Bill Text: TX SB894 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Comm Sub

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Bill Title: Relating to the state virtual school network.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-05-19 - Not again placed on intent calendar [SB894 Detail]

Download: Texas-2015-SB894-Comm_Sub.html

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By: Taylor of Galveston S.B. No. 894
(In the Senate - Filed March 3, 2015; March 9, 2015, read
first time and referred to Committee on Education; April 27, 2015,
reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the
following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 3, 1 present not voting;
April 27, 2015, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 894 By: Taylor of Galveston

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the state virtual school network.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 26.0031(c), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
deny a request to enroll a student in an electronic course if:
(1) a student attempts to enroll in a course load that
is inconsistent with the student's high school graduation plan or
requirements for college admission or earning an industry
certification; or
(2) the student requests permission to enroll in an
electronic course at a time that is not consistent with the
enrollment period established by the school district or
open-enrollment charter school providing the course[; or
[(3) the district or school offers a substantially
similar course].
SECTION 2. Sections 30A.002(a) and (c), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) A student is eligible to enroll in one or more courses [a
course] provided through the state virtual school network or,
except as provided by Section 30A.107(c), enroll full-time in
courses provided through the network only if the student:
(1) on September 1 of the school year:
(A) is younger than 21 years of age; or
(B) is younger than 26 years of age and entitled
to the benefits of the Foundation School Program under Section
42.003;
(2) has not graduated from high school; and
(3) is otherwise eligible to enroll in a public school
in this state.
(c) Notwithstanding Subsection (a)(3) [or (b)], a student
is eligible to enroll in one or more courses provided through the
state virtual school network or enroll full-time in courses
provided through the network if the student:
(1) is a dependent of a member of the United States
military;
(2) was previously enrolled in public [high] school in
this state; and
(3) does not reside in this state due to a military
deployment or transfer.
SECTION 3. Section 30A.101, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (c) and adding Subsections (a-1) and
(e) to read as follows:
(a) A school district or open-enrollment charter school is
eligible to act as a course provider under this chapter only if the
district or school is not rated unacceptable [acceptable] under
Section 39.054. An open-enrollment charter school may serve as a
course provider only:
(1) to a student within its service area; or
(2) to another student in the state:
(A) through an agreement with the school district
in which the student resides; or
(B) if the student receives educational services
under the supervision of a juvenile probation department, the Texas
Juvenile Justice Department, or the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice, through an agreement with the applicable agency.
(a-1) A vendor or contractor that contracts with a school
district or open-enrollment charter school to provide an electronic
course through the virtual school network on behalf of the district
or school must comply with all requirements under this chapter
applicable to a course provider described by Subsection (c).
(c) A nonprofit entity, private entity, or corporation is
eligible to act as a course provider under this chapter only if the
nonprofit entity, private entity, or corporation:
(1) complies with all applicable federal and state
laws prohibiting discrimination;
(2) demonstrates financial solvency; and
(3) either:
(A) provides evidence of prior successful
experience offering online courses to kindergarten or elementary,
middle, or high school students, with demonstrated student success
in course completion and performance, as determined by the
commissioner; or
(B) provides evidence that it is capable of
carrying out the responsibilities of a course provider and is
likely to provide high quality courses, as determined by the
commissioner.
(e) The commissioner shall establish measures to ensure
that a course provider does not continue to offer electronic
courses through the state virtual school network if:
(1) the course provider no longer satisfies
eligibility requirements under Subsection (a) or (c); or
(2) the course provider, for three consecutive
academic years, produces poor student performance outcomes, as
determined by the commissioner.
SECTION 4. Section 30A.104(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) A course offered through the state virtual school
network must:
(1) be in a specific subject that is part of the
required curriculum under Section 28.002(a);
(2) be aligned with the essential knowledge and skills
identified under Section 28.002(c) for a grade level at or above
kindergarten [grade level three]; and
(3) be the equivalent in instructional rigor and scope
to a course that is provided in a traditional classroom setting
during:
(A) a semester of 90 instructional days; and
(B) a school day that meets the minimum length of
a school day required under Section 25.082.
SECTION 5. Section 30A.105(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The administering authority shall establish the cost of
providing each [an] electronic course approved under Subsection
(a)[, which may not exceed $400 per student per course or $4,800 per
full-time student].
SECTION 6. Section 30A.151(f), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(f) For a full-time electronic course program offered
through the state virtual school network for a grade level at or
above kindergarten [grade level three] but not above grade level
eight, a school district or open-enrollment charter school is
entitled to receive federal, state, and local funding for a student
enrolled in the program in an amount equal to the funding the
district or school would otherwise receive for a student enrolled
in the district or school. The district or school may calculate the
average daily attendance of a student enrolled in the program based
on:
(1) hours of contact with the student;
(2) the student's successful completion of a course;
or
(3) a method approved by the commissioner.
SECTION 7. Sections 30A.153(a) and (b), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) A [Subject to the limitation imposed under Subsection
(a-1), a] school district or open-enrollment charter school in
which a student is enrolled is entitled to funding under Chapter 42
or in accordance with the terms of a charter granted under Section
12.101 for the student's enrollment in an electronic course offered
through the state virtual school network in the same manner that the
district or school is entitled to funding for the student's
enrollment in courses provided in a traditional classroom setting,
provided that the student successfully completes the electronic
course.
(b) The commissioner, after considering comments from
school district and open-enrollment charter school
representatives, shall adopt a standard agreement that governs the
costs, payment of funds, and other matters relating to a student's
enrollment in an electronic course offered through the state
virtual school network. The agreement may not require a school
district or open-enrollment charter school to pay the provider the
full amount until the student has successfully completed the
electronic course[, and the full amount may not exceed the limits
specified by Section 30A.105(b)].
SECTION 8. Sections 30A.155(a) and (c), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
charge a fee for enrollment in an electronic course provided
through the state virtual school network to a student who resides in
this state and[:
[(1)] is enrolled in a school district or
open-enrollment charter school as a full-time student with a course
load greater than that normally taken by students in the equivalent
grade level in other school districts or open-enrollment charter
schools[; or
[(2) elects to enroll in an electronic course provided
through the network for which the school district or
open-enrollment charter school in which the student is enrolled as
a full-time student declines to pay the cost, as authorized by
Section 26.0031(c-1)].
(c) The amount of a fee charged a student under Subsection
(a), (a-1), or (b) for each electronic course in which the student
enrolls through the state virtual school network may not exceed
[the lesser of:
[(1)] the cost of providing the course as established
by the administering authority under Section 30A.105[; or
[(2) $400].
SECTION 9. The following sections of the Education Code are
repealed:
(1) Section 26.0031(c-1);
(2) Section 30A.002(b); and
(3) Section 30A.153(a-1).
SECTION 10. This Act applies beginning with the 2015-2016
school year.
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 September 1, 2015.
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