SB226

Regular Session

Relating to establishing residency for children who are the subject of parental child safety placement agreements for purposes of admission into public schools.

ModeratePlan for compliance

Low Cost

Effective:2025-09-01

Enforcing Agencies

Texas Education Agency (TEA) • Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) • Local Independent School Districts

Compliance Analysis

Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation

Implementation Timeline

Effective Date: September 1, 2025.
Compliance Deadline: August 2025. While the law is effective September 1, the Education Code amendments apply to the 2025-2026 school year. Districts must update enrollment protocols prior to the start of the fall semester to avoid admission violations.
Agency Rulemaking: No formal rulemaking is mandated, but DFPS must update internal forms to include the statutory notice language immediately. TEA may issue a "To the Administrator Addressed" correspondence clarifying coding for these students.

Immediate Action Plan

Immediate: General Counsels for ISDs must draft policy updates for the 2025-2026 Student Handbook and Admissions Policy.
Spring 2025: DFPS Legal Division must finalize the template for the "Proof of Residence Letter" to ensure it is ready for deployment by September 1.
Summer 2025: School districts must conduct training for all campus registrars regarding the new acceptable documentation hierarchy.
September 1, 2025: Full enforcement. Any denial of enrollment for a child presenting this letter will constitute a violation of the Texas Education Code.

Operational Changes Required

Contracts

School Enrollment Agreements: Districts must amend Student Codes of Conduct and Admissions Policies. If current policy lists specific documents (e.g., "utility bill," "lease") as the *exclusive* means of proving residency, it is now legally non-compliant. You must add a provision accepting "documentation provided by DFPS under Family Code Section 264.902."
DFPS Placement Agreements: For DFPS and social service providers, the standard PCSPA contract must be updated. Any agreement executed on or after September 1, 2025, involving a school-age child must include the statutorily required residency verification letter.

Hiring/Training

Registrar Training: School registrars and attendance clerks must be trained to recognize the new DFPS letter. They must be explicitly instructed not to request additional proof of residency (utility bills, affidavits) when this letter is presented.
Caseworker Protocols: DFPS staff must be trained to automatically generate and deliver the residency letter to the caregiver at the time the placement agreement is signed.

Reporting & Record-Keeping

Cumulative Record (PR): Schools must retain the DFPS letter in the student’s permanent record as the official audit trail for residency verification.
DFPS Forms: DFPS must create a standardized letter containing the specific capitalized notice required by Section 264.902(a-1): *"THIS LETTER SERVES AS PROOF OF RESIDENCE..."*

Fees & Costs

None: There are no new fees associated with this legislation. Costs are limited to administrative updates of forms and policy manuals.

Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations

The "August Gap": The law is effective September 1, 2025, but the school year begins in August. Agreements signed in August 2025 strictly fall under the old law. Guidance: Districts should treat August placements under McKinney-Vento (homeless) protocols or provisional enrollment to avoid disrupting the child's education before the September 1 statutory protection kicks in.
"School-Age" Definition: The statute applies to "school-age children" without defining the lower age limit. Guidance: Districts should interpret this broadly to include Pre-Kindergarten (ages 3-4) if the child is enrolling in a district-run program, rather than risking a denial-of-service complaint.
Expiration of Agreement: The letter proves residency "during the agreement." The statute does not define the school's duty to monitor the agreement's expiration date. Guidance: Registrars should note the agreement's end date. Once expired, the district reverts to standard policy and may request updated proof of residency from the primary parent or the caregiver if the placement has become permanent.

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Legislative Timeline

This bill's path through the Texas Legislature

TopicsEducation Education--primary & Secondary Education--primary & Secondary--admission & Attendance Education--primary & Secondary--charter Schools Education--school Districts Family Family--child Protection Family--parent & Child Residency Requirements Family & Protective Services, Department of

Official Analysis

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BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 226
89R3135 AMF-D	By: West
	Education K-16
	3/21/2025
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

A parent-child safety placement (PCSP) aims to provide a temporary (intended to last no more than 60 days), out-of-home placement for a child who the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) has determined cannot safely live with a parent. If a PCSP is required, the child will be placed with a volunteer caretaker, usually a relative or close friend of the parent.

A number of caregivers caring for children under PCSPs have complained that both independent school districts and public charter schools have refused to accept the Parent Child Safety Placement agreement as sufficient proof of a child's current residence for the purpose of admission to public school.

S.B. 226 will provide legal clarity and streamline the education enrollment process for children within a parental child safety placement agreement, starting with the 2025�2026 school year. This legislation will ensure that children under a PCSP have a clear pathway to enroll in the appropriate public schools based on their temporary residence by requiring a letter from DFPS to be included in the PCSP of a school-age child. This letter must verify the address of the child's residence per the PCSP and serve as proof of residency for enrollment within the school district. This legislation will reduce administrative confusion by standardizing the residency requirements process for children subject to a PSCP and decrease delays in the child's enrollment.

As proposed, S.B. 226 amends current law relating to establishing residency for children who are the subject of parental child safety placement agreements for purposes of admission into public schools.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 25.001, Education Code, by adding Subsection (c-3), as follows:

(c-3) Authorizes the parent or guardian of a child who is the subject of a parental child safety placement agreement under Section 264.902 (Parental Child Safety Placement Agreement), Family Code, to establish residency for purposes of Subsection (b) (relating to requiring the board of trustees of a school district or its designee to admit into public schools of the district free of tuition persons who meet certain requirements) by providing to the school district a copy of a letter from the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) indicating that the child is the subject of such an agreement and that the address of the child's residence during the agreement is in the district.

SECTION 2. Amends Section 264.902, Family Code, by adding Subsection (a-1), as follows:

(a-1) Requires a parental child safety placement agreement, for a school-age child, to include a letter provided by DFPS that contains the address of the child's residence during the parental child safety placement. Sets forth the language required to be included in the letter.

SECTION 3. (a) Provides that Section 25.001 (Admission), Education Code, as amended by this Act, applies beginning with the 2025�2026 school year.

(b) Makes application of Section 264.902 (Parental Child Safety Placement Agreement), Family Code, as amended by this Act, prospective.

SECTION 4. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2025.

Senate Authors

Sen. Royce WestDemocrat · Primary Author

Coauthors (2)

House Sponsor

Rep. Diego BernalDemocrat · Primary Sponsor

Bill Text(with markup)

S.B. No. 226

View bill text in multiple formats on Texas Legislature website

Fiscal NoteView Original

	AN ACT
	relating to establishing residency for children who are the subject
	of parental child safety placement agreements for purposes of
	admission into public schools.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. Section 25.001, Education Code, is amended by
	adding Subsection (c-3) to read as follows:
	(c-3) The parent or guardian of a child who is the subject of
	a parental child safety placement agreement under Section 264.902,
	Family Code, may establish residency for purposes of Subsection (b)
	by providing to the school district a copy of a letter from the
	Department of Family and Protective Services indicating that the
	child is the subject of such an agreement and that the address of
	the child's residence during the agreement is in the district.
	SECTION 2. Section 264.902, Family Code, is amended by
	adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
	(a-1) For a school-age child, a parental child safety
	placement agreement must include a letter provided by the
	department that contains the address of the child's residence
	during the parental child safety placement and the following
	language: "THIS LETTER SERVES AS PROOF OF RESIDENCE FOR PURPOSES OF
	THE ENROLLMENT OF THE ABOVE-NAMED CHILD OR CHILDREN IN A PUBLIC
	SCHOOL IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OR GEOGRAPHIC AREA IN WHICH THE CHILD
	OR CHILDREN RESIDE, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 25.001(C-3),
	EDUCATION CODE."
	SECTION 3. (a) Section 25.001, Education Code, as amended
	by this Act, applies beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.
	(b) Section 264.902, Family Code, as amended by this Act,
	applies only to a parental child safety placement agreement
	executed on or after the effective date of this Act. A parental
	child safety placement agreement executed before the effective date
	of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
	agreement was executed, and the former law is continued in effect
	for that purpose.
	SECTION 4. 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.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


March 24, 2025

TO:	Honorable Brandon Creighton, Chair, Senate Committee on Education K-16

FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	SB226 by West (Relating to establishing residency for children who are the subject of parental child safety placement agreements for purposes of admission into public schools.), 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 significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.

Source Agencies:

530 Family and Protective Services, Department of, 701 Texas Education Agency

LBB Staff:

JMc, JPE, ASA, MJe

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about SB226

What does Texas SB226 do?

SB226 mandates that Texas public schools and open-enrollment charter schools accept a specific Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) letter as definitive proof of residency for children subject to Parental Child Safety Placement Agreements (PCSPAs). This legislation removes school district discretion regarding residency verification for this population, requiring immediate enrollment upon presentation of the statutory letter effective September 1, 2025. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: September 1, 2025.

Who authored SB226?

SB226 was authored by Texas Senator Royce West during the Regular Session.

When was SB226 signed into law?

SB226 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on June 20, 2025.

Which agencies enforce SB226?

SB226 is enforced by Texas Education Agency (TEA), Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) and Local Independent School Districts.

How urgent is compliance with SB226?

The compliance urgency for SB226 is rated as "moderate". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.

What is the cost impact of SB226?

The cost impact of SB226 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.

What topics does SB226 address?

SB226 addresses topics including education, education--primary & secondary, education--primary & secondary--admission & attendance, education--primary & secondary--charter schools and education--school districts.

Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025

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