The bill amends the Education Code to include chronically absent students as a category of students at risk of dropping out of school. Specifically, it adds a new definition for "chronically absent student," which refers to those who are absent for more than 10% of the school operation time allocated for instruction within a school year or a six-week reporting period. Additionally, the bill mandates that school districts and open-enrollment charter schools report data on chronically absent students, disaggregated by race, ethnicity, and various educational statuses, to the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS).

Furthermore, the bill requires the Texas Education Agency to aggregate and publicly release data on chronic absenteeism annually, ensuring that the information is available at both campus and district levels. This data will include the percentage of chronically absent students across different demographic categories, thereby enhancing transparency and accountability in addressing student absenteeism and its implications for dropout rates. The provisions of this act are set to take effect on September 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: Education Code 29.081, Education Code 48.009 (Education Code 29, Education Code 48)