The Senate Education Committee will begin meeting at 9:15 a.m., Wednesday, May 10, to hear testimony on the following (mostly House) bills related to K-12:
HB 195 (Mary González, et al.) relating to provisions and plans by public schools to ensure the safety of individuals with disabilities or impairments during a mandatory school drill or a disaster or emergency situation.This bill was removed from the agenda.- HB 621 (Shaheen) requires the SBEC to propose rules for the issuance of a temporary certificate to a person who served in the U.S. armed forces and was honorably discharged, retired, or released from active duty and met all other eligibility requirements for standard certification.
HB 1067 (VanDeaver) amends the provisions regarding detachment and annexation petitions by including deadlines for certain decisions to be made by the board of trustees of an independent school district.This bill was removed from the agenda.- HB 1212 (Jetton, et al.) ensures student absences due to observance of a religious holy day are treated equally by school districts across the state.
- HB 2012 (Oliverson, et al.) specifies that a classroom teacher at a public elementary or secondary school, or a teacher or professor at an institution of higher education, could not be prohibited from displaying in a classroom a poster or framed copy of the national motto that met the established requirements.
HB 1626 (Allen. et al.) prohibits the board of trustees of a school district or the board’s designee from refusing to enroll a student based on the student’s criminal, juvenile, or disciplinary history or standing. This bill was removed from the agenda.- HB 114 (Ed Thompson) makes optional the removal of a student from class and placement within a disciplinary alternative education program for a student who possessed, used, or was
under the influence of marijuana on or within 300 feet of school property or while attending a school activity. - HB 1416 (Keith Bell, et al.) reduces the required minimum hours for accelerated instruction, allowing a parental opt-out for such instruction, and repealing certain sections of statute, among other provisions.
- HB 1789 (Buckley, et al.) allows school district boards of trustees to exempt the appointment or employment of public school bus drivers from nepotism prohibitions if the board approved the appointment or employment.
- HB 1225 (Metcalf, et al.) allows a school district to administer certain required assessment instruments in paper format to any student whose parent, guardian, or teacher in the applicable area requested it.
- HB 2892 (Buckley, et al.) would require a school district to transfer a child of a military service member to another campus within the district or to another district upon the servicemember’s request and to the campus requested.
HB 272 (Julie Johnson) directs the Texas Legislature, Texas Legislative Council, commissioner, agency, and all other state agencies to avoid using the phrase “admission, review, and dismissal committee” or “ARD” and instead use “individualized education program team” or “IEP team.” This bill was removed from the agenda.- HB 2929 (Lozano) amends the Education Code so that a classroom teacher’s continuing education requirements could not require that more than 25% of the training required every five years include instruction on: collecting and analyzing information that will improve
effectiveness in the classroom; recognizing early warning indicators that a student could be at risk of dropping out of school; digital learning, digital teaching, and integrating technology in the classroom; educating diverse student populations; and understanding appropriate relationships, boundaries, and communications between educators and students. - HB 579 (Burns, et al.) allows the parent or guardian of a student with cognitive disabilities to request that the student be exempted from the administration of an alternative assessment instrument.
- HB 1707 (Klick, et al.) requires a political subdivision to consider an open-enrollment charter school as a school district for certain purposes related to zoning, permitting, business licensing, utility services, signage, subdivision regulation, property development projects, land development standards, requirements for posting bonds or securities, contract requirements, and fees or other assessments, among certain other purposes. This bill was added to the agenda on the evening of May 9.
- HB 1959 (Noble, et al.) requires the board of trustees of a public school district or the board’s designee, on request of a peace officer who is a parent of or a person standing in parental relation to a student, to transfer the student to another district campus or to another district under an agreement prescribed by statutory provisions governing the transfer of students between districts or counties. This bill was added to the agenda on the evening of May 9.
- HB 4210 (Lujan) amends the Education Code to revise statutory provisions relating to the governance of a military reservation school district. This bill was added to the agenda on the evening of May 9.
