Over 8,000 bills have been filed at the Texas Legislature for the current legislative session. There are a lot of good ones — and some concerning bills — but we want to highlight a dozen of the good bills for kids that caught our attention.
- HB 321 by Rep. John Bucy and SB 238 by Sen. Nathan Johnson would help kids get health coverage if they are currently eligible, uninsured, and applying for SNAP. Under this “parent notification” bill, when families apply for SNAP nutrition assistance for their children, the state would notify them if their children are also eligible for health insurance through Medicaid or CHIP. A similar bill passed the Texas House last session with overwhelming support but did not come up for a vote in the Senate. (Read more.)
- SB 462 by Sen. Lois Kolkhorst and HB 3807 by Rep. Caroline Harris Davila would improve access to child care for child care educators. The lack of available, qualified child care staff is reducing the supply of child care for all families. A key barrier for child care educators is securing child care for their own kids. A child care scholarship from the Texas Workforce Commission can help them secure child care so they can go to work in this field — but they are often stuck for months or years on the scholarship waitlist. This bill would add child care educators and other staff to the priority list for child care scholarships. (Read more.)
- HB 5561 by Rep. Brent Money and SB 194 by Sen. José Menéndez would divert youth in foster care away from the juvenile justice system. The bills require DFPS-approved crisis response training for staff in foster care facilities. They also direct local juvenile justice boards to include children in foster care facilities in their existing diversion policies and track how many youth are referred to the juvenile justice system.
- HB 5030 by Rep. Ann Johnson would improve access to key children’s mental health services by adding them to Medicaid coverage. Unfortunately, Texas Medicaid only covers two ends of the spectrum of children’s mental health services: basic therapy/counseling and medications or full inpatient hospitalization. This legislation would broaden that coverage, adding intensive outpatient programs, partial hospitalization, effective community services, crisis intervention services, and more. Sen. Sparks, Rep. Darby, Rep. Oliverson, and Sen. Johnson also filed important bills to include some but not all of these services in Medicaid. (Read more.)
- HB 1996 by Rep. Ana Hernandez and SB 2526 by Sen. Judith Zaffirini — along with a provision in HB 2 by Rep. Brad Buckley — would make children with disabilities eligible for voluntary public school pre-k. Children currently qualify for voluntary pre-k if they are from a low-income household, are learning English, have ever been in foster care, or fall into one of the other eligibility categories. Children with disabilities would benefit from instruction in high-quality pre-k, learning alongside their non-disabled peers. (Read more.)
- SB 837 by Sen. Lois Kolkhorst would strengthen efforts to keep kids safely with their families and out of foster care by making the Texas Family First Pilots a permanent, statewide program. This bill ensures the Department of Family and Protective Services works closely with the Texas Workforce Commission and Local Mental Health Authorities to connect families with the right support. The bill also allows state and federal funds to provide short-term financial help for essentials like rent, transportation, and job training — giving families the stability they need to stay together and reducing unnecessary entries into foster care. (Read more.)
- HB 1581 by Rep. Bobby Guerra and SB 152 by Sen. José Menéndez support schools’ dual language and bilingual programs, ensuring emergent bilingual students achieve fluency in English and their home language. This bill grants the Texas Education Authority the authority to monitor bilingual and dual language programs, provide technical assistance, and develop training materials to improve bilingual student outcomes. The legislation reflects one of the recommendations of the state’s Bilingual Strategic Plan.
- SB 1739 by Sen. Royce West and HB 4024 by Rep. Armando Walle would establish a state fund to help more parents go to work and secure high-quality care for their children. The Child Care Services program at the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) provides child care scholarships that help parents go to work and access high-quality child care for their children. However, tens of thousands of eligible families are waiting months or even years for scholarships. By establishing a state fund, TWC will be able to get more families off the waitlist and into work. We’re also urging lawmakers to provide more funds for this program in the state budget bills. (Read more.)
- HB 1211 by Rep. John Lujan and SB 166 by Sen. Jose Menendez would remove an age limit on Texas’ tuition waiver for youth who age out of foster care. Too few young adults with foster care experience enroll in college, and even fewer graduate. Fewer than 10% earn a bachelor’s degree compared to 36% of the general population. Texas offers a tuition waiver for state colleges and universities, but many eligible students miss out due to a lack of awareness or restrictive age limits. While students adopted from foster care can access the waiver at any age, those who age out must enroll before turning 25 to retain eligibility. This bill removes that barrier, ensuring more young people with foster care experience can pursue higher education and build a stable future.
- HB 3940 by Rep. Ann Johnson and SB 2728 by Sen. Molly Cook would ensure more eligible newborn babies are enrolled in health coverage. Under federal law, if a mother is enrolled in Medicaid insurance when she delivers her baby, her newborn is eligible and must be automatically enrolled in Medicaid at birth and through the first full year of life. However, many newborn babies are falling through the cracks and not getting timely health coverage. As a result, many newborns are missing out on the health care they need. To address this challenge, these bills require HHSC to provide additional information on newborns’ Medicaid coverage to parents as well as medical providers, hospitals, birthing centers, and managed care organizations. (Read more.)
- HB 5583 by Rep. Joanne Shofner and HB 2573 by Rep. Armando Walle would improve access to doulas for pregnant and postpartum women. A doula is a non-medical health professional providing physical, emotional, and educational support for women and their families throughout the prenatal, birth, and postpartum periods. Studies continue to link doulas with reduced rates of preterm births, low birth weight babies, postpartum depression, and cesarean delivery, as well as increased rates of breastfeeding. A total of 27 states — such as Florida, Oklahoma, and others — reimburse for doula coverage through Medicaid, more than double the 12 states from 2022. (Read more.)
- HB 136 by Rep. Lacey Hull would improve support for breastfeeding by covering lactation services under Medicaid health insurance. There are numerous health benefits associated with breastfeeding for both mothers and babies, which is why the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists describes breastfeeding support as a key postpartum service. Lactation consultants offer the support that many new mothers need when they are trying to initiate and continue breastfeeding. Allowing Medicaid reimbursement for lactation services would give more families access to this support and help more babies and mothers thrive.
