Rep. Nate Schatzline

Maddy summaryHB 17 would prohibit citizens of designated countries (China, Iran, North Korea, Russia, or others named by the governor) from purchasing real property in Texas. It creates criminal penalties for violations, making such purchases illegal under state law. Exceptions apply to U.S. citizens, lawful residents, and businesses owned by them. The law would override existing property rights for these foreign buyers, directly affecting individuals and entities from designated countries seeking to buy land in Texas.

Maddy summaryHB 4199 would require school board elections and elections for other local government offices (such as city councils and hospital district boards) to be held in even-numbered years, aligning them with statewide and county elections. It mandates that school board candidates declare their political party affiliation or state they are unaffiliated, and changes school board terms to four years with biennial elections. The bill exempts large school districts in counties with populations over 2.5 million and student enrollments between 125,000 and 200,000 from these requirements. This standardizes election timing for local offices across Texas, moving them to match the state's general election cycle.

Maddy summaryHB 4190 requires an annual audit of attendance credit purchased by Texas school districts to verify funds were used only for approved purposes (foundation school program aid). If the audit finds funds were misused, the state agency must refund the misused amount proportionally to each affected school district. School districts receiving a refund may use the money for teacher salaries, district infrastructure, or academic programs. The bill applies to all school districts that buy attendance credit under Texas Education Code Chapter 49 and takes effect September 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 4185 changes how Texas selects the commissioner of education from an appointed position to an elected one. It requires the commissioner to be chosen by voters in general elections (instead of by the governor), adds eligibility rules prohibiting candidates who violated campaign finance laws, and creates new grounds for removal including misuse of public resources. The bill also reorders statewide offices to list the commissioner of education as the seventh position on ballots. This directly affects voters who will elect the commissioner, candidates running for the role, and the commissioner themselves under new eligibility and removal standards. The bill remains in committee with no further action taken.

Maddy summaryHB 4183 bans Texas public school teachers from providing any instruction, materials, or resources about abortion to students, including referrals to abortion services, taking students to abortion-related events, or discussing abortion as a normalized option. Violations are classified as Class A misdemeanors, require school districts to terminate the teacher’s employment, and allow parents to sue for damages. The law takes effect for most provisions in the 2025-2026 school year, with criminal penalties beginning September 1, 2025. It directly affects public school teachers and school districts in Texas.

Maddy summaryHB 4189 requires Texas internet service providers (ISPs) to offer customers a free, optional content filter that blocks access to explicit material defined as visual depictions of sexual conduct or intimate body parts. The filter must prevent customers from accessing such material when enabled and notify them when blocking occurs. It directly affects all Texas customers who subscribe to internet service, giving them the choice to activate the filter at no additional cost. The bill takes effect September 1, 2025, and does not mandate filters but requires ISPs to make them available.

Maddy summaryHB 4198 requires Texas school districts to update their library collection policies every five years to prohibit certain materials, including harmful content (per Penal Code), sexually explicit material rated by vendors, and content containing indecent or profane material. The bill mandates that policies must recognize parents as primary decision-makers for student library access, require transparency in cataloging, and prevent removal of materials based solely on ideas or author background. School districts that fail to comply face a civil penalty. This applies directly to all public school districts managing library collections, including classroom and online resources.

Maddy summaryHB 4056 requires Texas school districts to adopt library material policies that prohibit the possession, acquisition, or purchase of harmful materials (as defined in the Penal Code), sexually explicit vendor-rated materials, and pervasively vulgar or educationally unsuitable materials (referencing the *Pico* Supreme Court case). The bill mandates that policies must recognize parents as primary decision-makers regarding student access, require catalog transparency, and prohibit removing materials solely based on ideas or the author/character backgrounds. It applies to all school libraries, classroom libraries, and online catalogs, and requires policies to be reviewed every five years. The bill does not address textbooks but focuses on non-core library resources.

Maddy summaryHB 4096 limits the annual salaries of school superintendents, principals, and other administrators in Texas school districts to the governor's current annual salary. School districts must annually report these salaries to the Texas Education Agency. The law applies only to new employment contracts entered into on or after September 1, 2025, leaving existing contracts unaffected under prior law. This bill establishes a fixed salary cap for school administrators across all districts.

Maddy summaryHB 3854 modifies Texas' child abuse reporting requirements in the Family Code. It adds two key provisions: first, if abuse occurs in a facility licensed or operated by a state agency (like a daycare or care center), reporters may submit their report directly to that state agency in addition to standard entities; second, if abuse occurs at a public school, reports must also be made to the Texas Education Agency. This bill affects school staff, medical professionals, and other mandated reporters who must now follow these updated reporting paths when abuse is suspected in schools or state-licensed facilities. The changes take effect September 1, 2025.