Education Program.
HB 2563 by Hancock creates a legal duty for school boards regarding their superintendents and mandates that school boards implement and monitor plans, procedures, and other stated initiatives to achieve appropriate, clearly defined and desired results in major areas of district operations. The bill also mandates other board duties and legal obligations including making all hiring and firing decisions of educators and other employees. Board may delegate employment decisions to superintendent of non contract employees. The acceptance and rejection of employment of contract employees must be reflected in the minutes. Board will assume responsibilities for termination or suspension of an employee or the non-renewal of an employee's contract.
HB 2626 by Murphy relates to campus level purchasing decisions and allow Houston ISD which has formally adopted a site-based decision making plan delegating purchasing decisions to the campus level does not require the district to aggregate and jointly award purchasing contracts.
HB 2664 by Truitt provides that the actuarial valuation study and report of each public retirement system, including TRS, shall be independently audited at least once every five years.
HB 2864 by Chisum creates a pilot program to provide supplemental technology-based instruction to students in rural school districts. The Commissioner must establish a grant program for instruction for grades six through twelfth.
HB 3092 by Hilderbran adds Texas Juvenile Probation Commission and any other residential program for students confined by court order operated by a governmental unit, including a juvenile board, to be excluded from reporting requirements for the school district where the facility is located. Test results for these students shall be considered separately.
HB 3190 by Giddings establishes minimum guidelines for operating a multifunctional school bus, disqualifying those convicted of drunk or reckless driving in the past ten years, and requires school districts to conduct emergency bus evacuation exercises.
HB 3226 by Branch relates to equalization of property wealth in certain school districts by identifying effect of additional state aid for tax reduction. Defines situations allowed when a districts wealth rate exceeds the amount of state revenue to which the district is entitled.
HB 3259 by Branch creates an International Assessment Instrument Program which districts may participate. The Commissioner shall compare performance on international assessment instrument in this state with students of same grade level in other countries. Also provides for professional development for educators under this program.
HB 3457 by Hochberg requires buses with diesel engines to keep engines off when at school or at a school event except when arriving or departing, or as necessary for pre-heating/cooling before departure.
HB 3485 by S King instructs TEA to establish a panel to review and recommend revisions to the career and technical education curriculum; and review and recommend revisions for the program in which high schools and articulated postsecondary institutions allow high school students to take advanced technical credit courses.
HB 3495 by Otto requires the wording on public notices of a governing body, including school boards, for a meeting to vote on a change in tax rates to specifically say the meeting is about a tax revenue increase.
HB 3618 by Raymond adopts a pilot program for Type 2 Diabetes along the border counties. It requires school districts participating in the program to track the height, weight, and blood glucose levels for student in kindergarten through 8th grade.
HB 3678 by C Howard provides for public forums for which a student may express religious viewpoints. A district must treat a student's voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint in the same manner as it would treat a student's secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject and may not discriminate against a student based on a religious viewpoint. Districts must adopt a policy that includes a limited public forum for a student to speak at all school events at which a student is to publicly speak. Students are also now free to express their religious beliefs in homework, artwork, and other written and oral assignments free from discrimination. Students must also be free to organize religious groups and activities before, during and after school using school facilities to the same extent that students are permitted to organize for other non-curricular activities and groups.
HB 3699 by McCall allows the State Board of Education to invest permanent school funds in real estate and authorizes the board to hire external managers for the investments.
HB 3826 by Morrison provides that to qualify for college admission under the top 10% rule a high school graduate must have taken the recommended or advanced high school program or gotten a 1500 or better (out of 2400) on the SAT exam.
HB 3851 by Morrison requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to establish a uniform method for computing a high school GPA using a 4.0 scale by assigning weights for different level of instruction such as; advance placement, honors, and international baccalaureate. The bill is to ensure a uniform standard for college admission. Each university or college will also be required to file a report on the composition breakdown of each freshman class.
HB 3900 by Morrison creates the Texas Tomorrow Fund II and allows for pre-paid tuition programs. There are three different programs or tiers that may be purchased for pre-paid tuition based on what type of college a student is expected to attend.
|
TSTA/NEA: FIGHTING FOR TEXAS PUBLIC SCHOOLS SINCE 1880 316 West 12th Street, Austin, TX 78701 * 877-ASK-TSTA * ©2007 Texas State Teachers Association |