Tex. Codes » Education Code · TITLE 2. PUBLIC EDUCATION · SUBTITLE D. EDUCATORS AND SCHOOL DISTRICT EMPLOYEES AND VOLUNTEERS · CHAPTER 22. SCHOOL DISTRICT EMPLOYEES AND VOLUNTEERS
Texas Codes

Tex. Educ. Code § 22.003 (2026)

Minimum Personal Leave Program

✓ current as of May 2026
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Sec. 22.003. MINIMUM PERSONAL LEAVE PROGRAM. (a) A state minimum personal leave program consisting of five days per year personal leave with no limit on accumulation and transferable among districts shall be provided for school district employees. School districts may provide additional personal leave beyond this minimum. The board of trustees of a school district may adopt a policy governing an employee's use of personal leave granted under this subsection, except that the policy may not restrict:

(1) the purposes for which the leave may be used; or

(2) the order in which an employee may use the state minimum personal leave and any additional personal leave provided by the school district.

(b) In addition to all other days of leave provided by this section or by the school district, an employee of a school district who is physically assaulted during the performance of the employee's regular duties is entitled to the number of days of leave necessary to recuperate from all physical injuries sustained as a result of the assault. At the request of an employee, the school district must immediately assign an employee to assault leave and, on investigation of the claim, may change the assault leave status and charge the leave against the employee's accrued personal leave or against an employee's pay if insufficient accrued personal leave is available. Days of leave taken under this subsection may not be deducted from accrued personal leave. The period provided by this subsection may not extend more than two years beyond the date of the assault. Notwithstanding any other law, assault leave policy benefits due to an employee shall be coordinated with temporary income benefits due from workers' compensation so that the employee's total compensation from temporary income benefits and assault leave policy benefits equals 100 percent of the employee's weekly rate of pay.

(c) For purposes of Subsection (b), an employee of a school district is physically assaulted if the person engaging in the conduct causing injury to the employee:

(1) could be prosecuted for assault; or

(2) could not be prosecuted for assault only because the person's age or mental capacity makes the person a nonresponsible person for purposes of criminal liability.

(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 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.

(d) A school district employee with available personal leave under this section is entitled to use the leave for compensation during a term of active military service. This subsection applies to any personal or sick leave available under former law or provided by local policy of a school district, including a home-rule school district.

(e) A school district, including a home-rule school district, may adopt a policy providing for the paid leave of absence of employees taking leave for active military service as part of the consideration of employment by the district.

(f) A public school employee who retains any sick leave accumulated under former Section 13.904(a), as that section existed on January 1, 1995, is entitled to use the sick leave provided under that section or the personal leave provided under Subsection (a) in any order to the extent that the leave the employee uses is appropriate to the purpose of the leave.

Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 260, Sec. 1, eff. May 30, 1995. Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 936, Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 1997; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1015, Sec. 1, eff. June 15, 2001; Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 971, Sec. 2, eff. June 20, 2003.

Amended by:

Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 19 (S.B. 522), Sec. 1, eff. May 12, 2009.

Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 379 (H.B. 1470), Sec. 1, eff. June 19, 2009.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 11 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 2000–2025 · leading case: Poole v. Karnack Indep. Sch. Dist., 344 S.W.3d 440 (Tex. App. 2011).
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Poole v. Karnack Indep. Sch. Dist., 344 S.W.3d 440 (Tex. App. 2011). · cites it 4× “See Tex. Educ.Code Ann. § 22.003(b) (West Supp.”
Amaral-Whittenberg v. Alanis, 123 S.W.3d 714 (Tex. App. 2003). · cites it 5× “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 22.003 (a). Because we find that the District’s leave policies do not violate the education code and because Amaral-Whittenberg relies only on that alleged violation in claiming a breach of contract, Amaral-Whittenberg’s breach-of-contract claim fails.”
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). · cites it 13× “003 ……………………………………passim Texas Education Code, Section 22.004 ……… …………………….”
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). · cites it 10× “Whether the Commissioner and District correctly concluded that Weatherford Independent School District’s local policy requiring FMLA and TDL to run concurrently with assault leave does not violate Texas Education Code Section 22.003. xiv STATEMENT OF FACTS The relevant facts of…”
Donna Amaral-Whittenberg v. Felipe Alanis, Comm'r of Educ., & Castleberry Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2003). · cites it 6× “Appellant Donna Amaral-Whittenberg argues that various personal leave policies of Castleberry Independent School District (the District) violate the education code's directive that a school district board of trustees may not restrict the purposes for which leave may be used.”
Donna Amaral-Whittenberg v. Felipe Alanis, Comm'r of Educ., & Castleberry Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2003). · cites it 4× “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 22.003 (a) (West 2004).”
Brenda Poole v. Karnack Indep. Sch. Dist. & the Texas Comm'r of Educ. (Tex. App. 2011). · cites it 4× “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 22.003 (b) (West Supp.”
Brenda Poole v. Karnack Indep. Sch. Dist. & the Texas Comm'r of Educ. (Tex. App. 2011). · cites it 2× “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 22.003 (b) (West Supp.”
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). “McClelland and offer little that necessitates a reply.”
Herbert Friar v. Mike Moses, State Comm'r of Educ., in His Off. Capacity Only & Austin Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2000). · cites it 2× “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 22.003 (b) (West Supp.”
Citizens Against the Landfill in Hempstead Michael McCall Wayne Knox & the City of Hempstead v. Texas Comm'n on Env't Quality & Pintail Landfill, L.L.C. (Tex. App. 2015). “Dismissal of the teacher's request for assault leave by the Texas Commissioner of Education was supported by substantial evidence, because the teacher submitted her request for assault leave under Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 22.003 (b) 720 days after the date of the incident, and…”
— Tex. Educ. Code § 22.003(a) — 3 cases
Amaral-Whittenberg v. Alanis, 123 S.W.3d 714 (Tex. App. 2003). “See Tex. Educ. Code Ann. § 22.003 (a). Because we find that the District’s leave policies do not violate the education code and because Amaral-Whittenberg relies only on that alleged violation in claiming a breach of contract, Amaral-Whittenberg’s breach-of-contract claim fails.”
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). “003 ……………………………………passim Texas Education Code, Section 22.004 ……… …………………….”
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). “Whether the Commissioner and District correctly concluded that Weatherford Independent School District’s local policy requiring FMLA and TDL to run concurrently with assault leave does not violate Texas Education Code Section 22.003. xiv STATEMENT OF FACTS The relevant facts of…”
— Tex. Educ. Code § 22.003(b) — 3 cases
Poole v. Karnack Indep. Sch. Dist., 344 S.W.3d 440 (Tex. App. 2011). “See Tex. Educ.Code Ann. § 22.003(b) (West Supp.”
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). “Whether the Commissioner and District correctly concluded that Weatherford Independent School District’s local policy requiring FMLA and TDL to run concurrently with assault leave does not violate Texas Education Code Section 22.003. xiv STATEMENT OF FACTS The relevant facts of…”
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). “003 ……………………………………passim Texas Education Code, Section 22.004 ……… …………………….”
— Tex. Educ. Code § 22.003(e) — 1 case
Laura McClelland v. Mike Morath, Comm'r of Educ. in His Off. Capacity; & Weatherford Indep. Sch. Dist. (Tex. App. 2025). “Whether the Commissioner and District correctly concluded that Weatherford Independent School District’s local policy requiring FMLA and TDL to run concurrently with assault leave does not violate Texas Education Code Section 22.003. xiv STATEMENT OF FACTS The relevant facts of…”
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