Houston Republic

Amidst the implementation of a new Texas law mandating armed guards in all schools starting Sept. 1, many Houston-area school districts are grappling with compliance challenges, predominantly due to funding constraints, as they seek exceptions to the requirement, KPRC 2 reported. This legislation follows a school shooting in 2022, with numerous districts statewide unable to fully meet the mandated security provisions.

School boards in Texas have the authority to vote for exceptions to the Sept. 1 law, according to the Texas Education Agency (TEA). These exceptions can be sought if a district lacks the necessary funding or available personnel to comply with the requirement of having armed guards on every campus. Districts that request an exception must develop an alternative plan, which may involve appointing a school marshal or other armed staff members to enhance security. Filing for an exception provides school districts with additional time to devise a suitable security strategy. The TEA emphasizes that the law does not specify a fixed date for when districts must have armed security at each campus. Instead, a good cause exception is regarded as a compliant response to the law's requirements.

The largest school district in the area, Houston Independent School District (HISD), has announced its intention to pursue a "good cause exemption." HISD indicated that they have already stationed armed guards at all their high school and middle school campuses, and they are actively recruiting additional officers to ensure full compliance with the law's requirements.

Other school districts in the Houston area that have confirmed their intent to file for exceptions to KPRC 2 include Katy Independent School District (Katy ISD), Friendswood Independent School District (Friendswood ISD), Goose Creek Independent School District (Goose Creek ISD), Pasadena Independent School District (Pasadena ISD) and Dickinson Independent School District (Dickinson ISD).

The Associated Press reached out to 60 school districts across Texas and discovered that over half of them struggled to adhere to the provisions of the new law, according to a report.

The TEA has noted that House Bill 3 (HB 3) did increase the per-student safety allotment by $0.28 per student and allocated $15,000 per campus to support safety measures. Despite these provisions, some districts are finding it challenging to secure the necessary resources to comply with the law.