Straus and Texas House Members get to work

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On Feb. 9, Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, announced the House committee assignments for the 85th Legislative Session – a signal that the work of the Legislature can officially begin.

“We want to utilize Members’ strengths and allow them to work on issues that matter to their districts,” said Speaker Straus in his press release.

A good number of the House chairmanships this session are representatives of the greater Houston area. The Speaker added, “These assignments reflect the diversity of the Texas House.”

Key House chairmanships to be aware of are:

  • House Public Education Committee
    Rep. Dan Huberty, R-Humble, CHAIR*
  • House Appropriations Committee
    Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond, CHAIR*
  • House Local and Consent Calendars Committee
    Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, CHAIR
  • House Juvenile Justice and Family Issues Committee
    Rep. Harold Dutton, D-Houston, CHAIR
  • House County Affairs Committee
    Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, CHAIR
  • House Special Purpose Districts Committee
    Rep. Jim Murphy, R-Houston, CHAIR
  • House General Investigating and Ethics
    Rep. Sarah Davis, R-Houston, CHAIR
  • House Urban Affairs Committee
    Rep. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston, CHAIR
  • House Ways & Means Committee
    Rep. Dennis Bonnen, R-Angleton, CHAIR*
  • House Government Transparency and Operation Committee
    Rep. Gary Elkins, R-Houston, CHAIR*

*= Does not have any HISD schools in their district.

Bills related to public education are usually referred to the House Public Education Committee; however, it is important to pay close attention because some bills can and will be sent to other committees instead. The House Appropriations Committee decides issues related to school funding and the state’s budget. The committee rosters for House Public Education and House Appropriations are below. House members in HISD’s delegation are in bold and there is good representation for the greater Houston area on both committees.

House Public Education Committee:
Rep. Dan Huberty (R-Humble), Chair
Rep. Diego Bernal (D-San Antonio), Vice Chair
Rep. Alma Allen (D-Houston)
Rep. Joe Deshotel (D-Beaumont)
Rep. Harold Dutton (D-Houston)
Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Terrell)
Rep. Linda Koop (R-Dallas)
Rep. Morgan Meyer (R-Dallas)
Rep. Gary Vandeaver (R-New Boston)
Rep. Ken King (R-Canadian)
Rep. Dwayne Bohac (R-Houston)

The House Public Committee held its first public hearing on Feb. 21.  The full committee heard an update from the Texas Education Agency on their legislative requests this session, along with a report from the Commission on Next Generation Assessments and Accountability. To read the hearing summary, please click here. The House Public Education Subcommittee on Educator Quality was appointed on Feb. 21. The members of the subcommittee are Representatives Ken King (Chair), Alma Allen (Vice Chair), Harold Dutton, Gary VanDeaver and Morgan Meyer.

The Feb. 28 and March 7 House Public Education Committee hearings are on school finance.  The week of March 13, House Public Education will discuss accountability and the A-F rating system.

House Appropriations Committee:
Rep. John Zerwas (R-Richmond), Chair
Rep. Oscar Longoria (D-Mission), Vice Chair
Rep. Trent Ashby (R-Lufkin)
Rep. Sarah Davis (R-Houston)
Rep. Dawnna Dukes (D-Austin)
Rep. Helen Giddings (D-Dallas)
Rep. Larry Gonzales (R-Round Rock)
Rep. Donna Howard (D-Austin)
Rep. Sergio Muñoz, Jr. (D-Palmview)
Rep. J.D. Sheffield (R-Gatesville)
Rep. Ron Simmons (R-Carrolton)
Rep. Armando Walle (D-Houston)
Rep. Greg Bonnen (R-Friendswood)
Rep. Giovanni Capriglione (R-Southlake)
Rep. Scott Cosper (R-Killeen)
Rep. Jay Dean (R-Wichita Falls)
Rep. Mary González (D-Clint)
Rep. Linda Koop (R-Dallas)
Rep. Rick Miller (R- Sugar Land)
Rep. Mary Ann Perez (D-Houston)
Rep. Dade Phelan (R-Port Neches)
Rep. John Raney (R-Bryan)
Rep. Kevin Roberts (R-Spring)
Rep. Justin Rodriguez (D-San Antonio)
Rep. Toni Rose (D-Dallas)
Rep. Gary VanDeaver (R-New Boston)
Rep. Gene Wu (D-Houston)

The members of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Article III (education funding) are: Representatives Trent Ashby (Chair), Helen Giddings (Vice Chair) Donna Howard, Gary VanDeaver, John Raney, Linda Koop, and Mary González. The subcommittee held their first hearing on K-12 public education funding on Monday, Feb. 20. They heard testimony from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Legislative Budget Board (LBB). For the subcommittee hearing summary and presentation, please click here.

The full Appropriations committee held their first hearing on public education funding on Wednesday, Feb. 15. They heard testimony from the Legislative Budget Board and the Texas Education Agency, as well.

HISD’s recapture was a topic of discussion at each of these hearings, including the House Public Education Committee hearing.

HISD trustees approve election after TEA reduces recapture payment

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The Houston Independent School District Board of Education voted  in February to call a May 6 election asking voters to authorize sending lower recapture payments to the state rather than face detachment of commercial property in July. The swift timing allows the district to follow the deadlines set by the state and Harris County.

Previously, HISD’s recapture obligation was estimated at $162 million. Under the Texas Education Agency’s recent announcement of recognizing half of the local homestead exemption, along with adjustments made to student enrollment and property value figures, HISD is now subject to a reduced $77.5 million recapture obligation or the removal of about $8 billion dollars’ worth of non-residential, commercial properties from HISD’s tax roll.

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HISD Board and Superintendent meet with key state officials

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Members of the HISD Board of Education and Superintendent Richard Carranza spent two full days in Austin, working with the state’s top leaders to address much-needed changes to Texas’ school finance system.

In late January, Board President Wanda Adams, Trustees Anna Eastman, Mike Lunceford, and Rhonda Skillern-Jones, and Superintendent Richard Carranza conducted a series of high-level meetings with key decision-makers in Austin, including HISD’s state senators and state representatives. 

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Lt. Gov. Patrick moves on priorities

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The first week of session, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, R-Texas, declared his desire to run for re-election, dispelling rumors of a possible run for Governor next year. Patrick was also successful in keeping the three-fifths rule created last session that allows Senate Republicans to decide which bills come to the floor.

Lt. Governor Patrick has 25 priorities this session, many of which relate to public education. Some of Patrick’s education related priorities include the budget (SB 1); school choice (SB 3); banning sanctuary cities (SB 4); the Texas Privacy Act known as the “bathroom bill” (SB 6); ending inappropriate student-teacher relationships (SB 7); and ending automatic payroll deductions for union dues (SB 13). Patrick also said the state will not repeal the A-F rating system for schools and districts, but they are open to modifications. The Lt. Governor will move his priority bills out the Senate chamber as quickly as possible. You can view Lt. Governor Patrick’s full list of priorities here.

The following education-related priority bills have moved in the Senate:

SB 1: the budget bill proposed by the Senate (Last Action: Under review in the Senate Finance Committee)

SB 4: a bill that bans sanctuary cities (Last Action: Passed the Senate)

SB 6: a bill related to regulations and policies for entering or using a public bathroom or changing facility by authorizing a civil penalty and increasing criminal penalties.  Such facilities can only be used by individuals of the same biological sex as identified on their birth certificates.  Also known as the “bathroom bill.” (Last Action: Scheduled for a public hearing on March 7)

SB 7: a bill to end inappropriate student-teacher relationships and impose stricter penalties on teachers. Principals and superintendents who fail to report such incidents in a timely manner would face criminal charges. (Last Action: Heard in the Senate Education Committee on Feb. 23 and voted out of committee on Feb. 28)

SB 13: a bill to end automatic payroll deductions for teacher union dues (Last Action: Passed out of the Senate State Affairs Committee)

SB 22: a bill to create the Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) program (Last Action: Heard in the Senate Education Committee on Feb. 23 and left pending)

Here’s a basic guide to the 85th Texas Legislative Session

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The biennial session kicked off on Jan. 10 in Austin with the swearing-in of House and Senate members, who will convene for a total of five months to tackle the state’s business.

The Legislature meets for 140 days between January and June, every other year. The only item the Legislature is constitutionally obligated to pass is the state’s budget for the next two years.

HISD’s government relations team is in Austin full-time, educating lawmakers and staff on the most important issues affecting the district, especially the recapture payment and the pending detachment and reassignment of commercial property.

Learn More about HISD’s Legislative Agenda

The House contains 22 new members and four former state representatives returning to the Texas House. The Senate has three new members. Overall, there are 181 members of the Texas Legislature. The House has 95 Republicans and 55 Democrats (150 total). The Senate has 20 Republicans and 11 Democrats (31 total).

Rep. Straus re-elected House Speaker, cites support for school finance reform

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On the first day of session, incumbent Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, was unanimously re-elected to his fifth consecutive term as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives.

A long-term supporter of public education, Straus said on opening day, “Our school finance system may meet the legal definition of constitutional. But parents and taxpayers know something different. They know that the system is broken. And, they know that it’s our job to fix it.”

One of his main goals is to reduce recapture payments school districts make to the state, a key priority for HISD this session.

With state revenue forecasts down, House and Senate propose different spending plans

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With oil and gas revenues down, state lawmakers anticipate having less money to spend during the 85th session.

In December, the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) adopted a conservative spending limit, used by the Legislature to craft the budget.  In early January, State Comptroller Glenn Hegar released his biennial revenue estimate, or forecast for expected revenues for the next two years.

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Gov. Greg Abbott outlines priorities in second ‘State of the State’ address

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Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas, gave his second “State of the State” Address on  Jan. 31, outlining his four emergency items this session. They include: CPS reform, sanctuary cities, ethics reform and a Convention of States.

Separate from his emergency items were his priorities and funding goals for the 85th Session. Governor Abbott’s priorities related to public education are ending inappropriate student-teacher relationships, improving school finance, fully funding Pre-K, school choice and ending automatic payroll deductions for union dues.

The Governor’s priorities align fairly well with the Lt. Governor’s this session. However, the Governor did not mention his support for the Lt. Governor’s “bathroom bill,” which applies to schools and government buildings and requires people to use the restroom of the gender on their birth certificate.

Differing from Patrick, Abbott also placed strong language in his proposed budget calling for the reduction or elimination of recapture. You can view Governor’s Abbott’s full list of priorities here and his budget proposal here .

Key Senate committees start work after members named

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Lt. Gov. Patrick announced the Senate’s committee assignments on Jan. 18, kicking off hearings on funding K-12 and higher education the following week.

Chairmanships will remain the same for both the Senate Education and Senate Finance committees. In one major change, the Education Committee no longer has a senator with HISD in his or her district.

Here is the full list of committee members on the Senate Education Committee:

  • Sen. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood), Chair
  • Sen. Eddie Lucio, Jr. (D-Brownsville), Vice Chair
  • Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston)
  • Sen. Donna Campbell (R-New Braunfels)
  • Sen. Don Huffines (R-Dallas)
  • Sen. Bob Hall (R-Canton)
  • Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Tyler)
  • Sen. Carlos Uresti (D-San Antonio)
  • Sen. Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo)
  • Sen. Van Taylor (R-Plano)
  • Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas)

The Senate Finance Committee remains relatively the same as last session. Four senators from the greater Houston area will still serve on the committee: Whitmire, Huffman, L. Taylor and Bettencourt.

Here is the full list of committee members on the Senate Finance Committee. Senators who represent HISD are in bold.

  • Sen. Jane Nelson (R-Flower Mound), Chair
  • Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa (D-McAllen), Vice Chair
  • Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston)
  • Sen. Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury)
  • Sen. Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills)
  • Sen. Joan Huffman (R-Houston)
  • Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham)
  • Sen. Robert Nichols (R-Jacksonville)
  • Sen. Charles Schwertner (R-Georgetown)
  • Sen. Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo)
  • Sen. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood)
  • Sen. Carlos Uresti (D-San Antonio)
  • Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin)
  • Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas)
  • Sen. John Whitmire (D-Houston)

The Senate Finance Committee on education funding began with testimony from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Legislative Budget Board (LBB). Houston ISD’s recapture or “detachment” situation was discussed at great length.  State Sen. Paul Bettencourt urged the HISD school board to hold another election, asking voters to stop detachment by writing a $162 million check to the state.

During the third week of session, Senate Finance Chair Jane Nelson directed her colleagues to form a school finance workgroup, a surprise to many in the school community. The members of the school finance workgroup are Senators L. Taylor (Chair), Bettencourt, Birdwell, Hancock, Hinojosa, Seliger and West. The workgroup held their first hearing on Friday, Jan. 27 and heard school finance proposals from eight different groups. Chairman Taylor’s goal is to simplify the school finance system and build a framework for next session. HISD will remain involved in these conversations in Austin.

You can view the full list of Senate Committee assignments here.