Senate Bill 89 and Dyslexia Handbook 2021 Training and Communication Requirements

This letter provides notice to local educational agencies (LEAs) of required activities and associated assurances that must be completed in the Legal Framework in 2022. 

Senate Bill (SB) 89 Requirement

SB 89, the COVID-19 Special Education Recovery Act, was signed by the governor on June 7, 2021, and addresses special education and related service interruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic. SB 89 established requirements in Texas Education Code (TEC), §29.0052, that require LEAs to include a written supplement to be included with the individualized education program (IEP) of each student enrolled in LEAs’ special education programs during the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school year.  

No later than May 1, 2022, Admission, Review, and Dismissal (ARD) committees must complete the required supplement for each student with an IEP enrolled in LEAs’ special education programs during the 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school years, and LEAs must submit an assurance statement through the Legal Framework by June 1, 2022 affirming compliance with the requirements established by SB 89. 

As stated in the July 22, 2021 “To the Administrator Addressed” correspondence on this topic, if the student’s ARD committee documented all required information in the written statement of the IEP during the 2020-2021 school year, then the ARD committee is not required to prepare an additional supplement for this purpose. 

For further information regarding this topic refer to the document titled Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on SB 89. 

Dyslexia Handbook 2021 Update Training and Communication Requirement 

Required action stemming from the October 1, 2021, letter to TEA from the United States Department of Education (USED) Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) required TEA to develop a communication and a training plan to ensure that LEAs are informed of the  Dyslexia Handbook 2021 Update, which went into effect on February 10, 2022.  

As part of the plan TEA was required to submit to OSEP by August 31, 2022, all LEAs must provide an assurance through the Legal Framework that at least one staff member has attended the agency-developed training titled Texas Dyslexia Academy 2 (TDA 2): The Dyslexia Handbook 2021 Update by August 31, 2022. This requirement ensures that each LEA in the state is aware of and has at least one trained staff member who can support local dissemination and implementation of the updated handbook requirements. TDA 2: The Dyslexia Handbook 2021 Update training is offered through each regional education service center (ESC). 

Additionally, by June 1, 2022  LEAs must provide an assurance through the Legal Framework that they have placed a link to this TEA document in both English and Spanish on their local public facing website and have updated all websites, materials, static resources, and information available to parents and staff to reflect the  Dyslexia Handbook 2021 Update.

In Summary

For questions regarding the requirements contained in this document, please contact TEA’s Division of Special Education Programs at sped@tea.texas.gov.