Overall Vote Recommendation

Yes

Principle Criteria

Free Enterprise

Property Rights

Personal Responsibility

Limited Government

Individual Liberty

Digest

SB 1049 seeks to recognize and facilitate students' rights to religious education during the school week by amending the Texas Education Code. The bill modifies Section 25.087(b) to excuse public school students from regular attendance for the purpose of participating in a "released time course," which is defined as a course in religious instruction offered by a private entity. It further adds new Section 25.0875, which mandates that each school district and open-enrollment charter school adopt policies to govern such absences.

The bill establishes several guardrails to ensure that the religious instruction remains a private matter: parents must provide written consent; private providers must maintain attendance records; transportation is not to be provided by the school; and the private entity must assume liability for the student during the absence. School districts are prohibited from using public funds (with the exception of negligible costs) to support these programs, and religious courses are barred from using school facilities unless permitted under a neutral policy allowing access for all community organizations.

Implementation of these policies is required by January 1, 2026. SB 1049 carefully balances respect for religious liberty with constitutional principles by maintaining a clear boundary between public schools and private religious instruction, ensuring voluntary participation, and protecting the neutrality of public funds and facilities.

The originally filed version of SB 1049 introduced the fundamental framework for allowing students to be excused from public school attendance to participate in a "released time course" in religious instruction. It established requirements for parental consent, private entity responsibilities (transportation, liability, and attendance tracking), prohibitions on using school funds (except de minimis costs), and rules barring private religious courses from being conducted on school property unless under a neutral access policy.

The Committee Substitute version builds upon this framework without altering its basic structure, but clarifies certain operational aspects. Notably, the substitute bill emphasizes that school districts and charter schools must adopt a formal policy for these excused absences by January 1, 202,6 and tightens language around prohibitions, ensuring clearer compliance with constitutional requirements for neutrality. While the original bill included a deadline for adopting policies, the Committee Substitute appears to more strongly highlight the deadline and compliance requirement.

Additionally, the Committee Substitute formalizes the reporting structure for private entities offering religious instruction, reinforcing that attendance records must be maintained and available to the school, a point that in the original bill was implied but not stressed with as much precision. Other minor wording adjustments were made to better align the bill with standard drafting practices and to increase clarity, but there were no major substantive policy shifts between the originally filed version and the Committee Substitute.

Author (1)

Phil King

Sponsor (1)

James Frank

Contact the Author

Sen. Phil King

Capitol Phone:

(512) 463-0110

Capitol Office:

CAP GE.5

E-Mail:

[email protected]

Visit Official Website

Fiscal Notes

According to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), SB 1049 is not expected to have a significant fiscal impact on the State of Texas. This conclusion is based on the fact that the bill only requires school districts and open-enrollment charter schools to excuse students for religious instruction upon request, without mandating any additional funding or administrative costs that would substantially burden the state budget.

Similarly, no significant fiscal impact is anticipated for local governments, including school districts. Although districts are required to adopt a policy for handling these excused absences, the administrative tasks involved—such as receiving parental consent, tracking excused students, and coordinating with private religious education providers—are expected to be absorbed within existing district operations and staffing. Because the bill specifically prohibits the use of school district funds for facilitating the religious courses (other than negligible, "de minimis" costs), financial exposure for schools is minimized.

Overall, SB 1049 presents a neutral fiscal posture, aligning with the state's broader goals of respecting religious liberty without imposing new unfunded mandates on public education systems.

Vote Recommendation Notes

SB 1049 strengthens parental rights and religious liberty by requiring public schools to excuse students for voluntary participation in private, off-campus religious instruction programs. It is rooted in the constitutional precedent set by the U.S. Supreme Court’s Zorach v. Clauson decision, which affirms the legality of such release time, provided there is no public funding and participation is voluntary.

Importantly, SB 1049 does not grow the size or scope of government. It simply directs existing public school districts and charter schools to adopt a narrowly tailored policy to allow these excused absences. It does not create new agencies, regulatory bodies, or expand governmental authority beyond the school board level. Additionally, the bill does not increase the burden on taxpayers. The Legislative Budget Board's fiscal note confirms that no significant fiscal impact to the state or local governments is anticipated, and the bill explicitly prohibits the use of school funds (beyond de minimis costs) to support religious courses.

From a regulatory perspective, the bill imposes minimal requirements only on private religious organizations offering instruction, such as maintaining attendance records and assuming liability. These light-touch requirements protect school districts without creating a significant regulatory burden on individuals or businesses. In fact, by requiring schools to honor parental requests without unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles, the bill effectively reduces regulatory barriers for families.

Overall, SB 1049 upholds key liberty principles: safeguarding individual liberty, reinforcing personal and parental responsibility, preserving free enterprise, protecting private property rights, and maintaining limited government. Therefore, Texas Policy Research recommends that lawmakers vote YES on SB 1049.

Individual Liberty: The bill protects and expands individual liberty by giving parents and students the clear legal right to seek religious education during school hours without government interference. It respects freedom of conscience and allows families to pursue religious instruction voluntarily.
Personal Responsibility: The bill promotes personal responsibility by placing the burden for transportation, safety, and keeping up with missed schoolwork on the student, their family, and the private religious organizations, not on the school. This encourages accountability for choices made by individuals and families.
Free Enterprise: Free enterprise is supported because religious education must be offered by private organizations, not public schools. This protects competition and private sector opportunities without government funding or favoritism.
Private Property Rights: The bill protects private property rights by ensuring that religious classes cannot be held on school property unless allowed under a neutral, equal-access policy. Public facilities remain open fairly to all community groups without discrimination or special privilege.
Limited Government: The bill reinforces limited government by preventing schools from using public funds to support religious instruction, avoiding any expansion of government roles. Schools simply excuse the absence and do not control or monitor the religious content, staying within a limited administrative role.

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