The ATPE Governmental Relations team recaps the past week’s education news, legislative and election updates, and regulatory developments. ATPE members: Share your thoughts and ask our lobby team questions in The Rotunda on the ATPE Online Community. 

• Senate priority voucher bill filed and will receive hearing Jan. 28
• House and Senate each release draft budgets with $1 billion earmarked for vouchers
• House adopts rules banning minority-party chairs—and majority-party vice chairs
• Are you earning points in the ATPE Regional Advocacy Challenge?
• Test your current events knowledge with The Texas Tribune News Quiz

VOUCHERS: Sen. Brandon Creighton (R–Conroe) filed the Texas Senate’s priority voucher bill, Senate Bill (SB) 2, Friday and set the bill for a hearing Jan. 28 before the Senate Education Committee, which Creighton chairs. SB 2 directs the Texas Comptroller to establish and administer an education savings account (ESA) voucher program open to any children eligible to enroll in public schools. The program would be funded by $1 billion earmarked in the Senate’s budget, SB 1. ATPE will submit testimony on SB 2 at the Jan. 28 hearing. Look for bill analysis and more coverage here on Teach the Vote next week.

BUDGET: The House and Senate both released their first drafts of the state budget for the next biennium—the only bill the Legislature is constitutionally required to pass. In this blog post, ATPE Lobbyist Heather Sheffield takes a closer look at what these budget drafts contain ($1 billion for vouchers) and what they don’t (the funding necessary to cover inflation since the passage of House Bill 3 in 2019).

HOUSE RULES: The House, under the leadership of new Speaker Dustin Burrows (R–Lubbock), adopted its operating rules for the session Thursday. In doing so, state representatives voted 116-23 to require that all committee chairs be members of the majority party (at this time, the Republican Party) and that all committee vice chairs belong to the minority party (currently the Democratic Party). This represents the first time since 1969 that no member of the minority party holds a state chairmanship and breaks with a long tradition of bipartisan chairmanship in the Texas House. The vote for the current rules was bipartisan, with 55 Democrats voting in favor, and came after a contentious election season and speaker’s race in which naming members of the minority party committee chairs became a campaign issue. According to The Texas Tribune, the Democrats who supported the rule change did so to retain some seat at the table. Rep. Gene Wu (D–Houston), who leads the House Democratic Caucus, told the Tribune:  "What I think you saw here today is the House united and working on a set of rules that while it has hurt Democrats and reduced our power, but at least gives us some ability to interact in the process and have our constituents’ needs met." The Republicans who voted against the rule change did so because of the rule pertaining to vice chairs; many had campaigned on the theme of “no Democrat chairs.”

CHALLENGE: ATPE released details this week on the new ATPE Regional Advocacy Challenge (RAC), designed to create a little friendly competition as we advocate for Texas public schools during the 89th Legislature. The regions and members who RACk up the most points will be honored during the ATPE Summit, July 7–9 at the JW Marriott Austin Downtown, and there are prizes involved! Learn more on atpenews.org, but keep this in mind: Each member who completes the ATPE Member Advocate Program (ATPE-MAP) State-Level Advocacy Microcredential between now and March 2 will earn RAC points for themselves and their region! Log in to the ATPE Online Community to check out the current regional standings.  

TRIB QUIZ: The Texas Tribune releases a news quiz each week that is a fun, interactive way to keep up with the latest in the Lone Star State. Check out the quiz, and then share your results in the ATPE Online Community!