The House Public Education Committee has had a busy week, including a 19-hour hearing that began Tuesday morning to review several bills, including controversial legislation related to transgender athletes and Critical Race Theory. The committee advanced SB 15, which would expand state funding for virtual or remote learning options. The full House is expected to take up SB 15 today along with SB 7, the 13th check proposal for TRS retirees. The House Public Education committee is set to hear two bills regarding masks on Monday. Click here to read more.

The Food and Drug Administration gave full approval to Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for ages 16 and older this week, opening the door for companies to issue vaccine mandates for employees.

Two days later, Gov. Greg Abbott issued a new executive order banning government entities, including school districts, from issuing COVID-19 vaccine mandates, regardless of a vaccine's approval status with the FDA. He also added the issue to the agenda for the special session of the Texas Legislature.

At least one Texas school district has issued a vaccine mandate for staff, requiring proof of vaccination by Oct. 15, unless an employee has a religious or medical exemption. In response, the state has sued San Antonio ISD.

Stopping short of mandates, many districts, including Austin and Dallas ISDs, are offering financial incentives to employees who are vaccinated.

The new fight over vaccinations comes as many districts are reporting record numbers of active cases among students. Entire classes are being asked to quarantine in some larger districts, and several small districts have shut down to disinfect and prevent large-scale outbreaks. Several schools in the Dallas area postponed the start of football season. Meanwhile, the list of districts requiring masks on campus is growing. Click here for the latest headlines.

While the legal issues surrounding vaccine and mask mandates make their way through the courts, TCTA encourages members to follow the COVID-19 guidelines in their district. Members with questions or concerns about their district's policies should call 888-879-8282 to speak with a staff attorney.

You can find the latest guidance in TCTA's COVID-19 FAQs for 2021-22.

A Texas teacher was indicted for an improper relationship between an educator and a student. Prior to trial, the prosecution informed him that it intended to introduce evidence about other misconduct the teacher was alleged to have engaged in.

At trial, the teacher pled guilty to having an improper relationship with a student and admitted that he had a sexual encounter with S.S., an 18-year-old student. After entering his guilty plea, the court held a sentencing hearing to determine the teacher's punishment. During that hearing, the prosecution offered the testimony of five students, including S.S., and the teacher was sentenced to four years in prison.

The teacher filed an appeal, arguing that the prosecution did not properly notify him that it intended to introduce the testimony of students other than S.S. and that he was therefore unable to prepare a response. Click here to read more.

Dohn Larson, TCTA's director of legal services, and staff attorneys Gerald Francisco and Julie Leahy reviewed a variety of COVID-19 policies and guidance for the 2021-22 school year in the Aug. 21 Saturday Spotlight. If you missed the legal session, you can watch it now at tcta.org/spotlight.

If there are topics you'd like to see covered in a future spotlight session, please email communications@tcta.org and let us know.

Invite your colleagues to join TCTA and earn $25 for every two eligible first-time active members you recruit with our Take 2/Make $25 program.

TCTA members can save up to 55% on a one-year Sam's Club membership for $19.99 through TicketsatWork.com using company code SWTCTA. Check out this deal along with TCTA's other cost-saving programs and make the most of your membership.