January-February 2024 Committee on School Instruction Item 3
Proposed Amendment to 19 TAC Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements, Subchapter C, Other Provisions, §74.28, Students with Dyslexia and Related Disorders
(First Reading and Filing Authorization)
February 2, 2024
COMMITTEE ON INSTRUCTION: ACTION
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION: ACTION
SUMMARY: This item presents for first reading and filing authorization a proposed amendment to 19 Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements, Subchapter C, Other Provisions, §74.28, Students with Dyslexia and Related Disorders. The proposed amendment would update the rule to align with House Bill (HB) 3928,88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2023; clarify terminology used in the Texas Education Code; and update the Dyslexia Handbook: Procedures Concerning Dyslexia and Related Disorders (Dyslexia Handbook) adopted as Figure: 19 TAC §74.28(c) to clarify requirements related to dyslexia evaluation, identification, and instruction.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: Texas Education Code (TEC), §§7.102(c)(28), 29.0031, and 29.0032, as amended by HB 3928, 88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2023; and §38.003(a) and (c).
TEC, §7.102(c)(28), as amended by HB 3928, 88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2023, requires the State Board of Education (SBOE) to approve a program for screening and testing students for dyslexia and related disorders.
TEC, §29.0031, as amended by HB 3928, 88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2023, requires that dyslexia is considered and meets the definition of specific learning disability, as this is defined in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. It also requires certain actions when a student is suspected of having dyslexia and in the evaluation for dyslexia.
TEC, §29.0032, as amended by HB 3928, 88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2023, requires that providers of dyslexia instruction be fully trained in the local educational agency's materials in order to provide that instruction.
TEC, §38.003(a), requires that students enrolling in public schools be screened or tested, as appropriate, for dyslexia and related disorders at appropriate times in accordance with a program approved by the SBOE. The program must include screening at the end of the school year of each student in Kindergarten and each student in Grade 1.
TEC, §38.003(c), requires the SBOE to adopt any rules and standards necessary to administer TEC, §38.003, Screening and Treatment for Dyslexia and Related Disorders.
The full text of statutory citations can be found in the statutory authority section of this agenda.
EFFECTIVE DATE: The proposed effective date of the proposed amendment is 20 days after filing as adopted with the Texas Register. Under TEC, §7.102(f), the SBOE must approve the rule action at second reading and final adoption by a vote of two-thirds of its members to specify an effective date earlier than the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year. The earlier effective date will allow districts of innovation and open-enrollment charter schools that begin school prior to the statutorily required start date to implement the proposed rulemaking when they begin their school year.
PREVIOUS BOARD ACTION: The SBOE adopted §74.28 effective September 1, 1996. The SBOE amended §74.28 effective August 27, 2018, to align the rule with legislative changes made by HB 1886, 85th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2017. In February 2018, the SBOE adopted an amendment to §74.28 effective March 13, 2019. The SBOE adopted an amendment to §74.28 effective December 25, 2019. The rule was also amended effective February 10, 2022. A discussion item was held with the Committee on Instruction on August 31, 2023, to discuss potential amendments to align with HB 3928, 88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2023.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND JUSTIFICATION: Section 74.28 provides the requirements to school districts and open-enrollment charter schools for identifying students with dyslexia or related disorders and providing appropriate services to those students.
The 85th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, passed HB 1886, amending TEC, §38.003, to specify that a student enrolled in public school must be screened or tested, as appropriate, for dyslexia and related disorders at appropriate times in accordance with a program approved by the SBOE. The legislation required that the program include screening at the end of the school year for all students in Kindergarten and Grade 1. An amendment to §74.28 to align the rule with HB 1886 was approved for second reading and final adoption at the June 2018 SBOE meeting with an effective date of August 27, 2018.
Section 74.28 was amended effective March 13, 2019, to adopt the Dyslexia Handbook in rule as Figure: 19 TAC §74.28(c).
The section was amended again effective December 25, 2019, to require school districts and open-enrollment charter schools to report to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) through the Texas Student Data System Public Education Information Management System (TSDS PEIMS) the results of screening for dyslexia and related disorders required at the end of the school year for each student in Kindergarten and each student in Grade 1 in accordance with TEC, §38.003(a).
The section was amended again effective February 10, 2022, to clarify that evaluations for dyslexia and related disorders must go through the process required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
This item provides the committee with an opportunity to consider for first reading and filing authorization updates to the section and the Dyslexia Handbook that would align with the passage of HB 3928.
FISCAL IMPACT: TEA has determined there are no additional costs to state or local government to comply with the proposal, including school districts and open-enrollment charter schools, beyond what is required by federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) regulations.
LOCAL EMPLOYMENT IMPACT: The proposal has no effect on local economy; therefore, no local employment impact statement is required under Texas Government Code, §2001.022.
SMALL BUSINESS, MICROBUSINESS, AND RURAL COMMUNITY IMPACT: The proposal has no direct adverse economic impact for small businesses, microbusinesses, or rural communities; therefore, no regulatory flexibility analysis specified in Texas Government Code, §2006.002, is required.
COST INCREASE TO REGULATED PERSONS: The proposal does not impose a cost on regulated persons, another state agency, a special district, or a local government and, therefore, is not subject to Texas Government Code, §2001.0045.
TAKINGS IMPACT ASSESSMENT: The proposal does not impose a burden on private real property and, therefore, does not constitute a taking under Texas Government Code, §2007.043.
GOVERNMENT GROWTH IMPACT: TEA staff prepared a Government Growth Impact Statement assessment for this proposed rulemaking. The proposed rulemaking would expand an existing regulation by clarifying requirements related to student evaluation, identification, and instruction for dyslexia and related disorders in accordance with House Bill 3928, 88th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2023.
The proposed rulemaking would not create or eliminate a government program; would not require the creation of new employee positions or elimination of existing employee positions; would not require an increase or decrease in future legislative appropriations to the agency; would not require an increase or decrease in fees paid to the agency; would not create a new regulation; would not limit or repeal an existing regulation; would not increase or decrease the number of individuals subject to its applicability; and would not positively or adversely affect the state's economy.
PUBLIC BENEFIT AND COST TO PERSONS: The proposal would clarify requirements related to dyslexia evaluation, identification, and instruction in alignment with recent statutory changes. There is no anticipated economic cost to persons who are required to comply with the proposal.
DATA AND REPORTING IMPACT: The proposal would have no new data and reporting impact.
PRINCIPAL AND CLASSROOM TEACHER PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS: TEA has determined that the proposal may require a written report or other paperwork to be completed by a principal or classroom teacher. However, any requirements would impose the least burdensome requirement possible to achieve the objective of the rule and are necessary to fulfill federal IDEA regulations.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: The public comment period on the proposal begins March 1, 2024, and ends at 5:00 p.m. on April 1, 2024. The SBOE will take registered oral and written comments on the proposal at the appropriate committee meeting in April 2024 in accordance with the SBOE board operating policies and procedures. A request for a public hearing on the proposal submitted under the Administrative Procedure Act must be received by the commissioner of education not more than 14 calendar days after notice of the proposal has been published in the Texas Register on March 1, 2024.
MOTION TO BE CONSIDERED: The State Board of Education:
Approve for first reading and filing authorization the proposed amendment to 19 TAC Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements, Subchapter C, Other Provisions, §74.28, Students with Dyslexia and Related Disorders.
Staff Member Responsible:
Kristin McGuire, Senior Director, Special Populations Policy, Technical Assistance, and Systemwide Integration
Attachment I:
Text of Proposed Amendment to 19 TAC Chapter 74, Curriculum Requirements, Subchapter C, Other Provisions, §74.28, Students with Dyslexia and Related Disorders
Attachment II:
DRAFT-Texas Dyslexia and Dysgraphia Handbook