| (a) The following words and terms, when used in this
section, have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise.
(1) Annual Financial Report (AFR)--The audited annual
report required by the Texas Education Code (TEC), §44.008, that
is due to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) by no later than 150 days
after the close of a school district's or an open-enrollment charter
school's fiscal year.
(2) Debt--An amount of money owed to a person, bank,
company, or other organization.
(3) Electronic submission--The TEA electronic data
feed format required for use by school districts, open-enrollment
charter schools, and regional education service centers (ESCs).
(4) Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST)--The
financial accountability rating system administered by the TEA in
accordance with the TEC, §39.082 and §39.085. The system
provides additional transparency to public education finance and meaningful
financial oversight and improvement for school districts (School FIRST)
and open-enrollment charter schools (Charter FIRST).
(5) Fiscal year--The fiscal year of a school district
or an open-enrollment charter school, which begins on July 1 or September
1 of each year, as determined by the board of trustees of the district
or the governing body of the charter holder in accordance with the
TEC, §44.0011.
(6) Foundation School Program (FSP)--The program established
under the TEC, Chapters 41, 42, and 46, or any successor program of
state-appropriated funding for school districts in this state.
(7) Public Education Information Management System
(PEIMS)--The system that school districts and open-enrollment charter
schools use to load, validate, and submit their data to the TEA.
(8) Summary of Finances (SOF) report--The document
of record for FSP allocations. An SOF report is produced for each
school district and open-enrollment charter school by the TEA division
responsible for state funding that describes the school district's
or open-enrollment charter school's funding elements and FSP state
aid.
(9) Warrant hold--The process by which state payments
issued to payees indebted to the state, or payees with a tax delinquency,
are held by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts until the debt
is satisfied in accordance with the Texas Government Code, §403.055.
(b) The TEA will assign a financial accountability
rating to each school district and open-enrollment charter school
as required by the TEC, §39.082.
(c) The commissioner of education will evaluate the
rating system every three years as required by the TEC, §39.082,
and may modify the system in order to improve the effectiveness of
the rating system. If the rating system has been modified, the TEA
will communicate changes to ratings criteria and their effective dates
to school districts and open-enrollment charter schools.
(d) The TEA will use the following sources of data
in calculating the financial accountability indicators for school
districts and open-enrollment charter schools:
(1) AFR. For each school district and open-enrollment
charter school, the TEA will use audited financial data in the district's
or charter's AFR. The AFR, submitted as an electronic submission through
the TEA website, must include data required in the Financial Accountability
System Resource Guide (FASRG) adopted under §109.41 of this title
(relating to Financial Accountability System Resource Guide);
(2) PEIMS. The TEA will use PEIMS data submitted by
the school district or open-enrollment charter school in the calculation
of the financial accountability indicators.
(3) Warrant holds. The TEA will use warrant holds as
reported by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts in the calculation
of the financial accountability indicators.
(4) FSP. The TEA will use the average daily attendance
(ADA) information used for FSP funding purposes for the school district
or open-enrollment charter school in the calculation of the financial
accountability indicators.
(e) The TEA will base the financial accountability
rating of a school district on its overall performance on the financial
measurements, ratios, and other indicators established by the commissioner,
as shown in the figures provided in this subsection. Financial accountability
ratings for a rating year are based on the data from the immediate
prior fiscal year.
(1) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating year 2014-2015 are based on fiscal year 2014 financial
data and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "School
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated August 2015 for rating year 2014-2015."
Attached Graphic
(2) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating year 2015-2016 are based on fiscal year 2015 financial
data and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "School
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated August 2015 for rating year 2015-2016."
Attached Graphic
(3) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating year 2016-2017 are based on fiscal year 2016 financial
data and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "School
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated December 2016 for rating year 2016-2017."
The financial accountability rating indicators for rating years after
2016-2017 will use the same calculation and scoring method provided
in the figure in this paragraph.
Attached Graphic
(4) The specific calculations and scoring methods used
in the financial accountability rating worksheets for school districts
for rating years prior to 2014-2015 remain in effect for all purposes
with respect to those rating years.
(f) The TEA will base the financial accountability
rating of an open-enrollment charter school on its overall performance
on the financial measurements, ratios, and other indicators established
by the commissioner, as shown in the figures provided in this subsection.
Financial accountability ratings for a rating year are based on the
data from the immediate prior fiscal year.
(1) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating year 2014-2015 are based on fiscal year 2014 financial
data and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "Charter
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated August 2015 for rating year 2014-2015."
Attached Graphic
(2) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating year 2015-2016 are based on fiscal year 2015 financial
data and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "Charter
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated August 2015 for rating year 2015-2016."
Attached Graphic
(3) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating year 2016-2017 are based on fiscal year 2016 financial
data and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "Charter
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated August 2015 for rating year 2016-2017."
The financial accountability rating indicators for rating years after
2016-2017 will use the same calculation and scoring method provided
in the figure in this paragraph.
Attached Graphic
(4) The specific calculations and scoring methods used
in the financial accountability rating worksheets for open-enrollment
charter schools for rating years prior to 2014-2015 remain in effect
for all purposes with respect to those rating years.
(g) The types of financial accountability ratings that
school districts or open-enrollment charter schools may receive for
the rating year 2014-2015 are as follows.
(1) P for pass. This rating applies only to the financial
accountability rating for rating year 2014-2015 based on fiscal year
2014 financial data. In accordance with the procedures established
in this section, a school district or an open-enrollment charter school
will receive a P rating if it scores within the applicable range established
by the commissioner for a P rating.
(2) F for substandard achievement. This rating applies
to the financial accountability rating for rating year 2014-2015 based
on fiscal year 2014 financial data. In accordance with the procedures
established in this section, a school district or an open-enrollment
charter school will receive an F rating if it scores within the applicable
range established by the commissioner for an F rating.
(h) The types of financial accountability ratings that
school districts or open-enrollment charter schools may receive for
the rating year 2015-2016 and all subsequent rating years are as follows.
(1) A for superior achievement. Beginning with the
financial accountability rating for rating year 2015-2016 and all
subsequent rating years, in accordance with the procedures established
in this section, a school district or an open-enrollment charter school
will receive an A rating if it scores within the applicable range
established by the commissioner for an A rating.
Cont'd... |
