To build on our strong turnout from Advocacy Day earlier this week, we want to jump right in and give TCA members a couple of action steps you can quickly take. You can look up your local State Senator and Representative here .
 

1. Please contact your State Senator and ask them to vote against SB 763 (Middleton). This bill would allow schools to hire chaplains without credential verification and allow chaplains to work with students without parental consent. While the bill no longer allows districts to hire chaplains to supplant school counselors, the bill has been described by supporters as a way to address the shortage of school counselors. Please share these message points with your senator:

• The bill does not require any specific qualifications or training for chaplains.
• School counselors, educators and other professionals who provide direct services to students have to meet rigorous certification standards that ensure they are prepared to address a wide range of student needs.
• Parents are not required to give consent for their students to meet with a chaplain. Parents are required to give consent to meet with mental health professionals and to participate in most campus-based events.

If your local senator is Sen. Jose Menendez of San Antonio or Sen. Royce West of Dallas, please thank them for voting against this bill in the Senate Education Committee.

2. Ask your State Representative to support HB 2557 (Buckley), authorizing Texas to join the Interstate Counseling Compact. The House Human Services Committee unanimously passed this bill Tuesday and it is now headed to the Calendars Committee, which we hope will quickly schedule it for debate before the full House. This is our highest-priority bill of the session and we encourage all TCA members to reach out and tell your State Representative:

• The Compact is a way to address the mental health workforce shortage in Texas by allowing Texans to see Licensed Professional Counselors and other licensed mental health professionals in other states via telehealth.
• The Compact is especially beneficial to military families and other families that often move from state to state. It allows them to continue to be seen by their LPC.

Advocacy Day Recap

Thank you to the 150 TCA members who came to the Capitol on Tuesday for our second Advocacy Day of the session! Your involvement and advocacy made the day a big success and will be helpful to our advocacy work during the final six weeks of the session. We are grateful to Rep. Janie Lopez of Cameron County for recognizing us from the front microphone of the House chamber:
 

We encourage you to go ahead and register for our third and final Advocacy Day, which will be May 9. This will be the best opportunity for TCA members to visit with legislators and staff face-to-face before the session ends on May 29 and help push our bills over the finish line.
 

TCA Priority Bills on the Move

HB 3833  by Rep. Janie Lopez was approved by the House Committee on Youth Health & Safety on Thursday. This TCA-sponsored bill would clarify that students at risk of harmful or inappropriate behaviors should be among those whose specific needs are addressed by school counselors. We will keep you posted as it moves closer to a vote before the full House.

HB 1167  by Rep. Romero is scheduled for a Friday vote on the House Local and Consent Calendar, which is a list of bills that House members generally consider quickly because they are non-controversial. This is a TCA priority bill that makes technical corrections to the BHEC structure and puts the LPC-Associate license title in statute. Its companion bill in the Senate is carried by Senator Zaffirini.

HB 1157 by Rep. Lozano is also scheduled for a Friday vote on the House Local and Consent Calendar. This bill would allow students to receive excused absences for appointments with mental health professionals. Its companion bill in the Senate is carried by Senator Paxton.

HB 2929  by Rep. Lozano continues to wait for a vote from the Calendars Committee, which schedules bills for debate. This bill corrects a technical error from last session and removes the cap on professional development (CE) hours for school counselors on core content.

Also Happening This Week

SB 798 by Sen. Middleton, which would eliminate the requirement that certified school counselors having teaching experience, has been referred to the House Committee on Public Education after passing the Senate.

HB 3788 by Rep. Garcia is scheduled for a hearing Monday in the House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety . The bill requires school counselors, teachers, nurses, and other school employees to undergo comprehensive training in dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, sexual abuse and sexual harassment. Please call members of the House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety or you can submit written comments to the committee here .

HB 3631 by Rep. Lalani will be heard Monday by the House Committee on Higher Education . The bill would require a public institution of higher education to provide students with a map of on-campus locations where mental health services are available as part of information it is required to provide students regarding mental health services and suicide prevention. Please call members of the committee to express your support of the bill or you can submit written comments to the committee here .

This week the House Higher Education Committee passed HB 906 by Rep. Moody, which requires that all students at public institutions of higher education, rather than only full-time students at general academic institutions, should receive information regarding mental health services and suicide prevention.

Similarly, HB 2404 by Rep. Ann Johnson was voted out by the House Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety. HB 2404 seeks to address this issue by providing for Medicaid reimbursement for functional family therapy for delinquent youth who are at risk for involvement with the child welfare, criminal justice, or juvenile justice systems.

The House Insurance Committee held a hearing on HB 3502 by Rep. Jeff Leach and left the bill pending. It proposes new requirements for insurance companies to cover any adverse consequences of gender-affirming care, including costs associated with detransitioning.

The Texas House Committee on Public Education held a hearing until 2 am Wednesday to take testimony on various House bills that would allow for public funding of private schools. While no bills were voted on, many expect that the committee will vote out one of these voucher bills in the coming weeks.

Thank you for all you do to support  TCA’s Public Policy Priorities  this session.  If you have questions or need additional resources, contact  jan@txca.org .