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Senate Bill 12—Grievance Policy

Senate Bill 12 (“SB 12”) requires Texas public school boards to adopt a grievance procedure that complies with the new grievance requirements of Texas Education Code Chapter 26A, including, but not limited to, allowing a grievant to supplement the record with additional documents or add additional claims, requiring a decision on the merits of a grievance regardless of procedural errors, extending the deadline to file grievances and appeals, and requiring a person to recuse themselves if they are the subject of a grievance regardless of the issue being grieved. In addition, current law allows a board to decline to address a grievance about participation in extracurricular activities.  Now, SB 12 requires the board to consider if an extracurricular grievance involves a violation of local policy which will require the Board to consider extracurricular grievances. In addition, despite legislative history that strongly suggests the grievance requirements of SB 12 were intended to apply only to parent-student grievances (FNG grievances), TASB-issued model policies are anticipated to extend SB 12 requirements to employee (DGBA) and public (GF) grievances. Implementing these new grievance procedures can significantly increase the time it will take for districts to process grievances and increase the number of Level III grievance that must be heard by the board. Districts of Innovation (“DOI”), however, can choose to opt-out of some or all the Chapter 26 grievance requirements (including exempting employee and community grievances from the new procedures) by amending their Innovation Plans. (See document below entitled "Possible DOI Opt-Outs for TEC Chapter 26A")

Senate Bill 1191—GPA Calculation

Senate Bill 1191 (“SB 1191”) amends Texas Education Code Sections 28.0252(a) and (b) and requires the Commissioner of Education to develop a standard method of computing a student's high school grade point average, which a public school district will be required to utilize. While the Commissioner’s standard method of computing GPA has not yet been issued, many districts are concerned about how or when the standard method will be rolled out. Specifically, districts may wish to avoid a situation in which a student who is halfway through their high school career and has been operating under the district’s current GPA calculation is negatively impacted by the sudden utilization of the Commissioner’s standard method. DOIs have the option to amend their Innovation Plans to exempt from this requirement.

Senate Bill 13—Library Acquisition and Challenge Policy

Senate Bill 13 (“SB 13”) amends Chapter 33 of the Texas Education Code by way of requiring a school board to adopt a policy for the acquisition of library materials. The policy, among other things, requires a school board to approve during an open meeting all library materials that have been donated to or that are to be procured by a school library within the district and make a list of materials proposed to be purchased or donated to the school library available for public review 30 days before final approval. The board must approve or reject the list of library materials that have been donated or are proposed for procurement at the first open meeting of the board held on or after the 30^th day after the date the list is made accessible for review by the public. DOIs, however, are permitted to exempt from this requirement and continue to allow professional library staff, rather than the board, to ensure their district development goals are met.

In addition to the three DOI options discussed above, there are other possible exemptions available to DOIs effective for the 2025-26 school year. Conversely, there are several exemptions which were previously available to DOIs that are no longer available. DOIs will want to carefully review their Innovation Plan to confirm the exemptions included are still available. If you have questions about DOI exemptions and/or need assistance with policy revisions, please contact a Leon | Alcala attorney.

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You can also join us on September 18, 2025, for a free webinar, “From Policy to Practice: Effectively Implementing New K-12 Legislation” where will we identify and help weigh District of Innovation options in relation to particular new legislative requirements. Registration Information here.

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