HBA-CMT, CMT S.B. 1294 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 1294 By: Van de Putte Economic Development 5/7/2001 Engrossed BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Texas suffers from a widely recognized shortage of teachers in many teaching fields, including the field of child care. Efforts to retain teachers may serve to alleviate this shortage. Senate Bill 1294 establishes the Teacher Education and Compensation Helps (T.E.A.C.H) pilot program to assist teachers in retaining employment in the field of child care. 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 Senate Bill 1294 amends the Labor Code to require the Texas Workforce Commission (commission) to establish a pilot program to be known as the Teacher Education and Compensation Helps (T.E.A.C.H.) pilot program to assist teachers in retaining employment in the field of child care. The bill authorizes the commission to consult with any other early childhood teacher pilot program in establishing and administering the T.E.A.C.H. program. The bill requires the commission to operate the T.E.A.C.H. program in at least three locations throughout the state, one in an urban community, one in a rural community, and one in a community in the region of the state that borders Mexico. The bill sets forth that to be eligible to participate in the T.E.A.C.H. program, a teacher must be employed in a child-care program that has a provider agreement with a local workforce development board to serve families that receive subsidized child-care services. The bill sets forth minimum standards for each location at which the T.E.A.C.H. program is operated. The bill requires the commission no later than December 1 of each year to submit a report to the governor and the legislature regarding the status and results of the T.E.A.C.H. pilot program. The provisions of the bill expire September 1, 2005. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.