Shaheen Inspector General Bill Lets The Commissioner Take Over Schools

The text as introduced · 3,072 words

89R508 MEW-D

By: Shaheen
H.B. No. 1025

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the appointment of an inspector general for education,

the creation of a division of inspector general for education in the

State Board of Education to investigate public education, and the

authority of the commissioner of education to conduct special

investigations.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 7.102(c), Education Code, is amended by

adding Subdivision (35) to read as follows:

(35) The board shall appoint an inspector general for

education in accordance with Subchapter E.

SECTION 2. Chapter 7, Education Code, is amended by adding

Subchapter E to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER E. INSPECTOR GENERAL FOR EDUCATION

Sec. 7.151. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:

(1) "Abuse" has the meaning assigned by Section

261.001, Family Code.

(2) "Division" means the division of inspector general

for education established under this subchapter.

(3) "Fraud" means an intentional deception or

misrepresentation made by a person with the knowledge that the

deception or misrepresentation could result in some unauthorized

benefit to that person or some other person. The term includes any

act that constitutes fraud under applicable federal or state law.

(4) "Local education agency" includes a school

district or county system described by Subchapter G, Chapter 11.

Sec. 7.152. DIVISION OF INSPECTOR GENERAL FOR EDUCATION.

(a) The division of inspector general for education is established

as a division within the board.

(b) The board shall, by majority vote, appoint an inspector

general to serve as director of the division. The inspector general

serves until removed by the board.

(c) From money appropriated for that purpose, the inspector

general may employ staff and pay for administrative resources,

support services, and operating expenses as necessary to ensure

investigations and reviews authorized by this subchapter are

conducted expeditiously.

Sec. 7.153. GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES. (a) The division is

responsible for:

(1) the investigation, prevention, and detection of

wrongdoing and fraud, waste, and abuse in public education by

school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, regional

education service centers, and other local education agencies in

this state; and

(2) the investigation of violations of state or

federal law by school districts, open-enrollment charter schools,

regional education service centers, and other local education

agencies in this state, including violations by employees,

representatives, and contractors of those entities, of:

(A) parental rights under Chapter 26 or other

state law;

(B) school safety and security requirements

under Sections 37.108, 37.1081, and 37.109; or

(C) any other provision of this code.

(b) The division may investigate:

(1) allegations of fraud, waste, and abuse;

(2) alleged violations of:

(A) the requirement to report educator

misconduct under Section 21.006;

(B) the required transfer of a student in

accordance with Section 25.0342;

(C) parental rights under Chapter 26 of this code

or Chapter 151, Family Code;

(D) requirements and prohibitions under Section

28.0022;

(E) discipline and law and order under Chapter

37, including school safety and security requirements under

Sections 37.108, 37.1081, and 37.109;

(F) any other provision of this code;

(G) the reporting requirement under Section

261.101, Family Code;

(H) the code of ethics and standard practices for

educators adopted by State Board for Educator Certification rule;

(I) a student's right of due process in

administrative investigations; or

(J) the free speech clause of the First Amendment

to the United States Constitution or Section 8, Article I, Texas

Constitution;

(3) alleged incidents of misconduct that may

constitute an offense under Section 15.032, 20A.02(a)(7) or (8),

25.04, 43.23, or 43.24, Penal Code;

(4) complaints submitted to the division with respect

to alleged violations of civil rights or other requirements imposed

on the state by federal law or court order;

(5) a determination of extraordinary numbers of

student placements in disciplinary alternative education programs,

other than placements under Sections 37.006 and 37.007;

(6) decisions concerning discretionary student

placements in disciplinary alternative education programs; and

(7) allegations involving a conflict between the board

of trustees of a school district and the district administration if

it appears that the conflict involves a violation of a role or duty

of the board members or the administration clearly defined by this

code.

(c) The division shall, as necessary:

(1) conduct civil and administrative investigations,

refer criminal investigations to the appropriate local law

enforcement agency, and initiate reviews of a school district, an

open-enrollment charter school, a regional education service

center, or another local education agency as considered appropriate

by the inspector general;

(2) conduct, in coordination with the comptroller,

audits of the use of money by a school district, an open-enrollment

charter school, a regional education service center, or another

local education agency, including money used for school security,

school-based health, student mental health, capital expenditures,

the school health and related services program, and legal

representation;

(3) receive complaints from any source and investigate

those complaints on the division's own initiative;

(4) conduct investigations authorized by this

section;

(5) review public school safety and security audits

conducted under Section 37.108;

(6) investigate reports of educator or employee

misconduct under Section 21.006 or 22.093;

(7) make findings of fact that a school district, an

open-enrollment charter school, a regional education service

center, or another local education agency or an employee or agent of

one of those entities committed an act of wrongdoing, fraud, waste,

or abuse in public education or a violation or act of misconduct

described by Subsection (b) and take appropriate action as

determined by the inspector general in consultation with the board

and any appropriate law enforcement agencies, regardless of any

time requirement relating to the action under Chapter 8, 12, or 39A;

and

(8) notwithstanding Subdivision (7), on a finding of a

violation described by Subsection (b), including a requirement

relating to a school district's or open-enrollment charter school's

multihazard emergency operations plan, by an entity described by

that subdivision, prescribe binding corrective or disciplinary

action, including timelines for those actions, to be taken.

(d) The division shall perform all other duties and exercise

all other powers granted to the division by this subchapter or other

law.

Sec. 7.154. GENERAL POWERS. (a) The division has all the

powers necessary or appropriate to carry out its responsibilities

and functions under this subchapter and other law.

(b) Subject to Subsection (c), in conducting an

investigation under this subchapter of the board of trustees of a

school district, the governing body of an open-enrollment charter

school, the board of directors of a regional education service

center or another local education agency, or the executive

leadership of any of those entities, the division may:

(1) attend any meeting or proceeding of the school

district, open-enrollment charter school, regional education

service center, or other local education agency, including a

meeting or proceeding that is closed to the public, except for a

private consultation of the entity with its attorney permitted

under Section 551.071, Government Code; and

(2) inspect the records, documents, and files of the

school district, open-enrollment charter school, regional

education service center, or other local education agency,

including any record, document, or file that is not subject to

public disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code, or other law.

(c) The division's authority under Subsection (b) applies

only to a meeting, a proceeding, or information that is relevant to

the discovery of relevant information regarding an allegation of

wrongdoing or a violation described by Section 7.153 or of fraud,

waste, or abuse in public education by a person or entity described

by Subsection (b). Except as provided by Subsection (e), the

division may not inspect a record, document, or file that is a

privileged communication between an individual and the

individual's attorney.

(d) The inspection or disclosure of a record, document, or

file for purposes of an investigation under this subchapter is not a

voluntary disclosure under Section 552.007, Government Code. A

record, document, or file made available to the division for

purposes of an investigation under this subchapter is not subject

to public disclosure by the division.

(e) The division may, for purposes of conducting an

investigation under this subchapter, access:

(1) any information under the agency's control,

including information contained in the Public Education

Information Management System (PEIMS) and information relating to

school disciplinary records, educator misconduct reports, and

school safety requirements; and

(2) any information under the control of an entity

described by Subsection (b), including, to the extent permitted by

law, communications with an attorney paid for using public money.

Sec. 7.155. SUBPOENAS. (a) The inspector general may issue

a subpoena to compel the attendance of a relevant witness at a

hearing or deposition under this subchapter or to compel the

production, for inspection or copying, of books, papers, records,

documents, or other relevant materials, including electronic data,

in connection with an investigation, review, hearing, or deposition

conducted under this subchapter.

(b) A subpoena may be served personally or by certified

mail. If a person fails to comply with a subpoena, the inspector

general, acting through the attorney general, may file suit to

enforce the subpoena in a district court in this state.

(c) On finding that good cause exists for issuing the

subpoena, the court shall order the person to comply with the

subpoena. The court may hold in contempt a person who fails to obey

the court order.

Sec. 7.156. COOPERATION WITH OTHER ENTITIES. The division

may refer matters for further civil, criminal, and administrative

action to appropriate agencies, including the attorney general.

Sec. 7.157. ANNUAL REPORT. (a) The inspector general shall

prepare and submit annually to the commissioner, the board, and the

presiding officer of each legislative standing committee with

primary jurisdiction over primary and secondary education a report

on the division's findings and recommendations related to all

investigations conducted by the division during the preceding year.

(b) If the inspector general conducted any audits under

Section 7.153(c)(2) during the year for which a report under

Subsection (a) is prepared, the inspector general shall include in

the report any amounts paid by a local education agency to an

attorney for legal representation.

(c) The division shall make the report publicly available on

the division's Internet website.

SECTION 3. Section 37.009, Education Code, is amended by

amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-3) to read as

follows:

(a) Not later than the third class day after the day on which

a student is removed from class by the teacher under Section

37.002(b) or (d) or by the school principal or other appropriate

administrator under Section 37.001(a)(2) or 37.006, the campus

behavior coordinator or other appropriate administrator shall

schedule a conference among the campus behavior coordinator or

other appropriate administrator, a parent or guardian of the

student, the teacher removing the student from class, if any, and

the student. At the conference, the student is entitled to written

or oral notice of the reasons for the removal, an explanation of the

basis for the removal, and an opportunity to respond to the reasons

for the removal. The student may not be returned to the regular

classroom pending the conference. Following the conference, and

whether or not each requested person is in attendance after valid

attempts to require the person's attendance, the campus behavior

coordinator, after consideration of the factors under Section

37.001(a)(4), shall order the placement of the student for a period

consistent with the student code of conduct. Before ordering the

suspension, expulsion, removal to a disciplinary alternative

education program, or placement in a juvenile justice alternative

education program of a student, the behavior coordinator must

consider whether the student acted in self-defense, the intent or

lack of intent at the time the student engaged in the conduct, the

student's disciplinary history, and whether the student has a

disability that substantially impairs the student's capacity to

appreciate the wrongfulness of the student's conduct, regardless of

whether the decision of the behavior coordinator concerns a

mandatory or discretionary action. Subject to Subsection (a-3), if

[ If ] school district policy allows a student to appeal to the board

of trustees or the board's designee a decision of the campus

behavior coordinator or other appropriate administrator, other

than an expulsion under Section 37.007, the decision of the board or

the board's designee is final and may not be appealed. If the

period of the placement is inconsistent with the guidelines

included in the student code of conduct under Section 37.001(a)(5),

the order must give notice of the inconsistency. The period of the

placement may not exceed one year unless, after a review, the

district determines that the student is a threat to the safety of

other students or to district employees.

(a-3) If the decision of the campus behavior coordinator or

other appropriate administrator to place a student in a

disciplinary alternative education program concerns a

discretionary action, the parent or guardian of the student may

appeal the decision to the division of inspector general

established under Subchapter E, Chapter 7.

SECTION 4. The heading to Section 37.1085, Education Code,

is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 37.1085. INTERVENTIONS [ ASSIGNMENT OF CONSERVATOR ]

FOR NONCOMPLIANCE WITH SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY REQUIREMENTS.

SECTION 5. Section 37.1085, Education Code, is amended by

amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read as

follows:

(c) Subsections (a) and (b) do [ This section does ] not apply

to a school district's failure to comply with Section 37.0814 or a

good cause exception claimed under that section.

(d) If the division of inspector general for education

established under Subchapter E, Chapter 7, makes a finding of fact

under Section 7.153(c)(7) that a school district, an

open-enrollment charter school, a regional education service

center, or another local education agency committed a violation of

a school safety and security requirement, the commissioner may take

control of the management, or any part of the management, of the

entity that committed the violation.

SECTION 6. Section 39.003, Education Code, is amended by

amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as

follows:

(a) The commissioner may authorize special investigations

to be conducted:

(1) when excessive numbers of absences of students

eligible to be tested on state assessment instruments are

determined;

(2) when excessive numbers of allowable exemptions

from the required state assessment instruments are determined;

(3) [ in response to complaints submitted to the agency

with respect to alleged violations of civil rights or other

requirements imposed on the state by federal law or court order;

[ (4) ] in response to established compliance reviews of

the district's financial accounting practices and state and federal

program requirements;

[ (5) when extraordinary numbers of student placements

in disciplinary alternative education programs, other than

placements under Sections 37.006 and 37.007, are determined;

[ (6) in response to an allegation involving a conflict

between members of the board of trustees or between the board and

the district administration if it appears that the conflict

involves a violation of a role or duty of the board members or the

administration clearly defined by this code; ]

(4) [ (7) ] when excessive numbers of students in

special education programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, are

assessed through assessment instruments developed or adopted under

Section 39.023(b);

(5) [ (8) ] in response to an allegation regarding or an

analysis using a statistical method result indicating a possible

violation of an assessment instrument security procedure

established under Section 39.0301, including for the purpose of

investigating or auditing a school district under that section;

(6) [ (9) ] when a significant pattern of decreased

academic performance has developed as a result of the promotion in

the preceding two school years of students who did not perform

satisfactorily as determined by the commissioner under Section

39.0241(a) on assessment instruments administered under Section

39.023(a), (c), or (l);

(7) [ (10) ] when excessive numbers of students

eligible to enroll fail to complete an Algebra II course or any

other advanced course as determined by the commissioner;

(8) [ (11) ] when resource allocation practices as

evaluated under Section 39.0821 indicate a potential for

significant improvement in resource allocation;

(9) [ (12) ] when a disproportionate number of students

of a particular demographic group is graduating with a particular

endorsement under Section 28.025(c-1);

(10) [ (13) ] when an excessive number of students is

graduating with a particular endorsement under Section

28.025(c-1);

(11) [ (14) ] in response to a complaint submitted to

the agency with respect to alleged inaccurate data that is reported

through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS)

or through other reports required by state or federal law or rule or

court order and that is used by the agency to make a determination

relating to public school accountability, including accreditation,

under this chapter; or

(12) [ (15) ] when 10 percent or more of the students

graduating in a particular school year from a particular high

school campus are awarded a diploma based on the determination of an

individual graduation committee under Section 28.0258[ ;

[ (16) when a school district for any reason fails to

produce, at the request of the agency, evidence or an investigation

report relating to an educator who is under investigation by the

State Board for Educator Certification; or

[ (17) as the commissioner otherwise determines

necessary ].

(c-1) If the commissioner does not authorize a special

investigation under Subsection (a)(5) through (12) in response to a

complaint submitted to the agency within 90 days of receiving that

complaint, the complainant may report the matter to the division of

inspector general established under Subchapter E, Chapter 7, for

investigation.

SECTION 7. Section 39.0302(a), Education Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(a) During an agency investigation or audit of a school

district under Section 39.0301(e) or (f), a special investigation

under Section 39.003(a)(5) [ 39.003(a)(8) ] or (11) [ (14) ], a

compliance review under Section 21.006(k), 22.093(l), or 22.096, or

an investigation by the State Board for Educator Certification of

an educator for an alleged violation of an assessment instrument

security procedure established under Section 39.0301(a), the

commissioner may issue a subpoena to compel the attendance of a

relevant witness or the production, for inspection or copying, of

relevant evidence that is located in this state.

SECTION 8. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives

a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as

provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this

Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.