Bill Text: TX SB933 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Comm Sub
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to the creation of the office of inspector general at the Texas Education Agency to investigate the administration of public education.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 18-8)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-05-06 - Referred to Public Education [SB933 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-SB933-Comm_Sub.html
Bill Title: Relating to the creation of the office of inspector general at the Texas Education Agency to investigate the administration of public education.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 18-8)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-05-06 - Referred to Public Education [SB933 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-SB933-Comm_Sub.html
By: Bettencourt, et al. | S.B. No. 933 | |
(In the Senate - Filed February 20, 2019; March 1, 2019, | ||
read first time and referred to Committee on Education; | ||
April 9, 2019, reported adversely, with favorable Committee | ||
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 10, Nays 0; April 9, 2019, | ||
sent to printer.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 933 | By: Bettencourt |
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relating to the creation of the office of inspector general at the | ||
Texas Education Agency to investigate the administration of public | ||
education. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Chapter 7, Education Code, is amended by adding | ||
Subchapter E to read as follows: | ||
SUBCHAPTER E. OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL | ||
Sec. 7.151. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: | ||
(1) "Fraud" means an intentional deception or | ||
misrepresentation made by a person with the knowledge that the | ||
deception could result in some unauthorized benefit to that person | ||
or some other person. The term includes any act that constitutes | ||
fraud under applicable federal or state law. | ||
(2) "Office" means the office of inspector general | ||
established under this subchapter. | ||
Sec. 7.152. OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL. (a) The office | ||
of inspector general is established as a division within the | ||
agency. | ||
(b) The commissioner shall appoint an inspector general to | ||
serve as director of the office. The inspector general serves until | ||
removed by the commissioner. | ||
(c) The agency shall provide staff and administrative | ||
resources and support services as necessary to ensure | ||
investigations and reviews authorized by this subchapter are | ||
conducted expeditiously. | ||
Sec. 7.153. GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES. (a) The office is | ||
responsible for the investigation, prevention, and detection of | ||
criminal misconduct and wrongdoing and of fraud, waste, and abuse | ||
in the administration of public education by the agency, the State | ||
Board of Education, school districts, open-enrollment charter | ||
schools, regional education service centers, and other local | ||
education agencies in this state. | ||
(b) The office shall investigate allegations of fraud, | ||
waste, and abuse and violations of this code or other law. | ||
(c) The office may: | ||
(1) conduct criminal, civil, and administrative | ||
investigations and initiate reviews of the agency, the State Board | ||
of Education, a school district, an open-enrollment charter school, | ||
a regional education service center, or another local education | ||
agency as considered appropriate by the inspector general; | ||
(2) receive and investigate complaints from any source | ||
on its own initiative; | ||
(3) conduct special accreditation investigations | ||
authorized by the commissioner under Section 39.057(a); and | ||
(4) make findings of fact that the agency, the State | ||
Board of Education, a school district, an open-enrollment charter | ||
school, a regional education service center, or another local | ||
education agency or an employee or agent of the entity committed an | ||
act of criminal misconduct, wrongdoing, fraud, waste, or abuse in | ||
the administration of public education and take appropriate action | ||
as determined by the commissioner, regardless of any time | ||
requirement relating to the action under Chapter 8, 12, or 39A. | ||
(d) The commissioner or chair of any legislative committee | ||
may order the office to conduct a forensic audit of any entity over | ||
which the office has jurisdiction. | ||
(e) The office shall perform all other duties and exercise | ||
all other powers granted to the office by this subchapter or another | ||
law. | ||
Sec. 7.154. GENERAL POWERS. (a) The office has all the | ||
powers necessary or appropriate to carry out its responsibilities | ||
and functions under this subchapter and other law. | ||
(b) Subject to Subsection (c), in conducting an | ||
investigation under this subchapter of the agency, the State Board | ||
of Education, the board of trustees of a school district, the | ||
governing body of an open-enrollment charter school, the board of | ||
directors of a regional education service center, another local | ||
education agency, or the executive leadership of any of those | ||
entities, the office may: | ||
(1) attend any meeting or proceeding of the agency, | ||
State Board of Education, school district, open-enrollment charter | ||
school, regional education service center, or other local education | ||
agency, including a meeting or proceeding that is closed to the | ||
public; and | ||
(2) inspect the records, documents, and files of the | ||
agency, State Board of Education, school district, open-enrollment | ||
charter school, regional education service center, or other local | ||
education agency, including any record, document, or file that is | ||
an attorney-client communication between a member of the State | ||
Board of Education, executive leadership of the agency, board of | ||
trustees of a school district, governing body of an open-enrollment | ||
charter school, board of directors of a regional education service | ||
center, or executive leadership of another local education agency | ||
and the attorney of the entity by which the person is employed. | ||
(c) The office's authority under Subsection (b) applies | ||
only to a meeting, a proceeding, or information that is relevant to | ||
the discovery of relevant information regarding an allegation of | ||
criminal misconduct, wrongdoing, or a violation of this code or of | ||
fraud, waste, or abuse in the administration of public education by | ||
a person or entity described by Subsection (b). The office may not | ||
inspect a record, document, or file that is a privileged | ||
communication between an individual and the individual's personal | ||
attorney. | ||
Sec. 7.155. SUBPOENAS. (a) The inspector general may | ||
issue a subpoena to compel the attendance of a relevant witness at a | ||
hearing or deposition under this subchapter or to compel the | ||
production, for inspection or copying, of books, papers, records, | ||
documents, or other relevant materials, including electronic data, | ||
in connection with an investigation, review, hearing, or deposition | ||
conducted under this subchapter. | ||
(b) A subpoena may be served personally or by certified | ||
mail. If a person fails to comply with a subpoena, the inspector | ||
general, acting through the attorney general, may file suit to | ||
enforce the subpoena in a district court in this state. | ||
(c) On finding that good cause exists for issuing the | ||
subpoena, the court shall order the person to comply with the | ||
subpoena. The court may hold in contempt a person who fails to obey | ||
the court order. | ||
Sec. 7.156. COOPERATION WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS AND | ||
OTHER ENTITIES. (a) The office may provide information and | ||
evidence relating to criminal acts to the state auditor's office | ||
and appropriate law enforcement officials. | ||
(b) The office may refer matters for further civil, | ||
criminal, and administrative action to appropriate administrative | ||
and prosecutorial agencies, including the attorney general. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 39.057(a), Education Code, is amended to | ||
read as follows: | ||
(a) The commissioner may authorize special accreditation | ||
investigations to be conducted: | ||
(1) when excessive numbers of absences of students | ||
eligible to be tested on state assessment instruments are | ||
determined; | ||
(2) when excessive numbers of allowable exemptions | ||
from the required state assessment instruments are determined; | ||
(3) in response to complaints submitted to the agency | ||
with respect to alleged violations of civil rights or other | ||
requirements imposed on the state by federal law or court order; | ||
(4) in response to established compliance reviews of | ||
the district's financial accounting practices and state and federal | ||
program requirements; | ||
(5) when extraordinary numbers of student placements | ||
in disciplinary alternative education programs, other than | ||
placements under Sections 37.006 and 37.007, are determined; | ||
(6) in response to an allegation involving a conflict | ||
between members of the board of trustees or between the board and | ||
the district administration if it appears that the conflict | ||
involves a violation of a role or duty of the board members or the | ||
administration clearly defined by this code; | ||
(7) when excessive numbers of students in special | ||
education programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, are assessed | ||
through assessment instruments developed or adopted under Section | ||
39.023(b); | ||
(8) in response to an allegation regarding or an | ||
analysis using a statistical method result indicating a possible | ||
violation of an assessment instrument security procedure | ||
established under Section 39.0301, including for the purpose of | ||
investigating or auditing a school district under that section; | ||
(9) when a significant pattern of decreased academic | ||
performance has developed as a result of the promotion in the | ||
preceding two school years of students who did not perform | ||
satisfactorily as determined by the commissioner under Section | ||
39.0241(a) on assessment instruments administered under Section | ||
39.023(a), (c), or (l); | ||
(10) when excessive numbers of students eligible to | ||
enroll fail to complete an Algebra II course or any other advanced | ||
course as determined by the commissioner; | ||
(11) when resource allocation practices as evaluated | ||
under Section 39.0821 indicate a potential for significant | ||
improvement in resource allocation; | ||
(12) when a disproportionate number of students of a | ||
particular demographic group is graduating with a particular | ||
endorsement under Section 28.025(c-1); | ||
(13) when an excessive number of students is | ||
graduating with a particular endorsement under Section | ||
28.025(c-1); | ||
(14) in response to a complaint submitted to the | ||
agency with respect to alleged inaccurate data that is reported | ||
through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) | ||
or through other reports required by state or federal law or rule or | ||
court order and that is used by the agency to make a determination | ||
relating to public school accountability, including accreditation, | ||
under this chapter; | ||
(15) when a school district for any reason fails to | ||
produce, at the request of the agency, evidence or an investigation | ||
report relating to an educator who is under investigation by the | ||
State Board for Educator Certification; [ |
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(16) by the office of inspector general for the | ||
purpose of investigating allegations of fraud, waste, and abuse in | ||
the administration of public education; or | ||
(17) as the commissioner otherwise determines | ||
necessary. | ||
SECTION 3. The Texas Education Agency is required to | ||
implement a provision of this Act only if the legislature | ||
appropriates money specifically for that purpose. If the | ||
legislature does not appropriate money specifically for that | ||
purpose, the agency may, but is not required to, implement a | ||
provision of this Act using other appropriations available for that | ||
purpose. | ||
SECTION 4. 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, 2019. | ||
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