In a webinar hosted on Tuesday September 26, Texas Education Agency Director of District Operations, Technology, and Sustainability Supports Colin Dempsey clarified the proposed timeline for implementation of HB 1605. The recording and slides will be posted on the TEA website for HB 1605.
An additional allotment of $40/student was provided in the legislation for instructional materials approved by the State Board of Education (SBOE) using the Instructional Materials Review and Adoption (IMRA) process. This funding will not be available for currently adopted instructional materials, including Proclamation 2024 materials for science and CTE. At the November 2023 meeting, the SBOE will consider final adoption of Proclamation 2024 materials so that districts can implement them for the 2024-25 school year along with the new science TEKS.
In order to make the additional allotment available for the 2025-26 school year, the SBOE will have to approve the new IMRA rules and procedures by April 2024. At their September 2024 meeting, the SBOE directed TEA to develop rubrics for use in the first IMRA review of instructional materials. These rubrics will include English and Spanish Language Arts and Reading K-5, English and Spanish Phonics K-3, and Mathematics K-12, as seen below. At the November 2023 SBOE meeting, the Board agenda will include discussion of the IMRA review process, including the TEKS percentage required, rubrics for quality and suitability, and the definition of factual errors. Additional meetings planned in December 2023 and January 2024 will give time for posting rules for public comment, feedback, and discussion. The SBOE will have to make final decisions on these agenda items by April 2024 in order to begin the first IMRA process in May through August of 2024. Then at the November 2024 meeting, the SBOE would potentially give final approval to English Language Arts K-5 and Math K-12 materials that would qualify for the additional $40/student allotment. Open Education Resources (OER) developed or procured by TEA as authorized by HB 1605 would have to go through the same IMRA process as any other materials and would qualify for an additional $20/student for printing costs.
By December of 2024, it is anticipated the new IMRA process will be fully operational, with a TEA website launched to assist districts in comparing approved instructional materials and an updated version of EMAT with new reporting features to accommodate the new funding that is part of HB 1605.
