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. 

• Contact your lawmakers about testing and accountability as the special session presses on 
• Trump administration releases billions it withheld from schools following complaints from ATPE, educators, and other education advocates 
• SBEC prepares to tackle rulemaking to implement recent legislation 
• ATPE recaps major education bills of the 89th Legislature 
• Join ATPE and Miraval Resort Austin for a free webinar July 30: Stress Solutions for Educators 
• Stay up to date and take action using ATPE’s member advocacy tools 

SPECIAL SESSION: The special session is underway, and ATPE continues to advocate for testing and accountability reform, which is the only item on Gov. Greg Abbott’s special session call squarely related to public education.  

In this one-pager, ATPE outlines three keys to successful reform: a pause in accountability consequences, a prohibition on local benchmark testing, and a framework for stakeholder engagement. 

ATPE Lobbyist Heather Sheffield takes a deeper dive into these issues in the latest Capitol Comment. 

It's crucial lawmakers in Austin hear from educators about STAAR testing and accountability during the remainder of the 30-day special session. We’ve made it easy for you to reach out to your state legislators using ATPE's Advocacy Central with two ready-made campaigns: 

• House Bill (HB) 92: Urge House members to support HB 92—a bill to reduce standardized testing to the federal minimums. 
• Share input on broader proposals to reform the state’s testing and accountability system. 

FEDERAL FUNDING: After nearly two months in limbo, the Trump administration has finally released over $5 billion in critical federal education funds after an unnecessary and harmful delay. The funds are earmarked to support teacher training, English learners, and other vital student services. The U.S. Department of Education's abrupt decision not to release funding on the expected schedule disrupted school planning, risked staff layoffs, and undermined trust in the dependability of federal funding. Thankfully, after releasing $1.3 billion in funding last week, the department indicated today it will release the remainder of the funds appropriated by Congress. The administration’s decision comes following ATPE’s letter to the Texas congressional delegation and direct outreach from our members through ATPE’s Advocacy Central calling for the immediate release of the funds. We thank all the educators who answered our call and took the time to contact their elected officials  on this issue.  

SBEC: The State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) met Thursday and Friday in Austin. During a work session Thursday, Texas Education Agency (TEA) staff updated board members on legislation passed by the 89th Legislature that will require rulemaking by the board.  

This legislation includes Senate Bill (SB) 571, which strengthens safeguards against educator misconduct by expanding the Do Not Hire registry to include all school-affiliated personnel, including contractors, subcontractors, and volunteers, as well as mandates that any individual who works on a school campus (including contractors, subcontractors, and volunteers) be subject to a background check. SBEC will also begin rulemaking to implement parts of HB 2, the big school finance bill that also included certification-related issues such as the PREP allotment and phasing out of District of Innovation loopholes allowing districts to hire uncertified teachers. The board also discussed forming a subcommittee to study whether to continue allowing National Board certification to be an eligibility pathway for the Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) program.   

Friday, the board heard an update regarding the appointment of a development team for the Texas Test for Educator Preparation (T-TEP), as well as updates to SBEC rules found in  Ch. 229, Accountability System for Educator Preparation (ASEP), and Ch. 231, Requirements for Public School Personnel Assignments of the Texas Administrative Code. The board also appointed a subcommittee to develop procedures for the temporary suspensions of educator certificates as required by HB 571. The board will next meet in September.  

LEGISLATIVE WRAP-UP: Last week, ATPE showcased major education bills of the 89th Legislature in a six-part wrap-up; each post is linked below.  

• Funding, compensation, and the teacher pipeline 
• School working conditions 
• Vouchers and virtual schools 
• Parental rights 
• Legal issues and liability 
• Testing and accountability 

Each bill includes ATPE’s position on the legislation (where applicable), along with links to related ATPE Legislative Program categories and positions.  

Plus: In the epilogue to our regular session wrap-up, we wrote about other new legislation of interest to Texas public educators. Read more in this blog post by the ATPE Governmental Relations team. 

WEBINAR: Join ATPE online at 5 p.m. CT Wednesday, July 30 for a special back-to-school session exploring stress solutions for educators. This free one-hour live webinar is brought to you by one of ATPE's newest benefit partners, Miraval Austin Resort. Register for the webinar here. 

MEMBER ADVOCACY: With the special session in full swing, here are a few advocacy resources to check out: 

• Judy: Chat with ATPE’s new AI assistant for Texas educators, ready to help you with all things ATPE and all things #txed.   
• Advocacy Central: Get in touch with your elected officials about the legislation impacting your profession. 
• 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.