HBA-CCH H.B. 580 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 580 By: Pickett Public Education 4/2/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, individual school districts conduct audits on their schools' dropout records. However, this can create a conflict of interest and district's audits of their own dropout rates have been criticized as inaccurate and misleading. House Bill 580 requires the board of trustees of each school district to have the districts' dropout records audited annually at district expense by an accountant who has successfully completed a training course in auditing school dropout records and is not an employee of the district. 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. ANALYSIS House Bill 580 amends the Education Code relating to require the board of trustees of each school district (board) to have its dropout records audited annually at their own expense by a certified or registered and licensed public accountant who is not an employee of the district and who has completed training in auditing school dropout records by the Texas Education Agency (agency). The bill requires the agency to develop and make a training program available for accountants no later than February 1, 2002. The bill provides that the audit must be completed following the end of each school year beginning with the 2001-2002 school year. The audit must meet minimum requirements and be in the format prescribed by the commissioner of education (commissioner), subject to review and comment by the state auditor. The bill requires the district to file a copy of the report approved by the board, with the agency no later than the 120th day after the end of the school year. If the board refuses to approve the report, the board is required to file a copy of the report with the agency and detail its reasons for the refusal. The bill requires the agency to review reports of the audits. The bill requires the commissioner to notify the board of any objections, recommendations, or violations of sound accounting practices and law and rule requirements revealed by the report. If the report indicates a violation of penal laws, the commissioner is required to notify the county attorney, district attorney, or criminal district attorney as appropriate, and the attorney general. The bill entitles the commissioner to access all necessary and appropriate district records for the review, analysis, and approval of the reports. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.