Monitoring the Session

HB 1368

No-Nurse Notice Skips Every District Under 10,000 Students

Did not pass

Verdict: Smells

SmellsNeeds review
Rep. Venton JonesDHouse 100
Why it's charged
The hole

THE TEXT

“This section does not apply to a school district or open-enrollment charter school with a student enrollment of less than 10,000 students.”

Bill text, introduced version (I)

The caption promises notice when "a public school" lacks a nurse, counselor, or librarian, but this clause exempts every school in a district or charter under 10,000 students. Parents in those smaller systems get no notice even if their school has no such staff.

The hole

Needs review · Nov 1, 2026 · Headline, summary and grade are analysis of the bill text, not a finding about any person · How we grade

Caption

relating to a notification requirement if a public school does not have a nurse, school counselor, or librarian assigned to the school during all instructional hours.

Caption from analyzed text · version I.

Summary

Larger systems can post it three clicks deep. Smaller ones owe parents nothing.

The bill requires a public school, including a charter school, to send parents written notice when it has gone more than 30 straight instructional days without a full-time nurse, school counselor, or librarian, or the equivalent coverage. The principal must send the notice within 30 instructional days, make a good faith effort to provide it in the parent's language, keep a copy, and may meet the duty by posting it on the school website within three clicks of the home page. The rule starts with the 2025-2026 school year but does not apply to any district or charter with fewer than 10,000 students, so only larger systems must tell parents.

Labels

Labels: ZOMBIE BILL. Died 2 times: 88R HB 2694 (Died in committee) and this bill (Did not pass). Checked against 88R only.BACK FROM THE DEAD. Same text as a bill filed before that died: 88R HB 2694 (Died in committee). Filed in 2 sessions, counting this one. Checked against 88R only.TRY NO. 2. Filed in 2 sessions: 88R and 89R. Checked against 88R only.ACROSS THE AISLE. Joint authors: 1 Republican, 4 Democrats. Party as the Legislative Reference Library lists it for the 89th Legislature.GOT HALFWAY. Passed the House on May 13, 2025. Died in the Senate: received, never referred to a committee.

Receipt

The receipt

89R-HB1368 · 2024-11-18

SOLD BY

Rep. Venton JonesDHouse 100 Rep. Brad BuckleyRHouse 54 Rep. Alma A. AllenDHouse 131

+ 2 more authors, 18 coauthors

ITEM

relating to a notification requirement if a public school does not have a nurse, school counselor, or librarian assigned to the school during all instructional hours.

WHAT IT DOES

Larger systems can post it three clicks deep. Smaller ones owe parents nothing.

The bill requires a public school, including a charter school, to send parents written notice when it has gone more than 30 straight instructional days without a full-time nurse, school counselor, or librarian, or the equivalent coverage. The principal must send the notice within 30 instructional days, make a good faith effort to provide it in the parent's language, keep a copy, and may meet the duty by posting it on the school website within three clicks of the home page. The rule starts with the 2025-2026 school year but does not apply to any district or charter with fewer than 10,000 students, so only larger systems must tell parents.

CHARGES

[x] THE HOLEanalysis confidence 50%

THE TEXT

“This section does not apply to a school district or open-enrollment charter school with a student enrollment of less than 10,000 students.”

Bill text, introduced version (I)

The caption promises notice when "a public school" lacks a nurse, counselor, or librarian, but this clause exempts every school in a district or charter under 10,000 students. Parents in those smaller systems get no notice even if their school has no such staff.

TOTAL

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version I · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version I · April 6, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

HISTORY

  1. Filed
  2. Read first time
  3. Referred to Public Education
  4. Scheduled for public hearing on . . .
  5. Considered in public hearing
  6. Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
  7. Left pending in committee
  8. Considered in public hearing
  9. Reported favorably w/o amendment(s)
  10. Comte report filed with Committee Coordinator
  11. Committee report distributed
  12. Committee report sent to Calendars
  13. Considered in Calendars
  14. Placed on General State Calendar
  15. Read 2nd time
  16. Passed to engrossment
  17. Record vote RV#2218
  18. Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
  19. Read 3rd time
  20. Passed
  21. Record vote RV#2284
  22. Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
  23. Reported engrossed
  24. Received from the House
FILED UNDER

No verified beat found.

SIGNED FOR BY

House · 90 yea · 50 nay

Sources

House: Final passage · May 13, 2025. Journal. Published stock for this vote. Snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

All floor motions and other positions below.

Smells

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING THE RECEIPT

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

Venton Jones

Donors

Texas Sands PAC$112KTexas REALTORS Political Action Committee$52KTexas Trial Lawyers Association PAC$49K

Not tied to this bill.

Sources

The author's campaign account only. Own money and internal transfers are separate on the member page.

Derived itemized flow · Jul 8, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Texas Sands PAC$112,000.00

Texas Sands PAC

$112,000.00

Cash
$112,000.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$112,000.00

Also funds 121 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 3, 2024 to Oct 24, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Dec 10, 2024 to Oct 19, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 100984877, 101041372, 101052461, 101072734.

Texas REALTORS Political Action Committee$51,904.05

Texas REALTORS Political Action Committee

$51,904.05

Cash
$40,000.00
Paid by others
$11,904.05
Total
$51,904.05
Other filed descriptions $11,604.05event $300.00

Also funds 140 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 2, 2024 to Oct 24, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Dec 10, 2024 to May 28, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 100984877, 101034000, 101041372, 101052461, 101060812.

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC$48,500.00

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC

$48,500.00

Cash
$48,500.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$48,500.00

Also funds 137 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 24, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Aug 13, 2024 to Oct 19, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 100984877, 101007278, 101034000, 101041372, 101041405, 101052461, 101072734.

Money

Missing data does not establish zero giving. Display amounts are rounded.

×

Texas Sands PAC

$112,000.00

Cash
$112,000.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$112,000.00

Also funds 121 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 3, 2024 to Oct 24, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Dec 10, 2024 to Oct 19, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 100984877, 101041372, 101052461, 101072734.

×

Texas REALTORS Political Action Committee

$51,904.05

Cash
$40,000.00
Paid by others
$11,904.05
Total
$51,904.05
Other filed descriptions $11,604.05event $300.00

Also funds 140 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 2, 2024 to Oct 24, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Dec 10, 2024 to May 28, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 100984877, 101034000, 101041372, 101052461, 101060812.

×

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC

$48,500.00

Cash
$48,500.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$48,500.00

Also funds 137 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 24, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Aug 13, 2024 to Oct 19, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 100984877, 101007278, 101034000, 101041372, 101041405, 101052461, 101072734.

Votes2

House May 13, 2025

Yea
90
Nay
50
Present, not voting
2
Absent
2
Excused
6
Names

Named positions matched to lawmakers. See the journal for unmatched names.

House journal

Sources

Record 2284

HB 1368 was passed by (Record 2284): 90 Yeas, 50 Nays, 2 Present, not voting.

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 90 (published)
  • Nay: 50 (published)
  • Present, not voting: 2 (published)
  • Absent: 2 (derived from named list)
  • Excused: 6 (derived from named list)

House journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

House May 12, 2025

Yea
86
Nay
52
Present, not voting
1
Absent
4
Excused
7
Names

Named positions matched to lawmakers. See the journal for unmatched names.

House journal

Sources

Record 2218

HB 1368 was passed to engrossment by (Record 2218): 86 Yeas, 52 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 86 (published)
  • Nay: 52 (published)
  • Present, not voting: 1 (published)
  • Absent: 4 (derived from named list)
  • Excused: 7 (derived from named list)

House journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Witnesses20
For
19
Against
0
On
1
Names

For

  • Association of Texas Professional Educators (ATPE)1 registration
  • Avel eCare1 registration
  • Democrats for Education Reform TX1 registration
  • Disability Rights Texas1 registration
  • Every Texan1 registration
  • NAMI Texas1 registration
  • National Association of Social Workers-Texas1 registration
  • Self1 registration
  • Self; Autism Society of Texas1 registration
  • Self; Every Texan1 registration
  • Self; Self1 registration
  • Self; Texas Counseling Association1 registration
  • Self; Texas School Nurses Organization1 registration
  • Texas Classroom Teachers Association1 registration
  • Texas Counseling Association1 registration
  • Texas PTA1 registration
  • Texas State Teachers Association1 registration
  • TX AFT1 registration
  • TX AFT and Alliance AFT1 registration

On

  • Texas Education Agency1 registration
Sources

20 parsed registrations across the loaded witness lists.

Derived stock of witness registrations. Repeated appearances count separately. Organizations and self-representation appear as printed.

House witness list. Source snapshot 2026-10-20, Central time.

Fiscal

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version I · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version I · April 6, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

How this was graded

Analysis of text version I by claude-opus-5-5, Oct 20, 2026, against the published rubric.

FILED BEFORE

Filed 2 times: 88R and 89R. Checked against 88R only.

88R HB 2694

by Rep. Venton Jones, same lead author · Died in committee · same text

Introduced text

Last action, May 2, 2023: Left pending in committee

Relating to a notification requirement if a public school does not have a nurse, school counselor, or librarian assigned to the school during all instructional hours.

Caption, 88R bill history

Sources

Texas House · Filed Nov 18, 2024

05/14/2025 S Received from the House

Texas Legislature Online · Introduced · House Committee Report · Engrossed

Data snapshot Nov 1, 2026 at 1:40 PM CST. Grades, charges, quotes and corrections follow the published record.

Coauthors
Rhetta Andrews BowersDHouse 113 John BryantDHouse 114 John H. Bucy IIIDHouse 136 Sheryl ColeDHouse 46 Aicha DavisDHouse 109 Josey GarciaDHouse 124 Linda GarciaDHouse 107 Barbara Gervin-HawkinsDHouse 120 Vikki GoodwinDHouse 47 Donna HowardDHouse 48 Helen KerwinRHouse 58 Terry MezaDHouse 105 Christina MoralesDHouse 145 Eddie MoralesDHouse 74 Claudia OrdazDHouse 79 Mihaela PlesaDHouse 70 James TalaricoDHouse 50 Charlene Ward JohnsonDHouse 139

House committee · Public Education · Committee vote 10 aye, 2 nay, 3 absent · Out of committee

Companion

SB 1344 by Johnson (identical)

Subjects

Education--Primary & Secondary--Other School Personnel

Libraries & Librarians

Minors--Health & Safety

NURSES & NURSE AIDES

PARENTAL NOTIFICATION

PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS

PUBLIC NOTICE

Text

The text as introduced · 581 words

89R5358 RAL-D

By: Jones of Dallas
H.B. No. 1368

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

relating to a notification requirement if a public school does not

have a nurse, school counselor, or librarian assigned to the school

during all instructional hours.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 25, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 25.096 to read as follows:

Sec. 25.096. PARENTAL NOTIFICATION CONCERNING NURSES,

SCHOOL COUNSELORS, AND LIBRARIANS. (a) In this section:

(1) "Librarian" means a person certified as a

librarian under Subchapter B, Chapter 21.

(2) "Nurse" means a person licensed under Chapter 301,

Occupations Code.

(3) "School counselor" means a person certified as a

school counselor under Subchapter B, Chapter 21.

(b) Except as otherwise provided by Subsection (i), a public

school, including an open-enrollment charter school, that does not

have a full-time nurse, school counselor, or librarian or the

equivalent of a full-time nurse, school counselor, or librarian

assigned to be present at the school for more than 30 consecutive

instructional days during the same school year shall provide

written notice of the absence to the parent of or other person

standing in parental relation to each student enrolled in the

school.

(c) A school has the equivalent of a full-time nurse under

Subsection (b) if the school has two or more nurses assigned to the

school and all regular student instructional hours at the campus

during the regular school day are covered by the assignment of at

least one nurse.

(d) A school has the equivalent of a full-time school

counselor under Subsection (b) if the school has two or more school

counselors assigned to the school and all regular student

instructional hours at the campus during the regular school day are

covered by the assignment of at least one school counselor.

(e) A school has the equivalent of a full-time librarian

under Subsection (b) if the school has two or more librarians

assigned to the school and all regular student instructional hours

at the campus during the regular school day are covered by the

assignment of at least one librarian.

(f) The principal of the school shall provide the notice

required by Subsection (b) not later than the 30th instructional

day after the first day the school does not have a full-time nurse,

school counselor, or librarian assigned to be present at the

school.

(g) The school shall:

(1) make a good faith effort to ensure that the notice

required by this section is provided in a bilingual form to any

parent or other person standing in parental relation whose primary

language is not English; and

(2) retain a copy of any notice provided under this

section.

(h) A school may satisfy the notice requirement under

Subsection (f) by posting the notice on the school's Internet

website. Notice posted under this subsection must be accessible

from the home page of the Internet website by use of not more than

three links.

(i) This section does not apply to a school district or

open-enrollment charter school with a student enrollment of less

than 10,000 students.

SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026

school year.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives

a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as

provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this

Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.