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. 

• HB 2 and SB 2: An ATPE Teach the Vote analysis  
• Subcommittee on Academic and Career-Oriented Education holds quick meeting on two bills 
• House Public Education Committee tackles recapture bills 
• Texas Senate sends private school voucher bill to the governor as other education bills move through the process 
• SBEC approves two new educator preparation programs, discusses special education certification standards and EdTPA 
• TEA releases 2023 A-F ratings 
• ATPE members gather at the Capitol April 15 
• Early voting is underway for the May 3 election 
• Congratulations to the 2025 ATPE Summit scholarship recipients! 
• Use ATPE’s member advocacy tools to stay in the know and take action 

VOUCHERS: In the early hours of April 17, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) finally got his wish—the Texas House passed his pet private school voucher bill. It took millions of dollars and a last-minute call from President Donald Trump (R) to get it done. In this ATPE Teach the Vote analysis, we take a look at where HB 2 (school finance) and SB 2 (voucher) are now and how they got there. 

SUBCOMMITTEE: The House Subcommittee on Academic and Career-Oriented Education held a quick meeting Thursday to discuss two bills, including ATPE-opposed HB 1209 by Rep. Charles Cunningham (R–Kingwood), which would add a requirement of a minimum of 175 instructional days for public schools to the existing requirement of 75,600 instructional minutes. Cunningham stated in his bill layout that he was filing the bill in order to prohibit schools from adopting a four-day school week.  

ATPE Lobbyist Tricia Cave has more in this blog post. 

HOUSE PUBLIC EDUCATION: The House Public Education Committee met Tuesday for the first time since passage of school finance and voucher legislation April 16 and 17. On the agenda were two bills to give recapture credits to districts dealing with windstorm insurance payments and districts that prepay their recapture payments, respectively. Additionally, there were bills dealing with parental notification of educators accused of sexual assault, regulations and rules for charter and homeschool programs, and a ban on flying drones over public schools. ATPE Lobbyist Tricia Cave covers all the bills considered in this blog post. 

SENATE: With just 37 days remaining this session, this is a busy time at the Capitol. Bills are starting to die without being heard or are getting stuck in committees while others start to move to the opposite chamber for consideration or to die.   

The biggest news to come out of the Senate this week, the final legislative vote on Senate Bill (SB) 2, the private school voucher bill, was honestly a foregone conclusion. Check out the recap from ATPE Lobbyist Heather Sheffield, in this blog post, to find out what else happened this week in the Texas Senate. 

SBEC: The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) met Friday in Austin. The agenda included approval of two new educator preparation programs (EPPs); discussion of proposed amendments to 19 TAC Chapter 235, Subchapter F and G, relating to special education certification standards; and discussion about progress in developing a Texas-specific version of EdTPA. ATPE Lobbyist Tricia Cave will have a full update on the meeting Monday.  

A-F RATINGS: The Texas Education Agency (TEA) released its 2022-23 A-F accountability ratings Thursday after a 19-month legal battle. Districts receive ratings in three categories (student achievement, school progress, and closing the gaps), as well as an overall A-F rating. Of the nearly 1,200 districts evaluated, 10.4% got an A, 73% got a B or a C, and 16.6% got a D or an F. 

When TEA announced changes in the metrics used to evaluate performance in the 2022-23 school year, more than 100 school districts joined a lawsuit in an effort to block the release of the ratings. The suit argued that TEA implemented stricter benchmarks without sufficient notice. A judge with Texas’ 15th Court of Appeals ruled earlier this month that TEA could release its 2022-23 A-F accountability ratings of the state’s school districts; however, they cannot release the 2023-24 ratings due to a separate pending lawsuit. 

Learn more and find your school district and campus’ rating on The Texas Tribune, and check out this blog post by accountability system expert John Tanner, executive director of braveED, in which Tanner breaks down common misconceptions about such tools as A-F scores.  

CAPITOL EXPEDITION: Thank you to the following ATPE members who participated in the April 14–15 Capitol Expedition: Dani Boepple, Mesquite; Christy Skinner, Beaumont; Kimberly Matchniff, Mesquite; Patty Hilton, Waxahachie; Nora Crist, Waxahachie; Angie McClain, Waxahachie; Marianne Eckley, Lewisville; Joy Barreras, Liberty Hill; Jolie Jennings, Liberty Hill; ATPE State President Jason Forbis, Midway (12); and Texas Teacher of the Year Christine Mihealsick, Round Rock. All of these members were eligible to attend because they have earned the ATPE Member Advocate Program (ATPE-MAP) State-Level Advocacy Microcredential. Although all remaining Capitol Expeditions are now at capacity for the rest of the session, you may still earn your state-level microcredential, as well as the recently released ATPE-MAP Local Advocacy Microcredential. Learn more about atpe.org/member-advocate-program.  

Front row from left: Christy Skinner, Joy Barreras, Angie McClain, Dani Boepple, Kimberly Matchniff, Christine Mihealsick, Nora Crist, Patty Hilton, ATPE Events Director Andrea Elizondo, Marianne Eckley
Back row from left: Jolie Jennings, ATPE Governmental Relations Director Monty Exter, ATPE Executive Director Dr. Shannon Holmes, ATPE Lobbyist Heather Sheffield, ATPE State President Jason Forbis, ATPE Lobbyist Tricia Cave, ATPE Events Director Andrea Elizondo

Christine Mihaelsick, Christy Skinner, Joy Barreras, Jolie Jennings, Marianne Eckley, State President Jason Forbis, Patty Hilton, Dani Boepple, Angie McClain, Kimberly Matchniff, Nora Crist

Nora Crist, Jolie Jennings, Christine Mihealsick, Christy Skinner, Patty Hilton, Angie McClain, Marianne Eckley, Andrea Elizondo, Tricia Cave, Jason Forbis, Kimberly Matchniff, Dani Boepple, Heather Sheffield

ATPE members sharing legislative priorities with a staffer in Rep. Armando Walle’s office

ATPE members sharing legislative priorities with a staffer in a legislator's office

ATPE members sharing legislative priorities with a staffer in Rep. Ryan Guillen’s office

ATPE members sharing legislative priorities with a staffer in Rep. Linda Garcia’s office

Nora Crist, Christine Mihealsick, Angie McClain, Patty Hilton, Jason Forbis, Marianne Eckley

ATPE members sharing legislative priorities with a staffer in Rep. Linda Garcia’s office

Joy Barreras and Jolie Jennings, Liberty Hill ATPE

ATPE lobbyist Heather Sheffield, Marianne Eckley, ATPE Governmental Relations Director Monty Exter, ATPE Lobbyist Tricia Cave

Nora Crist, Patty Hilton, Angie McClain, Waxahachie ATPE

Left to right: Christy Skinner, Joy Barreras, Marianne Eckley, Jolie Jennings, Angie McClain, Patty Hilton, Monty Exter, Andrea Elizondo, Shannon Holmes, Nora Crist, Kimberly Matchniff, Dani Boepple, Christine Mihealsick, Tricia Cave

Clockwise, from bottom: Kimberly Matchniff, Christine Mihealsick, Christy Skinner, Tricia Cave, Joy Barreras, Marianne Eckley, Patty Hilton, Angie McClain, Jolie Jennings, Shannon Holmes, Andrea Elizondo, Nora Crist, Dani Boepple, Monty Exter

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MAY 3 ELECTION: Early voting in local elections is underway through Tuesday, April 29, and Election Day is May 3. Although no statewide or federal races are on the ballot, it’s still a pivotal election for many Texans who have the opportunity to decide who serves on the school board or whether a bond passes. Learn more about the upcoming election in this blog post. (Post your “I Voted” selfie or confirmation that nothing is on your ballot in this thread on the ATPE Online Community to earn five extra points in the ATPE Regional Advocacy Challenge!) 

SUMMIT: Congratulations to our 2025 ATPE Summit Scholarship recipients! The following members will receive complimentary registration to the 2025 ATPE Summit. 

• Leticia Briones, Brownsville ISD 
• LaNisha Collins, Grand Canyon University 
• Brenda Garcia, La Joya ISD 
• Melissa Garcia, Forney ISD 
• Sandy Gonzalez, Bastrop ISD 
• Frank Hernandez, East Central ISD 
• Jessica Ludwin, Dripping Springs ISD 
• LaToya Perry Monroe, Houston ISD 
• Angie O’Leary, Canton ISD 
• Jordan Platt, Garland ISD 
• Linda Reed, Melissa ISD 
• Tamara Richards, Beaumont ISD 
• Rocio Sierra-Duarte, San Elizario ISD 
• Taylor Sullivan, University of Texas–San Antonio 

Join us in Austin for the summit July 7–9 at the JW Marriott Austin Downtown. Learn more and register at atpesummit.org. 

MEMBER ADVOCACY: Don’t forget to check out all of ATPE’s advocacy resources: 

• Judy: Chat with ATPE’s new AI assistant for Texas educators, ready to help you with all things ATPE and all things #txed. Check out our interview with Judy at atpenews.org.  
• The ATPE Bill Tracker: Find out the status of the major education bills moving through the Texas House and Senate, as well as ATPE’s position on each bill.   
• ATPE’s 2025 Legislative Priorities: Catch up on ATPE’s written and oral testimony from this session.    
• Advocacy Central: Contact your state senator and ask them to push for Senate action on HB 2. Ask them to request that Senate Education K-16 Committee Chair Sen. Brandon Creighton (R–Conroe) take appropriate steps to ensure this bill makes it across the finish line this session. Otherwise, the Legislature is not appropriately fulfilling its duty to support and maintain a public school system. 
• ATPE Member Advocate Program (ATPE-MAP): Enroll in ATPE-MAP to earn the state-level and recently released local-level advocacy microcredential, as well as earn continuing professional education (CPE) credit. ATPE-MAP is included in your member benefits, so check it out today.    
• 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. (While you’re there, be sure to check out the latest Regional Advocacy Challenge (RAC) standings.)