HBA-TBM H.B. 3164 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3164
By: Chavez
Public Education
4/12/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, school district prekindergarten programs are not
required to comply with child-care licensing standards adopted by the Texas
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services (PRS).  This means that
some programs might be short staffed or not comply with health and safety
standards.  Such noncompliance may threaten the safety and health of
children.  House Bill 3164 requires a school district kindergarten program
to comply with child-care licensing standards adopted by TDPRS.   

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the State Board of Education in SECTION
1 (Section 29.153, Education Code).   

ANALYSIS

House Bill 3164 amends the Education Code to provide that at a minimum a
school district (district) prekindergarten program must comply with the
applicable child-care licensing standards adopted by the Department of
Protective and Regulatory Services (PRS).  The bill requires the State
Board of Education by rule to ensure the district's compliance with the
standards.  Before a district is authorized to initiate a new
prekindergarten program, the district is required to investigate the
possibility of sharing program sites with existing child-care programs
licensed by PRS and existing federal Head Start programs and to coordinate
the use of those sites to the greatest extent possible.  The bill requires
the district to also investigate and implement to the greatest extent
possible coordinated use of licensed child-care and Head Start sites with
existing prekindergarten programs.  A prekindergarten program established
before the effective date of this Act is not required to comply with the
applicable child-care standards adopted by PRS until September 1, 2004.   

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.