Abbott Targets School Predators With Proposal for Mandatory 10-Year Prison Terms

• August 15, 2026

A group of people, including officials and police, sit and stand behind a table with a sign that reads Protecting Texas Students. One man at the center speaks into microphones.

Gov. Greg Abbott, speaking at a roundtable event, announces a proposal to increase penalties for schoolteachers and staff who are convicted of an improper relationship with a student, in Lubbock, Texas, on Aug. 11, 2026. (Courtesy of Office of the Texas Governor)

Earlier this week, Gov. Greg Abbott announced a new initiative aimed at protecting students in Texas schools from abuse.

During a visit to Lubbock on Tuesday, Abbott announced his initiative to combat abuse in public schools, targeting educators who engage in inappropriate relationships with students.

During fiscal year 2026, there were more than 1,600 allegations of inappropriate relationships between students and educators and more than 500 allegations of sexual abuse involving students at Texas schools, according to Texas Education Agency data.

During fiscal year 2025, there were 580 allegations of inappropriate relationships between students and educators and 304 allegations of sexual abuse involving students.

Abbott said new laws are needed to strengthen protections for students and hold educators who abuse their positions of authority accountable.

“This new law builds on previous and vital actions that crack down on inappropriate teacher-student relationships,” Abbott said. “We must protect our students and lock up predators. Together, we will keep Texas classrooms a safe space for children to learn, grow, and succeed.”

Under Abbott’s proposal, criminal penalties will increase for teachers and school staff convicted of an improper relationship with a student. The penalties would include mandatory sex-offender registration and a minimum 10-year prison sentence.

Those convicted also would not be eligible for community supervision, deferred adjudication, parole, or mandatory supervision before completing the 10-year prison sentence.

Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, who represents Lubbock, attended the meeting and said that he looks forward to working with Abbott to turn the proposal into law.

“Every child in Texas deserves to walk into school ready to learn and grow, not afraid that someone could prey upon them,” Burrows said. “To the survivors: we hear you, we see you, and what happened to you should never have happened. We must do better. The Texas House looks forward to partnering with Governor Abbott next session to turn these initiatives into action and make sure no other child suffers what you have suffered.”

Policy experts with the Texas Public Policy Foundation also voiced support for Abbott’s proposal, saying tougher penalties are needed.

“Gov. Abbott is doing the right by making it abundantly clear to predators that have been entering our classrooms that you will receive harsh penalties with no way to circumvent the legal system,” Mandy Drogin, senior fellow for the Government Reform & Oversight Coalition at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, told the Daily Signal.

Thomas Lindsay, policy director for the Higher Education and Next Generation Texas initiative at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, also told the Daily Signal that “public schools exist to educate children, not shield abusers.”

“When adults in positions of authority violate that trust, the consequence should be prison time that actually removes them from society—not probation or quiet transfers,” Lindsay said. “Strong accountability protects liberty by ensuring government institutions fulfill their basic duty to keep our kids safe.”

Drogin added that pension forfeiture, severe financial fines, and similar penalties should also apply to administrators who aid or abet predators in schools or help them circumvent the rules.

“I really think that Gov. Abbott is doing a phenomenal job making it abundantly clear that we will no longer allow anyone that thinks that they can come in and abuse children to be in our public school system,” Drogin said. “I hope every single state in the union will follow his lead on this.”

The 90th Texas Legislature will convene on Jan. 12, 2027.

Emily Medeiros | Texas Correspondent

Emily Medeiros is the Texas Correspondent for the Daily Signal.

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