89R15560 RAL-D
By: Menéndez S.B. No. 2787
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to digital citizenship and media literacy instruction in
public schools and a public school policy regarding Internet
safety.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 28.00215 to read as follows:
Sec. 28.00215. DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP AND MEDIA LITERACY. (a)
In this section:
(1) "Cyberbullying" has the meaning assigned by
Section 37.0832.
(2) "Curriculum materials" includes the curriculum,
teacher training materials, and any other materials used in
providing instruction.
(3) "Digital citizenship" means the standards of
appropriate, responsible, and healthy online behavior, including
the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and act on all
forms of digital communication.
(b) The State Board of Education by rule shall require each
school district to incorporate instruction in digital citizenship
into the district's curriculum, including information regarding
the potential criminal consequences of cyberbullying, and require
students enrolled in grades 6 through 12 to complete instruction in
media literacy as part of the district's foundation curriculum
under Section 28.002(a)(1).
(c) The State Board of Education shall adopt essential
knowledge and skills for the instruction in digital citizenship
that include instruction regarding the social, emotional, and
physical effects of social media, including:
(1) the negative effects of social media on mental
health, including addiction;
(2) the distribution of misinformation online;
(3) the ways in which social media can manipulate
behavior;
(4) the permanency of material shared online;
(5) how to maintain online personal security;
(6) how to identify and report suspicious online
behavior, including cyberbullying, predatory behavior, and human
trafficking;
(7) how to identify credible sources of information,
including by analyzing content created or modified by generative
artificial intelligence technology; and
(8) how to engage in respectful discourse with people
who have differing opinions.
(d) Before each school year, a school district shall:
(1) make all curriculum materials used in the
district's digital citizenship and media literacy instruction
available by posting the curriculum materials on the district's
Internet website, if the district has an Internet website; and
(2) provide notice to a parent of each student
enrolled in the district of the availability of the curriculum
materials on the district's Internet website, if the district has
an Internet website.
SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 38, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 38.0233 to read as follows:
Sec. 38.0233. INTERNET SAFETY POLICY. (a) The board of
trustees of a school district or the governing body of an
open-enrollment charter school shall adopt an Internet safety
policy to protect a student accessing the Internet:
(1) on a district or school Internet network; or
(2) on a digital device provided to the student by the
district or school.
(b) A policy adopted under this section must:
(1) limit student Internet access to age-appropriate
materials;
(2) include measures to protect a student using
e-mail, chat rooms, or other direct electronic communication;
(3) prohibit student access to information about
illegal activities, including hacking;
(4) prohibit student access to websites, web
applications, or software that collects, disseminates, or uses the
student's personal information, including social media services,
other than as directed by a teacher for instructional purposes; and
(5) provide an exception for a digital device, a web
application, or software used as a reasonable accommodation or
assistive technology in accordance with a student's individualized
education program or plan created under Section 504, Rehabilitation
Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794).
(c) The commissioner may adopt rules to implement this
section, including rules regarding additional requirements for a
policy adopted under this section.
SECTION 3. Section 28.002(z), Education Code, is repealed.
SECTION 4. (a) Section 28.00215, Education Code, as added
by this Act, applies beginning with the 2026-2027 school year.
(b) Section 38.0233, Education Code, as added by this Act,
applies beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.
SECTION 5. 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, 2025.