By: Wilson (Senate Sponsor - Creighton) H.B. No. 5606          (In the Senate - Received from the House May 19, 2025;   May 20, 2025, read first time and referred to Committee on   Education K-16; May 27, 2025, reported favorably by the following   vote:  Yeas 11, Nays 0; May 27, 2025, sent to printer.)Click here to see the committee vote     A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT     relating to a sick leave pool for public school employees.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 22, Education Code, is   amended by adding Section 22.0031 to read as follows:          Sec. 22.0031.  SICK LEAVE POOL.  (a)  Except as provided by   Subsection (b), the board of trustees of a school district or   governing body of an open-enrollment charter school shall establish   a program under which:                (1)  a retiring employee's accrued sick leave is   contributed to a sick leave pool on the retirement of the retiring   employee; and                (2)  sick leave contributed to the sick leave pool may   be used by a district or school employee who has exhausted the   employee's sick leave, subject to any district or school policy   regarding the use of sick leave.          (b)  The board of trustees of a school district or the   governing body of an open-enrollment charter school that adopted a   policy related to a retiring employee's accrued sick leave before   September 1, 2025, is not required to establish a program in   accordance with Subsection (a) if establishing the program would   conflict with that policy.          SECTION 2.  Section 22.003(c-1), Education Code, is amended   to read as follows:          (c-1)  Any informational handbook a school district provides   to employees in an electronic or paper form or makes available by   posting on the district website must include information on the   sick leave pool created under Section 22.0031 and notification of   an employee's rights under Subsection (b) in the relevant section   of the handbook. Any form used by a school district through which   an employee may request leave under this section must include   assault leave under Subsection (b) as an option.          SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.     * * * * *