Relating to developing a strategic plan for the improvement and expansion of early learning and educational opportunities for young children with disabilities.
LowStandard timeline
Low Cost
Effective:2025-06-20
Enforcing Agencies
Texas Education Agency (TEA) • Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) • Texas Workforce Commission (TWC)
01
Compliance Analysis
Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation
Implementation Timeline
Effective Date: June 20, 2025
Compliance Deadline:September 1, 2026 (Agency deadline to publish the Strategic Plan). No immediate operational deadline for private businesses.
Agency Rulemaking: The period between June 2025 and September 2026 is a "Regulatory Planning Phase." Agencies will not issue new enforcement rules immediately but will conduct data collection and stakeholder meetings to draft the 2027 legislative agenda.
Immediate Action Plan
1.Designate a Regulatory Liaison: Appoint a staff member to monitor TEA/HHSC/TWC announcements for stakeholder meeting dates.
2.Audit Internal Data: Immediately begin tracking the actual cost difference between standard care and inclusive care in your facility to prepare for agency data calls.
3.Review Liability Coverage: Consult with insurance carriers regarding coverage for "failure to educate" or discrimination claims, as the strategic plan will likely establish a new, higher Standard of Care.
4.Engage in Public Comment: Submit written testimony during the planning phase. If you do not document that current rates are insufficient for inclusion, the final report will assume current funding is adequate.
Operational Changes Required
Contracts
Current contracts remain valid. However, entities engaged in HB 3 Public-Private Pre-K Partnerships with School Districts must anticipate amendments to Master Service Agreements (MSAs) post-September 2026. School districts will likely flow down new inclusion mandates to private partners once the strategic plan is finalized.
Hiring/Training
No immediate changes to statutory hiring requirements. However, the law explicitly targets the improvement of "provider staffing and training." Operators should anticipate future regulations requiring specific special education certifications or modules for staff in inclusive classrooms.
Reporting & Record-Keeping
There are no new statutory filings required today. However, to influence the strategic plan, providers must voluntarily track and document:
Costs associated with 1:1 staffing for disabled children.
Service denials due to lack of resources/staffing.
Gaps between state reimbursement rates and actual costs of care.
*Note: Agencies will likely issue surveys to gather this data; accurate participation is critical to ensure future funding matches mandates.*
Fees & Costs
Low immediate impact. The Fiscal Note indicates no significant fiscal implication to the State, implying that the agencies are expected to "leverage existing funding." This signals a risk of future unfunded mandates where providers are expected to increase services without increased reimbursement.
Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations
The following statutory terms are undefined and subject to agency discretion during the planning phase:
"Effective Inclusion": The agencies must define this standard. If defined as requiring specific equipment or lower ratios without corresponding funding, this will create a liability trap for private providers.
"Barriers": The agencies must identify barriers to entry. If they classify "lack of provider training" as a primary barrier rather than "insufficient reimbursement rates," the financial burden of the solution (training costs) will fall on the business owner.
"Streamlined Transitions": The handover between ECI (0-3) and School District Special Ed (3+) is legally vague. The plan may attempt to shift case management duties to private child-care providers during this gap.
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Information presented is for general knowledge only and is provided without warranty, express or implied. Consult qualified government affairs professionals and legal counsel before making compliance decisions.
The bill author has informed the committee that the Texas Education Agency (TEA), Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), and Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) have separate but vital responsibilities in supporting early childhood services for children with disabilities, with each agency serving a specific need: TEA oversees the public prekindergarten and early childhood special education programs, TWC oversees the child care services program and the states child care quality rating and improvement program, Texas Rising Star, and HHSC oversees the early childhood intervention program for infants and toddlers with disabilities as well as child care regulation, which establishes and enforces minimum child care licensing standards. The bill author has further informed the committee that, with these programs and services split between three agencies, information and resources can slip through the cracks and children and families may be left out. H.B. 2310 seeks to bring agency leaders from TEA, HHSC, and TWC together to develop and implement a strategic plan to collaboratively improve and expand early learning and educational opportunities for children with disabilities and developmental delays.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
H.B. 2310 amends the Education Code to require the Texas Education Agency (TEA), in collaboration with the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), to develop and implement a strategic plan to improve early learning and educational opportunities for young children with disabilities or developmental delays. The bill requires TEA, in developing the plan, to do the following in coordination with HHSC and TWC:
·develop strategies for the inclusion of children with disabilities in early childhood education settings;
·consider topics and existing barriers relating to ensuring, and any changes to existing practices or policies necessary to ensure, more effective inclusion of children with disabilities in early learning programs, including in:
otuition-free prekindergarten programs, including prekindergarten programs provided under partnerships with community-based child-care providers;
oearly childhood special education settings; and
ochild-care programs participating in TWC's subsidized child-care program; and
·coordinate with, at a minimum, representatives of state, regional, and local agencies, the governor's Texas Early Learning Council, nonprofit organizations, and relevant social services providers.
H.B. 2310 requires the plan to include the following:
·the strategies for the inclusion of children with disabilities in early childhood education settings developed under the bill's provisions, signed by the commissioner of education, the executive commissioner of HHSC, and the executive director of TWC;
·a description of existing barriers to the effective inclusion of children with disabilities in early learning programs;
·recommendations for statutory, regulatory, guidance, or funding changes, and policy implementation changes, necessary to improve the inclusion of young children with disabilities in early childhood education programs; and
·current and proposed strategies and recommendations to achieve:
oimproved provider staffing, training, sustainability, and effectiveness across public schools, child-care programs, and early childhood intervention services providers that serve young children with disabilities;
othe effective leveraging of existing funding and resources;
ostreamlined transitions for families from early childhood intervention programs to early childhood special education programs and from early childhood special education programs to special education programs; and
oimproved collaboration and partnerships between child-care programs, early childhood intervention services providers, and public schools.
H.B. 2310 requires the following to occur not later than September 1, 2026:
·TEA, HHSC, and TWC must publish the initial strategic plan required by the bill's provisions on the agencies' respective websites; and
·TEA must submit the plan to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives.
The bill requires the following to occur not later than September 1 of the last state fiscal year in each four-year period covered by the most recent strategic plan:
·TEA must update the plan for the subsequent four-year period;
·TEA must submit the updated plan to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives; and
·TEA, HHSC, and TWC must publish the updated plan on the agencies' respective websites.
EFFECTIVE DATE
On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2025.
Honorable Brad Buckley, Chair, House Committee on Public Education
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB2310 by Ordaz (Relating to developing a strategic plan for the improvement and expansion of early learning and educational opportunities for young children with disabilities.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
It is assumed that any costs associated with the bill could be absorbed using existing resources.
Local Government Impact
No fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies:
320 Texas Workforce Commission, 529 Health and Human Services Commission, 701 Texas Education Agency
LBB Staff:
JMc, JPE, SL
Related Legislation
Explore more bills from this author and on related topics
HB 2310 initiates a mandatory, tri-agency overhaul of the regulatory framework for early childhood education for children with disabilities, effective immediately. While there are no immediate operational penalties, the Texas Education Agency (TEA), Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), and Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) must now develop a strategic plan that will dictate future staffing ratios, inclusion standards, and reimbursement models. This directly impacts subsidized child-care providers, private Pre-K partners, and Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) providers.
Q
Who authored HB2310?
HB2310 was authored by Texas Representative Claudia Ordaz Perez during the Regular Session.
Q
When was HB2310 signed into law?
HB2310 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on June 20, 2025.
Q
Which agencies enforce HB2310?
HB2310 is enforced by Texas Education Agency (TEA), Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) and Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
Q
How urgent is compliance with HB2310?
The compliance urgency for HB2310 is rated as "low". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.
Q
What is the cost impact of HB2310?
The cost impact of HB2310 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.
Q
What topics does HB2310 address?
HB2310 addresses topics including day care, disabilities, persons with, education, education--primary & secondary and education--primary & secondary--general.
Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025
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