HBA-PDH H.B. 727 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 727 By: Delisi Public Education 4/20/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The core goal of public education is to educate students to high academic achievement. Educators in Texas have recently increased their focus on measuring and improving student performance on state accountability standards. A financial incentive for the staff at outstanding public schools may help promote these goals. H.B. 727 creates the Campus Performance Incentive Awards Program to recognize and reward schools that demonstrate progress in achieving the education goals of the state. The bill achieves this goal by authorizing the commissioner of education to give schools that have demonstrated the greatest improvement in achieving certain education goals a monetary award of $1,500 for each fulltime professional staff member and paraprofessional staff member. This bill sets forth the criteria the commissioner must use to select these schools and provides that the program is funded by appropriations from the state lottery account and other available sources, as well as grants and donations. 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 Chapter 39 (Public School System Accountability), Education Code, by adding Subchapter I, as follows: SUBCHAPTER I. CAMPUS PERFORMANCE INCENTIVE AWARDS Sec. 39.201. CREATION OF SYSTEM. Creates the Campus Performance Incentive Awards Program to recognize and reward schools that demonstrate progress in achieving the education goals of the state. Sec. 39.202. TYPES OF AWARDS. Authorizes the Commissioner of Education (commissioner) to present a financial award to the schools that the commissioner determines have demonstrated the greatest improvement in achieving the education goals. Entitles the schools selected by the commissioner to receive $1,500, subject to available funds, for each full-time professional staff member and paraprofessional staff member (staff). Provides that staff members will share the award on a pro rata basis if funds are insufficient. Authorizes the commissioner to present proclamations or certificates to additional schools determined to have met or exceeded the education goals. Sec. 39.203. AWARDS. Provides that the criteria the commissioner is required to use to select improved schools must be related to the goals in Section 4.002 (Public Education Academic Goals), Education Code, and must include a comprehensive consideration of performance on the academic excellence indicators adopted under Section 39.051(Academic Excellence Indicators). Requires a school's performance to be evaluated using longitudinal tracking measures of student performance and compared to state standards and to its previous performance if the school is being selected under Section 39.202(a). Requires the commissioner to annually select schools qualified to receive campus performance incentive awards for their performance and report the selections to the governor and the State Board of Education (board). Requires the Texas Education Agency to notify each school district how a school in the district may qualify for a campus performance incentive award. Sec. 39.204. USE OF AWARDS. Requires a school receiving a financial award under this subchapter to use the award to provide salary supplements to the staff employed for at least 90 days during the school year for which the award is received. Requires the school to divide the award evenly among all eligible staff. Sec. 39.205. FUNDING. Provides that the award system is funded by amounts appropriated from the state lottery account or from other available sources. Authorizes the commissioner to solicit and receive grants and donations for the purpose of making awards under this subchapter. Authorizes the commissioner to use a small portion of the award funds to pay for costs associated with presenting the awards to schools under this subchapter. Requires the agency to account and distribute all donations, grants, or legislative appropriations. Provides that the awards are subject to audit requirements established by the board. Sec. 39.206. CONFIDENTIALITY. Provides that all information and reports received by the commissioner under this subchapter from schools or school districts that are deemed confidential under Chapter 552 (Public Information), Government Code, are confidential for purposes of this subchapter. Prohibits disclosure of this information in any public or private proceeding. SECTION 2. Amends Section 466.355(b), Government Code, by adding a transfer to the agency of any current fiscal year funds appropriated for the Campus Performance Incentive Awards Program under Subchapter I, Chapter 39, Education Code, to the list and the order of preference for which the state lottery account may be used. Redesignates existing Subsection 4 to Subsection 5. Makes conforming changes. SECTION 3. Repealer: Section 21.357 (Performance Incentives), Education Code, and Section 39.111 (Recognition and Rewards), Education Code. Section 21.357 concerns an objective system used to evaluate and to award performance incentives to principals. Section 39.111 concerns the development of a plan to recognize and reward certain school districts and campuses, and authorizes the use of a reward to provide summer stipends to educators implementing proven strategies into their curriculum. SECTION 4.Effective date: September 1, 1999. Makes application of this Act prospective beginning with the 2000-2001 school year. SECTION 5.Emergency clause.