In this edition:
- Summary of This Week’s Action Items
- Bad School Discipline Bill – House Bill 6!
- School Funding Bill Unveils Major Changes
- Protect Student Success in Public Schools – SB 12
- Pushing Back to Censorship in Higher Ed!
- Committee Hearings This Week
- Highlights from Last Week
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Summary: This Week’s Action Items
If you have 5 minutes…
Call your Texas state senator and tell them to vote no on HB 6, the harmful school discipline bill.
Call your Texas state representative and tell them to vote no on SB 12, the ban on diversity, equity and inclusion in K-12 schools.
Call your Texas state representative and tell them to vote no on SB 37, a bill that censors certain topics students can learn at Texas public universities.
If you have time to make calls, thank you so much for your continued support of Texas students. We are in the homestretch before the legislative session ends, but there’s a couple more weeks to protect students from harmful bills and ensure all students can attend well-funded, safe welcoming schools. The final day of session, or Sine Die, is Tuesday, June 2, 2025.
Harmful School Discipline Approaching Senate Floor!
House Bill 6, a harmful school discipline bill that would give harsh punishments to young children for minor offenses, is making its way to the Senate floor for final passage.
House Bill 6 makes it easier to suspend or remove students, especially younger children, for vague or minor disruptions. This risks pushing the most vulnerable students, such as those with disabilities or behavioral challenges, out of the classroom instead of supporting them.
Action: We encourage you to call your state senator and tell them your concerns with the bill. We’ve included a call script below!
Call Script for House Bill 6
“Hello, my name is [say your name] and I live in (name the town and/or school district you live in). I am calling to urge [Legislator’s Name] to vote no on House Bill 6. This bill harms students through the use of punitive zero tolerance practices.
This bill would allow for our youngest students in pre-kindergarten through third grade to suspended for a one time disruption, allow for unlimited in school suspension placements, and allow the courts to be involved in disciplinary actions. [If you have an example, please share it!]
The bill will disproportionately impact vulnerable students, especially those with disabilities, and risks placing more kids in the school-to-prison pipeline. HB 6 would be a step backwards for our students. We need to prioritize providing support to our schools, teachers and students.
Please vote no to HB 6 when it comes up for a vote. Thank you very much for your time and attention.”
House Bill 2, School Funding Unveils Major Changes
House Bill 2, the priority school funding bill finally had a hearing set last Thursday in the Senate Education K-16 Committee. This comes after promises made by state leaders to pass school funding for public schools along with the multi-billion voucher scam. The original bill included increases to per-pupil funding, targeted student programs, early education, teacher pay, and special education funding.
The new Senate version is 225 pages and includes bill language from other senate bills this session, and only includes a $55 raise to the basic allotment based on districts taxing at higher local levels for their golden pennies (part of local tax rate). This is down from the House version which would have increased it by $340 along with the additional golden penny adjustments. Neither number is enough to adjust for inflation.
We testified on the bill and included our concerns about ensuring the basic allotment is raised and critical additional weight funding for bilingual education and compensatory education should be added back in.
Read our HB 2 testimony.
Protect Student Supports in Public Schools – Oppose SB 12
A broad ban against diversity, equity and inclusion activities is headed to the House floor through Senate Bill 12. The bill bans school districts and charters from including any consideration, policies, protocols or activities related to diversity, equity and inclusion, adds stricter provisions for parent notification and consent over student instruction, bans conversations related to gender and sexuality, and requires annual certification of classroom censorship and the ban on diversity, equity and inclusion.
SB 12 will restrict how schools can provide all types of student support that may be targeted to students’ backgrounds and needs. IDRA and TLEEC testified against the bill last week, but it was passed from committee and now heads to the full House.
Action: Call your representative and tell them to vote no on SB 12!
Say No to Censorship in Higher Ed!
Alongside partners, we participated last week in a news conference to push back against Senate Bill 37, a bill that would shift power over what is taught in college classrooms away from professors and academic leaders and give it to university boards of regents. Vivek Datla, IDRA education policy fellow gave remarks on behalf of the Texas Legislative Education Equity Coalition.
Action: Call your representative and tell them to vote no on SB 37!
Coming Up: Week of May 20, 2025
Texas House: Tuesday
- House Public Education Committee
- 8:00 a.m. (See notice)
- House Higher Education Committee
- Tuesday: 8:00 a.m. (See notice)
- House State Affairs Committee
- 9:00 a.m. (See notice)
- Watch hearings live
- Watch past hearings
Texas Senate: Tuesday
- No relevant hearings scheduled yet.
- Watch hearings live
- Watch past hearings
Highlights from Last Week
Testimony Presented Last Week
Banning Targeted Student Supports Threatens Their Educational Opportunities – IDRA Testimony Against SB 12, Submitted by Chloe Latham Sikes, Ph.D., to the Texas Senate Committee on Education K-16, May 13, 2025 • See video
SB 12 Undermines Schools’ Ability to Address Educational Disparities – TLEEC Testimony Against SB 12, submitted by Vivek Datla to the Texas House Committee on Public Education, May 13, 2025 • See video
Texas Should Make Comprehensive Investments in School Funding to Serve the Most Students – IDRA Testimony on CSHB 2, Submitted by Chloe Latham Sikes, Ph.D., to the Texas Senate Education K-16 Committee, May 15, 2025
Tools & Resources
Learn more about IDRA’s policy recommendations for Texas
See our Infographic: 5 Data Snacks on IDRA’s Policy Priorities
The Big Cost of Proposed Voucher Legislation, Data Map
How to Testify before the Texas Legislature, Infographic
Get more advocacy tips and videos on IDRA’s SEEN website.
Welcoming Immigrant Students, Infographic
