The House Select Committee on Educational Opportunity and Enrichment will meet at 9 a.m. CST Thursday, Nov. 9, and 9 a.m. CST Friday, Nov. 10. Committee members will discuss House Bill (HB) 1, authored by Chair Brad Buckley (R-Salado):

Relating to primary and secondary education, including the certification, compensation, and health coverage of certain public school employees, the public school finance system, special education in public schools, the establishment of an education savings account program, measures to support the education of public school students that include certain educational grant programs, reading instruction, and early childhood education, the provision of virtual education, and public school accountability.

The hearings will be open to the public and streamed publicly through the House’s webpage.

A link is available for the public to submit comments. All comments submitted will be given to committee members and displayed publicly on the committee’s webpage. We strongly encourage all educators and supporters of public education to submit a comment. This is your opportunity to tell the Legislature you want higher pay, less testing, and NO vouchers! To submit a comment:

• Visit the committee hearing comment page.
• Check the affirmation box at the top of the page, stating that you are a Texas resident, that the information you are providing is true, and that you understand that your comments will be available to the public.
• Enter your contact information.
• Next, click the date you wish to comment on. 
• Once you select your topic, leave your comment in the text input box. Each comment is limited to 3,000 words.

You can submit one comment per committee hearing.

This hearing will likely be the only opportunity to provide public comment on vouchers during the fourth called special session. This means it is important that you let your voice be heard! Please submit your comments to the committee. It’s time to let these committee members know you want the legislature to vote NO on ANY VOUCHER bill. Only when legislators stop pushing the governor’s voucher schemes can they legitimately address the issues Texans care about such as proper funding for our schools, teacher pay raises, and lower testing and accountability burdens! Let's flood the comments with input from educators and show the strength and power of our numbers!