HBA-JEK H.B. 1406 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1406
By: Garcia
Public Education
4/2/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law requires the appropriate class size and student performance
portions of campus report cards to be disseminated to parents, but does not
require the dissemination of information on a high school attrition rate.
House Bill 1406 provides that information concerning the number and
percentage of students who started but did not finish high school be
included in the portion of the campus report cards disseminated to parents. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the commissioner of education in
SECTION 1 (Section 39.052, Education Code) and SECTION 2 of this bill. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 1406 amends the Education Code to provide that the portions of
campus report cards disseminated to the parent or other person having
lawful control of a high school student (parent) must include information
concerning the number and percentage of students who, for the most recent
three-year or four-year period, depending on the grade levels offered at
the campus, started high school at the campus and dropped out of school
before graduating.  The bill also requires that the parent of a former
campus student who has dropped out of school be provided this information
as soon as practicable after the student drops out of school.  

H.B. 1406 requires the commissioner of education to adopt rules in
accordance with these provisions, and specifies that those rules apply to
public school campus report cards beginning with the 2002-2003 school year. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.