S.B. No. 15
 
 
 
 
AN ACT
  relating to virtual and off-campus electronic instruction at a
  public school, the satisfaction of teacher certification
  requirements through an internship teaching certain virtual
  courses, and the allotment for certain special-purpose school
  districts under the Foundation School Program.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 21.051, Education Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
         (g)  Rules proposed by the board under Section 21.044(a) or
  this section may allow a candidate to satisfy certification
  requirements through an internship that provides the candidate
  employment as a teacher for courses offered through a local remote
  learning program under Section 29.9091 or the state virtual school
  network under Chapter 30A. This subsection expires September 1,
  2023.
         SECTION 2.  Section 25.092, Education Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (a-4) to read as follows:
         (a-4)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school
  may adopt a policy to exempt students from the requirements of this
  section for one or more courses identified in the policy that are
  offered under a local remote learning program under Section
  29.9091. This subsection expires September 1, 2023.
         SECTION 3.  Subchapter Z, Chapter 29, Education Code, is
  amended by adding Section 29.9091 to read as follows:
         Sec. 29.9091.  LOCAL REMOTE LEARNING PROGRAM. (a) A school
  district or open-enrollment charter school assigned an overall
  performance rating of C or higher under Section 39.054 for the
  preceding school year or the most recent school year in which a
  performance rating was assigned may operate a local remote learning
  program to offer virtual courses outside the state virtual school
  network under Chapter 30A to eligible students.
         (b)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school
  that operates a full-time local remote learning program must:
               (1)  include in the program:
                     (A)  at least one grade level in which an
  assessment instrument is required to be administered under Section
  39.023(a), including each subject for which an assessment
  instrument is required; or
                     (B)  a complete high school program, including
  each course for which an end-of-course assessment instrument is
  required to be administered under Section 39.023(c); and
               (2)  offer the option for a student's parent or person
  standing in parental relation to select in-person instruction for
  the student.
         (c)  A virtual course offered under a local remote learning
  program:
               (1)  may be provided through synchronous instruction,
  asynchronous instruction, or a combination of synchronous and
  asynchronous instruction; and
               (2)  may be provided in combination with in-person
  instruction as appropriate to meet the needs of individual
  students.
         (d)  A student is eligible to enroll in a virtual course
  offered under a local remote learning program if the student:
               (1)  is enrolled in a school district or
  open-enrollment charter school;
               (2)  has reasonable access to in-person services for
  the course at a district or school facility; and
               (3)  meets any additional criteria, including minimum
  academic standards, established by the school district or
  open-enrollment charter school in which the student is enrolled.
         (e)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school
  that operates a local remote learning program:
               (1)  shall periodically assess the performance of
  students enrolled in virtual courses under the program;
               (2)  subject to Subsection (f), may remove a student
  from virtual courses under the program and return the student to
  in-person instruction if the district or school determines that the
  student does not meet the criteria described by Subsection (d); and
               (3)  may not count a student for purposes of
  calculating the district's or school's average daily attendance if
  the student has 10 or more unexcused absences in the program in a
  six-month period.
         (f)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
  remove a student from virtual courses under Subsection (e)(2) only
  if the district or school establishes a process to ensure that each
  student and the student's parent or person standing in parental
  relation have sufficient notice and opportunity to provide input
  before the student is removed from those courses.
         (g)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
  contract with another school district or open-enrollment charter
  school to allow a student enrolled in the sending district or school
  to enroll in virtual courses offered under the local remote
  learning program of the receiving district or school. A student
  enrolled in virtual courses under an agreement described by this
  subsection is considered enrolled in the sending district or school
  for purposes of average daily attendance and accountability under
  Chapters 39 and 39A.
         (h)  An assessment instrument administered under Section
  39.023 or 39.025 to a student enrolled in a virtual course offered
  under a local remote learning program shall be administered to the
  student in the same manner in which the assessment instrument is
  administered to other school district or open-enrollment charter
  school students.
         (i)  If a school district or open-enrollment charter school
  offers virtual courses under a local remote learning program for
  students receiving special education services, the courses must
  meet the needs of a participating student in a manner consistent
  with Subchapter A of this chapter and with federal law, including
  the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section
  1400 et seq.) and Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C.
  Section 794).
         (j)  A teacher may not provide instruction for a virtual
  course offered under a full-time local remote learning program
  unless the teacher has completed a professional development course
  on virtual instruction.
         (k)  A district or school may not directly or indirectly
  coerce any teacher to agree to an assignment to teach a full-time
  local remote learning program. 
         (l)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
  not require a teacher to provide both virtual instruction and
  in-person instruction for a course during the same class period.  
  The commissioner may waive the requirements of this subsection for
  courses included in the enrichment curriculum under Section 28.002.
         (m)  A student enrolled in a virtual course offered under a
  local remote learning program may participate in an extracurricular
  activity sponsored or sanctioned by the school district or
  open-enrollment charter school in which the student is enrolled or
  by the University Interscholastic League in the same manner as
  other district or school students.
         (n)  Except as otherwise provided under Subsection (e)(3), a
  student enrolled in a virtual course offered under a local remote
  learning program shall be counted toward the school district's or
  open-enrollment charter school's average daily attendance in the
  same manner as other district or school students. The commissioner
  shall adopt rules providing for a method of taking attendance, once
  each school day, for students enrolled in a virtual course offered
  under a local remote learning program.
         (o)  Chapter 30A does not apply to a virtual course offered
  under a local remote learning program.
         (p)  This section does not prohibit a student enrolled in a
  school district or open-enrollment charter school that operates a
  local remote learning program from enrolling in courses offered
  through the state virtual school network under Chapter 30A.
         (q)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school
  that operates a local remote learning program may not enroll in the
  program a number of students that exceeds 10 percent of the total
  number of students enrolled in the district or school during the
  2021-2022 school year.  The commissioner may waive this subsection:
               (1)  on application by a school district or
  open-enrollment charter school; or
               (2)  in response to a public health emergency.
         (r)  In calculating under Subsection (q) the number of
  students that may be enrolled in a local remote learning program, a
  school district or open-enrollment charter school shall count
  students who spend at least half of the student's instructional
  time during the 2021-2022 school year or 2022-2023 school year, as
  applicable, enrolled in virtual courses or receiving remote
  instruction, other than by enrollment in electronic courses offered
  through the state virtual school network under Chapter 30A,
  including students enrolled in virtual courses or who received
  remote instruction during the 2021-2022 school year or 2022-2023
  school year, as applicable, because the student was:
               (1)  medically fragile; 
               (2)  placed in a virtual setting by an admission,
  review, and dismissal committee; or
               (3)  receiving accommodations under Section 504,
  Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794).
         (s)  This section expires September 1, 2023.
         SECTION 4.  Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
  amended by adding Section 39.0549 to read as follows:
         Sec. 39.0549.  EVALUATING VIRTUAL AND LOCAL REMOTE PROGRAMS.
  (a) In evaluating under Section 39.054 the performance of a school
  district or open-enrollment charter school that operates a
  full-time local remote learning program, the commissioner shall
  assign the program separate overall and domain performance ratings
  as if the program were a campus of the district or school. For
  purposes of assigning performance ratings under this subsection,
  students who spend at least half of the students' instructional
  time receiving virtual or remote instruction are considered
  enrolled in the program, including students:
               (1)  enrolled in virtual courses offered under a local
  remote learning program under Section 29.9091; or
               (2)  receiving remote instruction, regardless of
  whether the student is enrolled in a remote learning program
  offered under Section 29.9091 and including students receiving
  remote instruction who are:
                     (A)  medically fragile;
                     (B)  placed in a virtual setting by an admission,
  review, and dismissal committee; or
                     (C)  receiving accommodations under Section 504,
  Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794).
         (b)  A performance rating under this section is not subject
  to Section 39.054(a-3) or 39.0546.
         (c)  A performance rating assigned under this section may not
  be used for purposes of Section 39.0544 or for determining whether
  to impose any intervention or sanction authorized by Chapter 39A.
         (d)  This section expires September 1, 2023.
         SECTION 5.  Section 39.301, Education Code, is amended by
  adding Subsections (c-1) and (c-2) to read as follows:
         (c-1)  In addition to the indicators described by Subsection
  (c), the indicators for reporting purposes must include, for each
  school district and campus, the performance of students who spend
  at least half of the students' instructional time:
               (1)  in virtual courses offered under a local remote
  learning program under Section 29.9091; or
               (2)  receiving remote instruction, regardless of
  whether the student is enrolled in a remote learning program
  offered under Section 29.9091 and including students receiving
  remote instruction who are:
                     (A)  medically fragile;
                     (B)  placed in a virtual setting by an admission,
  review, and dismissal committee; or
                     (C)  receiving accommodations under Section 504,
  Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794).
         (c-2)  Subsection (c-1) and this subsection expire September
  1, 2023.
         SECTION 6.  Section 48.005, Education Code, is amended by
  adding Subsections (h-1), (m-1), and (m-2) to read as follows:
         (h-1)  Subject to rules adopted by the commissioner under
  Section 48.007(b), time that a student participates in a course or
  program provided under Section 48.0071(b) shall be counted as part
  of the minimum number of instructional hours required for a student
  to be considered a full-time student in average daily attendance
  for purposes of this section. This subsection expires September 1,
  2023.
         (m-1)  Except for students enrolled in programs or courses
  offered under Chapter 30A or Section 48.053, a school district or
  open-enrollment charter school may not count for purposes of
  calculating the district's or school's average daily attendance a
  student who received virtual or remote instruction for a majority
  of the instructional days during the preceding school year if the
  student:
               (1)  did not achieve satisfactory performance or higher
  or the equivalent in the preceding school year on:
                     (A)  each assessment instrument administered to
  the student under Section 39.023 or 39.025; or
                     (B)  if the student was not administered an
  assessment instrument that was required to be administered to the
  student under Section 39.023 or 39.025 during the preceding school
  year, an assessment instrument designed to show grade-level
  proficiency in the essential knowledge and skills identified under
  Section 28.002 by the State Board of Education for the student's
  grade level;
               (2)  had a number of unexcused absences that exceeds 10
  percent of the number of instructional days in the preceding school
  year; or
               (3)  did not earn a grade of C or higher or the
  equivalent in each of the foundation curriculum courses taken
  virtually or remotely in the preceding school year.
         (m-2)  Subsection (m-1) and this subsection expire September
  1, 2023.
         SECTION 7.  Subchapter A, Chapter 48, Education Code, is
  amended by adding Section 48.0071 to read as follows:
         Sec. 48.0071.  OFF-CAMPUS COURSES OR PROGRAMS COUNTED FOR
  PURPOSES OF AVERAGE DAILY ATTENDANCE. (a)  The commissioner shall
  adopt by rule verification and reporting procedures to report
  student participation in courses or programs provided under
  Subsection (b).
         (b)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
  provide one or more off-campus electronic courses, an off-campus
  electronic program, or an instructional program that combines
  in-person instruction and off-campus electronic instruction to
  students enrolled in the district or school who have reasonable
  access to in-person services at a district or school facility.
  Off-campus electronic instruction for a course or program provided
  under this subsection may be provided synchronously or
  asynchronously. A student enrolled in a course or program provided
  under this subsection shall be counted toward the district's or
  school's average daily attendance in the same manner as other
  district or school students. In adopting rules under Subsection
  (a), the commissioner shall provide for a method of taking
  attendance, once each school day, for students enrolled in a course
  or program provided under this subsection.
         (c)  A school district or open-enrollment charter school
  that operated during the 2020-2021 school year a full-time virtual
  program outside the state virtual network under Chapter 30A with at
  least 10 percent of the enrollment for the program including
  students who resided outside the geographic area served by the
  district or school may:
               (1)  continue to operate the virtual program on a
  full-time basis;
               (2)  apply the same enrollment and transfer criteria
  used during the 2020-2021 school year; and
               (3)  offer the program to students in any grade level or
  combination of grade levels from kindergarten through grade 12 as
  long as the program includes at least one grade level for which an
  assessment instrument is administered under Section 39.023.
         (d)  This section expires September 1, 2023.
         SECTION 8.  Section 48.053, Education Code, is amended by
  adding Subsections (b-1) and (b-2) to read as follows:
         (b-1)  This subsection applies only to a special-purpose
  district described by Subsection (a) that existed before September
  1, 2019.  For a district to which this subsection applies, the
  commissioner shall establish an asynchronous progression funding
  method that may be used to determine the amount of the district's
  entitlement under Subsection (b) based on full and partial semester
  course completion.
         (b-2)  Subsection (b-1) and this subsection expire September
  1, 2023.
         SECTION 9.  This Act applies beginning with the 2021-2022
  school year.
         SECTION 10.  A school district or open-enrollment charter
  school that operates a full-time local remote learning program
  during the 2021-2022 school year that meets the requirements of
  Section 29.9091, Education Code, as added by this Act, is entitled
  to funding in the manner prescribed by this Act regardless of
  whether the district or school began operating the program before,
  on, or after the effective date of this Act.
         SECTION 11.  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 on the 91st day after the last day of
  the legislative session.
 
 
 
 
 
  ______________________________ ______________________________
     President of the Senate Speaker of the House     
 
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 15 passed the Senate on
  August 11, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 27, Nays 2; and that
  the Senate concurred in House amendments on August 31, 2021, by the
  following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 2.
 
 
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate    
 
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 15 passed the House, with
  amendments, on August 30, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 119,
  Nays 7, one present not voting.
 
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
 
 
 
  Approved:
 
  ______________________________ 
              Date
 
 
  ______________________________ 
            Governor