March 12, 2007
TO THEADMINISTRATOR ADDRESSED:
SUBJECT: Guidance Regarding HB 1 Mandated Salary Increase for RegionalDay School
Program Fiscal Agents
This letter is to serve as additional clarificationto the memorandum dated June 27, 2006. The Texas Legislature, with the passage of HB1, required school districts to provide a $250 per month salary increase for 10 months to each classroom teacher, full-time librarian, full-time counselor and full-time nurse (RN). This increase is required to be in addition to the salary that the employee would have been entitled to on the district’s 2005-2006 salary schedule in the 2006-2007 school year, including any local supplements and any money representing a career ladder supplement the employee would have received in the 2006-2007 school year.
The Regional Day School Program for the Deaf (RDSPD) is funded by State Foundation Program funds (TEC §30.087). Teachers, full-time librarians, full-time counselors and full-time nurses employed in school districts and assigned to the RDSPD are included in the calculation of the salary allotment from the state, which will be reflected on the district’s summary of finances. RDSPD fiscal agents must report the number of teachers, and full-time librarians, counselors and nurses through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS). Therefore, no additional charges against the RDSPD for the required salary increase should be made. To charge the RDSPD for this salary increase may merit an audit review of the fiscal agent district. In addition, fiscal agents for the RDSPD should not charge member districts for these pay raises if the fiscal agent district reported these staff on its roster in PEIMS.
For further information on this topic, contact Brent Pitt, in the Division of IDEA Coordination, (512) 463-9414, or Joseph Mezher, in the Educator Excellence Division, at (512) 463-7285.
Sincerely,
Shirley J. Neeley
SJN/BP/bd
cc:Fiscal Agent Special Education Directors
Fiscal Agent RDSPD Contact
Fiscal Agent EducationServiceCenter Executive Directors
Fiscal Agent EducationServiceCenterSpecial Education Contact