S.B. No. 1722 introduces new provisions to the Texas Education Code regarding parental leave policies for public school classroom teachers. It mandates that each school district or open-enrollment charter school adopt a paid parental leave policy for teachers who have been employed for at least 12 months and have worked a minimum of 1,250 hours in the preceding year. Under this policy, teachers are entitled to 40 days of paid leave for the birth of their own child and 20 days for the birth of a child by their spouse or for adoption. Additionally, teachers are not required to exhaust their paid vacation and sick leave before taking this paid parental leave.

The bill also establishes a separate parental leave policy for teachers who have been employed for less than 12 months or have not met the hourly requirement, allowing them to take up to 12 weeks of leave, which must first be covered by any available paid leave, with the remainder being unpaid. Furthermore, the bill introduces a "Teacher Families Allotment," which entitles school districts to an annual allotment equal to the compensation of employees who received paid parental leave. The provisions of this act will take effect starting with the 2025-2026 school year, and school districts are required to adopt the necessary policies by September 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: ()