House Bill 3 (HB 3) Implementation: Extension: Full-Day Prekindergarten Waiver

The full-day prekindergarten waiver deadline has been extended to April 6, 2020.

House Bill (HB) 3, 86th Texas Legislature, 2019, requires school districts and open-enrollment charter schools to provide a full-day prekindergarten program to eligible four-year-old children, if the conditions described in Texas Education Code (TEC), §29.153(a) and (c) apply. The commissioner shall exempt a district or open-enrollment charter school if the implementation of a full-day program would require the district or charter school to construct classroom facilities or result in fewer eligible children enrolled in prekindergarten. A TAA Correspondence Letter was released on January 9, 2020 regarding the full-day prekindergarten waiver and the Full-day Prekindergarten Exemption Process when applying for a waiver.

EXTENSION: Full-Day Prekindergarten Waiver

The April 6, 2020 extension applies to:

• Districts or charter schools with prekindergarten programs that are not providing statutorily required, full-day prekindergarten to their eligible four-year-old students as of September 1, 2019
• Districts or charter schools that have not submitted a full-day prekindergarten waiver to be in compliance with TEC, §29.153(d-1)

Districts or charter schools that do not meet the April 6, 2020 deadline to apply for an exemption will not be eligible for a full-day prekindergarten waiver renewal (up to 3 years). Furthermore, districts and charter schools that have not received an exemption and have failed to comply with the requirements of TEC, §29.153(a) and (c), will be subject to a corrective action plan, as well as additional, possible consequences pursuant to TEC, §39.057, and TEC, Chapter 39A. 

Districts and charter schools may access the full day prekindergarten waiver in the TEAL waiver application and find information on the State Waivers Unit page, https://tea.texas.gov/Texas_Schools/Waivers/State_Waivers. 

Districts or charter schools that haven’t already submitted a full-day prekindergarten waiver and need one to comply with the requirements of TEC, §29.153(a) and (c), must submit by April 6, 2020. 

Questions
If you have any questions related to this letter regarding full day prekindergarten waivers under HB 3, please contact the Division of Early Childhood by email at earlychildhoodeducation@tea.texas.gov  or email HB3info@tea.texas.gov. 

Sincerely,

Jacquie Porter,
State Director of Early Childhood Education