“Last night, as our Pearce Class of 2025 graduates proudly crossed the stage, the Texas Senate passed House Bill 2—a historic piece of legislation aimed at strengthening school funding across our state,” said RISD superintendent Tabitha Branum. “Throughout this legislative session, we have worked closely with our lawmakers to advocate for critical investments in our schools, including enhanced classroom safety measures, increased salaries for teachers and staff, support for special education, and targeted resources to address persistent funding gaps. This progress would not have been possible without the unwavering support and advocacy of the RISD community—parents, educators, students, and local leaders—who consistently raised their voices for the needs of our schools.“
“We remain hopeful that House Bill 4—which proposes replacing STAAR testing with a more reasonable and effective accountability system—will also be passed before the session concludes.”
RISD’S LEGISLATIVE TOP LEGISLATIVE PRIORITY PASSES IN THE SENATE
Student Discipline, House Bill 6 – has passed in both chambers and is expected to go to the Governor for his signature. Teachers, school administrators, and students will benefit from the revisions to the discipline code that will bring greater safety and flexibility to classroom management.
School Finance, HB 2 – was passed in the Senate late Thursday (5/22) evening, giving $8.5 billion dollars in additional funding to public schools, Key pieces of the bill include:
- $4.2 billion for teacher compensation, including the Teacher Incentive Allotment
- $1.3 billion for a new allotment for basic costs (ABC allotment) to help pay for other staff salary increases for non-teachers, transportation, insurance premiums, utilities, etc.
- $850 million increase for special education funding
- $500 million for non-administrative staff pay raises
- $430 million in additional school safety funding
- $318 million for an increase to the small- and mid-size school allotment
- $200 million for charter facilities
- $135 million for teacher preparation and certification initiatives
- $ 55 per student as an increase to the basic allotment
- A mechanism to tie the basic allotment to property value growth
Property Tax Relief: SB 4 – increases the Homestead Exemption by $40,000 to $140,000 of the appraised value of a residence homestead, and SB 23 that will give disabled citizens and those over 65 an additional $60,000 Homestead Exemption. The exemptions will be effective for the 2025 tax year if voters approve the corresponding constitutional amendments to implement these increased exemptions in November.
Session statistics to date:
- 10 days remain in the 89th legislative session.
- May 23 is the last day for House committees to pass Senate bills.
- 440 bills have passed, with 339 bills sent to the Governor for his signature; 31 bills that are effective immediately and 70 bills with an effective date other than September 1, 2025.
Please check back for a full wrap-up of this session’s priority bills on June 6.
Watch House committee meetings. Watch Senate committee hearings.
Watch the Texas Senate in session. Watch the Texas House in session.
Legislative Corner is published periodically throughout the 89th Texas legislative session. For more information about RISD’s legislative involvement and priorities, please visit the legislative page here. Other resources include Texas Legislature Online (TLO) – find legislation (bills), committee hearings, legislative member info, and more; The Quorum Report – sign-up for “Daily Buzz” or a listing of political news articles; Texas Tribune – online daily news, also a data dashboard for education.
