The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has released correspondence pertaining to important provisions of Senate Bill (SB) 2, 89th Regular Session, regarding children who receive or are eligible to receive special education and related services.
Sb 2 established the option for parents to obtain Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), which are being implemented by the Comptroller as Texas Education Freedom Accounts. The program will start for the 2026-2027 school year, with applications opening in early 2026. When a parent obtains an EFA, they have the option of utilizing funds for private school tuition as well as purchasing educational goods and services for their children from a variety of service providers. The Comptroller, through a Certified Educational Assistance Organization (CEAO), will manage the establishment and administration of EFAs.
If a parent believes their child has a disability and the district suspects or has reason to suspect the child has a disability and a possible need for special education and related services, a district must:
- Complete an evaluation and hold an eligibility meeting by the child’s admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committee to determine if the child is eligible to receive special education and related services;
- Via an ARD committee process, establish an EFA individualized education program (IEP) (a TEFA-specific IEP, as further described below) for the child if eligible; and
- Upload the evaluation and EFA IEP information to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) through a secure web portal so the agency can submit funding information to the Comptroller.
Due to new initial special education evaluation funding under House Bill 2, school districts will receive $1,000 per initial evaluation completed for all children, including those not enrolled in public school.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), students enrolled in public school must be evaluated when a district suspects or has reason to suspect the child has a disability and a possible need for special education and related services. IDEA has always required school districts to perform evaluations of students suspected of having a disability who are not enrolled in public school. Parents with children in private schools or who are homeschooling their children have long held the right to request special education evaluations from their local school district. Evaluation requirements remain unchanged.
If a child has been identified as a child with a disability (i.e., has a disability recognized by IDEA and a need for special education and related services) and is receiving those services, the child is eligible to receive through the TEFA program the amount that the school district received in state special education funding for the child for the school year preceding the school year in which the child initially enrolls in the TEFA program.
Parents who wish to obtain an EFA for their children must apply via a process managed by the Comptroller and the identified CEAO. The legislature has set aside a sum-certain amount of funds for the TEFA program. If more parents apply for an EFA than the amount set aside for TEFA program funding, the Comptroller will conduct a lottery to determine which families are ultimately awarded an EFA. If a lottery is required for TEFA program applicants when applicants exceed the allowable number of EFAs, children with disabilities from households at or below 500 percent of the federal poverty guidelines will be prioritized.
The Comptroller has proposed a rule that allows certifications from licensed physicians or proof of supplemental income due to a disability to also qualify a child as a child with a disability for the purposes of obtaining prioritization in the event of a lottery process to receive an EFA. Should that rule become final, these additional certifications or proof of supplemental income do not equate to the definition of a child with a disability for purposes of additional EFA funding. Eligibility for additional funding is based on the child being evaluated by a school district and having a current IEP or new EFA IEP.
For more information please see TEA’s website and an initial guidance document on SB 2. Drafted rule text, as mentioned as part of the guidance, can be found here. The full correspondence can be found here.
