---
type: "Bill"
title: "Relating to allowing public schools to employ or accept as volunteers chaplains."
description: "Relating to allowing public schools to employ or accept as volunteers chaplains."
jurisdiction: "us/states/tx"
legislature: "Texas Legislature"
session: "88"
identifier: "SB 763"
citation: "Texas SB 763 (88)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Education--Primary & Secondary--Other School Personnel (I0246)", "PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS (S0714)", "Religion (I0646)", "VOLUNTEERS (S1314)"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Buckley", "Burrows", "Harris, Cody", "Hefner", "Middleton"]
version_count: 5
action_count: 94
vote_count: 10
first_action: "2023-02-07"
last_action: "2023-06-18"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/d7b4f298-39a2-4181-852c-68c60613b27e"
source_url: "ftp://ftp.legis.state.tx.us/bills/88R/billhistory/senate_bills/SB00700_SB00799/SB 763.xml"
source_hash: "1c8027ce4be6e9499df83e9ae804704db9a5493169be3475f9d6d81edad19ee0"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-tx"]
---

# Texas SB 763 (88) — Relating to allowing public schools to employ or accept as volunteers chaplains.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Introduced** (filed) — [source](http://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/html/SB00763I.HTM)
2. **Engrossed** (committee substitute) — [source](http://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/html/SB00763E.HTM)
3. **House Committee Report** (committee substitute) — [source](http://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/html/SB00763H.HTM)
4. **Senate Committee Report** (committee substitute) — [source](http://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/html/SB00763S.HTM)
5. **Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](http://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/88R/billtext/html/SB00763F.HTM)

## Votes

- passage — **89–58** (pass) · lower
- adoption of Floor Amendment No. 1 — **0–0** (pass) · upper
- passage — **84–54** (pass) · lower
- passage — **19–11** (pass) · upper
- passage — **18–12** (pass) · upper
- other — **53–83** (fail) · lower
- passage — **19–11** (pass) · upper
- passage — **84–60** (pass) · upper
- passage — **84–60** (pass) · lower
- passage — **19–12** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Buckley — primary (person)
- Burrows — primary (person)
- Harris, Cody — primary (person)
- Hefner — primary (person)
- Middleton — primary (person)
- Bettencourt — cosponsor (person)
- Creighton — cosponsor (person)
- Hughes — cosponsor (person)
- Perry — cosponsor (person)
- Toth — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-02-07** Received by the Secretary of the Senate `filing, introduction`
- **2023-02-07** Filed `filing`
- **2023-03-01** Read first time `introduction, reading-1`
- **2023-03-01** Referred to Education `referral-committee`
- **2023-03-08** Co-author authorized
- **2023-03-23** Co-author authorized
- **2023-04-05** Scheduled for public hearing on . . .
- **2023-04-05** Considered in public hearing
- **2023-04-05** Testimony taken in committee
- **2023-04-05** Left pending in committee
- **2023-04-12** Considered in public hearing
- **2023-04-12** Vote taken in committee
- **2023-04-17** Reported favorably as substituted `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-04-17** Committee report printed and distributed
- **2023-04-19** Placed on intent calendar
- **2023-04-20** Co-author authorized
- **2023-04-24** Co-author authorized
- **2023-04-24** Rules suspended-Regular order of business
- **2023-04-24** Record vote
- **2023-04-24** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2023-04-24** Amendment(s) offered `amendment-introduction`
- **2023-04-24** Amended `amendment-passage`
- **2023-04-24** Vote recorded in Journal
- **2023-04-24** Passed to engrossment as amended `amendment-passage`
- **2023-04-24** Record vote
- **2023-04-25** Rules suspended-Regular order of business
- **2023-04-25** Record vote
- **2023-04-25** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2023-04-25** Passed `passage`
- **2023-04-25** Record vote
- **2023-04-25** Reported engrossed
- **2023-04-26** Received from the Senate `introduction`
- **2023-04-27** Read first time `introduction, reading-1`
- **2023-04-27** Referred to Public Education `referral-committee`
- **2023-04-28** Considered in formal meeting
- **2023-04-28** Failed to receive affirmative vote in comm. `committee-failure`
- **2023-05-02** Considered in public hearing
- **2023-05-02** Reported favorably w/o amendment(s) `committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-05-05** Comte report filed with Committee Coordinator `filing`
- **2023-05-06** Committee report distributed
- **2023-05-06** Committee report sent to Calendars
- **2023-05-08** Laid out in lieu of companion
- **2023-05-08** Read 2nd time `reading-2`
- **2023-05-08** Amended `amendment-passage`
- **2023-05-08** Amendment fails of adoption `amendment-failure`
- **2023-05-08** Record vote
- **2023-05-08** Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
- **2023-05-08** Amendment fails of adoption `amendment-failure`
- **2023-05-08** Record vote
- **2023-05-08** Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
- **2023-05-08** Amendment fails of adoption `amendment-failure`
- **2023-05-08** Record vote
- **2023-05-08** Amended `amendment-passage`
- **2023-05-08** Amendment fails of adoption `amendment-failure`
- **2023-05-08** Record vote
- **2023-05-08** Amended `amendment-passage`
- **2023-05-08** Passed to 3rd reading as amended `amendment-passage`
- **2023-05-08** Record vote
- **2023-05-08** Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
- **2023-05-09** Read 3rd time `reading-3`
- **2023-05-09** Postponed
- **2023-05-09** Laid out as postponed business
- **2023-05-09** Amendment fails of adoption `amendment-failure`
- **2023-05-09** Record vote
- **2023-05-09** Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
- **2023-05-09** Passed `passage`
- **2023-05-09** Record vote
- **2023-05-10** House passage as amended reported `amendment-passage`
- **2023-05-11** House amendment(s) laid before the Senate
- **2023-05-11** Read
- **2023-05-11** Senate refuses to concur
- **2023-05-11** Senate requests conference committee
- **2023-05-11** Senate appoints conferees
- **2023-05-11** Senate refuses to concur-reported
- **2023-05-11** Senate requests conference committee-reported
- **2023-05-11** Senate appoints conferees-reported
- **2023-05-15** House grants request for conference committee
- **2023-05-15** House appoints conferees
- **2023-05-15** House grants request for conf comm-reported
- **2023-05-15** House appoints conferees-reported
- **2023-05-19** Conference committee report filed `filing`
- **2023-05-19** Conf. Comm. Report distributed
- **2023-05-23** Senate adopts conference committee report `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-05-23** Record vote
- **2023-05-23** Senate adopts conf. comm. report-reported
- **2023-05-24** House adopts conference committee report `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-05-24** Record vote
- **2023-05-24** House adopts conf. comm. report-reported
- **2023-05-25** Reported enrolled `enrolled`
- **2023-05-25** Signed in the Senate `passage`
- **2023-05-26** Signed in the House `passage`
- **2023-05-29** Sent to the Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2023-06-18** Signed by the Governor `executive-signature`
- **2023-06-18** Effective on 9/1/23 `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/d7b4f298-39a2-4181-852c-68c60613b27e`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Texas legislature records).