HBA-TBM S.B. 1102 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 1102
By: Barrientos
Public Education
5/18/2001
Engrossed



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, there is no method for determining what happens to students who
are lost from enrollment in Texas schools.  The current tracking system
notes students that leave as if they transfer to another high school,
failing to verify that the student has enrolled at another institution
where the student can receive a high school diploma.  This creates
misleading statistics regarding the high school dropout rate in Texas.
Senate Bill 1102 requires the Office of Survey Research at The University
of Texas to conduct a comprehensive survey to obtain information concerning
students who drop out of school and to report the results of the survey to
the legislature. 

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 1102 amends law to require the Office of Survey Research in the
College of Communication at The University of Texas at Austin (OSR) to
design and conduct a thorough, statewide, scientific, statistical survey to
obtain information concerning children who drop out of school and to
prepare a report based on that information.  The bill requires individuals
conducting the survey to poll, in all regions of this state, parents of
children of secondary school age who have dropped out of school and with
parental consent, children of secondary school age who have dropped out of
school.  The individuals shall attempt to obtain the secondary school
dropout rates, the reasons for dropping out of school, the number or
percentage of dropouts who are attending or have completed a course of
instruction to prepare for the high school equivalency examination, the
current employment status of dropouts, the opinion of public school
instruction held by the persons surveyed, the suggestions by persons
surveyed for improving public school education programs to prevent students
from dropping out, and any other information specified by the individuals
who designed the survey.  The bill requires results of the survey to be
compared with official Texas Education Agency (TEA) dropout data, to
indicate variations in results in various regions of the state, to be
compiled by OSR into a report, together with any recommendations arising
from the results, and submitted to the legislature not later than January
31, 2003.  The bill requires the results to be used by TEA to develop
policies to address the needs of students at risk of dropping out of school
and requires TEA to cooperate with OSR as necessary for OSR to carry out
its duties under these provisions. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.