HBA-JRA H.B. 1451 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1451
By: Delisi
Public Education
3/10/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The federal Troops to Teachers program, a result of military downsizing,
was designed to assist retiring or separating active duty military
personnel in beginning a new career in public education. Federal funding of
the program was discontinued in 1996, and as of October 1999, the program
will be abolished.  Since the inception of the program in January 1994,
nearly 3,000 service members nationwide have made the transition from the
military to the classroom.  According the Texas Education Agency, over 350
veterans have begun teaching careers with the help of the program in Texas
and a majority of the veterans are teaching in areas that historically
experience staffing shortages.  H.B. 1451 creates a Texas Troops to
Teachers program to facilitate the employment of eligible individuals with
school districts experiencing a shortage of teachers. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Education Agency in SECTION 1
(Section 21.508, Education Code) and the commissioner of education in
SECTION 1 (Section 21.511, Education Code) of this bill. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Chapter 21, Education Code, by adding Subchapter K, as
follows: 

SUBCHAPTER K.  TEXAS TROOPS TO TEACHERS PROGRAM

Sec. 21.501.  DEFINITIONS.  Defines "program" to mean the Texas Troops to
Teachers Program in this subchapter. 

Sec. 21.502.  ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.  Requires the Texas Education
Agency (agency) to establish a program to assist persons who have served in
the armed forces of the United States and are separated from active duty to
obtain certification as an elementary or secondary school teacher in this
state and to facilitate their employment by school districts that have a
shortage of teachers. 

Sec. 21.503.  ELIGIBILITY.  Provides that a person is eligible for the
program if the person has served in the armed forces of the United States;
is honorably discharged, retired, or released from active duty on or after
October 1, 1990, immediately after at least six years of continuous active
duty service; has received a baccalaureate or advanced degree from an
institution of higher education accredited by a regional accrediting agency
or group that is recognized by a nationally recognized accreditation board;
and satisfies any other criteria for selection jointly prescribed by the
agency and the State Board for Educator Certification. 

Sec. 21.504.  INFORMATION AND APPLICATIONS.  Requires the agency to develop
an application for the program.  Requires the agency and the State Board
for Educator Certification to distribute the applications and information
regarding the program. 

Sec. 21.505.  SELECTION OF PARTICIPANTS.  (a)  Requires the agency to
select persons to  participate in the program on the basis of applications
submitted to the agency. 

 (b)  Provides that each application must be timely submitted in the form
and contain the information the agency requires. 

(c)  Provides that an application is considered timely if it is submitted
before October 5, 1999, in the case of an applicant discharged, retired, or
released from active duty before January 19, 1999, or before the first
anniversary of the applicant's discharge, retirement, or release from
active duty, or release from active duty. 

Sec. 21.506.  LIMITATION ON IMPLEMENTATION.  Prohibits the agency from
selecting a person to participate in the program unless the agency has
sufficient state appropriations to pay the stipend provided by Section
21.509 at the time of the selection. 

Sec. 21.507.  PREFERENCES.  Requires the agency, in selecting persons to
participate in the program, to give preference to a person with significant
educational or military experience in science, mathematics, engineering, or
a field identified by the agency as important for state educational
objectives, and who agrees to seek employment as a teacher in one of those
subjects in a public elementary or secondary school in this state.
Requires the commissioner of education (commissioner) to determine the
level of experience considered significant for purposes of this section. 

Sec. 21.508.  AGREEMENT.  Provides that a person selected to participate in
the program must enter into a written agreement with the agency under which
the person agrees to obtain certification as an elementary or secondary
school teacher in this state within the period required, by rule, by the
agency and accept an offer of full-time employment as an elementary or
secondary school teacher with a school district in this state during the
first school year that begins after the person becomes certified. 

Sec. 21.509.  STIPEND.  Requires the agency to pay each program participant
a stipend of $5,000. 

Sec. 21.510.  REIMBURSEMENT.  (a)  Requires a program participant who fails
to obtain certification or employment as required or who voluntarily leaves
or is terminated for cause from the employment after teaching in a public
elementary or secondary school in this state for less than five school
years to reimburse the agency a portion of the stipend  proportionate to
the unserved portion of required service. 

(b)  Provides that the obligation to reimburse the agency under this
section is, for all purposes, a debt to the state.  Provides that a
discharge in bankruptcy under Title 11, United State Code, does not release
a participant from the obligation to reimburse the agency.  Provides that
the amount owed bears interest at the rate equal to the highest rate being
paid by the United States for securities that have maturities of 90 days or
less on the day the reimbursement is determined to be due and that the
interest accrues from the day the participant receives notice of the amount
due. 

(c)  Provides that, for purposes of this section, a program participant is
not considered to be in violation of an agreement under Section 21.508
during any period in which the participant is pursuing a full-time course
of study related to the field of teaching at an institution of higher
education approved by the State Board for Educator Certification, is
serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United
States, is temporarily totally disabled for a period of less than three
years as established by sworn affidavit of a qualified physician, is unable
to secure employment for a period of less than one year because of care
required by a disabled spouse, is seeking and unable to find fulltime
employment as a teacher in a public elementary or secondary school for a
single period of less than 27 months, or satisfies the provisions of any
additional reimbursement exception adopted by the agency. 

(d)  Provides that a participant is excused from reimbursement if the
participant becomes permanently totally disabled as established by sworn
affidavit of a qualified physician or the agency waives reimbursement in
the case of extreme hardship to the participant. 
 
Sec. 21.511.  Requires the commissioner to adopt rules to implement this
subchapter. 

SECTION 2.  Requires the commissioner to discontinue the Texas Troops to
Teachers Program and file notice of that discontinuation with the secretary
of state to be published in the Texas Register if the commissioner
determines that federal funds are available for a federal program with the
general purposes of Subchapter K, Chapter 21, Education Code, as added by
this Act. 

SECTION 3.Emergency clause.
  Effective date: upon passage.