TITLE: Relating to the locations at which a new open-enrollment charter school or campus may be established.

SUMMARY: Relating to the locations at which a new open-enrollment charter school or campus may be established.

FULL TEXT:
AN ACT relating to the locations at which a new open-enrollment charter school or campus may be established. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 12.101(b-4), Education Code, is amended to read as follows: (b-4) Notwithstanding Section 12.114, approval of the commissioner under that section is not required for establishment of a new open-enrollment charter school campus if the requirements of this subsection are satisfied. A charter holder having an accreditation status of accredited and at least 50 percent of its student population in grades assessed under Subchapter B, Chapter 39, or at least 50 percent of the students in the grades assessed having been enrolled in the school for at least three school years may establish one or more new campuses under an existing charter held by the charter holder if: (1) the charter holder is currently evaluated under the standard accountability procedures for evaluation under Chapter 39 and received a district rating in the highest or second highest performance rating category under Subchapter C, Chapter 39, for three of the last five years with at least 75 percent of the campuses rated under the charter also receiving a rating in the highest or second highest performance rating category and with no campus with a rating in the lowest performance rating category in the most recent ratings; (2) the new campus will not be located within five miles of a school district's or open-enrollment charter school's campus that is assigned an overall performance rating of Bor higher under Section 39.054 for the preceding school year; (3) the charter holder provides written notice to the commissioner of the establishment of any campus under this subsection in the time, manner, and form provided by rule of the commissioner; and (4) [(3)] not later than the 60th day after the date the charter holder provides written notice under Subdivision (3) [(2)],the commissioner does not provide written notice to the charter holder that the commissioner has determined that the charter holder does not satisfy the requirements of this section. SECTION 2. Subchapter D, Chapter 12, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 12.1152 to read as follows: Sec. 12.1152. LOCATION OF CERTAIN OPEN-ENROLLMENT CHARTER SCHOOLS. Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter, the commissioner may not grant a charter for an open-enrollment charter school under this subchapter or approve a request for an expansion amendment to establish a new open-enrollment charter school campus under Section 12.114 for a school or campus that would be located within five miles of a school district's or open-enrollment charter school's campus that is assigned an overall performance rating of Bor higher under Section 39.054 for the preceding school year. SECTION 3. (a) Section 12.101(b-4), Education Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to a new open-enrollment charter school campus established on or after the effective date of this Act. (b) Section 12.1152, Education Code, as added by this Act, applies only to an application for a charter for an open-enrollment charter school or a request for approval of an expansion amendment to establish a new open-enrollment charter school campus submitted on or after the effective date of this Act. SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.