Ahead of the start of the 2027 legislative session in January, Plano ISD trustees set the district’s legislative priorities.
The board unanimously approved the priorities during the Oct. 6 meeting.
The details
The four priorities focused on school funding, the state’s accountability system, student health and safety, and the educator workforce. Under each priority, PISD officials highlighted a problem statement and potential solutions to address the concerns.
Now that they are finalized, PISD’s legislative priorities will be shared with legislators.
Breaking it down
The wording for each priority is based on language used in district documents for the Oct. 6 meeting.
Modernize and stabilize school funding
PISD officials are asking legislators to update several allotments for students, including those for school safety and transportation, and index them to inflation.
Other requests included providing funding stability to districts that are experiencing enrollment decline, fully funding excused absences and reporting recapture collections clearly while reinvesting collections above the entitlement back to public schools.
“All of our campuses, all of our administrators, all of our teachers stand ready to serve every single child enrolled in this district every single day,” board President Lauren Tyra said. “Funding based on attendance does not account for that readiness and that service that we provide to the community.”
Build a fair, stable, future-ready accountability system
The priority includes a request to hold all entities receiving public funding for education to the same standard.
PISD officials also highlighted a need to stabilize accountability system transitions and other changes to it.
Strengthen educator workforce
Measures within this priority focused on building the educator pipeline by funding certification pathways, hard-to-fill positions and mentoring.
Other measures included adding a high-cost labor market allotment to help maintain competitive salaries, improving access to affordable healthcare and benefits, and fully funding the Teacher Retirement System of Texas with inflation-related adjustments.
Prioritize student safety, mental health and digital responsibility
The priority highlighted state guidance and data protections as solutions for digital responsibility.
PISD officials also asked state officials to create a student mental health allotment, expand cybersecurity resources for districts through the Texas Cyber Command and address the impact of social media on students.
