🟡Relating to restricting telework for employees of public institutions of higher education.

🟡 SB 2615: Limits telework in public universities

What it says it does:
Sets a statewide rule that employees of public colleges and universities cannot work remotely unless they fall into a specific list of exceptions.

What it actually changes:
Removes local discretion on hybrid or remote work. Telework is allowed only for temporary illness, disability accommodations, certain nonteaching roles that can be done off campus, approved online or dual credit courses, faculty doing research off campus, or faculty providing telehealth. A chief administrator can allow remote work during a catastrophe but must move back to the limits afterward.

Who is pushing for it:
Author is Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-SD##). No supporters are listed in the witness files.

Who benefits:
Campus executives who want uniform in-person rules. Institutions that want clear legal cover to deny ad hoc hybrid requests. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board gains optional authority to issue rules.

Who gets left out or exposed:
Employees in roles that could be partially remote but do not fit the exceptions. Caregivers, rural commuters, and lower-wage staff who relied on flexible schedules. Departments that previously managed hybrid work informally.

Why this matters long term:
It shifts power upward from departments to institutional leadership and possibly the Coordinating Board. It sets a precedent for the Legislature to dictate work arrangements in higher education, which could expand in future sessions.

What to watch next:
Whether the Coordinating Board issues rules, how universities interpret the exceptions, and whether employees push for grievance or reporting mechanisms to track fairness.

Bottom line:
SB 2615 does not move money but it moves power. It makes in-person presence the default, narrows telework to carved-out situations, and leaves decisions in the hands of top administrators without required transparency.

#SB2615 #TexasPolicy #HigherEd #TexasColleges #WorkplaceRules #WatchTheRules