Legislative Updates

Accountability

• Aldine ISD supports an academic accountability system that evaluates school quality and student performance as fairly and accurately as possible without penalizing schools for factors outside of their control. The accountability system should include multiple measures of student performance and growth rather than an over-reliance on standardized tests.
• Equally weight STAAR, CCMR’s and Graduation Rates in Domain 1 and Domain 2 Part B (¹/₃, ¹/₃, ¹/₃).
• Require posting of percentages of Free/ Reduced Lunch Program (FRLP) when campus and district ratings are reported.
• Eliminate the Forced Failure Rule.
• Maintain the Individual Graduation Committee (IGC) option (see SB 463 from 85th).
• Award CCMR credit for 1 dual credit course.

School Safety Funding

• Aldine ISD supports creating a School Safety Infrastructure Fund to reimburse school districts for improving safety and security. In addition, funds would be provided to school districts for preventive measures such as counseling and mental health support.

Instructional Materials Allotment

• Aldine ISD supports increasing funding for Instructional Materials Allotment.

Local Control & Flexibility

• Aldine ISD supports public schools governed by locally elected school board members, with recognition by the state that elected board members are responsive to the needs of their local taxpayers and students.
• Flexibility to allow a school district who partners with an open-enrollment charter to maintain governance but access the additional funding available (TEC §11.174). 

Public School Finance

• Aldine ISD supports a state system of public school finance that provides an adequate and equitable public school finance system, ensuring an excellent education for all Texas students. 
• A state system of public school finance that removes restrictions on the use of appropriated funds and permits local school districts the flexibility to allocate such funds, specifically bilingual and compensatory education allotments toward teacher salaries or other uses the district deems necessary to satisfy accountability requirements. (ESL/Bilingual Allotment).
• A state system of public school finance that increases sustainable state revenue sources to reduce the current over reliance on local property taxes as a revenue source.
• A state system of public school finance that accurately captures the cost of education.  Funding weights, the basic allotment, and the cost of education index should be regularly reviewed and updated to reflect the increasing cost of educating students.
• A state system of public school finance that provides state formula funding for programs in which public school students are enrolled and receive credit in college courses including dual credit, early college high school, and P-TECH programs.
• A state system of public school finance that provides funding for career and technical education for students in 6th through 8th grades.

Full Funding for PK

• Aldine ISD supports legislation that would provide full state funding for full-day PK programs for all four year-old students that are eligible under TEC 29.153.

Transportation

• Aldine ISD supports a state system of public school finance that provides adequate transportation funding.
• Exemptions for public school buses from paying tolls for use of toll roads operated by the state and regional mobility authorities, or their contractors.

Other Issues

• Aldine ISD supports developing an Urban District Adjustment based on Comp. Ed, FRPL, or Eco-Disadvantaged; 
• Indexing the basic allotment to the comptroller’s estimate of property value growth.

Diversion of State Funding From Public Schools

• Aldine ISD opposes vouchers, tax credits, tax payer savings grants, tuition reimbursements or any other programs that divert public tax dollars to either privately run schools or charter school districts that are exempt from state and federal accountability requirements.

Unfunded Mandates

• Aldine ISD opposes any unfunded mandates and infringements upon local control.