Tag Archives: Texas legislature

HISD briefs elected officials ahead of 2019 Texas legislative session  

Houston-area elected officials and their staff gathered at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center on Nov. 28 to receive an update from HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan and hear the district’s priorities for the upcoming legislative session in Austin.

Lathan highlighted major initiatives launched in HISD for the 2018-2019 school year and shared information about academic successes. Attendees also received a budget update from Chief Financial Officer Rene Barajas. District staff and trustees also were in attendance to meet with local, state, and federal elected officials.  Continue reading →

New ‘Legislative Center’ encourages community engagement in lawmaking process

HISD has launched a new online hub for all legislative information to educate the community and encourage participation in the lawmaking process.  The Legislative Center is a unique tool designed to expand the community’s access to state lawmakers and facilitate communication between Houstonians and key decisionmakers in Austin.

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HISD outlines district’s legislative priorities

capitolWith the 84th Texas State Legislature set to convene on Jan. 13 at the State Capitol in Austin, school finance is at the top of HISD’s legislative agenda.

The district will carry a strong position on equitable state funding that will increase state dollars for academics for pre-K through 12th grade, particularly at-risk and bilingual students, in addition to improvements in college readiness for all students and funding for full day pre-K.

HISD’s Governmental Relations team will attend the 140-day regular session, in which lawmakers will budget how state money is spent over the next two years beginning in September. The Texas Comptroller’s office recently announced that the state has $113 billion in revenue available to spend in 2016 and 2017.

Click here to read a list of HISD’s legislative priorities.