House Bill 3 (HB 3) Implementation: Industry-Based Certification Reimbursements
| Date: | August 6, 2020 |
|---|---|
| Subject: | House Bill 3 (HB 3) Implementation: Industry-Based Certification Reimbursements |
| Category: | Funding Implications |
| Next Steps: | Share with appropriate staff |
This letter details processes and procedures for school districts and open-enrollment charter schools regarding industry-based certification (IBC) exam reimbursements authorized by House Bill 3 (HB 3), 86th Legislature, 2019. Included below are the processes for reporting IBC exams for reimbursement.
Background
Texas Education Code (TEC), §48.156, permits the state to provide a reimbursement to districts and open-enrollment charter schools (collectively, LEAs) to help defray the cost of IBC exams taken by students in Grades 9-12. Only one reimbursement per student is allowable for a passed exam, over the course of the students 9-12 enrollment in Texas public schools. LEAs will receive estimated funding annually for IBC exam reimbursement. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) will settle up with LEAs in the spring of the following year, once cost and certifying entity information has been collected through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS).
Importantly, for the 2019-2020 school year, eligible students are as follows:
- Students in Grades 9-12* who took an IBC examination from approved vendors from September 1, 2019 – August 31, 2020.
*Note: Students are eligible in subsequent years if they do not receive a reimbursement for the prior year. For example, a 2019-2020 Grade 9 student who did not receive a reimbursement is still eligible for a reimbursement until he or she graduates.
PEIMS Summer Submission 3
Beginning in the 2020-2021 school year (PEIMS fall submission 1) and for all subsequent submissions, LEAs will be able to report in PEIMS the cost of the certification earned and the name of the certifying entity. However, 2019-2020 PEIMS summer submission (IBC exams passed by students enrolled in Grades 9-12 between September 1, 2019 and May 31, 2020) will not include the option for LEAs to submit this data.
Since the 2019-2020 PEIMS summer submission 3 will only allow LEAs to report certification earned, TEA has developed a one-time process to collect the cost and certifying entity information for reimbursement. (See below.)
Timeline for Submission
On August 3, 2020, TEA opened the window for LEAs to submit a Qualtrics form with the required data in a comma-separated value (CSV) file to request IBC reimbursement. This window will close October 2, 2020. TEA will not accept late requests.
Guidelines for all Submissions
TEA will reimburse the first certification earned that is reported with an associated cost greater than $0. TEA will not issue a reimbursement if the cost field is entered as $0.
Only one reimbursement per student throughout the student’s Grades 9-12 career will be provided; therefore, LEAs should only report a cost greater than $0 for the certification for which they wish to be reimbursed.
A submission for reimbursement does not guarantee a reimbursement will be received. After receiving all submissions, TEA will validate the data and reconcile funding accordingly. If multiple districts request reimbursement for the same student, the first district who reported the first certification earned with a cost greater than $0 will receive the reimbursement. TEA recommends that LEAs retain all back-up documentation on district policies, decisions, and payments in the event of an audit.
For Further Information
The instructions and data standards are available on the TEA IBC Reimbursement website. Additionally, more information about this policy is covered in depth in the HB 3 IBC Reimbursement FAQs.
If you have additional questions regarding this correspondence, please contact Advanced Academics at advancedacademics@tea.texas.gov. If you have any questions regarding IBC program support and/or Career and Technical Education (CTE), please contact cte@tea.texas.gov.