Bill Text: TX HB1957 | 2013-2014 | 83rd Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to the establishment of the recovery school district.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-04-09 - Left pending in committee [HB1957 Detail]
Download: Texas-2013-HB1957-Introduced.html
83R8261 GCB-F | ||
By: Dutton | H.B. No. 1957 |
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relating to the establishment of the recovery school district. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Chapter 39, Education Code, is amended by adding | ||
Subchapter E-1 to read as follows: | ||
SUBCHAPTER E-1. RECOVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT | ||
Sec. 39.131. ESTABLISHMENT OF RECOVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT. | ||
The recovery school district is established to provide an | ||
appropriate education for students attending any public elementary | ||
or secondary school campus operated under the prior jurisdiction of | ||
an independent school district that has been transferred to the | ||
jurisdiction of the district under Section 39.107(e). | ||
Sec. 39.1311. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "prior | ||
system" means the independent school district of which a school | ||
transferred to the recovery school district is a part. | ||
Sec. 39.1312. ADMINISTRATION OF RECOVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT; | ||
SUPERINTENDENT. (a) The commissioner shall appoint a qualified | ||
individual as superintendent to administer the recovery school | ||
district. | ||
(b) The recovery school district may provide for the | ||
supervision, management, and operation of a school placed under the | ||
district's jurisdiction and may receive, control, and spend the | ||
local, state, and federal funding attributable to that school with | ||
all the same authority as the prior system from which the school was | ||
transferred. | ||
(c) The recovery school district may contract with | ||
for-profit providers for the general operation of and any needed | ||
services for a school under the district's jurisdiction. | ||
(d) In providing for the operation of schools within the | ||
district's jurisdiction, at any time the district seeks | ||
participation by a college or university or a consortium of | ||
colleges and universities to provide for the operation of any | ||
school or group of schools, the district shall include an | ||
opportunity for participation by colleges and universities that | ||
historically were established to provide education for African | ||
American students in this state. | ||
Sec. 39.1313. SUNSET PROVISION. The recovery school | ||
district is subject to Chapter 325, Government Code (Texas Sunset | ||
Act). Unless continued in existence as provided by that chapter, | ||
the district is abolished September 1, 2025. | ||
Sec. 39.132. FINANCIAL POWERS. (a) The recovery school | ||
district may: | ||
(1) seek, spend, manage, and retain federal funding | ||
and grant funding in the same manner as an independent school | ||
district; | ||
(2) spend, manage, and retain funding with the same | ||
authority as an independent school district; and | ||
(3) maintain and manage fund balances. | ||
(b) The recovery school district may not impose an ad | ||
valorem tax. | ||
(c) Expenditures of funds are subject to the requirements of | ||
the Foundation School Program formulas that apply to a public | ||
school and are subject to audit in the same manner. | ||
Sec. 39.1321. PROCUREMENT. (a) The recovery school | ||
district has the same authority and autonomy afforded to an | ||
independent school district under state law regarding the | ||
procurement of: | ||
(1) services, including personal, professional, | ||
consulting, and social services; and | ||
(2) property. | ||
(b) The recovery school district is not required to use or | ||
obtain the approval of any state agency, including the Texas | ||
Facilities Commission, comptroller, or Department of Information | ||
Resources, when procuring data processing and telecommunications | ||
goods or services or materials, supplies, or major repairs or in the | ||
disposition of property, except that the district shall comply with | ||
all other applicable provisions of Subtitles D, E, and F, Title 10, | ||
Government Code, regarding such procurement and disposition of | ||
property. | ||
(c) The recovery school district may require an independent | ||
school district to provide school support or student support | ||
services for a school transferred from the school district's | ||
jurisdiction, including student transportation, school food | ||
service, or student assessment for special education eligibility, | ||
that are compliant with all laws and regulations governing such | ||
services. In such case, the recovery school district shall | ||
reimburse the actual cost to the independent school district | ||
providing such services. If a dispute arises between the recovery | ||
school district and the independent school district providing such | ||
services regarding the cost of the services to be reimbursed, the | ||
comptroller shall determine the cost to be reimbursed. | ||
Sec. 39.1322. USE OF SCHOOL FACILITIES. (a) The recovery | ||
school district may use any school building and any facility or | ||
property otherwise part of the school and recognized as part of the | ||
facilities or assets of the school before the school was | ||
transferred to the recovery school district, and has access to such | ||
additional facilities as were typically available to the school and | ||
the school's students, faculty, and staff before the school's | ||
transfer to the recovery school district. | ||
(b) The use of school facilities or property under | ||
Subsection (a) may not be restricted, except that the recovery | ||
school district is responsible for and shall provide for routine | ||
maintenance and repair so that the facilities and property are | ||
maintained in as good an order as when the right of use was acquired | ||
by the district. The district is not required to provide for the | ||
type of extensive repair to buildings or facilities that would be | ||
considered to be a capital expense. Such extensive repairs shall be | ||
provided by the prior system that is responsible for the facility. | ||
Sec. 39.133. MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS FUNDING. (a) The | ||
legislature shall annually appropriate sufficient money to fund | ||
each school in the recovery school district in an amount equal to | ||
the school's average daily attendance multiplied by the state share | ||
per student as provided under the Foundation School Program for the | ||
independent school district in which the school is located. The | ||
appropriation shall be made to the agency for the district and may | ||
be expended by the agency only for the provision of services to | ||
students in the district. | ||
(b) In addition to the appropriation required by Subsection | ||
(a), the independent school district that had jurisdiction of a | ||
school before the school's transfer to the recovery school district | ||
shall annually allocate and transfer to the recovery school | ||
district an amount of money equal to the number of students in | ||
average daily attendance at the school multiplied by the per | ||
student amount received by the independent school district from | ||
maintenance and operations taxes, less the costs of assessing and | ||
collecting the taxes. | ||
(c) For each school transferred to the jurisdiction of the | ||
recovery school district, the commissioner shall reduce the amount | ||
of state funds otherwise to be allocated under the Foundation | ||
School Program to the independent school district from which the | ||
school was transferred by an amount equal to the amount provided | ||
under Subsection (a) for that school. | ||
(d) If there are insufficient funds available to provide the | ||
total due the recovery school district under this section after all | ||
state funds are reduced and allocated to the district, each prior | ||
system shall transfer a sufficient amount of money from the | ||
district's maintenance and operations tax revenue to the district. | ||
If the prior system's maintenance and operations tax revenue is | ||
insufficient to allow the prior system, after allocating funds to | ||
the district, to maintain a minimum balance of 10 percent of the | ||
state Foundation School Program funding to which the prior system | ||
would otherwise be entitled and 10 percent of the maintenance and | ||
operations tax revenue that the prior system would otherwise | ||
retain, local revenue otherwise required to be allocated to the | ||
district shall be reduced to an amount necessary to allow the prior | ||
system to maintain such balances. | ||
(e) All amounts to be appropriated or allocated and | ||
transferred under this section shall be estimated by the | ||
commissioner based on the most recent local revenue data and | ||
projected student counts available. Allocations to be transferred | ||
shall be adjusted during the year as necessary to reflect actual | ||
student counts and actual prior year local revenue collections. | ||
(f) Except for administrative costs, money appropriated to | ||
the recovery school district that is attributable to the transfer | ||
of a school from a prior system and money allocated or transferred | ||
from the prior system to the district may be expended solely on the | ||
operation of schools transferred from the prior system to the | ||
jurisdiction of the district. | ||
Sec. 39.134. PERSONNEL. (a) The recovery school district | ||
may employ such staff members as the superintendent considers | ||
necessary. | ||
(b) At the time of the transfer of a school to the recovery | ||
school district, each certified teacher with regular and direct | ||
responsibility for providing classroom instruction who is employed | ||
in the transferred school by the prior system shall be given | ||
priority consideration for employment in the same or a comparable | ||
position by the district. Each person employed by the prior system | ||
in a transferred school may choose to remain in the employment of | ||
the prior system and, in that case, the prior system shall retain | ||
and reassign such person consistent with its contractual | ||
obligations or policies regarding the retention and reassignment of | ||
employees. | ||
(c) Benefits and privileges of a person employed in a school | ||
by the recovery school district who was employed by the prior system | ||
at the time the school was transferred to the district's | ||
jurisdiction shall be the same as those required by law for | ||
employees of the prior system. | ||
(d) A person employed by the recovery school district in a | ||
school who was employed by the prior system at the time the school | ||
was transferred to the district's jurisdiction, for the purposes of | ||
permanent status and the retention on return to employment in the | ||
prior system of any employment benefit or right that requires | ||
continuous service or that becomes vested based on years of | ||
service, or both, shall be granted an approved leave of absence from | ||
the prior system for the period the school is under the jurisdiction | ||
of the recovery school district in order to be employed by the | ||
district. The period any employee is on such leave shall be | ||
considered service time by the prior system at any time the employee | ||
returns to the prior system's employment. Such approved leave shall | ||
not require the prior system to provide for benefits during the time | ||
the employee on leave is employed by the recovery school district. | ||
(e) The benefits and privileges of any person employed in a | ||
school by the recovery school district who was not employed by the | ||
prior system at the time the school was transferred to the | ||
jurisdiction of the district shall be determined at the time of such | ||
employment by the superintendent in compliance with any requirement | ||
of any applicable contract or requirement of law. | ||
Sec. 39.135. ENROLLMENT. (a) Except as otherwise provided | ||
by this section, only a student who would have been eligible to | ||
enroll in or attend a school before the school's transfer to the | ||
recovery school district may attend the school after it is | ||
transferred to the jurisdiction of the district. | ||
(b) A student who is eligible to participate in a school | ||
choice program established by the prior system shall be permitted | ||
to enroll in any school operated under the jurisdiction of the | ||
recovery school district that has sufficient capacity in the | ||
appropriate grade level. | ||
(c) The recovery school district may permit any student | ||
eligible to attend any school in the prior system to attend a school | ||
operated by the district in the area of the prior system. | ||
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the | ||
contrary, the recovery school district and a prior system that has | ||
had one or more schools transferred to the district shall enter into | ||
a cooperative agreement to allow any student enrolled in a school | ||
under each district's respective jurisdiction to enroll in a school | ||
under the jurisdiction of the other, provided the school in which | ||
the student seeks to enroll has sufficient capacity at the | ||
appropriate grade level. | ||
(e) The commissioner shall determine a school's maximum | ||
capacity by grade level for purposes of this section. | ||
(f) This section does not limit the authority of the | ||
recovery school district or an independent school district to | ||
establish attendance zones for the schools under each district's | ||
respective jurisdiction in accordance with established policy and | ||
any federal court order, judgment, or consent decree. | ||
Sec. 39.136. COMMUNITY OUTREACH PLAN. (a) The | ||
superintendent of the recovery school district shall develop a | ||
community outreach plan to engage parents and community leaders in | ||
the successful operation and academic improvement of all schools | ||
under the district's jurisdiction and to solicit input on any | ||
proposed changes in school governance or the establishment of any | ||
new school site. | ||
(b) Not later than December 15, 2014, the superintendent | ||
shall submit the community outreach plan to the State Board of | ||
Education, the Senate Education Committee, and the House Public | ||
Education Committee. The recovery school district shall implement | ||
the plan for use in the 2014-2015 school year and thereafter. This | ||
subsection expires September 1, 2015. | ||
SECTION 2. The heading to Section 39.107, Education Code, | ||
is amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 39.107. RECONSTITUTION; TRANSFER TO RECOVERY SCHOOL | ||
DISTRICT [ |
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SECTION 3. Section 39.107, Education Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsections (c), (e), and (e-1) and adding Subsection | ||
(e-4) to read as follows: | ||
(c) A campus subject to Subsection (a) shall implement the | ||
updated targeted improvement plan as approved by the | ||
commissioner. [ |
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(e) If a campus is considered to have an unacceptable | ||
performance rating for the school year [ |
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commissioner, subject to Subsection (e-1) [ |
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transfer the campus to the jurisdiction of the recovery school | ||
district established under Subchapter E-1 [ |
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(e-1) The commissioner may waive the requirement to | ||
transfer a campus [ |
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than one school year if the commissioner determines that, on the | ||
basis of significant improvement in student performance over the | ||
preceding two school years, the campus is likely to be assigned an | ||
acceptable performance rating for the following school year. | ||
(e-4) A campus transferred to the jurisdiction of the | ||
recovery school district must remain under that district's | ||
jurisdiction for at least three school years. Following each school | ||
year, the commissioner shall, as provided by Section 39.108, review | ||
the school's progress toward meeting academic standards. After the | ||
third school year in which the campus is under the jurisdiction of | ||
the recovery school district, the commissioner may return the | ||
campus to the jurisdiction of the district from which the campus was | ||
transferred if the commissioner finds that the campus: | ||
(1) has met the requirements for acceptable | ||
performance under Section 39.054; or | ||
(2) in each year in which the campus has been under the | ||
jurisdiction of the recovery school district, has made significant | ||
progress, as determined by commissioner rule, toward meeting the | ||
requirements for acceptable performance and is likely to be | ||
assigned an acceptable performance rating for the following school | ||
year. | ||
SECTION 4. Sections 39.110 and 39.115, Education Code, are | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 39.110. COSTS PAID BY DISTRICT. The costs of providing | ||
a [ |
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team, technical assistance team, [ |
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provider under this subchapter shall be paid by the district. If | ||
the district fails or refuses to pay the costs in a timely manner, | ||
the commissioner may: | ||
(1) pay the costs using amounts withheld from any | ||
funds to which the district is otherwise entitled; or | ||
(2) recover the amount of the costs in the manner | ||
provided for recovery of an overallocation of state funds under | ||
Section 42.258. | ||
Sec. 39.115. CAMPUS NAME CHANGE PROHIBITED. In | ||
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intervention or sanction on a campus under this subchapter, the | ||
commissioner may not require that the name of the campus be changed. | ||
SECTION 5. Section 39.152(a), Education Code, is amended to | ||
read as follows: | ||
(a) A school district or open-enrollment charter school | ||
that intends to challenge a decision by the commissioner under this | ||
chapter to transfer jurisdiction of a campus to the recovery school | ||
district [ |
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provided for a contested case under Chapter 2001, Government Code. | ||
SECTION 6. The following provisions of the Education Code | ||
are repealed: | ||
(1) Sections 39.107(d), (e-2), (e-3), (f), (g), (h), | ||
(j), (k), (l), (m), (n), (o), (p), and (r); and | ||
(2) Sections 39.111 and 39.112. | ||
SECTION 7. The commissioner of education shall appoint the | ||
superintendent of the recovery school district, as established | ||
under Subchapter E-1, Chapter 39, Education Code, as added by this | ||
Act, not later than January 2, 2014. The superintendent shall | ||
ensure that the recovery school district is prepared to begin | ||
operations with the 2014-2015 school year. For the 2013-2014 school | ||
year, the commissioner may impose any sanction under Section | ||
39.107, Education Code, as that section existed before amendment by | ||
this Act. Beginning with the 2014-2015 school year, any campus that | ||
meets the criteria for transfer to the jurisdiction of the recovery | ||
school district under Section 39.107(e), Education Code, as amended | ||
by this Act, shall be transferred to the district's jurisdiction. | ||
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |