Sec. 39.005.  HEARING FOLLOWING INVESTIGATION.  (a)  This section applies to a school district that is the subject of a special investigation conducted under Section 39.003 that resulted in a final report in which the agency recommends the appointment of a board of managers, alternative management of a campus, or closure of the district or a district campus.
(b)  Except as provided by Subsection (c), not later than 15 days after the date on which the board of trustees of the school district receives the final report of a special investigation under Section 39.004(g), a board of trustees of a school district to which this section applies may request a hearing if the board of trustees disagrees with the final report or a sanction or intervention recommended by the agency in the report.
(c)  A school district and the agency may agree in writing to extend the time period for requesting a hearing under Subsection (b) by not more than an additional 30 days.
(d)  If a board of trustees of a school district requests a hearing under Subsection (b), the hearing shall be conducted by the State Office of Administrative Hearings unless the district and the agency agree in writing to the appointment of another qualified person to conduct the hearing.
(e)  Except as otherwise provided by this subchapter, a hearing conducted under this section is a contested case under Chapter 2001, Government Code.
(f)  A hearing conducted under this section shall be held at the administrative offices of the school district that requested the hearing or at another location within the geographic boundaries of the district agreed to by the district and the agency, unless the district and the agency agree in writing to a different location.
(g)  To protect the privacy of a witness who is a child, the hearing examiner or the person conducting the hearing may:
(1)  close the hearing to receive the testimony of the witness; or
(2)  order that the testimony or a statement of the witness be presented using the procedures prescribed by Article 38.071, Code of Criminal Procedure.
(h)  Not later than 90 days after the date on which the school district requests a hearing under Subsection (b), the hearing examiner or the person conducting the hearing shall issue and submit to the commissioner findings of fact and conclusions of law.  The hearing examiner or the person conducting the hearing may not issue a recommendation for relief.
(i)  A hearing conducted under this section may not be held on a Saturday, Sunday, or state or federal holiday, unless agreed to by the school district that requested the hearing and the agency.
Added by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1046 (S.B. 1365), Sec. 2.05, eff. September 1, 2021.