Bill Text: TX HB411 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to the terminology used to refer to an individualized education program team.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2021-04-12 - Received from the House [HB411 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-HB411-Introduced.html

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87R960 GCB-F
By: Johnson of Dallas H.B. No. 411

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the terminology used to refer to an individualized
education program team.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 5.001, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subdivision (5-a) and adding Subdivision (5-b) to read as
follows:
(5-a) "Individualized education program team" has the
meaning assigned by 20 U.S.C. Section 1414(d)(1)(B).
(5-b) "Mental health condition" means a persistent or
recurrent pattern of thoughts, feelings, or behaviors that:
(A) constitutes a mental illness, disease, or
disorder, other than or in addition to epilepsy, substance abuse,
or an intellectual disability; or
(B) impairs a person's social, emotional, or
educational functioning and increases the risk of developing a
condition described by Paragraph (A).
SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 7, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 7.011 to read as follows:
Sec. 7.011. USE OF TERMINOLOGY CONSISTENT WITH INDIVIDUALS
WITH DISABILITIES EDUCATION ACT. (a) The legislature and the Texas
Legislative Council are directed, with respect to drafting or
amending any new or existing statute or resolution, and the
commissioner, the agency, and all other state agencies are
directed, with respect to the proposing, adopting, or amending of
new or existing rules and the producing of state agency reference
materials or publications, including electronic media, to avoid
using the phrases "admission, review, and dismissal committee" or
"ARD committee."
(b) In enacting, revising, proposing, adopting, amending,
or producing new or existing statutes, resolutions, rules, or state
agency materials, the legislature, the Texas Legislative Council,
the commissioner, the agency, and all other state agencies are
directed to replace, as appropriate, the phrases described in
Subsection (a) with the preferred phrases "individualized
education program team" or "IEP team."
(c) A statute, resolution, or rule is not invalid solely
because it does not employ this section's preferred phrases.
SECTION 3. Section 25.007(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) In recognition of the challenges faced by students who
are homeless or in substitute care, the agency shall assist the
transition of students who are homeless or in substitute care from
one school to another by:
(1) ensuring that school records for a student who is
homeless or in substitute care are transferred to the student's new
school not later than the 10th working day after the date the
student begins enrollment at the school;
(2) developing systems to ease transition of a student
who is homeless or in substitute care during the first two weeks of
enrollment at a new school;
(3) developing procedures for awarding credit,
including partial credit if appropriate, for course work, including
electives, completed by a student who is homeless or in substitute
care while enrolled at another school;
(4) developing procedures to ensure that a new school
relies on decisions made by the previous school regarding placement
in courses or educational programs of a student who is homeless or
in substitute care and places the student in comparable courses or
educational programs at the new school, if those courses or
programs are available;
(5) promoting practices that facilitate access by a
student who is homeless or in substitute care to extracurricular
programs, summer programs, credit transfer services, electronic
courses provided under Chapter 30A, and after-school tutoring
programs at nominal or no cost;
(6) establishing procedures to lessen the adverse
impact of the movement of a student who is homeless or in substitute
care to a new school;
(7) entering into a memorandum of understanding with
the Department of Family and Protective Services regarding the
exchange of information as appropriate to facilitate the transition
of students in substitute care from one school to another;
(8) encouraging school districts and open-enrollment
charter schools to provide services for a student who is homeless or
in substitute care in transition when applying for admission to
postsecondary study and when seeking sources of funding for
postsecondary study;
(9) requiring school districts, campuses, and
open-enrollment charter schools to accept a referral for special
education services made for a student who is homeless or in
substitute care by a school previously attended by the student, and
to provide comparable services to the student during the referral
process or until the new school develops an individualized
education program for the student;
(10) requiring school districts, campuses, and
open-enrollment charter schools to provide notice to the child's
educational decision-maker and caseworker regarding events that
may significantly impact the education of a child, including:
(A) requests or referrals for an evaluation under
Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), or
special education under Section 29.003;
(B) individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] meetings;
(C) manifestation determination reviews required
by Section 37.004(b);
(D) any disciplinary actions under Chapter 37 for
which parental notice is required;
(E) citations issued for Class C misdemeanor
offenses on school property or at school-sponsored activities;
(F) reports of restraint and seclusion required
by Section 37.0021;
(G) use of corporal punishment as provided by
Section 37.0011; and
(H) appointment of a surrogate parent for the
child under Section 29.0151;
(11) developing procedures for allowing a student who
is homeless or in substitute care who was previously enrolled in a
course required for graduation the opportunity, to the extent
practicable, to complete the course, at no cost to the student,
before the beginning of the next school year;
(12) ensuring that a student who is homeless or in
substitute care who is not likely to receive a high school diploma
before the fifth school year following the student's enrollment in
grade nine, as determined by the district, has the student's course
credit accrual and personal graduation plan reviewed;
(13) ensuring that a student in substitute care who is
in grade 11 or 12 be provided information regarding tuition and fee
exemptions under Section 54.366 for dual-credit or other courses
provided by a public institution of higher education for which a
high school student may earn joint high school and college credit;
(14) designating at least one agency employee to act
as a liaison officer regarding educational issues related to
students in the conservatorship of the Department of Family and
Protective Services; and
(15) providing other assistance as identified by the
agency.
SECTION 4. Section 25.043(h), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(h) This section does not affect:
(1) a right or obligation under Subchapter A, Chapter
29, or under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20
U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.) regarding the individual placement
decisions of an individualized education program team [the school
district admission, review, and dismissal committee]; or
(2) the right of a school district or teacher to remove
a student from a classroom under Chapter 37.
SECTION 5. Sections 26.0081(a) and (b), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) The agency shall produce and provide to school districts
sufficient copies of a comprehensive, easily understood document
that explains the process by which an individualized education
program is developed for a student in a special education program
and the rights and responsibilities of a parent concerning the
process. The document must include information a parent needs to
effectively participate in an individualized education program
team [admission, review, and dismissal committee] meeting for the
parent's child.
(b) The agency will ensure that each school district
provides the document required under this section to the parent as
provided by 20 U.S.C. Section 1415(b):
(1) as soon as practicable after a child is referred to
determine the child's eligibility for admission into the district's
special education program, but at least five school days before the
date of the initial meeting of the individualized education program
team [admission, review, and dismissal committee]; and
(2) at any other time on reasonable request of the
child's parent.
SECTION 6. Section 28.006(g), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(g) A school district shall notify the parent or guardian of
each student in kindergarten or first or second grade who is
determined, on the basis of reading instrument results, to be at
risk for dyslexia or other reading difficulties. The district shall
implement an accelerated reading instruction program that provides
reading instruction that addresses reading deficiencies to those
students and shall determine the form, content, and timing of that
program. The individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal committee] of a student who participates in a
district's special education program under Subchapter B, Chapter
29, and who does not perform satisfactorily on a reading instrument
under this section shall determine the manner in which the student
will participate in an accelerated reading instruction program
under this subsection.
SECTION 7. Sections 28.0211(i), (i-1), and (i-2), Education
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(i) The individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal committee] of a student who participates in a
district's special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter
29, and who does not perform satisfactorily on an assessment
instrument specified under Subsection (a) and administered under
Section 39.023(a) or (b) must meet before the student is
administered the assessment instrument for the second time. The
team [committee] shall determine:
(1) the manner in which the student will participate
in an accelerated instruction program under this section; and
(2) whether the student will be promoted in accordance
with Subsection (i-1) or retained under this section.
(i-1) At a meeting of the individualized education program
team [admission, review, and dismissal committee] of a student
under Subsection (i), the team [committee] may promote the student
to the next grade level if the team [committee] concludes that the
student has made sufficient progress in the measurable academic
goals contained in the student's individualized education program
developed under Section 29.005. A school district that promotes a
student under this subsection is not required to provide an
additional opportunity for the student to perform satisfactorily on
the assessment instrument.
(i-2) Not later than September 1 of each school year, a
school district must notify the parent or person standing in
parental relation to a student enrolled in the district's special
education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, of the options of
the individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] under Subsections (i) and (i-1) if the student
does not perform satisfactorily on an assessment instrument.
SECTION 8. Section 28.0213(e), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(e) For a student in a special education program under
Subchapter A, Chapter 29, who does not perform satisfactorily on an
assessment instrument administered under Section 39.023(a), (b),
or (c), the student's individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] shall design the
program to:
(1) enable the student to attain a standard of annual
growth on the basis of the student's individualized education
program; and
(2) if applicable, carry out the purposes of Section
28.0211.
SECTION 9. Sections 28.025(b-11), (b-14), (c-7), and (c-8),
Education Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b-11) In adopting rules under Subsection (b-1), the State
Board of Education shall allow a student who is unable to
participate in physical activity due to disability or illness to
substitute one credit in English language arts, mathematics,
science, or social studies, one credit in a course that is offered
for credit as provided by Section 28.002(g-1), or one academic
elective credit for the physical education credit required under
Subsection (b-1)(8). A credit allowed to be substituted under this
subsection may not also be used by the student to satisfy a
graduation requirement other than completion of the physical
education credit. The rules must provide that the determination
regarding a student's ability to participate in physical activity
will be made by:
(1) if the student receives special education services
under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, the student's individualized
education program team [admission, review, and dismissal
committee];
(2) if the student does not receive special education
services under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, but is covered by Section
504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), the
committee established for the student under that Act; or
(3) if a team or a committee [each of the committees]
described by Subdivision [Subdivisions] (1) or [and] (2) is
inapplicable, a committee established by the school district of
persons with appropriate knowledge regarding the student.
(b-14) In adopting rules under Subsection (b-1), the State
Board of Education shall allow a student who, due to disability, is
unable to complete two courses in the same language in a language
other than English, as provided under Subsection (b-1)(5), to
substitute for those credits two credits in English language arts,
mathematics, science, or social studies or two credits in career
and technology education, technology applications, or other
academic electives. A credit allowed to be substituted under this
subsection may not also be used by the student to satisfy a
graduation credit requirement other than credit for completion of a
language other than English. The rules must provide that the
determination regarding a student's ability to participate in
language-other-than-English courses will be made by:
(1) if the student receives special education services
under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, the student's individualized
education program team [admission, review, and dismissal
committee]; or
(2) if the student does not receive special education
services under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, but is covered by Section
504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), the
committee established for the student under that Act.
(c-7) Subject to Subsection (c-8), a student who is enrolled
in a special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, may
earn an endorsement on the student's transcript by:
(1) successfully completing, with or without
modification of the curriculum:
(A) the curriculum requirements identified by
the State Board of Education under Subsection (a); and
(B) the additional endorsement curriculum
requirements prescribed by the State Board of Education under
Subsection (c-2); and
(2) successfully completing all curriculum
requirements for that endorsement adopted by the State Board of
Education:
(A) without modification of the curriculum; or
(B) with modification of the curriculum,
provided that the curriculum, as modified, is sufficiently rigorous
as determined by the student's individualized education program
team [admission, review, and dismissal committee].
(c-8) For purposes of Subsection (c-7), the individualized
education program team [admission, review, and dismissal
committee] of a student in a special education program under
Subchapter A, Chapter 29, shall determine whether the student is
required to achieve satisfactory performance on an end-of-course
assessment instrument to earn an endorsement on the student's
transcript.
SECTION 10. Section 29.001, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 29.001. STATEWIDE PLAN. The agency shall develop, and
modify as necessary, a statewide design, consistent with federal
law, for the delivery of services to children with disabilities in
this state that includes rules for the administration and funding
of the special education program so that a free appropriate public
education is available to all of those children between the ages of
three and 21. The statewide design shall include the provision of
services primarily through school districts and shared services
arrangements, supplemented by regional education service centers.
The agency shall also develop and implement a statewide plan with
programmatic content that includes procedures designed to:
(1) ensure state compliance with requirements for
supplemental federal funding for all state-administered programs
involving the delivery of instructional or related services to
students with disabilities;
(2) facilitate interagency coordination when other
state agencies are involved in the delivery of instructional or
related services to students with disabilities;
(3) periodically assess statewide personnel needs in
all areas of specialization related to special education and pursue
strategies to meet those needs through a consortium of
representatives from regional education service centers, local
education agencies, and institutions of higher education and
through other available alternatives;
(4) ensure that regional education service centers
throughout the state maintain a regional support function, which
may include direct service delivery and a component designed to
facilitate the placement of students with disabilities who cannot
be appropriately served in their resident districts;
(5) allow the agency to effectively monitor and
periodically conduct site visits of all school districts to ensure
that rules adopted under this section are applied in a consistent
and uniform manner, to ensure that districts are complying with
those rules, and to ensure that annual statistical reports filed by
the districts and not otherwise available through the Public
Education Information Management System under Sections 48.008 and
48.009 are accurate and complete;
(6) ensure that appropriately trained personnel are
involved in the diagnostic and evaluative procedures operating in
all districts and that those personnel routinely serve on district
individualized education program teams [admissions, review, and
dismissal committees];
(7) ensure that an individualized education program
for each student with a disability is properly developed,
implemented, and maintained in the least restrictive environment
that is appropriate to meet the student's educational needs;
(8) ensure that, when appropriate, each student with a
disability is provided an opportunity to participate in career and
technology and physical education classes, in addition to
participating in regular or special classes;
(9) ensure that each student with a disability is
provided necessary related services;
(10) ensure that an individual assigned to act as a
surrogate parent for a child with a disability, as provided by 20
U.S.C. Section 1415(b), is required to:
(A) complete a training program that complies
with minimum standards established by agency rule;
(B) visit the child and the child's school;
(C) consult with persons involved in the child's
education, including teachers, caseworkers, court-appointed
volunteers, guardians ad litem, attorneys ad litem, foster parents,
and caretakers;
(D) review the child's educational records;
(E) attend meetings of the child's
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee];
(F) exercise independent judgment in pursuing
the child's interests; and
(G) exercise the child's due process rights under
applicable state and federal law; and
(11) ensure that each district develops a process to
be used by a teacher who instructs a student with a disability in a
regular classroom setting:
(A) to request a review of the student's
individualized education program;
(B) to provide input in the development of the
student's individualized education program;
(C) that provides for a timely district response
to the teacher's request; and
(D) that provides for notification to the
student's parent or legal guardian of that response.
SECTION 11. Section 29.004(a-1), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a-1) If a school district receives written consent signed
by a student's parent or legal guardian for a full individual and
initial evaluation of a student at least 35 but less than 45 school
days before the last instructional day of the school year, the
evaluation must be completed and the written report of the
evaluation must be provided to the parent or legal guardian not
later than June 30 of that year. The student's individualized
education program team [admission, review, and dismissal
committee] shall meet not later than the 15th school day of the
following school year to consider the evaluation. If a district
receives written consent signed by a student's parent or legal
guardian less than 35 school days before the last instructional day
of the school year or if the district receives the written consent
at least 35 but less than 45 school days before the last
instructional day of the school year but the student is absent from
school during that period on three or more days, Subsection (a)(1)
applies to the date the written report of the full individual and
initial evaluation is required.
SECTION 12. Sections 29.005(a), (b), (b-1), (c), and (g),
Education Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) Before a child is enrolled in a special education
program of a school district, the district shall establish an
individualized education program team [a committee] composed of the
persons required under 20 U.S.C. Section 1414(d) to develop the
child's individualized education program. If a team [committee] is
required to include a regular education teacher, the regular
education teacher included must, to the extent practicable, be a
teacher who is responsible for implementing a portion of the
child's individualized education program.
(b) The individualized education program team [committee]
shall develop the individualized education program by agreement of
the team [committee] members or, if those persons cannot agree, by
an alternate method provided by the agency. Majority vote may not be
used to determine the individualized education program.
(b-1) The written statement of the individualized education
program must document the decisions of the individualized education
program team [committee] with respect to issues discussed at each
team [committee] meeting. The written statement must include:
(1) the date of the meeting;
(2) the name, position, and signature of each member
participating in the meeting; and
(3) an indication of whether the child's parents, the
adult student, if applicable, and the administrator agreed or
disagreed with the decisions of the team [committee].
(c) If the individualized education program is not
developed by agreement, the written statement of the program
required under 20 U.S.C. Section 1414(d) must include the basis of
the disagreement. Each member of the individualized education
program team [committee] who disagrees with the individualized
education program developed by the team [committee] is entitled to
include a statement of disagreement in the written statement of the
program.
(g) The individualized education program team [committee]
may determine that a behavior improvement plan or a behavioral
intervention plan is appropriate for a student for whom the team
[committee] has developed an individualized education program. If
the team [committee] makes that determination, the behavior
improvement plan or the behavioral intervention plan shall be
included as part of the student's individualized education program
and provided to each teacher with responsibility for educating the
student.
SECTION 13. Section 29.008(c), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) When a student, including one for whom the state is
managing conservator, is placed primarily for care or treatment
reasons in a private residential facility that operates its own
private education program, none of the costs may be paid from public
education funds. If a residential placement primarily for care or
treatment reasons involves a private residential facility in which
the education program is provided by the school district, the
portion of the costs that includes appropriate education services,
as determined by the individualized education program team [the
school district's admission, review, and dismissal committee],
shall be paid from state and federal education funds.
SECTION 14. Sections 29.011(a) and (a-1), Education Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) The commissioner shall by rule adopt procedures for
compliance with federal requirements relating to transition
services for students who are enrolled in special education
programs under this subchapter. The procedures must specify the
manner in which a student's individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] must consider, and if
appropriate, address the following issues in the student's
individualized education program:
(1) appropriate student involvement in the student's
transition to life outside the public school system;
(2) if the student is younger than 18 years of age,
appropriate involvement in the student's transition by the
student's parents and other persons invited to participate by:
(A) the student's parents; or
(B) the school district in which the student is
enrolled;
(3) if the student is at least 18 years of age,
involvement in the student's transition and future by the student's
parents and other persons, if the parent or other person:
(A) is invited to participate by the student or
the school district in which the student is enrolled; or
(B) has the student's consent to participate
pursuant to a supported decision-making agreement under Chapter
1357, Estates Code;
(4) appropriate postsecondary education options,
including preparation for postsecondary-level coursework;
(5) an appropriate functional vocational evaluation;
(6) appropriate employment goals and objectives;
(7) if the student is at least 18 years of age, the
availability of age-appropriate instructional environments,
including community settings or environments that prepare the
student for postsecondary education or training, competitive
integrated employment, or independent living, in coordination with
the student's transition goals and objectives;
(8) appropriate independent living goals and
objectives;
(9) appropriate circumstances for facilitating a
referral of a student or the student's parents to a governmental
agency for services or public benefits, including a referral to a
governmental agency to place the student on a waiting list for
public benefits available to the student, such as a waiver program
established under Section 1915(c), Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
Section 1396n(c)); and
(10) the use and availability of appropriate:
(A) supplementary aids, services, curricula, and
other opportunities to assist the student in developing
decision-making skills; and
(B) supports and services to foster the student's
independence and self-determination, including a supported
decision-making agreement under Chapter 1357, Estates Code.
(a-1) A student's individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] shall annually review
the issues described by Subsection (a) and, if necessary, update
the portions of the student's individualized education program that
address those issues.
SECTION 15. Section 29.0112(e), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(e) A school district shall:
(1) post the transition and employment guide on the
district's website if the district maintains a website;
(2) provide written information and, if necessary,
assistance to a student or parent regarding how to access the
electronic version of the guide at:
(A) the first meeting of the student's
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] at which transition is discussed; and
(B) the first team [committee] meeting at which
transition is discussed that occurs after the date on which the
guide is updated; and
(3) on request, provide a printed copy of the guide to
a student or parent.
SECTION 16. Section 29.015(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) A foster parent who will act as a parent of a child with
a disability as provided by Subsection (a) must complete a training
program before the next scheduled individualized education program
team [admission, review, and dismissal committee] meeting for the
child but not later than the 90th day after the date the foster
parent begins acting as the parent for the purpose of making special
education decisions.
SECTION 17. Section 29.0151(d), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) A surrogate parent appointed by a district must:
(1) be willing to serve in that capacity;
(2) exercise independent judgment in pursuing the
child's interests;
(3) ensure that the child's due process rights under
applicable state and federal laws are not violated;
(4) complete a training program that complies with
minimum standards established by agency rule within the time
specified in Section 29.015(b);
(5) visit the child and the school where the child is
enrolled;
(6) review the child's educational records;
(7) consult with any person involved in the child's
education, including the child's:
(A) teachers;
(B) caseworkers;
(C) court-appointed volunteers;
(D) guardian ad litem;
(E) attorney ad litem;
(F) foster parent; and
(G) caregiver; and
(8) attend meetings of the child's individualized
education program team [admission, review, and dismissal
committee].
SECTION 18. Section 29.019(e), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(e) Nothing in this section prohibits a school district from
using individualized education program facilitation as the
district's preferred method of conducting initial and annual
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] meetings.
SECTION 19. Section 29.020(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The agency shall develop rules in accordance with this
section applicable to the administration of a state individualized
education program facilitation project. The program shall include
the provision of an independent individualized education program
facilitator to facilitate an individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] meeting with parties
who are in a dispute about decisions relating to the provision of a
free appropriate public education to a student with a disability.
Facilitation implemented under the project must comply with rules
developed under this subsection.
SECTION 20. Section 29.022(l), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(l) A school district or open-enrollment charter school
policy relating to the placement, operation, or maintenance of
video cameras under this section must:
(1) include information on how a person may appeal an
action by the district or school that the person believes to be in
violation of this section or a policy adopted in accordance with
this section, including the appeals process under Section 7.057;
(2) require that the district or school provide a
response to a request made under this section not later than the
seventh school business day after receipt of the request by the
person to whom it must be submitted under Subsection (a-3) that
authorizes the request or states the reason for denying the
request;
(3) except as provided by Subdivision (5), require
that a school or a campus begin operation of a video camera in
compliance with this section not later than the 45th school
business day, or the first school day after the 45th school business
day if that day is not a school day, after the request is authorized
unless the agency grants an extension of time;
(4) permit the parent of a student whose
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] has determined that the student's placement
for the following school year will be in a classroom or other
special education setting in which a video camera may be placed
under this section to make a request for the video camera by the
later of:
(A) the date on which the current school year
ends; or
(B) the 10th school business day after the date
of the placement determination by the individualized education
program team [admission, review, and dismissal committee]; and
(5) if a request is made by a parent in compliance with
Subdivision (4), unless the agency grants an extension of time,
require that a school or campus begin operation of a video camera in
compliance with this section not later than the later of:
(A) the 10th school day of the fall semester; or
(B) the 45th school business day, or the first
school day after the 45th school business day if that day is not a
school day, after the date the request is made.
SECTION 21. Section 29.026(d), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
not:
(1) charge a fee for the program, other than those
authorized by law for students in public schools;
(2) require a parent to enroll a child in the program;
(3) allow an individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] to place a student in
the program without the written consent of the student's parent or
guardian; or
(4) continue the placement of a student in the program
after the student's parent or guardian revokes consent, in writing,
to the student's placement in the program.
SECTION 22. Section 29.027(d), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may
not:
(1) charge a fee for the program, other than those
authorized by law for students in public schools;
(2) require a parent to enroll a child in the program;
(3) allow an individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] to place a student in
the program without the written consent of the student's parent or
guardian; or
(4) continue the placement of a student in the program
after the student's parent or guardian revokes consent, in writing,
to the student's placement in the program.
SECTION 23. Section 29.305, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 29.305. LANGUAGE MODE PEERS. If practicable and not in
conflict with any individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] recommendations, a
student who is deaf or hard of hearing must have an education in the
company of a sufficient number of peers using the same language mode
and with whom the student can communicate directly. If practicable,
the peers must be of the same or approximately the same age and
ability.
SECTION 24. Section 29.312, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 29.312. PSYCHOLOGICAL COUNSELING SERVICES.
Appropriate psychological counseling services for a student who is
deaf or hard of hearing shall be made available at the student's
school site in the student's primary mode of communication. In the
case of a student who is hard of hearing, appropriate auditory
systems to enhance oral communication shall be used if required by
the student's individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal committee].
SECTION 25. Section 29.314, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 29.314. TRANSITION INTO REGULAR CLASS. In addition to
satisfying requirements of the individualized education program
team [admission, review, and dismissal committee] and to satisfying
requirements under state and federal law for vocational training,
each school district shall develop and implement a transition plan
for the transition of a student who is deaf or hard of hearing into a
regular class program if the student is to be transferred from a
special class or center or nonpublic, nonsectarian school into a
regular class in a public school for any part of the school day. The
transition plan must provide for activities:
(1) to integrate the student into the regular
education program and specify the nature of each activity and the
time spent on the activity each day; and
(2) to support the transition of the student from the
special education program into the regular education program.
SECTION 26. Section 29.453(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The educational placement of an alleged offender
resident and the educational services to be provided by a school
district to the resident shall be determined by the resident's
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] consistent with federal law and regulations
regarding the placement of students with disabilities in the least
restrictive environment. The resident's individualized education
program team [admission, review, and dismissal committee] shall:
(1) inform the resident's interdisciplinary team of a
determination the resident's individualized education program team
[committee] makes in accordance with this subsection; and
(2) consult, to the extent practicable, with the
resident's interdisciplinary team concerning such a determination.
SECTION 27. Section 29.454(d), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) Each behavior support specialist shall:
(1) ensure that each alleged offender resident
enrolled in the school district is provided behavior management
services under a school behavioral intervention plan based on the
resident's functional behavioral assessment, as described by
Subsection (c);
(2) communicate and coordinate with the resident's
interdisciplinary team to ensure that behavioral intervention
actions of the district and of the forensic state supported living
center do not conflict;
(3) in the case of a resident who regresses:
(A) ensure that necessary corrective action is
taken in the resident's individualized education program or school
behavioral intervention plan, as appropriate; and
(B) communicate with the resident's
interdisciplinary team concerning the regression and encourage the
team to aggressively address the regression;
(4) participate in the resident's individualized
education program team [admission, review, and dismissal
committee] meetings in conjunction with:
(A) developing and implementing the resident's
school behavioral intervention plan; and
(B) determining the appropriate educational
placement for each resident, considering all available academic and
behavioral information;
(5) coordinate each resident's school behavioral
intervention plan with the resident's program of active treatment
provided by the forensic state supported living center to ensure
consistency of approach and response to the resident's identified
behaviors;
(6) provide training for school district staff and, as
appropriate, state supported living center staff in implementing
behavioral intervention plans for each resident; and
(7) remain involved with the resident during the
school day.
SECTION 28. Section 29.455(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) A school district in which alleged offender residents
are enrolled in school and the forensic state supported living
center shall enter into a memorandum of understanding to:
(1) establish the duties and responsibilities of the
behavior support specialist to ensure the safety of all students
and teachers while educational services are provided to a resident
at a school in the district; and
(2) ensure the provision of appropriate facilities for
providing educational services and of necessary technological
equipment if a resident's individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] determines that the
resident must receive educational services at the forensic state
supported living center.
SECTION 29. Sections 30.002(c) and (f), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(c) The comprehensive statewide plan for the education of
children with visual impairments must:
(1) adequately provide for comprehensive diagnosis
and evaluation of each school-age child with a serious visual
impairment;
(2) include the procedures, format, and content of the
individualized education program for each child with a visual
impairment;
(3) emphasize providing educational services to
children with visual impairments in their home communities whenever
possible;
(4) include methods to ensure that children with
visual impairments receiving special education services in school
districts receive, before being placed in a classroom setting or
within a reasonable time after placement:
(A) evaluation of the impairment; and
(B) instruction in an expanded core curriculum,
which is required for students with visual impairments to succeed
in classroom settings and to derive lasting, practical benefits
from the education provided by school districts, including
instruction in:
(i) compensatory skills, such as braille
and concept development, and other skills needed to access the rest
of the curriculum;
(ii) orientation and mobility;
(iii) social interaction skills;
(iv) career planning;
(v) assistive technology, including
optical devices;
(vi) independent living skills;
(vii) recreation and leisure enjoyment;
(viii) self-determination; and
(ix) sensory efficiency;
(5) provide for flexibility on the part of school
districts to meet the special needs of children with visual
impairments through:
(A) specialty staff and resources provided by the
district;
(B) contractual arrangements with other
qualified public or private agencies;
(C) supportive assistance from regional
education service centers or adjacent school districts;
(D) short-term or long-term services through the
Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired or related
facilities or programs; or
(E) other instructional and service arrangements
approved by the agency;
(6) include a statewide individualized education
program [admission, review, and dismissal] process;
(7) provide for effective interaction between the
visually impaired child's classroom setting and the child's home
environment, including providing for parental training and
counseling either by school district staff or by representatives of
other organizations directly involved in the development and
implementation of the individualized education program for the
child;
(8) require the continuing education and professional
development of school district staff providing special education
services to children with visual impairments;
(9) provide for adequate monitoring and precise
evaluation of special education services provided to children with
visual impairments through school districts; and
(10) require that school districts providing special
education services to children with visual impairments develop
procedures for assuring that staff assigned to work with the
children have prompt and effective access directly to resources
available through:
(A) cooperating agencies in the area;
(B) the Texas School for the Blind and Visually
Impaired;
(C) the Central Media Depository for specialized
instructional materials and aids made specifically for use by
students with visual impairments;
(D) sheltered workshops participating in the
state program of purchases of blind-made goods and services; and
(E) related sources.
(f) In the development of the individualized education
program for a student with a visual impairment, proficiency in
reading and writing is a significant indicator of the student's
satisfactory educational progress. The individualized education
program for a student with a visual impairment must include
instruction in braille and the use of braille unless the student's
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] determines and documents that braille is not
an appropriate literacy medium for the student. The team's
[committee's] determination must be based on an evaluation of the
student's appropriate literacy media and literacy skills and the
student's current and future instructional needs. Braille
instruction:
(1) may be used in combination with other special
education services appropriate to the student's educational needs;
and
(2) shall be provided by a teacher certified to teach
students with visual impairments.
SECTION 30. Section 30.021(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The school district in which a student resides is
responsible for assuring that a free appropriate public education
is provided to each district student placed in the regular school
year program of the school and that all legally required meetings
for the purpose of developing and reviewing the student's
individualized educational program are conducted. If the school
disagrees with a district's individualized education program team
[committee] recommendation that a student be evaluated for
placement, initially placed, or continued to be placed at the
school, the district or the school may seek resolution according to
a procedure established by the commissioner or through any due
process hearing to which the district or school is entitled under
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section
1400 et seq.).
SECTION 31. Section 30.057(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The Texas School for the Deaf shall provide services in
accordance with Section 30.051 to any eligible student with a
disability for whom the school is an appropriate placement if the
student has been referred for admission:
(1) by the school district in which the student
resides under the student's individualized education program;
(2) by the student's parent or legal guardian, or a
person with legal authority to act in place of the parent or legal
guardian, or the student, if the student is age 18 or older, at any
time during the school year, if the referring person chooses the
school as the appropriate placement for the student rather than the
placement in the student's local or regional program recommended
under the student's individualized education program; or
(3) by the student's parent or legal guardian through
the student's individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal] or individualized family service plan
committee, as an initial referral to special education for students
who are three years of age or younger.
SECTION 32. Section 30A.007(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) For purposes of a policy adopted under Subsection (a),
the determination of whether or not an electronic course will meet
the needs of a student with a disability shall be made by the
student's individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal committee] in a manner consistent with state
and federal law, including the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.) and Section 504,
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794).
SECTION 33. Section 33.081(e), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(e) Suspension of a student with a disability that
significantly interferes with the student's ability to meet regular
academic standards must be based on the student's failure to meet
the requirements of the student's individualized education
program. The determination of whether a disability significantly
interferes with a student's ability to meet regular academic
standards must be made by the student's individualized education
program team [admission, review, and dismissal committee]. For
purposes of this subsection, "student with a disability" means a
student who is eligible for a district's special education program
under Section 29.003(b).
SECTION 34. Section 37.001(b-1), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b-1) The methods adopted under Subsection (a)(8) must
provide that a student who is enrolled in a special education
program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, may not be disciplined for
conduct prohibited in accordance with Subsection (a)(7) until an
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] meeting has been held to review the conduct.
SECTION 35. Sections 37.004(a) and (b), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) The placement of a student with a disability who
receives special education services may be made only by a duly
constituted individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal committee].
(b) Any disciplinary action regarding a student with a
disability who receives special education services that would
constitute a change in placement under federal law may be taken only
after the student's individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee] conducts a
manifestation determination review under 20 U.S.C. Section
1415(k)(4) and its subsequent amendments. Any disciplinary action
regarding the student shall be determined in accordance with
federal law and regulations, including laws or regulations
requiring the provision of:
(1) functional behavioral assessments;
(2) positive behavioral interventions, strategies,
and supports;
(3) behavioral intervention plans; and
(4) the manifestation determination review.
SECTION 36. Section 37.105(e), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(e) If a parent or guardian of a child enrolled in a school
district is refused entry to the district's property under this
section, the district shall accommodate the parent or guardian to
ensure that the parent or guardian may participate in the child's
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] or in the child's team established under
Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), in
accordance with federal law.
SECTION 37. Section 37.307(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The review under Section 37.306 of the placement of a
student with a disability who receives special education services
may be made only by a duly constituted individualized education
program team [admission, review, and dismissal committee]. The
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] may request that the board of trustees convene
a committee described by Section 37.306(a) to assist the
individualized education program team [admission, review, and
dismissal committee] in conducting the review.
SECTION 38. Sections 39.023(b), (c), and (d), Education
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) The agency shall develop or adopt appropriate
criterion-referenced alternative assessment instruments to be
administered to each student in a special education program under
Subchapter A, Chapter 29, for whom an assessment instrument adopted
under Subsection (a), even with allowable accommodations, would not
provide an appropriate measure of student achievement, as
determined by the student's individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal committee], including assessment
instruments approved by the commissioner that measure growth. The
assessment instruments developed or adopted under this subsection,
including the assessment instruments approved by the commissioner,
must, to the extent allowed under federal law, provide a district
with options for the assessment of students under this subsection.
The agency may not adopt a performance standard that indicates that
a student's performance on the alternate assessment does not meet
standards if the lowest level of the assessment accurately
represents the student's developmental level as determined by the
student's individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal committee].
(c) The agency shall also adopt end-of-course assessment
instruments for secondary-level courses in Algebra I, biology,
English I, English II, and United States history. The Algebra I
end-of-course assessment instrument must be administered with the
aid of technology, but may include one or more parts that prohibit
the use of technology. The English I and English II end-of-course
assessment instruments must each assess essential knowledge and
skills in both reading and writing and must provide a single score.
A school district shall comply with State Board of Education rules
regarding administration of the assessment instruments listed in
this subsection. If a student is in a special education program
under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, the student's individualized
education program team [admission, review, and dismissal
committee] shall determine whether any allowable modification is
necessary in administering to the student an assessment instrument
required under this subsection. The State Board of Education shall
administer the assessment instruments. An end-of-course assessment
instrument may be administered in multiple parts over more than one
day. The State Board of Education shall adopt a schedule for the
administration of end-of-course assessment instruments that
complies with the requirements of Subsection (c-3).
(d) The commissioner may participate in multistate efforts
to develop voluntary standardized end-of-course assessment
instruments. The commissioner by rule may require a school district
to administer an end-of-course assessment instrument developed
through the multistate efforts. The individualized education
program team [admission, review, and dismissal committee] of a
student in a special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter
29, shall determine whether any allowable modification is necessary
in administering to the student an end-of-course assessment
instrument.
SECTION 39. Section 39.025(a-4), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a-4) The individualized education program team [admission,
review, and dismissal committee] of a student in a special
education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, shall determine
whether, to receive a high school diploma, the student is required
to achieve satisfactory performance on end-of-course assessment
instruments.
SECTION 40. Section 661.906, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 661.906. FOSTER PARENTS. A state employee who is a
foster parent to a child under the conservatorship of the
Department of Protective and Regulatory Services is entitled to a
leave of absence without a deduction in salary for the purpose of
attending:
(1) meetings held by the Department of Protective and
Regulatory Services regarding the child under the foster care of
the employee; or
(2) an individualized education program team
[admission, review, and dismissal] meeting held by a school
district regarding the child under the foster care of the employee.
SECTION 41. Section 29.301(1), Education Code, is repealed.
SECTION 42. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.