Weekly Summary Sen. Dan Patrick is championing, in addition to school choice (vouchers), an expansion of charter schools. SB 2 eliminates the cap on charter schools in the state—currently at 215—and mandates that districts lease empty facilities to charter programs that request it. Debate will ... Keep Reading

Weekly Summary The halls of the Capitol were abuzz with talk about Medicaid this week. On Thursday, HB 10 passed the House unanimously, paying a $4.5 billion emergency Medicaid balance. The legislation also gives the Foundations School Program $630 million. HB 10 was relatively painless for the ... Keep Reading

On Thursday, Democrats pushed members of the House to restore education funding when the House hears HB 10 on Feb. 21st, the first supplemental bill being considered in the session. HB 10 pays a hefty $4.5 billion Medicaid bill. The bill also gives $630 million to the Foundation School Program for ... Keep Reading

Surprising news from the latest Gallup polls: in a list of the top ten most Democratic and Republican states, Texas didn’t go red. Gallup considers Texas a battleground state that resists identification with the left or right. Population growth, a significant Latino constituency, and other changes ... Keep Reading

Weekly Summary Legislators have been filing less bills compared to last year, but the ones that have gotten through are overhauling everything from water access to education. The Texas budget is in better shape than 2 years ago but lawmakers are trying to stay within the conservative spending ... Keep Reading

Weekly Summary Legislators reforming the public education system have a lot to talk about this week. Chairman of the House Committee on Public Education, Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock, filed HB 5, a comprehensive bill that overhauls assessment, graduation requirements, and state accountability. The law ... Keep Reading

Weekly Summary Rick Perry delivered the State of the State, emphasizing the priorities of legislative leadership and pushing his familiar limited government vision. He spoke of Texas’ speedy economic recovery and hinted that lawmakers should consider dipping into the Rainy Day Fund to provide tax ... Keep Reading

  This week Chairman Dan Patrick conducted a hearing on removing the requirement that students’ EOC grades be averaged into their final course grades at 15%. His bill, SB 135, gives that option to local school boards. The Speaker released committee appointments on Friday. The House will begin ... Keep Reading