The ATPE Governmental Relations team recaps the past week’s education news, legislative and election updates, and regulatory developments. ATPE members: Share your thoughts and ask our lobby team questions in The Rotunda on the ATPE Online Community. 

• Longest government shutdown in history ends, but not all is back to normal 
• Abbott announces reelection bid in speech targeting school district spending
• Visit with ATPE (and earn CPE!) during Open Congress at TribFest Saturday
• What happens when TEA takes over a school district: A guide for district employees
• TEA issues guidance on CTE/CCMR systems, definition of "at-risk student"
• FOTPS holds annual public education summit and "Friend of the Year" dinner
• ATPE deadlines to apply for state committee service, submit award nominations are fast approaching
• Stay engaged with ATPE advocacy year-round

SHUTDOWN: The longest government shutdown to date ended Wednesday night with narrow bipartisan passage in the U.S. House. Six Democrats joined all but two Republicans in passing a bill that will fund the government through the end of January 2026. It is unclear at this time whether reductions in force (RIFs) at the U.S. Department of Education will be fully rescinded, and, as NPR reports, it will take some time for government operations to return to “normal,” whether that’s in terms of the flow of federal funding, air traffic operations, or the reopening of national parks.

ABBOTT: Gov. Greg Abbott (R) announced his bid for reelection Sunday night in Houston with a speech that targeted the spending of school districts and local governments, suggesting they should “have to live within their means” just as individual homeowners must. He proposed a constitutional amendment abolishing school district property taxes along with other measures that would significantly reduce the amount of local funding available to Texas public schools. He did not explain how the state would make up the difference. ATPE Lobbyist Tricia Cave has more in this blog post.

TRIBFEST: ATPE is proud to be a supporting sponsor of the 2025 Texas Tribune Festival and will have a presence at Saturday’s Open Congress, a free event open to the public on Congress Avenue in Austin. Look for ATPE on Congress Avenue near 11^th Street, close to the State Capitol. The association is also sponsoring three Open Congress sessions eligible for continuing professional education (CPE) credit through ATPE: “Class Acts” (9–10 a.m.), “The Kids Are Alright” (10:45–11:45 a.m.), and “Words to Live By” (4–5 p.m.). These sessions will take place in the nearby Raise Your Hand Texas tent. Learn more about Open Congress.

STATE TAKEOVERS: Fort Worth ISD is the latest school district to be taken over by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). With other school districts potentially on the verge of takeover, ATPE Managing Attorney Lance Cain takes a look at the takeover process and how it could affect school employees in this atpenews.org blog post.

TEA: The Texas Education Agency (TEA) continues issuing memos outlining changes that will affect specific programs and the day-to-day work of educators. In two new blog posts, ATPE Lobbyist Heather Sheffield has taken an in-depth look at memos covering two topics: updates to the Industry-Based Certification List for public school accountability, which affects career and technical education (CTE) and college/career/military readiness (CCMR) systems, and updates to the state’s definition of “at-risk student” following the 2025 passage of SB 991.

FOTPS: Friends of Texas Public Schools (FOTPS) held its annual public education summit and “Friend of the Year” fundraising dinner Wednesday at Baylor University. ATPE sponsored and participated in both events.

 At “The Summit:  A Shared Voice for Texas Public Education,” ATPE staff participated in panel presentations and roundtable discussions on public education advocacy. ATPE Governmental Relations Director Monty Exter joined an afternoon panel discussing successful advocacy efforts. He highlighted ATPE’s Member Advocate Program (ATPE-MAP) and Capitol Expeditions as effective grassroots advocacy programs created for our members. Exter also encouraged attendees to use ATPE’s advocacy resources on TeachtheVote.org, including our publicly accessible blog and candidate profiles. ATPE Executive Director Shannon Holmes, Associate Executive Director Jennifer Mitchell, and Lobbyist Heather Sheffield also participated in the education summit.

Wednesday evening, the ATPE state officers joined our staff at the annual “Friend of the Year” dinner, a Western-themed event where FOTPS honored education ambassadors and supporters. State representatives James Talarico (D), Gary VanDeaver (R), and Dade Phelan (R) were recognized for their support for public education, along with Kingsville ISD Superintendent Emeritus Cissy Reynolds-Perez and the Texas Pioneer Foundation

ATPE DEADLINES: The deadline to apply for Spring 2026 service on the ATPE Public Education, Political Action, Resolutions, Educator of the Year, and Leader of the Year committees is Nov. 21. Learn more and apply today. Also, nominations for the ATPE Educator of the Year, Local Unit of the Year, and Campus Representative of the Year awards must be submitted by Dec. 1. Honor a deserving colleague or volunteer with your nomination today.

MEMBER ADVOCACY: Even when the Legislature’s not in session, we urge you to stay informed and engaged. Here are a few advocacy resources to check out: 

• Advocacy Central: Get in touch with your elected officials about the legislation impacting your profession.
• Judy: Chat with ATPE’s new AI assistant for Texas educators, ready to help you with all things ATPE and all things #txed. 
• ATPE Member Advocate Program (ATPE-MAP): Enroll in ATPE-MAP to earn state-level and local-level advocacy microcredentials, as well as earn continuing professional education (CPE) credit. ATPE-MAP is included in your member benefits, so be sure to check it out today.    
• ATPE Professional Learning (PL) Portal: Three sessions from the 2025 ATPE Summit are available in the ATPE PL Portal: an HB 2 compensation overview, the ATPE lobby team’s advocacy update and the closing keynote by Jonathan Alsheimer. Log in to watch the recordings and earn 1.5 hours of continuing professional education (CPE) credit. (Jonathan Alsheimer’s appearance arranged through Gotham Artists.) 
• The Rotunda: Don’t forget, members, that you can interact with your ATPE lobby team throughout the week when you log in to the ATPE Online Community.