Bill Caption

Relating to reviews and investigations conducted by the Texas Education Agency.

Fiscal Notes

No fiscal impact to State or local government.

Bill Analysis

SB 471 would establish certain provisions for monitoring reviews, including random on-site visits to review fiscal data and reports would allow the Texas Education Agency to convert a monitoring review to a special accreditation investigation. The bill would require the Texas Education Agency to adopt written procedures for conducting special accreditation investigations, including procedures that allow TEA to obtain information from district employees in a manner that prevents a district or campus from screening the information.  The Commissioner of Education would be able to impose an intervention or sanction on the basis of a special accreditation investigation.

Vote Recommendation Notes

The bill affirms the principle of limited government. Since government is in the business of providing public schools, it is vital to monitor the success and be able to conduct investigations to determine if a school is performing properly.  SB 471 would allow more discretion in achieving this, so for these reasons we support this bill.