Texas senators are considering an education bill that could help solve some problems with a two year-old school safety and security law.
Republican Sen. Robert Nichols of Jacksonville calls his Senate Bill 1262 a “clean-up bill” for House Bill 3. The 2023 law required an armed guard in every public school — but there weren’t enough qualified officers to meet the need, nor enough money to pay for them.
A January Senate Education Committee report found more than half of the state’s districts had filed a “good cause exception” explaining why they couldn’t comply with that part of the law and laying out alternative plans.
Now, SB1262 calls on districts still needing armed officers to request a good cause exception waiver every year.
Nichols’ bill would also allow the Texas Education Agency to commission peace officers who would work with districts on school safety planning. They would only be on campus to assist with emergencies or to conduct safety audits.
“This would allow TEA officers to support local law enforcement if there’s an emergency situation on the campus,” Nichols said during the bill’s Senate Education Committee hearing this week. “Their role is not to be on school campuses.”
SB1262 was left pending in committee.
Bill Zeeble is KERA’s education reporter. Got a tip? Email Bill at bzeeble@kera.org. You can follow him on X @bzeeble.
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