Bill: HB 1373, 84(R) - 2015

Committee

House Public Education

Vote Recommendation

Vote Recommendation Economic Freedom Property Rights Personal Responsibility Limited Government Individual Liberty
No Neutral Neutral Neutral Negative Neutral

Author(s)

Helen Giddings

Co-Author(s)

Ina Minjarez

Bill Caption

Relating to the assignment of a public school student to an inexperienced or uncertified teacher.

Fiscal Notes

There is no significant fiscal implication to the State.  Approximately 175 school districts have an enrollment of 5,000 or more students and would be subject to the bill's assignment provisions. Administrative costs to implement the assignment provisions would vary from district to district and would depend in part on how many teachers in the district had less than one year of experience or did not hold appropriate certification that were teaching the foundation curriculum.

Bill Analysis

HB 1373 would amend the Education Code to prohibit a student in first through grade six who attends an elementary school in a school district with an enrollment of 5,000 or more students from being assigned for two consecutive school years to a teacher who has less than one year of teaching experience or does not hold the appropriate teaching certificate. The bill would authorize the commissioner of education to grant a waiver from the prohibition to a school district if the commissioner finds that extreme circumstances in the district warrant the waiver.

Vote Recommendation Notes

This bill abridges the principle of limited government by instituting a mandate for all school districts, instead of allowing a school district to use their discretion on a case by case basis on whether a teacher is qualified to educate a student.  Teaching credentials and experience do not necessarily mean the teacher is qualified to education. For this reason, we oppose HB 1373.

Source URL (retrieved on 03/28/2024 04:03 AM): http://reports.texasaction.com/bill/84r/hb1373?print_view=true