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Texas lawmakers hold joint committee hearing to discuss school safety solutions

The next session of the Texas Legislature starts in January.

AUSTIN, Texas — In the wake of the tragic mass shooting in Uvalde, both Republican and Democratic state lawmakers have asked Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special legislative session. Unless he does, they can't pass bills about school safety until next year.

In the meantime, two legislative committees held a joint hearing Monday to talk about what can be done to make schools safer. Lawmakers heard testimony about the importance of detecting mental health issues early.

"A lot of times, these mental health concerns don't show until years later. And so, as you're saying to that early detection – maybe there is a mental health concern, maybe there just needs to be some family education going on. But to identify those students, do some accurate assessment to see what's going on so we can put them on the right path. Because if we don't do it at five year old, we'll see it again when they're 25," said Dr. Alvia Baldwin, the director of guidance and counseling for Alief ISD in Houston.

The committees also talked about finding and reporting threats made online and the need for more mental health professionals and programs in Texas.

The next legislative session is set to begin in January.

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