Posted on 03/10/2005 6:33:02 AM PST by Theodore R.
Texas House passes controversial plan to restructure public education ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUSTIN (AP) - A sweeping plan to restructure education in Texas won tentative approval in the Texas House on Wednesday, despite criticism that a teacher pay raise is unfunded and $3 billion in new money is not enough.
Opponents say the money won't keep up with inflation or cover new requirements schools would face under the plan.
During two days of debate on the measure - the top priority of the current legislative session - the House leadership approved a teacher salary increase and additional funding for the mileage costs of busing students to school.
The chamber narrowly approved the bill by a 76-71 vote, with two members abstaining. No Democrats voted for the bill.
The bill, which would add about $1.5 billion a year to public schools over the next two years, has been opposed by every major education group in Texas.
Each of the more than 1,030 school districts in Texas would get an average of a 5 percent increase in funds, under the proposal.
State Rep. Delwin Jones, R-Lubbock, voted against the bill while state Rep. Carl Isett, R-Lubbock, voted for it.
"I voted against the bill primarily because my rural 21 districts were not in favor of it," Jones said. "Carl Isett voted for it, and I think he did the right thing because he was able to put some big things in it for the benefit of LISD and some of the rural schools, too. But it wasn't enough to make the rural schools embrace the bill."
Republican Rep. Kent Grusendorf, who authored the legislation, called the measure "the most important vote of the legislative session."
He has hailed the bill as an opportunity to give parents and taxpayers transparency and school officials accountability in how billions of tax dollars are being spent on Texas' 4.3 million K-12 students.
Republicans swatted down dozens of amendments, including some that would increase funding for students at risk of dropping out, bilingual students and gifted and talented programs. One amendment, which would have studied the efficiency of consolidating small school districts, was approved but later withdrawn after rural legislators bristled.
Critics argued that a Republican-proposed teacher pay raise would be difficult for some schools in Texas to deliver and doesn't quite add up to the promised increase.
"There's no new money flowing into that pay raise," said Democratic Rep. Scott Hochberg of Houston, who worked on the committee that considered the legislation.
The proposal, adopted late Tuesday night, would be about a $3,000 increase in the average teacher salary in each district. But, a restored $1,000 teacher health care stipend, which lawmakers cut in half last session, would be rolled into the salary increase, leaving teachers with about $2,000.
Another provision would put a 35 percent cap on the amount of money that could be taken from property wealthy districts to be redistributed to the rest of the state. The House narrowly approved an amendment to eliminate the cap from the bill, but after several moments of persuasion on the House floor, another vote was taken and the cap remained in place. The wealth-sharing measure has given the system its Robin Hood nickname.
and is among the most contentious aspects of the current system.
Critics argue that allowing the "super-wealthy" school districts to retain most of their property tax revenue, the gap between the haves and the have-nots is increased.
"I believe that it is fundamentally wrong. It is morally wrong to create two classes of Texas kids, and that's what (this bill) does," said Rep. Pete Gallego, D-Alpine.
A final vote will likely be taken on Thursday. The measure still must be approved by the Senate, before members from both chambers join to work out the differences between the two versions of the bill.
The House will next take up a second part of the school finance package - a $10 billion tax bill intended to replace slashed school property taxes with an array of other taxes, such as a snack tax and an increased and expanded sales tax. Debate on that bill is set for Thursday morning.
Gov. Rick Perry has not endorsed any particular tax, but he said he was urging members to get it out of the House so it can be kept alive.
"I ask them to move the process forward. That's very important in this process," he said.
On Tuesday, the Legislative Budget Board released an analysis stating that only Texans making more than $100,000 a year would receive a net tax cut under the tax bill.
The board analysis stated that the poorest 1.7 million households - those making less than $23,000 a year - would see their tax burden increase more than 5 percent under the bill. Lawmakers are proposing adding a penny to the state sales tax rate and sharply boosting taxes on cigarettes and snacks.
The richest 840,000 households - those making more than $140,000 a year - would see their taxes cut nearly 3 percent, according to the legislative agency.
Revising the state's system for paying for public schools has been a top priority for many lawmakers this session. Lawmakers are under pressure after a judge last year ruled Texas' school finance system unconstitutional, calling the $30 billion system "financially inefficient, inadequate and unsuitable."
The state appealed the ruling to the Texas Supreme Court, but a final decision is not expected until after the current legislative session.
When is a teacher pay raise and $3 billion in new money is not enough?
When you're a Communist Socialist Democrat Liberal!
And Mr. Gallego, it is CRIMINALLY wrong to STEAL from one group of people so you can give the stolen goods to another group of people, regardless of how entertainment culture has romanticized Robin Hood over the years.
Posting what I really want to say about Mr. Gallego's comments would get me banned. I'll say this instead: It's MORALLY wrong to STEAL from my hard earned money.
I wonder how many of those "poorest" districts are drowning with the children of illegals? My MIL taught in Brownsville, and she says that the strain that the illegals place on the education system are staggering.
I'm not from Texas, so I'll defer to ya'll, but -
"The bill, which would add about $1.5 billion a year to public schools over the next two years, has been opposed by every major education group in Texas."
I've got mixed feelings about that statement:
1. Throw more money = usually bad
2. Tick off education unions = usually good.
MAYBE - JUST MAYBE - the Republicans are taking away an excuse. When the Dems cry there is not enough money, give them the money so you can come back later and hold them accountable when it didn't fix it. So - then you move on your own agenda... Boy, I hope that's it.
Could it be because the lawmakers themselves use alcohol but no so much tobacco and candy?
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