Bill Text: TX SB14 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Engrossed
Bill Title: Relating to empowering the parents of students to petition for the reconstitution, repurposing, alternative management, or closure of low-performing public school campuses.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2015-05-19 - Left pending in committee [SB14 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-SB14-Engrossed.html
By: Taylor of Galveston | S.B. No. 14 | |
Bettencourt, Creighton |
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relating to empowering the parents of students to petition for the | ||
reconstitution, repurposing, alternative management, or closure of | ||
low-performing public school campuses. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Sections 39.107(a) and (e), Education Code, are | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) After a campus has been identified as unacceptable for | ||
two consecutive school years, the commissioner shall order the | ||
reconstitution of the campus, subject to Section 39.1071. | ||
(e) If a campus is considered to have an unacceptable | ||
performance rating for three consecutive school years after the | ||
campus is reconstituted under Subsection (a), the commissioner, | ||
subject to Subsection (e-1) or Section 39.1071 [ |
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order: | ||
(1) repurposing of the campus under this section; | ||
(2) alternative management of the campus under this | ||
section; or | ||
(3) closure of the campus. | ||
SECTION 2. Subchapter E, Chapter 39, Education Code, is | ||
amended by adding Sections 39.1071, 39.1072, and 39.1073 to read as | ||
follows: | ||
Sec. 39.1071. PETITION BY PARENTS FOR RECONSTITUTION, | ||
REPURPOSING, ALTERNATIVE MANAGEMENT, OR CLOSURE. (a) Unless the | ||
commissioner has ordered the closure of the campus under Section | ||
39.107, the parents of students enrolled at a campus with an | ||
unacceptable performance rating under Section 39.054 for three | ||
consecutive school years may, at any time, submit a petition to the | ||
commissioner requesting that the commissioner order one of the | ||
following actions authorized by Section 39.107: | ||
(1) reconstitution of the campus; | ||
(2) repurposing of the campus; | ||
(3) alternative management of the campus; or | ||
(4) closure of the campus. | ||
(b) A petition that seeks alternative management of a campus | ||
under Subsection (a)(3) may specify the process to be used in | ||
selecting the organization or team to assume management of the | ||
campus. If the petition specifies a process to be used, the | ||
commissioner is required to use the specified process and comply | ||
with the requirements prescribed by Section 39.1073. If the | ||
petition does not specify a process to be used, the organization or | ||
team must be selected by the parents of students enrolled at the | ||
campus. To the extent this subsection conflicts with another | ||
provision of this subchapter, this subsection prevails. | ||
(c) A petition must: | ||
(1) be in a form developed by the commissioner; | ||
(2) be made available to all parents of students | ||
enrolled at the campus; | ||
(3) include state accountability data on the status of | ||
the campus, including the performance rating of the campus for each | ||
year; and | ||
(4) include detailed information on the options | ||
available for the campus, including a copy of the proposed options | ||
listed under Subsection (a). | ||
(d) If the petition is signed by the parents of a majority of | ||
the students enrolled at the campus, as determined under Subsection | ||
(e), the commissioner shall order the specific action requested by | ||
the petition. If the petition requests: | ||
(1) reconstitution or repurposing of the campus, the | ||
commissioner shall consider input from the lead petitioner and the | ||
parents of students enrolled at the campus in implementing the | ||
order; | ||
(2) alternative management of the campus, the | ||
commissioner shall order alternative management of the campus by | ||
the organization or team selected as described by Subsection (b); | ||
or | ||
(3) closure of the campus, the commissioner shall | ||
order closure of the campus for the following school year. | ||
(e) The percentage of parents signing a petition shall be | ||
calculated based on the total number of students enrolled at the | ||
campus, applying the following rules: | ||
(1) the signature of only one parent of a student is | ||
required; | ||
(2) a student may not be counted more than once, | ||
regardless of whether more than one parent signs the petition on | ||
behalf of the student; and | ||
(3) the signature of a parent shall be counted on | ||
behalf of each child of the parent who is enrolled at the campus, | ||
unless otherwise indicated in the petition. | ||
(f) The petition may designate as a lead petitioner one or | ||
more parents of one or more students enrolled at the campus. The | ||
parent or parents shall be chosen annually by the parents of | ||
students enrolled at the campus. | ||
(g) The commissioner shall review the signatures on a | ||
petition to verify that the petition is signed by the parents of a | ||
majority of the students enrolled at the campus. In verifying that | ||
the petition is signed by the parents of a majority of the students | ||
enrolled at the campus, the commissioner may consult with any | ||
person necessary to make the verification, including the board of | ||
trustees for the district in which the campus is located, the | ||
principal of the campus, the lead petitioner, or any designated | ||
lead petitioner representative. | ||
(h) Not later than the 30th day after receipt of the | ||
petition or additional signatures under Subsection (j), the | ||
commissioner shall notify, in writing, the board of trustees for | ||
the district in which the campus is located, the principal of the | ||
campus, the lead petitioner, any designated lead petitioner | ||
representative, and any other person who has requested notice in | ||
writing of the commissioner's determination regarding whether the | ||
number of signatures on the petition is sufficient to compel the | ||
action sought in the petition. Additionally, the commissioner's | ||
written notice must: | ||
(1) state the number of students the commissioner has | ||
determined are enrolled at the campus; | ||
(2) state the number of signatures the commissioner | ||
counted when determining whether the necessary majority was | ||
attained; and | ||
(3) list the signatures that were not counted toward | ||
determining whether the necessary majority was attained and the | ||
reason each disqualified signature was not counted. | ||
(i) In verifying signatures, the commissioner may not | ||
disregard a signature if the clear intent of the person providing | ||
the signature was to support the petition. | ||
(j) If the commissioner determines that a petition is not | ||
signed by the parents of a majority of the students enrolled at the | ||
campus, the parents may, not later than the 45th day after the date | ||
of the commissioner's written notice under Subsection (h), submit | ||
additional signatures in support of the petition. | ||
(k) If additional signatures are submitted to the | ||
commissioner under Subsection (j), the commissioner shall review | ||
and verify the additional signatures in accordance with Subsections | ||
(e), (g), and (h). | ||
(l) If the commissioner determines that the petition is not | ||
signed by the parents of a majority of the students enrolled at the | ||
campus, the commissioner's determination is final and may not be | ||
appealed. | ||
(m) A student who resides in the campus's assigned | ||
attendance zone, as that zone existed during the school year | ||
immediately preceding implementation of an order under this | ||
section, and who is otherwise eligible to attend the campus may: | ||
(1) enroll in the campus during each school year that | ||
the student would otherwise be eligible to attend the campus; or | ||
(2) transfer and enroll in another campus in the | ||
district during each school year that the student would otherwise | ||
be eligible to attend the campus. | ||
(n) Notwithstanding Subsection (m), the board of trustees | ||
of a school district may assign or transfer a student between school | ||
facilities or classrooms in accordance with Chapter 37. | ||
(o) A person may not use school district or campus resources | ||
to support or oppose a petition under this section, except that | ||
school district or campus resources may be used to comply with a | ||
public information request under Chapter 552, Government Code. | ||
(p) A person may not coerce or bribe a parent to sign or | ||
decline to sign a petition under this section. | ||
(q) An operator of a charter school is prohibited from | ||
funding a parent petition campaign conducted under this section. | ||
(r) For purposes of this section, "parent" includes a | ||
student's parent, a student's legal guardian, a person with legal | ||
authority to act in place of a student's parent or legal guardian, | ||
or the student, if the student is 18 years of age or older, but does | ||
not include a parent whose parental rights have been terminated or | ||
whose rights to make decisions concerning a student's education | ||
have been limited. | ||
(s) The commissioner may adopt rules necessary to implement | ||
this section. | ||
Sec. 39.1072. PERFORMANCE UPDATES FOLLOWING PETITION BY | ||
PARENTS FOR RECONSTITUTION, REPURPOSING, ALTERNATIVE MANAGEMENT, | ||
OR CLOSURE. Following the submission of a petition for the | ||
reconstitution, repurposing, alternative management, or closure of | ||
a campus by the parents of students enrolled at the campus under | ||
Section 39.1071, the commissioner shall provide quarterly updates | ||
on the performance of the campus to parents of students enrolled at | ||
the campus. | ||
Sec. 39.1073. SELECTION OF ALTERNATIVE MANAGEMENT | ||
FOLLOWING PETITION BY PARENTS. (a) In this section, "management | ||
company" has the meaning assigned by Section 12.1012. | ||
(b) If the commissioner selects a charter holder as the | ||
organization or team to assume alternative management of a campus | ||
in accordance with a process specified in a petition for | ||
alternative management submitted by parents under Section 39.1071, | ||
the commissioner shall give preference to proposals submitted by | ||
charter holders who do not use the services of a management company | ||
to operate the charter holder's open-enrollment charter schools and | ||
who submit information demonstrating a record of success with | ||
respect to each item listed under Section 39.107(k). The | ||
commissioner may only consider proposals from charter holders that | ||
use the services of a management company if the commissioner does | ||
not receive proposals from charter holders that do not use the | ||
services of a management company and that submit information | ||
demonstrating a record of success with respect to each item listed | ||
under Section 39.107(k). | ||
(c) If the commissioner selects a charter school to assume | ||
alternative management of a campus in accordance with a process | ||
specified in a petition for alternative management submitted by | ||
parents under Section 39.1071, laws and rules applicable to | ||
open-enrollment charter schools under Subchapter D, Chapter 12, | ||
including laws and rules related to public information, open | ||
meetings, nepotism, conflict of interest, and other protections of | ||
public funds and public trust, shall apply to the campus. | ||
SECTION 3. Sections 39.107(e-2) and (e-3), Education Code, | ||
are repealed. | ||
SECTION 4. This Act applies beginning with the 2016-2017 | ||
school year, except that parents of students enrolled at a school | ||
campus that has been identified as unacceptable for three or more | ||
consecutive years as of the effective date of this Act may submit a | ||
petition under Section 39.1071, Education Code, as added by this | ||
Act, beginning on the effective date of this Act. | ||
SECTION 5. 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, 2015. |