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• Texas Governor Greg Abbott is proposing stricter laws to protect students from abuse by educators.
• The new initiative calls for a mandatory minimum 10-year prison sentence for educators who have improper relations with students.
• Abbott’s proposal would also mandate that convicted educators register as sex offenders.
• Current Texas law for an improper relationship between an educator and a student carries a prison sentence of two to 20 years.

Those impacted by sexual assault can call the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) hotline at 1-800-656-4673.

LUBBOCK, TX — Texas lawmakers passed a slate of laws last session meant to protect students from abuse by educators. Gov. Greg Abbott said that hasn’t been enough.

“With literally thousands of violations in just the past two years, clearly the message has not been received to stop assaulting students in our schools,” Abbott said at a news conference Aug. 11. “I want zero victimization by inappropriate teacher-student relationships.”

That is why Abbott said he is launching his new student safety initiative and calling on state lawmakers — who are set to meet again in Austin in January 2027 — to craft additional, more stringent laws to protect students.

In 2025 alone, Abbott said Texas saw more than 1,600 allegations of improper relationships between educators and students.

Here’s a brief overview of what Abbott is asking of lawmakers, what inspired him and current laws.

What Abbott wants Texas lawmakers to do

Under Abbott’s initiative, he is proposing new laws that:

• Create a mandatory minimum of 10 years behind bars for any educator who has inappropriate relations with a student.
• Prohibit community supervision and deferred adjudication instead of jail time.
• Ban parole and mandatory supervision before at least 10 years are served.
• Mandate that the educator register as a sex offender.

Abbott also said he wants to find ways to support students in speaking up against these alleged abuses, reporting them when they occur and educating students to spot warning signs.

“They know far more about what is really taking place on the ground in reality than what parents or even educators know,” Abbott said. “We, as legislators, we as adults, need to do a better job of listening to our children in our schools and hear from them about what they are seeing, what they’re hearing, what they are facing.”

What Texas law says now about educator misconduct

Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, said the House is committed to working with Abbott to codify the changes the governor wants to make Texas schools a safer place.

Burrows also took a moment to speak with survivors of such crimes across the state — including one who was present at Abbott’s announcement and spoke to the governor about her experience.

“We hear you, we see you. This should not have happened, and we must do better,” Burrows said. “While we have taken some action, we will take much more and out of the darkness and the bad things that have happened, positive change will happen to make sure that nobody else, if we can help it, suffers what has happened to you.”

In Texas, under current state laws, teachers convicted of having an improper relationship with a student face a prison sentence of two to 20 years.

Depending on the nature of the case, offenders could also face felony charges that include:

• Continuous sexual abuse of a child.
• Aggravated sexual assault of a child.
• Sexual assault of a child.
• Online solicitation of a minor.

Penalties for those offenses range from two years to life in prison without parole. A conviction on those charges would also require registration on the state’s sex offender registry.

However, registration isn’t mandatory for convictions involving an improper relationship between an educator and a student.

Lubbock teacher’s 10-year sentence prompted Abbott’s proposal

Abbott said he picked Lubbock as the venue to announce his proposals because of a case that involved a former Lubbock Independent School District teacher who was sentenced to 10 years in prison in March 2025 after he pleaded guilty to counts of having an improper relationship with a student and online solicitation of a minor.

“Right now, that is the exception in Texas. I want that to become the rule in our state,” Abbott said of the prison sentence.

Previous reporting by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network, shows that the teacher admitted to providing a student with a cellphone in 2023 while he was grooming her for a sexual relationship.

Lubbock County District Attorney Sunshine Stanek, whose office prosecuted the 2025 Lubbock teacher cases, said at the governor’s news conference that parents expect to send their students to school, where they will be safe and nurtured.

“We do not expect that they will experience abuse at the hands of an educator that we leave them with,” Stanek said. “That is why these laws must be strong and send a message. There must be a heavy hammer for us to throw down when our children are violated in this community and across the state of Texas.”

Mateo Rosiles is the Texas Connect reporter for USA TODAY and its regional papers in Texas. Got a news tip for him? Email him at mrosiles@usatodayco.com.

Gabriel Monte is the criminal justice reporter for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal in Texas. Have a news tip for him? Email him at gmonte@lubbockonline.com.