The House Public Education Committee met Tuesday, May 16, 2023, to hear testimony on these Senate bills.
Brian Woods testified against SB 418 (Paxton, et al.) on behalf of TASA and the Texas School Alliance. The bill would permit students to transfer to any public school that has student capacity available and also prohibits school districts from charging these students tuition.
Several other school district representatives also testified against the bill. Concerns included what the definition of “capacity” would be, that the bill would lower the priority level of teachers’ children’s transfers, creating a non-level playing field for student athletics, the implications for resident students in schools being required to accept transfers, and the timeline for implementation not giving districts ample time to plan.
Providing additional testimony on the bill for TASA, the Texas Urban Council, and the Texas School Alliance, David Thompson of Thompson & Horton LLP testified about past Texas Supreme Court decisions that have set precedent related to school districts’ ability to charge tuition when accepting transfer students.
SB 418 was left pending before the committee adjourned to go to the House floor.
