AUSTIN, Texas — Brooks Landgraf, state representative (R-Odessa), has filed House Bill 268 to address the rise in hoax threats that target schools and critical infrastructure, according to a news release from Landgraf Monday.
The legislation is looking to deter these alarming hoaxes by "increasing penalties and requiring offenders to reimburse the public for wasted emergency resources."
“In the last few years, our schools have faced a disturbing rise in hoax threats, including false reports of school shootings and bomb threats,” Landgraf said in the release. “These acts are not harmless—they disrupt classrooms, traumatize communities, and place a financial burden on our law enforcement and emergency responders.”
The filed house bill will update the Texas Penal Code by upgrading the penalty for hoax threats involving schools to a "third-degree felony."
Landgraf said the house bill will also empower emergency responders to "seek restitution for the resources expended in responding to false reports."
“These hoaxes not only create chaos in our schools but also risk desensitizing the public to genuine threats,” Landgraf said in the release. “This legislation has a clear objective: to deter hoax calls, protect public safety, and ensure that our emergency responders can focus on real threats, not false alarms.”
According to Landgraf, the decision to file the bill is in response to a series of false emergency reports that have targeted Texas schools, including schools in the Permian Basin. Those false reports have caused widespread panic and disrupted class days.
In January 2025, the Texas Legislature will convene and consider Landgraf's proposed HB 268.
