HBA-NLM H.B. 608 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 608
By: Madden
Public Education
3/5/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, the commissioner of education (commissioner) has the authority
to approve or deny all requests for waivers of state law or State Board of
Education rules. According to statute, there are thirteen requirements
which can not be waived although one of these, class size, is the second
most common waiver granted. Under Section 7.056 (Waivers and Exemptions),
Education Code, any school campus or district seeking a waiver of a
requirement, restriction, or prohibition provided by the Education Code or
rule of the school board or the commissioner must submit a written
application to the commissioner, which  must include written comments from
the appropriate sitebased decision-making committee. This committee is
composed of professional staff of the district, parents, and community
members to establish and review the district's and campuses' educational
plans, goals, performance objectives, and major classroom instructional
programs. However, no process exists which verifies that the majority of
the committee members, including parents, have reviewed the waiver before
the submission of written comments, on behalf of the committee, to the
commissioner.  

 H.B. 608 specifies that a school campus or district applying for a waiver
must provide written notice to the parent of each student who will be
affected by the waiver, specifying the requirement, restriction, or
prohibition that the district or campus is requesting the commissioner to
waive. Provides that a  "parent" under this subsection includes a guardian. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 7.056, Education Code, as follows:

(a)  Provides an exception under Subsection (f), rather than (e).

(b)  Specifies that a school campus or district applying for a waiver under
Subsection (a) or (h) or Section 25.112(d) (Class Size) must provide
written notice to the parent of each student who will be affected by the
waiver, as reasonably determined by the campus or district, by the 20th day
before the date of the application. Provides that the notice must specify
the requirement, restriction, or prohibition that the district or campus is
requesting the commissioner of education (commissioner) to waive. Provides
that a  "parent" under this subsection includes a guardian. 

(c)  Creates this subsection from existing text. Includes the provision
that an application under this subsection must include any written comments
from a parent received in response to the notification provided under
Subsection (b). Makes nonsubstantive changes.  

(d)-(h)  Redesignated from existing Subsections (c)-(g) and makes a
conforming change in Subsection (f). 

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 26.003 (a), Education Code, to include that a
parent is entitled to be  given notice of an application for a waiver of a
requirement, restriction, or prohibition concerning public education, in
accordance with Section 7.056 (b).  

SECTION 3.  Makes a conforming change.

SECTION 4.  Provides that Section 7.056, Education Code, as amended by this
Act, applies beginning with an application for the 1999-2000 school year. 

SECTION 5.  Emergency clause.
  Effective date: upon passage.