| (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) Ceiling indicator--An upper limit (the maximum
score) at which a score from a standard limit of a specific indicator
will result regardless of overall points.
(3) Debt--An amount of money owed to a person, bank,
company, or other organization.
(4) Electronic submission--The TEA electronic data
feed format required for use by school districts, open-enrollment
charter schools, and regional education service centers (ESCs).
(5) 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 and charter schools operated by
a public institution of higher education under TEC, Chapter 12, Subchapters
D and E (Charter FIRST).
(6) 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.
(7) 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.
(8) Open-enrollment charter school--A charter school
authorized by the commissioner of education under TEC, Chapter 12,
Subchapter D.
(9) Public institution of higher education (IHE)--A
public college or university eligible to operate a school district;
an open-enrollment charter school; or a TEC, Chapter 12, Subchapter
E, charter school authorized by the commissioner.
(10) 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.
(11) Texas Student Data System Public Education Information
Management System (TSDS PEIMS)--The system that school districts and
open-enrollment charter schools use to load, validate, and submit
their data to the TEA.
(12) 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, open-enrollment charter school, and
charter school operated by a public IHE under TEC, Chapter 12, Subchapters
D and E, as required by the TEC, §39.082.
(c) The commissioner 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,
open-enrollment charter schools, and charter schools operated by public
IHEs.
(d) The TEA will use the following sources of data
in calculating the financial accountability indicators for school
districts, open-enrollment charter schools, and charter schools operated
by public IHEs:
(1) AFR. For each school district, open-enrollment
charter school, and charter school operated by a public IHE, 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) TSDS PEIMS. The TEA will use TSDS PEIMS data submitted
by the school district, open-enrollment charter school, or charter
school operated by a public IHE 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,
open-enrollment charter school, or charter school operated by a public
IHE 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."
Attached Graphic
(4) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating years 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-2020 are based on
financial data from fiscal years 2017, 2018, and 2019, respectively,
and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "School
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated June 2019 for rating years 2017-2018
through 2019-2020." The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating years 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-2020 will use the
same calculations and scoring method provided in the figure in this
paragraph.
Attached Graphic
(5) The financial accountability rating indicators
for rating year 2020-2021 are based on fiscal year 2020 financial
data and are provided in the figure in this paragraph entitled "School
FIRST - Rating Worksheet Dated June 2019 for rating year 2020-2021."
The financial accountability rating indicators for rating years after
2020-2021 will use the same calculations and scoring method provided
in the figure in this paragraph.
Attached Graphic
(6) 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."
Attached Graphic
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