By Kevin Lungwitz
For as long as you have been an educator you have known what the CPS reporting rules are. Our focus here is only on the significant changes to these laws created by Senate Bill 571, effective June 20, 2025.1
You Must Report Suspected Abuse and Neglect Within 24 Hours
Senate Bill 571 cuts in half the time Texas educators have traditionally had to report suspected child abuse and neglect. Effective now, you have 24 hours to report. For years TEPSA has advised to make the report “immediately.” Don’t waste time conducting your own investigation. Too many administrators get into trouble thinking, “I’m not sure this allegation is credible, so I’ll look into it on my own.” You have enough to do managing a campus. As soon as you have reason to believe that abuse or neglect has occurred, drop what you are doing and make a report. That investigation is now CPS’s responsibility, not yours. If CPS does not think your report is ripe, they will tell you.
Sexual Conduct Between Educator and Adult Student Now Covered by Child Abuse Reporting
Senate Bill 57 clarified that child abuse must be reported if the perpetrator is an educator and the victim is a student enrolled in any public or private primary or secondary school, regardless of the age of the student. If you receive information that an educator is having an improper relationship with an adult student—even if the educator does not work in the student’s school district—you must report.
Reporting to School District Police DOES NOT Satisfy Your Legal Obligation
Senate Bill 571 made a significant change in the entities to whom you must report. As always, your safest bet is to call CPS or report to CPS online. You may also report to the following law enforcement agencies: Department of Public Safety (DPS), municipal police, county sheriff or constable. But it specifically DOES NOT include school district police.
For years in Texas school business, it has been a little fuzzy as to whether reporting only to the school district police satisfies your obligation to report child abuse. Effective immediately, it does not. Instead, call or report online to CPS, or contact one of the approved law enforcement agencies listed above.
Bursting the Myths of Child Abuse Reporting Once and For All
Can we spend a little time bursting the myths of child abuse reporting? If you are a teacher’s aide, it does NOT satisfy your legal obligation if you only report child abuse to a teacher; if you are a teacher, it does NOT satisfy your duty if you report to the counselor, AP, or principal. If you are the AP, you are NOT removed from your obligation if you just tell your principal. Principals, listen up: You do NOT satisfy your responsibility to report child abuse by telling your supervisor, human resources, or the school police.
All these education professionals ONLY satisfy their duty by reporting to CPS or one of the approved law enforcement entities named above. The state sees educators as independent professionals with an independent obligation to make a report. You may not pass the buck to anyone else. If an educator has reason to believe child abuse has occurred or may occur, the educator—not a designee or a supervisor—must make the report.
In Addition to Reporting Abuse, Principals Must Also Report Educator Misconduct to the Superintendent or Risk Jail Time and a Hefty Monetary Fine
Senate Bill 571 also shortened the time to make the following reports to your superintendent to 48 hours.2
That any employee or contractor:
- … abused or otherwise committed an unlawful act with a student or minor, including engaging in physical mistreatment or making a threat of violence to a student, regardless of whether the conduct resulted in bodily injury;
- was involved in or solicited a romantic relationship with or solicited or engaged in sexual contact with a student or minor;
- engaged in inappropriate communications with a student or minor;
- failed to maintain appropriate boundaries with a student or minor.
There is also a 7-business day deadline to report to the superintendent your knowledge that an employee has an undisclosed criminal record. A principal who—with an intent to conceal—fails to timely notify a superintendent commits a state jail felony, risks up to a $10,000 fine, and could lose their certificate. Failing to properly report child abuse is also a jailable offense.
It is legislatively sloppy and unfortunate that there are myriad laws requiring a variety of reporting deadlines for principals. To be safe, make ALL your required reports related to student safety immediately – and certainly within 24 hours.
Please share this article with your fellow educators. The more who know, the less likely something falls through the cracks.
1This article updates the August 2025 TEPSA News article written before the passage of SB 571.
2See newly adopted Texas Education Code Chapter 22A for more details about a principal’s duty to report to the superintendent.
Kevin Lungwitz practices law in Austin and is a former Chair of the School Law Section of the State Bar of Texas.
