Transcript Highlights:

• My story is that I was in second grade at a public school, a small rural school, and I couldn't...
• the first kid from my school.
• In the public schools, we just can't figure it out.
• If you haven't heard of the Windham School District, that's what they call the school district for the
• Most of the schools that I serve—72 school districts—have the same difficulties.

Keywords: special education, funding gap, dyslexia, House Bill 2, Senate Bill 568, House Bill 3928, disability penalty

Summary: The meeting primarily focused on special education funding, with significant discussions around House Bill 2 (HB2), Senate Bill 568 (SB568), and House Bill 3928 (HB3928). Key speakers advocated for increased funding to close the estimated $1.7 billion annual gap that affects special education in Texas public schools. Several witnesses, including educators and students affected by dyslexia, provided personal testimonies about the impact of insufficient funding and the disability penalty, which penalizes schools financially for identifying students needing special education services. The committee demonstrated a strong commitment to advocate for changes that would improve special education resources and training for teachers, thereby ensuring that all Texas children receive the educational support they need to thrive.

Transcript Highlights:

• nursing and school-based counseling.
• institutions for medical school.
• That's the School of Medicine component only.
• If you're planning, are there other medical schools or types of medical schools that would help complement
• I'm just going to talk about the university; I'll go back to high school and grammar school and kindergarten

Transcript Highlights:

• the school?
• Um, it also references school and school personnel.
• references school and school personnel. references school and school personnel.
• Thank you very much. stop at the school door. Um, school stop at the school door.
• middle school, sent my child to private school.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• taxes levied by the independent school districts.
• In order to qualify for Grace, the school district has to be deemed an eligible school district.
• Does the school district, is it the school district or the, the county appraisal was correct or the comptroller's
• Oh, actually, I can tell you the Foundation school program, which is the, the school finance formulas
• districts or 30% of school districts.

Transcript Highlights:

• Again, these children may be open enrolled in private schools; they may be in charter schools, but this
• they may be um in private schools they may be um in charter<00:21:12.480> schools<00:21:12.960
• <00:24:10.200> age looking just at the school age looking just at the school age population
• <00:29:57.320> AG<00:29:57.600> children School AG children School AG children uh<00:29
• appropriations for the free school meals program prior to the introduction of the free school meals

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Summary: The Senate Education Finance Committee met on January 21 with a quorum present for the first meeting of the 2025 biennium. The co-chairs described the temporary power-sharing arrangement in the tied Senate, introduced committee staff and pages, and had members briefly introduce themselves and share what subject they would teach. After the introductions, the committee moved to a presentation from State Demographer Susan Brower. Brower reviewed Minnesota’s school-age population trends and projections, noting that the state had just under 1 million children ages 5 to 17 in 2023 and that, for the first time, the older adult population exceeded the school-age population. She said the school-age population is concentrated in the Twin Cities metro and other regional centers, and projected an overall decline of about 5% over the next 15 to 20 years, driven mainly by declining birth rates and long-running net outmigration of young adults. She also explained that growth is expected in some areas, especially along the I-94 corridor north of the metro, while northern regions are projected to see the largest declines. She clarified for members that her figures measure resident children, not school enrollment, and that boundary changes are not reflected in the district-level data. The presentation also covered demographic change among students. Brower said about 35% of Minnesota children ages 5 to 17 are children of color, with growing multiracial populations and increasing linguistic diversity. She reported that about 20% of school-age children have at least one foreign-born parent, and about 18% of enrolled students speak a language other than English at home, with Spanish, Somali, and Hmong the largest home languages. She also discussed child poverty, saying Minnesota’s rate is just under 10%, below the national rate of about 15%, and that poverty is concentrated in Minneapolis-St. Paul, some first-ring suburbs, and parts of northern Minnesota, including districts with larger Native populations. Members asked questions about whether the projections accounted for migration and whether open enrollment affected the figures; Brower said the data reflect where children live, not where they attend school, and that the projections are based on recent migration and birth patterns, with future changes more likely to come from international immigration than from domestic migration.

Transcript Highlights:

• property or on a school bus, and access to telehealth mental health services in public schools.
• Members, this bill relates to students enrolled in public schools subject to in-school or out-of-school
• of these schools.
• School districts and charter schools must submit a yearly report to the TEA on the number of citations
• Senate Bill 2314 requires public schools to inform high school students of the option to opt in or out

Summary: The committee heard and discussed several higher education and public school bills. Senator Burwell presented SB 1242 to remove an outdated Coordinating Board approval requirement for Texas State Technical College land and facility acquisitions, and SJR 59 to create a constitutionally dedicated endowment for TSTC capital needs; both drew strong support from industry and workforce groups and were left pending. SB 757, by Senator Middleton, would create a debt-to-earnings accountability system for public college programs, with supporters saying it would protect students from low-value degrees and opponents warning it could unfairly penalize programs with long-term value, especially graduate, medical, and public service fields; it was also left pending. SB 1241, by Senator Millington, would expand acceptable college entrance exams beyond the SAT and ACT, including the Classic Learning Test, and was left pending after testimony from CLT, homeschool, and student groups in support. SB 1085, by Senator Blanco, would let Sul Ross State University offer lower-division courses at its satellite campuses in the Middle Rio Grande region; it too was left pending. The committee then took up a series of public school and higher education measures, voting several out favorably. SB 605, as substituted, limits commissioner approval of charter school expansion amendments for schools under conservatorship or a management team and was reported favorably 9-0. SB 1871 and SB 1873, both by Senator Perry, were revised to narrow teacher immunity, clarify removal and suspension procedures, require periodic review of in-school suspension placements, and align discipline rules; both substitutes were adopted and reported favorably. SB 1872, SB 1874, SB 762, SB 1962, SB 1750, SB 2252, SB 2253, SB 2365, SB 1924, and SB 37 were also considered, with most reported favorably on party-line or near-unanimous votes. SB 1750 would replace a flat charter school facilities funding cap with an attendance-based formula; SB 2252 and SB 2253 address kindergarten readiness, early literacy/numeracy, and educator preparation; SB 2365 concerns student phone use during instructional time; SB 1924 restores local citation authority for certain school offenses and adds reporting, notice, and completion requirements; and SB 37 would expand state oversight of higher education curriculum, governance, faculty senates, and compliance with state law. Other measures heard included SB 769, which would require a Coordinating Board report on barriers faced by students with disabilities in higher education; supporters emphasized the need for better data and accessibility, while witnesses suggested broader reporting on race, disability types, and K-12-to-college transitions. SB 2231 would designate a Free College Application Week in October and was left pending. SB 1878 would modernize the Josie School statute and provide formula funding and aid eligibility for Polytechnic College. SB 1409 would authorize universities to offer self-funded student health benefit plans, with Rice University and Texas 2036 supporting the measure as a way to lower costs and expand coverage. SB 2431 would require universities to give foreign language credit for study abroad programs, SB 2314 would require schools to inform students about opting in or out of record sharing for direct admissions through My Texas Future, and SB 2138 would extend the state’s anti-ESG contracting restrictions to public higher education endowments and governing boards; these later bills were introduced and left pending.

Transcript Highlights:

• schools at least one time just during high school.
• Is that, like, New Mexico School for the Blind, Visual Impaired, School for the Deaf?
• It does say charter schools, so are we segregating charter schools from publicly chartered charter schools
• Page seven in the bill, line seven: school district includes charter schools.
• Yes, Madam Chair, all of our charter schools are public schools.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• HB 2575, school plan and ESA assessments. HB 2580, ESA micro schools.
• This week is National School Choice Week, where we celebrate all of our school choice options: public
• district schools, public charter schools, private schools, ESAs, homeschools, and the like.
• Our schools deserve to be safe.
• students walking out—high school students, they can’t... ...week seeing high school students walking

Keywords: 1182, all

Summary: The House convened with prayer by Deacon Ernie Gonzalez, the Pledge of Allegiance, approval of the prior journal, and recognition of Dr. Pamela Murphy as Doctor of the Day. Members also introduced guests, including local officials, Arizona Game and Fish commissioners, and advocates from the Alzheimer’s Association. A proclamation was read designating January 26, 2026, as Arizona Aviation Day, highlighting the industry’s economic impact and the role of airports, aerospace, and aviation-related jobs in the state. The clerk then recorded a large number of bills and resolutions for first and second reading, covering water and energy policy, education savings accounts and school choice, elections and campaign finance, veterans issues, public safety, housing, health care, immigration-related matters, and land and natural resources. Representative Gress also read a resolution recognizing National School Choice Week and praising Arizona’s school choice programs, including charter schools and empowerment scholarship accounts. A lengthy portion of the meeting consisted of members’ personal privilege remarks responding to violence and immigration enforcement actions in Minnesota and Arizona. Many members condemned ICE tactics, described fear and harm in immigrant communities, and called for constitutional rights, due process, and accountability; several requested or observed a moment of silence. No substantive floor votes on legislation were taken during the transcript beyond the motion to adjourn, which passed, and the House adjourned until 1:15 p.m. Tuesday, January 27, 2026.

Transcript Highlights:

• This data also does not include school libraries.
• their school library. to be educational and age appropriate in their school library.
• have a child in the school or not.
• The school committee appoints a review board that's made up of school members.
• .from the school because the superintendent sits in the school committee meetings, but we put it on the

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The House began with routine ceremonial business, including the Pledge of Allegiance, adoption of several congratulatory resolutions, and suspension of Joint Rule 12 to send two petitions to committee. It then took up a supplemental fiscal year 2026 appropriations bill (H. 5393 / H. 5493), which Ways and Means reported at about $227.3 million for items including snow and ice costs, no-cost calls, substance use services, homeless programs, and technical changes related to lottery revenue and other outside sections. The bill was advanced through second and third reading and later passed to be engrossed after a roll call vote. The chamber also passed to engrossment a land transfer bill for the Town of Marion (H. 5388) and a Bolton alcohol licensing bill (S. 2628, as amended). The House also enacted two local bills: one further regulating special meetings of the Holyoke City Council and one amending the charter of the town of Reading. A major floor debate centered on S. 2726, an act regarding free expression, which was framed by supporters as a response to book challenges and censorship in public and school libraries. Supporters, including Representatives Garballey and Moran, argued the bill would protect librarians, require reporting of book challenges, preserve age-appropriate access to materials, and keep challenged books on shelves during review; opponents raised concerns about parental rights and local control. Several amendments were offered and rejected, including one that would have removed a criminal-law protection for librarians and educators, and another that would have shifted school review authority more directly to elected school committees. Two amendments were adopted: one clarifying that challenged material is considered in its entirety, and another narrowing who may initiate certain complaints to parents or guardians of a student in the school. The bill ultimately passed to be engrossed by a large roll call vote. The House also debated and passed H. 5491 / S. 1646, implementing recommendations of the Walsh Kennedy Commission on hot work safety after the 2014 Beacon Street fire. Supporters said the bill would require certification for hot work, strengthen penalties for repeated or reckless violations, and improve public notification and enforcement to prevent future tragedies; the bill passed to be engrossed unanimously or near-unanimously after roll call. In addition, the chamber advanced a local land transfer for the Yankee Doodle Bike Path in Billerica and a bill concerning ownership and maintenance of culverts and dams in Town Line Brook and Lindenbrook. The session included several recesses, quorum checks, and recognition of guests, including Danvers High School graduates, a former state representative, and WGBH representatives for Public Media Awareness Day.

Transcript Highlights:

• My story is that, um, I was in 2nd grade in a public school, a small rural school, and, uh, couldn't,
• I think I would have dropped out of high school.
• And they also lose the money they need for running the school.
• If you haven't heard of the Windham School District, that's what they call the school district for the
• Most all of my schools that I serve, and there have been 72 school districts have the same difficulties

Transcript Highlights:

• And this is from the Taos Municipal Schools, and this is From the Taos Municipal Schools, and this is
• Municipal schools.
• As a former school board member and former president of the New Mexico School Board Association, it's
• She is president of the Bloomfield School Board, a proud graduate of Bloomfield High School.
• So that it says school election timing, it doesn't say just bonds. It says school elections.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• antagonists on the school grounds.
• I just want to say this of teachers, education advocacy groups, school administrators, school boards
• Innovative school and teaching ideas—things that schools come and talk about.
• innovation in our schools.
• a public school in our district a school a public school in our district that<01:19:29.199> goes<

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• demonstrated excellence for schools. demonstrated excellence for schools.
• being a high school student. being a high school student.
• our schools. our schools.
• school program?
• and uh the other schools, let's school and uh the other schools, let's call<02:19:15.920> it.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This one focuses on ultra-processed foods that are served to public school students on public school
• not serve so ultra-processed food on school grounds during the school day.
• time school lens. >> Chair is the very definition for school day.
• schools nationwide.
• in school.

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• What helped her get back to school What helped her get back to school was a special education evaluation
• school districts in the Commonwealth.
• Boston Public Schools.
• We went from, in 2021, having nearly 30 to 47% chronic absenteeism at our high school and middle school
• They have to set up transportation to school, which sometimes makes them then lose access to school.

Keywords: 995, all

Summary: The committee held a hybrid hearing on a range of bills affecting children, families, disability rights, homelessness, and social services. Early testimony focused on H.215, which would support children experiencing homelessness by speeding access to child care vouchers and early intervention screenings. Boston officials, Horizons for Homeless Children, Head Start, pediatric and early education advocates, and families described delays in child care and early intervention, the developmental risks of homelessness, and the need for automatic referrals and faster access to services. Testimony also supported H.216, which would improve emergency housing assistance by restoring presumptive eligibility, reducing documentation barriers, extending shelter stays from six to nine months, and creating an ombudsperson; providers and legal advocates said current rules leave families sleeping in cars or outside and create unnecessary administrative hurdles. The committee also heard strong support for H.210, which would repeal the “Learn Fair” school attendance sanction that cuts cash assistance to families when children miss school. Advocates from legal aid, education, and anti-poverty organizations argued the policy is punitive, burdensome, and ineffective, disproportionately affecting low-income, disabled, and Hispanic/Latino families. Several speakers said chronic absenteeism should be addressed through supports such as family outreach, wraparound services, and school engagement rather than benefit cuts. Legislators and school officials from Salem also testified that their districts reduced absenteeism through supportive strategies, not sanctions. Additional testimony addressed children’s vision bills H.202 and H.166, with optometrists and researchers urging better screening, data systems, and treatment access to close achievement gaps caused by untreated vision problems. Senator Lovely also presented S.2714, proposing a study of discrimination in public accommodations for people with service animals. Later, testimony on H.279 supported changing social work licensure rules to remove exam requirements that speakers said disproportionately exclude multilingual candidates and candidates of color. The hearing also included testimony on bills related to the Judge Rotenberg Center and electric shock devices, with disability rights advocates opposing continued use of the devices and urging the committee to reject licensing or authorization for them. No votes or committee actions were taken during the hearing.

Transcript Highlights:

• the 2024-25 school year.
• 202122 school year and the 2425 school 202122 school year and the 2425 school year.<00:17:48.240
• schools? schools?
• of different schools? Mr. Cordy. of different schools? Mr. Cordy.
• dramatically over last school year. dramatically over last school year.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• A school district I love public schools.
• A school district I love public schools.
• A school district I love public schools.
• A school district—I love public schools.
• <01:13:45.360> and school psychologists for 22 schools and school psychologists for 22 schools

Keywords: 1189, house, all

Summary: The commission to study the cost of special education met, confirmed a quorum, introduced members and guests, and approved the minutes from the October 29 meeting. Members noted the commission’s mandate under Senate Bill 57 and emphasized the need to focus on recommendations and findings by July 1, 2026. The chair also distributed additional handouts, including materials related to the Education Freedom Account (EFA) program and administrative rules tied to differentiated aid and disability determinations. The main discussion centered on how students qualify for differentiated aid under the EFA program. Matt Sutherton of the Children’s Scholarship Fund explained that the organization, which contracts with the state to administer EFAs, accepts either school-district/IEP documentation or a medical certification of disability (MCD) from a licensed medical professional. Members questioned how this process relates to the state’s special education rules and whether the school-district examiner standards in ED 107/1107.04 apply to EFAs. Sutherton said the MCD form, created with the department, requires the medical professional to sign that they are qualified to make the determination and to identify the disability. Several members expressed concern that the EFA process is less rigorous than the school-district IEP process and may be inflating disability counts. One member argued that the administrative rules cited are primarily for school districts, not EFAs, and said the Department of Education may not know how many of the roughly 890 EFA students receiving differentiated aid came through school-district documentation versus the MCD pathway. Another member said the EFA system appears more generous than the school system and raised concerns about oversight, auditing, and whether the program’s data are accurate. Sutherton said the organization reviews signed documentation, credentials, and diagnosis information, and may request additional records to help adjudicate expenses. No votes or formal actions were taken beyond approving the prior minutes.

Transcript Highlights:

• all schools should have a school all schools should have a school librarian<00:49:33.480> so<
• If you remember your schooling experience, the highlight of kids' schooling in middle school is Spirit
• School meals are school understand that School meals are school supplies<01:02:10.839> like<01
• Kona county pools are already teaching some DOE schools during the school day for schools that are within
• day for schools that are with the school day for schools that are with are<01:26:05.679> in<01

Keywords: 910, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• I was in actually at a school in Oklahoma City, an alternative school, talking with students about what
• So then you have a cost to the school as well.
• Every school that we've started it so far.
• So, an example of my daughter is she's in a rural school, K-12 school, and now in a bio-biomedical program
• We had 190 grants to serve schools. 164 of those went directly to schools, and 26 of those went to arts

Keywords: 914, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And most of them are coming out of medical school with more than 300,000 in just medical school debt.
• Or if there is school land within a school district, does it go to that school district?
• Our smallest dog grooming schools, you could probably put two or three dog grooming schools in this room
• One Computing school for security guard schools and others. So that includes court reporting.
• schools and school districts using our Oklahoma education indicator dashboard. we are also publishing

Keywords: 914, all