The bills below could impact education for people with disabilities in Texas.
Contents
Education Bills — Passed
| BILL | AUTHOR | DESCRIPTION, REMARKS, LAST ACTION |
|---|---|---|
| HB 657 | Diego Bernal | Relating to procedures for a student enrolled in a special education program who fails to perform satisfactorily on certain assessment instruments. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires an Admission, Review & Dismissal (ARD) committee meeting within 5 days of a district's receipt of a student's unsatisfactory assessment results and before the student is administered the assessment instrument for the second time. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-29-17 G Earliest effective date |
| HB 674 | Eric Johnson | Relating to the suspension of a student younger than six years of age from public school. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Prohibits out-of-school suspension of student under age 6 except for Penal Code violation involving weapons, violence, or selling or using marijuana, a controlled substance, a dangerous drug, or an alcoholic beverage. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-12-17 G Earliest effective date |
| HB 1556 | Mary Gonzalez | Relating to the appointment of foster parents and other qualified persons to serve as educational decision-makers for certain children in the conservatorship of the Department of Family and Protective Services. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Provides for trained foster parent, court-certified volunteer advocate, or person chosen by the school district to act as educational decision-maker for a child in conservatorship of DFPS if parents cannot be found or do not want to serve. In the absence of a parent, the court may appoint a qualified surrogate parent to assist in educational decision making. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 09-01-17 G Earliest effective date |
| HB 1645 | Jose Lozano | Relating to requiring certain school districts to adopt a policy allowing students who participate in Special Olympics to earn a letter on that basis. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires a school district that awards letters for academic, athletic, or extracurricular achievements to allow students participating in a Special Olympics event to earn a letter. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-29-17 G Earliest effective date |
| HB 1886 | Rick Miller | Relating to dyslexia testing, the designation by the Texas Education Agency of a dyslexia specialist, and the development by the agency of a list of training opportunities for educators regarding dyslexia. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to appoint a dyslexia specialist to provide districts with support and resources. Requires TEA to maintain an annual list of training opportunities, including one online. Requires dyslexia testing of each student at the beginning of kindergarten and at the end of first grade. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-15-17 G Earliest effective date |
| HB 2130 | Kevin Roberts | Relating to a study conducted by the Texas Education Agency regarding the impact of the statewide assessment program on students in special education programs. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires a study regarding the impact of statewide assessments on students receiving special education services. Requires TEA to address whether assessments are an accurate measure of achievement and if they result in grade level regression. The study will be used to modify contracts with assessment instrument vendors. Report is due Oct. 1, 2018. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-12-17 G Earliest effective date |
| HB 3632 | Joe Moody | Relating to extension of the timeline for a parent to request a special education impartial due process hearing in certain circumstances. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Provides an extension to parents who are members of armed forces, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and Public Health Service to request special education due process hearing. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-15-17 G Earliest effective date |
| SB 160 | Jose Rodriguez | Relating to a prohibition of a monitoring system performance indicator based on the number or percentage of students receiving special education services. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Prohibits a performance measure based on the number or percentage of students receiving special education services, but does not prohibit a performance indicator designed to monitor disproportionality by assessing the percentage of specific racial or ethnic groups who receive special education services. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-22-17 G Earliest effective date |
| SB 436 | Jose Rodriguez | Relating to the operation of the special education continuing advisory committee. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires the special education continuing advisory committee to encourage public participation with the committee and to submit a biennial report to the legislature with recommended changes to state law and agency rules. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 09-01-17 G Earliest effective date |
| SB 719 | Judith Zaffirini | Relating to requiring the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to collect and study data on the participation of persons with intellectual disabilities in workforce education. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) to collect and study data on the participation of persons with intellectual disabilities in workforce education programs. The bill is a follow-up to SB 37 (2015), which only addressed undergraduate and master’s programs. Expands data to also include continuing adult education. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 09-01-17 G Earliest effective date |
| SB 748 | Judith Zaffirini | Relating to transition planning for a public school student enrolled in a special education program. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Clarifies that admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committees must annually share with students ages 14 and older information about employment, self-determination and independent living, and public benefits and services and supports. In addition, the ARD committee must share at least one year before the student reaches age 18 information about the transfer of rights, including decision-making. Requires updating and distributing a transition guide. Requires that information about guardianship and guardianship alternatives, including the supported decision-making agreement, be made available upon request. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-09-17 G Earliest effective date |
| SB 1398 | Eddie Lucio | Relating to the placement and use of video cameras in certain self-contained classrooms or other settings providing special education services. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires a written request for classroom video surveillance; requires placement in locations where the majority of students receive special education services attended by the requester's child or as limited by the requester; a request may be made by principal or assistant or by special education program staff member; placement is for school year unless withdrawn; time-out or other rooms are included; an appeals process is required. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-12-17 G Earliest effective date |
| SB 2080 | Larry Taylor | Relating to a requirement that school districts and open-enrollment charter schools report certain information regarding children with disabilities who reside in residential facilities. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) tracking of students in public school residing in residential care facilities and tracked by the Residential Facility Monitoring System. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-12-17 G Earliest effective date |
| SB 2141 | Larry Taylor | Relating to requirements for a representative for a student in a special education due process hearing. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Requires the representative of a person in a special education due process hearing to agree to abide by a voluntary code of ethics and professional conduct and have a confidential written agreement with the person represented that includes a process for resolving disputes. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 06-12-17 G Earliest effective date |
Education Bills — Not Passed
| BILL | AUTHOR | DESCRIPTION, REMARKS, LAST ACTION |
|---|---|---|
| HB 194 | Diego Bernal | Relating to providing for endorsements for public high school students enrolled in special education programs. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have allowed students receiving special education services to earn endorsements with or without modification and allowed ARD to determine whether an exit test is needed. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-11-17 H Set on the House Calendar |
| HB 1669 | Tracy King | Relating to appeals and complaints arising from school laws brought by parents and public school students. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have defined 'frivolous complaint' by a parent/student as that which is without merit and is brought with the intent to harass, annoy, threaten, or vex the school district and allowed the TEA commissioner to order the parent/student bringing a frivolous TEA administrative appeal to pay the district's attorney fees; and would not have required a hearing to be held for a complaint determined to be frivolous. Would not have applied to a complaint about participation in extracurricular activity that does not involve rights violations. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-19-17 S Committee action pending Senate Education |
| HB 3369 | Dan Huberty | Relating to the statewide plan for special education and assistance to public school districts in providing special education programs. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have 1) expanded schools eligible for Education Service Center assistance in complying with federal special education requirements; 2) added the Texas Higher Education Coordinating and the State Board for Educator Certification to the consortium designed to meet the personnel needs of all areas of specialization related to special education; and 3) required personnel involved in special education evaluations to be trained in linguistic and culturally appropriate evaluations and use appropriate assessment instruments including those in languages other than English. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 04-24-17 H Reported favorably from committee on House Public Education |
| HB 3887 | Garnet Coleman | Relating to trauma training for public school personnel. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have established a trauma recognition program for school staff, in addition to law enforcement officers and social workers who regularly interact with students. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-19-17 S Vote failed in committee on Senate Education |
| SB 3 | Larry Taylor | Relating to the establishment of an education savings account program and a tax credit scholarship and educational expense assistance program. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have created an education savings account (ESA) program for children ages who have attended public school one year. Would have required notice to parents that federal educational rights and opportunities (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) or Section 504) of students with disabilities in the traditional public education system did not apply at the qualifying ESA program setting. A child with a disability would have received 90% of state costs; based on household income, others would have received 60-75%. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-11-17 H Referred to House Committee on House Public Education |
| SB 529 | Eddie Lucio | Relating to improving training and staff development for primary and secondary educators to enable them to more effectively serve all students. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have required persons seeking a Texas teaching certificate to have instruction in universal design and knowledge of basic categories of disabilities under IDEA, the use of evidence-based inclusive instruction, general and special education collaborative and co-teaching approaches, systems of support and monitoring, behavior intervention strategies and supports, and adaptation strategies for accommodations, modifications, and assistive technology. Would have emphasized inclusion and diversity and required individuals to have field experience in student teaching and interacting with a diverse student population, including students with disabilities. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-17-17 H Reported from committee as substituted House Public Education |
| SB 927 | Jose Rodriguez | Relating to special education recovery program operated by the Texas Education Agency. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have required TEA to re-evaluate students denied special education services from 2004-2017. For students under 21, school districts meeting criteria would have been required to provide special education services to eligible students using statewide federal special education funds. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-04-17 S Committee action pending Senate Education |
| SB 1210 | Charles Perry | Relating to the creation of an advisory committee to review special education programs available in public schools. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have established a 12-member special education program review advisory committee, two of whom must have been related to a child who receives special education services. Report and recommendations were to be due by September 1, 2018. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 03-09-17 S Introduced and referred to committee on Senate Education |
| SB 1690 | Eddie Lucio | Relating to the requirements for a school district improvement plan. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have required the district improvement plan for each independent school district to include assessment of school climate as well as strategies to promote positive behavior management (not discipline management) and methods to promote a safe and supportive climate, including trauma-informed practices. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 03-22-17 S Introduced and referred to committee on Senate Education |
| SB 2081 | Larry Taylor | Relating to information regarding the number of public school students receiving certain special education services. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have added reporting requirements to TEA's Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) for the number of students in the Section 504 program and the number receiving response to intervention (RTI) assistance. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 04-25-17 S Removed from hearing 04/27/17 - Senate Education |
| SB 2144 | Larry Taylor | Relating to the creation of a commission to recommend improvements to the public school finance system. |
| no data | no data | Remarks: Would have created the Commission on Public School Finance to develop and make recommendations for improvements to methods of financing public schools, including any adjustments to funding to account for student demographics. |
| no data | no data | Last Action: 05-24-17 H Bill pronounced dead by procedural action |