Senate Passes House's Assessment, Accountability Bill | Aug. 28, 2025

The Texas Senate swiftly passed House Bill 8 on Wednesday, August 27, just a day after it passed in the House. 

In the same day, the Senate Finance Committee approved HB 8 to go before the full Senate, and just a few hours later, the full Senate passed it 21-5 with a few amendments. The most significant was the re-addition of social studies assessments which had been removed by the House. 

The bill has been billed a replacement for STAAR; however, the bill fails to eliminate the high-stakes nature of basing school accountability ratings on a single test and limits the flexibility schools could have in determining what through-year assessments can be delivered to their students. 

HB 8 will now return to the House where representatives can concur with the Senate's changes or request a conference committee to reconcile the differences.