The Senate Education K-16 Committee met Tuesday to hear 12 bills and vote on pending bills heard earlier this session. 

ATPE submitted testimony or registered a position on six of the 12 bills heard: 

• Senate Bill (SB) 1224 by Sen. Kevin Sparks (R–Midland) relating to the reporting of certain public school employee misconduct to local law enforcement. ATPE provided written testimony with our concerns about requiring all allegations to be reported even if the superintendent knows or has reason to believe the allegation is false or has no reason to believe it is true. 
• ATPE-supported SB 571 by Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R–Houston) relating to the eligibility of certain contract employees to provide services to a public school and access to schools. 
• ATPE-supported SB 747 by Sen. Phil King (R–Arlington) relating to public school policies and programs regarding the production or distribution of certain intimate visual material by public school students. 
• ATPE-supported (CS )SB 843 by Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R–Brenham) relating to a Texas Education Agency (TEA) database of school district bonds, taxes, and bond-related projects. 
• ATPE-opposed SB 1636 by Sen. Adam Hinojosa (R–Brownsville), which would prohibit a school district from using interest and sinking tax revenue to pay for deferred maintenance. 
• ATPE-opposed SB 1832 by Sen. Tan Parker (R-Flower Mound), which would allow the parent of a student who had been victimized by a public school employee to transfer the student to another public school campus or receive funding for the student to attend private school. 

Committee substitutes were not available online at the time of this post’s initial publication. 

Finally, the committee voted to advance 13 bills, but only three pertain to K-12 education: 

• ATPE-supported SB 1490 by Bettencourt (R–Houston) relating to adult high school charter program funding passed on an 8-0 vote.  
• ATPE-supported CSSB 1262 by Sen. Robert Nichols (R–Jacksonville) relates to measures for ensuring public school safety, including the commissioning of peace officers by TEA, public school safety and security requirements, and the provision of safety-related resources. This bill passed out of committee on a 9-0 vote and was recommended for placement on the local and uncontested calendar. 
• CSSB 2314 by Committee Chair Brandon Creighton (R–Conroe) relates to the creation of the “My Texas Future” electronic platform and submission portal to encourage public high school students to apply to institutions of higher education using the electronic common admission application form. This passed on a 9-0 vote and was recommended for placement on the local and uncontested calendar. 

The Senate Education K-16 Committee met again but focused almost exclusively on higher education bills. 

As bills move through the legislative process, further debate and potential amendments are expected. Stay tuned for updates as the session progresses.