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January 2019 Committee on School Finance/Permanent School Fund Item 2

Review of 19 TAC Chapter 129, Student Attendance, Subchapter A, Student Attendance Allowed, and Subchapter B, Student Attendance Accounting


January 31, 2019

COMMITTEE ON SCHOOL FINANCE/PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND: DISCUSSION
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION: NO ACTION

SUMMARY:
Texas Government Code (TGC), §2001.039, establishes a four-year rule review cycle for all state agency rules, including State Board of Education (SBOE) rules. This item presents the review of 19 TAC Chapter 129, Student Attendance, Subchapter A, Student Attendance Allowed, and Subchapter B, Student Attendance Accounting. Subchapter A addresses free attendance in general, and Subchapter B addresses requirements for student attendance accounting for state funding purposes.

STATUTORY AUTHORITY: The statutory authority for the rule review is Texas Government Code, (TGC), §2001.039. The statutory authority for 19 TAC Chapter 129, Subchapters A and B, is Texas Education Code (TEC), §42.004 and §12.106.

Texas Government Code, §2001.039, requires all state agencies to review their rules at least once every four years.

TEC, §42.004, requires the commissioner, in accordance with rules adopted by the State Board of Education, to require reports necessary to implement and administer the Foundation School Program.

TEC, §12.106, provides for charter schools to receive funding under certain conditions through TEC, Chapter 42.

FUTURE ACTION EXPECTED:
The review of 19 TAC Chapter 129, Subchapters A and B, will be presented to the SBOE for adoption at the April 2019 board meeting.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND JUSTIFICATION: The rule in 19 TAC Chapter 129, Subchapter A, addresses certain eligibility criteria students must meet for enrollment in public schools.

The rule in 19 TAC Chapter 129, Subchapter B, provides the student attendance accounting requirements school districts must follow and describes the manner in which student attendance is earned. The rule also provides a list of conditions under which a student who is not actually on campus at the time attendance is taken may be considered in attendance for Foundation School Program funding purposes.

ANTICIPATED REVISIONS TO RULES: There are no anticipated revisions to the rules in 19 TAC Chapter 129, Subchapters A and B.

PUBLIC COMMENTS: The Texas Education Agency (TEA) plans to file the review of 19 TAC Chapter 129, Subchapters A and B, with the Texas Register following the January-February 2019 SBOE meeting. The TEA will accept comments as to whether reasons for adopting 19 TAC Chapter 129, Subchapters A and B, continue to exist. The comment period will begin with publication of the notice of proposed review in the Texas Register.

The filing of the notice of proposed review soliciting comments as to whether the reason for adoption continues to exist would not preclude any amendments that may be proposed at different dates through a separate rulemaking process.

Staff Members Responsible:
Leo Lopez, Associate Commissioner, School Finance
David Marx, Director, Financial Compliance

Attachment: Text of 19 TAC Chapter 129, Student Attendance, Subchapter A, Student Attendance Allowed, and Subchapter B, Student Attendance Accounting