This is an exact quote from the working paper of a senior adviser to Straus:

Option 1

Year 1–50% reduction from target revenue & 50% reduction from regular program

Year 2–50% reduction from target revenue & 50% reduction from regular program

Provisions sunset 8/31/2-13

Interim Committee to study school finance

Option 2:

Year 1 — proportionate reduction under current funding structure (Eissler)

Year 2–implementation of 1st year of SB 22 (Shapiro 25%/75%)

Estimate $4 billion owing FYs 2014 and 2015

Provisions sunset 8/31/2013

Interim Committee to study public school finance

There is an “understanding” that House Appropriations and Senate Finance can set the rates.

Everything that I have written here comes from two documents that I have seen, one from Sylvester Turner, the other from the senior Straus adviser.

* * * *

These were the two options that were on the table. The conferees chose to go with Option 2.

Eissler (pro-ration) is a 6% cut for all districts, including low target-revenue districts. In other words, the poorest districts get hurt the most.

SB 22, which I believe was the best of all options, is much better for poor districts.

The House insisted on a Sunset provision in two years.

Tagged: Florence Shapiro, Rob eissler, school finance

First, here’s an update from Abby Rappaport on the House:

Dawnna Dukes just lost the most exciting battle thus far on her amendment to eliminate school closures. Dukes spoke at length about the troubles at Webb Elementary School and argued that some school districts don’t mind school closure.  “That just means one less building with M&O that they don’t have to deal with in a part of town they weren’t paying attention to,” she said.

Rob Eissler motioned to table as he maintained that no school has to be closed under his bill and in fact there are more options for schools now (reconstitution in stead of closure, a year after reconstitution and a year at the commissioner’s discretion for improving schools).  After lengthy debate, Dukes lost on a division vote.

But until now, things have been pretty calm. Eissler had only motioned to table one other amendment (out of 26). The other amendment, from Guillen, would have changed the minimum plan to the “standard plan.” And Eissler and Ryan Guillen compromised on “basic plan.” No harm, no foul.
Most of the other amendments have focused on strengthening Career and Technical programs to ensure rigor. Some, like Patrick Rose and Marc Veasey, sought to ensure classes would maintain end of course exams and could be revoked if they did not maintain standards. Al Edwards even went so far as to require that the CT classes help students prepare for the work world by addressing  “workforce etiquette and dress and grooming standards” in addition to emotional readiness.

Joaquin Castro got his amendment asking the commissioner to consider a district’s promotion of “college aspirations” and Eddie Lucio is working an amendment to limit school counselors’ time away from their core job of advising students. Although Castro told us a while back that strengthening the role of guidance counselor may be a part of top ten percent compromises, Lucio said his amendment have nothing to do with such discussions.

Meanwhile,  the Senate debate has been mostly calm, but Steve Ogden is strenuously objecting to an amendment by Royce West which would delay implementation until 2013-14.  West argues that it will take time to develop new tests to determine college readiness in certain areas.

“You make it sound like it’s rocket science and it’s not. I submit to you that you and I could sit down and write the Alrgebra I test in a week. I would suggest its another excuse to delay accountability…While we fiddle Rome bills.”

West unashamedly took refuge behind Florence Shapiro’s skirt, asking Ogden if he trusted the Senate’s education chairwoman’s judgement — pointing out she deemed  the amendment acceptable. West prevails, 20-9.

Tagged: dawnna dukes, eddie lucio, Florence Shapiro, joaquin castro, marc veasey, patrick rose, Rob eissler, royce west, ryan guillen

The fallout from the State Board of Education’s debate over the teaching of evolution continued this morning in the Senate Education Committee, which held a spirited discussion on Sen. Kel Seliger’s SB 2275 transferring authority for textbook adoption from the State Board of Education to the state’s Education Commissioner.

How spirited?  Sen. Kip Averitt, one of the most soft-spoken members of the Senate, was moved to observe that partisan discord has so infected the State Board that its Democrats believe “Republicans want to impose their religious beliefs” on public school students while its Republicans believe “Democrats want to teach our children how to masturbate.”

That woke up the audience members, some no doubt wondering how such a course might boost their kid’s GPA.

(more…)

Tagged: dan patrick, Florence Shapiro, kel seliger, kip averitt, senate education committee, State Board of Education

As the Texas Senate began its debate this afternoon on Florence Shapiro’s bill to limit the Top Ten percent rule for university admissions, Royce West threw out some interesting numbers that call into question UT’s argument that it faces a “crisis” regarding its freshman class. UT has argued that its hands are increasingly tied by the rule, which now automatically fills more than 80 percent of each incoming class. According to West, UT accepted 1,000 less students in its 2008 freshman class than in 2007 and 1,200 fewer than it did in 2002.  If the admission rate had remained the same, the freshman class would be composed of less than 69 percent of Top-Ten-percenters.

Steve Ogden has picked up the theme:  Who decided to limit UT’s freshman class?  Not the Legislature. Ogden is arguing that the Legislature has deregulated UT so much  – in tuition rates, in “how they manage or mismanage” endowment funds — that it basically is operating much like a private institution. If there are so many qualified students, perhaps UT should consider admitting them, Ogden says.

Shapiro says the decision to limit the size of UT was made by an advisory committee, and notes there are few renowned universities over UT’s size. But she’s also announced she will take amendments to sunset her bill so that UT will be answerable to the Legislature in its admissions.

Ogden points out another benefit of the Top Ten percent law: Legislators used to spend large amounts of time using their influence to gain admission for key constituents. “It was a fairly significant investment of time and effort. It’s a lot less now,” he said.

Tagged: Florence Shapiro, royce west, Steve Ogden, top ten percent, UT

Republican Senator Bob Deuell passed his needle exchange bill from the Senate today, despite opposition from his own party and Texas Eagle Forum president Cathie Adams. Voting no were Republicans Craig Estes, Troy Fraser, Joan Hoffman, Steve Ogden, Dan Patrick, Florence Shapiro and Tommy Williams.

“I know this is a difficult vote. It shows up on scorecards and we have people who oppose this despite the facts,” Deuell acknowledged. But he urged passage, citing statistics showing that needle exchange bills save the government money by reducing HIV and  hepatitis.

The bill passed the Senate last session and died in the House. Duell says he thinks he has a better chance this session of passing the measure in the House, despite opposition from the Republican Party. He said he met during the interim with the party’s platform committee, and presented its members with research and statistics.  Duell say some programs have been able to get 20 percent of the participating addicts to enter rehabilitation programs.

Tagged: bob deuell, cathie adams, Florence Shapiro, needle exchange, texas senate

David Dewhurst’s committee assignments late Friday spotlighted the challenge this session presents for Florence Shapiro, whose interest in running for the U.S. Senate places her in perilous territory vis-a-vis the Texas Senate’s presiding officer, who likewise is considering a relocation to Washington. While Dewhurst’s committee assignments shifted authority from Shapiro to Judith Zaffirini for higher education issues, Shapiro’s remained chairman of the Senate’s Education committee. That gives her ample opportunity to build a statewide name for herself by:

1. Revisiting school finance. Shapiro has been working with Senate Finance Chair Steve Ogden to use $1.9 billion set aside in S.B. 1 to improve equity, reduce the Robin Hood effect on property-wealthy school districts and undo an obsolete “target revenue” provision creating pressure on districts to raise taxes. Both Shapiro and Ogden believe the devil this session won’t be in school finance details — they are confident they can pass a bill — but finding adequate money. Shapiro wants to up the ante to $3 billion for basic school funding.

2. Taking on the IRS to keep school construction costs cheap. Texas has hit an IRS-set limit on the school bonds it can back (thereby helping districts secure Triple-A ratings). Shapiro recently sent a letter to Texas’s D.C. delegation, noting that although the state passed legislation in 2007 ” to guarantee bonds up to 5 times the value of the Permanent School Fund, federal regulations limit this capacity to 2 1/2. As Texas has reached this capacity, the state may no longer provide for districts this cost saving measure.” Shapiro’s letter also noted that, while Congress is considering enormous stimulus spending, a simple change in the IRS rule would allow Texas school districts to easily finance badly needed construction projects. By pushing the issue, Shapiro stands to win big in the education community.

3. Proceeding with her bills, filed in November, to freeze higher ed tuition and soften the top ten percent rule. Zaffirini may be the higher ed committee chair, but Shapiro can still weigh in on high profile issues that resonate with voters.

History has not been kind to U.S. Senate candidates who lacked a statewide presence (See: Rick Noriega, Ron Kirk). That would seem to give an automatic advantage over Shapiro to statewide office holders like Railroad Commisioners Elizabeth Ames Jones and Michael Williams, former Secretary of State Roger Williams, as well as potential candidates Dewhurst and Attorney General Gregg Abbott. But Shapiro actually did quite well with her fund raising, last week reporting that she had $375,000 in the bank at year’s end, compared to Ames Jones’ $145,000, and Roger Williams’ $131,000 (of which he donated $100,000 himself). A spokesman for Michael Williams told the Houston Chronicle‘s R.G. Ratcliffe that Williams had not begun fund raising. (None of the Republicans matched Democratic Houston Mayor Bill White’s $640,000 — collected in less than a month from his candidate announcement.)

Shapiro has put together an impressive steering committee including Dallas cowboy legend Roger Staubach, 11 current members of the Texas Senate, former Lt. Gov. Bill Ratliff, retired energy executive Earle Nye. Note: In my original post, I opined the following: “If Dewhurst jumps in the race (and I think he will), he won’t be able to drop his own millions with impunity — as he has in previous state races. A federal rule specifies that if a candidate spends more than $800,000 of his or her own money on a campaign, then other candidates no longer have to abide in the federal $2,300 per individual contribution limit.” An alert reader informed me the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the “millionaire’s rule” last June. So much for an even playing field.

Since Dewhurst probably views her as a likely political opponent, the session will require some gentle navigation on Shapiro’s part. But given her early fund raising success and education community network, don’t count her out.

Tagged: bill ratliff, david dewhurst, earle nye, education, Elizabeth Ames Jones, Florence Shapiro, higher ed tuition, judith zaffirini, kay bailey hutchison, michael williams, roger staubach, Roger Williams, senate campaign, senate committee assignments, senate finance, Steve Ogden, top ten percent

UPDATE: I should have given Roger Williams credit in this writeup for his outstanding performance in the chair on the first day of the 2007 session, when he presided over the speaker’s race. He showed no favoritism and made a crucial ruling, overruling a point of order, that a secret ballot did not violate the constitution.

Williams is a former secretary of state who went on to serve as chairman of the Republican victory committee in the 2008 election cycle. He has been traveling around the state for many months on the speechifying circuit. Governor Perry has named him to several low-to-medium profile positions, involving economic development, the border, and base closures. While estimating personal wealth is a chancy business these days, it is safe to say that Williams, a Bush Pioneer fundraiser, did very well for himself as Metroplex automobile dealer, at least before the current economic crisis.

Secretary of State has generally been a political graveyard. Mark White, who served under Dolph Briscoe in the mid-seventies, was an exception; he moved on to become attorney general and governor. Jack Rains, who served under Clements, ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1990.

In addition to Democrat John Sharp, who has formally announced his candidacy, a long list of Republican hopefuls has surfaced. State senator Florence Shapiro has formed an exploratory committee; railroad commissioners Elizabeth Ames Jones and Michael Williams are interested; so is Fort Worth congresswoman Kay Granger and Ennis congressman Joe Barton; and the list of wannabes is certain to grow. You’d think this was a speaker’s race.

Roger Williams and I have had some long discussions — not much about politics, but a lot about minor league baseball. He was signed by the late Paul Richards, the onetime Chicago White Sox genius. He’s got a lot of great stories, and he tells them well. I’m a sucker for all things baseball, but I don’t necessarily come away from these chats thinking, “There goes a future United States senator.” Still, he has a name that is well known in the Metroplex and its suburbs, the biggest source of Republican votes in the state.

A special election for the Senate is the easiest route to political prominence. The whole battle is over name identification. Hutchison had a huge advantage in 1993 because she was a statewide officeholder (state treasurer) and was better known than her Democratic runoff rival, railroad commissioner Bob Krueger. A couple of members of Congress got in the race — Jack Fields and Barton — but someone who represents 1/32nd of Texas doesn’t have much chance against someone who represents 32/32nds. According to this standard, Ames Jones and Michael Williams ought to have the inside track. I’d put Roger Williams as #3. The second requirement, after name ID, is the ability to raise money. Here Roger Williams is #1.

Here’s more on the process of filling a Senate vacancy:

* The governor appoints a person to fill the vacancy temporarily. The appointee serves until a special election is held to serve the remainder of the six-year term, which, in Hutchison’s case, runs through the end of 2012.

* All candidates run in a single election; there is no party primary. However, the party affiliation of each candidate appears on the ballot. The top two candidates go into a runoff regardless of party affiliation and the winner serves out the term.

* The temporary appointee is eligible to run in the special election. The main barrier to entry is that a candidate must present a petition with 5,000 names.

* The election dates are fixed by the Texas Election Code. A special election must be held either on the second Saturday in May or on the first Tuesday following a Monday in November (general election day). However, an election cannot be held within 36 days of the date the vacancy occurs.

In effect, this means that if Hutchison resigns on or before April 3, 2009, the special election would be held on May 9, 2009. Here are the other dates:

* Hutchison resigns during the period April 4, 2009 – September 28, 2009: the special election will be held on Tuesday, November 3, 2009. Usually, constitutional amendments are the only statewide matter on the ballot in November of odd-numbered years.

* Hutchison resigns during the period September 29, 2009 – April 2, 2010: the special election will be held on Saturday, May 8, 2010.

* Hutchison resigns during the period April 3, 2010 – September 26, 2010: the special election will be held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010.

* Hutchison resigns during the period September 27, 2010 – April 8, 2011: the special election will be held on Saturday, May 14, 2011.

* Hutchison resigns during the period April 3, 2010 – September 26, 2010: the special election will be held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 (the same day as the general election for the 2010 governor’s race).

* Hutchison resigns during the period September 27, 2010 – April 8, 2011: the special election will be held on Saturday, May 14, 2011.

Senator Hutchison told me in an interview that she might not resign at all, but if she does resign, the timing would probably be “late next year.” That would put the special election for Senate on Saturday, May 8, 2010.

Tagged: clements, dolph briscoe, Elizabeth Ames Jones, Florence Shapiro, jack rains, joe barton, John Sharp, kay bailey hutchison, Kay Granger, mark white, michael williams, rick perry, Roger Williams, secretary of state, senate seat, special election

Your daily space queen video! It’s worth clicking on just to see what I look like when I forget to sit on a telephone book.

Paul Burka on the secret speaker’s ballot, and why he was for it before he he was against it. (Flip flopper.)

Honorably mentioned: Speaker Craddick, SREC, John Sharp, Bill White, Roger Williams, Florence Shapiro, Kay Granger, Elizabeth Ames Jones, Charlie Geren, Bill Zedler, Dan Flynn, Pete Sessions

Tagged: bill white, bill zedler, Charlie Geren, dan flynn, Elizabeth Ames Jones, Florence Shapiro, John Sharp, Kay Granger, paul burka, pete sessions, Roger Williams, secret ballot, speaker craddick, srec

OK, so maybe he hasn’t “posted” any “updates” on Kay Bailey Hutchison’s exploratory committee, but I did catch Burka in the hall to do a video with me to at least talk about the interview he had with her yesterday. And I’m all, yesterday? She never returns my calls.

In any case, STREET FIGHT!!

Perry v. Hutchison: Three Drink Minimum

Honorably Mentioned: KBH, Rick Perry, David Dewhurst, Florence Shapiro, Bill White, John Cornyn, Elizabeth Ames Jones, Susan Combs, Todd Staples, Mike Baselice, Dave Carney

Tagged: bill white, dave carney, david dewhurst, Florence Shapiro, kay bailey hutchison, mike baselice, paul burka, rick perry