2019, 86th Legislature
The Texas Private Schools Association tracked these bills during the 86th Texas Legislative Session in Austin.
| Bill | Description | TPSA Position - Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| HB 459/SB 706 Cameras in Day Care Centers | Requires that all licensed day care centers (including private schools with a licensed preschool) have cameras in all classrooms. | AGAINST - DEAD |
| HB 3192 Expulsion Policy | Child care centers should consider adopting a policy for expulsion. | NEUTRAL - DEAD |
| HB 58 Private School Locker Searches | Stipulates that private schools may not expel a student for what is found in a search of that student’s locker. | AGAINST - DEAD |
| HB 257 Law Enforcement Notification of Armed Personnel | Private schools must notify local law enforcement of armed personnel on campus. | AGAINST in current form - DEAD |
| SB 193 Fees for Licenses for School Marshals | Waives fees for duplicate, modified, or renewed licenses to carry a handgun for school marshals. | FOR - DEAD |
| HB 324 Sexual Contact | Creates a definition for sexual contact in student/teacher relationships. | FOR - DEAD |
| SB 244/HB 1106/HB 1387 School Marshals | Changes the maximum number of school marshals on campus. | FOR - PASSED |
| SB 243/SB 406/HB 1108 Storage of Handguns for School Marshals | Eliminates the requirement that school marshals who are teachers must keep handguns locked away on campus | FOR - DEAD |
| HB 552 Voter Registration Forms | Public and private high schools must have voter registration materials available at all times for students and staff. | NEUTRAL - DEAD |
| SB 36/HB 189/SB 287 Public PreK | Expands access to public pre-k and extends the length of the program day. | UNDER EVALUATION - SOME ELEMENTS IN HB3 |
| SB 2487 Paid Sick Leave | Prohibits regulation of employment benefits and practices by a municipality or county (paid sick leave) | FOR - DEAD |
| HB 1690 Concussions | Dictates private school concussion protocol. | AGAINST in current form - DEAD |
| HB 1825/SB 2135 Notifying Schools of Student Arrest | This bill expands the information local law enforcement is required to provide to public schools and includes information related to threats against the school. Do private schools need to be included? | FOR - PASSED |
| HB 539/SB 249 Automatic Admission Valedictorians | The valedictorian of a class of any size would receive automatic admission to the university system and same eligibility for scholarships | NEUTRAL - PASSED |
| HB 1561 Waiver for State Park Fees | All 5th grade public and private school students get free entry into state parks. | FOR - PASSED AS AMENDMENT ON DIFFERENT BILL |
| HB 2786 Employee Turnover Reporting | Requires licensed child care facilities to report the number of employees who left the previous year when renewing the yearly license. | NEUTRAL - PASSED AS AMENDMENT ON DIFFERENT BILL |
| HB 2998 Water Quality | Requires the regulation of water quality in all schools, including private schools | AGAINST in current form - DEAD |
| HB 2999 Air Quality | Sets air quality standards and requires monitoring of private school air quality by the state. | AGAINST in current form - DEAD |
| HJR 105 Vouchers | Constitutional amendment prohibiting vouchers | AGAINST - DEAD |
| SB 811/HB 3946 School Marshals | Provides immunity from liability for school marshals who act responsibly. | FOR - DEAD |
| HB 1959 Guns in Parking Lots | Removes ability of private schools to prohibit guns in their parking lots. | AGAINST - DEAD |
| HB 2243/SB 1665 Asthma Medication | Private schools may stock asthma medication in the same way they stock unassigned epinephrine auto-injectors | NEUTRAL - PASSED |
| HB 1427 Voter Registration | TEA provides voter registration materials once each semester to all schools, public and private. | NEUTRAL - DEAD |
| HB 2883/HB 4450/SB 1817/SB 1743 Child Care Centers and Children with Special Needs | Child care centers can't discriminate based on disability. | UNDER EVALUATION - DEAD |
| SB 477 | Standardizes renewal dates for school marshal licenses | FOR - DEAD |
| Bill | Description | TPSA Position - Outcome |
| SB 1256 Bettencourt/HB 2738 Meyer | Establishes a “Do Not Hire” list of all school personnel, not just certified teachers, and allows access to this important information for all types of schools, including private schools | For - Passed |
| SB 1230 Bettencourt/HB 2739 Meyer | This broadens misconduct reporting requirements to include private school administrators. Private school administrators will be required to report to the Texas Education Agency any employee who resigns or is fired for inappropriate relations with students. Civil and criminal immunity is provided for administrators for this mandated reporting. Those found guilty will be reported on the “Do Not Hire” list to ensure that they are not hired in any other school. | For - Passed |
| SB 1231 Bettencourt/HB 2740 Meyer | This ensures that reports of investigations of misconduct by employees and volunteers are reported directly from the Department of Family and Protective Services to private school administrators. Currently only public school administrators receive these final reports. | For - Passed |
| HB 4345 Sanford | This bill provides immunity from liability for anyone in good faith disclosing allegations of sexual misconduct. | For - Passed |
| Bill | Description | TPSA Position |
| SB 1905 Campbell | This program allows students with special needs or those in low-income households to receive a grant to attend a private school. | For |
| SB 1905 Campbell | Establishes a tax credit scholarship program for children with special needs or those in low-income households. | For |
