By: Oliverson, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Creighton) H.B. No. 2273
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 11, 2023;
May 11, 2023, read first time and referred to Committee on
Education; May 22, 2023, reported favorably by the following vote:
Yeas 12, Nays 1; May 22, 2023, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE VOTE
YeaNayAbsentPNV
CreightonX
CampbellX
BettencourtX
BirdwellX
FloresX
KingX
LaMantiaX
MenéndezX
MiddletonX
ParkerX
PaxtonX
SpringerX
WestX
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to including an understanding of certain political
ideologies in the foundation curriculum in public schools.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 28.002, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (h-1) and (h-6) and adding Subsection (h-3) to
read as follows:
(h-1) In adopting the essential knowledge and skills for the
foundation curriculum under Subsection (a)(1), the State Board of
Education shall, as appropriate, adopt essential knowledge and
skills that develop each student's civic knowledge, including an
understanding of:
(1) the fundamental moral, political, and
intellectual foundations of the American experiment in
self-government;
(2) political ideologies, such as communism,
socialism, fascism, and totalitarianism, that conflict with the
principles of freedom and democracy essential to the founding
principles of the United States;
(3) the history, qualities, traditions, and features
of civic engagement in the United States;
(4) [(3)] the structure, function, and processes of
government institutions at the federal, state, and local levels;
and
(5) [(4)] the founding documents of the United States,
including:
(A) the entirety of the Declaration of
Independence;
(B) the entirety of the United States
Constitution;
(C) the Federalist Papers, including the
entirety of Essays 10 and 51;
(D) excerpts from Alexis de Tocqueville's
Democracy in America;
(E) the transcript of the first Lincoln-Douglas
debate;
(F) the writings of the founding fathers of the
United States;
(G) the entirety of Frederick Douglass's
speeches "The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro" and "What the
Black Man Wants"; and
(H) the entirety of Martin Luther King Jr.'s
speech "I Have a Dream."
(h-3) In providing instruction regarding the political
ideologies described by Subsection (h-1)(2), a school district or
open-enrollment charter school shall use first-person accounts as
part of the instructional materials for the instruction.
(h-6) In providing instruction regarding the founding
documents of the United States as described by Subsection (h-1)(5)
[(h-1)(4)], a school district or open-enrollment charter school
shall use those documents as part of the instructional materials
for the instruction.
SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2023-2024
school year.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
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