Relating to the approval of open-enrollment charter schools.

HB 1176 amends Texas Education Code to change the approval process for open-enrollment charter schools. It lowers the State Board of Education's required vote threshold from two-thirds to a simple majority of members present and voting to block a charter school proposal. If the board does not vote against a charter within 90 days of receiving the commissioner's notice, the charter is approved automatically. This directly affects charter school applicants, the Texas Education Commissioner (who proposes charters), and the State Board of Education (which now requires fewer votes to block approvals). The bill does not alter charter school standards or operations, only the procedural approval timeline and voting rules.