Bill > SB991

This bill amends the Texas Education Code to expand the definition of "students at risk of dropping out of school" to include chronically absent and truant students. Specifically, the bill defines a "chronically absent student" as a student who is absent from school for more than 10 percent of the school's required instructional time within a school year or an enrollment period exceeding 30 days. It adds two new categories to the existing list of at-risk students: (1) students who are chronically absent, and (2) students who are required to attend school but fail to attend without excuse for 10 or more days within a six-month period. Additionally, the bill requires school districts and open-enrollment charter schools to report data on chronic absenteeism through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS), including the total number of chronically absent students at each campus and whether these students are receiving specific instructional services. The Texas Education Agency must annually aggregate and publicly release this data at the campus and district levels. The bill is set to take effect on September 1, 2025, and aims to improve tracking and support for students who are at higher risk of dropping out of school due to attendance issues.

Education

https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=89R&Bill=SB991