Current through Reg. 50, No. 13; March 28, 2025
(a) Mandatory revocation or reconstitution.
Except as provided by subsection (b) of this section, the commissioner of
education shall either revoke the charter of an open-enrollment charter school
or reconstitute the governing body of the charter holder if the commissioner
determines that the charter holder:
(1)
committed a material violation of the charter, including failure to satisfy
accountability provisions prescribed by the charter;
(2) failed to satisfy generally accepted
accounting standards of fiscal management;
(3) failed to protect the health, safety, or
welfare of the students enrolled at the school;
(4) failed to comply with Texas Education
Code (TEC), Chapter 12, Subchapter D, or another applicable law or rule;
(5) failed to satisfy the
performance framework standards as set forth in the Charter School Performance
Framework Manual established under TEC, §
12.1181; or
(6) is imminently insolvent as determined by
the commissioner in accordance with §
100.1051(c) of
this title (relating to Standards to Revoke and Modify the Governance of an
Open-Enrollment Charter).
(b) Mandatory revocation.
(1) Use of criteria. Notwithstanding §
100.1051 of this title, the
commissioner shall revoke the charter of an open-enrollment charter school if
for the three preceding school years:
(A) the
charter holder has been assigned an "academically unacceptable" performance
rating under TEC, Chapter 39, Subchapter C;
(B) the charter holder has been assigned a
financial accountability performance rating under TEC, Chapter 39, Subchapter
D, indicating financial performance lower than satisfactory; or
(C) the charter holder has been assigned any
combination of an academic performance rating of "academically unacceptable"
under TEC, Chapter 39, Subchapter C, and/or a financial performance rating
lower than satisfactory under TEC, Chapter 39, Subchapter D. For purposes of
determining a combination, a school that earned a financial and academic rating
as described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this paragraph in the same year
will count once.
(2) Use
of determinations and data. The following provisions apply to a mandatory
revocation under this section.
(A) If a
rating or scaled score is not issued during one or more of the preceding school
years, then the term "three preceding school years" means the most recent three
school years during which a rating was issued.
(B) For purposes of revocation under
paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection, the term "unacceptable performance" means
an academic accountability rating that is unacceptable as defined in §
100.1001(8) of
this title (relating to Definitions).
(C) For purposes of revocation under
paragraph (1)(B) of this subsection, the term "financial performance lower than
satisfactory "means a financial accountability rating that is lower than
satisfactory as defined in §
100.1001(9) of
this title.
(c)
Notice and content of decision to revoke or modify. The commissioner shall
provide written notice to the charter holder of the commissioner's decision to
revoke or modify the governance of a charter. The notice shall include an
explanation of the factual and legal basis for the decision, a description of
the legally relevant factors considered, an explanation of why the result
reached is reasonable, and a description of the procedures to seek a review of
the decision.
(d) State Office of
Administrative Hearing (SOAH) review of revocation. A decision by the
commissioner to revoke the charter of an open-enrollment charter school under
TEC, §
12.115, is subject to
review by the SOAH under an arbitrary and capricious or clearly erroneous
standard as described by Chapter 157, Subchapter EE, Division 4, of this title
(relating to State Office of Administrative Hearings Arbitrary and Capricious
or Clearly Erroneous Review).
(e)
Reconstitution of governing body of charter holder and/or creation of a new
501(c)(3) organization. With the exception of revocation actions taken under
subsection (b) of this section, the commissioner may choose to reconstitute the
governing board of a charter holder and/or require the creation of a new
501(c)(3) organization if it is determined that the charter holder committed
any violation under subsection (a) of this section.
(1) To reconstitute the board, the
commissioner shall appoint members to the governing body and shall consider
local input from community members and parents as well as appropriate
credentials and expertise for membership, including financial expertise,
residency, and educator background. The commissioner may reappoint current
members of the governing body.
(2)
The commissioner may also require the charter holder board to create a new
single purpose organization that is exempt from taxation under
26 United States Code,
§
501(c)(3), if the
governing body of a charter holder subject to reconstitution governs
enterprises other than the open-enrollment charter school. The commissioner
shall appoint the members of the governing body of the newly created
organization.
(3) The commissioner
may require the charter holder to surrender the charter to the commissioner for
transfer to the newly created organization.
(4) A decision by the commissioner to
reconstitute the governing body of the charter of an open-enrollment charter
school or to create a new 501(c)(3) organization under the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 under TEC, §
12.115, is subject to
a hearing as described by Chapter 157, Subchapter EE, Division 2, of this title
(relating to Hearing Following Investigation).
