Overview

• After a 79-47 House vote concurring with Senate changes and a 21-5 Senate passage, HB 8 heads to the governor, with a pilot year planned before full implementation in 2027-28.
• The new system replaces the single STAAR exam with beginning-, middle- and end-of-year tests, returning results in about 48 hours, with only the year-end exam counting for accountability.
• High school graduation requirements drop the English II exam while U.S. history and eighth-grade social studies tests are restored following Senate amendments.
• TEA is directed to design the end-of-year assessment and develop a statewide growth metric for A–F ratings, with accountability benchmarks refreshed every five years and any changes announced by July 15.
• District-run benchmark practice tests are banned and some nationally recognized assessments may qualify for the first two testing windows, though acceptable options and other operational details remain unsettled as critics warn of increased testing and agency overreach.