Relating to an attendance policy adopted by public schools to prevent truancy.
Summary
SB 570 requires each Texas public school district and open-enrollment charter school to adopt and implement a more detailed attendance policy aimed at preventing truancy. The policy must explain the value of regular attendance, describe the academic and family consequences of chronic absence and truancy-court referral, and provide a way for parents to opt in to absence notifications by email, text, or first-class mail. It also requires schools to meet with parents when a student becomes at risk of truancy, and to discuss the student’s behavior and any home conditions that may be contributing to absences.
The bill further directs schools to use attendance officers to follow up when a parent does not attend the meeting, including making a home visit or otherwise contacting the parent to investigate the student’s circumstances and report findings. Schools must also establish guidelines to identify students who need additional support and refer them to in-school or out-of-school services. Each year, districts and charter schools must provide parents a copy of the attendance policy, and the new requirements apply beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.
Impact
SB 570 amends Subchapter C, Chapter 25 of the Education Code by adding Section 25.0916, creating a statewide attendance-policy framework for school districts and open-enrollment charter schools. It expands parent notification and intervention requirements, adds mandatory school-parent meetings and possible home visits by attendance officers, and links attendance policy to existing truancy provisions in the Family Code. The bill affects school administrators, attendance officers, parents, and students identified as at risk of truant conduct.
Sentiment
The available legislative record suggests generally favorable treatment of the bill, with no recorded opposition in the provided vote snippets and the bill advancing to the House General State Calendar. The measure appears to have been framed as a preventive, support-oriented truancy response rather than a punitive one, emphasizing communication with parents and early intervention. No committee transcript comments were provided, so the broader debate cannot be assessed from the supplied materials.
Contention
The main policy tension in SB 570 is between proactive support for students and increased school intervention into family circumstances. Potential points of contention include the burden on districts to provide notifications, hold meetings, and conduct home visits; the privacy and practical implications of investigating conditions at a student’s home; and whether the bill sufficiently addresses underlying causes of absenteeism versus focusing on compliance. Parents may also be concerned about the expanded reporting and contact requirements, while school officials may focus on implementation costs and staffing.
In pupils and attendance, further providing for attendance policy at charter, regional charter and cyber charter schools, for procedure when child is truant, for procedure by school when child habitually truant, for procedure upon filing of citation and for penalties for violating compulsory school attendance requirements, repealing provisions relating to study of truancy procedure, providing for department supports to prevent truancy and further providing for reports to Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Relating to the number of unexcused absences from school that constitute truant conduct or parental contribution to nonattendance of school and a school district's discretion to refer a student to truancy court.
Implements requirements and guidelines to reduce chronic absenteeism including attendance reporting, attendance review teams, tiered strategies, early warning systems, and attendance policies.
Implements requirements and guidelines to reduce chronic absenteeism including attendance reporting, attendance review teams, tiered strategies, early warning systems, and attendance policies.